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__label__wiki	0.889624	0.889624	May 23rd Thu, 4:00 PM - 7:00 PM \| S-klub Ingmar Bergman – Jan Mikulášek PERSONAS Divadlo Na zábradlí Prague With “Nordic profoundness” and tested by fate, the tenants of an unspecified flat find themselves in an existential tangle of disturbing, gloomy as well as tragicomic stories. A take on the key films and peculiar poetics of the film world legend – in theatrically condensed dramas directed by Jan Mikulášek. music supervision and directed by Jan Mikulášek translated by Zbyněk Černík and Dagmar Hartlová dramaturgy Dora Viceníková stage design and costumes Marek Cpin premiere 6 December 2018 characters and cast Von Merkens' mother Dita Kaplanová Elisabeth Vogler, Jenny Magdaléna Sidonová Alma, Von Merkens Jana Plodková Marianne Petra Bučková Eva, Liv Barbora Bočková Death, Von Merkens Jiří Vyorálek Johan, Lindhorst Jakub Žáček Block, Johann Vojtěch Vondráček “The founding fathers (of our theatre) – Ivan Vyskočil and Jiří Suchý – introduced themselves with the playful music show If a Thousand Clarinets, while at present the director Jan Mikulášek is dragging the prolapsed spiritual guts of Bergman’s characters across the stage. One could not come up with a more cruel image of how the world changed,” comments the critic Richard Erml on the daring dramaturgy of a piece created to celebrate the 60 anniversary of the Divadlo Na zábradlí theatre. The director Jan Mikulášek concentrates the vast film oeuvre of Ingmar Bergman in to several intimate dramas. The key characters of the legendary films The Seventh Seal, Scenes from a Marriage, Autumn Sonata, Hour of the Wolf and Persona meet in them to play a decisive game of relationships. The cold Scandinavian interior witnesses unsettling, raw as well as tragicomic stories and turns them into a claustrophobic purgatory. We see another distinctive and original testimony backed by brilliant acting performances on the scale of minimalist whispers to expressive cries demonstrating the great coordination and connectedness of the ensemble as well as the sense for smart repertoire choices. “Under the neat surface of an almost three hour long production, we see the unsettling grimace of familiar trauma and anxiety. The extent of mutual cruelty among close people is staggering. Mikulášek breaks Bergman’s dark chords into humorous tones which often bring relief. (…)” MARIE RESLOVÁ, AKTUALNĚ.CZ, 9 December 2018 “The present ensemble of Divadlo Na zábradlí is able to breathe stage life into the merciless, burn-out and inhuman world of Mikulášek. With their remarkable skills and astonishing technique, they keep the audience on the edge of their chair, ready, almost in awe. It is as if a visitor to Prada, Madrid, finds himself in a hall with the huge paintings of Goya’s Ghosts.” RICHARD ERML, REFLEX, 51–52/2018 After unfinished studies of directing at the Janáček Academy of Music and Performing Arts in Brno, Jan Mikulášek (1978) became the artistic director of the children's theatre Polárka in Brno, and later the Petr Bezruč Theatre in Ostrava (2005–2007) where he produced various extraordinary pieces (Three Sisters, Wild at Heart). He began working as a freelance artist in 2007, but continued to work with the company as a guest director (Eugene Onegin, 1984, The Wild Duck, Wuthering Heights). He also worked with the National Moravian-Silesian Theatre in Ostrava (Queen Margot, Gottland) or with Husa na provázku theatre (Hamlet). Among his most celebrated works, mention should be made of the productions at Reduta Theatre in Brno entitled The Elementary Particles, The Correspondence V+W, Europeana and Golden Sixties. In 2013, when the artistic director of the Reduta theatre in Brno took over direction of Divadlo Na zábradlí, Mikulášek became the main director and created pieces such as Grey Seventies (2013), The Stranger and Hedonists (2014), Doctor Zhivago and Hamlets (2015), Obsession (2016), AnderSen (2017) and Woodcutters (2018). He produced The Cremator (2016) and Marysha (2017) at the National Theatre. Mikulášek's directions have won critical and audience acclaim, chiefly thanks to highly stylized acting, grotesque overstatement, and excellent work with visual and musical elements. His directorial style is distinct for its play with context and thematic associations, displaying inspiration in the world of cinema and film narration. Apart from directing, he also composes stage music and teaches at the Theatre Faculty of the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague. The work of Jan Mikulášek has been systematically featured at the Flora Theatre Festival. There was also a program section including five of his newest productions in 2012. Divadlo Na zábradlí celebrated its 60th anniversary last year. Soon after it was established in 1958, it became a seedbed of Czech Theatre of the Absurd thanks to the director Jan Grossman and the dramatist Václav Havel. Several film directors of the Czech New Wave found a home there since they were not allowed to produce films during the normalization era (e.g. Jiří Menzel, Jaromil Jireš, and primarily Evald Schorm). The period of director Petr Lébl began in 1993, however, after his tragic death, David Czesany became the artistic director in 1999, followed by the dramatist and director Jiří Pokorný in 2003. As of the 2013/2014 season, the management of the theatre was assumed by the former artistic director of the Reduta Theatre – Petr Štědroň, who also brought with him the dramaturge Dora Viceníková, the director Jan Mikulášek, and the stage designer Marek Cpin. They reopened several productions from Brno in Prague (Europeana, Bourgeoisie, and Cabaret Kafka) and continue in their journey with original productions (Hedonists, Obsession, Hamlets,Velvet Havel), adaptation of non-dramatic texts – be it letters (Correspondence V+W), diaries (Golden Sixties) or novels (The Stranger), the only exception being the staging of Bernhard’s drama Woodcutters awarded the Theatre Newspaper Award in 2018. Directors such as Jiří Havelka, Jan Frič, Anna Petrželková Davidová, Miloš Orson Štědroň or David Jařab who became the second in-house director of the theatre, cooperate with the scene. The theatre has always been highly esteemed in the Czech Republic as well as abroad. It triumphed at the Theatre Critics' Awards in 2014 where the production Velvet Havel scored in all eight categories. Divadlo Na zábradlí has been a regular guest at the Flora Theatre Festival. All the above mentioned productions were featured at the festival in the past. photo: KIVA news \| about festival \| programme \| contact Divadelní Flora © 2018-2019 Flora Theatre Festival, z.s. Kosinova 874/7 represented by Vladimír Foret, Petr Nerušil and Simona Vičarová, committee members Reg. No.: 08464987 Tax Identification No.: CZ08464987 Bank: ČSOB Olomouc Bank Account No.: 290054671/0300 BIC/SWIFT: CEKOCZPP Organizer of the 23. Flora Theatre Festival: DW7, o.p.s. Dolní náměstí 23/42 represented by Jan Žůrek, director	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line0
__label__cc	0.683017	0.316983	Daniel Larrieu's Pierrot is in black \|In Live Daniel Larrieu’s Pierrot is in black. Not a mourning kind of black, rather the color of the night all wrapped up in its mysteries and transparency games. A gracious, clever like a cat Daniel Larrieu appears on stage with his customary lightness and impertinent gesture. A dancer, choreographer, author, gesture consultant, he who has a fondness for the shadows comes back in the spotlight with his latest piece Littéral, for which he is all of the above. Daniel Larrieu in Littéral by Araso A 2017 creation, the work gathers six dancers and just as many brooms, which are suspended or held. The performers, whether males or females, successively put on the Pierrot dress over their ecru tights and baby pink skirts. The acting’s subtlety sets the accuracy of the gesture by the milligram, with mime and repetitions. The dance is the non-dribbling type, conscientiously avoiding the prettiness trap. Littéral is an infinitely poetical piece, in which everything was chosen with care until the traditional brooms made in France. It releases a sweetly dated, regressive perfume that gives way to aesthetics’ pleasure. Littéral was presented by the Théâtre de l’Aquarium on June 17th 2017 in June Events Festival. Illustration © Araso	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line2
__label__cc	0.730575	0.269425	Mariano Fortuny: silk for the gods \|In Exhibitions In more than a century of fashion, nothing came close to defying the fabric’s supreme luxury. We owe Mariano Fortuny a unique holistic artistic approach, which gave birth to one of Venice’s most sumptuous palace. Painting, panelling, sculpture, embroidery, textile dance together the song of art and science in an orgy of beauty. To close Paris Fashion Week, Palais Galliera opens its new exhibition, Fortuny, a Spaniard in Venice. The monastic ambiance of the show along with a refined scenography appear to clash with a hyperactive Fortuny, curious of everything and holder of multiple patents. The Hellenics, starring the Delphos dress, the Knossos shawl and their likes have made history. Glorified by Marcel Proust, they sit there as silent witnesses of the past. The minimalistic environment is the scenery of a well-documented, researched typology, ranging from Venice to the East. Palais Gallaiera’s latest show will most certainly prove appealing to purists and other foes of extravaganza. Fortuny, a Spaniard in Venice, from October 4th 2017 to January 7th 2018 at Palais Galliera. Visuals © Araso ADAGP	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line3
__label__cc	0.715266	0.284734	Building 1 of Business Park Varna / 2005 Total built-up area 14 328.40 м2 / Design 2005 Investor: Business Park Varna Stages: preliminary, technical & working design This is the first building from the Business Park Varna complex and the office, storage and commercial areas are purposed for rent. The comfort of the tenants is ensured by snack-bars, fitness and underground parking. Building 1 is situated in the northwest corner of the estate, right next to the entrance/exit road of the plot on the Sofia-Varna highway. The terrain changes its height in southeast direction and the building rises at its highest part. Enough parking lots for visitors and workers are organized on the terrain level, as well as an official parking in the underground level, accessible through a ramp. There are two pedestrian approaches towards the building- one from the north and one from the east. Commercial area for industrial goods, divided into different units accessible from the atrium and from outside, is located on the ground level. There are storages to the south, which can either be used separately, or together with the commercial areas, and are accessible from outside through a ramp and a car-park right next to it. There is a conference hall with a depository next to it for multifunctional configurations, facing the main entrance. A snack-bar and a caf? with their own entrances from outside and separate kitchens, accessible from the south ramp are also designed. This building has a central atrium, around which the different entrances on the ground level are organized. It also ensures enough light for the inner office areas of the building. The vertical communication cores have lobbies on each floor, oriented towards the atrium. Two panoramic and two regular lifts with stops on each level are designed. There are storage areas, a fitness centre, parking lots, a security centre and hygienist premises in the underground level. Materials used in the fa?ades’ treatment are: - Elalbond cladding, color by RAL 9007 on door frames and peaks - structural curtain wall with vertical caps colored by RAL 9007 - ceramic cladding Creaton in two colors – dark-grey and light beige - shading louvers on the fourth floor in the same color as the Etalbond cladding.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line7
__label__wiki	0.789052	0.789052	Hover over the image to enlarge Click the image to enlarge Sophie Dunlop The Leopard back to the Artist page back to the Stockroom page Simon Chan has established a reputation as a professional gallery director who has helped many aspiring artists by showing them in his Art Atrium Gallery. Mixing exhibitions of established artists with younger artists, he has created a perfect way to promote living artists in difficult times. Simon has also endeavoured to get prominent figures in the art world to open his exhibitions, which is a good way to publicise and promote younger artists. I commend Simon’s activities, and hope that the artists he has promoted will not forget who first gave them a helping hand. It is the first step up which counts so much in today’s very competitive art world. Lou Klepac OAM Art historian, Author, Curator & Publisher Art Atrium is the invention of Simon Chan, an Architect who has a passion for art, especially indigenous art and architectural drawings. He is one of the few people with the breadth of experience and opportunity to hold such shows at his gallery that demonstrate his discerning eye and appreciation for the unusual and the best of art. Professor Philip Cox AO Professor of Architecture UNSW & Founding Partner of Cox Architecture Simon Chan is a practising architect with a passionate commitment to promoting contemporary art that reflects Australia’s multiculturalism, and in which Australian Indigenous art has an important dynamic presence. In 2009 he founded Art Atrium in Bondi Junction to provide a dedicated space that would allow him to share his artists’ works with audiences, and also to enjoy the physical experience of curating the exhibitions. I have observed the superb way he manages the launch of these events, and I know that all of his artists appreciate the encouragement and advice that he never hesitates to offer. Dr. Mabel Lee PhD FAHA Adjunct Professor of Chinese Studies, School of Languages & Culture A18, The University of Sydney Simon has established an active platform at Art Atrium to encourage cross cultural expression and collaboration among artists from different cultural background. I was honoured to open an exhibition of Chinese Australian women artists, as well as to conduct an Artists in Conversation event when artists directly communicate with art lovers. His passion towards art goes beyond his Gallery, and leads him to generously support art endeavours in public art institutions. He offers guided tours as a Community Ambassador at Art Gallery of NSW, and also serves as a Director on the Board of VisAisa which plays a vital role in promoting Asian art in Australia. Yin Cao Curator of Chinese Art at ART GALLERY OF NEW SOUTH WALES I love the paintings I have bought from Art Atrium - they have really struck a chord. It's also been an absolute pleasure talking with and buying from Simon; it's clear he's in it for the love of the art and that makes the whole experience so much less 'transactional' and more emotional. Amanda Falconer Management consultant & business storytelling specialist Art Atrium 12 Daniel Street (Entrance on Daphne St at corner of Daniel St) Botany NSW 2019 info@artatrium.com.au © Art Atrium 2020 All Rights Reserved \| Powered By Netstripes	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line9
__label__wiki	0.680006	0.680006	Neath Port Talbot street lighting It is reported that the street lights are in a dreadful state and need a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) to restore them. One hopes that the opportunity is taken to remove the unsightly remains of the previously upgraded street lights (picture). It seems that, once again, because of government rules regarding large capital expenditure, a public-private partnership is "the only game in town" for the county borough. This party has often criticised PPPs and PFIs (Public Finance Initiatives) as they are applied to schools, hospitals and similar institutions. However, unlike a school or hospital building, user demands from a streetlight are relatively simple and unchanging - that it works, it stays upright, it looks OK - so the relative inflexibility of PFI is less of a problem. There is also less scope for the private partner to load unforeseen charges on the back end. Liberal Democrat councils like Islington, Cambridge and Redcar & Cleveland have therefore instituted, or are about to institute, PPPs for street lighting with only a few misgivings. One of these is, that if the PFI partner fails to deliver, the local authority is over a barrel and in a weak position to allow enforcement action to take any time (especially in the winter). If it decides to guarantee a remedy, (eg demanding a bond), it is likely to increase the price demanded by the partner. The cost benefit analysis must also include realistic provision for the Council's legal services. So, clearly, the choice of partner is crucial (the provider of the Crymlyn incinerator is an instructive example) and there must be safeguards in place. - Frank Little Female prison for Wales - second thoughts On 13th August (see archives), we started a campaign for women from South Wales, committed to gaol, to be housed nearer their home towns. Our thought was that it would aid rehabilitation and also be less hard on their families. However, campaigners for women have since pointed out that the existence of a local prison is more likely to encourage magistrates and judges to sentence women to prison, where they now impose non-custodial sentences. This is against a background that in England and Wales: In the last decade the women’s prison population has more than doubled. Over one third of women in adult prisons had no previous convictions, which is more than double the figure for men The majority of the sentenced female prison population are held for non-violent offences. Much of the rise in the female prison population can be explained by a significant increase in the severity of sentences. In 1991 eight per cent of women convicted in the Crown Court of motoring offences went to prison. By 2001 that had increased to 42 per cent. A women convicted of theft or handling at the Crown Court is now twice as likely to go to prison as in 1991. At the magistrates’ court, the chances of a women receiving a custodial sentence have risen seven-fold. (Source http://www.inside-out.org.uk/news/news_201205BLF.htm) Cilfrew and Trebanos planning decisions We understand that the controversial matter of blasting at Trebanos has now been referred up to the Department of Trade and Industry. However, the planning committee held last week did approve the construction of plant to service the gas pipeline within the community of Cilfrew, in spite of the opposition of John Warman (Liberal Democrat, Cimla). The Neath Guardian reports that some councillors were advised by council's monitoring officers not to vote. This is likely to form the basis of an application for judicial review, which Cilfrew residents are investigating. If Britain is to avoid dependence on Russia's Gazprom for its gas supplies in future, then the pipe from Milford Haven is essential. Transfer stations are needed at intervals to distribute the gas into local networks. However, Cilfrew's case, backed up by engineering advice, is that there are other suitable sites for a gas transfer station in the area which are less of a potential danger to residents, and do not create traffic hazards. Labour minister endorses LibDem councils In her opening speech to the Labour conference in Manchester, local MP and minister without portfolio at the Cabinet Office, Hazel Blears said: "Look around the great cities of Britain, go to Birmingham, Leeds, Glasgow, Cardiff or Newcastle, and you can see a new confidence, a new Renaissance. "The British entrepreneurial spirit flourishing against a backdrop of economic stability and renewed public services." I am sure that Rodney Berman, Liberal Democrat leader of Cardiff City Council, would welcome that endorsement, as will the Liberal Democrats of Newcastle-upon-Tyne who increased their majority at the local elections in May this year. And while Leeds may not be in Liberal Democrat hands, if you approach the city from the south-west, you will pass through the second-greenest council in England, Kirklees. The green initiative was taken by the former Liberal Democrat-led administration. Media - the good guys We try not to be totally negative in our comments, so as a counter-balance to the previous posting, here are some names of journalists who have given the conference serious coverage. Serious, but not earnest, a thought which naturally leads to the name of Michael White (pictured) of the Guardian. His public interview of Ming Campbell at the conference was a model of what these things should be: probing, not hectoring; and conducted with humour, but not maliciously so. Trivia there was, but it formed only a small part of the interview. White's sympathies are clearly with Labour. He is an Atlanticist, rather than a European, and he also disagrees with us over proportional representation, but he is a fair reporter of the old school. Another good old-fashioned journalist is Patrick Hannan. His style on Radio Wales' "Something else" and "Call to Order" is also to probe with humour. More acerbic is Andrew Rawnsley, who nevertheless was fair in chairing a lively Brighton fringe debate on the Liberal Democrats and the media. It is hard to discern where Rawnsley's sympathies lie, but the impression that he is particularly tough when interviewing prominent LibDems, suggests that he might be a closet party follower. A usually quite partisan Labour supporter is Steve Richards of The Independent. However, in his column of 21st September, he discussed dispassionately Liberal Democrat tax policies and their implications for cooperation with other parties in the event of a balanced parliament. "Anyone who listened to the [tax debate] would recognise this is a left-of-centre party, gripped by the need to redistribute widely, and to raise cash for some expensive spending commitments, such as the abolition of top-up fees for students," Richards wrote. "Those speaking in favour of the new economic package argued passionately that the proposals redistributed more extensively than the party's previous policies. Opponents of the proposals protested that there was a need to redistribute more widely still." Richards added: "It was a good debate, and one the two bigger parties would be too scared to stage." Finally, David Hencke, the Westminster correspondent of the Guardian, cuts through the superficial assessments of the party and our leader. Of the Liberal Democrats, he writes (in "The House Magazine"): "They have lost support in the [opinion] polls, but not in elections. Since Menzies' leadership, they have taken a seat from Labour in Dunfermline and came within 600 votes of taking Bromley & Chislehurst from the Tories. Neither of these results - particularly the slump in Tory support in outer London - were picked up in the Westminster village. And council by-elections show a similar trend." And on Ming Campbell: "His detractors cite his age, his laid-back approach, and fear that when it comes to the next general election, he will perform badly in comparison with the dynamic young David Cameron and the experienced and streetwise Gordon Brown. His supporters think his gravitas, his diplomatic ability to heal breaches between warring factions, his principled stand over the war in Iraq, and defence of individual civil liberties, will chime with the electorate." What these writers have in common is the perception that elections are not just a horse-race, but are about people and policies, and that few men and women go into politics as knaves and liars. Demise of TV political journalism The one thing that spoiled the view from the conference hotel in Brighton this week was the burnt-out shell of a pier. I did think of using a picture of this as a symbol of what has happened to the once-glitzy Conservative campaign, but I see that the Tories have now done this for themselves with a replacement of their once-proud blue dragon with a squiggle. Perhaps it is more representative of what has happened to political reportage on national TV, on BBC in particular. (I am sure that HTV did their usual sound job, but, sadly, I didn't have the equipment in Brighton to check on the media back home.) Nick Robinson's idea of deep analysis at the conference was to tote a life-size cut-out of Menzies Campbell along the sea-front and to ask holiday-makers some facile questions. On the late-night news programmes, there was a vague attempt to build up Charles Kennedy as a threat to Menzies Campbell's leadership. Not only was this scuppered by CK's competent, but uninspiring speech, but also by his own clearly sincere statement of gratitude and loyalty to Ming. TV ignored the rousing speeches by Nick Clegg (crime and civil liberties), Chris Huhne (environment) and Ed Davey (renewable energy). The very ubiquity of these three could even have given the media a better story than the one they went with: fresh challengers for the leadership. More seriously, the media did a disservice to the British public by not presenting the very distinct agenda which our main speakers laid out. Liberal Democrats are green, and in government We have long suspected the Green Party of being little Englanders. A few years back, their official policy was to quit the European Union. They now realise that the best way of changing the EU's protectionist policies is to fight from the inside, but their attitude to the rest of Europe is still rather equivocal. The confirmation came this morning, on Radio Wales, when the Green Party Wales Campaign Coordinator (or some such title) stated as fact that our party is not only not really green, but where it has any power, it puts anti-green measures into effect. We suggest to her that she looks at the largest (in area) nation of the United Kingdom, ruled from Edinburgh since 1999 by a coalition of Labour and Liberal Democrats.(The photo shows Willie Rennie MP for Dunfermline having a diagnostic check at the LibDem conference.) Nicol Stephen, the leader of the Scottish Liberal Democrats, and deputy First Minister, holds the key portfolio of Enterprise. Liberal Democrats led the way in Scotland in improving their resource management through the National Waste Strategy based on the three Rs - Reduce - Re-use - Recycle and by setting a Recycling Target of 55% for 2020. They are well on the way to meeting the first stage of that target by reaching a level of 25% this year which will put Scotland ahead of England and Wales. Scottish Liberal Democrats also led the way on Renewable Energy by setting a Target of 40% by 2020. This was double the target of 20% set by the UK Government for the same period. Nicol Stephen confirmed in Brighton last Monday that, while Labour in Westminster is behind its target, the Scots are ahead of theirs. (PS - I have just learned that Green councillors in York have voted against eco-housing and a flagship world class sustainable recycling centre and in favour of higher ticket prices on park and ride. What was that about power and anti-green policies again?) Liberal Democrat Conference Diary - The Finale Liberal Democrats Conference Diary - Day 4 Liberal Democrat Conference Diary - Day 3 Well since it's Conference Season, here is the first entry in the Conference Diary. I don't know why, but the diary has begun on day two. There will be one small video released each day of the Conference at Brighton. Liberal Democrats – The Real Alternative to Labour in Neath Port Talbot County Borough. Aberavon and Neath Liberal Democrats prove that we are the Real Opposition to Labour within the Borough. While the rest of the opposition groups remain silent, on many important issues, the Liberal Democrats are actively campaigning all year round, not just at election time, calling the Labour Administration to account. Baglan Energy Park Press Reports 2003: Baglan Energy Park to Employ 6,000! True Figures 2006: Baglan Energy Park Employs just 379! I’m sure that I’m not the only person who thought the estimation of 6,000 Jobs that would be created by the Baglan Energy Park was optimistic. Quite interestingly, former Council Leader Noel Crowley passes comment some 18 months (19th March 2003) previously in the Evening Post that “There are as many people working in the Baglan Energy Park now as BP used to employ...” After some investigation and asking ex-employees of BP Baglan Bay how many used to work at the site, the answer came back at around 2,300 at its height. So, how many people are employed by the Baglan Energy Park? Following a request for information, under the Freedom of Information Act, back in February 2005 from the WDA the true figures for the number of people employed within the Energy Park, back then, was 280. More recent figures provided by the WDA/ WAG put the numbers of people employed in the Energy Park at 379 people. Basically the increase in numbers of people employed in the energy park has been some 99 in the past eighteen months. Another way of looking at it would be 66 per year. At this rate it will be September 2035 before the Energy Park employs as many people as BP Baglan did at its height, and, it will be September 2091 before it employs the 6,000 that the Press originally published in 2003! We believe that the potential of the Energy Park is enormous and we urge NPTCBC to be more proactive in publicising the merits of the park to the business community. - Gary Lewis Nick Clegg discusses his first six months as Liberal Democrat Shadow Home Secretary Nick Clegg discusses his first six months as Liberal Democrat Shadow Home Secretary discussing the failures of Labour and successes of the Liberal Democrats in tackling crime and anti-social behaviour. Policy Discussion at Tonmawr Community Centre Monday 25 September 7:30pm Come to Tonmawr Community Centre on Monday, 25th September at 7.30 p.m. to meet and question Liberal Democrat candidates for next year’s Assembly elections. Also hear about Liberal Democrat tax proposals, and other policy matters being discussed and agreed upon at our conference in the coming week. Ask about any other Liberal Democrat policies. Most importantly: tell us what we can do for you. From the inception of Aberavon and Neath Liberal Democrats, we have made a point of holding our monthly meetings in different parts of the County Borough. As interest in the Liberal Democrats, and disaffection with New Labour, have grown, we have been invited to many more local community centres away from the main towns of Neath Port Talbot county borough. This month, we are grateful to new members Des and Annette Sparkes for the chance to visit Tonmawr and learn first hand of the concerns of the people of Pelenna ward. I guarantee that at least one of your candidates for next year’s assembly elections will be on hand. Clare Short delivers yet another Blow to the Government It would seem that the Knives are out for Clare Short at Westminster. Her attack on the Government this week in a letter she sent to the Independent has ruffled Labours feathers to a degree where they are considering disciplinary action against the former Cabinet Minister. More discerning for them is her intention to resign at the next election and campaign for a Hung Parliament. I never thought I would ever say this, but I find myself in agreement with Claire Shorts comments. It is what we, as Liberal Democrats, have been banging on about for years – Electoral Reform is long overdue. Below is an extract from her letter, judge for yourself: "Cabinet government has gone, the House of Commons - with guillotines on all business - is weak and ineffective, and the rise of the third party means our electoral system is ever-more distorted. The vote in 2005 of 9.54 million was the second-lowest Labour vote in post-war Britain. With the support of only 22 per cent of the electorate, we see power more concentrated in a No 10 that consults no one, engages in deceit over matters of profound importance and is not held to account by Cabinet, parliamentary party or the wider party. The Prime Minister’s powers of patronage turn too many MPs into obedient ciphers who await the call to ministerial office or quiet elders who await the House of Lords." "The Labour Party has lost its way, our constitutional arrangements are broken and the gap between the political elite and the country grows ever wider. At the same time, Britain has become more unequal, violent and unhappy. And the world is in desperate trouble." "My conclusion is that the key to the change we need is a hung parliament which will bring in electoral reform." If you agree or disagree with Clare Shorts comments then you can enter the debate at The Taking Power Forum. - Richie Northcote Vehicle Child Restraint - New Law The new law regarding regulations governing the use of child car seats will come into force on Monday 18 September 2006 with many people still completely unaware of this change. There has been a clear lack of publicity on this matter so for clarity sake the new law can be found at: http://www.thinkroadsafety.gov.uk [Superseded link http://www.thinkroadsafety.gov.uk/campaigns/childcarseats/childcarseats.htm replaced 2011-10-11 - FHL] The main reason for this change is clearly illustrated as: "When a vehicle is involved in a crash it comes to an abrupt halt. If not restrained, occupants will have their own crash into the vehicle structure. Restraint systems are therefore designed to help keep people away from the vehicle structure and to distribute the forces of a crash over the strongest parts of the human body, with minimum damage to the soft tissues." "Adults are restrained by a three point seat belt. This is designed for adults and not for children. Children are not small adults. They are proportioned differently and their key organs are in different places. Their tissues have different strengths and weaknesses and their needs change as they grow. Therefore they need a child restraint system to cope with the different stages of their development." However, what strikes me as bizarre is that families have to ensure that these extra child restraints are fitted to the family vehicle (which on average, is normally driven carefully and to the speed limit) and Taxi-Cabs (which on average, try to get you to your destination as fast as they can so that they can race to their next fare) are exempt from this legislation! Where is the sense in that? Perhaps somebody can explain this to me because no matter how hard I try, I just cannot comprehend the reason for such an exemption. Ask a policeman electronically If you click on the link below, you will get through to the South Wales Police Authority / How to contact the Authority. http://www.south-wales.police.uk Towards the bottom of this page is an email link to email the constabulary. All members who have sent an email to this address have had it bounced. We would be glad to hear from any readers of this who have successfully communicated with the South Wales Police via email. (There are no prizes!) Fun and politics in the sun It was meant mainly as a social occasion, but politics did intrude on the barbecue at Sheila Waye's place last month. Returning Officer Paul Meara took the opportunity to dot the i's and cross the t's of Sheila's adoption as candidate for Neath in next year's assembly elections. (See the complete slate at www.southwaleslibdems.org.uk) Of course, a speech was called for and the photo shows Sheila waxing passionate about her aim of restoring quality to public services in Wales, especially the NHS. But the abiding memory was of good food, drink and chat on a beautiful late summer day. Running commentary from the Westminster stadium "Well, Mark, it looks as if New Labour are about to make a substitution." "Yes, John, they had to do something. Blair has got to be the man to come off. He is on his own up there and not getting any support from his team. Mind you, he doesn't help himself by holding on to the ball and following his own devices." "Do you think that's the result of what people are saying is the undue influence of his personal manager, Bush?" "That could be. It's certain as can be that he's lost the trust of his team, and now the crowd are getting on his back. They're calling for their favourite, Brown, to come on." "But he's a traditional sort of left-winger, isn't he?" "He used to be thought of in that role, yes, but he is not as strongly left-sided as you would think. It will be a straight swap up front, with exactly the same game plan." "Mark, what are the implications for the Wales and Scotland matches?" "Well, they must stand a better chance with a settled formation, but unless they change their strategy ..." "Sorry, Mark, must interrupt you there, something amazing's happening on the bench. They've got the numbers ready, but they're not holding them up. Blair is definitely coming off, but when? It beats me, are they going to leave it too late, I wonder?" Stephen Robert "Steve" Irwin (February 22, 1962 – September 4, 2006) The world today mourns the loss of a true naturalist. Love him or loathe him, this man brought the wilderness to life and captivated his audience in a way that none before him were ever able to. He managed to reinvigorate interest in the natural environment, and, had a remarkable charisma the world will sorely miss. Many disagreed with his methods, but personally, I believe that the work and efforts of Steve Irwin will be remembered for decades to come, not least for his true belief in the conservation of the natural environment. Inconsistencies in magistrates' sentences I’m sure that regular readers of the Neath Port Talbot Guardian couldn’t help but see the front page headlines “I Won’t Pay” in the 31st of August edition of the paper. It would appear that a Cwmavon man has been fined a hefty £320 for dropping a cashpoint receipt. The article then goes on to say about other cases where people have faced hefty fines for littering, £275 for dropping a cigarette butt at the Tesco Store in Neath Abbey, £260 for dropping a wrapper in McDonalds in Afan Way. The Guardian then goes on to break down the costs of the fine imposed on the man from Cwmavon: The actual fine was £100, costs were £220!!! Cashpoint Man stated in the article: “When it happened I wasn’t aware that I had dropped anything... I was followed by two council officials who came onto me to say I had dropped a bit of paper. I had been to the cash point because I was doing my shopping. My cash point receipt must have fallen outside my wallet.” It would appear that from the article the costs were for the time spent in NPTCBC perusing the case. Commenting in the article, Council’s Assistant Solicitor Mr Michael Shaw said: “The costs are calculated very simply on the basis of officer’s time and a contribution to prosecution costs…The magistrates are given a schedule of costs before hand and it is up to them what they want to impose; but the costs submitted are the costs to the authority.” So, it is up to the Magistrates if they wish to allow such costs!!!!! With such generous costs being awarded to the council, perhaps they could afford to empty the dog bins in the county more often; the dog bin in the George Memorial Park, towards the entrance to St. Theodore Road has been overflowing this week! Additionally, in the article, comparisons were drawn with an assault case where the fine was £75 with £50 costs. There is quite an inconsistency here, where someone who drops a receipt gets fined £100 with £220 cost while someone who assaults someone gets fined a lesser amount (£75) and lesser costs (£50). Such inconsistencies in sentencing aren’t that uncommon. A Guardian article from 22nd April 2004, “Victims lose out after theft of holiday funds”, describes how someone (with no previous convictions) cheated her eleven friends of just over £1,000 and received a custodial sentence of three months. Another Guardian article from 18th March 2004 reports that a Social Worker, who stole just over £7,000, received a twelve month sentence suspended for two years. The victim, a 92-year-old woman, was a client of the social worker. The Social Worker stole an amount which was seven times the amount the person who stole from her friends, stole from someone who was her client (she was in a position of trust, and that trust was broken) and the person the social worker stole from was a vulnerable adult. Surely, a custodial sentence was more appropriate in the case of the Social Worker rather than the woman who stole from her eleven friends? Gary Lewis WELL DONE JOHN WARMAN The South Wales Evening Post has reported this week that Liberal Democrat Councillor for Cimla, John Warman has been plodding the streets collecting signatures for a petition against the relocation of the Neurosurgery Department to Cardiff. By-Election Watch August 2006 The Liberal Democrats gained 5 seats, held 1 and lost 1 The Labour Party held 1 seat The Conservative Party gained 1 seat, held 5 and lost 1 Independent Candidates held 1 seat and lost 3 Plaid Cymru lost 1 seat The clear victors in August’s by-elections, once again, were the Liberal Democrats by gaining 5 seats, holding 1 and losing 1. (+4 seats) See the full results below: By-Election Results: Thursday 31st August 2006 Chepstow TC, Thornwell Lab 176 (50.0), Con 112 (31.8), LD Henry Ashby 64 (18.2). Majority 64. Turnout 19%. Lab hold East Staffordshire BC, Town Con 664 (64.9; +24.1), Lab 255 (24.9; +3.3), UKIP 104 (10.2; +10.2), [Ind (0.0; -37.7)]. Majority 409. Turnout 20.9%. Con hold Llanbadarn Fawr WCC, Sulien LD Bob Morris 192 (90.6), Con 20 (9.4). Majority 172. Turnout 15.2%. LD gain from PC Tonbridge and Malling BC, Ightham Con 352 (53.9; -20.6), LD Rebecca Hunt 301 (46.1; +20.6). Majority 51. Turnout 42.5%. Con hold Uttoxeter PC, Town Con 588 (58.1), Lab 247 (24.4), UKIP 102 (10.1), LD 75 (7.4). By – Election Results: Thursday 24th August 2006 Elmbridge BC, Walton Central Ind 656 (50.0 –2.7) Con 482 (36.7 +5.1) LD 115 (8.8 –0.1) Lab 59 (4.5 –2.2) Majority 174. Turnout 28.8. Ind hold Harrow LBC, Harrow Weald LD P Scott 1288 (46.9 +12.0) Con 1088 (39.6 –6.1) Lab 295 (10.7 –8.7) Green 74 (2.7 +2.7) Majority 200. Turnout 33.5 LD gain Con Stratford upon Avon DC, Alcester Con 798 (53.5 +22.4) LD Karyl Rees 638 (42.8 –13.9) UKIP [0.0 –6.6]. Majority 160. Turnout 31.82. Con gain LD Southsea TC, Craneswater Con 470 (55.3) LD R Inkpen 379 (44.6) Majority 91. Turnout 21.37. Con hold By-Election Results: Thursday 17th August 2006 Lewes DC, Ouse Valley and Ringmer LD Peter Gardiner 715 (43.7; +21.6), Con 521 (31.8; +6.5), Seagulls 359 (21.9; +21.9), Lab 41 (2.5; -10.7) [Green (0.0; -7.0)] [Ind (0.0; -32.4)]. Majority 194. Turnout 33.4%. LD gain from Ind Caradon DC, St Cleer and St Neot LD Bob Emuss 519 (58.8; +23.3), Con 363 (41.2; +16.0), [Ind (0.0; - 39.3)]. Majority 156. Turnout 24.6%. LD hold Enfield LBC, Turkey Street Con 877 (40.1; -0.2), Lab 874 (40.0; +11.3), UKIP 174 (8.0; +8.0), Save Chase Farm 133 (6.1; +6.1), LD David Peters 77 (3.5; +3.5), Green 51 (2.3; +2.3), [Ind (0.0; -30.0)]. Majority 3. Turnout 24.7%. Con hold Highland Council UA, Lochardil LD David Henderson 514 (43.9; +43.9), Ind 263 (22.4; -32.4), SNP 212 (18.1; +18.1), Lab 108 (9.2; -7.0), Con 49 (4.2; +4.2), Ind 26 (2.2; -52.6). By – Election Result: Thursday 3rd August 2006 Eden DC, Orton with Tebay LD M Wilcox 165 (50.5 +3.1) Ind [0.0 –52.6] Majority 3. Turnout 29.8. LD gain Ind Liberal Democrats – The Real Alternative to Labour... Nick Clegg discusses his first six months as Liber... Policy Discussion at Tonmawr Community Centre Mond... Clare Short delivers yet another Blow to the Gover... Stephen Robert "Steve" Irwin (February 22, 1962 – ...	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line18
__label__cc	0.725329	0.274671	Carnegie Mellon University Counterpoint The A Cappella Blog The Recording Rant It’s the most wonderful time of the year. No, this is not a repost from December. My Christmas is the end of the college semester, when so many groups decide to display their hard work and money spent by releasing their albums. Months and months have been spent finding new, creative ways to reinvent songs that have usually been recorded before, but these groups have unique takes on these songs that make them worth listening to; or so we hope. Isn’t that why you buy an album? We hope that what we find inside that professionally designed cover is a new experience of songs that we might have heard before, or a song that is so well-done that we get on iTunes to grab the real thing. We wait patiently for the CD release concerts, willing to pay what we do knowing that our interest will be spiked and once again we will find new inspiration in this genre that we have invested so much in. Much like Christmas, though, there are gifts every once in awhile, like the two-sizes-too-big sweaters from a crazy aunt, that you were hoping would for once be something that you actually wanted. Every year you open that box and find the same thing. In a cappella, that is too often the case. “Fix you”. Those two words have appeared on more a cappella albums than I care to count for the past few years. Anybody could make the same case for “Hide and Seek”. These are songs that have ruled the track lists for numerous CDs, but this year was a year of a swing in the trend. While there were repeats, which are going to happen eventually no matter how unique you might think your choice in songs is, they were done with their own style. I credit music directors and producers who are aware of the possibility of “Viva La Vida” appearing on ten to twelve albums this year, in realizing that making their version different could make all of the difference when they are being reviewed or listened to by any general a cappella enthusiast. Now, while I would love to reveal what I have personally discovered in a majority of the albums released this season, I would rather leave it to you to judge on your own. In these albums though, you might wonder what it is that is making you so excited about the music. Well… It’s the arrangements. A part of it is the talent. Another part is the producer. In some cases, a large part of it is the producer. What sets albums apart from each other, is the fresh ideas that come about with each passing semester. A prime example of this is the Stanford Harmonics’ version of “The Sound of Silence”. If you live under a rock or are new to a cappella, find a way to get your hands on this song. It is a classic, yes, but done in a way that you have never heard before. It will inspire you and drive you to arrange if you are a music director. Charlie Forkish has truly set himself apart from the competition. I credit the producer as well (you know who you are), but in my mind, the thing that makes an album worth your time and money, is its ability to set itself apart from the competition. In the now, very crowded genre of a cappella, a fresh take on a song or maybe an original or not so popular title, is a great way to keep your group from becoming just another needle in the proverbial haystack. Any of you who are starting a new project, or considering doing so, should keep this in mind. It will give you a real shot at standing out amongst the giants. Helpful tip: check out the Brown Jabberwocks’ new album when it releases. You won’t be disappointed. By Mike Chin on May 13, 2009 in The Recording Rant • Permalink Mike Chin Mike Chin co-founded The A Cappella Blog in 2007. He continues to share leadership responsibility for the site, overseeing columns, reviews and features as the content manager. He currently lives in Georgia. Email Website @miketchin © 2007 - 2020, The A Cappella Blog. All rights reserved. About Contact Contribute Terms Open Letters Newsline Event Reviews Interviews 200 Reasons To Love A Cappella The 5s Absurdist A Cappella Ask ACB At the Movies The Best I've Seen Campus Connections CD Reviews The Competitor's Edge Diva: The A Cappella Comic Dos and Don'ts Dynamics For Your Own Good Friday Factoid Give It the Old College Try Guest Columns How To The Importance of… In Their Own Words International Spotlight Measure for Measure Members Only Not So Different Practical A Cappella Proverbappella The Recording Rant Recording Recommendations The Round Table The Run Off Simply A Cappella Social Networking Statistical Findings Tributes Tuesday Tubin' TV The Unauthorized History of the Acapocalypse Groups Photos Book Categories Groups Photos Book	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line19
__label__cc	0.724599	0.275401	Creating an Impressive Web Presence The sponsors of Voice Acting For Dummies are offering this guest blog post that I thought would be helpful to actors and writers. Enjoy! An effective Internet marketing strategy is one of the keys to a successful voice acting business. Your business needs a multi-pronged approach to ensure positive results. One of the first things any voice actor needs to do before jumping in full force to self-market is to build a website. This website can be a traditional one or it may be having a profile on a voice-over marketplace. Most people have both. In the following sections, we focus on how you can build your web presence with a personal website that you can be proud of, how you can utilize social media, how you can maximize how people can locate your presence, and how you can advertise online. (We discuss a marketplace site in the “Utilizing a Voice Acting Marketplace Website” section in this chapter.) Building a personal website When you modestly invest in securing a domain name and hosting a website for your business, you’re able to use this virtual real estate to maintain an aesthetically pleasing and up-to-date website that promotes your voice. In other words, you have a place to hang your hat and show people who you are and what you’re about. Many voice actors prefer to brand their websites using their name, while some take a more creative approach with how they are branding themselves. When picking your domain, you need to factor in availability, how easy it is to spell/type, and also how well the domain name reflects your brand. Even if you aren’t a computer genius, you can find innovative ways that beautifully reflect your business while giving you the ability to update your content easily using a content management system such as WordPress. Look on websites like NetworkSolutions, Yahoo!, and GoDaddy to see if the domain name you want to buy is available. After you know that your desired domain name is available, secure the name by purchasing it and perhaps even extending your ownership by more than just the one-year option. You also need a web-hosting package. In the event that the company you bought your domain name from doesn’t provide a web-hosting package, you can find several good web-hosting companies out there, including www.hostgator.com, www.rackspace.com, and www.1and1.com. After you have a web host, one of your first orders of business should be to install a content management system (CMS) such as WordPress. A CMS gives you the flexibility to update your content as often as you want. You don’t need to know about computer programming to have a beautiful and functional website. These platforms allow you to change the graphics and text of each page using a WYSIWIG editor (“What you see is what you get”) that also helps you to rank higher in the search engines. Wondering what you should write On your website, highlight and promote your abilities so clients know what you can do. You’re the only one who knows exactly what you are great at, so make sure you prominently and honestly feature those skills. Along the same lines, your spelling, grammar, and choice of words definitely impact your audience. If you write in the third person (he, she) rather than the first person (I), you can use your name in the body of your profile and increase your visibility in the search engine. Whichever you choose, use it consistently. Telling customers what you can do for them Clients require your services because you can do something for them that they can’t do for themselves. As a result, you want to write text for your website that addresses their needs while respecting the fact that they need something specific and have limited time to find what they’re looking for. Some needs that someone requiring your services may have include artistic and technical needs. The customer expects that most voice actors can also serve as audio engineers to a degree, meaning that you can record your own voice, make edits, and also present the best audio quality possible. Some may even expect that you can include music or sound effects, or you can draw upon the talent of other voice actors when producing their project. Refer to the later section, “Filling out your profile” for more help. That section focuses on using a voice acting marketplace website, but the same premises apply about how you can write compelling text about yourself and your abilities for your website. Marketing on social networks These days it’s not just about who you know, it’s about how many people you know that matters. Social media now plays such an important role in getting more friends — and thus more business prospects. With social media, virtual friendships have increased the number of friends and potential networks you are connected to. You can have similar interests and business goals with those friends, which in turn allows you to share opportunities and successes in your voice acting career. The three main social media sites that we suggest you use to market your voice acting include Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. Avoiding social media burnout If you’re feeling overwhelmed by social media and social networking, you may find that maintaining too many profiles on social networks may become one more thing on your to-do list or the straw that breaks the camel's back. Having several profiles on social media can also become addicting if you’re constantly updating, tweeting, or reading what others are doing instead of actually doing anything yourself. Social media has a lot of noise, so be careful and spend your time social networking wisely. Understanding how to build a web presence including more on social media, search engines and advertising is important. Are you ready to learn more about voice acting? To discover more about this exciting field and the book, visit VoiceActingForDummies.com. Stephanie Ciccarelli and David Ciccarelli are the founders of Voices.com, the largest global web hub for voice actors. Over the past 9 years Stephanie, David, and their team have grown Voices.com from the ground up to become the leader in the industry. This article was originally published in Voice Acting For Dummies and has been republished with permission from John Wiley and Sons, Inc. The Book Blogger Fair Continues! Today we have a synopsis of Hiding The Smile By Charlie Boucher. Tammy has managed to survive Dame Arlington-Aird’s Academy so far by pretending to be mad. It’s made a refreshing change and has certainly helped keep the school bullies at a distance. Tammy has learned that if there’s one thing school bullies don’t like, it’s unpredictable behaviour in their victims. When Cole joins the school, however, things change. Tammy finds in the new girl a person who is as much an outsider as she is, and who is prepared to make an effort to befriend the school lunatic. School has become a more bearable place until Tammy discovers in Cole a madness that goes much deeper than mere disguise. And suddenly it’s not just school that makes Tammy feel alone and hunted. Cole is working up a desire for blood as well as friendship, and if Tammy can’t give her one, then she’ll have to give her the other. If the revelation that Cole is a vampire weren’t enough to deal with, the school bully, Juliana, is determined to put Tammy in her place. Belinda, a girl with a penchant for gambling, has discovered Cole’s secret and is attempting to oust Tammy from the position of Best Friend by becoming a vampire too. A brutally frank policeman is asking uncomfortable questions about dead schoolgirls, and one of the school secretaries is taking far too much interest in Tammy’s personal life. Tammy’s father, the one constant object of hatred in her life, might turn out to be the one person she can trust. If Cole doesn’t get to him first. Hiding The Smile is available at Amazon now. Hiding The Smile news can be followed at www.facebook.com/tammysintrouble Charlie Boucher’s author page is at www.facebook.com/bouchercharlie Charlie blogs at charlieboucher.blogspot.co.uk Hiding the Smile by Charlie Boucher Free E-Book by Tuan Ho Tuan Ho offers a free copy of The Oldest Man in the Universe as part of the Book Blogger Festival. Carlos Ricardo Miccapo is the oldest man in the universe and he's experienced all that life has had to offer. When there is nothing left to explore and experience - is life worth living? His closest friends from across countless galaxies will find out as they gather for one last time at the edge of the universe. The Oldest Man In The Universe is guaranteed to be one of the most profound and imagination-expanding short stories you'll read in your entire life. Download your free Copy of The Oldest Man in the Universe by Tuan Ho at http://amzn.com/B00AYSMSTE Guest Post from Doug Ten Rose Day Two of the Book Blogger Fair Features a Guest Post by Doug "Ten" Rose Defeating the Bait-and-Switch http://www.fearlesspuppy.org You may be asking, “What is the old psychological bait-and-switch move?” I’ll tell you. It’s the oldest trick in the book. It is often done without the awareness of the perpetrator. More often than not the perps aren’t even in touch with themselves enough to realize they’re doing it. (Occasionally, it is a more malicious and intentional form of manipulation.) Let’s say that you are Party B. A fellow staff member—or even your boss, or a co-worker who wants to climb the ladder of success over your dead body, your mother, teenage son, or whoever—is Party A. (If you are already saying, “Hey I’m the A. Let that other pain-in-the-butt be Party B,” then your chances of avoiding the pitfalls of the psychological bait-and-switch are very good!) You are a nice, friendly, kind, and cooperative person. Party A is a nasty, sarcastic, wired-up type who loves to screw and manipulate people. Party A people are warped, frustrated, and believe that since they have no happiness or sense of self-worth, neither should anyone else. They love to pull your chain, wouldn’t climb off your back if you bought them a diamond-studded rope ladder to do it with, and they live to annoy. As usual, you are trying to be nice to everyone. You speak to Party A as you would to anyone else—intent on a happy and harmonious relationship. But Party A doesn’t know how to handle this. The rip in the fabric of this person’s reality tells him or her that it’s an either-me-or-you, dog-eat-dog, take-advantage-before-being-taken-advantage-of world where being aggressively defensive is of paramount importance. These attitudes usually result in behavior that is nastier than a pickled egg fart collection in an airtight room. Day after day you try to be nice to this person in the hope that your goodness will prove contagious. Mr./Ms. A stays deaf to your most cordial approaches and continues to dump bucket loads of irritating drama into your life. Sooner or later it happens. You lose it. After what seems like eons of dealing with this situation in a civilized manner, you just can’t take it anymore. You give Party A a rebate on the ration of shit that he or she has been shoveling in your direction for so long. After a good ten minutes of yelling at each other, you stomp away with your blood pressure raised and your day ruined. You’re now as stressed out, aggravated, and miserable as A has always been. You’re soured and angry. 220Defeating the Bait-and-Switch This is you now! The attack on your peace of mind is no longer singularly directed from an external, defensible source. It now has an internal base that’s a lot more dangerous to you. The nastiness of A, formerly a minor influence outside of your psyche, has now eaten away slowly but steadily at your patience and compassion until it has succeeded in boring a hole right through your previously harmonious state of mind. Your structural integrity has collapsed and is now being eaten by your newly acquired chemical imbalance, which is a direct result of your newly acquired psychological imbalance. Your stomach may hurt, your head may ache, and your happiness is in pain. As this happens to folks like us, Party A people will be laughing their asses off! They may have had a conscious plan to do you in, but more likely they’re so out of touch with themselves that they don’t even know what they did. They’re happy anyway. A subconscious mind can be a dangerous thing. That’s why so many of Earth’s most famous wise folk have spent so much of their time moving their subconscious depths to the conscious surface. So now A is happy and B is ragged out. Anyone walking into a room where both A and B are present would be fooled. It would appear that Party A was a B and that Party B was an A—and in fact, until B regains composure and simple sanity, that indeed has become the truth of the situation! Every time A comes into the room, B gets nervous, aggravated, and apprehensive. Party A’s job of making B a lesser human is completed. B has now effectively taken over the job that A was doing. B is now busting his or her own chops and getting on his or her own nerves. Party A doesn’t even have to be around! B will still be nervously concerned with what A might do or say next. Party A, thoroughly satisfied with the success of this process, is now more B-like in demeanor—relaxed and happy. Party B, on the other hand, is now suffering a self-engendered attitude attack as well as the real attacks on his or her peace of mind that Party A may still be generating. In addition, B has to deal with the degree of self-loathing and embarrassment caused by losing composure in public and embracing an inferior mind set. The bait-and-switch is complete. Maybe the rest of the staff will outsmart Beryl. Maybe they will snap back into happiness, realizing that what they want to be is more important than what any negative external influence wants them to be. The only way to win this game is to not play. For more see http://www.fearlesspuppy.org ALL AUTHOR PROFITS SPONSOR WISDOM PROFESSIONALS AND THEIR EFFORTS “Once you accept the universe as being something expanding into an infinite nothing which is something, wearing stripes with plaid is easy.” Albert Einstein Reincarnation Through Common Sense is a book of stripes and plaid in the most entertaining sense of Einstein’s words. Westerners have written many books about living in Asian temples. None are like this true story. The rural Buddhist Monks and Nuns of a forest temple in Asia adopt a very troubled soul from Brooklyn, New York. He can’t speak the language. No one there speaks English. He is penniless, has no intention of studying spiritual discipline, and is amusingly psychotic. He writes to future readers in order to tame his comic insanity. This is not a book by a theology student! The author is nonetheless given access to the ancient roots and spiritual wings that define the Wisdom Professionals who have rescued him. He redefines life and reports the details in a manner so intimate and natural that you’ll think you are having coffee on a barstool in the temple with him. You may laugh a lot on your way to Nirvana! You may say “Ouch!” a few times, too. Magic is redefined as objective reality and common sense. Spirit is presented as a functional friend, without the fairy dust. Moods run from adventurous psychosis through enlightened bliss as writing styles run through ancient prose to the most erudite modern internal rhyme. The main character’s life runs through death into reincarnation without ever leaving his body—and he describes this process to us in living color. This down to earth treatment gives a clear view in simple terms of truths that we more often find fossilized within concretized symbols beneath rusting metaphor. For an experience unique in comedic drama, spirituality, adventure, and sheer creativity, start reading Reincarnation Through Common Sense from the beginning. http://fearlesspuppy.org/m_reincarnation.htm $21 in print e-book $5.75 ISBN#978-0-692-01952-8 direct links from our website to Amazon print and Smashwords e-book Fearless Puppy on American Road This amazing true story reads like a fantasy. Fearless Puppy is a transfictional self-help book. It is both comedic and dramatic—a butt kicking, page-turning adventure story that makes deep spiritual impressions. Within this book you will meet several saintly Tibetan Lamas. You will also meet a man who is his own uncle, specialists in smoke, mirrors, and invisibility, spirited sex, oxygen orgasms, heavenly Hell’s Angels, phony preachers, domestic violence/domestic solutions, racist killers in America, Canadian race wars, Native American wise men, a bit of Christian ethics and Jewish ritual, angelic witches, benevolent heroin addicts, magical birds, an all-lesbian band playing a rock concert for the deaf, the musician raised by multi-ethnic golden-hearted prostitutes, martial artists battling neo-Nazis, the modern-day Robin Hood, and many other strangely wonderful people. Buckle your seatbelt tightly, take a deep breath, and enjoy the ride. Fearless Puppy runs on rocket fuel! *Please forward this through your contact and friend lists, and to anyone you think might be interested. Help us raise funds through book sales to sponsor Wisdom Professionals. Your effort is important! Thank you. $21 in print e-book $5.75 ISBN#978--0615781181 Doug “Ten” Rose may be the biggest smartass as well as the wisest and most entertaining survivor of the hitchhiking adventurers that used to cover America’s highways. He is the author of Fearless Puppy on American Road and Reincarnation Through Common Sense, has survived heroin addiction and death, and is a graduate of over a hundred thousand miles of travel without ever driving a car, owning a phone, or having a bank account. Ten Rose and his work are a vibrant part of the present and future as well as an essential remnant of a vanishing breed. Leather to the Corinthians by Tom Lucas The Book Blogger Fair is Underway! Guest Post from Tom Lucas Give Me My Salvation! An Apocalyptic War between Fast Food and Free Will Arises! Gather round all you tattooed, lost soul wandering, Wi-Fi/Lo-Fi mutants! Come! Come listen to the hypnotic beat of my drum! Join me on trip to the Village, a strange and surreal place, where an epic battle will determine the fate of the human race! The GENERAL is determined to win this war as the insane clown insurgent wants to settle a score! He’s got a bone to pick with his nemesis the KING, the mad ruler of the Village who only cares about celebrity status and bling! You will meet a young SOLDIER, who fights to survive the melee, as he loses his humanity along the way! Leather to the Corinthians is an absurd postmodern fable that defiantly flips a middle finger at modern American life. Through the perspectives of its multiple characters, it explores the absurdities of organized religion, the military, big business, fast food, advertising, sex, and the media. Witty, with bitter undertones, its story possesses a satirical spirit as it plays with traditional story structure, phrasing and cultural references. Its multiple layers encourage return visits as its characters have many more unique tales to tell. Learn more about Tom Lucas by visiting his blog: www.readtomlucas.com Paperback: 6x9 Pages: 284 ISBN-10: 0988526107 ISBN-13: 978-0988526105 LCCN: 2012919854 Language: English List Price: $12.99 Copyright 2012,Tom Lucas; First Edition BISAC: Fiction/ Science Fiction/Apocalyptic & Post-Apocalyptic; Fiction/Science Fiction/Military; Fiction/Dystopian; Fiction/Satire Release: December 2012 “The King untied his cheesy cape and removed his fake beard. Strangely, suspenseful music began playing through the castle's public address system. Stripping down to his fresh underwear, the King then bolted down the dimly lit hall to the escape pod at its end. Popping the pod's stay-fresh seal, the King snuggled into its cockpit. Years of preparation led him through the launch procedures and soon the pod was airborne, flying through the hazy sky.” “With the high holiday of Yeaster quickly approaching, Father Everhard contacted his publicist in order to promote his latest production of The Passion Play of the Red J. As the highest ranking local representative of the faith, it was Everhard's job to create big attendance numbers for a stellar performance…. Father Everhard stood up in the green room of the Village's favorite religious squawk shows, From Nuts to God. Each week several handfuls of viewers tuned in for redemption and other valuable prizes.” “ConPollo held a meeting with his new team. As he sat before his troops, he pondered the mission that they were about to undertake…The screaming throng of actors who, of course, really wanted to direct, stormed off towards their target. ConPollo sprinted after them to keep up. It was all he could do to follow his highly energized method actor army.” “The Soldier was now truly sentient...His brain was flooded with sensory information. His eyes viewed an H.U.D. that provided him with layer upon layer of information….His mind seemed to move more quickly, its ability to analyze stimulus was far beyond its normal scope. In what would have taken minutes to sort out before, occurred in milliseconds for him now.” “The Sixth and final Seal is the big doozy, the ultimate kick in the pants: the Take-Me-Away-Born-Again Rapture Fiesta. At this point nothing matters— steal a TV…return your movies late…eat fatty foods…act like Scott Baio in the morning… the President will announce full disclosure…there is a freaking meteor about to hit Earth and life expectancy has gone from 74.5 years to roughly ten minutes or so.” Praise for “Leather to the Corinthians” " A perceptual Pandora's Box cracks open as one gets a sense of being transported into a surreal, video game-like, sci-fi world where consumption and confusion rule...A cerebral roller coaster ride that keeps readers on their temporal toes!" - "Hunter S. Thompson meets Monty Python meets the Marx Brothers meets Naked Lunch...A punning pastiche of the verbal kitsch of late twentieth/early twenty-first century America" – IndieReader "Leather to the Corinthians is a relentless and sprawling metalingual allegory reminding us to step back and examine our fast-food culture, and insta-grab reflexes." - Z. Massad "Leather to the Corinthians" is like a slightly more coherent and tightly structured Naked Lunch, infused with the same kind of surreal satire and black comedy that William Burroughs so brilliantly employed.” -M. Seminara "Leather is an all-purpose tome for the jaded, overworked, underpaid, and exhausted members of society…. An interesting mix of sci-fi and satire makes this a book that could become the next cult classic!” -V Janik “Leather to the Corinthians is my response to an insane world. I was not born into an influential family. I am not a member of the Star Chamber. I don't have many opportunities to directly create change. I do have my voice, and that is what I have chosen to use. If you are fed up with the ridiculousness of big business, politics, mass media, fast food, organized religion, et al...if you enjoy underhanded satire, science fiction, fantasy, the surreal, comic books, video games, and a good laugh -- you'll dig my book.” -Tom Lucas Official Websites: Blog: www.readtomlucas.com Twitter: @readtomlucas Facebook: Tom Lucas (author) Fan-Demonium: www.churchofthebigredj.com Videos & Multimedia: Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/user/Room1331 Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/readtomlucas Book Blogger Fair Participants An impressive line-up of authors will be sharing their thoughts with readers of Adele Park's Quirky Audio Books Blog during the upcoming Book Blogger Fair. Readers can learn about new authors and even win some free stuff. Make sure to join the fun July 22-26 http://www.bloggerbookfair.blogspot.com/ Tom Lucas Leather to the Corinthians: http://amzn.com/0988526107 Doug Rose Fearless Puppy: http://www.fearlesspuppy.org Tuan Ho The Oldest Man in the Universe: http://www.thenoifmatrix.blogspot.com/ Charlie Boucher Hiding the Smile: http://www.thenoifmatrix.blogspot.com/ Book Blogger Fair Writers from all around the world are poised to participate in 2013 Book Blogger Fair happening July 22-26. This event provides authors with a wonderful opportunity to share ideas and promote their work with other writers. Unlike some virtual book tours, the BBF is a free service coordinated by Kayla Curry and her associates, Fel Weitzig and Pereza Thompson http://bloggerbookfair.blogspot.com/p/about-blogger-book-fair.html. The Book Blogger Fair pairs up authors within specific genres. Participants write blog articles germane to their work and exchange them with other writers during the fair. Additionally, the BBF offers a number of events including contests, Q & A sessions with authors and give-aways. Some of this year's events include an Art Fiction Gala and a Flash Fiction Challenge http://bloggerbookfair.blogspot.com/p/events_5.html. Writers who participate in the BBF are automatically entered into the Readers Choice Awards. Readers can vote for their favorite books, with the winner receiving a button for their blog and an Amazon link for their book posted on the BBF website for one year http://bloggerbookfair.blogspot.com/p/readers-choice-awards.html. The Book Blogger Fair also benefits readers by offering free product from numerous writers as well as a $.99 sale offered for specific works. Readers are encouraged to take advantage of all the action during the annual Book Blogger Fair http://bloggerbookfair.blogspot.com/p/about-blogger-book-fair.html. In celebration of the BBF, I will be offering free copies of Yikes! Another Quirky Audio Book to any interested listeners July 22-26 http://www.yikesaudiobook.com. If you would like to receive a free copy during the BBF, please e-mail quirkyaudiobooks@infowest.com. Jackie, Ari and Jack -- The Tragic Love Triangle by January Jones In Jackie, Ari & Jack – The Tragic Love Triangle, author January Jones blows the lid off Jacqueline Kennedy's image of being a meek woman who was a victim of tragic circumstances. People interested in the Kennedy Family saga will enjoy this new take on assassination of President John F. Kennedy. Jones lays out a theory which involves Ari Onassis as the architect of the murder. She suggests that even if Jacqueline didn't know about it before hand, she may have helped in the cover up. Jones theorizes that Jacqueline made a full scale effort to marry a wealthy man, believing it was her destiny to be rich and powerful. To her chagrin, Jacqueline discovered the Kennedy Family kept a firm grip on the purse strings, prompting her to seek out other means of financing her expensive tastes. Ari Onassis, with all his wealth as a shipping magnet, seemed to fit the bill perfectly. Jones suggests that Jacqueline and Ari were involved in a love affair prior to the shooting death of JFK. While the late President's sexual affairs were common knowledge, it's possible Jacqueline was engaging in extra marital relations as well. What did Ari get out of the deal? In addition to being seen with a beautiful woman on his arm, Jacqueline delivered power, prestige and connections that Ari wouldn't otherwise have had. Jones notes that Ari had been an overnight guest at the White House on many occasions before the murder. The night JFK was shot, he flew to Washington to be at Jackie's side. The idea of Camelot is examined at length in this book, naming Jacqueline as the author of this modern day myth. Jones believes Jacqueline was so concerned with her image that she concocted a fairytale scenario which the American public was eager to buy. I would highly recommend Jackie, Ari & Jack – The Tragic Love Triangle by January Jones to all Kennedy aficionados. At the very least, this book will provide a fresh theory for the mysterious murder of JFK. If Camelot exists, it probably doesn't match the colorful fantasy concocted by the late Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis. Audiobook Review of "Life" by Keith Richards There are two things that stick out about the audio book, Life, by Keith Richards. One: it's 22.5 hours long. Two: it's worth the listen. Oh, and it's also a great value. Life is a cross-country drive's worth of entertainment for $39.98. Put another way, one hour of solid rock legend costs less than a cup of gas station coffee. If you're craving a wild trip without any consequences, Life is a magnificently cheap thrill. The Rolling Stones have authored so many chapters in the annals of rock-n-roll history you'd have to be living in another dimension not to know something about the band. Musicians come and go, but the Stones have been cranking out tunes people still want to listen to for the last 50 years. It's hard to argue with the staying power of a band like this. Life opens with an amusing antidote about Richards and Stones guitarist Ronnie Wood being pulled over for drugs in the redneck backwaters of Arkansas in 1975. Jail time was avoided but the judge (rumored by Richards to be highly intoxicated at the time) confiscated his hunting knife and insisted they pose for pictures. In 2008, Presidential hopeful and former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee tried to shed his nerd image by masterminding a pardon for Richards. Such is the charmed life of one of the most notorious rock stars the world has ever known. Life is loaded with intriguing tales about Richards' outrageous lifestyle, but also catalogs an obsessive devotion to his craft. A picture emerges of a man more concerned with creating music than being a member of the rock-n-roll aristocracy. Fame and fortune come off as being an accidental perks. Naturally, there are scores of women, but again, this isn't presented as a primary goal. Richards appears to gravitate toward women with extraordinary personalities and talent such as Anita Pallenberg. Later, he marries Patti Hansen, a successful American model. Between the two women, Richards fathers five children, one of whom dies as an infant while Richards is out on tour. And then, of course, there are the drugs. Who can resist such a voyeuristic peep into someone else's private hell? Richards recounts his heroin addiction and the legal problems it caused in frank detail. He looks upon the ordeal almost like a neutral third party, neither bragging about it nor engaging in the sanctimonious disapproval of someone who has since discarded a bad habit. Also tantalizing are the juicy bits concerning Richards' numerous spats with Mick Jagger. Reality TV has nothing on this group. Their relationship, spanning more than 50 years, begins with them living together in a filthy flat, stealing food just to stay alive. They'll go on to sleep with each other's girlfriends and sling not-so-subtle jabs through the press. Richards displays an undying amount of respect for Jagger's music writing and entertainment abilities, all the while maintaining an annoyance with the man himself. In general, the audio book version of Life is narrated in a very compelling manner. The listener is drawn in and made to pay attention to even mundane details. The only thing that doesn't quite mesh is the changing of the guard with the narrators. Speaking in first person for Richards, Johnny Depp voices the first five discs and then abruptly stops. From there, Joe Hurley picks up the narrative and continues until Johnny Depp suddenly re-emerges on disc ten. Richards puts in a few words himself, providing comments on the front end of the audio book, and carrying the torch for the last disc and a half. Life can be described as one long Keith Richards song minus the guitar riffs. If Richards is to be envied, it shouldn't be for the trappings that come along with supreme notoriety. What this cat nabbed was the ability to follow his passion. Those who aren't fascinated by Keith Richards before hearing Life certainly will be afterwords. Posted by Adele Park at 11:34 AM No comments: TheBook Blogger Fair Continues! Today we have a s... Jackie, Ari and Jack -- The Tragic Love Triangle b...	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line20
__label__cc	0.501789	0.498211	Home » Projects » Rebekah Scott Hall Conditions Assessment Rebekah Scott Hall Conditions Assessment Rebekah Scott Hall east facade (1905-06, Morgan & Dillon), Agnes Scott College, Decatur, GA Designed by renowned Atlanta architect Thomas H. Morgan of Morgan & Dillon, Rebekah Scott Hall was constructed in the Italian Renaissance Revival style. The second oldest permanent building on the Agnes Scott College campus in Decatur, Georgia, “Rebekah” was slated for extensive rehabilitation in 2014. APPS was selected as the historic preservation consulting firm for the project. Contractors Donaldson & Pierson began construction of the load-bearing brick building with limestone accents in June 1905. It was dedicated on May 30, 1906, and the first students moved in during September of that year. Notable architectural features include two cupolas, seven chimneys, a wrap-around verandah with star-patterned balustrade, decorative eave brackets, and a double front-entrance door with leaded glass sidelights and a four-lite arched fanlight. The ground floor historically housed the dining hall, kitchen, chapel, meeting rooms, and parlors, while the upper two floors were dormitories. Today the dormitories remain upstairs, but the ground floor now has a central lobby, the Katherine Woltz Reception Room, and the College Admissions, Development, and Marketing & Public Relations offices. For the project, Laura Drummond of APPS with Jean Spencer, preservation consultant and paint conservator, investigated the building, taking photographs, and collecting mortar and paint samples. Paint analysis was performed by Frank Welsh of Welsh Color & Conservation, Inc., while David Arbogast of Arbogast Mortar Analysis tested the mortar and stucco samples. Laura’s report included a building description, a building chronology, an assessment of the exterior conditions, and prioritized maintenance recommendations. Laura Drummond examines the south cupola Rebekah Scott Hall front entrance	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line23
__label__wiki	0.512038	0.512038	Shirt and tie Ralph Lauren, sweatshirt Check’s Downtown, hat Rasta Empire, shoes Adidas, lavalava stylist’s own Shirt Sam’s Island Gear, lavalava Polynesian Fashions, jewelry model’s own Sweatshirt Check’s Downtown, jacket and pants Adidas Originals, lavalava Polynesian Fashions Shirt, Tongan ta’ovala, and lavalava stylist’s own Jacket Armani, Tongan tapa cloth and lavalava stylist’s own, shirt and shoes model’s own Freedom: We asked creators around the world to interpret the meaning of latitude through the ultimate language of self-expression: fashion. The result? A global tapestry depicting modern-day culture and identity, woven together by threads that feel as universal as they do unique. Check back each week for a new installment of the series. 36°51′07.1″ S, 174°44′15.9″ E Ponsonby, New Zealand Photographs by Derek Henderson Styling by Dan Ahwa “What you wear is a big part of your identity—it’s a conscious decision you make every day. For some, it’s being part of a group or tribe, for others, it’s about being independent. I like the way cultures borrow and mix with each other—it’s a kind of symbol of acceptance and respect. The area around St. Paul’s College was historically populated by people from the South Pacific, such as Samoa, Tonga, and the Cook Islands, until the early 1980s when the area became popular because of its location close to the city center, forcing out the existing residents to South Auckland, where a lot of the boys now commute from to attend the school because their fathers did. There are still a few families from the islands living in the area and this is what I wanted to capture: the feeling of the South Pacific and its peoples in New Zealand.” Derek Henderson MODELS Sione Kamosi Moala, Fatu-Ki-Motulalo William Andrew Gordon Tupou, Ethan Steven Ngamata Puletivatoa, Antonio Justice Tuipe’a, Boston Edward Harry Viliami Schaaf PHOTOGRAPHY ASSISTANT Anton Maurer Purification by Love Internationally acclaimed journalist Behrouz Boochani reflects on finding freedom within the confines of his prison on Manus Island. Freedom: Oman The archipelago of Socotra is an ecosystem unlike anywhere else on Earth, teeming with extraordinary wildlife populations that include 700 endemic species.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line24
__label__wiki	0.627617	0.627617	AUT LibraryAUT AUT Library Choose Open Access journals Get Published: Choose Open Access journals This guide is about how to publish in scholarly journals and is specially for new and emerging researchers. Publishing strategy Choose journals Publish with Tuwhera Open Research Choose a conference Author rights & copyrights ISBN and legal deposit in NZ This page contains the following two sections: 1. How to select an open access journal for publishing? 2. Types of OA journals Select an Open Access journal for publishing Choose a journal OA publisher list Research funders' OA policy Retractions 1. Choose an open access journal Scopus and Web of Science index open access journals. Select the Open Access checkbox on a search result to find the OA journals met your search criteria. Find a journal form the Directory of Open Access Journals 2. Find information about a journal on its website: Are there any documentation on mission statement, scope, policy, and submission requirements? Does the journal website provide information about the publisher? Are articles peer-reviewed? How does the journal handle the peer-review process? Who are the editors and members of the editorial board? What is the copyright agreement? Do you need to pay for an article processing charge in order to publish your article? What about the quality of articles in this journal? Has the journal had an ISSN (International Standard Serial Number)? Is this journal registered in the Directory of Open Access Journals? Is this journal a member of Open Access Scholarly Publishers Association? Is the journal a member of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE)? 2. Journal impact Use the following key tools to find journal impact metrics, ranking, and to compare your targeted journal with others within the same discipline: Journal Citation Reports (JCR) - evaluate and compare journals using citation data Compare Journals in Scopus - compare and analyse up to 10 journals Scopus Journal Metrics - search for journal metrics - CiteScore, SNIP and SJR Find more details on our online guide Research Impact 3. Indexing Check whether your chosen journal is indexed by following library databases or Google Scholar: Ulrichsweb: Global Serials Directory Other databases, such as EBSCO databases, ProQuest databases, Wiley Online Library, etc. 4. Do your own research Ask around - Your colleagues may know the journal. Check who have published in this journal - Well-known authors? Your colleagues or other researchers you known? 5. Think, Check, Submit checklist The Think,Check, Submit website provides a checklist for assessing the credentials of a journal or publisher. 6. Find journals' policies on SHERPA Find OA publishers and the article processing charge information on this webside. RoMEO colours SHEPA RoMEO uses different colours to help highlight publishers' archiving policies. Publisher copyright policies and self-archiving information Search journal copyright policies on this RoMEO website. Many journals including some prestigious journals provide OA publishing options to authors . The following are some well-known OA journals that you may publish with: Australian OA journals Cambridge Journals Heliyon - Elsevier's new Open Access journal IEEE Open Open Library of humanities Oxford Fully Open Access Journals PLoS Collection Royal Society Open Science ScienceDirect Open Access Journals SpringerOpen Journals Taylor & Francis Open Journals Wiley Open Access Journals Find research funders' open access policies on the Sherpa Juliet website There are some publishers acting unethically especially when it comes to OA journal publishing. The following common signs of predatory journals may help you identify these journals: misleading metrics hijacked version of other well published journals fake editorial boards, or names and affiliations of the editorial board members are not presented clearly claimed to be indexed by key databases or Directory of Open Access Journals when they are not reproduce articles from other academic journals charge APC fees to publish a manuscript in a short time, e.g. 2-4 weeks. send spam emails to invite researchers to publish articles with their journals unprofessional website, e.g. poor writing, with commercials advertisements, unclear location a journal title may be "American journal of ...", but the location of the publisher is in an Asia country some of these journals are published in a website that contains a large number of open access journals across a wide range of disciplines You may like to read the following recent studies on the issues of the increasing number of predatory open access journals: Dobusch, L., & Heimstädt, M. (2019). Predatory publishing in management research: A call for open peer review. Management Learning, 50(5), 607–619. https://doi.org/10.1177/1350507619878820 Priyadarshini, S. (2018). India targets universities in predatory-journal crackdown. Nature, 560, 537-538. https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-018-06048-2 Shen, C. & Bjork, Bo-Christer. (2015). Predatory’ open access: a longitudinal study of article volumes and market characteristics. BMC Medicine. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12916-015-0469-2 Laine, C. & Winker, M. A. (2017). Identifying predatory or pseudo-journals. Retrieved October 12 2017, from http://www.wame.org/identifying-predatory-or-pseudo-journals. Eriksson, S. & Helgesson, G. (2017). The false academy: Predatory publishing in science and bioethics. Medicine, Health Care and Philosophy. 20(163). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11019-016-9740-3 What do you do it you think a publisher is engaging in unethical practices? COPE, the Committee on Publication Ethics has some useful guides. The top 10 retractions of 2016 Retraction policies of top scientific journals ranked by impact factor Types of OA publishing Benefits of Open Access There are mainly two types of OA publications: Green OA refers to research papers deposited in a digital archive/repository. There are two types of repositories: An institutional repository (IR) is provided by a research institution. The repository at AUT is Tuwhera Research Outputs. Discipline-specific repository. Well-known examples include arXiv for physics and mathematics and PubMed Central for biomedical and life sciences journal literature. Gold OA refers to peer reviewed articles published in online open access journals that are free to the public. Author or the author's institution is usually required to pay an article processing charge (APC) fee in order to publish articles in OA journals. or a combination of the above Hybrid OA: some subscription-based journals are "hybrid" with a portion of articles being open access and the rest of articles are available to subscribers only. Authors of accepted articles in the hybrid model are often required to pay an article processing charge (APC) fee. Find publishers' APC fees on SHERPA RoMEO. You may find the following study on tracking article processing charges at the University of Canterbury an interesting read: Angelo, A., & Lund, P. (2014). An evolving business model for scholarly publishing: exploring the payment of article processing charges (APCs) to achieve open access. Retrieved from http://ir.canterbury.ac.nz/handle/10092/9730 Benefits of OA publishing: Reach a more diverse audience and disadvantaged communities Research shows that publishing via Green OA leads to increased rates of citation OA enhances universities research profiles Publicly funded research should be made publicly accessible Research funders will achieve better returns from their investment Quicker turn-around time Find more details on our Open Access guide. << Previous: Choose journals Next: Publish with Tuwhera Open Research >> URL: https://aut.ac.nz.libguides.com/getting_published Subjects: Research Support	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line26
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__label__wiki	0.761016	0.761016	Nehaniv, “The segmentation of speech and its implications for the emergence of language structure (2003) by C Lyon, B Dickerson, C L Venue: Evol. Comm Add To MetaCart Sorted by: Citation Count Year (Descending) Year (Ascending) Recency What is Needed for a Robot to Acquire Grammar? Some Underlying Primitive Mechanisms for the Synthesis of Linguistic Ability by Caroline Lyon, Yo Sato, Joe Saunders, Chrystopher L. Nehaniv "... A robot that can communicate with humans using natural language will have to acquire a grammatical framework. This paper analyses some crucial underlying mechanisms that are needed in the construction of such a framework. The work is inspired by language acquisition in infants, but it also draws on ..." A robot that can communicate with humans using natural language will have to acquire a grammatical framework. This paper analyses some crucial underlying mechanisms that are needed in the construction of such a framework. The work is inspired by language acquisition in infants, but it also draws on the emergence of language in evolutionary time and in ontogenic (developmental) time. It focuses on issues arising from the use of real language with all its evolutionary baggage, in contrast to an artificial communication system, and describes approaches to addressing these issues. We can deconstruct grammar to derive underlying primitive mechanisms, including serial processing, segmentation, categorization, compositionality, forward planning. Implementing these mechanisms are necessary preparatory steps to reconstruct a working syntactic/semantic/pragmatic processor which can handle real language. An overview is given of our own initial experiments in which a robot acquires some basic linguistic capacity via interacting with a human. I. (Show Context) ...vel processing such as the perception/production of syllables. B. Segmentation Information theoretic methods can show that segmenting speech into appropriate chunks makes communication more efficient =-=[30]-=-. From the point of view of the perceiver, when a speaker produces a syllable it will activate some of the same neural structures, as if the hearer is about to produce that syllable [31]. When a strin... The Oxford Handbook of Language Evolution by Maggie Tallerman, Kathleen R. Gibson "... A handbook of this size, with contributions from over 50 scholars, covers a wide range of subjects and this volume makes a significant contribution to furthering interest in the evolution of language. Topics from diverse disciplines related to the evolution of language are presented, a number of the ..." A handbook of this size, with contributions from over 50 scholars, covers a wide range of subjects and this volume makes a significant contribution to furthering interest in the evolution of language. Topics from diverse disciplines related to the evolution of language are presented, a number of them open to controversy or undecided opinion. The editors come from complementary backgrounds of linguistics (Tallerman) and neurobiology and anatomy (Gibson). The book is divided into five sections, each preceded by a useful introduction by both of the editors: animal studies, human biology, the prehistory of language, the development of a linguistic species and language change in historical times. There is much to commend in this handbook, with wide coverage of many fields, but there are also some notable omissions, particularly on the extensive research in neuroscience in the last decade. The contributions from empirical studies that can throw light on controversial issues is uneven, and some omissions could lead to mistaken impressions about overall work in the field. However, there is much valuable material in this handbook. The first section Insights from comparative animal behaviour gives an excellent overview, and some fascinating detail, ...mall vowel systems, through a process of maximizing acoustic distinctiveness in the hearer together with acoustic ease in the speaker. (Information theoretic approaches can also address these issues (=-=Lyon, Dickerson, & Nehaniv, 2003-=-) ) The discussion of computational models leads on to a brief chapter by Graf Estes (chapter 64) reporting that statistical language learning has been observed in a number of investigations with huma... DEVELOPING AGENTS THAT CAN SPEAK WITH HUMANS: POINTERS FROM THE EVOLUTION OF LANGUAGE by Caroline Lyon, Chrystopher L. Nehaniv "... To interact in a natural manner with humans robots must “understand ” some ordinary speech, however limited. This paper addresses a preliminary issue: the need to process short sequences of words as grammatical fragments, evidenced by empirical linguistic observations. The evolution of language can ..." To interact in a natural manner with humans robots must “understand ” some ordinary speech, however limited. This paper addresses a preliminary issue: the need to process short sequences of words as grammatical fragments, evidenced by empirical linguistic observations. The evolution of language can inform the development of agents ’ communication, and insights from ethology, anthropology and neuroscience suggest that evolved sequential processors are probably exaptations. Possible steps in the emergence of compositionality also indicate a need to process sequences of linguistic items as units. Recent results from neuroscientific research suggest ways in which serial processors might be modelled 1. ...n, using Information Theoretic analysis, that processing speech in grammatical segments could confer an evolutionary advantage, before the benefits of having a full hierarchical grammar are realised (=-=Lyon, Dickerson, & Nehaniv, 2003-=-). Segmented speech is better understood than an unsegmented stream, and a stage in the evolution of language could have had its own benefits before the advantages of a full grammar were realised. 5.1... Evolutionary fitness, homophony and disambiguation through sequential processes. Paper presented at by Caroline Lyon, Chrystopher L. Nehaniv, Ra Warren, Jean Baillie - the 1st International Workshop on Emergence and Evolution of Linguistic Communication , 2004 "... Human language may have evolved through a stage when words were combined into structured linear segments, before these segments were used as building blocks for a hierarchical grammar. Experiments using information theoretic metrics show that such a stage could have its own evolutionary advantage, b ..." Human language may have evolved through a stage when words were combined into structured linear segments, before these segments were used as building blocks for a hierarchical grammar. Experiments using information theoretic metrics show that such a stage could have its own evolutionary advantage, before the benefits of a full grammar are obtained. This hypothesis is approached by examining the apparently ubiquitous prevalence of homophones. It shows how, perhaps contrary to expectation, communicative capacity does not seem to be adversely affected by them, and they are routinely used without confusion. This is principally explained by disambiguation through syntactic processing of short word sequences. It indicates that local sequential processing plays an underlying role in language production and perception, a hypothesis that is supported by evidence that small children engage in this process as soon as they acquire words. Experiments on a corpus of spoken English calculated the entropy for sequences of syntactically labelled words. They show there is a measurable advantage in decoding word strings when they are taken in short sequences, rather than as individual items. This suggests that grammatical fragments of speech, could have been a stepping stone to a full grammar. ...ence, and a decline in entropy is associated with an increase in predictability, an improvement in the efficiency of decoding and comprehensibility [16]. For a simple introduction to this concept see =-=[17]-=-. A standard reference is [18]. Taking the proposition that we are implicitly aware of syntactic categories or part-of-speech tags, we investigate whether tag strings are more easily decoded if they a... Entropy Indicators for Investigating Early Language Process by Caroline Lyon, Chrystopher L. Nehaniv, Bob Dickerson, Hertfordshire Al Ab - In AISB'05: Proceedings of EELC'05 "... We examine evidence for the hypothesis that language could have passed through a stage when words were combined in structured linear segments and these linear segments could later have become the building blocks for a full hierarchical grammar. Experiments were carried out on the British National Co ..." We examine evidence for the hypothesis that language could have passed through a stage when words were combined in structured linear segments and these linear segments could later have become the building blocks for a full hierarchical grammar. Experiments were carried out on the British National Corpus, consisting of about 100 million words of text from different domains and transcribed speech. This work extends and supports the results of our previous work based on a smaller corpus reported previously. Measuring the entropy of the texts we find that entropy declines as words are taken in groups of 2, 3 and 4, indicating that it is easier to decode words taken in short sequences rather than individually. Entropy further declines when punctuation is represented, showing that appropriate segmentation captures some of the language structure. Further support for the hypothesis that local sequential processing underlies the production and perception of speech comes from neurobiological evidence. The observation that homophones are apparently ubiquitous and used without confusion also suggests that language processing may be largely based on local context. 1 Studies in Plagiarism, Fabrication, and Falsification, 57‐65. Plagiarism is Easy, but also Easy To Detect by Caroline Lyon, Ruth Barrett, James Malcolm "... This paper will first take an overview of plagiarism as a problem, particularly in the field of Higher Education. It will give an outline of pedagogic issues, and approaches to reducing the problem. A significant deterrent is the practice of running students’ work through plagiarism detectors, and e ..." This paper will first take an overview of plagiarism as a problem, particularly in the field of Higher Education. It will give an outline of pedagogic issues, and approaches to reducing the problem. A significant deterrent is the practice of running students’ work through plagiarism detectors, and ensuring that students realise how effectively this can be done. New research indicates that electronic copy detection can also be applied to Chinese text, as is currently done for English and for programming code. We describe one such detector, the Ferret, outlining its application to English text and its potential for use in other domains including Chinese language. We show how the Ferret is based on exploiting underlying characteristics of English word distribution, and that Chinese characters have a similar distribution. The paper concludes by comparing and contrasting man and machine when it comes to identifying copied material, and indicating how their differing memory processes can be harnessed to detect plagiarism.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line67
__label__cc	0.742467	0.257533	Tag: iankahanowitz Genesis in The Zone with Ian Kahanowitz 1/9/18 Ian welcomes recurring guest, lawyer, and author, JD Thorne back to the show to talk about the legendary, Joe McCarthy and his 10 Commandments of Baseball. A Comfortably Zoned Radio Network/ik, production. If you enjoy our offerings, we ask that you get in the habit of accumulating lightly used children’s books, and donating them to your local Head Start David Nemec’s Old Time Bazeball History and Trivia 11/3/17 Al Blumkin and David Nemec, welcome fellow Baseball historian Ian Kahanowitz, to discuss the 1965 and ’66 seasons. “Banned: Baseball’s Blacklist of All-Stars and Also-Rans,” by Hal Bock On this edition of, Genesis in The Zone, Ian Kahanowitz welcomes fellow podcaster/author/journalist, Hal Bock, to talk about his terrific book about Baseball’s scofflaws. Comfortably Zoned Radio Network/ik, production. Genesis with Ian Kahanowitz and Marc Weiss 5/2/17 Ian Sits down with Marty Appel on his new book, “Casey Stengel Baseball’s Greatest Character.” Today’s 2nd offering on the Comfortably Zoned Radio Network: RIP Ned Garver 4/4/17 On this special edition of Genesis with Ian Kahanowitz and Marc Weiss, Ian and Mark sit down with some fans of former MLB Pitcher Ned Garver (who was the only Pitcher to have Two 20 game winning seasons on a Major League Ball club that lost over 100 games in a season) to celebrate his life and career and who passed away last week at the age of 91.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line72
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__label__wiki	0.720007	0.720007	EWORLD Igbo Studies MYPHEDUH FILMS Yoruba Studies A&B Publishers Art & Art Studies BLACK CLASSIC PRESS BOOKS ON ERITREA EMERGING PERSPECTIVES HARRIET TUBMAN SERIES HOLIDAY Gift Recommendations! HORN OF AFRICA TITLES Imprint Editions Karnak House Language/Linguistics Literature/Literary Criticism LUSHENA BOOKS MIND PRODUCTIONS Nia Communications/Press Politics/Political Science Psychology/Health Religion/Theology Sociology/Anthropology Third World Press Africa World Press, Inc. A & B Publishers Group The Red Sea Press, Inc. Lindfors, Bernth Connell, Dan Africa World Press RECREATING WORDS, RESHAPING WORLDS: The Verbal Art of Women from Niger, Mali, and Senegal, by Aissata G. Sidikou Click the button below to add the RECREATING WORDS, RESHAPING WORLDS: The Verbal Art of Women from Niger, Mali, and Senegal, by Aissata G. Sidikou to your wish list. This ground-breaking book examines the verbal art of women from three Sahelian societies. It relates West African women’s voices to a broader literary, political, and cultural context and succeeds in crossing traditional disciplinary boundaries. In her book, Sidikou argues that through verbal art women create a ritual space that serves as the locus of both their creativity and their efforts to negotiate power as well as to affirm their own selfhood. By offering a new way of approaching oral literature in West Africa, this study re-thinks verbal art by and about women. It also debunks assumptions about African women by suggesting a re-vision of what has been written about them. This significant and unique study will have a tremendous impact on research and teaching in general and will make a strong contribution not only to African studies, but to cultural studies, feminism, theory, and education. Axssata G. Sidikou was born in Niger and earned her Ph.D in Comparative Literature at The Pennsylvania State University in 1997. She was a lecturer of African Literature, French and Hausa in the Department of French at Barnard College and Columbia University, New York, and is presently teaching at Princeton University. Cultural studies, Politics, Women’s Studies, Literary Criticism/AFRICA RED, WHITE, BLACK AND BLUE: Black Anger and White Ignorance in Obama's America, by A. Christian van Gorder & Lewis T. Tait Jr. RECONTEXTUALIZING SELF & OTHER ISSUES IN AFRICA: The Practice of a Conference, Edited by V-Y Mudimbe and Anthony Simpson RECONNECTING MEMORIES: Dreams No Longer Deferred, by Mwatabu Okantah REFUGEES AND DEVELOPMENT IN AFRICA: The Case of Eritrea by Gaim Kibreab (Hardcover) All prices are in USD. © 2020 Africa World Press & The Red Sea Press \| Sitemap \| Powered by BigCommerce	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line75
__label__wiki	0.621686	0.621686	NEWS - Olaf FINALLY coming to DHS, Zootopia characters debut in Hollywood, character cuts and a new show at WDW, and much more! Tweet DisneyDan Thursday, February 18, 2016 10:20:38 AM Let's start today's news in Walt Disney World, where this week has seen the start of some unfortunate character cutbacks. At Epcot you can no longer meet Chip, Dale, Tigger, Winnie the Pooh or Princess Aurora, while at the Magic Kingdom Lady Tremaine is on her way out, too. The schedules no longer list those characters, and their spots are empty. Hopefully we will see improvements in other areas in the coming months, and these cuts are just temporary in order to bring new experiences to the parks. Having said that, while there have been definite cut backs, at least one new character will be joining the roster, at Disney's Hollywood Studios (though with a loss of the six others I mentioned above, it's a little bit of a stretch to call it an addition). Olaf, the lovable snowman from Frozen, will finally be able to give warm hugs in the Sunshine State after the Disney Parks Blog announced his imminent arrival yesterday. From "spring" 2016 you'll be able to meet Olaf around Echo Lake at a new location that actually sounds as though it will be more of a new-stars-rotational location. The Parks Blog state, "the all-new Celebrity Spotlight, the perfect place for a dream encounter with one of Disney’s latest stars. At opening, you are invited into the Celebrity Spotlight to meet lovable snowman Olaf", and later in the comments Shawn Slater replied to someone with this, "While the Celebrity Spotlight location is being designed to showcase different characters over time, Olaf is expected to be there for the foreseeable future". We can't wait to see who else may show up, even if that takes a while. In the same announcement, the Parks Blog also revealed that Mickey and Minnie would be getting new permanent homes in the Commissary Lane area of the park, after having spent the best part of the last year moving from location to location following the closure of the Animation Building. It is unclear as to whether Minnie will get a new dress, as it talks about Hollywood glitz, and her current dress suffices for that, and Mickey will remain in his sorcerer robes, as he has been for many years at the park. The Disney Parks blog also announced a brand new show to replace the long running Dream Along with Mickey. After ten years at the Magic Kingdom, the final curtain call for Dream Along will be 2nd April, 2016. Dream Along has been a staple of our trips to the park over the past ten years, and we have many fond memories, but of course things change, and it's time for something new. That something new will be in the form of "Mickey’s Royal Friendship Faire", which will debut in "summer" 2016. The show will feature Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Donald and Daisy as they prepare for a festival. Each character invites a special group of friends to join the festivities - Tiana, Naveen and Louis; Rapunzel and Flynn Rider; and Anna, Elsa and Olaf. The artwork below was shared on the Parks Blog: Images copyright Disney. Finally for Florida, before we move on, Disney also announced additional dates for Club Villain at Disney's Hollywood Studios. This separate ticketed event had a rocky start, with some being cancelled after bookings had been made, but now extra dates have opened up. Club Villain will run on select dates through March 2016, and features Disney Villains, including Dr Facilier, The Queen, Cruella de Vil, the Queen of Hearts and Maleficent. Last night was the US premier of the latest animated movie, Zootopia, in Los Angeles. Nick Wilde and Judy Hopp made their debut at the premier and look super cute! Let's just hope that they don't suffer the same fate as Sadness and Joy from Inside Out, and don't fade away never to be seen at the parks. With the new location at Hollywood Studios (which I mentioned above), it would be a perfect way to bring them to Walt Disney World! Image taken from D23's official Instagram, and is copyright Disney. That's actually all I'm going to mention for today. There are lots of social media accounts on the Internet that are speculating many things this week, and while some of the rumours swirling around are interesting, things are so changeable all the time, I don't like to indulge them too much. When I have some more solid news, I'll be sure to update here on the blog, as always. In the meantime, why not check out the latest part of my Tokyo Disney Resort trip report, which can be found here. I'll be posting the final part in the next few days, so look out for that. Character Central also received a good number of new pages over the past couple of weeks, and a lot of new locations and characters have been added including (all links clickable and go to the respective pages): The Seventh Sister, Kylo Ren, Adventure Happens Here, and Minnie's Silver Screen Dine. Have a great week everyone, Discuss this Blog Entry... News, Updates, Dream Along, DAWM, Olaf, Frozen, WDW, DHS, Epcot, Magic Kingdom, Zootopia, Mickey’s Royal Friendship Faire, Club Villain Character Central Help Support Character Central... REVIEW - Storybook Dining at Artist Point with Snow White Meeting Bo Peep in Toy Story Land at Disney's Hollywood Studios Meeting Fancy Nancy at Disney's Hollywood Studios Meeting Ralph and Vanellope at Epcot Photos from Disney's Hollywood Studios 30th Anniversary Celebrations Random Disney Friends Visit Town Square at the Magic Kingdom Random Character Appearances at Magic Kingdom - Speculation Disneyland After Dark 90s Nite - Thoughts and Opinions Happy New Year and Happy 9th Anniversary Character Central! Celebrating Pixar Fest at Disneyland Resort, June 2018 - A Report Recently Added Characters LEGO Witch LEGO Spider Lady LEGO Shark Suit Guy LEGO Frankenstein LEGO Mummy LEGO Scarecrow Jim Hawkins Mayor of Thunder Mesa Otis T. Wren The Maid Recently Added Locations, Shows, etc Topolino's Terrace Disney's Riviera Resort Pizza al Taglio Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance Toydarian Toymaker Savi's Workshop - Handbuilt Lightsabers Resistance Supply Oga's Cantina Milk Stand 2014, Advent Calendar, Animal Kingdom, Anniversary, Birthday, California, Character Dining, Christmas, DCA, December, DHS, Disneyland, Disneyland Paris, DL, DLP, DLR, Epcot, Frozen, Halloween, Hollywood Studios, Magic Kingdom, Mickey Mouse, Parade, TDR, Tokyo, Tokyo Disneyland, Trip Report, Updates, Walt Disney World, WDW Character Photos Chip & Company Designing Disney Disleelandia Disney Food Disney Tourist Blog DLRP Today Futureprobe Inside the Magic Parkeology Progress City, U.S.A. Stitch Kingdom WDW: It's Not Just for Kids Where the Magic Lives Zannaland Latest Flickr Updates	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line77
__label__cc	0.611176	0.388824	Clementine Ford Author, Corporate, Social Commentator, Speaking Out Clementine Ford’s take on social issues is bold, brave and entertaining. She inspires and challenges people of all ages in equal measure. Clementine is a Melbourne based writer, speaker and feminist thinker. She is a columnist for Fairfax’s Daily Life and is a regular contributor to The Age and the Sydney Morning Herald. Through her twice weekly columns for Daily Life, Clementine explores issues of gender inequality and pop culture. Her ability to use both humour and distilled fury to lay bare ongoing issues affecting women has earned her a huge and loyal readership amongst both women and men. Clementine’s work has radically challenged the issues of men’s violence against women, rape culture and gender warfare in Australia, while her comedic take on casual sexism and entertainment has earned her a reputation as an accomplished satirist. For more information or to book Clementine, please click here. photo: Melanie Faith Dove (c) fairfax media International Day of the Girl We greatly enjoyed having Clementine at our event, and thank her again for her participation. The audience for the event were very engaged – a number of audience members live-tweeted the event, and many of them were eager to stay after the completion of the panel to speak with and get photographs with Clementine and the other presenters. The overall feedback from the audience was very positive. Clementine filled the brief very effectively. Her own keynote presentation covered some of her central arguments about the value of ‘angry feminism’, despite the risks women face expressing such opinions on social media. This presentation was very well-received. —E. De Rango, Policy Coordinator, University of Melbourne Graduate Student Association, March 2016 Encouraging Affirmative Consent There seems to be a lot of confusion around what constitutes consent. No might mean no, but what happens you never hear it? What if . . . The Official Woman In a patriarchal structure that prioritises the ideas and actions of men, the Official Woman acts as the chief of police against all other dissenting . . . The Problem Isn’t With Your Body, It’s With Society Poor body image is the curse of the teenage girl, and if we aren’t careful these demons can follow us into adult life. But . . . Are Women Invisible? If the media is a portal through which we see the world, how does the conspicuous absence of women and their voices skew how people . . . Enquire about booking Clementine Ford SPAM Quiz 10+1=?	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line89
__label__wiki	0.553223	0.553223	Monday, 9 March 2009 Images: © Bettina Stöß Carmen – Angelika Kirchschlager Frasquita – Anna Fleischer Mercédès – Julia Benzinger Micaëla – Michaela Kaune Don José – Massimo Giordano Moralès – Andrew Ashwin Zuniga – Ante Jerkunica Escamillo – Raymond Aceto Remendado – Thomas Blondelle Dancaïro – Jörg Schörner Lillas Pastia – Marek Picz Andres – Jan Müller Peter Beauvais (original director, 1979) Søren Schuhmacher (revival director) Pierluigi Samaritani (staging and costumes) Ulrich Niepel (lighting) Children’s Choir of the Deutsche Oper Berlin (chorus mistress: Dagmar Fiebach) Chorus of the Deutsche Oper Berlin (chorus master: William Spaulding) Orchestra of the Deutsche Oper Berlin Yves Abel (conductor) This was to have been a new production of Carmen at the Deutsche Oper, the first since 1979. Sadly, illness on the part of director, Jürgen Gosch intervened, so the house was compelled to revive, under Søren Schuhmacher, Peter Beauvais's thirty-year-old production, with not so much as a Konzept in sight. Reactionaries and cynics would doubtless wish, or at least claim to wish, that such a setback might happen more often, but I am afraid that the prettified naturalism of the sets looked, unsurprisingly, tame and dated. Maybe I have been corrupted by my experience, good or otherwise, of more adventurous modern productions; this, however, seemed more akin to the world of musical comedy – and not in the original sense of the Paris Opéra Comique. Nothing was harmful; by the same token, there was no especial insight afforded into the work. The production had its moments. Costumes, particularly the soldiers’ uniforms, were well designed. The dark mountain setting for the third act was considerably more effective than the other mises-en-scène. I thought the crowd scenes ably directed, something one certainly cannot take for granted in terms of contemporary stagecraft. It was good to have no apology made for twin bêtes noires of liberal fascism: cigarettes and bull-fighting. The management of the Deutsche Oper had of course been place in an impossible position; this course was certainly far preferable to cancellation. Those who lament current directorial trends could do worse, however, than sample a few precursors and to recognise that it takes a producer of true genius – Patrice Chéreau springs to mind – to present something that will not quickly date. Better this, however, than the mindless populism of Francesca Zambello’s ‘West End spectacular’ approach for the Royal Opera; quite apart from the latter’s sheer untimeliness, at least with respect to anywhere east of the Met, it inflated Bizet’s opéra comique into something quite alien. There was, in general, an intimacy to the Beauvais-Schuhmacher production that worked well on its own terms. Angelika Kirchschlager’s Carmen would, I suspect, have been the principal attraction for much of the audience, even had this not been a revival. There were a few moments in which she let her acting get the better of her vocal skills, but hers remained a keenly observed portrayal. Indeed, for the most part, stage presence and singing could not be disentangled, which is just as it should be. There was sexiness aplenty in the first two acts, without ever descending into a loss of dignity. Moreover, one could feel keenly the fatal transformation in Carmen’s character by the fourth act. Massimo Giordano projected both ardour and weakness as Don José. His is an impressive voice although, in repertoire such as this, he would do well to suppress the Italianate sob that too frequently intervened here. Still, one could readily relate to his anguish, even if it occasionally veered a little close to melodrama. Michaela Kaune offered a beautifully sung Micaëla. The smaller roles were generally well taken, Andrew Ashwin proving an especially winning Moralès; his career should be one to watch. And the children’s chorus was deservedly cheered; this was an estimable contribution indeed. The only real disappointment was Raymond Aceto’s Escamillo. Although he had a certain swagger on stage, it was never matched by his generalised vocalism and sometimes uncertain intonation. It was difficult to understand why Carmen might have chosen him. Yves Abel handled Bizet’s score well, if without the fire that marks out the more notable interpretations. Care had clearly been taken to make the orchestra sound credibly French, not least when it came to some delectable woodwind solos. A notable instance was the flute solo in the second entr’acte, although sadly a sustained barrage of coughing ruined what should have been a truly magical atmosphere. Abel showed sound judgement in eschewing Ernest Guiraud’s once fashionable recitatives in favour of the original spoken dialogue. The conclusion, however, was disappointingly low-key, seeming rather to fizzle out from exhaustion. This was not a Carmen for the ages, but it marked an impressive debut for Kirchschlager and, especially given the difficult circumstances, should be accounted a success for the company. Posted by Mark Berry at 6:57 pm Labels: Angelika Kirchschlager, Bizet, Carmen, Deutsche Oper, Massimo Giordano, Michaela Kaune, Søren Schumacher, Yves Abel	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line90
__label__wiki	0.566735	0.566735	The Indian Queen, English National Opera, 26 February 2015 Hunahpú – Vince Yi Teculihuatzin – Julia Bullock Doña Isabel – Lucy Crowe Don Pedrarias Dávila – Thomas Walker Don Pedro de Alvarado – Noah Stewart Ixbalanqué – Anthony Roth Costanzo Mayan Shaman, Zapatista – Luthando Qave Leonor – Maritxell Carrero Mayan Deities (dancers) – Sonya Cullingford, Alistair Goldsmith, Lucy Starkey, Jack Thomson Tecum Umán – Jack Thomson Leonor as child – Rosanna Beacock Peter Sellars (director) Gronk (set designs) Dunya Ramicova (costumes) James F. Ingalls (lighting) Christopher Williams (choreography) Chorus of the English National Opera (chorus master: Christopher Bucknall) Orchestra of the English National Opera Laurence Cummings (conductor) As Peter Sellars might enjoin us, ‘Hey, let’s accentuate the positive!’ Or, as his relentlessly hyper-ventilating character, Leonor, might loquaciously, nonsensically have put it, ‘Throbbing through the long, hot, dangerous night, he, o he, that wondrous mixture of virility and divinity, ah, how the thrusting of his white, masculine loins and my ever-flowing beauteous womanhood must maximise and conjoin all that is awesomely towering and breathtakingly divine in river-creating accentuation of the, o, how ecstatic, the majestically positive.’ I had better start again: let us attend to the virtues of this performance. They were entirely musical, and in many cases, estimable indeed. Much to my surprise, after his dry, charmless Messiah for ENO, Laurence Cummings conducted an often richly expressive account of Purcell’s music. There was even, wonder of wonders in this puritanical age, vibrato – more, admittedly would have been welcome – to be heard from the violins. A decent-sized orchestra and well-endowed – sorry, Leonor – continuo group gave as fine a ‘live’ account as I can recall of much of the composer’s greatest music, its chromaticism beguiling and disconcerting in equal measure. The occasional ill-chosen tempo aside – an absurdly rushed Trumpet Tune, if I remember correctly – the music took its time, its melancholy and, on occasion, languor permitted to tell. I am not sure, moreover, that I have heard more committed choral singing of Purcell’s sacred music – what it was doing there is of course another matter – than that from the ENO Chorus, its expressive range pleasingly unconstrained by ‘early musicke’ dogma. Much of the solo singing was very good indeed too. Lucy Crowe’s soprano brought welcome lyricism, elegance of line, and emotional depth, contrasting with the lighter, yet not slighter contributions of Julia Bullock. The two counter-tenors were more variable. Vince Yi was accurate, and rather more than that on some occasions, but his voice, especially in its higher reaches, was somewhat thin of tone. Anthony Roth Costanzo struggled with intonation and register earlier on – almost as if he were expecting the music to be sung at a different pitch – but revealed himself later to be the more expressively-voiced of the two. Noah Stewart’s virile yet sensitive – yes, Leonor – tenor had one wishing for more. (We heard nothing at all from him in the first half, although we saw plenty.) I hope that ENO will invite him back for a more musically substantial role. Likewise Thomas Walker, whose stylish contributions were not the least of the evening’s virtues. Luthando Qave was a little woolly of tone. Had we been treated to a concert of Purcell’s music, that would have been all well and good. Alas, we had Peter Sellars’s intervention to contend with. The programme description ‘unfinished semi-opera in five acts with a prologue by Henry Purcell, completed by Peter Sellars’ was, at least in one way, uncharacteristically modest; for what we had was, the ‘soundtrack’ notwithstanding, entirely the baleful creation of Sellars’s half-baked ‘ideas’. Doubtless they would have been thought daringly post-colonial, and will be praised as such by fashion victims; yet, in truth, there was little of the ‘post-’ to them. There are problems, to put it mildly, with the twenty-first century presentation of Purcellian semi-opera, but I cannot imagine that we could have been worse off with something approximating to the original play, described by Sellars as a ‘bizarre fantasy’. It takes one to know one, I suppose. I can only assume that the spoken texts from Rosario Aguilar’s The Lost Chronicles of Terra Firma became more thoroughly lost in translation. What we hear seems in its banality to cater to the lower end of the Woman’s Own market, an irredeemable mixture of very mild soft pornography and tedious 'right-on' platitudes. Sellars seems to present, although I may have misunderstood, an unthinking mixture of Aztec and Mayan civilisation conquered by the Spanish. The patronising presentation of the ‘Other’ as primitive victims strains toward, never quite reaching, the intellectual coherence and emotional depth of a gap-year student’s attempts to find him- or herself. Of what might interest us about other civilisations there is little, unless one counts a risibly choreographed parody of Mayan mysticism at the beginning, replete, I am sorry to say, with recorded generic ‘jungle’ sounds. There is still less to credit in the gaudy, jumble-sale-style costumes. ‘Foreign’ people are so colourful, and unspoilt, you see. Designs, attractive enough in a one-dimensional, touristic sort of way, are by ‘Gronk’, who ‘since the early 1970s has been using guerrilla street performance, video, film, photography and conceptual art to upstage the mainstream art world and proclaim the outside existentialism of Chicana/or artists.’ At least we are spared the participation of Bill Viola, although we are certainly not spared the ardours of a preposterously long evening: three hours and forty minutes, with one interval. It seems much longer, especially during the second of the two acts, despite its slightly greater dramatic coherence. Then there is Leonor – who, for the most part, confusingly appears to speak as her mother, Teculihuatzin, lover to Don Pedro (Leonor’s father). It would, I hope, be difficult to find anyone in polite society who would not be utterly horrified by the genocidal acts of the Spanish conquerors. So banal and excitable are Leonor’s interventions, though, that one almost begins to sympathise. Were the squaddies to put her out of our misery, it would unquestionably be a merciful release. I do not know whether the actress, Maritxell Carrero, was simply following orders. However, even if one could overlook the aggravating mispronunciation of words such as ‘lieutenant’, she came across as something close to an ‘amusing’ 1970s caricature of an ‘exotic foreigner’. Perhaps, however, such caricatured North American presentation is creditably true to this Indian Queen, for ultimately, so self-indulgent a show seems concerned with little beyond a director’s self-imposition upon self-righteously adopted ‘causes’. If ‘self’ appears too many times in the preceding sentence, that sorry deed, at least, has not been carried out entirely unknowingly. Labels: Anthony Roth Costanzo, Julia Bullock, Laurence Cummings, Lucy Crowe, Luthando Qave, Noah Stewart, Peter Sellars, Purcell, The Indian Queen, Thomas Walker, Vince Yi Pogorelich - Liszt, Schumann, Stravinsky, and Brahms, 24 February 2015 Liszt – Années de pèlerinage: Deuxième année, S 161: ‘Après une lecture de Dante’ Schumann – Fantasie in C major, op.17 Stravinsky – Three Movements from ‘Petrushka’ Brahms – Variations on a Theme by Paganini, op.35 Ivo Pogorelich (piano) There are ‘controversial’ pianists, and then there is Ivo Pogorelich. Neither love nor money would have me part with his recordings of Gaspard de la nuit and Prokofiev’s Sixth Sonata. However, my two experiences of him as a concert pianist, at the 2009 Edinburgh Festival, and now tonight, have gone some way beyond the merely eccentric; indeed, I am not quite sure I have the vocabulary to describe them. Nevertheless, try I must. Liszt’s Dante Sonata opened the programme, its opening – ‘Abandon hope all ye who enter here’ – declamatory, although almost metallic in tone. (Throughout the first half in particular, I felt there was something distinctly odd about the regulation of the piano, but maybe it was just Pogorelich’s ‘way’ with it.) There was little in the way of beauty of sound – with Liszt, I always have in the back of my mind Tovey’s observation that here was clearly a man who could not fail but make a beautiful sound whenever he touched the piano – but somehow there seemed to be a sense of truthfulness. Once past the introductory material, Pogorelich’s performance initially seemed subdued, but volume and tempo increased. Then came the great slowing: nothing wrong with that in principle, of course, and it needs to happen. But to something quite so glacial? Phrases, let alone paragraphs, were so distended – a word, I am afraid, which persistently came to my mind throughout the recital – that they stood on or beyond the brink of losing all meaning. Exacerbating a tendency already present, the performance became weirdly fragmentary. Moreover, picking up of tempo did not, sadly, equate to any (re-)gaining of coherence. At least, that is, until, apparently out of nowhere, Mephisto seemed, uninvited, to join us, presaging his final waltz. But where had he come from? Perhaps more to the point, where did he then go? Some of the playing that ensued was, for a brief time, diabolically virtuosic, yet also brutal to the point of charmlessness. I was captivated, somehow, or should that have been ‘captive’? If the Liszt work had its problems, that was nothing, however, compared to Pogorelich’s performance of Schumann’s C major Fantasie. Never have I heard Schumann sound so – unlike Schumann. Indeed, there were times when, had I not known the work to which the performance was distantly related, I might have guessed the composer to have been one of those cultish nineteenth-century eccentrics such as Alkan. From the outset of the first movement, the thin, bright sound of the instrument seemed less suited still than it had to Liszt. Indeed, oddly, the music often sounded more akin to Liszt than it ever did to Schumann. I longed for something deeper, mellower: ideally a Bösendorfer. And yet, when Pogorelich occasionally yielded, there were proto-Brahmsian half-lights to be experienced, that experience alas proving to be of frustrating brevity. More seriously still, form seemed as elusive as compositional ‘voice’. The torpor into which the movement descended was beyond all other things straightforwardly perverse. When it came to the second movement, the jubilation with which it opened sounded briefly closer to Schumann, although the now-inevitable distortions would soon undo that good, or at least comprehensible, work. At one point, the performance sounded as if it were about to metamorphose into an account of the ‘Great Gate of Kiev’, before Schumann briefly reappeared, only to be replaced with someone closer to Liszt, both in sonority and rhetoric. And so it went on. There was greater yielding in the third movement, but as music, it utterly baffled me. I have little idea about the time on the clock, but it seemed interminable, quite devoid of direction. It unsettled – but not in any way I could begin to consider ‘right’. With Stravinsky’s Three Movements from ‘Petrushka’ the recital reached its nadir. The ‘Russian Dance’ was bizarrely slow, but also oppressively heavy: rather like a piano transcription of what someone who has never really listened to Klemperer might think one of his more extreme performances to have sounded like. Except, of course, without the sense of form, or line, or indeed of anything else. O for Pollini here! The second movement eventually reached something beyond rehearsal speed, only to lose it soon after, Odd snatches of surprisingly Ravel-like sonority were interspersed with Petrushka on a distant ‘Bydlo’ and passages so distended that they sounded more like random collections of notes and durations. ‘Shrovetide Fair’ sounded as an amalgam of tendencies in its predecessor. Fistfuls of notes, some right, some less so, had me ready to confess to anything: if only it would stop. I half expected Pogorelich’s left hand to quit, citing ‘artistic differences’ with his right. Had it done so, it might well have proved an act of mercy. Very much to my surprise, Brahms’s Paganini Variations emerged best from the evening’s confrontations. A welcome chaste opening to the First Book almost suggested Neue Sachlichkeit, arguably coming a little closer, if still not very, to Stravinsky than the previous performance ever had. Here, for the most part Pogorelich’s technique was marshalled in a good, mesmerising cause. The third variation really sounded as if Paganini had turned pianist; the fourth and fifth seemed to herald the Second Piano Concerto and to pay tribute to Schumann in a way the Fantasie performance never really had. Weighty turbulence in the eighth was disrupted by a few oddities, but remained recognisably Brahms. Slower tempi, however, brought greater eccentricity, the twelfth sounding like – I really do not know what. The coda, however, was (relatively) back on the straight and narrow, boasting real direction and purpose. Coherence regained was maintained in the first variations of the Second Book. They were not necessarily ‘conventional’, but nor were they merely outré. We even came to hear later on a sense, briefly, of repose that was yet quietly ecstatic. Wonderful! Scampering post-Mendelssohn figures gained diabolical edge – although, I must admit, not always; nor did they always quite scamper. Double octaves, though, had greater depth than they ever had in the Liszt performance. The twelfth and thirteenth variations went so far towards what we might generally expect that they beguiled, rubato and voicing alike not only delightful but meaningful. Following a coda which did – more or less – what it should, I fled, lest there be an encore. Posted by Mark Berry at 11:04 pm 7 comments: Links to this post Labels: Brahms, Ivo Pogorelich, Liszt, Schumann, Southbank Centre, Stravinsky Die Zauberflöte, Royal Opera, 23 February 2015 Tamino – Toby Spence Three Ladies – Sinéad Mulhern, Nadezhda Karyazina, Claudia Huckle Papageno – Markus Werba Queen of the Night – Anna Siminska Monostatos – Colin Judson Pamina – Jania Brugger Three Boys – Michael Clayton-Jolly, Matthew Price, Alessio D’Andrea Speaker – Benjamin Bevan Sarastro – Georg Zeppenfeld Priests – Harry Nicoll, Donald Maxwell Papagena – Rhian Lois Two Armoured Men – Samuel Sakker, James Platt Sir David McVicar (director) John Macfarlane (designs) Paule Constable (lighting) Leah Hausman (movement) Royal Opera Chorus (chorus master: Renato Balsadonna) Cornelius Meister (conductor) When, a couple of years ago, I last saw David McVicar’s production of The Magic Flute, I was pleased to note that Leah Hausman’s revival direction had brought new life to a staging which, at its previous revival in 2011, had begun to seem tired. In terms of staging, it seems to have perked up further in 2015. Part of the reason, I suspect, must be McVicar’s having returned to direct the revival himself: something I did not pick up on until after the event, but which, in retrospect, certainly told. Not only did the cast members appear perfectly clear what they were and what they should be doing; a considerable amount of movement (typically well planned by Leah Hausman) had been rethought, reinvented. I can be very touchy – many would doubtless say too touchy, but here I stand… – when it comes to Mozart, and regret what seemed to me a shift towards the merely comic. However, if my memory serves me correctly, and this is a production I have watched regularly on DVD too, it was a shift rather than a wrench. Many, in any case, will feel differently, should the widespread enthusiasm for Nicholas Hytner’s old ENO staging, an enthusiasm I never felt in the slightest, be anything to go by. There remains delight to be had in John Macfarlane’s designs; a visual, if less an intellectual, sense of eighteenth-century Enlightenment remains happily present too. At any rate, it is pleasing to see a twelve-year-old production – I shall never forget Sir Colin Davis’s conducting during its initial run – refreshed and reinvigorated. Cornelius Meister’s conducting had its moments; comparisons with Davis would be pointless. Meister sometimes seemed hamstrung by the (presumably self-inflicted) size of his orchestra, nowhere more so than in an often scrawny account of the Overture. When will conductors recognise the crucial matter of the size of a house in suggesting the necessary, or at least desirable, number of strings? There was sometimes a tendency to rush, too, an especially noteworthy occasion being the merely glib conclusion to the first act; here, Mozart should sound at his most Beethovenian. However, there was orchestral beauty, albeit of a Fricsay-Abbado ‘light’, almost free-floating variety, worlds away from Klemperer, Böhm, or Davis, let alone Furtwängler. Harmony, then, might have been given more of its due. Some of the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House’s woodwind playing was truly ravishing; I recall a particularly fruity bassoon line, but there were many other instances. If there were a few disjunctures between pit and stage, there was little that was grievous, and little, moreover, that seemed unlikely to be rectified in the progress of this run of performances. Toby Spence proved an ardent Tamino, a little darker-hued than we often hear, and certainly none the worse for that. This was the first time I had heard his Pamina, Jania Brugger, but I very much hope that it will not be the last. Her performance balanced dignity and beauty of tone in properly Mozartian manner, her second-act aria an object lesson in pathos without exaggeration. ‘Bei Männern’ was an especial delight, given the participation of Markus Werba as Papageno. I do not think I have ever heard a less than excellent performance from him, and this was no exception. His Viennese way with the dialogue came as balm to the ears; but there was sadness too, as there must be beneath any clowning. Rhian Lois made the most of her role as his intended: an impressive Royal Opera debut. Anna Siminska’s Queen of the Night had the occasional slip, but this is a well-nigh impossible role; there was much nevertheless to admire. Georg Zeppenfeld’s Sarastro presented gravitas leavened by humanity, as did Benjamin Bevan’s Speaker. If the Three Ladies were not always ideally blended, the Three Boys proved delightfully aethereal, Mozart’s tricky chromaticism holding no fears for them. Colin Judson offered character that was more than mere caricature with his Monostatos. (Really, though, there should be a better solution to Sarastro’s line concerning the Moor’s blackness than stopping half-way through, pausing, and resuming later on!) &amp;amp;lt;br /&amp;amp;gt; Labels: Anna Siminska, Benjamin Bevan, Colin Judson, Cornelius Meister, David McVicar, Die Zauberflöte, Georg Zeppenfeld, Jania Brugger, Markus Werba, Mozart, Rhian Lois, Royal Opera, Toby Spence Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg, English National Opera, 21 February 2015 (sung in English, as The Mastersingers of Nuremberg) Walther – Gwyn Hughes Jones Eva – Rachel Nicholls Magdalene – Madeleine Shaw David – Nicky Spence Hans Sachs – Iain Paterson Sixtus Beckmesser – Andrew Shore Veit Pogner – James Creswell Fritz Kothner – David Stout Kunz Vogelgesang – Peter van Hulle Konrad Nachtigall – Quentin Hayes Ulrich Eisslinger – Timothy Robinson Hermann Ortel – Nicholas Folwell Balthasar Zorn – Richard Roberts Augustin Moser – Stephen Rooke Hans Folz – Roderick Earle Hans Schwarz – Jonathan Lemalu Night Watchman – Nicholas Crawley Richard Jones (director) Paul Steinberg (set designs) Buki Schiff (costumes) Mimi Jordan Sherrin (lighting) Lucy Burge (choreography) Chorus of the English National Opera (chorus master: Martin Fitzpatrick) Edward Gardner (conductor) Although the English National Opera has been decidedly sparing with its Wagner for quite some time now, its recent track record, leaving aside a disastrous Ring, has perhaps been better than that at Covent Garden. Above all, I am thinking of Nikolaus Lehnhoff’s production of Parsifal, sadly revived but once, with estimable conducting from ENO’s soon-to-be Music Director, Mark Wigglesworth, and a fine cast (bar an unfortunate Kundry). The contrast with the Royal Opera’s recent Parsifal – a production that appeared to offer a bizarre tribute to Jimmy Savile, a Music Director quite out of his depth, and a tenor whose replacement with a pneumatic drill would have been more or less universally welcomed – was telling. Here, a Meistersinger production originally seen in Cardiff again proved preferable to Covent Garden’s most recent offering (an especially sad state of affairs at the sometime house of Bernard Haitink). If we quietly leave to one side the most extravagant claims heard over the past fortnight – surely more a consequence of sympathy with and support for ENO in the face of financial and managerial difficulties than of properly critical reception – this proved something to be cherished, something of which ENO could justly be proud: a good, and in many respects very good, company performance. Edward Gardner’s conducting certainly marked an advance upon his 2012 Flying Dutchman. One would hardly expect someone conducting The Mastersingers for the first time to give a performance at the level of a Haitink or a Thielemann, let alone the greatest conductors of the past; nor did he. Yet, once we were past a fitful first-act Prelude – I began to wonder whether we were in for a Harnoncourt-lite assault upon Wagner! – Gardner’s reading permitted the score to flow as it should. (I shudder in horror when I recall Antonio Pappano’s hackwork – a generous description – at Covent Garden.) If there was rarely the orchestral weight, the grounding in the bass, that Wagner’s work ideally requires, relative lightness of touch was perhaps no bad thing for lighter voices than one would generally encounter. Moreover, Gardner seemed surer as time went on: not an unusual thing in this score, for even so fine a Wagnerian such as Daniele Gatti gave a similar impression a year-and-a-half ago in Salzburg, coming ‘into focus’ more strongly as the work progressed. Moreover, orchestral playing, considered simply in itself, was excellent throughout; a larger body of strings would have been welcome, but one cannot have everything. The ENO Chorus, clearly well trained by Martin Fitzpatrick, offered sterling service in the best sense: weighty where required, yet anything but undifferentiated. Orchestra and chorus alike have prospered under Gardner’s leadership; they are treasures the company and country at large have the strongest of obligations to protect. What of Richard Jones’s production? Clearly, to anyone familiar with the work of Stefan Herheim, or, from an earlier generation, say, Harry Kupfer and Götz Friedrich, there has again been an excess of extravagant praise. The production rarely gets in the way: certainly a cause for celebration. Yet, by the same token, it has nothing in particular to add to our understanding, however diverting the ‘spot the German artist on the stage curtain’ might be. (I could not help but smile at the mischievous inclusion of Frank Castorf.) A predictably post-modern mix of nineteenth- and sixteenth(?)-century costume could have been used to say something interesting about Wagner’s donning earlier, anachronistic garb (that is, Bach rather than something ‘authentic’). It would need to have been more sharply defined and directed, though; here, it remains on the level of the mildly confusing, or at least incoherent. One has a sense of community, but it is difficult to discern much in the way of the darker side of the work – without which, the light makes less impression, just as its ‘secondary’ diatonicism remains predicated, both immediately and more reflectively, upon the chromaticism of Tristan. I can see why Jones might have opted – at least that is what I think he was doing – to present Hans Sachs as suffering from bipolar disorder, doing an irritatingly silly dance at one point, prior to slumping into depression. Had that been a personal illustration of the Schopenhauerian Wahn afflicting the world more generally, it would have worked a great deal better, though, than an all-too-simple explanation for Sachs’s mood-swings. The translation, similarly mistaking the personal for the metaphysical, certainly did not help: ‘Mad! Mad! Everyone’s mad!’ for ‘Wahn! Wahn! Überall Wahn!’ If that were misleading, though, far worse was the bizarre reference to ‘ancient Rome’ instead of the Holy Roman Empire in Sachs’s final peroration, rendering his warnings meaningless and merely absurd. There is enough uninformed misunderstanding of this scene as it is, largely born, it seems, by Anglophone audiences being unable or unwilling to read what Wagner actually wrote; further confusion such as that is anything but helpful. Jones certainly did score, though, in his adroit direction of the cast on stage, although much of that credit should certainly go directly to members of that cast. Andrew Shore’s Beckmesser was an unalloyed joy, treading the difficult line between comedy and dignity as surely as anyone was is likely to see today. His diction was beyond reproach, seamless integration of Wort und Ton almost having one forget the problems of translation. James Creswell’s rich bass similarly impressed, having one wish that Pogner’s role might be considerably expanded. David Stout’s Kothner elicited a not dissimilar reaction from this listener. Iain Paterson’s voice is less ideally suited to his role, that of Sachs, but there was no doubting his commitment to role and performance, the thoughtfulness of which offered many compensations. The other Masters and Nicholas Crawley’s sumptuously-clad Night Watchmen were an impressive bunch too. I wondered whether, to begin with, Gwyn Hughes Jones’s Walther was a little too Italianate in style; that is doubtless more a matter of taste than anything else, though, and either the performance or my ears adjusted – or both. He certainly went from strength to strength in the second and third acts, experiencing no difficulties whatsoever in making himself heard above the rest of the ensemble, without any recourse to barking. Nicky Spence’s characterful David – it would, admittedly, be an odd David who was not characterful! – struggled a little with his higher notes in the first act, but, like the cast as a whole, offered a portrayal considerably more than the sum of its parts. I was less keen on Rachel Nicholls’s somewhat harsh-toned Eva, having the distinct impression that her voice was being forced, perhaps on account of the size of the theatre. (But then, Wagner tends to be performed in larger theatres.) Madeleine Shaw’s Magdalene was straightforwardly a joy to hear, as impressive in its way as the assumptions of Shore and Creswell. Again, it was difficult not to wish for more. So, despite certain reservations, this was a Meistersinger to be reckoned with. On a number of occasions, especially during the third act, work and performance brought a lump to my throat, even once a tear to my eye. That, surely, is the acid test – and it was readily passed. Labels: Andrew Shore, Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg, Edward Gardner, English National Opera, Gwyn Hughes Jones, Iain Paterson, James Creswell, Madeleine Shaw, Nicky Spence, Rachel Nicholls, Richard Jones, Wagner BPO/Rattle - Lachenmann and Mahler, 15 February 2015 Image: © Monika Rittershaus Lachenmann – Tableau Mahler – Symphony no.2 in C minor, ‘Resurrection’ Kate Royal (soprano) Magdalena Kožená (mezzo-soprano) London Symphony Chorus CBSO Chorus (chorus director: Simon Halsey) Sir Simon Rattle (conductor) The British Press – well, a section thereof – has gone into overdrive concerning the visit of Simon Rattle and the Berlin Philharmonic to London, not least on account of Rattle’s recent sixtieth birthday and his knowing, hugely welcome contribution to the all-too-nascent debate over a new concert hall for London. The coverage neither disturbs nor especially interests me; for me, there are many more interesting cultural events than a cycle of Sibelius symphonies, but, by the same token, it is not an entirely unpleasant change to see mention of Helmut Lachenmann in place of Harriet Harman, her ‘pink bus’, and other such high political trivia. Yes, of course journalistic quality has been at best mixed. A piece in The Observer has its author, pretending to knowledge of Berlin, place Daniel Barenboim at the helm of the Deutsche Oper, call Rattle’s first wife ‘Elaine’, and bizarrely claim that Rattle recorded Sibelius’s ‘symphonies … in Birmingham to a level no one has since achieved.’ Moreover, I initially wondered whether this piece in the Daily Telegraph were an inept attempt at parody, so numerous were its solecisms, so risibly unsubtle its laboured attempts at name-dropping. What else would we expect from our newspapers, post- or, to all intents and purposes, pre-Leveson? However, for those of us who care about music rather than inaccurate tittle-tattle, our principal concern should remain the state of Furtwängler’s old orchestra under its outgoing – if not for a while – artistic director, something that has received little attention beyond wearisome hagiography. The good, indeed very good news first: Rattle’s commitment to new music remains distinguished, likewise his commitment to interesting, meaningful programming. The more one hears Lachenmann’s music in conjunction with that of the great Austro-German tradition, the more he appears not just as its undertaker, not even just as its eulogist, but also as one of its ablest custodians. No more than his sometime æsthetic antagonist, Hans Werner Henze, can he break entirely free of that tradition; nor, one increasingly suspects, does he wish to. Rattle has previously paired the 1988 Tableau with Kurtág’s Grabstein für Stephan and Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony; here, we seemed to go beyond Lachenmann’s celebrated affinity with Strauss’s Alpine Symphony to a pairing with Mahler’s Second Symphony which, as a prospect, offered new vistas that were metaphysical as well as physical. That said, my (perhaps fanciful) identification of certain phrases with those in Strauss’s giant tone-poem persisted in this excellent performance from Rattle and his Berlin forces. Hans Zender’s Saarbrücken recording may sound more sharply focused at times, or that may have been a matter of recording versus the Royal Festival Hall’s acoustic, but there was no doubting the ‘sense’ of the piece conveyed.. Post-Messiaen(ic) percussion thrilled. Stillness and resonance – not least Lachenmann’s extraordinary sustained notes – thrillingly accomplished the work of a born dialectician and musical dramatist, the work’s continuities as revelatory as twinkling-of-an-eye shifts of perspective. The large orchestra – not as large as Mahler’s or Strauss’s, but even so – showed Rattle not as someone who miraculously brought new music to Berlin; we hear such nonsense too much, as if Abbado, Karajan, Furtwängler, et al., had not done a great deal in that respect. (It was, of course, the latter who conducted the first performance of Schoenberg’s Variations for Orchestra with this very ensemble.) But it showed him at his best, as a curator, to use the fashionable modern term, of orchestral and compositional traditions that would die, were they not constantly reinvigorated. If the pairing promised much, the performance of the Mahler symphony, long a Rattle ‘signature work’, alas only rarely delivered. Perhaps that long familiarity was part of the problem; Rattle nowadays often seems determined to highlight, to pull around, even to distort, as if he has grown tired of letting works at least appear to speak for themselves, for art to conceal art. The temptation to ‘do things’ must be all the greater with an orchestra such as the Berlin Philharmonic. That said, much of the first movement proceeded well enough, without both the (acoustical?) pin-point precision of a 2010 performance I heard in Berlin’s Philharmonie, but also without the more extreme distortions – at least until the close, when, sadly, any sense of formal unity was casually thrown away. It seemed less a dialectical strategy than a hint, or more, of ennui. Rubato and other tempo fluctuations veered, here and in subsequent movements, between the all-too-predictable – holding back the end of a phrase, then pushing forward – to the unfathomable (‘because he and they can’?) The Ländler’s charms were likewise soon dissipated by persistent lingering. That, despite some unearthly beauty in the woodwind solos. The strings, disturbingly, had a tendency to sound unduly generic, to an extent that even previous performances had not revealed. (Again, maybe the acoustic was partly the villain, but I doubt that it can have been entirely responsible.) The scherzo emerged more listless than sardonic, puzzling distended pauses suggesting little more than perplexity – though whose: the fishes’, St Anthony’s, or ours? Urlicht, however, marked for me the low point. Magdalena Kožená is an artist I have often greatly admired, and I am sure I shall do so again, but her self-consciously ‘operatic’, even blowsy, delivery seemed entirely out of place with Mahler’s (admittedly artful) simplicity. Rattle’s direction of the orchestra seemed determined to divest Mahler’s score of its magic, again of its wonder. Kožená, meanwhile, emoted and wildly exaggerated her consonants. Perhaps that, though, was at Rattle’s insistence, since, in the final movement, I noted similar exaggeration from the chorus, which, despite Rattle’s pedantic, note-by-note direction, otherwise sang very well indeed. Such insistence, if indeed insistence it were, had clearly not extended to Kate Royal’s contribution, much of which may as well have been in Swahili. There were, of course, moments during the finale when the orchestra sounded as impressive, or almost as impressive, as it should, although even then, there was a tendency to sound as if Rattle were turning up the audio volume. But all in all, the sound, whatever its volume (and again, the acoustic almost certainly did not help), rarely sounded grounded; where was the harmonic sense, either of the moment or in the movement’s – and the symphony’s – great span? Daniel Harding’s recent Proms performance had been preferable in almost every way: ideas of its (his) own, yet coming together as a whole that was far more than the sum of its parts. For me, though clearly not for the greater part of the audience, this was a disappointing performance, which edged frighteningly close, and not in a good way, toward incoherence. Labels: Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, CBSO Chorus, Helmut Lachenmann, Kate Royal, London Symphony Chorus, Magdalena Kožená, Mahler, Sir Simon Rattle, Southbank Centre Hannigan/Uchida/Philharmonia/Salonen - Dutilleux and Ravel, 12 February 2015 Dutilleux – Correspondances Ravel – Piano Concerto in G major Ravel – L’Enfant et les Sortilèges Barbara Hannigan (soprano, Princess) Dame Mitsuko Uchida (piano) Child – Chloé Briot Mother, Chinese Cup, Dragonfly – Elodie Méchain Louis XV Armchair, Shepherd, White Cat, Squirrel – Andrea Hill Shepherdess, Bat, Owl – Omo Bello Fire, Nightingale – Sabine Devieilhe Grandfather Clock – Jean-Sébastien Bou Teapot, Arithmetic, Frog – François Piolino Armchair, Tree – Nicola Courjal Irina Brown (director) Quinny Sacks (movement) Ruth Sutcliffe (designs) Kevin Treacy (lighting) Louis Price (video) Philharmonia Voices (director: Aidan Oliver) Esa-Pekka Salonen (conductor) Henri Dutilleux’s music has its devotees. I am yet to join their ranks, but had no reason to think this was not an admirable performance of his song-cycle, Correspondances. Following its brief, opening Rilke (in translation) setting, ‘Gong’, ‘Danse cosmique’ offered Barbara Hannigan greater dramatic possibilities, well taken. The Philharmonia under Esa-Pekka Salonen provided vivid, often pictorial playing. Singer and orchestra proved tender indeed during the treatment of ‘solitude’ in the oddly-chosen extract from a letter from Aleksandr Solzhenitzyn to Mstislav Rostropovich and Galina Vishnevskaya. Hannigan’s closing repetitions of ‘toujours’ faded away nicely, as did the orchestra. ‘Gong II’ provided something a little more labyrinthine, even perhaps Bergian, although Pli selon pli this certainly is not. The closing ‘De Vincent á Théo’ brought beguiling sonorities and, in Hannigan’s performance, a stunning vocal climax. Mitsuko Uchida joined the orchestra for Ravel’s G major Concerto. There were a few occasions when I wondered whether the Philharmonia had had enough rehearsal here, lapses in ensemble uncharacteristic for both orchestra and conductor. Otherwise, Salonen proved general cool but not cold, even though a little more freedom at times might not have gone amiss. Uchida’s playing was a model of clarity, energy, an of course grace. It is all too easy to make Mozartian comparisons here, but they did not seem especially relevant; this was Ravel, and sounded like it. Uchida’s second-movement cantilena was beautifully judged, a product of harmonic understanding as much as her melodic voicing itself. Woodwind solos were exquisitely voiced, with just the right degree of general orchestral languor. The scampering energy of the finale was occasionally hampered by a couple more lapses in ensemble, but the ‘sense’ of the music was there, especially in Salonen’s building of tension. Uchida’s choice of encore was inspired: the second of Schoenberg’s Six Little Piano Pieces, op.19, that repeated major third, G-B, making its point of continuity. L’Enfant et les sortilèges followed the interval. Salonen’s tendency, especially at the start, was towards fleetness of tempo; there was certainly no hint of sentimentality. Indeed, a keen sense of forward motion was maintained throughout the performance. The action took place on a ‘stage’ surrounding the stage proper, a resourceful semi-staging giving all that we really needed, not least thanks to imaginative animation (for instance, the confusion of the clock) and atmospheric lighting. There was great character and chemistry to be experienced between the singers, François Piolino often stealing the show, whether by himself or in his interactions with others. Chloé Briot presented a convincingly boyish Child, never forgetting – nor did the performers as a whole – that this is not really a children’s opera at all, but an opera about that most adult of preoccupations, childhood. Hannigan, when she reappeared, now as the Princess, was very much a woman in a man’s creation of a supposed child’s world. Scenes were very sharply defined as almost self-contained units; Salonen seemed, at least to my ears, to perceive Ravel’s opera almost as a cinematic dream-sequence. Certain figures recalled the sound-world of the piano concerto, but there was no mistaking the heady atmosphere of the night. Labels: Barbara Hannigan, Chloé Briot, Dutilleux, Esa-Pekka Salonen, François Piolino, L'Enfant et les sortilèges, Mitsuko Uchida, Philharmonia Orchestra, Ravel, Southbank Centre Programming Beethoven symphonies 'There is never only one way' are words that should be pinned above every musician's - arguably everyone's - desk. Immediately below, we should probably append Schoenberg's generous 'The middle road is the only one that does not lead to Rome.' The standard presentation of Beethoven's symphonies as a 'cycle' has much to be said for it, although Daniel Barenboim's inclusion at the Proms of works by Boulez proved a stroke of genius. So, assuming that we might have Barenboim - or whoever your preferred Beethovenian(s) might be - at the podium, how else might we programme Beethoven's symphonies? I started considering this parlour game on a railway journey yesterday, and here were my selections, one symphony per (more or less) typical length concert. Doubtless my choices would be different today, let alone tomorrow. Looking back, I see a good deal of Mozart: I might say too much, but there can never be too much. Moreover, there is no Wagner, rather to my surprise. Please feel free to comment or to add your suggestions. Bonn's greatest son Bach - Orchestral Suite no.1 in C major, BWV 1066 Mozart - Piano Concerto no.24 in C minor, KV 491 Beethoven - Symphony no.1 in C major, op.21 Mozart - Kyrie in D minor, KV 341/368a Handel - Music for the Royal Fireworks Mendelssohn - Kyrie in D minor Beethoven - Symphony no.2 in D major, op.36 Boulez - Rituel in memoriam Bruno Maderna Stravinsky - Requiem Canticles Beethoven - Symphony no.3 in E-flat major, 'Eroica', op.55 Mozart - Overture: Don Giovanni Beethoven - Symphony no. 4 in B-flat major, op.60 Haydn - Missa in Angustiis, 'Nelson Mass', Hob. XXII:11 Mahler - Totenfeier Birtwistle - Endless Parade Beethoven - Symphony no.5 in C minor, op.67 Gluck - Overture: Iphigénie en Aulide Beethoven - Symphony no.6 in F major, 'Pastoral', op.68 Berlioz - Symphonie fantastique, op.14 Cornelius - Overture: Der Barbier von Bagdad Rameau - Suite from Les Boréades Busoni - Tanzwalzer Beethoven - Symphony no.7 in A major, op.92 Webern - Five Movements, op.5 Beethoven - Symphony no.8 in F major, op.93 Webern - Symphony, op.21 Brahms - Symphony no.3 in F major, op.90 Schoenberg - Prelude to Genesis, op.44 Henze - Violin Concerto no.3 Beethoven - Symphony no.9 in D minor, op.125 Labels: Beethoven Bode/Levit - Schubert, Beethoven, and Rihm, 8 February 2015 Schubert – Abendlied für die Entfernte, D 856 Beethoven – An die ferne Geliebte, op.98 Rihm – Das Rot: Sechs Gedichte der Karoline von Günderrode Schubert – Daß sie hier gewesen, D 775 Beethoven – Adelaide, op.46 Wonne der Wehmut, op.83 no.1 Neue Liebe, neues Leben, op.75 no.2 Simon Bode (tenor) Igor Levit (piano) This was an impressive recital from Simon Bode and Igor Levit. Levit’s participation had initially promoted my attendance, but I left equally pleased to have made the acquaintance of this fine German tenor. I cannot say that I find Schubert’s Abendlied für die Entfernte an example of the composer at his most compelling, but it made for a pleasant enough curtain-raiser, its progress nicely undulating – if, that is, hills or other things that undulate can raise curtains. Bode’s head-voice was put to good use in the hopes for blessed peace (sel’ge Ruh) at the end of the second stanza, and Levit made the most of the turn to the minor mode in the third. Beethoven’s Lieder remain strangely neglected: more, I suspect, a matter of outdated, tedious preconceptions about him supposedly not being a ‘vocal composer’ than anything else. (The amount of nonsense one still hears concerning even Fidelio never ceases to surprise.) An die ferne Geliebte is of course celebrated as ‘the first major song cycle’, but we tend to hear it spoken of more than performed. Bode seemed really to speak to us, his diction beyond reproach. Levit’s voicing showed what a difference it makes to have a first-class pianist in this music. Both musicians offered different ‘voices’, as it were, for different stanzas in the opening song, ‘Auf dem Hügel sitz ich’. Bode’s brief withdrawal of vibrato in its successor, ‘Wo die Berge so blau’ offered a vision of a very different world, motivated by the text and vindicated in performance. Birds sang under Levit’s fingers in ‘Diese Wolken in den Höhen’, but, echoing the Pastoral Symphony and other Beethovenian evocations of Nature, this was not a vision confined to the merely pictorial. Levit’s transition to the fifth song proved a thing of musical wonder in itself, testament to the command of form one would expect from his solo Beethoven performances. My sole reservation concerned whether Bode shouted a little at the close of the cycle, but at any rate, there was very much a sense of cyclic completion. (Beethoven, of course, helps in that respect!) Later we heard an immediately recognisable ‘earlier Beethoven’ in a performance of Adelaide: echoes of Mozart and Haydn, yet unmistakeably his own man, indeed even with presentiments towards the close of Fidelio. The performance of Neue Liebe, neues Leben proved an object lesson for a fast tempo that was yet flexible and in which the words were never garbled. Rihm’s cycle, Das Rot: Sechs Gedichte der Karoline von Günderrode was quite a revelation, offering an unanswerable refutation of those silly claims one sometimes hears that Strauss (or X) was the last composer of Lieder. The music sounds both of a tradition and yet new: Hans Sachs would surely have nodded approval. For, if the language is in general post-Schoenbergian – it could hardly be pre-! – then there are undoubtedly pullings, sometimes even tonal pullings, towards what came before. The musicians, perhaps Levit especially, made sense of Rihm’s clearly musical forms. His melodic inspiration also came clearly to the fore, Bode seeming equally at home with Rihm’s style. The opening ‘Hochrot’ offers a lengthy, somewhat Henze-like introduction. Nothing prepared us for the shock of a violent piano chord just before the word ‘Tod’, yet it did not seem arbitrary, making ultimate sense in verbal and musical context. ‘Des Knaben Abendgruß’ was just as dramatic, perhaps still more so, Levit’s piano part – and his despatch of it – virtuosic yet highly variegated. The pinpoint precision and sheer physical impact of the piano part in the closing ‘Liebst du das Dunkel’ left one in no doubt as to the calibre of Levit’s technique and musicianship. One really experienced, through the contributions of both musicians, the blood-rush and the pounding of the heart spoken of in the final two lines to the cycle. An inspired decision to pause, holding off applause, and yet to pursue the programme’s course into Schubert’s Daß sie hier gewesen led us initially in a strange yet welcoming no-man’s-land between Rihm and Schubert. Wagner seemed to intervene, not least through the extraordinary Tristan-esque harmonies with which Schubert tantalises in that song. Labels: Beethoven, Igor Levit, Rihm, Schubert, Simon Bode, Wigmore Hall Der fliegende Holländer, Royal Opera, 5 February 2015 Images: ROH/Clive Barda The Dutchman – Bryn Terfel Senta – Adrianne Pieczonka Daland – Peter Rose Erik – Michael König Mary – Catherine Wyn-Rogers Steersman – Ed Lyon Tim Albery (director) Daniel Dooner (revival director) Michael Levine (set designs) Constance Hoffmann (costumes) David Finn (lighting) Chorus of the Royal Opera House (chorus master: Renato Balsadonna) Andris Nelsons (conductor) I wonder whether we need a new way of thinking – and talking – about operatic ‘revivals’. Perhaps the term is more meaningful when it comes to works that have been dead and buried for years, before being rediscovered by subsequent generations. However, when it comes to productions, I cannot help but think that it increasingly obscures rather than aids understanding. Where, after all, has the production been in the mean time? Hades? More to the point, though, I think we tend to underestimate, at least in many cases, the role of the revival director. (The often problematical ‘repertory’ system employed in many German theatres is a different matter; I am thinking here of theatres operating according to what is essentially a stagione principle.) In this particular case, Daniel Dooner seemed to make a better job of ‘reviving’ Tim Albery’s production of The Flying Dutchman than Albery had made of presenting it in the first place. Or was it a matter of a better-adjusted cast? The one does not exclude the other, of course; indeed, the two are not unlikely to have been related. Steersman (Ed Lyon) The 2009 ‘premiere’ had greatly disappointed, eschewing Wagner’s interest in myth for a form of dreary realism, quite out of place and seemingly determined – understandably, I suppose, given its misguided premise – to downplay the figure of the Dutchman as much as possible. It did not make sense and it did not involve. The irritants have not entirely gone away, especially during the third act, in which the drunken antics of the townsfolk – here, it must be admitted, very well portrayed by the chorus and Ed Lyon’s Steersman – still seem to be far too much ‘the point’. But they are counterbalanced and, on occasion, supplanted by a stronger sense of the Dutchman’s plight and its consequences. ‘Revival’ seems something of a misnomer for a hugely beneficial shift of emphasis, unless we mean that the work itself experiences something of a revival – which, I think, it does, at least vis-à-vis its outing six years ago. The Dutchman (Bryn Terfel) Bryn Terfel’s performance certainly seems less ‘revived’ than brought to life for the first time. In 2009, he had disappointed perhaps even more than the production. There were still occasional unwelcome tendencies towards crooning, especially towards the end of his first-act monologue. They were occasional, though, and Terfel followed up his excellent Proms Walküre Wotan – almost certainly the best thing I have heard him sing – with a world-weary Dutchman who, moments of tiredness aside, yet had powers of something mysterious in reserve for when the moment called. This time the words were not only crystal-clear – always a formidable weapon in Terfel’s armoury – but invested with a true sense of dramatic meaning. Adrianne Pieczonka’s Senta was at least his equal in terms of dramatic commitment; arguably, this thrilling, unmistakeably womanly performance went still further. I say ‘womanly’ since this was a reading that seemed thoroughly in keeping with a recent, welcome understanding of Wagner’s earlier heroines to be more than virginal male projections. Peter Rose made the most of Daland’s character: venal, yes, but also looking to the future for his daughter as well as himself. Michael König offered an alert Erik, Catherine Wyn-Rogers a properly maternal Mary. Often threatening to steal the show was Lyon’s Steersman, as fine a portrayal as I can recall: an everyman, perhaps, but one with agency, for which verbal and musical acuity alike should be thanked. Senta (Adrianne Pieczonka) and Erik (Michael König) Andris Nelsons’s conducting for the most part brought out the best from the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House. However, the interpretation as a whole did not seem quite to have settled; I strongly suspect that subsequent performances will impress more. The Flying Dutchman is a difficult work to bring off; despite fashionable claims for overplaying its (alleged) antecedents, it really works best as a whole when viewed, as Wagner would later do so, in the light of his subsequent musico-dramatic theories. Senta’s Ballad may not originally have been its dramatic kernel, but it has become so. Nelsons sometimes seemed unclear which way to tilt, especially during a drawn-out Overture, whose extremes of tempo threatened to negate any sense of unity. There were sluggish passages elsewhere: not hugely drawn out, but enough to make one wonder where the music was heading. The third act emerged tightest, and may well be a pointer to what audiences will hear later in the run. Choral singing was not entirely free of blurred edges, but there was much to admire, and again, I suspect that slight shortcomings will soon be overcome. This remained an impressive ‘revival’, all the more so, given its manifest superiority to the production’s first outing. Labels: Adrianne Pieczonka, Andris Nelsons, Bryn Terfel, Catherine Wyn-Rogers, Daniel Dooner, Der fliegende Holländer, Ed Lyon, Michael König, Peter Rose, Royal Opera, Tim Albery, Wagner King's Choir/Cleobury - Vespers and Mass for King Henry VI, 4 February 2015 Hall One, Kings Place Robert Parsons – Ave Maria Plainsong Vespers Dunstable – Ave maris stella Magnificat secondi toni Robert Hacomplaynt – Salve Regina Tallis – Videte miraculum Thomas Damett – Beata Dei genetrix Plainsong Kyrie Byttering – Nesciens mater Roy Henry – Sanctus Plainsong – Agnus Dei Leonel Power – Ave Regina caelorum Robert Fayrfax – Magnificat ‘Regale’ Choir of King’s College, Cambridge Stephen Cleobury (conductor) One of the best stories – true, I think – about the late, greatly lamented impresario, Gérard Mortier, concerned his handling of a philistine donor to the Salzburg Festival. Unimpressed at Mortier’s opening up of the operatic repertoire, especially to the great musical dramas of the twentieth century, the person in question gave a large sum, on condition that it fund a production of an Italian opera. Mortier took the money and staged Busoni’s Doktor Faust. I similarly admire Stephen Cleobury’s chutzpah in his introduction to an otherwise bizarre programme note (whose perpetrator I shall charitably shroud in anonymity). ‘When I was asked to devise a programme on the “minimalist” theme,’ Cleobury writes, ‘the idea of a plainsong based sequence immediately suggested itself, since a single unadorned melodic line so obviously fits this theme.’ That, it would seem, is how music from the Eton Choir Book and the Old Hall Manuscript, together with other early English music, came to be performed in a concert series entitled ‘Minimalism Unwrapped’. Just as well, since a programme of ‘holy minimalism’, or whatever it calls itself nowadays, would have had me give Kings Place a very wide berth indeed. What we heard, in genuine celebration of the quincentenary of the completion of the fabric of King’s College Chapel, was an admirable performance of a complete Vespers and a composite Mass, sandwiched between later Marian motets and two Magnificat settings from the Eton Choirbook. If such music be the food of minimalism, play on; and what, one might ask, would not qualify? The concert opened with the Ave Maria by Robert Parsons, a staple of Choral Evensong. Perhaps the choir took a little while to adjust to an acoustic about as far removed from that of King’s Chapel as I can imagine; or perhaps it was my ears. At any rate, the revelation of its voices, tenors first, eventually trebles, offered a decent curtain-raiser to the main body of the first half. The boys then left the stage until after the Marian Vespers sequence. An edition of Sarum chant made by Jesse Billett (a sometime choral scholar) was employed: particularly fitting, given that rite’s use in royal foundations. The first antiphon and psalm (113) did not always offer lines as precisely honed as this bright acoustic might have preferred, but ultimately, that was of little import: throughout, there was a fine sense of chant that was an everyday friend. This was, of course, a concert rather than a service, but more than a remnant of the latter lingered – in a very positive sense. Within the chant lay two works by John Dunstable (or Dunstaple, as we are now supposed to call him): an Ave maris stella and Magnificat. What particularly impressed me about both was the way in which performance of the music clearly proceeded from plainsong. These were not performances intended to draw attention to themselves, but modest in the best sense of the word, typical of Cleobury’s best work. The Magnificat is the somewhat more ornate work, though such things are relative rather than absolute. Its contrast between solo voices (countertenor and tenor, the latter in particular growing in confidence as the performance progressed) and full choir offered variation for our ears in a recognisably modern sense, irrespective of intention and original context. The boys returned for the Magnificat by Robert Hacomplaynt, Provost of King’s (1509-28), formerly of Eton, that other great foundation of Henry VI. Again, there was an increase in floridity, but again, there was a fine impression of the music arising from the plainsong we had heard, not least in a flexibility which, far from being inimical to metrical sense, actually contributed thereto. Marian sweetness and clemency were to be heard without a hint of sentimentalisation. Perhaps I am being fanciful, but I even gleaned an impression of intercession. Tallis opened the second half, with his Videte miraculum, Marian according to more than one usage. Here we heard not a reversion but a forward-looking alternative to the Reformation, indeed a work of the Counter Reformation. How different things might have been? Or maybe not. Again, the motet was sung with all the advantages that daily – well, frequent – performances of such repertoire brings; again, the flow of a performance sounding horizontally conceived, impressed in its ‘natural’ manner. Trebles again left the stage, this time for the Mass sequence, ‘de Beata Maria Virgine’, incorporating music from the Old Hall Manuscript. From a casual glance of the programme, ‘Roy Henry’ might have seemed like a twenty-first-century interpolation: the Henry in question was, of course, ‘roy’ as in king, most likely Henry V. Leonel Power, a member of Henry’s Chapel, offered an Ave Regina caelorum, with other motets hailing, as it were, from Thomas Danett and (Thomas?) Byttering. All received honest, unexaggerated performances, which permitted that celebrated illusion of the music, or perhaps we should say the music and words, speaking for itself or themselves. The closing performance was of Robert Fayrfax’s Magnificat, ‘Regale’. Mary sang her song joyfully and without affectation. Fayrfax’s long lines were relished, again in the best sense of an unassuming performance. The work – and I see no reason why we should not speak of this as a ‘musical work’ – sounded effortlessly, or seemingly effortlessly, as a whole. And if there was nothing on the level of a King’s Chapel echo to be heard, this wonderful polyphony continued to sound in my aural memory long after the concert had finished. Posted by Mark Berry at 12:08 am No comments: Links to this post Labels: Byttering, Henry V, John Dunstable, King's College Choir, Kings Place, Leonel Power, Plainsong, Robert Fayrfax, Robert Hacomplaynt, Robert Parsons, Stephen Cleobury, Tallis, Thomas Damett The Indian Queen, English National Opera, 26 Febru... Pogorelich - Liszt, Schumann, Stravinsky, and Brah... Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg, English National O... BPO/Rattle - Lachenmann and Mahler, 15 February 20... Hannigan/Uchida/Philharmonia/Salonen - Dutilleux a... Bode/Levit - Schubert, Beethoven, and Rihm, 8 Febr... Der fliegende Holländer, Royal Opera, 5 February 2... King's Choir/Cleobury - Vespers and Mass for King ... Where next for ENO?	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line91
__label__cc	0.636216	0.363784	French FREMM Aquitaine fires a naval cruise missile Article Posted on : - May 22, 2015 PARIS (BNS): The frigate Aquitaine - the first unit in the multi-mission frigate programme (FREMM) - has successfully fired its first naval cruise missile on May 19 on the firing ranges of the DGA missile testing centre off Levant Island. This is the first time that a European surface ship has fired a cruise missile, DCNS said in a statement. On May 12, the frigate also successfully fired its first Exocet MM40 surface-to-surface missile, it added. The two synthesis firings prepared by the crew of the French Navy, the DGA teams and manufacturers MBDA and DCNS are part of the verification of the technical capabilities of the FREMMs before entry into active service. This is another major milestone, after the firing of an Aster 15 anti-aircraft missile in 2013 and the commissioning on March 13 of the MU 90 lightweight torpedo on the Caiman marine helicopter, the naval version of the NH90 helicopter, it said. Future backbone of the French Navy, the FREMMs are heavily armed warships, carrying naval cruise missiles, Exocet MM40 anti-ship missiles, Aster anti-aircraft missiles and MU90 anti-submarine torpedoes. All the FREMMs can accommodate a Caiman marine helicopter, as well as Special Forces and their equipment. Six FREMMs will be delivered before mid-2019. The naval cruise missile provides deep strike capabilities within enemy territory. With a range of several hundred kilometres, the naval cruise missile is capable of destroying infrastructure targets of high strategic value, it said. France FREMM Frigate Aquitaine Navy Missile Military	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line92
__label__cc	0.704678	0.295322	Collins and Keillor Over at "First Thoughts" they are discussing the poetry of Billy Collins: Micah Mattix I don't really have much of an opinion on Billy Collins himself, but it seems a good occasion for a ramble. Let's start with this. Collins could do exactly what he does now if he were writing essays or novels. Take his "Another Reason Why I Don't Keep a Gun in the House": The neighbors' dog will not stop barking. He is barking the same high, rhythmic bark that he barks every time they leave the house. They must switch him on on their way out. You could take the same thing and write it all together with no change, and it would be part of an essay, or of a novel, or of a letter home: The neighbors' dog will not stop barking. He is barking the same high, rhythmic bark that he barks every time they leave the house. They must switch him on on their way out. And you will have lost nothing. It is a poem, in the most basic sense that it is crafted language for the sake of the language, but the differences between Billy Collins and (say) Garrison Keillor, setting aside topics, are entirely incidental. You could write prose and do the same thing. I want to insist that there's room for poets to do this; it can be a useful and valuable thing to do. It is nonsense to think that poets should only write in verse, because all of language is the poet's working material. But at this point we aren't doing anything distinctively poetic, where that is understood to be contrasted with the prosaic. I sometimes wonder if interest in Billy Collins as poetry is a symptom of something very wrong with our contemporary sense of language, in this sense: that is, one might have the temptation to think that to get what Collins gives you have to be writing something that's not prose. But as Collins is basically writing rhetorical, declamatory prose in narrow columns, this shows that we have no proper appreciation for the power and potential of prose. This is true of much of contemporary poetry, especially what often goes by the name of 'free verse'. I've often heard it asked whether free verse is really poetry; of course it is. It would be a more serious question to ask whether free verse is distinctively verse. And I think in many cases it clearly is not: it is prosaic as well as poetic. For instance, if I were to take the previous few sentences and scatter them on the page for effect, that would be poetic, a crafting of language, whether people of good taste thought it a good crafting or not; that extra bit of crafting makes it an extra bit poetic, one might say. Or, at least, it could: Mallarmé would make it very poetic, because every bit of white space would do something. The placement itself was poetic. An advertiser placing words across the page might not: the placement might be for effect, but the effect have nothing to do with the language. Most free versers, I think, are somewhere in between, although nowhere in Mallarmé's league. Some of them are so far on the advertiser's side that the placement is the only thing interesting about what they have written. But that is neither here nor there. The point is that Un coup de dés jamais n'abolira le hasard, while exquisite poetry, is not really verse. To have verse, you must have verses; verses are turns and returns of language, and to have returns at all the turns must be distinctive enough to be recognized when they come back. In formal verse, the turns and returns follow a set form. In free verse that is genuinely free verse the returns are not governed by this constraint. They surprise -- but they are still there. Merely having verses is not enough to have verse, of course; even a freshman composition paper may have verses. The verses must be constitutive of what is being made, somehow -- and that 'somehow', while not infinitely forgiving, is nonetheless very affable. But much poetry is not verse, but prose; and Billy Collins writes poetry that is prose, at least, for all practical purposes. His line breaks are just prose thought-breaks, which is why it declaims well; it is an entirely arbitrary matter that he breaks it down on the page that way rather than letting it flow all the way across like water. And if you took away the little dams at the end of each line, letting each line flow into the other all the way across the page, you would find that in terms of language Billy Collins is a somewhat more eccentric Garrison Keillor. And you could scatter Garrison Keillor on the page and you would discover that Keillor writes poetry, too: I'm not a storyteller, Stella, but I impersonate one and that is almost as good. Storytelling is an intimate art, practiced between people who know each other well, and I've known some great ones, a sculptor named Joe O'Connell and my great-uncle Lew Powell and the late Chet Atkins. Chet was a true storyteller. He blanched at the thought of doing it onstage, but when he drove you around in his pickup truck, he'd tell a whole string of stories, some of them ribald, about Nashville stars and he imitated their voices beautifully and he embroidered the stories beautifully and, listening to him, I just sat and laughed and wished we'd drive forever. You can do this with Garrison Keillor all day. And, to reiterate, it really is poetry. But it's prosaic poetry. There is no verse to it, no turn and return, only the balanced phrase, the constructed clause, of a prose writer. Keillor does not magically become poetry by being scattered on the page; Collins would not magically cease to be poetry by being written across the page. They don't have the same style, but they are doing the same thing, and what they are doing is the poetic work of good prose. They just have different tastes in graphic design. The purpose of this ramble was to ramble, not to answer Joe's question, but we have answered it nonetheless. Joe had asked, In other words, is Billy Collins repackaging a form of slam poetry for literate yuppies or is he restoring an oral tradition that will open new audiences for contemporary poetry? And the answer is that he is doing neither. You cannot restore what has always been here. We all laugh at Monsieur Jourdain, who spoke prose all his life and never knew it. But you and I are not much different; we have come across poetry, even spoken poetry, all our lives, and never knew it, either. One day we, like Monsieur Jourdain with prose, will recognize with delighted surprise that many things we did not recognize as poetry really are. We will, of course, be the more foolish-looking, for we had the word in hand, but could never remember what it meant, instead relying on little bits of folklore and half-formed feelings. We will be absurdly pleased to discover that poetry, really and truly, is the craft of making excellent language. And the angels in the audience will laugh. * Ralph Hitchins in a comment at Cliopatria that Douglas MacArthur used the "Only the dead have seen the end of war" line in a famous speech at West Point, but attributed it to Plato. It definitely is Santayana's (Soliloquy #25, "Tipperary," Soliloquies in England). MacArthur (who seems to have read a lot of Plato, among other things, and so might well have just mixed up where he had read the quote originally) appears to be the source of the misattribution; I'd be interested, though, if anyone can find a source prior to MacArthur that attributes it to Plato. * Lama Tenzin Osel Rinpoche seems to be having a little difficulty reconciling Buddhist life with life in modern society. But, as usual, things are a bit more complex than the media lets on. * Two posts on Quetelet: Will Thomas at Ether Wave Propaganda and John Wilkins at Evolving Thoughts. * Some recent online reading: Centola and Macy, Complex Contagions and the Weakness of Long Ties (PDF) Elsberry and Shallit, Information Theory, Evolutionary Computation, and Dembski's "Complex Specified Information" (PDF) Gendler, Alief in Action (And Reaction) (PDF) (Gendler's papers are always a delight to read, and this one is no exception. Creative, informative, and wide-ranging: this is how contemporary philosophy should be done but too often isn't.) * Henry Karlson at "Vox Nova" discusses Nicholas of Cusa and Interreligious Dialogue * Sherry has the first few hymns up on her Hundred Hymns List: #101 Stricken, Smitten, and Afflicted #100 O God Our Help in Ages Past #99 Glorious Things of Thee are Spoken #98 Our God Reigns #97 Nothing But Blood * This is a note mostly as a reminder to myself: I need to get a hold of this article by Anne Jaap Jacobson in Philosophical Psychology. The abstract: This paper argues for two major revisions in the way philosophers standardly think of vision science and vision theories more generally. The first concerns mental representations and the second supervenience. The central result is that the way is cleared for an externalist theory of perception. The framework for such a theory has what are called Aristotelian representations as elements in processes the well-functioning of which is the principal object of a theory of vision. I've liked what I've read of Anne Jaap Jacobson's work on representations before, and this sounds particularly interesting. Lots of little rough pieces in their initial stages. In All the World Are None for Me but the whispers from the sea, but the shadows on the sly out the corner of my eye: none to capture weary heart, none to take this soldier's part, only mocking almost-mights haunting dark and lonely nights, only idols made of sand that whisper of the promised land, only nothings made of air, pithless deserts, dry and bare, and one small impulse deep inside, stubborn in its inborn pride, to seek and quest and never stay till love is found, or judgment day. O hey nonny-nonny, heed and make way to the hallelujah-holy-laden foofaraw day! Light up the la-di-da glint-and-leap glow and shout with a heigh-heigh, heigh nonny-no! As nonny-no nothings leap up in the dance, sing ditties no more and leave nothing to chance-- the nonny-hey ladies love rolling romance! It is so strange to be alive, so unexpected, as if the world had suddenly jumped up in surprise at its own contingent birth and decided to return the favor by allowing me to be; and since this pleasant little wonder has so taken me unawares I'll pass on the gift with my pen. My thoughts are on your body, dewdrops clinging to the leaf; take my hand, entwine our fingers, let my breath course near your ear, and warm me with your glow. Unburdened by Quarrel Unburdened by quarrel, the mind springing open feels sun on its inside, delights in the truth. Discoveries await! Unbound and unbroken, newly-winged thought soars high over hills. Subtle words and little lies, deception, games, and alibis, sorrow, sadness, lonely sighs, traps and coward's compromise: row by row tin soldiers march step by step to take your heart; note by note their trumpets call-- one by one tin soldiers fall. Wiglaf's Words The broil of battle brought them together, hardy Wiglaf said, heavy-hearted, "Remember I well our meals in the mead-hall, boasting of Beowulf-bravery in deed, great giver of sword, giver of arms, to whom we swore repayment in right come the time, for kindness in kind, even letting life to be lost. Allowance he made for our claims as if weighty, believing our boast and the bite of our steel, but he, mighty king, meant this great monster to keep for himself, to conquer and kill as in the yore-time, years of his youth, the days long ago, before our lord leaned on lowlier lads, and lessers in arms. On kingly flesh is now feeding the flame; by almighty God, let my bones burn before my liege lord be covered in fire! Who are we, shield-carriers homeward seeking before battle is broken, with Beowulf battered? For such dutiful king to die forsaken, butchered and beatend by terrible beast, is not deserved, when still there is sword yet to be drawn, in honor to serve!" Then swiftly he ran, his king then to succor, deep in his driving through dragon-formed flame. "Beowulf, king, brightly beloved! Remember your boast to hold your repute, to live life of glory never forgotten! Fight, sire, fight, for life and for fame, I at your side, at your service my sword!" This peppermint tea like liquid love warms the heart and cheers the soul, scents the air with incense fair; prayers raised of thanks and praise cheer the heart as it takes in your liquid love like peppermint tea. Il Faudrait L'Inventer Si Dieu n'existait pas, il faudrait l'inventer. If God did not exist, one would have to invent him. Welcome to the clandestine Enlightenment. It has been known for some time that the French Enlightenment had two faces, a public face and a clandestine one. Censorship was rather extensive at the time, but it was possible to evade it in a number of ways, so people who wanted to publish something that they didn't think would get past the censor would circulate it in the underground, either as a manuscript, or as a published tract, or some such. Much of this publication was philosophical in character. We should be very careful not to treat it as a monolithic thing; any number of things might not get past the censors, and people might worry about any number of things coming before the censor, so the literature of this philosophical underground is extraordinarily diverse -- some of it is atheistic, some of it is deistic, some of it is Christian but reform-advocating. What is more, the literature is very complex. The works were passed from hand to hand; they are often anonymous; clandestine copyings often involved massive plagiarisms; works would be altered, or expanded, or made more concise, by the copier, without any indication that this would be done. One notable work of the clandestine Enlightenment was an anonymous text called The Three Imposters, which owes its fame in part to the fact that it irritated Voltaire enough that he responded to it. The above dictum belongs to his reply. I. François-Marie Arouet The man we know as Voltaire was born in Paris in November of 1694. His father wanted him to be a lawyer, and got him a position as an assistant to a lawyer, an opportunity François-Marie squandered by devoting his time to writing plays. His father eventually found out and sent him to the country to start his legal studies in earnest, but Voltaire continued to spend his time writing. His plays eventually became famous, and Voltaire ascended to the ranks of the French literati, feted by the finest French aristocracy. His pen name, Voltaire, seems to have been a sort of anagrammatic play on his last name. He died in May of 1778. II. Les Trois Imposteurs Like much of the literature of the clandestine Enlightenment, the history of the anonymous The Three Imposters is very difficult to trace, but it seems to have circulated fairly widely. The three imposters of the title are Moses, Jesus, and Muhammad, who, according to the author, pretended to be in communication with God. The work is not quite atheistic in our sense, because it seems to allow a Spinozistic notion of God as an amoral Natura naturans, nature considered as active; but it is quite frank that what most people think of as God is an imaginary being and that there is no afterlife. The theory underlying these claims is standard freethinking fare, primarily remarkable for how frankly it is laid out. People are extremely gullible when it comes to matters of fear, and there are plenty of con men, imposters, willing to gull them. The world is often a dark place, so people, desperate to pretend that there are gentle powers that are on their side and will make things OK in the end, begin to treat those powers as if they were real. Priests and the like, seeing a means to power, play on the fears of these ignorant people, teaching them to fear philosophy, inquiry, and truth until they blindly obey. From this fear-based stamping out of reason and good sense ridiculous opinions begin to collect together until you have religion and superstition, an empire of falsehood, as the text calls it. Of the people who impose this empire on the weak, ignorant, and stupid, some excel above others in the art of trickery; Moses, Jesus, and Muhammad are the three greatest of these vile tricksters, although the text as we have it seems somewhat confused, since it sometimes talks about three imposters and sometimes about four (including Numa Pompilius). III. Epître sur Les Trois Imposteurs Among Voltaire's works is a poem that is a scathing response to The Three Imposters, with the following note by Voltaire himself: Ce livre des Trois Imposteurs est un très-mauvais ouvrage, plein d'un athéisme grossier, sans esprit, et sans philosophie. [This book of the Three Imposters is a very bad work, full of a coarse kind of atheism, mindless and lacking philosophy.] Perhaps playing on the confusion in the text between three and four imposters, Voltaire starts out the poem asking Insipide écrivain, qui crois à tes lecteurs Crayonner les portraits de tes Trois Imposteurs, D'où vient que, sans esprit, tu fais le quatrième? [Insipid writer, who pretends for your readers to draw the portraits of your Three Imposters, how does it happen that, mindless, you become the fourth?] Voltaire continues by drawing a sharp distinction between Creator and priest, saying that merely because God is sometimes poorly served is no reason to disrespect God Himself. In fact, it is clear enough that there is a God: De lézards et de rats mon logis est rempli; Mais l' architecte existe, et quiconque le nie Sous le manteau du sage est atteint de manie. Consulte Zoroastre, et Minos, et Solon, Et le martyr Socrate, et le grand Cicéron: Ils ont adoré tous un maître, un juge, un père. Ce système sublime à l'homme est nécessaire. C'est le sacré lien de la société, Le premier fondement de la sainte équité, Le frein du scélérat, l'espérance du juste. [Of lizards and rats my lodge is full; but the architect exists, and whoever denies it under the guise of wisdom is touched with madness. Ask Zoroaster, and Minos, and Solon, And the martyr Socrates, and the great Cicero: They adored one master, one judge, one father. This sublime system is necessary for men. It is the sacred bond of society, first foundation of holy fairness, bridle on the wicked, hope for the just.] In other words, whatever imposters there may be, many of the wisest of humanity have recognized that the world points to its architect and that this architect must be revered as judge and father; and on the basis of this principle civilization has been built. But suppose the author of the Three Imposters were right in claiming that God does not exist? Even so, he would still be clueless: Si les cieux, dépouillés de son empreinte auguste, Pouvaient cesser jamais de le manifester, Que le sage l'annonce, et que les rois le craignent. Rois, si vous m'opprimez, si vos grandeurs dédaignent Les pleurs de l'innocent que vous faites couler, Mon vengeur est au ciel: apprenez à trembler. Tel est au moins le fruit d'une utile croyance. [If the heavens, stripped of his august imprint, were ever to cease to manifest him, Let the sage announce him, and the kings fear him. Kings, if you oppress me, if your greatnesses disdain the tears of the innocent that you make to flow, my avenger is in heaven: learn to tremble. Such is, at the least, the fruit of a useful belief.] Here we find our dictum. The author of The Three Imposters argued that human beings invented the idea of God. Well, says Voltaire, reason shows that God exists, but even it did not, even if God did not exist, he would have to be invented. Why? Here Voltaire turns the argument of The Three Imposters on its head. Yes, the belief is useful for keeping people in bounds with fear, but it is the powerful and the mighty who are kept in bound by it. To protect the innocent from the oppression of the powerful, we must make it clear that those powerful can never get away with it, however clever or powerful they are; there is always a higher power, a higher law, that will bring them to justice. Belief in a just God is a means, one of the few, by which the poor and oppressed can fend off the powerful oppressor. If you oppress, you do see in the eyes of a judge who will wreak vengeance on you for the way you treat the poor and the innocent. If nothing else, whatever abuses, that is a powerful use. But even more than this, the belief assists the morality of the people: Mais toi, raisonneur faux, dont la triste imprudence Dans le chemin du crime ose les rassurer, De tes beaux arguments quel fruit peux-tu tirer? Tes enfants à ta voix seront-ils plus dociles? Tes amis, au besoin, plus sûrs et plus utiles? Ta femme plus honnête? et ton nouveau fermier, Pour ne pas croire en Dieu, va-t-il mieux te payer?... Ah! laissons aux humains la crainte et l'espérance. But you, false reasoner, whose sad imprudence reassures them on the path of crime, what fruit can you draw from your beautiful arguments? Will your children be more docile to your voice? Your friends, in your need, more sure and more useful? Your wife more honest? And your tenant, will he pay you better for not believing in God? Ah, leave humankind their fear and their hope! It is the argument of The Three Imposters, not belief in God and an afterlife, that is useless; it will accomplish nothing. And it is the contempt of the author for fear and hope that is irrational: fear and hope, however limited they may be, are part of the moral life of human beings. Voltaire goes on to argue contemptuously that the whole argument of the book is simply pointless. Can the author claim that Voltaire does not understand the infamies of superstition? Voltaire knows them better than the author does, having attacked them for fifty years. Mais, de ce fanatisme ennemi formidable, J'ai fait adorer Dieu quand j'ai vaincu le diable. Je distinguai toujours de la religion Les malheurs qu'apporta la superstition. [But as the formidable enemy of this fanaticism, I adored God when I vanquished the devil. I have always distinguished from religion the evils that support superstition.] He has, he claims, done more good for religion than Luther or Calvin, having brought peace and tolerance to Europe, and he has contributed to what will become, eventually, a new era: Je vois venir de loin ces temps, ces jours sereins, Où la philosophie, éclairant les humains, Doit les conduire en paix aux pieds du commun maître; Le fanatisme affreux tremblera d'y paraître: On aura moins de dogme avec plus de vertu. [I see coming in the distance those times, those peaceful days, where philosophy, enlightening humankind, must bring them in peace to the feet of a common master; fierce fanaticism will tremble to appear there: there will be less dogma and more virtue.] Thus the dictum is part of the freethinking Voltaire's attack on "un athéisme grossier, sans esprit, et sans philosophie": it is his own deistic kind of freethinking, not the crude atheism of the author of The Three Imposters, so contemptuous of the oppressed, that will enlighten Europe. The idea is that even if (per impossibile) God did not exist, he would have to be invented; he is essential to Voltaire's view of Enlightenment and tolerance. Santayana on Naturalism An interesting passage from Santayana's Three Philosophical Poets: There are two maxims in Lucretius that suffice, even to this day, to distinguish a thinker who is a naturalist from one who is not. "Nothing," he says, "arises in the body in order that we may use it, but what arises brings forth its use." This is that discarding of final causes on which all progress in science depends. The other maxim runs: "One thing will grow plain when compared with another: and blind night shall not obliterate the path for thee, before thou hast thoroughly scanned the ultimate things of nature; so much will things throw light on things." Nature is her own standard; and if she seems to us unnatural, there is no hope for our minds. He later goes on to add more to his account of naturalism, discussing its role in Lucretius's poetry: No, the poetry of nature may be discerned merely by the power of intuition which it awakens and the understanding which it employs. These faculties, more, I should say, than our moodiness or stuffy dreams, draw taut the strings of the soul, and bring out her full vitality and music. Naturalism is a philosophy of observation, and of an imagination that extends the observable; all the sights and sounds of nature enter into it, and lend it their directness, pungency, and coercive stress. At the same time, naturalism is an intellectual philosophy; it divines substance behind appearance, continuity behind change, law behind fortune. It therefore attaches all those sights and sounds to a hidden background that connects and explains them. So understood, nature has depth as well as surface, force and necessity as well as sensuous variety. Before the sublimity of this insight, all forms of the pathetic fallacy seem cheap and artificial. Mythology, that to a childish mind is the only possible poetry, sounds like bad rhetoric in comparison. The naturalistic poet abandons fairy land, because he has discovered nature, history, the actual passions of man. His imagination has reached maturity; its pleasure is to dominate, not to play. That last note sounds rather more ominous in our day and age than it could have in Santayana's; but it's in a long tradition of what counts as maturity of mind. The book itself is quite interesting; it's intended to be a "first broad lesson in the history of philosophy -- and, perhaps, in philosophy itself," but it does so by looking at Lucretius, Dante, and Goethe as each summing up an entire philosophical approach to the world: Lucretius is the poet of naturalism, Dante the poet of supernaturalism, Goethe the poet of romanticism. While poetry doesn't allow room for the heavy step-by-step reasoning of philosophical investigation, Santayana thinks it has a great affinity for the visions of the world that such investigation eventually reaches. Thus, what he is trying to do in the second passage above is give an indication of how naturalism allows for the sublimity that makes a Lucretius, i.e., a truly great poet writing a truly great naturalistic poem, possible in the first place. If I read him correctly, Santayana doesn't think Lucretian naturalism is quite adequate. The other two poets Santayana considers are Dante and Goethe, who with Lucretius he takes to sum up all of European philosophy, and I think his sympathies are more on the Goethe side of things -- Goethe is, so to speak, the synthesis of the thesis of Lucretius and the antithesis of Dante, and is the poet who sums up the modern age. But in the end Santayana faces us with the puzzle that each of the three gives us something that is very desirable, both rationally and vitally: philosophy and poetry alike find in each of naturalism, supernaturalism, and romanticism something they cannot afford to lose. Thus in the end I think Santayana is committed to saying that, sitting at the feet of Lucretius, Dante, and Goethe we learn that we still have much to learn, for the philosophical has not yet been finished, and the poet has not yet arisen, that can give us the vision of the world that captures everything that reason and life need and find in each of the three poets. One Sad, Contrite Heart A poem by Rumi, as translated (according to Alger), by one "Professor Falconer," who otherwise I do not know: The poetry of the Orient By William Rounseville Alger Those Who Cannot Remember the Past Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it. I don't know how long I'll keep up this series, but the idea of looking at the context of well-known philosophical sentences still seems good after having considered it a while. So I thought I'd start, not with one of my original thirty, but with Dave M's excellent suggestion of Santayana's famous dictum. One sees quite a bit of variation in how it is quoted; but the above formulation is the original, from Santayana's Life of Reason. It's one whose context I didn't know offhand, so it interested me as well. I. George Santayana First, let's get some background on Santayana himself. Santayana was born in Madrid in December of 1863 to a diplomatic family. He was christened with the name Jorge Agustín Nicolás Ruiz de Santayana y Borrás, but he was often called George, due in part to his half-sister Susan. By the time he was about eight years old his family had for various reasons begun to live in Boston, where Santayana lived the next forty years of his life. He attended Harvard and almost immediately joined the faculty there, where he became a very popular teacher. After his retirement from Harvard he went to Europe and never returned to the United States. He died of cancer in 1952 and is buried in Rome. Wallace Stevens, one of his former students, commemorated him in his poem, "To an Old Philosopher in Rome", sometimes considered one of Stevens's best poems. Much of Santayana's philosophical work, which took part in the Pragmatist movement, is aesthetic in character; he was fascinated by the human imagination and strove to investigate its many ins and outs, and held that one of philosophy's chief purposes was to proclaim and rejoice in those aspects of life that make it worth living. It's rather unfortunate that the above maxim is nearly the only thing anyone ever quotes him for, because he is very quotable. Here are a few quotables from him: A man's feet should be planted in his country, but his eyes should survey the world. Wisdom and happiness consist in having recast natural energies in the furnace of experience. Only the dead have seen the end of war. An artist is a dreamer consenting to dream of the actual world. There is no cure for birth and death save to enjoy the interval. For an idea ever to be fashionable is ominous, since it must afterwards be always old-fashioned. History is always written wrong, and so always needs to be rewritten. Religion is an imaginative echo of things natural and moral. The life of reason is a heritage and exists only through tradition. The list could be extended considerably. II. Life of Reason The five-volume Life of Reason is one of Santayana's masterworks. On Santayana's view, reason is a sort of vital force combining both judgment and feeling, ideation and instinct. Through reason we take all our impulses and desires and compare them with our ideas and ideals, and we cannot rid ourselves of either one. The life of reason, therefore, requires a certain sort of cultivation of the art of living. This is what he tries to lay out in the Life of Reason volumes: how all our life is built up by the slow, steady mastering of impulse and experience by reflection. William James was somewhat ambivalent about the work. In a letter he wrote: Santayana's book is a great one, if the inclusion of opposites is a measure of greatness. I think it will probably be reckoned great by posterity. It has no rational foundation, being merely one man's way of viewing things: so much of experience admitted and no more, so much criticism and questioning admitted and no more. He is a paragon of Emersonianism — declare your intuitions, though no other man share them; and the integrity with which he does it is as fine as it is rare. And his naturalism, materialism, Platonism, and atheism form a combination of which the centre of gravity is, I think, very deep. But there is something profoundly alienating in his unsympathetic tone, his "preciousness" and superciliousness. The book is Emerson's first rival and successor, but how different the reader's feeling! The same things in Emerson's mouth would sound entirely different. E. receptive, expansive, as if handling life through a wide funnel with a great indraught; S. as if through a pin-point orifice that emits his cooling spray outward over the universe like a nose-disinfectant from an "atomizer." I confess that the precise meaning of that last metaphor somewhat eludes me. III. Remembering the Past The passage from which the maxim about remembering the past was taken (from volume I of Life of Reason): Progress, far from consisting in change, depends on retentiveness. When change is absolute there remains no being to improve and no direction is set for possible improvement: and when experience is not retained, as among savages, infancy is perpetual. Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it. In the first stage of life the mind is frivolous and easily distracted, it misses progress by failing in consecutiveness and persistence. This is the condition of children and barbarians, in which instinct has learned nothing from experience. The basic idea here, I take it, is not a moral one, but quite simply an observation about human nature. As already noted, on Santayana's view reason is the combination of impulse and reflection, and, in particular, it is reflection's slow exploration or mastery of experience over time. This increasing mastery is slow and gradual, and therefore it requires the retention of past victories. In other words, the point is simply that learning is cumulative. It's not a statement about history, as such, as it is often taken to be; rather, the point is that learning requires remembering what has been learned before. But Santayana's literary style, for which he was famous even in his own day, has perhaps overreached his intent; the statement about remembering the past is itself very memorable, and once it got out on its own into the vast world, it was inevitable that it would build up a history and a set of associations that it did not have when it was a young observation in the text of Santayana. IV. Resources George Santayana at the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy George Santayana at the Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy John Wilkins notes in the comments that the relevant volume of Life of Reason is online. He says of the chapter: "I chased this quote down some time back for my book. The chapter, 'Flux and Constancy' is a not bad attempt to come to terms with the new world view of evolution, cosmic and biological, and the idea that history is constantly blurring the boundaries." The Rural Walk Through Lanes For I have loved the rural walk through lanes Of grassy swarth, close cropped by nibbling sheep And skirted thick with intertexture firm Of thorny boughs; have loved the rural walk O’er hills, through valleys, and by rivers’ brink, E’er since a truant boy I passed my bounds To enjoy a ramble on the banks of Thames; And still remember, nor without regret Of hours that sorrow since has much endeared, How oft, my slice of pocket store consumed, Still hungering, penniless and far from home, I fed on scarlet hips and stony haws, Or blushing crabs, or berries that emboss The bramble, black as jet, or sloes austere. William Cowper, from The Sofa. I think this passage alone would earn Cowper a place as a magnificent poetic talent. Philosophical Sentences One thing I've learned in blogging is that only a few people read the posts you work hard on and many people read your throw-away posts. Another thing I've learned is that an extraordinary number of people around the world, day in and day out, type the phrase "philosophical sentences" into the search engine, because this light little bit consistently gets several hits a day, making it my highest-traffic post in five years of blogging. The post is just a list, in no particular order, of philosophical statements that are widely recognized even by non-philosophers, even if they do not know the source. I came up with thirty that I've found floating around in the culture at large in some form or other: 1. I think therefore I am. (Descartes) 2. Virtue is its own reward. (Cicero) 3. I proclaim that might is right, and justice, the interest of the stronger. (Plato, but not his own view) 4. God is dead. (Nietzsche) 5. The unexamined life is not worth living for man. (Plato) 6. It [the just state] will be possible when, and only when, kings are philosophers and philosophers are kings. (Plato) 7. A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds. (Emerson) 8. Man is by nature a political animal. (Aristotle) 9. To us, probability is the very guide to life. (Butler) 10. All men desire to know. (Aristotle) 11. Philosophy begins in wonder. (Plato) 12. Plato is dear to me, but dearer still is truth. (Aristotle) 13. Reason is, and only ought to be, the slave of the passions. (Hume) 14. Man is born free, and he is everywhere in chains. (Rousseau) 15. What is time, then? If nobody asks me, I know; if I have to explain it to someone who has asked me, I do not know. (Augustine) 16. Give me chastity and continence, but not yet. (Augustine, describing the real meaning of his prayers for chastity after his conversion) 17. Love and do what you will. (Augustine) 18. The heart has its reasons of which reason knows nothing. (Pascal) 19. Why is there something rather than nothing? (Liebniz) 20. It is better to be a human being dissatisfied than a pig satisfied; better to be a Socrates dissatisfied than a fool satisfied. (John Stuart Mill) 21. That action is best which procures the greatest happiness for the greatest numbers. (Hutcheson - although it was due to other people that it became popular) 22. Everything is what it is, and not another thing. (Butler) 23. Truth is the cry of all, but the game of few. (Berkeley) 24. To be is to be perceived. (Berkeley, of ideas) 25. God and nature do nothing in vain. (Aristotle) 26. There is nothing so absurd but some philosopher has said it. (Cicero) 27. We go to war in order to live in peace. (Aristotle) 28. From each according to his ability, to each according to his need. (Marx) 29. Religion is the opiate of the people. (Marx) 30. Justice is rendering each person his due. (Plato, quoting Simonides) Have you come across others? The idea would be statements that people remember either intact or with only a little bit of distortion, as opposed to simple phrases like, say, 'invisible hand'. If you think of any, I'll put them up. UPDATE: It just occurred to me that there is room for a series of philosophical posts that took each of these sentences and explained what they meant in context, etc. These are little fragments of philosophy that lots of people come across at least here and there in their lives, so why not use them as seed crystals for somewhat deeper philosophical inquiry? It might be worth trying out, at least. Does anyone else think so? UPDATE II: Some good suggestions: Whereof we cannot speak, we must pass over in silence. (Wittgenstein) Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it. (Santayana) There is nothing outside the text. (Derrida) Existence precedes essence. (Sartre) Man is but a reed, the most feeble thing in nature, but he is a thinking reed. (Pascal) If God did not exist, it would be necessary to invent him. (Voltaire) All is for the best in the best of all possible worlds. (Voltaire's Pangloss) That which does not kill us makes us stronger. (Nietzsche) He used also to say...that he knew nothing, except the fact of his ignorance. (Socrates, according to Diogenes Laertius) Everything flows, nothing stays. (Heraclitus, quoted by Plato) UPDATE III: Welcome Brad DeLong readers! Thanks for the additional suggestions. (I'll put them up as soon as I've had a chance, real life allowing, to verify their original forms.) For also knowledge itself is power. (Bacon -- I can't believe I hadn't thought of this one before!) The world is all that is the case. (Wittgenstein) Posted by Brandon at 12:17 PM 2 comments: Links to this post Five years ago today this weblog began as a sort of open notebook for my thoughts. The name comes, ultimately, from the Iliad. Zeus, talking to the other gods, affirms his superiority over them all by suggesting a test of power: Make ye fast from heaven a chain of gold, and lay ye hold thereof, all ye gods and all goddesses; yet could ye not drag to earth from out of heaven Zeus the counsellor most high, not though ye laboured sore. But whenso I were minded to draw of a ready heart, then with earth itself should I draw you and with sea withal; and the rope should I thereafter bind about a peak of Olympus and all those things should hang in space. By so much am I above gods and above men. The Greek here is seiren chruseien ex ouranothen kremasantes: A chain of gold from heaven hang. Plato mentions this passage in the Theaetetus, and one finds it peaking out here and there at various times. But the particular form 'siris' is due to George Berkeley. Berkeley's Siris, subtitled, "A Chain of Philosophical Reflexions and Inquiries Concerning the Virtues of Tar-Water, and Diverse Other Subjects Connected Together and Arising from One Another," is a somewhat unusual work first published in 1744. As the subtitle suggests, part of Siris's concern is with reflecting on tar-water, a home remedy which Berkeley had discovered in the Americas, and which he thought (in combination with reducing alcohol intake and increasing exercise) would help effect a revolution in the health of the poor, at a very cheap and affordable cost. But the work does not stop at tar-water; from tar-water it goes on to speculation about the nature of the world, rising higher and higher until ultimately it reaches God, and ultimately a series of hints gathered from various Platonic and Neo-Platonic sources suggestive of the doctrine of the Trinity. It is perhaps not surprising, then, that Berkeley saw Siris as describing the ascent up a chain that began at the lowest part of the universe, something as insignificant as tar, and step-by-step rose up to the very throne of God, and thus borrowed the image from the Iliad of a golden chain from tar to God. This image is most explicitly developed in his poem, "On Tar," which serves as a sort of summary of the view of the world laid out in Siris. 'Siris', then, is Berkeley's Anglicization of the Greek word for 'chain'; it thus shares an etymological relationship (although how close is difficult to say) with the Latin word 'series', which can also mean 'chain', and which, of course, gives us the English word spelled in the same way. The name seems fitting enough for a weblog, which is a series of posts, and in particular for the sort of weblog a notebook of my thoughts would inevitably have to be -- ranging, as noted in the header of this blog, from very simple, perhaps even silly things, like tar-water, up to divine things. Seiren chruseien kremasantes is the motto: Hang up a chain of gold. As time has passed it has seemed more and more to me that blogging, done properly, is a very Romantic medium; that is, it is (whatever the content of one's philosophical views) a style or an approach very much in keeping with that of Romantic philosophy. The Romantics tried to return to philosophy the important idea of ingenium, or wit, the faculty of discovery or invention. Schlegel calls it "fragmentary genius" and "logical sociability". saw philosophy as having the potential to combine in itself science and poetry, truth and sublimity. Good posts are exercises of wit: ways of doing philosophy, directly or indirectly, through aphorism and anecdote, commentary and conversation, all very Romantic forms of publication. Moreover, the blogosphere, albeit only within certain sharp limits, allows for what the Romantics called Symphilosophie: exchange of ideas so rapid and fluid that in a sense philosophy, without ceasing to be individual in pursuit, becomes communal, collaborative, and social by its very nature. A symphony of reason, so to speak, in which we each play our own notes but at the same time are interacting with each other so that our notes continually play off the notes of others. The Romantics would have loved jazz music. They argued that reason should not be thin, watery, calculating stuff, but instead thick and fiery, like intellectual electricity infusing a poetic style of thought. And this requires that philosophy be carried not by mere academics pursuing merely academic questions, but by friends in conversation: philosophical friendship that allows for a philosophy that is in some sense a communal work of art. The ability of blogging to contribute to this is only limited, but I think it's undeniable that to some extent it does exist: blogging done well makes up a part of the conversible world of ideas. There is a third way in which blogging is a very Romantic thing, and that is its fragmentary and on-the-fly nature. The Romantics saw themselves as engaged in a massive reform of philosophy; but philosophy is an infinite discipline, vast beyond any one mind. How can such a reform even get off the ground? By recognizing the importance of workshop philosophy. Even if your ideas are jumbled, they still have value as rough drafts. Just as the rough draft of a work of art is itself a valuable element of the creative process, so too the rough draft of a potentially beautiful, or forceful, or fruitful idea is a valuable element of reasoning. The Romantics took this in a strong sense; Schlegel at one point says that if a person can't make a crayon-sketch of an idea, or sketch a thought in a few pen strokes, philosophy can never be either an art or science. This is one reason why the Romantics liked aphorisms and fragments so much: each aphorism or fragment is a pen-sketch, in a few strokes, of a powerful idea or set of ideas. And while bloggers rarely reach the brilliance of those pen-sketches, it makes sense to see blogging as the same sort of thing: fragment-publication, draft-presentation. Posts are, to use the phrases of Novalis, "pollen" or "literary seedings". They are not the full-grown ideas, but we scatter them liberally and sometimes they fertilize or seed another person's mind, to the benefit of us all. There's that Symphilosophie again. It is no secret, however, that blogging is often associated with bad habits; and even if all the above were true, if blogging (whether active blogging, i.e., writing posts, or passive blogging, i.e., reading blogs) makes you a worse person, you obviously shouldn't be doing it. So what counts as the ethical practice of blogging? And, what is more, how does one integrate blogging into one's overall self-improvement (which is often a different thing)? By happenstance one day I came across a 'Code of Amiability' written out by the Venerable Maria Teresa Josefina Justina Gonzalez-Quevedo (more commonly noted as Ven. Teresita Gonzalez-Quevedo) for her nuns. The Code was as follows: The virtue of amiability results from the fusion of several strong virtues. It is the all things to all men that grows out of charity: the knowledge of self that humility teaches; the pure detachment found in mortification; the meekness born of patience; and the undaunted courage won of perseverance... The Code of Amiability obliges one: 1. To smile until a kindly smile forms readily on one's lips. 2. To repress a sign of impatience at the very start. 3. To add a word of benevolence when giving orders. 4. To reply positively when asked to do a favor. 5. To lend a helping hand to the unfortunate. 6. To please those toward whom one feels repugnance. 7. To study and satisfy the tastes of those with whom one lives. 8. To respect everyone. 9. To avoid complaining. 10. To correct, if one must, with kindness. These are the dispositions which union with the amiable Virgin will place in our heart. The Code was not written with blogging in mind, of course, but it seemed to me that it would be a good idea at least to try to embody the Code of Amiability on this weblog. I have a fairly affable temperament as it is, so it didn't seem like it would be wholly out of the realm of possibility that I could do a fair job being amiable in the blogosphere. I didn't think it would be easy, but I think even so I underestimated the difficulties of following such a Code; blogging is a medium very conducive to impatience (against (2)), ranting (against (9)), and unkind correction (against (10)). It doesn't help that my sense of humor is naturally acidic, that I have very little patience for certain ways of thinking, and that, as one of the major things I do is criticize reasoning, I am sometimes in risky territory from the very beginning. So I can't, unfortunately, say that I've been as amiable as I should have been in every case; but over time I've developed some rules to help me do a better job. For instance, when I feel I've been overharsh, I try to allow the other person the last word even if I think I'm actually getting the better of the argument. It's irrational to think that every argument needs to be argued out to the very bitter end every time it is raised, and there are many, many arguments where both sides would be better off shelving the dispute until they have had time to cool down and think things through more thoroughly. When you are arguing you want to argue it out to the bitter end; but this is often not a good thing at all, either for the people arguing or for the rational integrity of the argument itself. And I have a few other rules that follow, a bit more loosely. It's all a work in progress, a sort of ethical experiment. So far I've been pleased with the overall results, since I think I have become more thoughtful and less quick to rush in where angels fear to tread. But there are miles to go. It's an ongoing discipline rather than an achieved perfection. According to Blogger's count, I have in five years published nearly 3,700 posts here at Siris. I have learned an immense amount in that five years, for which I thank you all. To celebrate my five years blogging here, I will here and there, over the next few months, re-visit some old posts, perhaps re-posting them with revision if I think they've stood the test of time, perhaps correcting them if I think I went wrong in some way. I'll probably also rework the sidebar a bit, and may explore a number of other things. Mostly, however, it will be the same old Siris, which is still, as it was when it began, a forum to let my mind be unruly. Posted by Brandon at 8:02 AM 9 comments: Links to this post The Man of System and His Chess-Board In the previous post I mentioned Adam Smith's chess-board analogy in VI.ii.42; I thought I'd put it up, because it is a salutary reminder for anyone dabbling in politics of any sort. The man of system, on the contrary, is apt to be very wise in his own conceit; and is often so enamoured with the supposed beauty of his own ideal plan of government, that he cannot suffer the smallest deviation from any part of it. He goes on to establish it completely and in all its parts, without any regard either to the great interests, or to the strong prejudices which may oppose it. He seems to imagine that he can arrange the different members of a great society with as much ease as the hand arranges the different pieces upon a chess-board. He does not consider that the pieces upon the chess-board have no other principle of motion besides that which the hand impresses upon them; but that, in the great chess-board of human society, every single piece has a principle of motion of its own, altogether different from that which the legislature might chuse to impress upon it. If those two principles coincide and act in the same direction, the game of human society will go on easily and harmoniously, and is very likely to be happy and successful. If they are opposite or different, the game will go on miserably, and the society must be at all times in the highest degree of disorder. How You Play the Game In Part VII of Adam Smith's Theory of Moral Sentiments we find an interesting analogy developed between Stoicism and certain views of sportsmanship. Says Smith: Human life the Stoics appear to have considered as a game of great skill; in which, however, there was a mixture of chance, or of what is vulgarly understood to be chance. In such games the stake is commonly a trifle, and the whole pleasure of the game arises from playing well, from playing fairly, and playing skilfully. If notwithstanding all his skill, however, the good player should, by the influence of chance, happen to lose, the loss ought to be a matter, rather of merriment, than of serious sorrow. He has made no false stroke; he has done nothing which he ought to be ashamed of; he has enjoyed completely the whole pleasure of the game. If, on the contrary, the bad player, notwithstanding all his blunders, should, in the same manner, happen to win, his success can give him but little satisfaction. He is mortified by the remembrance of all the faults which he committed. (VII.ii.28) Thus the Stoics can be seen as having the same view of life itself that we are often encouraged to have about games: it's not whether you win or lose, but how you play. The prize for winning is far and away less important than the pride of playing well: Human life, with all the advantages which can possibly attend it, ought, according to the Stoics, to be regarded but as a mere two-penny stake; a matter by far too insignificant to merit any anxious concern. Our only anxious concern ought to be, not about the stake, but about the proper method of playing. If we placed our happiness in winning the stake, we placed it in what depended upon causes beyond our power, and out of our direction. We necessarily exposed ourselves to perpetual fear and uneasiness, and frequently to grievous and mortifying disappointments. If we placed it in playing well, in playing fairly, in playing wisely and skilfully; in the propriety of our own conduct in short; we placed it in what, by proper discipline, education, and attention, might be altogether in our own power, and under our own direction. Our happiness was perfectly secure, and beyond the reach of fortune. (VII.ii.28) One of the interesting things about Smith's writing is his very clever use of analogies to convey points; he must have been an excellent teacher. Here he is trying to set up the reader to understand more accurately the Stoic idea that they would probably have found most perplexing, namely, philosophical suicide. He uses a similar approach elsewhere; another very striking one is the chess-board in VI.ii.42. One of the interesting threads in the Scottish Enlightenment is the influence of Stoicism on the major thinkers of the time. This has been studied to some extent; but it's one of those areas where more is always needed, because Scottish thinkers like Smith and Hume put an immense effort into understanding the Stoics and adapting their views to eighteenth century society. (cross-posted at Houyhnhnm Land) Iustinus Martyr Today is the feast of St. Justin, Martyr and Philosopher. From his Second Apology: For no one trusted in Socrates so as to die for this doctrine, but in Christ, who was partially known even by Socrates (for He was and is the Word who is in every man, and who foretold the things that were to come to pass both through the prophets and in His own person when He was made of like passions, and taught these things), not only philosophers and scholars believed, but also artisans and people entirely uneducated, despising both glory, and fear, and death; since He is a power of the ineffable Father, not the mere instrument of human reason. Three Poem Drafts Fickle Water cupped by firm Rock forms deep pools; I flow here, I flow there. You alone uphold me, make me still. In the Dark and Dead of Night I feel your glory still inside; through the sorrow and the pain I see your rainbow in the rain; and as the wind moves through the leaves your Holy Spirit moves through me: through the dark and through the storm you lead us onward to our home. How lovely is a library: books like berries on a bush, bursting in the mind, many-flavored, full of light and life, sweet knowledge reaching toward the vital sun, ripening from the flower in gift and propagation! Whitsun Day by Christina Rossetti 'When the Day of Pentecost was fully come' At sound as of rushing wind, and sight as of fire, Lo flesh and blood made spirit and fiery flame, Ambassadors in Christ's and the Father's Name, To woo back a world's desire. These men chose death for their life and shame for their boast, For fear courage, for doubt intuition of faith, Chose love that is strong as death and stronger than death In the power of the Holy Ghost.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line93
__label__wiki	0.687843	0.687843	Use of denosumab in giant-cell tumor at a public hospital in southern Brazil: report of 13 cases Uso de denosumab em tumor de células gigantes em hospital público no sul do Brasil: relato de 13 casos Tamise da Silva Baptista; Lucilda Cerqueira Lima; Aline Rocha Lino; Gerson Gandhi Ganev; Paulo Kechele; Rita Ferrúa Farias de Oliveira Giant-cell tumor is a relatively rare neoplasia, benign but locally aggressive, that causes significant bone destruction with predilection for epiphyseal and metaphyseal regions of long bones and the spine. Definitive treatment is surgical, with complete tumoral resection followed by autograft, homograft, arthrodesis, unconventional endoprostheses or methylmethacrylate. In most cases, surgery is accompanied by high morbidity and variable recurrence rates, depending on the site, size and type of surgical intervention.Denosumab, a RANKL inhibitor, acts by decreasing tumoral osteoclastic activity and is approved by the Food and Drug Administration for treatment of GCT when surgery is not possible or when it is associated with high morbidity. This report of cases is based on the review of medical records from the Ambulatory Service for Adolescents and Young Adults (AYA), aiming to show the experience of the Service with the use of denosumab for neoadjuvant purposes. Keywords: Denosumab; RANK Ligand; Giant Cell Tumors. O tumor de células gigantes é uma neoplasia relativamente rara, benigna, mas localmente agressiva, que causa destruiçao óssea significativa, com predileçao por regioes epifisárias e metafisárias de ossos longos e da coluna vertebral. O tratamento definitivo é cirúrgico, com ressecçao tumoral completa seguida de autoenxerto, homoenxerto, artrodese, endoprótese nao convencional ou metilmetacrilato. Na maioria dos casos, a cirurgia é acompanhada por alta morbidade e taxas variáveis de recorrência, dependendo do local, tamanho e tipo de intervençao cirúrgica. O denosumabe, um inibidor da RANKL, atua diminuindo a atividade osteoclástica tumoral e é aprovado pela Food and Drug Administration para o tratamento do TGC quando a cirurgia nao é possível ou quando está associada a alta morbidade. Este relato de casos baseia-se na revisao de prontuários do Serviço Ambulatorial de Adolescentes e Jovens Adultos (AJA), com o objetivo de mostrar a experiência do Serviço com o uso de denosumabe para fins neoadjuvantes. Palavras-chave: Denosumab; Ligando RANK; Tumores de Células Gigantes. Giant-cell tumor (GCT) is a relatively rare neoplasia, benign but locally aggressive, that causes significant bone destruction, and it has predilection for epiphyseal and metaphyseal regions of long bones and the spine.1, 2, 3 It represents 4 to 10% of primary tumors of bone, reaching 20% in China. It also represents 20% of benign tumors of bone and it was described as a separate entity in the beginning of the last century, being called sarcoma of giant cells.4 The GCT occurs mainly in young adults aged between 20 and 40 years old. Pediatric cases are much less frequent and represent only 1.7% of all cases of giant-cell tumors.5 Despite the benign nature of the disease, giant-cell tumors can have a highly variable and unpredictable behavior, and frequently recur after surgical resection. In addition, approximately 3% metastasize to lungs.5 Even though some patients have high rate of survival after their pulmonary metastases, distant metastases do not usually respond well to chemotherapy.6 Recurrent tumors can suffer transformation into malignant osteoclastoma, fibrosarcoma or osteosarcoma. The radiotherapy treatment can lead to high-grade sarcomas (less than 1% of treated patients) or to the development of a second neoplasia (up to 15% of treated patients).7 Usually, patients suffer pain, and often have deformities at the primary site of neoplasia, without constitutional symptoms.5 In rarer cases, the diagnosis is based on a palpable mass or pathological fracture, or on fortuitous discoveries from imaging exams in the absence of the symptoms.4 Definitive treatment is surgical, with complete tumoral resection, followed by autograft, homograft, arthrodesis, unconventional endoprostheses or methylmethacrylate. In most cases, surgery is accompanied by high morbidity and variable recurrence rates ranging from 10 to 75% of the cases, depending on the site, size and type of surgical intervention.8 We know that, histologically, GCT is constituted by a stroma with ovoid or spindle- shaped cells, with the presence of giant cells similar to osteoclasts. The giant cells of this tumor express RANK and its stroma expresses its ligand (RANKL).9 The RANK receptor is a key mediator of osteoclastogenesis and it is stimulated by the cytokine RANKL, which is secreted by stromal cells.10 In normal physiological conditions, there is a balance between RANK, RANKL and osteoprotegerin, components of the RANK route, where the RANK L produced by the osteoblasts binds to RANK on the surface of the osteoclasts, promoting bone resorption, formation, activation and survival of the osteoclasts.11 We observed that the high expression of RANKL by cells of tumoral stroma stimulates giant-cells formation similar to osteoclasts, which promote aggressive osteolytic action. Associated with an environment with intense production of cytokines and factors of tumoral growth, it intensifies the expression of RANKL and decreases the expression of osteoprotegerin in the osteoblasts, leading to an increment of the function and to the distinction of the osteoclasts and, hence, to higher osteoclastic activity.11 Denosumab, a RANKL inhibitor, approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for treatment of GCT when surgery is not possible or when it would have high associated morbidity, is a powerful mediator of the osteoclastic activity, inhibiting the performance of the ligand for RANK and decreasing the tumoral osteoclastic activity as a result.6 The Ambulatory Service for Adolescents and Young Adults (AYA) is a service for adolescents and young adults with cancer within the health public system of the State of Santa Catarina and is a referral center for the entire state for treatment of sarcomas and bone tumors. Therefore, the mentioned service presents a large group of patients with this pathology and it has desonumab available for the selected cases of patients with giant-cells tumors. This study aims to introduce the service experience using denosumab in patients with GCT at a cancer hospital in Florianópolis, State of Santa Catarina, from May 2011 to February 2018. DESCRIPTION OF CASES This report of cases is based on review of medical records conducted by AYA. All cases of GCT from the institution were included in this analysis, which aims to describe the Service experience using denosumab in 13 studied patients from May 2011 to February 2018 at the Oncological Research Center (CEPON). After medical record review, we selected locally advanced GCTs, confirmed by histopathological diagnosis, for use of desonumab for neoadjuvant purposes. All cases received subcutaneous injection of desonumab 120 mg once a week during three consecutive weeks in the initial phase (followed by once a month), with pre-surgical intent. The selected cases for desonumab use presented unresectable disease, likelihood of high morbidity after surgery (for example, amputation, loss of movement) or pulmonary metastasis. Patients were classified according to their age when diagnosed, sex, site, desonumab duration of use, time to surgery, pathological response to surgery, time to recurrence and follow-up duration. All were followed up by radiological images, including x-rays, computed tomography scanning and/or magnetic resonance imaging. In general, patients were subjected to an imaging exam of the primary site every four to six cycles in order to have their responses assessed. They received desonumab until there was lesion stabilization or enough decrease for safety resection. We considered the follow-up duration as the time relapsed since the beginning of the use of desonumab until the date of the last imaging or anatomopathological exam (AP) registered on patient medical records. The period of recurrence was defined as the time relapsed between the end of denosumab use and the date of recurrence evidenced by an imaging exam. Authors had no conflict of interest in this report of cases. A total of 13 cases were selected for this review: 53.8% (7/13) male patients and 46.2% female patients. When classified by site, the most affected regions in descending order were: tibia (5/13), distal radius (3/13), femur (2/13), fibula (1/13), maxilla/mandible (1/13) and scapula (1/13). Among the 13 analyzed cases, there were two patients with diagnosed pulmonary metastases, whose initial treatment was chemotherapy based on cisplatin and doxorubicin. These patients were diagnosed some years before the availability of desonumab at the institution. Among the other patients, desonumab was elected for the initial treatment in eight cases and in three of them desonumab was started in our institution after prior surgical intervention at other centers (Table 1). Regarding surgery after use of desonumab, among all patients under treatment, one was still receiving it, one missed follow-up and six underwent surgery. Among those who underwent surgery, two of them had no AP exam available. Regarding those cases that had not undergone surgery, (four patients in total) the reasons were as follows: choice, metastases (two) and pregnancy. Thus, when AP exams were assessed after the use of desonumab in non-metastatic patients, of the six patients who had undergone surgery, four of them showed changes related only to the use of the drug and without evidence of the disease (Table 1). By analyzing the metastatic pulmonary patients, #4 showed excellent radiological response, received desonumab for 13 months, with complete pulmonary response and partial response in primary lesion. He missed his follow-up at CEPON, and returned to the hospital with local recurrence 13 months after the end of desonumab infusion, resuming his treatment. This patient received his second desonumab exposure during 12 months, with control of local disease for another seven months. He presented progression of the local disease and was treated with radiotherapy (RDT) from November to December 2016, totalizing 60Gy. In October 2017, 11 months after RDT, he evolved with pulmonary progression and was currently receiving desonumab again, since December 8, 2017. Patient #5, also metastatic when diagnosed, had no evidence of recurrence until May 2017, taking into account his tomography of the lower left limb and thorax exams shown during his follow-up on that date (Table 1). Among the six patients who had received desonumab and had subsequently undergone surgery, four of them remained without evidence of the disease (Table 1). When we analyzed patients who had not undergone surgery, one of them because she was pregnant and another due to personal choice, we noticed that they had no evidence of recurrence until the end of this study. All studied patients very well tolerated the use of desonumab and no degree of toxicity was reported. All patients took vitamin D and went through calcium replacement. The GCT is considered a benign tumor but has the potential of being locally aggressive and presenting significant levels of recurrence, even after complete resection. Notwithstanding its benign nature, there are reports of pulmonary metastatic disease confirmed in two of our patients (15%). Our retrospective also showed agreement with the age group of higher incidence in previous reports (20 to 40 years old): average of 29 years old, with ages ranging from 18 to 44 years of age. Regarding to sites, literature shows preference for distal femur and proximal tibia, which meets the results of this study, from which a predominance of tibia was observed, corresponding to 38% of patients. Denosumab was approved by FDA in June 2013 for treatment of GCT whereof disease is unresectable or when surgery will bring high morbidity. We follow these same indications regarding the use of denosumab in our service.13 Some cases presented in this report received desonumab after surgical treatment because they were treated in other institutions where desonumab was not available yet. We noticed five cases in which desonumab was not the first treatment. Two of them had metastatic disease and had been submitted to previous chemotherapy. The three other cases came from other services due to tumor recurrence after previous surgery. The average time elapsed between the end of desonumab treatment and surgery was 36 days, in agreement with the mean time reported in other similar studies. According to Mc Carthy et al, considering five patients assessed in their study, this time ranged from 18 to 39 days.14 Regarding the recurrence rate, after receiving desonumab and complete radiological response, patient #1 was monitored with locoregional recurrence of the disease during 13 months, when he missed his follow-up. Still within the group of recurrent patients, we had metastatic patient #4 with recurrence after 13 months and patient #10 (who underwent surgery) with recurrence after 21 months. By considering the other patients, among those who underwent surgery, we noticed that the longest follow-up without evidence of the disease was four years and eight months (patient #6, who underwent surgery). Regarding those patients who did not undergo surgery, patient #8 was submitted to RDT (due to limiting comorbidities), drawing attention due to a stable disease after 36 months of follow-up. Patients #3 (who refused surgery) and #7 (pregnant) also stand out. The former due to 47 months without evidence of the disease, and the latter, due to 33 months of follow-up without evidence of the disease. With the exception of a metastatic patient (1), a missed follow-up (1), a recurrence of the disease (1) and a current use of desonumab (1) -, of the 13 assessed patients, eight patients had no evidence of recurrence until completion of this study. There was one patient with stable disease after radiotherapy. The recurrence rates, according to studies, can vary from 16 to 30%, with higher recurrences rates for distal radius, followed by distal tibia.15 In our study, there was only one recurrence of localized disease of the proximal tibia, treated with re-exposure to desonumab. This patient was still receiving it at the completion of this review. The proposed study clearly shows some limits, mainly due to the difficulty of standardization of common procedures in Brazilian public hospitals, which face difficulties of executing more complex imaging exams, such as computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging. Thus, not every patient presents controlling imaging exams after the same number of cycles of desonumab. In spite of this, the significant number of cases of GCT in our institution is remarkable, where treatment procedures are in accordance with international guidelines. In addition, tolerance to the drug similar to the medical literature without significant toxicities was observed. We concluded that desonumab treatment of GCT is a relevant one, once we provided our patients with a less aggressive treatment and with encouraging results, from complete responses after surgery or without any evidence of the disease, even in cases of patients who did not undergo surgery. Desonumab is already a recognized drug in this context; however, due to the low incidence of this disease, we have little data regarding its treatment as a result. This study further reiterates the role of such an important drug for treatment of giant- cells tumor. 1. Agarwal A, Larsen BT, Buadu LD, Dunn J, Crawfor R, Daniel J, et al. Denosumab Chemotherapy for recurrent giant-cell tumor of bone: a case report of neoadjuvant use enabling complete surgical resection. Case Reports in Oncological Medicine 2013; 2013:1-4. 2. Schwartz HS. Giant Cell Tumor of bone. Comprehensive Therapy 1993;19(2):64-68. 3. Mendenhall WM, Zlotecki RA, Scarborough MT, Gibbs CP, Mendenhall NP. Giant- cell tumor of bone. American Journal Clinical Oncology 2006; 29(6):96-99. 4. Dufresne A, Derbel O, Cassier P, Vaz G, Decouvelaere A, Blay J. Giant-cell tumor of boné, anti-RANKL therapy. Bonekey Reports 2012; 1(149):1-8. 5. Karras NA, Polgreen LE, Ogilvie C, Manivel JA, Skubitz KM, Lipsitz E. Denosumab treatment of metastatic giant-cell tumor of bone in a 10-yearold girl. Journal of Clinical Oncology 2013; 31(13):200-202. 6. XU SF, Adams B, Yu XC, Xu M. Denosumab and giant cell tumor of bone – a review and future management considerations. Current Oncology 2013,20(5):442-447. 7. Chakarun CJ, Foster DM, Gottsegen CJ, Patel DB, White EA, Matcuk GR. Giant cell tumor of bone: review, mimics, and new developments in treatment. Radiographics 2013; 33(1):197-211. 8. DeVita VT, Lawrence TS, Rosenberg SA. Cancer Principles and Practice of Oncology. 10th ed. Philadelphia: Wolters Kluwer Health, 2014. 9. Thomas D, Henshaw R, Chawla S, Staddon A, Blay J, Roudier M, et al: Denosumab in patients with giant-cell tumour of bone: an open-label, phase 2 study. Lancet Oncology 2010;11(3): 275-280. 1. 10. Sobti A, Agrawal P, Agarwala S, Agarwal M. Giant Cell Tumor of Bone - An Overview. Arch Bone Jt Surg 2016; 4(1): 2–9. 11. Wu P, Tang WJ, Li K: RANK pathway in giant cell tumor of bone: pathogenis and therapeutic aspects. Tumor Biology 2015;36(2):495-501. 12. NCCN. National comprehensive cancer network. Clinical practice guidelines in oncology [Internet]. Bone cancer, 2018. Available from: http://www.nccn.org. 13. FDA. Food and drug administration registration, 2018. Available from: https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/drugsatfda_docs/label/2013/125320s094lbl.pdf. 14. McCarthy CL, Gibbons CLMH, Bradley KM, Hassan AB, Giele H, Athanasou NA. Giant cell tumour of the distal radius/ulna: response to pre-operative treatment with short-term denosumab. Clinical Sarcoma Research 2017;7:1-11. 15. Balke M, Schremper L, Gebert C, Ahrens H, Streitbuerger A, Koehler G, et al. Giant ell tumor of bone: treatment and outcomes of 214 cases. Journal of Cancer Clinical Oncology 2008;134(9):969-978. Received in September 27 2018. Accepted em April 11 2019. Financial support: none to declare. Conflicts of interest: The authors declare no conflict of interest relevant to this manuscript.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line95
__label__wiki	0.94907	0.94907	Posts by Topic: Harvey Steinberg RSS feed NFL’s Who’s Who part of Brandon Stokley’s retirement bash Brandon Stokley, left, Eric Decker, center, and Demaryius Thomas. (Joe Amon, The Denver Post) Before the current Bronco players open a new season with the start of training camp this week, there was a final goodbye to a popular former Bronco. A retirement party for former Bronco receiver Brandon Stokley was held Saturday night at Jing restaurant in Greenwood Village. A-listers among the 160 in attendance included former Stokley coaches Mike Shanahan, Jack Del Rio, Adam Gase and Tyke Tolbert, and former teammates Chris Kuper, Joel Dreessen, Brad Pyatt and Troy Walters. Attorney Harvey Steinberg (whom Stokley never called upon except to host a card game), Broncos trainer Steve Antonopulos and several of Stokley’s former college teammates also attended. Categories: Former Broncos, Retiring Players Perrish Cox and Broncos’ Demaryius Thomas will be sued in sex assault case [media-credit name=”Ed Andrieski, The Associated Press” align=”alignright” width=”270″] [/media-credit] Denver Broncos wide receiver Demaryius Thomas is shown at the courthouse in Castle Rock on Feb. 29, 2012. The woman who accused former Broncos cornerback Perrish Cox of sexual assault in Sept. 2010 has filed her intentions to sue Cox and Broncos receiver Demaryius Thomas in Denver District Court. The only motion filed so far asked that the accuser be able to file her complaint anonymously and go by the pseudonym Jane Doe. Judge Christina Habas granted the motion while stipulating an amendment to her ruling is possible. Categories: General Broncos, Off-Field Issues Break for Broncos: Meriweather signs with Washington, Shanahan I was perplexed by the Broncos’ pursuit of safety Brandon Meriweather. I mean, he’s good. He’s talented. He’s a two-time Pro Bowler coming off a forgettable year (read: available at a discount rate). But he’s not the Broncos type. Brian Dawkins is the Broncos type. Like it or not, Broncos, Tim Tebow represents all this franchise could want to be. Google Meriweather’s name and there’s troubling incident after troubling incident in his past. Not that the Broncos’ locker room is full of Boy Scouts. They’ve kept attorney Harvey Steinberg plenty busy over the years. But the Broncos pretty much stopped doing deals with the devil since Mike Shanahan left. Wouldn’t you know it, Meriweather signed with Shanny’s Redskins. The Broncos have Browns safety Mike Adams in for a visit today. Harvey Steinberg does it again: QB Chris Simms acquitted Chris Simms, the Broncos’ back up quarterback to Kyle Orton during the 2009 season, was acquitted by a New York jury today of driving while under the influence of marijuana. Simms was represented by Denver attorney Harvey Steinberg, who spoke to The Denver Post from New York just before boarding a flight home. “He should never have been charged,” Steinberg said. “There was no evidence. It took the jury less than an hour after three days of trial to acquit him. It’s unfortunate his reputation was besmirched by the fact there was even this allegation.'” Simms was arrested at a checkpoint on July 1, 2010 while driving an SUV with his pregnant wife and friend Charlie Granatell. The arresting officer noted Simms took an alcohol breathalyzer that registed no reading but arrested the quarterback because of the smell of marijuana from the car. During trial testimony, Granatell said he was the only person who was smoking marijuana. Simms, 30, is the son of CBS NFL color commentator and former New York Giants quarterback Phil Simms, who shredded the Broncos for 22 of 25 passing druing a 39-20 victory in Super Bowl XXI. It was the first of John Elway’s five Super Bowl appearances. Steinberg has represented many Denver professional sports stars over the years and has won acquittals or ”slap-on-the-wrist” pleas in most of them. The Brandon Marshall File: His off-field troubles The stab wound to the stomach allegedy inflicted by the hand of his wife was the latest off-field incident involving Miami Dolphins and former Broncos receiver Brandon Marshall. But hardly the first. Here’s a chronology of Marshall’s off-field troubles: Categories: Former Broncos, General Broncos Harvey Steinberg: Marshall’s shot needs work When former Broncos receiver Brandon Marshall had hip surgery earlier this offseason, he stayed at the palatial Denver-area home of his attorney Harvey Steinberg. According to Steinberg, he and Marshall had a three-point shooting contest. A small wager was placed on the contest. “”He lost,” Steinberg said. This tidbit has relevance after Marshall _ who CANNOT be serious _ said if there’s a NFL lockout next year, he will play in the NBA. His first choice is the Denver Nuggets. The Miami Heat are his second choice. “”His inside game better be a lot better than his outside game,” Steinberg said. Comments Off on Harvey Steinberg: Marshall’s shot needs work Suspension warranted for Big Ben? Should Ben Roethlisberger sit some games next season? Only Roger Goodell knows. (AP photo, David Richard) Pay attention, Ben Roethlisberger. As Brandon Marshall can attest, a conviction of a crime is not required for a player to be found in violation of the NFL’s personal conduct policy. Marshall was eventually cleared of all criminal charges he faced regarding his former girlfriend Rasheedah Watley yet it was his repeated incidents that led commissioner Roger Goodell to levy a three-game suspension against the Broncos’ star receiver to open the 2008 season. Marshall’s attorney, Harvey Steinberg, got the suspension reduced to one game, with a fine of two games pay, but it’s clear Goodell didn’t need the United States legal system to play out before deciding how to administer punishment. Because Roethlisberger has now been accused twice with sexual misconduct involving two females, Goodell already can find him in violation of the league’s personal conduct policy. When it comes to bad publicity, the personal conduct policy will find a man guilty until proven innocent. Even if Roethlisberger is arguably one of the NFL’s top five stars, Goodell cannot become a judge of double-standards. To Goodell’s credit, he did not sound like he was ready to give Roethlisberger a break. “We are concerned that Ben continues to put himself in this position,” Goodell said Monday at his league-meeting press conference. Categories: General Broncos, NFL Teams, Off-Field Issues	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line99
__label__cc	0.554699	0.445301	DAV MUKHYAMANTRI PUBLIC SCHOOL Kutrabodh (Chhattisgarh) DAV Mukhya Mantri Public School Kutrabodh came into existence by entering into a Concessional Agreement with DAV College Trust & Management Society, New Delhi and with Department of Education, Government of Chhattisgarh in April-2016. The School has provision of running classes from Std I to Std XII. The school aims to provide the best and holistic education to the children of educationally backward block. The school is a unit run and managed by DAV College, New Delhi. It is a registered charitable trust. Experienced, sincere and committed staff render their service for all round development of students. The team of teachers also take care for character building among the students. The school is affiliated with CBSE, New Delhi and follows the rules and regulations laid down by it. Kutrabodh,Block Pamgarh Janjgir, Champa-495554 (A Co-Educational English Medium, Senior Secondary Public School, Affiliated to CBSE, New Delhi.) (Managed By DAV College Managing Com More (+) DAV UNIVERSITY DAVCAE INTELLECTUAL HUB EVALUATION PROFORMA DAVCMC BUDGET & SALARY PROVIDENT FUND SCHOOL VEHICLE MANAGEMENT © DAV MUKHYAMANTRI PUBLIC SCHOOL, Kutrabodh Chhattisgarh All rights reserved.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line105
__label__wiki	0.759154	0.759154	Home GI Press Collection p. 9 Liberation news service (New York, New York) (January-April 1973) THE GREEN BERETS AT HOME $ ABROAD: "ANYTHING, ANY TIME, ANY PLACE, ANY HOW" LIBERATION News Service "This allows us to practice organizing support among indlgencus people, which is something we had to d* in Vietnam and is needed in almost every way." —-Major General Henry E» Emerson, commander of the JFK Center for Military Assistance at Ft» Bragg where all Green Berets are trained. "Anything, any time, any place, any how." —motto of the Green Berets NEW YORK (LNS)--"The story of the United States Army Special Forces [the Green Berets] dates back at least to the French and Indian Wars, when Major Robert Rogers formed his 'Rangers' from the New Hampshire state militia to conduct 'unconventional warfare* against the Indians," explains "A History of the Special Forces" in Veritas, the Green Beret's official magazine. The historical account never explains what "unconventional warfare" against the Indians actually meant. But by the time of the Vietnam war, it had come to mean everything from recruiting Vietnamese as informers and training them in counterinsurgency, to regular search and destroy missions, and pacification programs designed to "win the hearts and minds" of the people» Or--as a popular Marine saying goes, "Get the people by the balls and their hearts and minds will follow." And now it seems that the Green Berets are trying to win the hearts and Binds of poor Third World and white people in this .country as well. In at least four separate incidents over the past few years, Green Beret activities have been discovered. "She Green Berets, as they are known today, were the brain child of John F» Kennedy who fancied the idea of a world-wide, inconspicuous, anti-communist peace keeping force» They figured very early in the Vietnam war as some of the first American "advisors." "The "Big Picture' films at Fort Dix had told me all about Special Forces," writes George Smith in his book POW: Two Years With the Vieteong. "Be a hero, have fun, make big money» Special Forces paid you per mission--some places in South America it was forty dollars a day» "In the adventure films, Special Forces skied, blew upvbridges, jumped into previously unexplored areas, and conducted guerrilla operations in oppressed countries» That was the Special Forces mission: we would infiltrate (not necessarily with the permission of the government of the country), equip the people with weapons and train them to fight guerrilla wars and overthrow unpopular or oppressive governments. We studied the tactics of Rogers' Rangers and read Mao Tse-tung's handbook»»»" "Guerrilla warfare is what we volunteered for," continues Smith, who joined the Green Berets in 1961. "nearly everybody had the same attitude: we were going to be guerrilla fighters and overthrow unpopu- lar governments. But somewhere along the line, they turned the whole thing around» 'Since you are guerrilla fighters and are capable of training people to fight guerrilla warfare,' they told us, 'you should be equally capable of training people to combat guerrilla warfare»' "They wanted us to combat insurgency and of ç • course the application would be in South Vietnam»».» The Special Forces were assuming this new counter- insurgency role, and therefore more teams needed to go into different countries--Laos, Vietnam, and the Congo» My group, the Fifth, was initially assigned to Africa and I thought we were going to the Congo» In the end we went to Vietnam." Today the Green Berets are officially out of Vietnam though who knows how many of the '"civilian" advisors who remain have a green beret tucked away in their luggage. And there's little doubt that the Special Forces are still active in other Southeast Michael Klare points out in his book War Without End, "since 1962, Green Berets have worked with troops of every Latin American nation except Mexico, Cuba and Haiti»».Special Forces activity always peaks when a country is threatened by an insurgent movement»" It was Special Forces who helped hunt down Che Guevara in the mountains of Bolivia in 1967, for instance. Pacification is a particularly important aspect of the Green Berets' work--and a very unsuccessful program with regard to Vietnam» "By mid-1965," says "A History of the Special Forces", "the men»»»had assumed wide-ranging tasks» These included assistance to civilian agencies in dredging canals in enemy-held territory, improving refugee camps, and the liberation of many enemy-controlled villages»" However, others do not agree with the rosy picture the Green Berets paint. In the Pentagon Papers for example, there is a copy of a memorandum sent to President Kennedy by John Kenneth Galbraith, then U.S» Ambassador to India. He says, "There is consequent danger we shall replace the French as the colonial force in the area (Vietnam) and bleed as the French did. The political effects of some of the measures which pacification requires or is believed to require, including the concentration of population, relocation of villages, and the burning of old villages, may be damaging to those and especially to Westerners associated with it." Torture is another tactic the Special Forces use to bring about pacification although their own "History" neglects to mention it» SP/4 Steven Noetzel, 5th Special Forces Group Augmentation, gave the following testimony at the Winter Soldier Investigation convened in Detroit in early 19 71» "In January or February of 1964, I'm not sure exactly which, I witnessed a public display of electrical torture of Vietnamese prisoners» "A captain there, the commander of the A Team, had conjured up a system of electrical torture whereby they took a Sony tape recorder, a plain tape recorder with the U-meters on it, and hooked that.up with some field telephone batteries and a toggle switch, that was held under the table by a Special Forces sergeant» Then the captain asked questions of a prisoner, who was stripped naked, and electrodes from those field telephones were attached to the back of his neck, to his armpits, to his genitals, and his (#517) more, Title Liberation news service (New York, New York) (January-April 1973) Digital identifier giNewsletter940a0000 Title p. 9 Full text THE GREEN BERETS AT HOME $ ABROAD: "ANYTHING, ANY TIME, ANY PLACE, ANY HOW" LIBERATION News Service "This allows us to practice organizing support among indlgencus people, which is something we had to d* in Vietnam and is needed in almost every way." —-Major General Henry E» Emerson, commander of the JFK Center for Military Assistance at Ft» Bragg where all Green Berets are trained. "Anything, any time, any place, any how." —motto of the Green Berets NEW YORK (LNS)--"The story of the United States Army Special Forces [the Green Berets] dates back at least to the French and Indian Wars, when Major Robert Rogers formed his 'Rangers' from the New Hampshire state militia to conduct 'unconventional warfare* against the Indians" explains "A History of the Special Forces" in Veritas, the Green Beret's official magazine. The historical account never explains what "unconventional warfare" against the Indians actually meant. But by the time of the Vietnam war, it had come to mean everything from recruiting Vietnamese as informers and training them in counterinsurgency, to regular search and destroy missions, and pacification programs designed to "win the hearts and minds" of the people» Or--as a popular Marine saying goes, "Get the people by the balls and their hearts and minds will follow." And now it seems that the Green Berets are trying to win the hearts and Binds of poor Third World and white people in this .country as well. In at least four separate incidents over the past few years, Green Beret activities have been discovered. * * * "She Green Berets, as they are known today, were the brain child of John F» Kennedy who fancied the idea of a world-wide, inconspicuous, anti-communist peace keeping force» They figured very early in the Vietnam war as some of the first American "advisors." "The "Big Picture' films at Fort Dix had told me all about Special Forces" writes George Smith in his book POW: Two Years With the Vieteong. "Be a hero, have fun, make big money» Special Forces paid you per mission--some places in South America it was forty dollars a day» "In the adventure films, Special Forces skied, blew upvbridges, jumped into previously unexplored areas, and conducted guerrilla operations in oppressed countries» That was the Special Forces mission: we would infiltrate (not necessarily with the permission of the government of the country), equip the people with weapons and train them to fight guerrilla wars and overthrow unpopular or oppressive governments. We studied the tactics of Rogers' Rangers and read Mao Tse-tung's handbook»»»" • "Guerrilla warfare is what we volunteered for" continues Smith, who joined the Green Berets in 1961. "nearly everybody had the same attitude: we were going to be guerrilla fighters and overthrow unpopu- lar governments. But somewhere along the line, they turned the whole thing around» 'Since you are guerrilla fighters and are capable of training people to fight guerrilla warfare,' they told us, 'you should be equally capable of training people to combat guerrilla warfare»' "They wanted us to combat insurgency and of ç • course the application would be in South Vietnam»».» The Special Forces were assuming this new counter- insurgency role, and therefore more teams needed to go into different countries--Laos, Vietnam, and the Congo» My group, the Fifth, was initially assigned to Africa and I thought we were going to the Congo» In the end we went to Vietnam." Today the Green Berets are officially out of Vietnam though who knows how many of the '"civilian" advisors who remain have a green beret tucked away in their luggage. And there's little doubt that the Special Forces are still active in other Southeast Asian countries» Michael Klare points out in his book War Without End, "since 1962, Green Berets have worked with troops of every Latin American nation except Mexico, Cuba and Haiti»».Special Forces activity always peaks when a country is threatened by an insurgent movement»" It was Special Forces who helped hunt down Che Guevara in the mountains of Bolivia in 1967, for instance. Pacification is a particularly important aspect of the Green Berets' work--and a very unsuccessful program with regard to Vietnam» "By mid-1965" says "A History of the Special Forces", "the men»»»had assumed wide-ranging tasks» These included assistance to civilian agencies in dredging canals in enemy-held territory, improving refugee camps, and the liberation of many enemy-controlled villages»" However, others do not agree with the rosy picture the Green Berets paint. In the Pentagon Papers for example, there is a copy of a memorandum sent to President Kennedy by John Kenneth Galbraith, then U.S» Ambassador to India. He says, "There is consequent danger we shall replace the French as the colonial force in the area (Vietnam) and bleed as the French did. The political effects of some of the measures which pacification requires or is believed to require, including the concentration of population, relocation of villages, and the burning of old villages, may be damaging to those and especially to Westerners associated with it." Torture is another tactic the Special Forces use to bring about pacification although their own "History" neglects to mention it» SP/4 Steven Noetzel, 5th Special Forces Group Augmentation, gave the following testimony at the Winter Soldier Investigation convened in Detroit in early 19 71» "In January or February of 1964, I'm not sure exactly which, I witnessed a public display of electrical torture of Vietnamese prisoners» "A captain there, the commander of the A Team, had conjured up a system of electrical torture whereby they took a Sony tape recorder, a plain tape recorder with the U-meters on it, and hooked that.up with some field telephone batteries and a toggle switch, that was held under the table by a Special Forces sergeant» Then the captain asked questions of a prisoner, who was stripped naked, and electrodes from those field telephones were attached to the back of his neck, to his armpits, to his genitals, and his Page 9 LIBERATION News Service (#517) April 18, 1973 more, Packet #491 (January 5, 1973) Packet #492 (January 10, 1973) Packet #498 (February 3, 1973) Packet #500 (February 10, 1973) Packet #505 (March 3, 1973) Packet #507 (March 10, 1973) - p. P 3 Packet #513 (April 4, 1973) Packet #515 (April 11, 1973)	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line110
__label__cc	0.608228	0.391772	Since 1982, Coosemans Interproduce has been at the forefront of the specialty produce business. In fact, we were selling specialty produce when many referred to it as “Weird Stuff. produce, coosemans page-template-default,page,page-id-7,bridge-core-1.0.4,ajax_updown,page_not_loaded,boxed,,qode_grid_1200,qode-theme-ver-18.2,qode-theme-bridge,wpb-js-composer js-comp-ver-5.7,vc_responsive Since 1982, Coosemans Interproduce has been at the forefront of the specialty produce business. In fact, we were selling specialty produce when many referred to it as “Weird Stuff.” Over the years, a lot has changed. These days, specialty produce hasn’t just established itself as a viable commodity; it’s become downright essential in today’s produce industry. Now that specialty produce has established itself throughout North America and the rest of the world, it’s critical that you establish a relationship with a knowledgeable, reliable, experienced specialty produce company. For over three decades, we’ve served countless clients across the nation. With distribution centers in Tampa, Miami, Dallas, Cleveland, and 24 other locations, we’ve attained a well-earned reputation as a provider of uncommon produce. We’ve also become neighborly fixtures within each of these communities. In short: whether you need something from far or near, Coosemans Interproduce is your ideal partner. When it comes to specialty produce, you want to be close to the source. With this is mind, we also want you to know that we are growers, shippers, brokers, importers, and exporters. In many instances, when you order from us, you couldn’t be buying any more direct unless you were planting the seeds yourself! Whether you have a well-established specialty produce business or a small start-up operation that’s just getting off the ground, you need a friendly, reliable supplier. Plug in to the world’s most effective specialty produce network: Coosemans Interproduce, and feel the power of a direct connection. So what are you waiting for? Contact us today to see how we can help you with your produce needs.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line111
__label__wiki	0.70997	0.70997	City Releases Garbage Totals From Area Where Most Saint Johnners Get Their Drinking Water It cost the city over 26 hundred dollars at the landfill just to get rid of all the garbage that was collected in the cleanup around the Loch Lomand watershed last week where most people in this city get their drinking water. The city reports it collected more than 23 and a half metric tons of trash. That amounts to 52 thousand pounds of garbage. The junk included a pool table, couches, tires, scrap metal, heating oil tanks, oil containers, mini propane tanks and diapers. Two Possible Locations Mentioned For K-V Skateboard Park (Skateboard Park Chair Robin Parks) (Photo by Brian McLain) The committee formed to get a skateboard park built in the Kennebecasis Valley has a couple of possible locations in mind. Committee chair Robin Parks tells CHSJ News being close to the Q-Plex and at the Culture Park by the town hall come to mind right off the bat. Having a location in mind is one thing but then comes the hard part.........Where will the $500 thousand come from to build it? Parks is hoping for business sponsorships, government funding and money from fundraisers. She goes on to say Rothesay Regional Police are on board because they're tired of getting calls about young people skateboarding where they shouldn't and parents are getting fed up with having to take their children to skateboard parks in Saint John and Moncton. It's estimated there are 800 regular skateboaders in the valley. Parks says if there is enough land, as part of the project, basketball courts and even a splash pad could be added later on. Christmas Card For Troops In Afghanistan Vandalised In Market Square (Christmas Card At Market Square Kiosk To Be Sent To Troops) Some fool with a black felt marker has vandalised the large Christmas card at the Market Square kiosk that people were signing for the troops in Afghanistan. Some sort of grafitti type marking was scrawled on the inside of the card. Artist Norm Jackson came up with the idea of the card and tells CHSJ News he's disappointed. Jackson is hoping he can clean the card up but concedes some of the names and messages might be lost. He's urging those who signed the inside to come down and have a look to see if their names and messages are lost. If so, they can sign again once the card is cleaned up. A Call For An Increase In Social Assitance The cry for more cash for those on social assistance can be heard coming the Common Front For Social Justice. Spokes-person Aurea Cormier tells CHSJ News, the Alward Government must realize the rate isn't competitive: She says it's one of the lowest if not the lowest in the country and it's long overdue that it be adjusted. Cormier points out that between 2006 and this year, basic items like eggs went up by 21.9%, cheese 36.7%, rice by 42.6% and flour by 84.9%. Armoured Car Workers Going Back To Work After months of walking picket lines around the Province, members of the Teamsters Union are going back to work. Armoured Car Workers with G4S Secor Cor Cash Solutions have voted 85% in favor of accepting the latest offer from the company. The vote was held earlier today but no details are being released until it has been ratified. Workers hit the picket lines over two months ago over several issues including a wage increase, saying no to current and new employee’s being subject to a polygraph test and looking for back wages from the previous contract. Management has been filling since the strike began and employees are expected to be back on the job with-in weeks. Premier Plans To Keep Campaign Promise to Seniors (Premier David Alward) The Premier says it's full steam ahead with his property tax freeze for seniors over the age of 65. David Alward tells CHSJ News it's an important campaign promise that he intends on keeping. He says he doesn't have a date for the freeze in place yet but wants to make it happen as soon as possible. Meanwhile, Saint John Mayor Ivan Court says such a freeze would sap millions from the city coffers and makes planning municipal budgets problematic. Eyewitness Testimony In Alma Street Stabbing Case Eyewitness testimony was delivered at the second degree murder trial of 27 year old Crystal Dawn McKenzie who's charged in the stabbing death of her of her common law husband, 29 year old Patrick Thomas, back in March. A neighbour in the Alma Street apartment building where they lived testified McKenzie ran into her bedroom out of sorts, saying she wasn't going to take it anymore. McKenzie grabbed a broom and after scrapping on Waterloo Street where she was put in a headlock by Thomas, McKenzie went back into the apartment and got hold of a knife. She then stabbed him in the neck and shoulder while he was choking in her in the doorway. Saint John Police Kept Busy This Morning The search is on for two men in their twenties after a home invasion in the South End this morning. It was just before two o'clock when a man was woken up by a knock on his door at 240 Duke Street. Two masked men with a weapon greeted the 26-year old and demanded dope and cash. He told them he had neither, so they grabbed his Blackberry, charger and DVD's. Nobody was hurt. Then roughly about a half n hour later, City Police were called to the parking lot at 411 Ellerdale Street East to find a man unconscious. He was taken to the Regional where he remains getting looked over. No word on what happened but Major Crime has been called in. Construction At Sussex Mine Continues Construction of the new Potash Corporation Mine in Sussex continues to make steady progress. General Manager Mark Frachia tells CHSJ News, there are close to 1000 people working on site and that number is expected to grow to close to 1200 in the new year. Frachia adds a dispute with the contractor working on the compaction plant has been resolved and it's expected it will be finished early in the new year and commissioned by January. As for the rest of the project, salt mining is still on schedule to begin in 2012 and potash the following year. Amalgamation Talk Still On The Table (Rothesay Mayor Bill Bishop) Amalgamation remains on the discussion table for both Rothesay and Quispamsis. In a letter to Quispam, Rothesay asks if the topic can be discussed and the answer is yes. Mayor Bill Bishop tells CHSJ News, if a decision is to be made, he would rather have it done on this level than be mandated into it. Bishop adds it would only be wise for both Town's to do their home-work before there is any pressure from the Province. Alward Government Is Asked For An Increase The group Common Front For Social Justice is calling for action by the Alward Government when it comes to social assitance. Calling it one of the lowest rates in the country, it is looking for an increase as the price of everything continues to climb. Spokes-person Aurea Cormier tells CHSJ News, their data shows that a walk through the grocery store is no easy task for those on a budget. Some of the numbers show the price of basic items like eggs went up by 21.9%, cheese 36.7%, rice by 42.6% and flour by 84.9%. Cormier says the fact thousands of people in this Province go to bed hungry is a shameful result of our political leaders’ inability to govern in the interest of the common good. Heavy Damage To ATV Trails Around The Province Thousands of dollars in damage is being reported on ATV Trails through-out the Province. This after the heavy and record rain-fall over the past few weeks. Spokes-person Jacques Nadeau tells CHSJ News, in some area's, culverts have been exposed and bridges washed out. Nadeau adds they made need to get approval from the Province before moving ahead with some of the repairs but hope to have everything fixed soon. No Cash For Amalgamation Study In Quispamsis Quispamsis Council has voted down, almost unanimously, setting aside 30 thousand dollars in next year's town budget to study the implications of amalgamating with the town of Rothesay. Councillor Gerry Maher was the only vote in favour and warns Rothesay and Quispamsis are being targeted for amalgamation by the Province. Mayor Murray Driscoll says the two towns will talk about merging but he disputes the contention that those who would be directly affected by a merger will do all they can to scuttle the process for their own self interest and preservation. Driscoll says there's not enough money in his job as mayor to be looking out for it. Push Is On For SkateBoard Park In Quispamsis (Skateboard Park Spokes-person James Buchan) A big turnout at Quispamsis Council to show support for construction of a skateboarding park in the Kennebecasis Valley. Town Councillors were told the need is there with an estimated 800 regular skateboarders in the K-V and that could be low balling the actual number. Council heard from an active skateboarder, James Buchan who offered his opinion of the skateboard park in Saint John. The estimated cost of a skateboard park in the Valley is pegged at half a million. It's hoped development can begin in the spring but the town has not committed itself to providing any money yet. Insurance Bureau Of Canada Backs Alward Government A 36 per cent reduction in provincial insurance premiums since the $2500 cap on soft tissue injuries was brought in proves it's working. That from Bill Adams of the Insurance Bureau of Canada who say they will work with the Alward government's review of the controversial legislation. Critics of the law say the payout is nothing when accident victims are suffering with life-long injuries that require treatment and medication. Resident Rattled After Home Invasion Major Crime has been called in to investigate after a home invasion in the South End early this morning. City Police tell us someone in an apartment was woken up by noise just after two o'clock and called officers to come and check things out. When they arrived, the person who broke in had already taken off with a few items. No one was hurt. Peoples Alliance party Leader Elected (Peoples Alliance Party Leader and Minto Councilor Kris Austin) The Peoples Alliance Party Leader has a new voice after being elected a councilor in the village of Minto following an unsuccessful bid at becoming an MLA in the Provincial Vote. 31-year old Kris Austin captured 440 of the 920 ballots after coming in third in September's provincial election in the riding of Grand Lake-Gagetown. Admitting the loss was a tough pill to swallow, Austin says he still wants to contribute to his community and the municipal seat was one that he couldn't pass up. City Releases Garbage Totals From Area Where Most ... Two Possible Locations Mentioned For K-V Skateboar... Christmas Card For Troops In Afghanistan Vandalise... Insurance Bureau Of Canada Backs Alward Government...	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line115
__label__wiki	0.716122	0.716122	What's in this issue NEW BUILDING UPDATE NEW MSD DIRECTOR A COLLABORATIVE PROCESS VEIL ECO ACUPUNCTURE CREATIVE WOMEN BUILDING INCLUSIVE CITIES JOHN ANDREWS SYMPOSIUM SIX DEGREES - "GREATEST HITS 1992-2012" DESIGN FILE Welcome to ABP e-news, a monthly e-newsletter for alumni, supporters and friends of the Faculty of Architecture, Building and Planning (ABP) at the University of Melbourne. ABP e-news will give you an insight into what's going on in the Faculty, with a round-up of news and events. We will profile innovative people and projects and many of these stories will not be featured anywhere else. We hope you enjoy this launch edition of ABP e-news. And do contact us if you have a relevant project, achievement or event we can profile to the ABP community and all those passionate about design and the world we live in. Our project to create a landmark new education centre focused on the built environment is gathering momentum. Building enabling works commenced in August and ABP staff are relocating into temporary premises on campus, refurbished by Six Degrees Architects. During the two-year construction phase, 757 Swanston Street will become our Faculty hub and 33 Lincoln Square will be our research hub. Hoarding will be erected around our new building site in late October and works will escalate in November to prepare for the demolition and construction phases. Viewing holes in the hoarding and an elevated platform will provide students, stakeholders and the public insight into the project's progress. Cameras positioned around the site will also provide images and video footage of the build, which will be uploaded on to the ABP website. The construction phase offers students and staff a unique opportunity to observe and access a large-scale building project. There are a several research projects and studios already underway exploring aspects of the design and construction process and we will profile these in future editions of ABP e-news. For regular updates on the new building project, visit the ABP website. Professor Alan Pert, Director of NORD (Northern Office for Research and Design) joins ABP as the new Director of the Melbourne School of Design this month. Alan is a teacher, researcher and practitioner, with an exceptional profile in the UK architecture scene. Most recently, he held the position of Professor of Architecture and Director of Research for Architecture at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow. Pert's academic and industry expertise will help to establish the MSD as a centre of excellence and innovation in built environment education. How does a multidisciplinary approach enhance the built process? Federation Square is an example of the value of collaboration in the creation of a landmark site. Donald Bates, ABP's new Chair of Architectural Design and Director of LAB Architecture Studios and Patrick Bellew, Principal of Artelier Ten and a leading environmental engineer formed part of the creative team behind Federation Square. Ahead of its time, Bates and Bellew approached the project from an environmentally sustainable design perspective and the resulting space is still an exemplar of sustainability and innovation. We spoke to Donald Bates on the occasion of Federation Square's 10th anniversary. Read more. MSD students, led by VEIL's Chris Ryan, engaged in a interdisciplinary travelling studio in Florence in September. Using VEIL's unique 'Eco Acupuncture' concept, the group explored environmental and design questions such as: 'What would a sustainable Florence look like in 2035?' and 'What steps can be taken today to achieve sustainability? Read more. Lucinda Hartley, a 2004 graduate of Landscape Architecture and winner of the AILA Jim Sinatra Leadership Award, has an exceptional commitment to community development. Lucinda, together with fellow University of Melbourne graduate, Leeanne Marshall, is currently working on a youth mental health facility in Frankston. The centre is being designed in collaboration with the service providers and the young people who will use the facility. Read about it here. With the recent appointment of Shelley Penn as the National President of the Australian Institute of Architects and the launch of Parlour, a new website for women in architecture, we thought it timely to focus an edition of Atrium on women working in the built environment. Two alumni shared with us their distinct career choices and highlights: Katelin Butler, editor of Houses magazine and Pascale Gomes-McNabb, an architect, interior designer and resturanteur. Read the full article in Atrium. Book Launch: 19 October, Baldwin Spencer Building At a time when women's safety in public spaces is forefront in the media, a new book has been published exploring this critical issue. Associate Professor Carolyn Whitzman is the lead editor of Building Inclusive Cities examining modern cities and women's safety. The publication, featuring essays by international experts in the field, adds to the research and dialogue on how effective urban planning and management can make cities healthier, safer and more liveable for all. The book will be launched on 19 October at 6pm in the MSD Student Lounge, Baldwin Spencer building. Read more. Public Lecture & Symposium: 19 - 20 October This two-day event brings together critics, scholars and colleagues of John Andrews, an international star of late Modernism and one of Australia's most significant architects. The symposium on 20 October is a rare opportunitiy to hear John Andrews' speak about his career and projects. To launch the event, Mary Lou Lobsinger of the University of Toronto, will present a FREE public lecture on 19 October, highlighting Andrews' Canadian projects. Read more and register online. Alumni Retrospective Exhibition 19 October - 23 November, Wunderlich Gallery The ABP Alumni Retrospective Series highlights the exceptional contribution our alumni have made to our design culture and built environment. Since the practice formed in 1991, Six Degrees has become an iconic part of Melbourne's architectural landscape, and are responsible, in part, for activating the city's now famous laneway bar culture. Find out about Six Degrees Greatest Hits. Free Fold Furniture by Toby Horrocks, MSD Class of 1999 Freefold Furniture is furniture made from cardboard with a focus on sustainability. Toby Horrocks conceived of the idea when he was faced with furnishing an empty rental apartment. His designs, fashioned from cardboard, are affordable and mobile, as well as functional and stylish. Toby's architectural background and business acumen have transformed him into a design entrepeneur with two companies - Toby also directs 'Toby Horrocks Architecture' - in his portfolio at the age of 39. Check out freefoldfurniture. Toby muses over his design resourcesmart.vic.gov.au Shelley Penn, National President AIA and Honorary Associate Professor ABP Shelley's favourite building has long been Heide II by McGlashan Everist. "It's the house itself but also the landscape it sits within and how the two relate." On a larger scale, Shelley's favourite urban space is Canberra "because of the way it has been designed within and as a response to its landscape, and because that landscape is still dominant and woven through the city." Shelley graduated from the University of Melbourne with a Bachelor of Architecture in 1988. In May this year she was appointed the 73rd National Pesident of the Australian Institute of Architects. She is Director of Shelley Penn Architects. 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__label__wiki	0.766944	0.766944	LifeNews.com Pro-Life News Report For pro-life news updated throughout the day, visit LifeNews.com. • Gosnell Staffer: Newborn Was Tossed in Shoe Box, Still Breathing • Kermit Gosnell Reused Blades From Abortions, Causing Women STDs • Report: Mainstream Media Still Ignoring Gosnell Murder Trial • Hey Obama, Kermit Gosnell Is What a Real War on Women Looks Like More Pro-Life News• 72 Members of Congress Demand Media Coverage of Gosnell Trial • Kermit Gosnell is No Exception: He’s the Face of Abortion • Head of Pro-Abortion Group Pleads Guilty to Arranging Sex With Child • National Abortion Federation Never Reported Gosnell’s House of Horrors• North Dakota Governor Signs Bill Banning Abortions at 20 Weeks • Abortion Backers Oppose Regulations That Could Have Stopped Gosnell • Kermit Gosnell’s Prosecutor’s Unwed Mom Placed Him for Adoption • Wealthy Pay $25,000 for Shots With Cells From Aborted Babies • Florida Unanimously OKS Anti-Infanticide Bill Planned Parenthood Opposed • Texas: Pro-Life Side Wins Debate Over Fetal-Pain Abortion Ban • Ex-Abortion Worker: I’m So Glad God Got Me Out of Planned Parenthood • Polling Data Shows Support for Fetal Pain-Based Abortion Ban • Faced with $36,000 Fine, Abortion Clinic Continues Stall Tactics • Not About Doctors, Vermont’s SB 77 Would Legalize Assisted Suicide • Paralyzed UK Man Sues to Create Right to Assisted Suicide Gosnell Staffer: Newborn Was Tossed in Shoe Box, Still Breathing A former staff worker at the Kermit Gosnell abortion facility testified during the murder trial today that the abortion practitioner and his staff once tossed a newborn child who survived a failed abortion and was still breathing into a shoe box. In fact, Kareema Cross told a jury in Philadelphia today that she saw at least 10 children who were breathing after botched abortions but killed afterwards. What happened shocked her so badly she took photographs to document what happened. http://www.lifenews.com/2013/04/18/gosnell-staffer-newborn-was-tossed-in-shoe-box-still-breathing/ Kermit Gosnell Reused Blades From Abortions, Causing Women STDs Two witnesses took the stand yesterday in the capital murder case of Kermit Gosnell, providing testimony from the perspectives of a patient and an employee of substandard conditions and illegal practices at Gosnell’s “House of Horrors” clinic at 3801 Lancaster. Mary Kincade had been a patient at Gosnell’s Women’s Medical Society clinic for about ten years and was last seen five to six years ago. She said she only saw Eileen O’Neill, who other clinic workers referred to as “Doctor” even though she had no license to practice in Pennsylvania. Kincade was not an abortion patient, but saw O’Neill for yearly well woman exams. Kincade never saw Gosnell at the clinic during any of her visits. http://www.lifenews.com/2013/04/18/kermit-gosnell-reused-blades-from-abortions-causing-women-stds/ Report: Mainstream Media Still Ignoring Gosnell Murder Trial Despite the massive pressure the pro-life movement has placed on the mainstream media, a new report by a conservative watchdog group indicates they are still essentially ignoring the Kermit Gosnell murder trial. As LifeNews reported, the New York Times committed to and then qucikly pulled back a reporter who was supposed to provide daily coverage of the trial. But it’s worse than that, as Katie Yoder of Newsbusters indicates the big television networks have still done next to nothing. http://www.lifenews.com/2013/04/18/report-mainstream-media-still-ignoring-gosnell-murder-trial/ Hey Obama, Kermit Gosnell Is What a Real War on Women Looks Like At nearly six weeks, the Gosnell trial has something in common with its unborn victims: it has a heartbeat now, and not just in the conservative press. The story is pulsing through the mainstream media, as alive as it’s ever been in the two years since Kermit Gosnell’s conviction. For once, the bloodcurdling accounts–so otherworldly that Snopes had to separate it from urban legend–are receiving the attention the pro-abortion press never wanted to give it. Of course, now that the media has been shamed into doing its job, a handful of reporters can’t help but try to spread the blame around. Taking its cues from Gosnell apologists like NARAL, outlets like Slate, The Atlantic, and Huffington Post have the audacity to condemn pro-lifers for the clinic’s barbarism. http://www.lifenews.com/2013/04/18/hey-obama-kermit-gosnell-is-what-a-real-war-on-women-looks-like/ 72 Members of Congress Demand Media Coverage of Gosnell Trial Some 72 members of Congress have signed on to a letter demanding that the mainstream media provide coverage of the murder trial of abortion practitioner Kermit Gosnell. Reps. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) and Steve Scalise (R-LA) were joined by 70 of their House colleagues late Wednesday demanding national broadcast news channels ABC, NBC, and CBS stop blacking out coverage on high-profile abortion controversies. http://www.lifenews.com/2013/04/18/72-members-of-congress-demand-media-coverage-of-gosnell-trial/ Head of Pro-Abortion Group Pleads Guilty to Arranging Sex With Child The former director of a leading abortion advocacy group who was caught in a child sex sting pleaded guilty to his crimes. Scott Richard Swirling, who was the director of the National Family Planning & Reproductive Health Association (NFPRHA), was arrested for attempting to arrange for a sexual encounter with a twelve-year-old girl. He was charged with traveling across state lines to engage in illicit sexual conduct, a crime which carries a penalty of up to 30 years. http://www.lifenews.com/2013/04/18/head-of-pro-abortion-group-to-plead-guilty-to-arranging-sex-with-child/ National Abortion Federation Never Reported Gosnell’s House of Horrors The National Abortion Federation (NAF) holds itself up as the gold standard of providers of so-called “safe, legal, and accessible abortion care.” But when the notorious Kermit Gosnell—currently on trial for murder in Philadelphia, in case you haven’t heard—unsuccessfully applied to become an NAF member in late 2009, the evaluator who visited his facility said it was the worst one she had ever seen, yet she never reported the horrific conditions in Gosnell’s “House of Horrors” to authorities. http://www.lifenews.com/2013/04/18/national-abortion-federation-never-reported-gosnells-house-of-horrors/ North Dakota Governor Signs Bill Banning Abortions at 20 WeeksOn Tuesday, North Dakota’s governor signed a bill into law banning abortions after 20 weeks, when an unborn baby begins to feel pain. This comes just one month after he signed landmark pro-life legislation making it the first state to prohibit both sex-selection abortions and abortions for genetic abnormalities. http://www.lifenews.com/2013/04/18/north-dakota-governor-signs-bill-banning-abortions-at-20-weeks/ Abortion Backers Oppose Regulations That Could Have Stopped GosnellOne of many complaints abortion supporters have against clinic regulations, which they call TRAP laws – Targeted Regulation of Abortion Providers – is a requirement for wider doors and hallways than clinics apparently usually have. http://www.lifenews.com/2013/04/18/abortion-backers-oppose-regulations-that-could-have-stopped-gosnell/ Kermit Gosnell’s Prosecutor’s Unwed Mom Placed Him for AdoptionMany Americans are now familiar with the sordid exploits of abortion practitioner Kermit Gosnell, but they likely know nothing about the District Attorney whose office is leading the fight to prosecute him. http://www.lifenews.com/2013/04/18/kermit-gosnells-prosecutor-his-unwed-mom-placed-him-for-adoption/ Wealthy Pay $25,000 for Shots With Cells From Aborted Babieshttp://www.lifenews.com/2013/04/18/wealthy-pay-25000-for-shots-with-cells-from-aborted-babies/.http://www.lifenews.com/2013/04/18/wealthy-pay-25000-for-shots-with-cells-from-aborted-babies/ Florida Unanimously OKS Anti-Infanticide Bill Planned Parenthood OpposedDespite opposition from the Planned Parenthood abortion business, the Florida state House passed a bill that would provide medical care and legal protection for babies who are born alive after failed abortions. http://www.lifenews.com/2013/04/18/florida-unanimously-oks-anti-infanticide-bill-planned-parenthood-opposed/ Texas: Pro-Life Side Wins Debate Over Fetal-Pain Abortion BanTestimony on Texas Right to Life’s top priority legislation for 2013, House Bill 2364: The Preborn Pain Bill, was heard in the House State Affairs Committee. http://www.lifenews.com/2013/04/18/texas-pro-life-side-wins-debate-over-fetal-pain-abortion-ban/ Ex-Abortion Worker: I’m So Glad God Got Me Out of Planned ParenthoodLifeNews Note: Abby Johnson brings the following story from a former abortion worker named Angie, who has since gotten out of the abortion industry. http://www.lifenews.com/2013/04/18/ex-abortion-worker-im-so-glad-god-got-me-out-of-planned-parenthood/ Polling Data Shows Support for Fetal Pain-Based Abortion BanRecent polling by the Polling Company has shown strong support for two legislative proposals strongly backed by the National Right Life Committee. http://www.lifenews.com/2013/04/18/polling-data-shows-support-for-fetal-pain-based-abortion-ban/ Faced with $36,000 Fine, Abortion Clinic Continues Stall TacticsA hearing was held on Tuesday in the case of People of the State of Illinois v. Women’s Aid Clinic of Lincolnwood in Cook County Court in downtown Chicago, and to no one’s surprise, Women’s Aid Clinic owner Larisa Rozansky is continuing her stall tacticse. http://www.lifenews.com/2013/04/18/faced-with-36000-fine-abortion-clinic-continues-stall-tactics/ Not About Doctors, Vermont’s SB 77 Would Legalize Assisted SuicideWhat do advocates for legalizing assisted suicide do when they cannot get enough legislators, or the public, to support their policy goals. http://www.lifenews.com/2013/04/18/not-about-doctors-vermonts-sb-77-would-legalize-assisted-suicide/ Paralyzed UK Man Sues to Create Right to Assisted SuicideAssisted suicide is not about terminal illness. It is about creating a legal right to be made dead. In the USA, this agenda is more hidden than elsewhere, but anyone with eyes to see can discern that truth. http://www.lifenews.com/2013/04/18/paralyzed-uk-man-sues-to-create-right-to-assisted-suicide/ Encourage Friends to Sign Up for Free Pro-Life News From LifeNews.com LifeSiteNews Updates - Tuesday Apr 30 2013 Heroic News: “Planned Parenthood 'sex ed' ad to sh... Why American Catholics Are Not Okay? by Fr. Dwight... Abortion Harassment Awareness Hits Quebec's Highwa... Message to Planned Parenthood, "Abortion is nothin... Impassioned Closing Arguments Stir Emotions in Gos... Evil Never Sleeps LifeSiteNews Updates - Monday Apr 29 2013 Heroic News: “"If It's Born Alive, We Won't Help I... Made to Order Embryo Commodities Market Heroic News: “"He is a Boy"” plus 5 more Obama's devilspeak; Islam and terrorism; Monsignor... Philadelphia News Conference and Prayer Vigil Outs... Second Fly-In Abortionist Identified Working at Wi... BREAKING: Abortion Clinic Suggests “Flushing” Baby... Archbishop assaulted Heroic News: “Minnesota bill would institute unive... Judie Brown: "Obama's Achilles' heel--preborn babi... LifeSiteNews Updates - Heroic News: “Congressman Calls a 'real life Hanni... BREAKING: Obama takes swipe at pro-life activists ... LifeSiteNews Updates - Thursday Apr 25 2013 Heroic News: “'Bro-choice?' How about manning up, ... Attacking the Roots of Abortion Heroic News: “'Entire Abortion Industry on Trial W... BREAKING: Gosnell Defense Rests Without A Witness ... President Obama’s symbiotic relationship with the ... FROM CMMB: DEADLINE: six days left to provide twic... Judie Brown: "It's a Gosnell world" Dr. Alveda King on Site at Gosnell Trial Heroic News: “Gay old France...” plus 6 more BREAKING: Judge drops murder charges against Gosne... [Video] Join the Justice Ride! Renewed Effort on Conscience Rights Bill SAVE THE DATE: Beacon of Hope Heroic News: “Does abortion reduce the mental heal... From Fr. Greg Shaffer: Honestly What’s Wrong with ... Heroic News: “Ireland: Pro-Life Group Criticizes P... Heroic News: “Boy Scouts consider admitting gay yo... From Judie Brown: "Messaging" Heroic News: Gosnell Employee: I Saw Ten Babies Br... Spirit & Life - A Family Fights for Freedom [Video] Helping Pregnant Women Who Have the HIV Vi... LifeSiteNews Updates - Thursday Apr 18 2013‏ America’s Mengele … Heroic News: “"I'm not in your bedroom. Obama's in... Heroic News: “Homosexual Activist Admits True Purp... Call it what you will, promiscuity is bad news! ... National Right to Life News Today 4/17/2013 Pastor Arrested -- Free Speech Violated by Jackson... : LifeNews.com Pro-Life News Report 4/16/13 Heroic News: “How Pro-Life Are You?” plus 2 more The hope of Christ in the carnage of Boston Press Release: Another Abortion Clinic Closes in M... Vatican plans huge pro-life, evangelization gather... Heroic News: “Attorney Gen. Eric Holder tied to in... 'Pray for America' Americans to Unite and Pray on ... #Gosnell 'Tweet-Up' Grabs Attention As Grisly Murd... Heroic News: “Why Dr. Kermit Gosnell's Trial Shoul... LifeSiteNews - Saturday Apr 13 2013 Judie Brown: "The results of slicing and dicing ba... LifeSiteNews - Friday Apr 12 2013 Spirit & Life - Love Neighbor and Love of God Heroic News: “4 reasons the media isn't covering t... All American Horror Story: Top 10 Gosnell Trial Re... Jacki Ragan: Terri's Day 2013 BEACON OF HOPE: MORE abortion centers closing! NASA scientist reinvents the wheel(chair) How Did I Survive An Abortion? by Imre Teglasy Created Equal: Easier, faster, cheaper … Heroic News: “Baby boomers seek to 'sanitize death... From CMMB: New MATCH opportunity for women and chi...	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line122
__label__cc	0.590601	0.409399	Rally Round the Flags Other Sources for Delaware Genealogy (click here for a PDF printable format) Articles on Delaware Genealogy Leon de Valinger, Jr., "Delaware" in National Genealogical Society Quarterly, XXXXV (March 1947), pp. 1-3. Reprinted in Society of American Genealogists, Genealogical Research Methods and Sources (1960). Dale Fields, "Genealogical Source Material in the Historical Society of Delaware" in The Pennsylvania Genealogical Magazine, vol. XXVIII, No. 2 (1973), pp. 86-93. Compendiums of American Genealogy Charles H. Browning, ed., The American Historical Register and Monthly Gazette of the Patriotic-Hereditary Societies of the United States (1895) Colonial and Revolutionary Lineages of America (1965) George Norbury MacKenzie, Colonial Families of the United States of America (1907) National Society of the Daughters of the American Colonists, Lineage Books Frederick A. Virkus, The Abridged Compendium of American Genealogy (1925-42) Bibliographies P. William Filby, American and British Genealogy and Heraldry (1975) Library of Congress, American and English Genealogies in the Library of Congress (reprint, 1967) Netti Schreiner-Yantis, Genealogical and Local History Books in Print (1981) Genealogical Periodical Annual Index: Key to the Genealogical Literature (1974 to date) Donald L Jacobus, Index to Genealogical Periodicals Together with "My Own Index" (1981 reprint of 1935 and 1953 eds.) National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution, DAR Patriot Index (1966) General Source Records Harold Lancour, A Bibliography of Ship Passenger Lists, 1538-1825: Being a Guide to Published Lists of Early Immigrants to North America (1963) Michael Tepper, Immigrants to the Middle Colonies: a Consolidation of Ship Passenger Lists and Associated Data (1978) Michael Tepper, New World Immigrants: A Consolidation of Ship Passenger Lists and Associated Data from Periodical Literature (1980) Delaware Source Records Wilson Lloyd Bevan, ed., History of Delaware (1929) D.G. Beers, Atlas of the State of Delaware (1868) Horace Burr, trans., The Records of Holy Trinity (Old Swedes) Church...1697-1773 (1890) Colonial Society of Pennsylvania, Records of the Court of New Castle on Delaware, 1676-1699 (1904, 1935) Henry C. Conrad, History of the State of Delaware from the Earliest Settlement to the Year 1907 (1908) Leon de Valinger, Court Records of Kent County, Delaware, 1680-1705 (1959) Raymond Walter Dill, William Martin Dill, and Elizabeth Ann Bosthic Dill, Souls in Heaven, Names in Stone: Kent County, Delaware Cemetery Records (1989) Maryland and Delaware Genealogist (1959 to 1990) Public Archives Commission of Delaware, The Governor's Register, 1674-1851 (1926) H. Clay Reed. A Bibliography of Delaware Through 1960 (1966) H. Clay Reed, Delaware: A History of the First State (1947) C.H.B. Turner, Some Records of Sussex County. Delaware (1909) You can also contact the Delaware Genealogical Society for additional help in research your Delaware family connections.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line125
__label__wiki	0.78292	0.78292	Victories and Podiums for Tohill in Irish Rallycross Festival Ireland’s only FIA European Rallycross Champion, Derek Tohill, competed in the biggest rallycross event held in Ireland for more than a decade last weekend, as competitors from the Irish Rallycross Championship and MSA British Rallycross Championships came together for a bumper weekend of action at Mondello Park (July 22 – 23). Racing the PFCRX team’s OlsbergsMSE-built Ford Fiesta Supercar, reigning Irish Rallycross Champion Tohill took on the 18-car field on his home circuit and not only challenged regular British RX competitors in the Supercar final to twice finish third, but claimed a pair of Superfinal victories to further extend his lead in the 2017 IRX standings. To combat the popularity of the event, the 600 horsepower Supercars were run in 10-car grids, meaning the action was fast, and in some cases unforgiving, but the PFCRX squad worked hard to keep ‘Molly’ the Fiesta running over the course of the two days, where Tohill ran at the front of the field throughout. The Irishman qualified third in the Intermediate Classification on Saturday and led the first running of the semi-final before the race was red flagged. In the re-start, he finished second to secure a front row start for the final, a race in which on-track battles lost him time and he had to settle for third. To end the opening day of action, Tohill stormed to victory in the Superfinal. On Sunday, in front of many hundreds of supporters, the team continued to test development parts ahead of the next round of the FIA European Rallycross Championship at Loheac in France in September and Tohill was twice second fastest in the qualifying stages. But, due to another red flag in the semi-finals while leading, Tohill’s Fiesta was left on the start line after confusion over the race re-start. He climbed back up the order to make it into the final, where he again finished on the podium following a fantastic start around the outside of the pack at the first corner. The weekend was concluded with a second Superfinal triumph. The Irish team will now re-prepare the Supercar for the next round of Euro RX in France, where Tohill aims to continue his 100% record of qualifying for the semi-finals in 2017, in the ultra-competitive 35-car international field. Derek Tohill \| Driver \| Ford Fiesta #111 “It was an epic weekend of Irish and British Rallycross and we came away with some really good results. We started from the back row of the grid for the final on Sunday and in the end we were just 1.3 seconds shy of taking overall victory from Julian (Godfrey), who drove superbly all weekend. I cannot thank my crew enough for keeping the car going through thick and thin. Molly is well and truly battle scared; she had more hits than Abba, but that’s rallycross sometimes. I’ve dreamt of competing in my own Supercar at home against such high-level competition for many, many years, and although the weekend was both busy and draining, it was special to be part of. I fought back as hard as I could after the confusion at the re-start in the semi-final on Sunday, but there was nothing left in the car after so much damage. Taking two wins in the Irish Championship leaves us on maximum IRX points, which says a lot for the reliability of the car – we as a team can take great pride in that, but sadly we will miss the next Irish event as it clashes with France. It’s now time now to give Molly lots of love prepare for continuing our good form in Europe. Loheac is a fantastic venue that attracts crowds of almost 100,000 people. I must say a huge thanks to everyone who made this event happen, there was some hard and spectacular racing throughout the weekend and we hope everyone who came along enjoyed the spectacle. Thanks to our partners for their continued support and congratulations to the organisers for getting through so many races. It was a great weekend for rallycross in Ireland.” Tohill concludes epic British RX title fight with victory Hard-fought Pembrey win keeps Tohill in British RX title frame Tohill retains British RX lead with Welsh win! Tohill scores first British RX victory at Lydden Hill Fast pace unrewarded for PFCRX in France ahead of Latvian season finale Tweets by derektohill © Copyright 2018 - PFC-RX \| ALL RIGHTS RESERVED	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line126
__label__wiki	0.645936	0.645936	Home \| About DSVN \| Why DSVN? Last Updated on : 08-December-2018 "सत्य शिव सुंदर हि, मेरा परम लक्ष्य होवे ; जग के उपकार में हि, जीवन यह जावे\|" Email - dsvn.ggn@gmail.com Management Members R.O. Water Treatment Plant Congratulations !!! Devansh Shukla of Class - VII-B won Gold Medal in Sub Junior Boxing Boxing Title Haryana Championship organised by Haryana Boxing Association. Registration Open for Class - XI (All Streams) - Session - 2017-18 Devshree Sinha of Class - IXB won 2nd Prize in the Drawing & Painting Competition organized by Maitri Kalyan Manch, Gurugram on the occasion of Basant Panchmi The School Band won 2nd Prize in District Level Republic Day Celebration at Tau Devi Lal Stadium, Gurugram 68th Republic Day was celebrated in the school premises on 26th January 2017. Congratulations !!! The students of Classes – VI, IX, X & XI participated in Gurgaon Road Safety Mega Festival – 2016-17. The Nukkad Natak presented by the students got 1st Prize. Through sheer determination and excellent performance the students won the prestigious trophy and cash prize of Rs. 75,000/- Admissions are open for Classes - UKG to 9th. Limited Seats are available for Classes - 5th, 6th and 7th. Congratulations !!! Our school students - Dev of Class - VIII-C won 1 Gold Medal and 1 Bronze Medal & Suraj of Class - VIII-C won 1 Bronze Medal in National Karate Championship held at Jai Ram Ashram, New Delhi from 23rd December 2016 to 25th December 2016 Nupur of Class – X was awarded with a Trophy on winning 3rd Position in Speech Competition held at Arya Vidya Mandir, Sector-7, Gurgaon on 16th December 2016. The school was awarded a Trophy for this achievement. Param Pujniye Bhagwan Devatma’s 166th Birthday was celebrated on 14th December 2016 in the school premises. The function was a splendid amalgamation of creative expressions through group songs, group dances and play based on the teachings of Bhagwan Devatma Ji. Congratulations !!! Neeraj Punia of Class - XI-F got 3rd Position in District Level Painting Competition held at Nehru Stadium, Gurgaon on 29th November 2016 organized by Traffic Police, Gurgaon and selected for State Level Painting Competition Congratulations !!!! Students participated in District Level Youth Festival held at Bal Bhawan, Gurgaon on 20th November 2016 and won 2nd Position in Haryanavi Folk Dance, 2nd Position in Harmonium Event and 3rd Position in Vocal Music. The students were awarded with Cash prizes Latika of Class - VIII-A won a Trophy in Poster Making Competition on Cyber Bullying at Lord Jesus Public School, Gurgaon on 18th November 2016 Priya of Class - IX-C won Gold Medal in 11th Women District Boxing Championship at Bhondsi on 13th November 2016 Our School students Kashish of X-A and Devshree Sinha of IX-B participated in First Skating Carnival - 2016 held at Vivekanand Global School, Gurgaon on 13th November 2016 and Won Silver Medals Model on the topic - Save Electricity prepared by Mahesh and Vaidhavi of Class - XI & X selected from 182 Models for State Level Science Exhibition held at Salwan Public School, Gurgaon (Organised By SCERT under INSPIRE Scheme) on 8th September 2016 Congratulations Milan of Class - IX and Nupur of Class - X who got First and Third Position in Debate Competition held at Arya Vidya Mandir School, Gurgaon on 5th September 2016. They were awarded with Trophies, Dictionaries and Cash Prizes The school celebrated Independence Day on 15th August 2016 in the school campus with great pomp and show. Saplings of medicinal and fruit bearing plants were also planted in the school premises Well Done ! Vaidhavi and Aditya of Class - X. They got First Prize in an Inter School Event (INDIA CALLING) held at Manav Rachna International School, Gurgaon on 12th August 2016 Holiday Homework Exhibition held on 23rd July 2016 in the school premises Annual Function on the theme - Beti Bachao Beti Padao celebrated in the school premises on 31st March 2016. Prize Distribution programme held on 30th March 2016 Our School Students participated in Nukkad Natak in Gurgaon Road Safety Mega Festival - 2015-16 & won 1st Prize of Rs. 75,000/- and a Trophy Heartiest Congratulations to the Students, the Parents and the Staff for the outstanding success in 10th & 10+2 CBSE Result (2015-16) Sidhant of Commerce Stream got 95.6%, Srishti Garg of Science Stream got 94.6%, Upasana of Commerce Stream got 94.2% and Kirtika of Humanities Stream got 93.5% marks in CBSE 12th Class Result Why Choose DSVN? Annual Function Report "Education is the movement from darkness to light" Dev Samaj Educational View of Dev Samaj The fundamental object of the Dev Samaj is to promote a unique mission of founder Bhagwan DEVATMA i.e. propagation of truth, beauty and goodness in thought, speech and action among entire mankind. Bhagwan DEVATMA made women education and character building through education the chief planks of Dev Samaj’s contribution to social reform. Dev Samaj as an epitome of moral and spiritual life, discharges two folded functions for new society to conserve old values by affording new scientific foundation for them and to discover new aspects by a scientific study of the natural laws of health of human soul. It contributes to the emotional development of the society. Dev Samaj is a unique society and it believes in Deva Dharma. Deva Dharma is not only the unity, completeness and fulfilment of different religions, but also the future of religions. It helps a person in the ‘Know Thyself’ by enforcing him to see evil disposition of low loves and low hates and vikasa of altruistic or satwik feelings of love and service. Founded in 1887, The society of Dev Samaj (Registered under the society Registration Act, 1860) has been in the service of education since 1899 when it started its first school in Moga, Punjab. Dev Samaj Vidya Niketan Sr. Sec. School, Gurugram Dev Samaj Vidya Niketan Sr. Sec. School, New Colony, Gurugram, came into existence on 1st April, 1984 with the object of giving sound and liberal education during the most formative years of child's life. Open air activities are the unique features of the school. The aim of stoning the school is to form strong character among the students under the spiritual guidelines of Bhagwan Devatma, Founder of Dev Samaj. He made courageous step for the eradication of social vices. It encourages to root its quality education through wide range of facilities not only for physical and mental but also for the all round development of the student's personality. It does not want to keep the students lagging behind in any way in life. The economic help is provided by the school to the Economically Weaker Section students. The school is housed in two separate blocks i.e. Primary Wing and Senior Secondary Wing. The school is fully ventilated and well equipped with modern amenities. It provides healthy and harmonious environment for the development of the child. At present the school has a strength of over 1590 students, a strong workforce of 104 including supporting staff. The 32 glorious years of this institution are a saga of its commitment to provide quality education to the students. From the Manager Desk Smt. Sangeeta Sharma - Manager, Dev Samaj Vidya Niketan "तन समर्पित, मन समर्पित और विद्यालय को ये जीवन समर्पित । आशीर्वाद मांगते हैं, देव गुरु से, यूहीं विद्यालय को करें ये जीवन समर्पित ॥" प्रिय अभिभावक, भगवान देवात्मा की असीम कृपा और आप सबके विश्वास से जिस दिन से मैं इस संस्था से जुड़ी हूँ, तब से मेरा यही प्रयास रहा है कि मै अपने विद्यालय में सर्वागींण विकास के लिए उत्तम शिक्षा उपलब्ध करा सकूँ । निरंतर मेरा सर्वोपरि यही लक्ष्य है कि छात्रों में किताबी ज्ञान ही नहीं, ईमानदारी, उच्च चरित्र, भावनाओं का सम्मान करना भी हो । निसंदेह यही मेरा उद्देश्य है कि विद्यालय में ऐसे सामाजिक परिवेश का निर्माण हो, जिसमें विद्यार्थी का सर्वश्रेष्ठ व्यकित्त्व उभर कर सामने आये और वे अच्छे आदर्श स्थापित कर सकें । शिक्षक उस माली के समान है, जो एक बगीचे को भिन्न भिन्न रूप रंग के फूलों से सजाता है । वह प्रेरणा की फुआरों से बालक रुपी मन को सींचकर उनकी नींव को मजबूत करता है तथा उसके सर्वांगीण विकास के लिए उनका मार्ग प्रशस्त करता है \| "हर राह आसान हो, हर राह पर खुशियां हों । हर दिन खूबसूरत हो, मेरे विद्यालय के हर विद्यार्थी व शिक्षक का खुशियों से भरा पूरा जीवन हो ।" From the Principal Desk Smt. Tajinder Kaur - Principal, Dev Samaj Vidya Niketan Life in contemporary times is based on the survival of the fittest. Each passing day throws up new challenges. Success has acquired a new meaning, a new dimension. Parents are hard pressed to ensure success for their children. But we at Dev Samaj view education differently. Our system of education stresses more on personality development based on caring, sharing and understanding. Our school is taking giant strides with each passing day bringing name, fame and recognition. We teach our children to be like the tree which keeps on bowling down further to the earth as it keeps on bearing more and more fruit. This is humility, which brings with it grace which is a cornerstone of our education. Year after year, the vision of our Manager Mrs. Sangeeta Sharma has beckoned us to move forward consistently and steadfastly. Its under her able guidance that we, at Dev Samaj endeavor to provide the students with education which imparts not just academic excellence but inculcates moral values, the ability to take decision and a responsibility towards society. We wish you all a very rewarding and successful experience at Dev Samaj Vidya Niketan Sr. Sec. School, Gurugram. Our Guiding Spirits Late Shri. Hitabhilashi Sharma Ji and Late Smt. Swadesh Sharma Ji The Great Temples of Learning like Dev Samaj Vidya Niketan Sr. Sec. School, Gurugram are not built in a day and blessed are those who build them. Here we remember Late Smt. Swadesh Sharma Ji and Late Sh. Hitabhilashi Sharma Ji for their strenuous efforts, encouragement, inspiration and guidance. Late Sh. Hitabhilashi Sharma Ji and Late Smt. Swadesh Sharma Ji dedicated themselves to the cause of education and pioneered to initiate exemplary institution where value based development of the children was their mission and vision. The school flourished under their guidance. They led a very pious and inspirational life that was marked by dedication and studded with high moral values. Late Smt. Swadesh Sharma Ji was impressed by the life and teachings of Bhagwan Devatma – the founder of Dev Samaj. Rather than pursuing a materialistic career she chose to follow the noble religious path and dedicated her whole life for Dev Samaj Mission. As a life worker of Dev Samaj, she imbibed the teachings of her master in her life and became a torch bearer in all the initiative taken by Dev Samaj. Late Sh. Hitabilashi Sharma Ji believed in simple living and worked throughout his life tirelessly. He was always on the move to serve Dev Samaj Vidya Niketan with the best of his capabilities. “Saintly people do not live for themselves, they live for others”, such was Shri. Hitabilashi Sharma Ji. People like them who have served the humanity in such quiet and humble manner need to be revered and remembered for what they did and the legacies they have left behind for us. Late Shriman L.D. Gupta Ji, Late Shriman Kailash Chander Ji & Late Shriman Vikas Dev Ji Renowned person like Late Shriman L.D. Gupta Ji, Late Shriman Kailash Chander Ji and Shriman Vikas Dev Ji are always remembered after their death. They are immortal for their deeds. They dedicated their lives in Dev Samaj and contributed much to Dev Samaj literature. We remember them with great admiration and continue to spread their message throughout the society. Congratulations !!! Devansh Shukla of Class - VII-B won Gold Medal in Sub Junior Boxing Boxing Title Haryana Championship organised by Haryana Boxing Association. The Annual Function (Swachh Bharat) celebrated on 31st March 2017 in the school premises with great pomp and show. Shri. Pawan Jindal Ji (Seh Sangh Chalak Haryana Pranth (RSS)) inaugurated the memorial stone in the fond memory of Late Shri. Hitabhilashi Sharma Ji and Late Smt. Swadesh Sharma Ji Devshree Sinha of Class - IXB won 2nd Prize in the Drawing & Painting Competition organized by Maitri Kalyan Manch, Gurugram on the occasion of Basant Panchmi The students of the School Band made us proud by winning 2nd Prize in District Level Republic Day Celebration at Tau Devi Lal Stadium, Gurugram 68th Republic Day was celebrated in the school premises on 26th January 2017. The students of Classes – VI, IX, X & XI participated in Gurgaon Road Safety Mega Festival – 2016-17. The Nukkad Natak presented by the students got 1st Prize. Through sheer determination and excellent performance the students won the prestigious trophy and cash prize of Rs. 75,000/- Admissions are open for Classes - UKG to 9th. Limited Seats are available for Classes - 5th, 6th and 7th. Congratulations !!! Our school students - Dev of Class - VIII-C won 1 Gold Medal and 1 Bronze Medal & Suraj of Class - VIII-C won 1 Bronze Medal in National Karate Championship held at Jai Ram Ashram, New Delhi from 23rd December 2016 to 25th December 2016 Sidhant (Commerce Stream) XII with 95.6% 2015-16 About School\| Why DSVN?\| School\| Management\| Infrastructure\| Admissions\| Activities\| Contacts ©Copyright 2016, Dev Samaj Vidya Niketan Gurugram \| Website Designed and developed by : Smart E Developers You are visitor no. - 133758	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line137
__label__cc	0.568733	0.431267	How to kill zombie animals for dummies Singlefierce, the first victim of the haunted taiga recorded by the expedition, former wagon-pulling yak cow, current champion of the undead hordes, scourge of Graniteplan and the One Thing pushing me under the earth finally fell. To a sad, world-worn little coot whose only joy in life was his crossbow. He was lost in society, so he turned to understanding small game instead. He understood them well enough, he supposed. A little practice. He made it to an outpost preparing for a siege. All arrivals were interviewed to assess their martial capability and poor old Alåth's familiarity with the kingdom standard light crossbow put him in charge of two fresh recruits. The guard captain did an awful lot of side-glancing on that announcement. Maybe the rookies were the type to learn from example. The alarm bells were rang not even an hour after the draft. The stone doors to the fortified bunker entrance had been left ajar for a minute and then a cat, a child, a parent, a guard and just about half of the fort in order were bumbling outside in a reckless manner, all shouting and chasing after one another, drawing the attention of the semi-alive wildlife. Alåth was the only one with ammunition. He made his first orders: his subordinates were to man the doors and bar them in a heartbeat if anything caught the scent of the civilians being corraled back inside. He was an expendable. In the face of rabid, rotting badgers making it to the infirmary or the sleeping warrens, all left outside were. After he restored order by stomping on a rabid ermine terrorizing the crowd, the evacuation could begin in earnest. Everyone made it indoors in record time thanks to his unflappable demeanor and clear hand gestures, but as he was leading the pet reindeer calf of some rich migrant through the doors, the king of all evil came cantering around the corner. The titanic yak cow had grown nearly twice its natural size past death. Some of the moldering reins were still caught around its flesh, straining against the cancerous, bulging muscles. It reared up and bellowed like a really goddamn huge yak would. Alåth didn't even stop to guess or assume, much less to think. The crossbow slipped into his hands and he put a bolt right in the monster's dominant rear leg. And then the belly. Then the spine. Then the guts. His hands were working like a weaver's. Bolt after bolt after bolt punched at the yak's torso, snapping bones, bursting eyes, tearing flesh. They were at arm's length from one another, but Alåth could only hear the rhythm of the crossbow clacking and twanging like an instrument against his side. The screaming beast hurled the entire weight of its body at the tiny old man. He took one step to the side and watched the rotting mountain of meat collapse at his feet. Ceremoniously, he raised his wooden crossbow up in the air and struck it between the shoulderblades with a barely audible little "thump". And that's how you kill zombie animals.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line138
__label__cc	0.662719	0.337281	Fundraising Prizes About Wellness House Register as an individual Donate to individual Make a General Donation No matter how someone has been affected by cancer — maybe they've been diagnosed, have a family member who’s living with cancer, or are a caregiver — you're welcome at Wellness House. Learn new skills, get information, and join others when you take classes, practice healthful living, reduce stress, and more. All Wellness House programs and services are led by experts, designed to prepare and empower you to fully live life with cancer. All at no cost to you. Everything Wellness House does is to prepare and empower people to fully live life with cancer and beyond. Wellness House experts, specialists and programs focus on individual needs of people through every step of cancer - before, during and after treatment. The welcoming, encouraging feeling starts the moment you walk into one of the programs. Wellness House is designed to give you back the strength, community and control that cancer can take away. You can't put a price on what Wellness House provides. So we don't. Thanks to the generosity of individuals, foundations and corporations that provide gifts to Wellness House, there's absolutely no charge for all programs and services. I hope you will join me by making a donation to help me reach my fundraising goals but more importantly to support help people in our community and around Chicagoland fully live life with cancer and beyond. Team FAB-A-BOOB-LESS No Badges Have Been Earned Donny Grabinger Grabinger Wellness House 131 N. County Line Road Hinsdale, IL 60521 (630) 654-5191 \| Fax (630) 654-5345 \| walk@wellnesshouse.org Hours: Monday-Friday 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. © 2020 Wellness House. All Rights Reserved. Wellness House is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line152
__label__cc	0.730747	0.269253	NFSN Staff Tuesday, April 19, 2016 1. USDA Grants for Food Safety Training, Outreach and Technical Assistance The USDA has announced the availability of $4.7 million in grants for food safety education, training, and technical assistance projects that address the needs of owners and operators of small to mid-sized farms, beginning farmers, socially-disadvantaged farmers, small processors, small fresh fruit and vegetable merchant wholesalers, food hubs, farmers' markets, and others. The grants, offered through the Food Safety Outreach Program and administered by USDA's National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), are designed to help these stakeholders comply with new food safety guidelines established by the Food and Drug Administration under the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA). Learn more here. 1. Register today! National Farm to Cafeteria Conference June 2-4, 2016 // Madison, Wisconsin Don’t miss the 8th National Farm to Cafeteria Conference in Madison, Wis., June 2-4, 2016. This event is the only national gathering of stakeholders from across the farm to cafeteria movement, making it a crucial leadership development opportunity to advance community health, build economic opportunities for farmers and producers, and ensure long-term sustainability for local food efforts nationwide. Event organizers expect more than 1,500 attendees, and the last event sold out before the registration deadline, so don’t wait. Registration closes May 16. Learn more at farmtocafeteriaconference.org. 2. Webinars: USDA Traditional Foods in Native Communities Webinar Series This spring, USDA’s Office of Community Food Systems is hosting a four-part webinar series focused on integrating farm to school strategies in native communities. Each webinar will feature a guest speaker who will share tips, stories and best practices for keeping local food traditions alive in child nutrition programs that serve tribal populations. The second webinar is coming up: Incorporating Traditional Foods in Child Nutrition Program Menus on April 20, at 3pm EDT. Learn more and register here. 3. Webinar: Food Systems Change through Procurement Policy Wednesday, April 27th, 2:00-3:30 pm ET Join FoodPolicyNetworks.org and Chesapeake Foodshed Network for an overview of the Center for a Livable Future’s recent report, Instituting Change, which examines the benefits and barriers to increased institutional procurement of regionally and sustainably produced food. Hear findings from a recent analysis of the economic potential for regional food procurement among institutions in the Chesapeake region. Finally, learn about the Center for Good Food Purchasing and implementation of the Center’s Good Food Purchasing Policy in Chicago and the Twin Cities. Register here. 4. Webinar: How to Evaluate Economic Benefits of Local Food Systems Thursday, April 28, 3pm ET Local and regional food systems are helping revitalize rural and urban communities across the country. The authors of a new USDA guide to evaluate the economic impacts of investing in farmers markets, community supported agriculture (CSA), food hubs, and other local food systems will discuss the toolkit during a free webinar. The Economics of Local Food Systems: A Toolkit to Guide Community Discussions, Assessments and Choices, developed by the USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) in cooperation with Colorado State University (CSU), uses real-world projects, experiences, and applied research to help community leaders, planners, economic development specialists, public agencies, and private businesses or foundations evaluate the economic benefits of local and regional food systems. Register here. 5. Webinar: How to Successfully Implement Salad Bars in Your School Cafeteria School salad bars are one of the easiest ways to meet the fruit and vegetable standards for school lunch, increase participation in the lunch program, reduce plate waste and increase student’s fruit and vegetable consumption. The Let’s Move Salad Bars to Schools initiative has donated salad bars to more than 4,500 schools nationwide and has resources to help schools successfully implement salad bars. Hear from school food service directors about their experience with salad bars and how you can apply for salad bars from LMSB2S. Register here. 1. Survey Results: Farm to School in Early Care and Education Builds Healthy Kids with Bright Futures In 2015, the National Farm to School Network surveyed early care and education providers across the country. Nearly 1,500 providers serving 183,369 young children in 49 states and Washington, D.C., responded and shared fascinating insight into the important work that they are doing to connect young children to healthy, local foods and food related educational opportunities. The results show that farm to school in early care and education is on the rise across the country. 54% of respondents are already doing farm to school activities and another 28% plan to start in the near future. A new infographic and factsheet are available with more survey results. To see the results and learn how the National Farm to School Network is working to expand farm to school in early care and education, visit farmtoschool.org/earlychildhood. 2. New Community Action Model Active Living By Design developed its initial Community Action Model and “5P” strategies (Preparation, Promotion, Programs, Policy and Physical Projects) as an evidence-informed framework for increasing active living and healthy eating in communities through comprehensive and integrated strategies. This new model highlights the importance of a community’s context, defines six essential practices that undergird success and focuses the action approach from the original 5Ps to our new 3P approach (Partner, Prepare and Progress). It also presents some expected impacts. This updated model can be useful to community coalitions and local leaders seeking a collaborative approach to creating healthier places and to funders seeking a tested approach for local investments. Learn more here. 3. ChopChop: The Fun Cooking Magazine for Families The award-winning ChopChop Magazine is an engaging tool for teaching kids about food and where it comes from, cooking, nutrition and health. Inspire and teach kids to cook real food through delicious, kid-tested recipes, fun food facts and puzzles, gardening activities and games to keep kids moving. Teachers use ChopChop as part of wellness and nutrition education programs throughout the country. Available in English and Spanish and endorsed by the Academy of Pediatrics, ChopChop is a quarterly magazine and does not contain any advertising. You can purchase a 1-year subscription (4 issues) for just $14.95. Teachers can purchase a special classroom package of 30 copies for $40 (shipping and handling included). Each teacher package includes curriculum which includes classroom activities, printables and math lessons in math, science, ELA and social studies. Download a free sample of ChopChop curriculum here. ChopChop can also be purchased in large quantities of boxes of 50 copies for $65/box (includes shipping). For more information on custom programs and pricing, please contact Evilee Ebb at ev@chopchopmag.org. 1. Farm to Early Education Program Specialist, Iowa Association for the Education of Young Children The Iowa Association for the Education of Young Children seeks a Farm to Early Education Program Specialist to implement its Farm to Early Education program and develop a statewide Farm to Early Education Coalition. Learn more and apply here. 2. Nutritionist, Food and Nutrition Service Food and Nutrition Service seeks a Nutritionist in its Child Nutrition Program. This position will including work on Team Nutrition materials to support the CACFP. Application closes April 25, 2016. Learn more here. Teams compete for top prize in first Farm to School cook off School cooks in Maine recently faced off in a farm to school cook off. The teams followed their own recipes and used locally sourced ingredients to create both breakfast and lunch meals. Two more competitions like this are lined up over the next month. All of the recipes will be collected and put into a cookbook for Maine schools. (via WCSH6) Eating local: Farm to School creates student learning from gardens to cafeterias Nutrition education is homegrown in the Ferguson-Florissant School District (Mo.), where Kelly Bristow leads farm to school programming that gives children of all ages an appreciation of food and nutrition – from farm to plate. (via The St.Louis American) Revamped School Garden Grows Veggies, Interest in Many Subjects A school in New Jersey has discovered that student and faculty energy plus community-minded businesses and strong vision can be transformed into an outdoor classroom for teaching students about living off the land in a healthy manner. (via Cape May County Herald) Recipes Equity Profile Media This Week Conference Processing Native Communities Healthier Lunches Resources USDA Farmers Funding Procurement Early Care and Education Special Education Education Farm to School Month Cooking Policy Meat to school Annual Meeting Summer Meals Seed Change Food Justice ECE Procurement	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line160
__label__cc	0.53941	0.46059	FEAR STREET Disappointment on Fear Street... I tried. I really did. I wanted to post about ALL the books I had planned for Halloween. But the last week of October was absolute and total crap. I felt mentally and physically like a giant pile of steaming cow dung. I hope you guy's had an awesome Halloween and managed to avoid the haunted masks and the evil pumpkin heads and the murderers who prowl Fear Street like wolves searching for carrion. I've started reading Party Games, the first of the new batch of Fear Street novels. So far, it isn't horrible. But there are so many more pages to go... Anyway, look for the review coming up soon. P.S. Did anyone enter the giveaways on the Goosebumps Tumblr? I managed to win one day! The contents of the box I got: a copy of Goosebumps: The Headless Ghost DVD, a copy of Goosebumps Most Wanted: Night of the Puppet People (that R.L. Stine SIGNED!), a T-shirt with a picture of the Goosebumps book Welcome To Camp Nightmare on it, a bookmark, and some temp tattoos. I'd love to know what anybody else got...I think each box was different. Posted by Fear Street at 6:09 PM The Haunted Mask (Goosebumps #11) FACE TO FACE WITH A NIGHTMARE... How ugly is Carly Beth's Halloween mask? It's so ugly that it almost scared her little brother to death. So terrifying that even her friends are totally freaked out by it. It's the best Halloween mask ever. It's everything Carly Beth hoped it would be. And more. Maybe too much more. Because Halloween is almost over. And Carly Beth is still wearing that special mask... Carly Beth and her friend Sabrina are eating lunch and discussing the fact that Carly Beth is scared of damn near everything on this sweet green earth. This fact is proven when she screams twice within five seconds: once when some kid drops his tray and again when this dude Steve (star of The Haunted Mask II!) grabs her shoulder. Steve and his friend Chuck like to scare Carly Beth even though it requires no effort whatsoever. Steve asks Carly Beth if she wants his sandwich and she takes it because the mac and cheese she got is gross and she's still hungry. But of course this sammich is no good: "Then she pulled the bread apart--and saw a big brown worm resting on top of the turkey." She thinks she's going to puke and runs from the cafeteria. After school, Carly Beth heads home where her mother shows her the Plaster of Paris head she made in Carly Beth's likeness. Her mother also made her a duck costume even though Carly Beth wanted to be something really SCARY this year and ducks are just...quacky (yes, that made plenty of sense). Anyway, Carly Beth remembers the new party store and the creepy masks she saw in the store window. Before she can think anymore about that, her duck costume bursts out of her closet. IT'S ALIVE! QUAAAACK!! But no, it's just her stupid little brother Noah. After Carly Beth's "terrifying" duck encounter is over, Sabrina calls and they talk about their science fair project. I was the QUEEN of shitty, lame, uninspired science projects and even I think their project is pretty damned crappy--the solar system made out of painted ping-pong balls. It's just the planets dangling from strings. How is that a project? Seriously, how could anyone, even a kid, confidently submit that to a science fair? I'm embarrassed for them. I'm even more embarrassed for Carly Beth who nearly wets herself when Steve pinches the back of her leg after some kid announces his tarantula is loose (uh, I'm lost...is the science fair happening NOW or did this happen earlier?). Everybody, even the teachers, laugh at her...she responds as she usually does--by running away and silently vowing revenge. AND REVENGE SHE WILL HAVE! Otherwise we wouldn't be reading this... It's now Halloween and Carly Beth is on the phone with Sabrina. The girls will meet at Sabrina's and then go trick-or-treating, but Carly Beth has to make a stop at the party store first to buy the scariest mask she can find. The HAUNTED MASK, you might ask? Yes. Thank you for paying attention, dear. Carly Beth creeps out into the cold, windy darkness to run to the store which is closed. But the weirdo shopkeep allows her to come inside and browse because she is absolutely desperate and pathetic looking. When he's distracted by the telephone, Carly Beth sees a door at the back of the store. She enters a small room full of the ugliest masks she's ever seen and OF COURSE nearly poops her pants when she thinks a mask cries out after she touches it. The noise came from the shopkeeper who is not pleased to find her in this room. These particular masks aren't for sale because they're "too scary" and "too real". Carly Beth whines until the man gives in and sells her a mask even though he MUST have an idea of what's going to happen to her. Is it possible she's so annoying he just wanted to get rid of her AT ANY COST? Wow. Carly Beth scurries back home to try out the mask on her brother. He's in his room, checking out his cockroach costume in the mirror. (Yes, the kid's going as a COCKROACH.) Carly Beth scares the crap out of her brother, the roach, which pleases her to no end. She gets the idea to impale her Plaster of Paris head on the end of a broomstick so she can pretend she was decapitated by this evil beast. "I will be the terror of Maple Avenue tonight!" Big dreams do come true! Unfortunately, so do big nightmares...sorry, Carly Beth. It's time to go out and Carly Beth wants to make a run for it without explaining to her mom why she isn't wearing the homemade duck costume. She bounces outside while her mom is on the phone and dashes to Sabrina's house where she spots Chuck and Steve on the sidewalk and can't resist scaring them. She scares the shit out of the two boys...who aren't even Chuck and Steve. The kids' mother gives Carly Beth a verbal lashing and Carly Beth considers tearing the woman's skin off, but the lady marches off before that can happen. Sabrina comes to the door in her Cat Woman costume and is shocked at Carly Beth's appearance--the mask is as ugly as sin, after all. Sabrina says Steve and Chuck will meet them later and the girls leave. Carly Beth notices the mask is making her feel odd. She becomes enraged when Sabrina keeps yapping on and on and Carly Beth attempts to choke the life out of her before catching herself and pretending she was joking. At the first house they go to, a mother with two small kids (who are terrified of Carly Beth) answers the door. Carly Beth ends up telling the mom and little girl that she'll eat them up. Nice. She keeps acting crazy and by the time they see Chuck and Steve, she's stolen some kid's candy and thrown apples at an old man's house. "The mask made me do it." Well, yeah, but no matter the reason, YOU'RE BEING AN ASS. Finally, Chuck and Steve show up. Carly Beth hides behind some bushes, jumps out, and scares the crap out of them both. She demands they give her their candy and then...her plaster head speaks. "Help me. Help me." What. The. Hell. The boys lose their minds and run away while Carly Beth dances and runs around in victory. I guess we're just ignoring the fact that the head can talk? Okay then. Eventually Sabrina catches up to Carly Beth and they go back to Sabrina's house to admire their piles of candy. But Carly Beth can't get the mask off. The girls get particularly scared when Sabrina sees that there is no line between the mask and Carly Beth's skin...the mask IS her skin. Carly Beth panics and runs out into the night. She runs until she remembers the party store man (who knew something was going to happen but sold her the damned thing anyway)--surely his weird ass can help! "The strange man in the cape. He will help me. He will know what to do." Never trust a man in a cape. The man is waiting for her at the party store because he KNEW she would be back! He tells her the mask is a real face, made by him in his lab and part of a collection he calls The Unloved. He calls them that because they're hideous and no-one wants them...no-one except for the unfortunate souls who venture into the back room and decide to take one. Yes, this asshole has done this before. He tells her the mask can be removed with a symbol of love which means NOTHING to Carly Beth, but before she can beat the answer out of him, the Unloved masks come alive. She runs, but they float after her in the night. She remembers the Plaster of Paris head and realizes THAT is her symbol of love--her mom loved her enough to make a creepy likeness of her that somehow gained the power of speech. Yay! She searches for the head that she dropped earlier when it began begging for help. She finally finds it as the creepy, jabbering, floating masks surround her. She yanks the head down over her REAL head and when she pulls it off a moment later, the floating Unloved are gone and she's able to pull off her own mask. She heads home and has some nice hot cider with her mom. Her stupid brother bursts into the kitchen wearing the mask: "Look at me! How do I look in your mask?" You look like a kid who's about to know HELL. Thoughts: We need to round up a posse, burn that party store to the ground, salt the earth where it stood, and run that caped nut out on a rail. Up Next: "The Haunted Mask II" Steve gets his own haunted mask and, well, we already know how that story ends...why the hell does this book exist? Note I'm not going to be doing "Zombie Halloween" or "Wanted: The Haunted Mask" this time around. Those will have to wait until next year to ruin my Halloween. So after "The Haunted Mask II", there will be "Trick Or Treat" and after THAT, you won't be exposed to any more Halloween-y tales. You can stuff your face with candy and watch your scary movies in peace. End Note Posted by Fear Street at 12:44 PM Attack of the Jack-O'-Lanterns (Goosebumps #48) PUMPKIN POWER! Nothing beats Halloween. It's Drew Brockman's favorite holiday. And this year will be awesome. Much better than last year. Or the year Lee and Tabby played that joke. A nasty practical joke on Drew and her best friend, Walker. Yes, this year Drew and Walker have a plan. A plan for revenge. It involves two scary pumpkin heads. But something's gone wrong. Very wrong. Because the pumpkin heads are a little too scary. A little too real. With strange hissing voices. And flames shooting out of their faces... We begin this pumpkin headed story with Drew getting pissed at her dad for calling her Elf (because she has positively elfin features, see?) before going outside to wait for her friends to come over, admire the scent of autumn air, and contemplate how much she hates Tabitha Weiss and Lee Winston, the corroded pieces of crap who keep ruining Halloween. Two years ago, perfect little Tabby ("perfect creamy-white skin and perfect green eyes that sparkle a lot") and the oh-so-cool Lee ("struts when he walks and acts real cool, like the rappers on MTV videos") invited Drew and her BFF Walker to a Halloween party. They agree to go even though they hate the assholes who just invited them and vice versa. (Really, they should have seen what was coming.) Lee and Tabby got two high school dudes to crash the party by pretending to be burglars (I guess?). They burst in, one wearing a ski mask and the other a gorilla mask, and make everyone...do push-ups. That's it. Finally everybody looks up and sees Lee and Tabby laughing at them because they're evil little goblins. Unfortunately, Tabby and Lee screw over Drew and her friends the following year, too, by failing to show up to a party where Drew and the gang were going to mess with them. Their ideas were kind of lame, though--covering Lee and Tabby with slime, playing a tape with a creepy voice beckoning them to the grave, rubber snakes, a giant papier-mache monster, etc. It doesn't matter, though, because Lee and Tabby decide to go trick-or-treating with Lee's cousin. Another Halloween down the sloppy, slime covered drain. Interrupting all the MIND BLOWING ACTION of this book is a nice little daydream sequence that Drew has. In the dream, she, Walker, Tabby, and Lee are trick-or-treating. They've got one more house to go. Unfortunately, it belongs to an elderly couple who plan on keeping all of the children that came to their home for candy. The old lady leads Drew and the other three to a room where her wrinkly husband can see their costumes. The room is full of sobbing trick-or-treaters. Has no-one in this (dream) town taught their kids NOT to go skipping into a stranger's house? I don't care how cute and old they are! Drew really enjoys the thought of Tabby and Lee disappearing forever (in the dream, she and Walker manage to get out of the house...what exactly was keeping the others there then?). Drew snaps out of it when Walker arrives with their other friends, Shane and Shana (twins whom Drew's charming father refers to as "roly poly"). The twins have the perfect plan for revenge this Halloween, a plan we just have to assume is good because we get ZERO details. The twins promise they'll take care of everything. Walker and Drew just have to get Tabby and Lee to come trick-or-treating. This plan is almost derailed like all the others when Drew's mom says she doesn't want her going trick-or-treating because a bunch of people around town have disappeared. Drew says all those missing people are adults so there's nothing for a young girl to worry about! Yes, I'm sure a small group of 12 year olds wandering around alone after dark wouldn't be a target AT ALL. Eventually, a few days later, Drew's dad thinks it'll be okay if she goes out on Halloween because getting candy is so important it's worth the risk of getting kidnapped. Drew goes over to Lee's house where he and Tabby are working on his bumblebee costume ("He looked really stupid.") and gets them to agree to go trick-or-treating with Drew and Company. Halloween FINALLY rolls around. Drew is going as "Super Drew", a superhero who wears boxers on the outside instead of stretchy underpants. There's absolutely nothing else to say about this costume. Drew doesn't give a shit about the costume anyway--this night is about REVENGE. Walker shows up and his costume is far worse than Drew's--he's dressed in all black, even his face is painted black (no comment). He's a dark and stormy night. The stormy part comes in when he sprays you in the face with a squirt gun. If this were real life, Walker would've gotten his ass kicked about ten times by now. While Walker and Drew are waiting on the corner for Tabby and Drew to show up, they're attacked by vicious wolves!!! Oh. Never mind. It's just those fuckwits that made them do push-ups that time. Yes, these high schoolers are still doing this. Shouldn't they be getting wasted at a party or something? Maybe they're CONSTANTLY wasted...that would possibly explain why they're so easily talked into doing this crap by a couple of kids. It's also possible they're just plain stupid. Of course Tabby and Lee are close by and pop up laughing while the two morons run away in their wolf masks. They all finally start trick-or-treating even though Shane and Shana never showed up. They don't get too far before two robed figures with jack-o-lanterns for heads block their path. Lee and Tabby automatically assume it's Shane and Shana even though Drew and Walker start screaming like banshees (they also think it's the twins; they just wanted to scare Tabby and Lee which didn't work because they're a wee smarter than that). The pumpkin people lead them to a new neighborhood where they all get boatloads of candy. Eventually, Tabby gets tired and wants to stop, but the pumpkin heads say nay: "You can't quit! You can't EVER quit!" They force the kids to keep going. Drew finally has had enough and screams that the pumpkins can't be Shane and Shana, but Tabby and Lee think they are and in an attempt to prove it, they yank the pumpkin heads off...only to find NOTHING UNDERNEATH! BWAHAHAHAHA! Everybody screams as the pumpkin heads start to giggle: "Hee hee hee heeeeee." Dude. Seriously. The pumpkins, now back with their respective bodies, surround the kids and inform them that they will be trick-or-treating forever. They try to tell a couple of adults that they're being held captive by horrifying pumpkin creatures and being forced to trick-or-treat forever, but the grown ups only laugh because they are sane and believe it's just a joke. The kids start complaining to the pumpkins about how heavy their treat bags are. The pumpkin solution: "Start eating." So they do until they're nearly puking their intestines up. Once they stop eating, they beg for their freedom again which is pointless because these pumpkin monsters are really intent on these kids getting all the Kit Kats and Jujubes their little bags can carry. None of this makes any damn sense, by the way. You can't really trick-or-treat forever. People aren't going to keep coming to the door with candy day after day. And what would the pumpkins do if the kids just sat down and refused? So far, they've done nothing but swirl around and harass them with their annoying hissy voices. Then again, it's pointless to search for logic in a book about flying jack-o-lantern creatures so back to the story! The kids have reached a new neighborhood...and every person who answers the door has a jack-o-lantern for a head. Swing low, sweet chariot... Yes, there are more of these freaking things...so many more. Drew, Walker, Tabby, and Lee soon find themselves inside a circle of flying pumpkin heads who keep chanting "Trick or treat!". Four of the creatures step inside the circle carrying a pumpkin each. "These are for you!" Yeah, no shit, Columbo. They ram a pumpkin on Tabby's head and then Lee's. Both of them run down the street, screaming. Drew and Walker...start laughing as their two pumpkin captors transform into Shane and Shana. All four laugh and laugh because they finally got their revenge on the devils known as Tabby Weiss and Lee Winston. Shane and Shana are literally aliens from another planet who agreed to use their powers to scare their enemies. All those other pumpkin heads are relatives. Drew makes a joke about how she and Walker will get to eat all that candy and she wonders aloud what Shane and Shana eat. Remember those missing adults? "People from our planet only like to eat very plump adults. So you don't have to worry for now." It's always nice to threaten your friends with imminent death. Thoughts: I really liked this one as a kid, but the story is pretty ridiculous reading it as an adult. That might be one of the craziest Goosebumps twists ever. Damn jack-o-lanterns...WHY JACK-O-LANTERNS, OF ALL THINGS?! Costumes Found in This Book: princess, Klingon, snowmen, mummy, Silver Surfer or Statue of Liberty (no-one can decide which one this person is supposed to be...), Batman, pirate, "blobby creatures", space princess, Superman, ghosts, milk carton, ballerina, bumblebee, generic superhero, "dark and stormy night", monsters, goblins, skeleton, robots, gorilla, "chubby clown", and about 10,000 giggling pumpkin headed aliens. sigh Hee hee hee heeeeee Up Next: The Haunted Mask Posted by Fear Street at 9:14 AM Hello? Is It Me You're Looking For? I can see it in your eyes... Ahem. ANYWAY. I'm back! Yeah, you look real excited. And you should be because after almost an entire year of doing diddly squat here, I'm going to make an actual effort to update this month. Because this is October! It's the month of Halloween and Stine's birthday and such and such. I'd like to do at least some miniature reviews. The books I plan on reading/reviewing: The Haunted Mask, The Haunted Mask II, Wanted: The Haunted Mask, Attack of the Jack-O-Lanterns, Zombie Halloween (Goosebumps Most Wanted Special Edition #1), and Trick or Treat (a Point Horror novel from 1989 by Richie Tankersley Cusick). There could be more. I know there's a Halloween Night II by Stine that I never got around to reviewing. Unfortunately, I don't currently have a copy, but if I get my greedy, greasy paws on one, I'll definitely be throwing that into the mix as well. I'm also going to update the design around here...something pumpkin-y. So...yeah. Stick around. If you want. I'll try not to lie to you anymore by promising reviews and then disappearing for a few light years. I SAID I'LL TRY! Also: if you're interested in f*&!ing awesome giveaways--the Goosebumps Tumblr is having a prize pack giveaway every single day this month. The list of things you could win is pretty cool...if you love Goosebumps which I assume you do if you're here. If you don't...well, I can't help you, buddy, you're too far gone. I'll see you ghouls soon... Shadyside, United States Re-capping (and making fun of) Fear Street novels and Point Horror novels by R.L. Stine. Join me, won't you? You know you want to... Our Dark Lord & Master Follow @ Bloglovin Dlisted It Seems Like Dog The Bounty Hunter Proposed To His Late Wife’s Best Friend On “Dr. Oz” cringepics zacharylevis:no one is doing it like them Words of Diana lovelyreprisethirteen: insp. Let’s make 2020 “The year of Tommy”! Please, I’m begging you The End of Summer MICROWAVE MASSACRE (1983) Texts From Superheroes Texts From SuperheroesFacebook \| Twitter \| Patreon The Deadly Doll's House of Horror Nonsense Best of the Year! Horror Movie A Day Every victim in DON'T GO IN THE WOODS...ALONE ranked Va-Voom Vintage with Brittany Can you really download 83,500 vintage sewing pattern on wiki? Librarian Problems WHEN YOUR REPLACEMENT ARRIVES AT THE END OF A STRESSFUL DESK SHIFT Decidedly Grim MFDJ 01/20/2020: Cruel Desensitization They can talk. Too Much Horror Fiction The Stand by Stephen King (1978/1990): Dancing on the Grave of the World Straight White Boys Texting aryn-the-bearheart Young Adult Revisited Sweet Valley University: Secret Love Diaries: Elizabeth Little Miss Zombie G-G on Facebook - G-G on Twitter Scarina's Scary Vault of Scariness \| A place where movies are memorialized. Are You in the House Alone? Are You There Youth? It's Me, Nikki Paperback Crush Vintage Seance From Vintage Seance to Salem & Binx Laughing Vixen Lounge $100 Custom Mystery Prize Pack ~ Spooktacular Giveaway 2018 just neckbeard things Subar-owo i love cyberbullying big horny men digital currency is the way to go. look out for bitcoin, ripple,... Cringing Face The transformations are very painful fuck no bad tattoos: the original bad tattoo blog Jill Sandwich Princesses from Another Castle Cats. Where they do not belong. minnesotawildofficial: unflatteringcatselfies: he is neither fit... Bam Bam Reviews Who Wants to Marry a Millionaire? Get your hands on a copy of Slappyworld book 1 plus a bookplate signed by R.L. Stine! 10 lucky... White Whine - A Collection of First-World Problems streeter: I’m headed back to Australia with @jakeandamir for... Moments like this... therealfullhousereviewed.wordpress.com Fuller House Season 1 Reviewed The Girl Who Loves Horror TEXAS FRIGHTMARE WEEKEND 2016: Day Three Unfriendable Fuck Yeah Idiots on Facebook of raging erections and sizzling threesomes bookstorepropaganda: I really hate when a POC tries to talk about the lack of diversity in books,... Countdown to Halloween... Thank You, Everyone! Twice-Baked Sweet Potato Vomit Boats blogger beware: the goosebumps blog Exciting New Poster For Everyone's Most Anticipated Movie Debuts! Worst of the Worst Fanfiction Jasa Update Websaite Terbaik STFU, Parents How (Not) To Talk About The Ferguson Decision nostomanic Blogging Really Pumps My Nads WEIRD HOLLOW LIVES AGAIN IN THE FORM OF TWITTER Shannon's Sweet Valley High Blog Sweet Valley Twins Super Chiller #1: The Christmas Ghost They Let Us Read this as Children? Sweet Valley High #3: Playing with Fire by Francine Pascal The Halloween Tree Are you there youth? It's me, Nikki. Post-Mortem Depression 99 Fear Street: The First Horror 99 Fear Street: The Second Horror 99 Fear Street: The Third Horror All-Night Party The Babysitter The Babysitter II The Babysitter III Bad Moonlight The Best Friend 2 The Boyfriend Cataluna Chronicles: The Evil Moon The Cheater Cheerleaders: The First Evil Cheerleaders: The Second Evil Cheerleaders: The Third Evil Cheerleaders: The New Evil Cheerleaders: The Evil Lives! College Weekend The Dead Lifeguard Fear Hall: The Beginning Fear Park #1 - The First Scream Fear Park #2 - The Loudest Scream Fear Park #3 - The Last Scream Ghosts of Fear Street #1 - Hide and Shriek Goodnight Kiss Goodnight Kiss 2 How I Broke Up With Ernie The New Girl The New Years Party Night Games One Evil Summer Party Summer The Prom Queen The Rich Girl The Secret Bedroom Seniors #1 - Let's Party! Seniors #2 - In Too Deep Seniors #3 - The Thirst Seniors #4 - No Answer Seniors #5 - Last Chance Seniors #6 - The Gift Seniors #7 - Fight, Team, Fight! Seniors #8 - Sweetheart, Evil Heart Silent Night 2 Ski Weekend The Sleepwalker The Stepsister The Stepsister 2 The Thrill Club What Holly Heard The Wrong Number Ghosts of Fear Street #3 - Attack of the Aqua Apes #10 - The Bugman Lives! #12 - Night of the Werecat Still More Tales To Give You Goosebumps Thirteen (Part One) Thirteen (Part Two) Thirteen (Part Three) When Nobody's Home: Fifteen Baby-Sitting Tales of Terror (Part One) When Nobody's Home: Fifteen Baby-Sitting Tales of Terror (Part Two)	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line162
__label__wiki	0.597471	0.597471	Antwerp (Province, Belgium) Antwerpen, Anvers Last modified: 2005-06-17 by ivan sache Keywords: flanders \| antwerp \| antwerpen \| anvers \| eagle: double-headed (black) \| hands: 2 (white) \| castle (white) \| governor \| from Shipmate, with permission Official flag Former official flag (1928-1997) Banner of arms (unofficial) Provincial colours (unofficial) Provincial governor's honorary flag Belgium: Administrative divisions Province of Antwerp: Municipal flags Porvince of Antwerp: Clickable map The flag of the Province of Antwerp was adopted by the Provincial Council on 18 October 1996 and approved by the Flemish Government on 7 January 1997. Pascal Vagnat, 23 March 1997 Until recently, the Flemish provinces were not bound to have an official flag. In the streets, square flags bearing the provincial arms were frequently seen. On the advice of the Coucil of Nobility (Raad van Adel), the provincial administration of Antwerp adopted on 26 October 1928 an flag made of three equally wide yellow, red and white stripes. This flag had two shortcomings: it was not really recognized and did not represent correctly the city of Turnhout. From historical and heraldical points of views, it was better to stick to the old Brabant tradition of chequered flags. This tradition traces back at least to the insurrection against the absolutism of Filip XI. The association of red, yellow, blue and white from the main colours of Antwerp (red-white), Mechelen (yellow-red) and Turnhout (white-blue) can easily be compared to the historical models. The flag is made of 24 square pieces, in 4 rows and 6 columns. The pieces in the upper right and lower left corners of the flag are white, the neighbouring pieces are blue, yellow, red and white, respectively. Source: Official website of the Province of Antwerp. Translated from Dutch by Ivan Sache, 2 October 1999 by Peter Hans van den Muijzenberg The province had an official flag, vertically divided yellow-red-white, which had been adopted on 26 October 1928 by the Council of the Nobility (Raad van Adel). It seems that even the provincial authorities had forgotten this flag. The shield of the province of Antwerp has often motivated comprehensive historical research. K.C. Peeters discussed it in a detailed article published in Noordgouw (1961). P. Baudoin published an erudite contribution entitled Het Antwerpse provinciewapen: een heraldische ontleding aan. [The provincial arms of Antwerp: an heraldical analysis.] This latter text was the legitimate basis of the decisions taken by the Permanent Deputation to correct the image (3 April 1980) and the description in Dutch (15 April 1982) of the shield. A shield is usually topped with a crown showing the highest nobility title associated with the shield. In the case of the province of Antwerp, this is the title of margrave. The best representation of such a crown is found on the front of the city hall of Antwerp (three noble fleurons and two noble trosjes of three perls, alternating with lower points with a perl). The arms of the margravate of Antwerp were often supported by two golden lions which evoke the Duchy of Brabant. The seigneury of Mechelen used in the late XVIIIth [?] century two golden griffins. On this basis, it is logical to support the provincial shield dexter with a golden lion and sinister with a golden griffin. Both animals stand over deer antlers, thus allowing Turnhout to be also represented in the outer elements of the arms, and impregnating the whole heraldic composition (dexter Antwerp and sinister Mechelen, supported by Turnhout) in an extraordinary strong manner. The heraldic description is: Per pale; 1. Gules, a castle argent with three towers windowed, crenelled, opened and masoned sable, the median tower in chief associated dexter with a dexter hand sinister at an angle opened and sinister with a sinister hand dexter at an angle opened, chief or a double-headed eagle sable langued and armed gules haloed or. 2. Or, three pales gules, escutcheon or with an eagle sable, langued and armed gules; shield basis argent a pale azure. The shield is topped with the crown of a sovereign margrave and supported dexter by a lion or, armed and langued gules, sinister by a griffin or, armed and langued gules. The whole on two crossed deer antlers in natural. Source: Official website of the province of Antwerpen by Mark Sensen The white and red colours were taken from the arms. These colours were not fixed. Sources are: A chart called Vlaggen der Belgische Provincies - Drapeaux des Provinces Belges (Flags of the Belgian Provinces). This is not dated, but to judge from the font face used, it is from the 1920s or 1930s. Roger Baert, in Flaggenmitteilung [fbn] #64 (March 1981) I have some xerox copies of sheets which seem to come from a book (bilingual Dutch and French) containing regulations (for the Navy maybe?). It contains a sheet with the honorary flags of the governors of the provinces, adopted by Order in Council of 28 October 1936. It includes a construction sheet. The flags are 150 x 150 cm. Each stripe is 50 cm. The shields are 43.5 cm wide and 50 cm high excluding 3.75 cm for the point of the shield. The shields are in the center of the black stripe. Mark Sensen, 27 January 2001	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line172
__label__cc	0.53688	0.46312	THE NEW CENSORS: THE GLOBAL GAG ON FREE SPEECH IS TIGHTENING / THE ECONOMIST \| Etiquetas: Freedom of Speach, Freedom of the Press, World Economic And Political The new censors The global gag on free speech is tightening In both democracies and dictatorships, it is getting harder to speak up ON JUNE 22ND there was an alleged coup attempt in Ethiopia. The army chief of staff was murdered, as was the president of Amhara, one of the country’s nine regions. Ordinary Ethiopians were desperate to find out what was going on. And then the government shut down the internet. By midnight some 98% of Ethiopia was offline. “People were getting distorted news and were getting very confused about what was happening...at that very moment there was no information at all,” recalls Gashaw Fentahun, a journalist at the Amhara Mass Media Agency, a state-owned outlet. He and his colleagues were trying to file a report. Rather than uploading audio and video files digitally, they had to send them to head office by plane, causing a huge delay. Last year 25 governments imposed internet blackouts. Choking off connectivity infuriates people and kneecaps economies. Yet autocrats think it worthwhile, usually to stop information from circulating during a crisis. This month the Indian government shut down the internet in disputed Kashmir—for the 51st time this year. “There is no news, nothing,” says Aadil Ganie, a Kashmiri stuck in Delhi, adding that he does not even know where his family is because phones are blocked, too. In recent months Sudan shut down social media to prevent protesters from organising; Congo’s regime switched off mobile networks so it could rig an election in the dark; and Chad nobbled social media to silence protests against the president’s plan to stay in power until 2033. Tongues, tied Free speech is hard won and easily lost. Only a year ago it flowered in Ethiopia, under a supposedly liberal new prime minister, Abiy Ahmed. All the journalists in jail were released, and hundreds of websites, blogs and satellite TV channels were unblocked. But now the regime is having second thoughts. Without a dictatorship to suppress it, ethnic violence has flared. Bigots have incited ethnic cleansing on newly free social media. Nearly 3m Ethiopians have been driven from their homes. Ethiopia faces a genuine emergency, and many Ethiopians think it reasonable for the government to silence those who advocate violence. But during the alleged coup it did far more than that—in effect it silenced everyone. As Befekadu Haile, a journalist and activist, put it: “In the darkness, the government told all the stories.” Some now fear a return to the dark days of Abiy’s predecessors, when dissident bloggers were tortured. The regime still has truckloads of electronic kit for snooping and censoring, much of it bought from China. It is also planning to criminalise “hate speech”, under a law that may require mass surveillance and close monitoring of social media by police. Many fret that the law will be used to lock up peaceful dissidents. According to Freedom House, a watchdog, free speech has declined globally over the past decade. The most repressive regimes have become more so: among those classed as “not free” by Freedom House, 28% have tightened the muzzle in the past five years; only 14% have loosened it. “Partly free” countries were as likely to improve as to get worse, but “free” countries regressed. Some 19% of them (16 countries) have grown less hospitable to free speech in the past five years, while only 14% have improved (see map). There are two main reasons for this. First, ruling parties in many countries have found new tools for suppressing awkward facts and ideas. Second, they feel emboldened to use such tools, partly because global support for free speech has faltered. Neither of the world’s superpowers is likely to stand up for it. China ruthlessly censors dissent at home and exports the technology to censor it abroad. The United States, once a champion of free expression, is now led by a man who says things like this: “We certainly don’t want to stifle free speech, but ... I don’t think that the mainstream media is free speech ... because it’s so crooked. So, to me, free speech is not when you see something good and then you purposely write bad. To me, that’s very dangerous speech and you become angry at it.” Really? Seeing something that the government claims is good and pointing out why it is bad is an essential function of journalism. Indeed, it is one of democracy’s most crucial safeguards. President Donald Trump cannot censor the media in America, but his words contribute to a global climate of contempt for independent journalism. Censorious authoritarians elsewhere often cite Mr Trump’s catchphrases, calling critical reporting “fake news” and critical journalists “enemies of the people”. The notion that certain views should be silenced is popular on the left, too. In Britain and America students shout down speakers they deem racist or transphobic, and Twitter mobs demand the sacking of anyone who violates an expanding list of taboos. Many western radicals contend that if they think something is offensive, no one should be allowed to say it. Authoritarians elsewhere agree. What counts as offensive is subjective, so “hate speech” laws can be elastic tools for criminalising dissent. In March Kazakhstan arrested Serikzhan Bilash for “inciting ethnic hatred”. (He had complained about the mass incarceration of Uighurs in China, a big trading partner of Kazakhstan.) Rwanda’s government interprets almost any criticism of itself as support for another genocide. In India proposed new rules would require digital platforms to block all unlawful content—a tough task given that it is illegal in India to promote disharmony “on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, caste or community or any other ground whatsoever”. One way to silence speech is to murder the speaker. At least 53 journalists were killed on the job in 2018, slightly more than in the previous two years, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), a watchdog. Few of the killers were caught. The deadliest country for journalists was Afghanistan, where 13 were killed. In one case, a jihadist disguised himself as a journalist so as to mingle with, and slaughter, the first reporters and medics to arrive at the scene of an earlier suicide bombing. Perhaps the most brazen murder in 2018 was of Jamal Khashoggi, a critic of the Saudi regime. A team of assassins landed in Turkey on easily identifiable private jets, drove in luxury cars to the Saudi consulate in Istanbul and cut Khashoggi to pieces on consular property. Whoever ordered this presumably thought there would be no serious consequences for dismembering a Washington Post contributor. He was right. Although Germany, Denmark and Norway stopped arms sales to Saudi Arabia, Mr Trump stressed America would remain the kingdom’s “steadfast partner”. On December 1st 2018 the CPJ counted more than 250 journalists in jail for their work: at least 68 in Turkey, 47 in China, 25 in Egypt and 16 in Eritrea. The true number is surely higher, since many journalists are held without charge or publicity. However, the number in Eritrea may be lower, since nearly all have been held in awful conditions since President Issaias Afwerki shut down the independent media in 2001, and some are probably dead. Rather than risking the bother and bad publicity of putting journalists on trial, some regimes try to intimidate them into docility. In Pakistan, when military officers ring up editors to complain about coverage, the editors typically buckle. Ahmad Noorani, a reporter who dared to write about the army’s role in politics, was ambushed by unknown assailants on a busy street in the capital, Islamabad, and beaten almost to death with a crowbar. In India journalists who criticise the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party receive torrents of threats on social media from Hindu nationalists. If female, those threats may include rape. Reporters are often “doxxed”—pictures of their families are circulated, inviting others to harm them. Barkha Dutt, a television pundit, filed a complaint against trolls who had sent her a death threat and published her personal telephone number as that of an escort service. Four suspects were arrested in March. Occasionally, the worst threats against Indian journalists are carried out, lending chilling credibility to the rest. Gauri Lankesh, an editor who often lambasted Hindu nationalism, was gunned down outside her home in 2017. Pro-BJP commenters celebrated. The man arrested for pulling the trigger told police that his handlers told him he had to do it to “save” his religion. Intimidation does not always work. Ivan Golunov, a Russian reporter, investigated Moscow city officials buying mansions with undeclared millions and security officers going into business with the mafia. His stories were little known, published on a small website called Meduza. On June 6th police grabbed Mr Golunov, bundled him into a car, took him to a government building, beat him up and claimed to have found drugs in his backpack. The ministry of interior posted nine photos of drugs allegedly found in his flat, but then removed eight of them, admitting that they were taken elsewhere and saying they had been published by mistake. Mr Golunov’s supporters think the drugs were planted. To the authorities’ surprise, the story spread rapidly on Facebook and Twitter—Russia does not have anything like China’s capacity for suppressing unwelcome posts on social media. Street protesters demanded Mr Golunov’s release. Foreign media picked up the story, which overshadowed Mr Putin’s summit with Xi Jinping, China’s president, that week. An embarrassed Kremlin ordered Mr Golunov’s release. When his new investigation was published by Meduza a few weeks later, it was read by 1.5m people—several times its usual audience. Breaking the news As the advertising revenues that used to support independent journalism dwindle, many governments have found it easier to distort the news with taxpayers’ hard-earned cash. The simplest method is to pump it into state media that unctuously support the ruling party. Most authoritarian regimes do this. China and Russia go further, sponsoring global media outlets that seek to undermine democracy everywhere. However, the problem with state media, from an autocrat’s point of view, is that they tend to be boring. So another method is to use government advertising to reward subservience and punish uppityness. In many countries the government is now by far the biggest advertiser, so newspapers and television stations are terrified of annoying it. A subtler method is to cultivate tycoons who depend on the state for permits or contracts, and urge them to buy up media outlets. Unlike normal moguls, they don’t need their media firms to make profits. The favours their construction firms receive far outweigh any losses they incur running obsequious television stations. Indeed, they can often undercut their independent media rivals, exacerbating the financial distress caused by the decline of advertising, aggressive tax audits, unreasonable fines and so forth. Cash-strapped independent media are of course cheaper for the president’s cronies to buy and de-fang. Several ruling parties use these techniques. India’s uses most of them, as do Russia’s and Turkey’s. Israel’s prime minister, Binyamin Netanyahu, is accused of promising favourable regulation to a telecoms firm in exchange for positive coverage on a news website it owns. In January, Nicaragua’s most popular newspaper ran a blank front page to complain that its imported supplies of ink, paper and other materials had been mysteriously impounded at customs after it published critical reports about the ruling Sandinista party. Such skulduggery has even crept into supposedly democratic parts of Europe. Hungary’s ruling party, Fidesz, has used public money to dominate the national conversation. The state news agency has been stuffed with toadies and offers its bulletins free to cash-strapped outlets. “When you get a news flash on [an independent] rock radio station, [it’s] totally government propaganda...because it’s free,” complains a local journalist. The Hungarian government’s advertising budget has swollen enormously since 2010, when Prime Minister Viktor Orban took power. His cronies have bought up previously feisty broadcasters and websites. “It’s an unstoppable process,” says an independent editor. “Hungarians are used to the idea that online news is free. So [media firms] become reliant on the money of their owners. And many of the businessmen in public life are linked to the government.” Last year the proprietors of 476 media firms, including practically all the local newspapers in Hungary, gave them without charge to a new mega-foundation run by a pal of Mr Orban. Starved of cash, serious journalists find it hard to do their jobs. “It’s practically impossible to investigate even the major corruption stories, because there are so many,” says Agnes Urban of Mertek, a media watchdog. Meanwhile, in mature democracies, support for free speech is ebbing, especially among the young, and outright hostility to it is growing. Nowhere is this more striking than in universities in the United States. In a Gallup poll published last year, 61% of American students said that their campus climate prevented people from saying what they believe, up from 54% the previous year. Other data from the same poll may explain why. Fully 37% said it was “acceptable” to shout down speakers they disapproved of to prevent them from being heard, and an incredible 10% approved of using violence to silence them. Many students justify this by arguing that some speakers are racist, homophobic or hostile to other disadvantaged groups. This is sometimes true. But the targets of campus outrage have often been reputable, serious thinkers. Heather Mac Donald, for example, who argues that “Black Lives Matter” protests prompted police to pull back from high-crime neighbourhoods, and that this allowed the murder rate to spike, had to be evacuated from Claremont McKenna College in California in a police car. Furious protesters argued that letting her speak was an act of “violence” that denied “the right of black people to exist”. Such verbal contortions have become common on the left. Many radicals argue that words are “violence” if they denigrate disadvantaged groups. Some add that anyone who allows offensive speakers a platform is condoning their wicked ideas. Furthermore, as America has polarised politically, many people have started to divide the world simplistically into “good” people (who agree with them) and “evil” people (who don’t). This has led to bizarre altercations. At Reed College in Portland, Oregon, Lucia Martinez Valdivia, a gay, mixed-race lecturer with post-traumatic stress disorder, was accused of being “anti-black” because she complained about the aggressive students who stood next to her shouting down her lectures on ancient Greek lesbian poetry (to which the hecklers objected because the poet Sappho would today be considered white). As Greg Lukianoff and Jonathan Haidt argue in “The coddling of the American mind”: “If some students now think it’s OK to punch a fascist or white supremacist, and if anyone who disagrees with them can be labelled a fascist or a white supremacist, well, you can see how this rhetorical move might make people hesitant to voice dissenting views on campus.” The habit of trying to silence opposing views, instead of rebutting them, has spread off campus. In Portland, Oregon, this weekend, far-right extremists are planning to rally, their “antifa” (anti-fascist) opponents are expected to try to stop them, and both sides are spoiling for a fight. When the same groups clashed in June, a conservative journalist, Andy Ngo, was so badly beaten that he was hospitalised with a brain haemorrhage. Similar intolerance has spread to Europe, too. French “yellow jacket” protesters have repeatedly beaten up television crews. In Britain any discussion of transgender issues is explosive. In September, for example, Leeds City Council barred Woman’s Place UK, a feminist group, from holding a meeting because activists had accused them of “transphobia”. (The feminists do not think that simply saying “I am a woman” should confer on biological males the right to enter women’s spaces, such as changing rooms and rape shelters.) “It’s nearly impossible to have a free debate [on this topic]. I’ve never seen anything like it,” says Ruth Serwotka, a co-founder of Woman’s Place UK. Today, the group only tells members where meetings will take place a couple of hours in advance, to avoid disruption. Feminists who question “gender self-identification” (the notion that if you say you are a woman, you should automatically be legally treated as one) are routinely threatened with rape or death. Some have faced organised campaigns to get them sacked from their jobs, barred from Twitter or arrested. In March, for instance, Caroline Farrow, a Catholic journalist, was interviewed by British police after someone complained that she had used the wrong pronoun to describe a transgender girl. Another feminist, 60-year-old Maria MacLachlan, was beaten up by a transgender activist at Speakers’ Corner in London, where free speech is supposed to be sacrosanct. COMEUPPANCE / CREDIT BUBBLE BULLETIN \| Etiquetas: Argentina, Bond Markets, Central Banking, China, Credit Bubbles, ECB, Financial Markets, Investment Strategies, Stock Markets, Systemic Risk, The Fed Doug Nolan The Chinese Credit machine sputtered in July. Growth in Total Aggregate Financing dropped to $144 billion, almost 40% below consensus estimates. This was less than half of June’s $320 billion increase and the slowest expansion since February. The sharp slowdown was beyond typical seasonality, with the month’s growth in Aggregate Financing 18% below July 2018. Despite July’s weak growth, Total Aggregate Financing was still up 10.7% over the past year. New Bank Loans fell to $150 billion from June’s $235 billion, with growth 28% below that from July 2018. At $2.331 TN, New Loans were still up 12.6% over the past year. Consumer Loans dropped to $74 billion, the weakest showing since February. Consumer Loans were nonetheless up 16.5% over the past year, 38% in two, 71% in three and 138% over five years. Loans to the non-financial corporate sector collapsed in July to $42 billion, about a third June’s level. Somewhat offsetting this decline, Corporate bond issuance almost doubled in July to $32 billion. The ongoing contraction in “shadow” finance accelerated in July, with declines in outstanding Trust Loans, Entrusted Loans, and Banker Acceptances. On a year-over-year basis, Trust Loans were down 4.3%, Entrusted Loans 10.0% and Bankers Acceptances 15.0%. China’s July Credit data were alarming on multiple levels. For starters, the sharp Credit slowdown supports the view that financial conditions tightened meaningfully after the government takeover of Baoshang Bank (and attendant money market instability). It also raises the increasingly pressing question as to the willingness of the banking system to continue to take up the slack in the face of a broadly deteriorating backdrop. And in a new development, analysts have begun contemplating the possibility of waning Credit demand. The sharp pullback in Consumer Loans raises the specter of an inflection point in household mortgage borrowings. Bubbling apartment markets have supported a resilient consumer sector along with an unrelenting housing construction boom. Government tightening measures may be having some impact. It is possible as well that market sentiment has begun to shift. August 14 – Reuters (Huizhong Wu, Yawen Chen and Stella Qiu): “China’s economy stumbled more sharply than expected in July, with industrial output growth cooling to a more than 17-year low, as the intensifying U.S. trade war took a heavier toll on businesses and consumers. Activity in China has continued to cool despite a flurry of growth steps over the past year, raising questions over whether more rapid and forceful stimulus may be needed, even if it risks racking up more debt. After a flicker of improvement in June, analysts said the latest data was evidence that demand faltered across the board last month, from industrial output and investment to retail sales… Industrial output growth slowed markedly to 4.8% in July from a year earlier…, lower than the most bearish forecast in a Reuters poll and the weakest pace since February 2002.” August 14 – Reuters (Roxanne Liu): “China’s property investment slowed to its weakest pace this year in a sign the housing market’s resilience may be waning as Beijing toughens its crackdown on speculative investments and holds back on new stimulus… Property investment in July rose 8.5% year-on-year, easing from June’s 10.1% gain and was the slowest since December’s 8.2%...” China is now only a faltering apartment Bubble away from a period of major economic upheaval and acute financial instability. Global bond markets were this week nothing short of incredible. Ten-year German bund yields dropped 11 bps to a record low negative 0.69%, and French yields fell 15 bps to negative 0.41%. Swiss 10-year yields sank 19 bps to negative 1.14%. Spanish and Portuguese yields fell 18 bps to 0.08% and 0.11%. Italian yields sank 41 bps to 1.40%. Sovereign yields ended the week at negative 0.69% in Denmark, negative 0.57% in Netherlands, negative 0.49% in Slovakia, negative 0.44% in Austria, negative 0.43% in Sweden, negative 0.42% in Finland, negative 37 bps in Belgium, negative 0.26% in Slovenia, negative 0.18% in Latvia, and negative 0.14% in Ireland. Japanese 10-year yields ended the week down a basis point to negative 0.23%. Extraordinary in its own right, the Treasury market garnered intense media focus: CNBC: “Bond Market Close to Sending Biggest Recession Signal Yet.” Fox Business: “Recession Indicator with Perfect Track Record Flashing Red.” Business Insider: “The Market's Favorite Recession Indicator Just Flashed its Starkest Warning Since 2007.” NBC: “Wall Street Slides as Inverted Yield Curve Rings Recession Alarm Bells.” Money and Markets: “Yield Curve Blares Loudest Recession Warning Since 2007.” Ten-year Treasury yields collapsed 19 bps this week to 1.56%, the low going back to August 2016. Thirty-year bond yields traded as low at 1.91% in Thursday’s session, dipping below 2.00% for the first time (ending the week down 22 bps to 2.04%). Two-year yields fell 17 bps to 1.47%, with December Fed funds futures implying a 1.49% funds rate. Wednesday’s inverted Treasury curve was widely cited as the key factor behind the equities' selloff. August 14 – Reuters (Gertrude Chavez-Dreyfuss and Dhara Ranasinghe): “The U.S. Treasury yield curve inverted on Wednesday for the first time since June 2007, in a sign of investor concern that the world's biggest economy could be heading for recession. The inversion - where shorter-dated borrowing costs are higher than longer ones - saw U.S. 2-year note yields rise above the 10-year yield.” At this point, Treasury yields have little association with the U.S. economy. The structure of the Treasury curve (along with Federal Reserve monetary policy) has detached from U.S. economic performance. Treasuries are instead caught up in an unprecedented global market phenomenon. Sovereign debt, after all, has traded for hundreds of years. Yet bonds have never traded with negative yields. Never have global bond prices spiked in unison, with yields collapsing to unprecedented lows across the globe. I understand why market professionals, pundits and journalists focus on the conventional “recession risk” explanation for sinking Treasury yields and the inverted curve. For one, there is insufficient awareness as to the deep structural impairments that today permeate global finance. Besides, no one wants to contemplate that global bond yields might portend serious problems ahead – that global yields are signaling the reemergence of Crisis Dynamics. Throughout this decade’s long Bubble period, I’ve often written and stated, “I hope things are not as dire as I believe they are.” Along the way, Bubble Analysis has appeared flawed and hopelessly detached from reality. And that’s exactly how these things work. But I’ve never wavered from the view that this would end badly. Never have I believed that manipulating and distorting markets would achieve anything but epic Bubbles and inevitable terrible hardship. I’ve not seen evidence to counter the view that the longer the global Bubble inflates the greater the downside risk (moreover, such risk grows exponentially over time). And not for one minute did I believe zero rates and QE would resolve deep financial and economic structural issues. Indeed, I have fully expected reckless monetary mismanagement to ensure a global crisis much beyond 2008. From my analytical perspective, the global Bubble has followed the worst-case scenario. It sounds archaic, but sound money and Credit are fundamental to sound financial systems, sound economic structure, cohesive societies and a stable geopolitical backdrop. The most unsound “money” in human history comes with dire consequences. Global finance now suffers from irreparable structural impairment. Economies across the globe are deeply maladjusted. Global imbalances are unprecedented. The trajectory of geopolitical strife is frightening. Meanwhile, central banks are locked in flawed inflationist doctrine. Their experiment is failing, yet in failure they will resort to only more reckless market manipulation and monetary inflation. This analysis is corroborated both by collapsing sovereign yields and a surging gold price. The clear and present risk is of an abrupt globalized market dislocation, financial crisis and resulting economic and geopolitical instability. It may sound like crazy talk, except for the fact that such a scenario is alarmingly consistent with signals now blaring from global bond markets. August 16 – Bloomberg (John Authers): “There has been a tendency since the financial crisis to label any market that is rallying or deemed overvalued to be in a ‘bubble.’ The word has become overused and debased. But if we treat it rigorously, the bubble concept is still vital in navigating financial markets. And the rigorous treatment reveals that bonds really are in a bubble. Longview Economics Chief Market Strategist Chris Watling published a fascinating research note applying the framework introduced by Charles Kindleberger in his book ‘Manias, Panics, and Crashes.’ …Watling reminds us that Kindleberger needed to satisfy four conditions before he diagnosed a bubble: i) cheap money underpins and creates the bubble; ii) debt is taken on during the bubble build-up, which helps fuel much of the speculative price increases (e.g. buying on margin); iii) once a bubble is formed, the asset price has a notably expensive valuation; & iv) there’s always a convincing narrative to ‘explain away’ the high price. Reflecting that, there’s a wide acceptance in certain quarters that the price is rational (and ‘this time it’s different’).” I’m biased, but what could be more fascinating than Bubble Analysis? My analytical framework owes a debt of gratitude to Charles Kindleberger’s work. I’ll interject my definition: “A Bubble is a self-reinforcing but inevitably unsustainable inflation.” This “unsustainable” facet has become critical in this bizarro world of central bank finance and accompanying runaway Bubbles. At a decade and counting, it is reasonable to assume that the realm of central bank supported bull markets is everlasting. Such optimism is today dangerously misplaced. I’ll take somewhat exception to John Authers’, “[Bubble] has become overused and debased.” The key issue is that Bubble Dynamics took root across asset classes and across the world. Never has “Bubble” applied to so many markets in so many places – never has finance created Bubble Dynamics on an almost systemic basis. I have argued post-crisis monetary stimulus unleashed a historic global Bubble in “financial assets” more generally, a “global government finance Bubble” that fueled hyperinflation in prices for stocks, bonds, structured finance, real estate, private businesses, collectibles, and so on around the world. The word “Bubble” has not been overused and debased, as much as the overuse of central bank and government Credit has worked to debase “money” more generally. Authers also states: “But if we treat it rigorously, the bubble concept is still vital in navigating financial markets.” The problem is markets love Bubbles – jump aboard and make easy “money.” And for the past decade central banks have incentivized speculation and speculative leverage across assets classes and around the world. Bubble Analysis is vital for both navigating markets and for policymaking. For a decade now, speculators have been playing Bubbles, while central bankers have been denying their existence. Global bond markets have become convinced the Bubble is faltering, with the expectation that central banks have no alternative than to drive rates even lower while monetizing further Trillions of government bonds (throwing in some corporate debt and even equities for good measure). This expectation of additional aggressive monetary stimulus has bolstered the view within the risk markets that the bottomless central bank punchbowl will keep the party rocking. At this point, the overarching issue is not the U.S. vs. China trade war, and it’s not specifically the vulnerable Chinese economic boom. The U.S. economy is certainly not the focal point of global market dynamics. Importantly, the trade war is a catalyst for pushing China’s vulnerable economy to the downside. After a historic Bubble inflation, a faltering Chinese economy is a catalyst for pushing China’s fragile Credit and financial systems beyond the precipice. And as the marginal source of global finance and economic growth, faltering Chinese Credit and economic systems will be a catalyst for bursting Bubbles around the globe. August 10 – Reuters (Cassandra Garrison and Nicolás Misculin): “Argentine voters soundly rejected President Mauricio Macri’s austere economic policies in primary elections on Sunday, raising serious questions about his chances of re-election in October… A coalition backing opposition candidate Alberto Fernandez - whose running mate is former president Cristina Fernandez - led by a wider-than-expected 14 percentage points with 47.1% of votes, with fourth-fifths of ballots counted.” Granted, opposition candidate Fernandez’s margin of victory was larger than expected. But what a market reaction. The Argentine peso sank 14.5% in Monday trading. Argentina’s Merval Equities Index collapsed 38% (48% in U.S. dollars) Monday and ended the week down 31.5%. The price of Argentina’s dollar-denominated 30-year bonds sank 25%, as yields surged 300 bps in Monday trading to 12.51%. Yields jumped above 15% during Wednesday’s trading before ending the week at 13.5%. August 13 – Reuters (Tom Arnold): “The cost of insuring against an Argentine sovereign default jumped again on Tuesday as investors continued to react to the heavy defeat of President Mauricio Macri in the country’s primary elections at the weekend. Argentine 5-year credit default swaps (CDS) were marked at 2,116 basis points, up from what was already a five-year high of 1,994 bps the previous day, according to… IHS Markit. Markit calculations estimate that level prices the probability of a sovereign default within the next five years at more than 72%.” After ending convertibility to the U.S. dollar at a one-to-one rate with the onset of Argentina’s 2001 financial crisis, it now requires 55 pesos to exchange for one dollar. Oversubscribed when issued in the summer of 2017, Argentina’s 100-year bond lost 30% of its value this week and now trades at 52 cents on the dollar. Market reaction to Argentina’s primary election is further evidence the global market environment has changed. “Risk off” is gaining momentum. De-risking/deleveraging dynamics have altered the liquidity backdrop, leading to more chaotic market reactions along with heightened contagion risk. This week’s EM currency declines included the Russia’s ruble 1.9%, Brazil’s real 1.6%, Turkey’s lira 1.5%, Poland’s zloty 1.4% and Mexico’s peso 1.3%. Major equities indices were down 4.0% in Brazil, 3.9% in Turkey, 3.3% in Russia and 2.7% in Mexico. It was not as if there weren’t constructive developments. At least for the week, the People’s Bank of China could stabilize the renminbi (up 0.27% vs. the dollar). Monday’s ugly market performance apparently spurred President Trump to delay imposing additional Chinese tariffs on many goods until December 15th. China announced plans to boost household disposable income. And, from an ECB official, the clearest signal yet that “whatever it takes” is about to shift into overdrive. August 15 – Wall Street Journal (Tom Fairless): “The European Central Bank will announce a package of stimulus measures at its next policy meeting in September that should exceed investors’ expectations, a top official at the central bank said. …Olli Rehn said the slowing global economy would see the ECB rolling out fresh stimulus measures that should include ‘substantial and sufficient’ bond purchases as well as cuts to the bank’s key interest rate. ‘It’s important that we come up with a significant and impactful policy package in September,’ said Mr. Rehn, who sits on the ECB’s rate-setting committee as governor of Finland’s central bank. ‘When you’re working with financial markets, it’s often better to overshoot than undershoot, and better to have a very strong package of policy measures than to tinker,’ Mr. Rehn said.” The President’s trade war retreat tweet had a notably short market half-life. It appears markets these days are less invigorated by talk of additional Chinese stimulus. And Olli Rehn’s “significant and impactful policy package” essentially bypassed equities markets while throwing gas on the raging bond fire. It’s been a full decade of government and central bank backstops, with the “Trump put” a relatively late addition. It sure appears the Trump, central bank and Beijing “puts” have lost some potency. And in about a month we’ll have a better read on the “Fed put.” It’s a reasonable bet the stock market will go into the September 18th FOMC meeting with a gun to its head: “50 bps or we’ll shoot!” Much can happen in a month – especially at the current mercurial clip of developments. But the Fed will be in a really tough spot. Don’t give the market 50 bps and ultra-dovish commentary and risk getting hit with a heated market tantrum. Give markets what they demand and risk a “sell the news” response and a critical change in market sentiment. It has the feel that a decade of egregious monetary inflation and speculative Bubbles is about to get Some Comeuppance. RUSSIA AND CHINA: PARTNERSHIP IS MUCH BETTER FOR CHINA THAN IT IS FOR RUSSIA / THE ECONOMIST \| Etiquetas: China, Geopolitics, Russia, World Economic And Political Russia and China Partnership is much better for China than it is for Russia Just how much better might not become clear for a few years yet IT IS THE love triangle of global politics. Since the second world war, China, Russia and the United States have repeatedly swapped partners. The collapse of the Sino-Soviet pact after the death of Josef Stalin was followed by Richard Nixon’s visit to China in 1972 and Mikhail Gorbachev’s detente with China 30 years ago. Today’s pairing, between Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping, was cemented in 2014 after Russia annexed Crimea. In each case the country that was left on its own has always seemed to pay a price, by being stretched militarily and diplomatically. This time is different. Though America is out in the cold, the price is falling chiefly on Russia. China dominates every aspect of the two countries’ partnership. Its economy is six times larger (at purchasing-power parity) and its power is growing, even as Russia’s fades. What seemed a brilliant way for Mr Putin to turn his back on the West and magnify Russia’s influence is looking like a trap that his country will find hard to escape. Far from being an equal partner, Russia is evolving into a Chinese tributary. That may seem a harsh judgment. Russia is still a nuclear-weapons state with a permanent seat on the UN Security Council. It has modernised its armed forces and, as in Syria, is not afraid to use them. This week Russian and Chinese warplanes conducted what appeared to be a joint air patrol for the first time, causing alarm when South Korea said a Russian plane had intruded into its airspace. But the real news is how rapidly Russia is becoming dependent on its giant neighbour (see article). China is a vital market for Russian raw materials: Rosneft, Russia’s national oil company, depends on Chinese financing and is increasingly diverting its oil to China. As Russia seeks to evade the hegemony of the dollar, the yuan is becoming a bigger part of its foreign-currency reserves (the share of dollars fell by half to 23% during 2018, while the yuan’s share grew from 3% to 14%). China supplies vital components for Russia’s advanced weapons systems. And China is the source of the networking and security gear that Mr Putin needs to control his people. Last month Russia struck a deal with Huawei, a Chinese telecoms firm distrusted by America, to develop 5G equipment—thus rooting Russia firmly in China’s half of the splinternet. This suits China just fine. It wants a lasting friendship with Russia, if only to secure its northern border, the scene of clashes in 1969, and a source of worry in the 1990s when Russia looked as if it might drift into the West’s orbit. Russia also serves as an enthusiastic vanguard in China’s campaign to puncture Western ideas of universal human rights and democracy, which both countries see as an incitement to “colour revolutions”. Mr Putin can point to several arguments for his partnership with China, in addition to their joint hostility to the liberal project. One is expediency. Western sanctions, imposed after his annexation of Crimea, the meddling in American elections in 2016 and the lethal use of a nerve agent in Britain two years later, have left Russia without many alternatives. Mr Xi has also given Russia cover for its military action in Syria and, to some extent, Crimea. And, in contrast to the end of the 17th century, when Peter the Great looked to Europe as the wellspring of progress, Mr Putin can plausibly argue that the future now belongs to China and its system of state capitalism. However, Mr Putin is mistaken. For a start, the Russian version of state capitalism is a rent-seeking, productivity-sapping licence for the clique that surrounds him to steal freely from the national coffers—which is one reason why Chinese investment in Russia is rather limited. There is also a contradiction between Mr Putin’s claim to be restoring Russian greatness and the increasingly obvious reality of its subordinate role to China. This creates tension in Central Asia. Because stability in the region is important for China’s domestic security—it wants Central Asia to keep Islamic extremism at bay—the People’s Liberation Army is stationing troops in Tajikistan and staging exercises there, without consulting Russia. And, at some level, the aims of Russia and China diverge. There is a limit to how much ordinary Russians will forgo Western freedoms. If the regime holds on to power by means of Chinese technology, it will feed popular anger towards China and its Russian clients. Who can say when the strains will show? Imagine that Mr Putin chooses to step down in 2024, when the constitution says he must, and that his successor tries to mark the change by distancing Russia from China and turning towards Europe. Only then will it become clear how deep China’s influence runs and how much pressure it is prepared to exert to retain its sway. Russia’s next president may find that the country has lost its room for manoeuvre. Does this mean that the rest of the world—especially the West—should seek to prise Russia from China’s embrace, before it is too late? That idea will tempt those diplomats and analysts who think Russia is too important to alienate. But it seems unlikely. America does not suffer from the Xi-Putin alignment today as it would have done in the cold war. Although Russia and China do indeed undermine the West’s notion of universal values, with President Donald Trump in the White House that doctrine is, alas, hardly being applied universally in any case. What is more, China’s influence over Russia has compensations. An angry declining power like Russia is dangerous; it may feel tempted to lash out to show it is still a force to be reckoned with, by bullying Belarus, say, or by stoking the old fears of Chinese expansion into Siberia. But China has no appetite for international crises, unless they are of its own devising. As Russia’s partner, China can serve as a source of reassurance along their joint border, and temper Russia’s excesses around the world. Sweet patience Rather than railing against Russia or trying to woo it back, the West should point out its subordination and wait. Sooner or later, a President Alexei Navalny or someone like him will look westwards once again. That is when Russia will most need Western help. And that is when the man or woman in the Oval Office should emulate Nixon—and go to Moscow. ■ PRECIOUS METALS REACHING INITIAL TARGETS PRIOR TO AUG. 19 -- NOW WHAT´S NEXT? / THETECHNICALTRADERS.COM \| Etiquetas: Gold, Investment Strategies, Precious Metals Precious Metals Reaching Initial Targets Prior to Aug 19 – Now What’s Next? Chris Vermeullen We have heard from so many of our followers and members regarding our precious metals calls and research articles. Additionally, many of our members and followers have recently asked us about our August 19 breakdown prediction for the US/Global markets. In this research post, we’ll highlight some of our expectations for the precious metals and how that relates to the potential August 19 breakdown expectations. October 5 ADL predictive modeling forecast chart Our incredible October 5 ADL predictive modeling chart, below, highlights just how powerful some of our proprietary price modeling tools really are. Imagine having the ability to look 10+ months into the future to be able to attempt to understand exactly what price may attempt to do and to be able to plan and prepare for these moves well ahead of the “setup”. So far, our analysis of the precious metals has been spot on and we’ll continue to try to update our members and followers as this movement continues. RECENT TRADE WITH 3X Gold ETF: The ADL system hs played a large roll in our short term trading result for August already having closed 24.16% profit this month – See Here This original prediction based on our advanced Adaptive Dynamic Learning (ADL) predictive price modeling system suggests price should be near or above $1600 by August/September 2019 (the higher yellow dash lines within the blue rectangle). If these predictions continue to hold up as valid and true, then we would expect the price of Gold to target these levels as a “leg 1 move” then consolidate a bit before attempting to move higher. Weekly Gold chart highlights our expectations This Weekly Gold chart highlights our expectations for the current and future price rotations in Gold. As you can see, we are still expecting a $1600 initial upside price target (shown as $1595) and a brief price rotation after that level is reached. The reality of this move is that Gold could rally well above $1600 before stalling, but we believe the $1595 level is a safe call for this move and we believe the rotation will be fairly short-lived before the price continues to rally further. One interesting point to make is that the $1595 level is well above the highest (RED) Fibonacci projected price target. These types of moves by price can happen in extended trending. It happens that the Fibonacci price modeling system predicted these ranges based on historical price rotations and recent trends. Yet when something happens in the markets that result in trends extending beyond the predicted levels, it suggests that a larger, more volatile, the price trend has established which could push price levels to 1.6x or 2x the precious target level ranges. This would suggest $1700 to $1850 as a new upside target level (eventually). As Silver starts to move higher, finally breaking above historical resistance and really starting to rally as Gold has taken off, one very interesting price setup happened this week – a VERY LARGE RANGE BAR. Silver has historically shown a bar range volatility of near or below $0.40. On August 13, Silver set up a total high-to-low bar range of just over $1.00. This massive increase in volatility suggests that Silver could be setting up for a very explosive price move in the near future. If volatility continues to stay near 1.5x to 2.5x historical levels, Silver could rally $6 to $10 in a very short 14 to 30 days. What does this mean for our precious metals trade and for our members and followers? It means that the metals are “loading up on fuel” at the moment and preparing for something BIG. How is this aligning with our August 19 breakdown prediction and how should traders plan for these moves and protect their assets? Right now, if you have not already set up and entered your precious metals trades, you should consider scaling into trades soon and/or waiting for this rotation that we are suggesting is only about 5+ days away. Silver is still an incredible opportunity for traders and Gold should stall near $1595, then likely rotate a bit lower towards $1525 before bottoming. Therefore, any entry below $1540 in Gold or below $17 in Silver is still a solid entry-level. Now, before we carry on with our research, we want to highlight the fact that many things are aligning with our August 19 global market breakdown prediction. We’ll go into more detail about this in Part II of this research article and attempt to detail our expectations, but we want to warn you that we believe extended risks will start to become more evident on or after August 19, 2019. This is not a warning that should prompt you to immediately start selling off everything you own and setting up for a massive short trade in the markets. What it means is that August 19 will likely be the start of an extended “rounded top” or other types of extended top formation that will provide a more clear projection of targets and opportunities as it plays out. You’ll see more in Part II of this research post (delivered to you just in time before the weekend) MORE UNIQUE ANALYSIS ON THE BEAR MARKET IN STOCKS AND METALS, MINERS, AND S&P 500 I warned that the next financial crisis (bear market) was scary close, possibly just a couple weeks away. The charts I posted will make you really start to worry. See Scary Bear Market Setup Charts. In early June I posted a detailed video explaining in showing the bottoming formation and gold and where to spot the breakout level, I also talked about crude oil reaching it upside target after a double bottom, and I called short term top in the SP 500 index. This was one of my premarket videos for members it gives you a good taste of what you can expect each and every morning before the Opening Bell. Watch Video Here. Detailed report talking about where the next bull and bear markets are and how to identify them. This report focused on gold miners and the SP 500 index. My charts compared the 2008 market top and bear market along with the 2019 market prices today. See Comparison Charts Here. DISPATCHES FROM BOND LAND / MAULDIN ECONOMICS \| Etiquetas: Investment Strategies, Negative Interest Rates Dispatches From Bond-Land First, please do me a favor—I would love it if you would follow me on Twitter. By this point, you have probably heard that $15 trillion of bonds are trading with negative yields, which represents 25% of all sovereign bonds outstanding. Lots of people are indignant about this—but it’s no use getting mad at the market. Lots of people say it doesn’t make sense. It makes sense to me, and to a few other people. If you see something in the market that doesn’t make sense, it’s usually best to stay away, rather than picking a fight with it. We’re not in uncharted territory here. Let’s do a market psychology exercise. Back in 2012, ten-year yields were actually lower: And again in 2016: Both of those times (and I remember this quite clearly), people were bullish on bonds and said that yields were going lower. Instead, they rocketed higher. They said that the deflation/disinflation that we were experiencing was unstoppable, and a whole bunch of other stuff, that turned out not to happen. In 2016 I presented a short bond thesis at a conference and I practically got hounded off the stage. Nobody remembers this, but everyone was really bullish on bonds back then. It was actually kind of a weird situation. The organizers of the conference avoided me after that, like I was radioactive. Now practically nobody is bullish! Why is that? I suppose the inflation picture is markedly different—we have tariffs and there are wage pressures and such—but I don’t think that’s what this is about. My thesis, which I have carried around for 20 years: when everyone believes something, it is usually wrong. What does everyone believe right now? That negative yields are unsustainable. Maybe that is true. Maybe not. Bubbles in Everything You can have a bubble in any asset class, from little stuffed animals to lines of computer code. Why not bonds? The bitcoin bubble burst when there were more Coinbase accounts than Schwab accounts, and there was a bitcoin rapper in the New York Times. We don’t have any bond rappers yet, so I’d say the bull market has a ways to go. George Soros always said that if he saw a bubble forming he would get in there and try to make it bigger—which is pretty much the opposite of what everyone does. What everyone does, is goes on Twitter to complain about it. It’s not just Twitter—negative yields was probably the biggest concern you guys listed in the bond survey. Right now, people don’t believe in the trade, or understand it. This is going to continue until they do understand it. There are also fundamental reasons which are plainly obvious—bad demographics and a savings glut, which creates huge demand for safer assets like bonds, pushing down yields. Both of those things were cited the last two times around (2012 and 2016), but not this time. My opinion: smart people (including the owner of this website) predicted debt and deflation years ago. You know how it happens. Gradually, then suddenly. Anyway, I can’t do one scroll through Twitter without someone freaking out about negative interest rates. Turn on the internet and see. But what if negative interest rates… are normal? What if they make sense? Ask this question around certain people and they completely lose their minds. The last time I saw people get this indignant about a trade, it was… Beyond Meat. See how that turned out. I have experience with this sentiment thing. When something makes people angry, I have confidence that the trend in question will continue for a very long time. I think negative rates are not an aberration and could become a semi-permanent feature of finance. When people start to believe in negative rates, they will probably come to an end. Bond House Lehman Brothers was a “bond house.” They were really good at fixed income—not so good at equities. Though equities did pretty well towards the end. It was kind of hard not to be exposed to bonds at Lehman, even if you did work in equities. If you recall, the Barclays bond indices that we have today used to be Lehman bond indices. I got a lot of customer flow in the 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF, TLT, and it was because Lehman had the index. I also took six weeks of bond math when I joined the firm in the summer of 2001, and most of it stuck with me. A lot has changed since then. Most of the trading activity in US Treasurys is electronic. Back then, it was all high-touch—carried out by actual humans. A lot has remained the same. It’s still fundamentally the same market that it was 20 years ago. There’s a lot more debt, but one thing that has remained constant is how difficult it is to trade off of supply—the idea that more bonds makes rates go higher. And, people believe strange things about the bond market these days—they think more supply makes interest rates go down. If you think things are stupid, they will probably get more stupid. You can put that on my tombstone. GLOBAL CENTRAL BANKS MOVE TO KEEP THE PARTY ROLLING / THETECNICALTRADERS.COM \| Etiquetas: Central Banking, Financial Markets, Interest Rates, Monetary Policy, The Dollar, The Fed, Trade Wars PART 4 – Global Central Banks Move To Keep The Party Rolling In this last segment of our multi-part research post regarding the US Fed and the global central banks, it is becoming evident that the fear of a further market contraction is resulting in the decrease in rates and the push for additional QE functions. Our research has shown that the global economy has partially recovered from the 2008-09 credit market collapse, but the process of the recovery has resulted in a “blowout” type of event where shifting capital intents and the transition from the 19th century economic model towards a new 21st century economic model is setting up the global markets for a massive rotation event over the next 12 to 24 months – possibly longer. PART 1 OF THIS ARTICLE It is our belief that capital is still doing what capital always does, seeking out the best opportunities for safety and returns. Right now, that location is easily found in only certain segments of the markets; volatility, precious metals, certain energy sectors, US Treasuries and CASH. The future events, including the massive rotational event that we believe is about to unfold in the global markets, will change the way capital is deployed for many years to come. It is very likely that this rotation event will create incredible opportunities for skilled technical traders or subscribers to our trade signal newsletter over the next 12 to 36 months and will likely prompt a further shift towards the new 21st-century economic model that we believe will be the ultimate outcome. Taking a brief look at our recent history highlights the fact that capital becomes fearful about 12 to 16 months before a major US election event. Additionally, certain other factors related to the global economy heighten this fear as US/China trade issues, global debt issues and economic output issues continue to plague the markets. The combination of these types of events set up a “perfect storm” type of economic cycle where skilled technical traders are just waiting for the impact event to hit before the markets begin a bigger rotational event. These types of events, similar to the 2000 and 2008-09 market crash event, are a process where price rotates out of a normal range and attempts to explore lower price levels that act as price support. It is not uncommon for these types of events to happen, although the severity of these events is difficult to determine prior to their execution. The US Fed and global central Banks set up an easy money process over the past 9+ years that allowed for capital to be deployed as a process that has setup this current massive rotational event. At first, the intent was to support collapsing markets and institutions – we understand that. But the nature of capital is to always seek out suitable safety and returns, so capital did what is always does hunt out the best opportunities for profits. First, it rallied into the crashing real estate market and emerging markets – which had been crushed by the 2008-09 credit crisis event. Next, it piled into the Asian markets and healthcare/technology markets. At this time, it also started piling into the startup/VC markets throughout the world as well as certain commodities. The recovery seemed to have created a booming and cash-flush market for anyone with two dollars to rub together. Then came the 2015-16 market contraction and the end of the US Fed QE processes. At this time, China realized the need to control capital outflows and the US/Global markets slowed to a crawl as the US Presidential election cycle ramped-up. It was just 12 months prior to this 2015-16 event that oil crashed from $114 to $46. Within 2015-16, Oil continued to crash to levels below $30. This was the equivalent of the blowout cycle for the global economy. Headed into the 2016 US elections, the global economy was running on only 5 of 8 cylinders and was limping along hoping to find some way out of this mess. The November 2016 US elections were just what the global economy needed and everyone’s perceptions about the future changed almost overnight. I remember watching the price of Gold on election night; +$75 early in the evening as Clinton was expected to win, then it continued to fall back to +$0 fairly late in the evening, then it fell to -$75 as the news of a Trump win was solidified. This rotation equated to a nearly 10% rotation in less than 24 hours based on FEAR. Once fear was abated, global investors and capital went to work seeking out the safest environments and best returns – like normal. This resurgence of capital into the markets set up of a new SOP (standard operating procedure) where capital began to be deployed in more risky environments and into broader and bigger investment structures. This is the SETUP I’m trying to highlight that was created by the US Fed and central banks. I don’t believe anyone thought, at that time in early 2017, that the current set of events would have transpired and I believe global governments, central banks, and global financial institutions thought, “Party on, dude! We’re back to 2010 all over again”. Boy, were they wrong. This time, the global central banks, governments and state-run enterprises engaged in bigger and more complex credit/debt structures while attempting to run the same game they were running back in 2010 and 2011. The difference this time is that the US Fed started raising Fed Fund Rates and destroyed the US Dollar carry trade while putting increasing pressure on the global market, global debt and global trade. The continued rally of the US Dollar after the 2018 lows helped to solidify the advantages and risks in the markets. This upside rally in the US Dollar, after the 2014 to 2016 rally, really upset the balance of the global markets and setup an increasing pressure point for foreign markets. It soon became very evident that risks in the foreign markets could be partially mitigated by investing in the US stock market and by moving capital away from risky currencies and into US Dollar based assets. Capital is always doing what it always does – seeking out the best environment for returns and protection from risk. Thus, we have the setup right now – only 15 months before the 2020 US Presidential elections. What happens now? This setup is likely to prompt a rotation in the global markets as well as within the US stock market. It is very likely that a continued contraction in consumer and banking activity (think business, real estate, trade, commodities, and others) will prompt a contraction in global economics very similar to what happened in 2014~2016. This process will likely put extreme risk factors at play in some of the most fragile economies and state-run enterprises on the planet. Once the flooring begins to crack in some of these markets, we’ll see how this event will play out. Right now, our eye is watching Europe and Asia for early warning signs. The US Fed will continue to manipulate the FFR levels in an attempt to help mitigate the risks associated with this contraction event. It is likely that the US Fed already sees what we see and it attempting to position themselves into a more responsive stance given the potential outcomes. Inadvertently, the US Fed and global central banks presented an offer that was too good for anyone to ignore – easy cash. What they didn’t expect is that the 2014 to 2019 rally in the US Dollar and US stock market would transition capital deployment within the global market in such a way that it has – setting up the current event cycle. We believe a downside pricing event is very likely over the next 10 to 25+ days where the US stock market may fall 12 to 25%, targeting levels shown on this chart (or slightly lower) as this rotational event takes place. Ultimately, the US markets will recover much quicker than many foreign/global markets. Our estimates are that the recovery in the US markets will likely begin to take place near March or April 2020 and continue higher beyond this date. This Custom Smart Cash Index chart highlights the type of capital shift activity we’ve been describing to our readers and followers. It is easy to see that capital moved out of risky investments within the downturns on this chart and into the most opportunistic equity markets within the uptrends on this chart. Remember, most opportunistic markets are sometimes outside of the scope of this Smart Cash index. For example, this chart does not relate strength in the Precious Metals markets or other commodities/currencies. All this chart is trying to highlight for followers is how capital is being deployed in viable global equity markets and when capital is exiting or entering these markets. Given the current setup, we would expect a breakdown in this Smart Cash Index over the next 4+ months to set up a new lower price level establishing a base/bottom before attempting to move higher. We believe the 100 level, shown as historical support, is a proper target price level for this move initially. Lastly, we believe capital is moving aggressively into the precious metals markets and we urge all skilled technical traders to pay attention to this chart of the Gold/Silver ratio. If our analysis is correct and a larger rotation price cycle is about to unfold in the global markets, which may last well into 2020 (or beyond) for certain global markets, then you really need to pay attention to the upside potential for this Gold/Silver ratio. As we’ve drawn on this chart, if this ratio recovers to 50% of the 2011 peak levels as this rotation unloads on the global market, this would push Gold and Silver prices to levels potentially 60% to 140%+ higher than current levels. I understand how hard it is to understand these types of incredible price increases and how they could possibly be relative to current prices, but trust us in our research. Gold and Silver prices have been measurably depressed over the past 3 to 4 years. Unleashing the real valuation levels of these precious metals at a time when risk factors are excessive suggests that Gold could easily be trading above $3200 and Silver above $60 to $65 within 6 to 12 months. In closing, we want to urge all skilled technical traders to keep a very open perspective to the “Party on, Dude” mode of the global central banks and be aware that a very fragile floor is the only thing holding up the markets in another massive US presidential election cycle event. In our opinion, the writing is already on the wall and we are preparing for this rotational event and alerting our members on what to do to profit from these moves. The Federal Reserve and global central banks will attempt to keep the party rolling for as long as possible because they know the downside event could be something they don’t want to have to deal with. So watch how these global central banks attempt to nudge public perception away from risks and towards the “party on” mode. Stay alert. Stay aware. When this breaks, it will break quickly and aggressively. Using technical analysis and proven strategies we can follow the market trends and profit from them no matter which the market moves. We bet with the market (the house) and provide entry, target, and stops for all trades we initiate. GOOGLE PARENT ALPHABET OVERTAKES APPLE TO BECOME NEW KING OF CASH / THE FINANCIAL TIMES \| Etiquetas: Cash, Google, Liquidity Google parent Alphabet overtakes Apple to become new king of cash Leadership switch follows concerted effort by iPhone maker to reduce its liquid reserves Richard Waters in San Francisco The financial reserves of Google’s parent company Alphabet have risen to $117bn while Apple’s cash pile has fallen to $102bn © Bloomberg The corporate world has a new king of cash. The title for the company with the biggest financial reserves, held by Apple for a decade, has passed to Google’s parent, Alphabet, according to figures released in recent days. The switch in leadership follows a concerted effort by the iPhone maker to reduce its liquid reserves, six years after it first came under pressure from activist investor Carl Icahn to pay out more of its cash hoard. Apple’s holdings of cash and marketable securities, net of debt, has fallen to $102bn, down from a peak of $163bn at the end of 2017. Alphabet’s financial reserves have been moving in the opposite direction. At $117bn, its cash pile has risen by almost $20bn over the same period. The rise of Google’s parent to the top of the corporate liquidity rankings puts its corporate wealth and power on conspicuous display at a politically sensitive moment. After being hit with €8.2bn in antitrust fines to the EU in the past two years, it now faces intense scrutiny in Washington. The company’s preference for hoarding its money and spending it on trying to break into new markets, rather than using it to reward shareholders with buybacks or dividends, as Apple has done, also antagonises some investors. “In general, their attempts to reinvent themselves with their new initiatives aren’t working out,” said Walter Price, a portfolio manager at Allianz Global Investors. “I wish they’d return more cash to shareholders and waste less.” Too much liquidity? The cash build-up has come despite a surge in capital spending. At $25bn last year — up 50 per cent from 2017 — much of the money has been pouring into real estate, as Google has added to its office holdings in cities such as New York and built data centres to support its growing cloud computing business. Ruth Porat, chief financial officer, has been at pains to downplay the real estate investments, stressing that they are a one-off and that, in a normal quarter, 70 per cent of capital spending goes into servers and other new equipment. The infrastructure to support artificial intelligence that Google had been building “requires a tonne of compute power”, said Youssef Squali, an analyst at SunTrust Robinson Humphrey. But he added that, like some other big tech companies, it had seen higher spending on machine learning feed through directly into higher revenue. That had left Wall Street generally comfortable with the spending surge. It is in areas beyond Google’s core business that the complaints persist. Alphabet’s cash is produced almost entirely by its search advertising business, which has been supplemented by strong growth from online video service YouTube. By contrast, Google’s other businesses — such as cloud computing, smartphones and home automation — are believed to have been consuming cash. Alphabet has also lost $15bn in the six years since disclosures began in businesses beside Google — something it describes as its “Other Bets”, ranging from the Waymo driverless car unit to the Verily healthcare division. Google had done enough to “make the cut” in cloud computing, where it is chasing market leaders Amazon Web Services and Microsoft, said Mr Price. But he added that it had had little impact in breaking into other markets. Heightened buybacks Until last week, Alphabet has also stood out among big tech companies for not taking a more aggressive stance on returning cash to shareholders following the passage of US tax reform at the end of 2017. The new law applied an immediate — though reduced — tax rate to US companies’ overseas cash reserves, in the process removing the incentive to sit on the money rather than start paying it out. Apple has responded to the change by spending $122bn on buying back stock and paying dividends in the past 18 months. Other companies to dig deep include Cisco Systems, which has cut its cash holdings from $35bn at the time of the new tax law to only $11bn. Alphabet’s stock buybacks, by contrast, have been paltry. In the nearly four years since it began repurchasing its own stock, it has spent an average of only $1.7bn a quarter. In that time, it has handed out more new shares in the form of employee stock benefits than it has bought back through its repurchase programme. As a result, the payments have done nothing to lift its earnings per share — the reason investors generally welcome buybacks. Things could be about to change. Last week, Alphabet said its board had added $25bn to its stock buyback programme, taking total new repurchase authorisations to $37.5bn since the start of this year. Ms Porat said the increase did not reflect any change in Alphabet’s financial priorities, and that its two top goals were unchanged: to invest in the long-term growth of its existing businesses, and to support acquisitions. However, the move contributed to a strong stock price rebound on the same day that the company also reported a rebound in revenue growth, dispelling worries about a sharp secular slowdown in its advertising business. The cash mountain Even the heightened rate of buybacks may not cap the growth in Alphabet’s cash mountain. Its free cash flow this year was forecast to top $30bn, rising to almost $40bn next year, said George Salmon, an analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown. The new buyback intentions “don’t represent a step change” big enough to actually reduce the company’s total reserves, he said. Many investors are now counting on a steady increase in Alphabet’s stock repurchases as its search advertising business continues to mature — much as Apple responded to an end of growth in iPhone volumes with a more concerted effort to distribute its cash. One potential avenue for using the money — making acquisitions — looks less likely given the regulatory backdrop, according to some investors. “The US government is going to take care of the M&A question by making it more difficult to do deals,” said Jim Tierney, a chief investment officer at AllianceBernstein. Along with growing maturing in the core business, that was likely to make the $25bn repurchase authorisation announced last week “the tip of the iceberg”, he said. Facebook, with less than half the cash reserves, has also turned its thoughts to distributing more of its excess cash, heavily outspending Google last year on stock repurchases. “These are going to become free cash flow machines with nowhere to spend their money except on buybacks,” said Mr Tierney. THE NEW CENSORS: THE GLOBAL GAG ON FREE SPEECH IS ... RUSSIA AND CHINA: PARTNERSHIP IS MUCH BETTER FOR C... PRECIOUS METALS REACHING INITIAL TARGETS PRIOR TO ... GLOBAL CENTRAL BANKS MOVE TO KEEP THE PARTY ROLLIN... GOOGLE PARENT ALPHABET OVERTAKES APPLE TO BECOME N... IN GREENBACKS WE TRUST: GLOBAL CRISES PROPEL DEMAN... HONG KONG'S PRESENT IS TAIWAN´S FUTURE / GEOPOLITI...	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line179
__label__wiki	0.643058	0.643058	WFDU is happy to announce that with the FCC approval, it has successfully doubled their antenna height on the Alpine Tower and raised the power to 3000 watts, increasing our listenership more than two fold. Getting the word out that WFDU has expanded its coverage area pursuant to the map below. WFDU-FM General Manager and Program Director Duff Sheffield and Chief Engineer Michael Philips drove around the NYC metropolitan area to determine how far the station gets after the power upgrade. Amazingly, WFDU now covers most of Long Island, Lower Connecticut, Lower Hudson Valley and the five Boroughs of New York City. In the upcoming September 2016 Membership Drive, the station really needs listener support as they plan to introduce new membership benefits. Listener supported WFDU raised the output power from 650 watts to 3000 watts. This upgrade has more than doubled our FCC licensed coverage area at 89.1MHz and increased our potential on-air audience from 3.8 million persons to 8.2 million persons in the NYC metro area. WFDU also began broadcasting in HD (Hybrid Digital). There are total 3 digital channels now at 89.1MHz. The HD1 channel, WFDU-The Essential broadcasts programs that have been familiar to our audience for over 40 years. The HD2 channel - Jazz & What's More (Monday through Friday) is expansion of our tried-and-true eclectic music shows that include blues, classic country, oldies, bluegrass etc. We are also very proud to announce that the WFDU HD3 channel, also called as Masterworks is devoted entirely to classical music to give an alternative to those discerning listeners in this very popular public radio music format. All forms of classical music including opera are featured. WFDU looks toward being able to partner with prestigious organizations to provide more exposure for WFDU’s exciting new music formats. HD radios are now readily available in most new cars and at most major online e-tail websites from $50 and this new technology opens up a whole new variety of listening experiences. All WFDU music channels are streaming on the web 24/7 and are available on iHeartRadio, iTunes Radio, and many other streaming services including our own web streams found on our website <wfdu.fm> All shows are also available on our website based archives for 2 weeks after they have aired. For those interested in helping out with a donation, WFDU offers a secure credit card “DONATE” area on the website or by calling 201-692-2012. WFDU will truly be the eclectic voices of Fairleigh Dickinson University. For more info, please email WFDU General Manager & Program Director Duff Sheffield at: duff@fdu.edu	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line183
__label__wiki	0.936745	0.936745	Tag Archives: Mike GOP Sen. Mike Braun: 'It'll be interesting to see' how Senate Republicans react to Bolton's bombshell January 27, 2020 Sexual Health Most of the Sunday political talk shows had already aired by the time The New York Times reported that former National Security Adviser John Bolton reveals first-hand information on President Trump linking Ukraine military aid to Kyiv investigating Joe Biden and other Democratic targets in his upcoming book. But Kasie Hunt's MSNBC show Kasie DC had not taped, and she got what we might think of as a first draft of the Senate Republican response from Sen. Mike Braun (R-Ind.).Earlier Sunday, NBC's Chuck Todd had asked Braun on Meet the Press about Trump's impeachment trial, on which Braun serves as a juror. He said the Democratic House impeachment managers had "put together a broad, comprehensive case" last week, but it was "circumstantial in nature."Now that there appears to be first-hand evidence from a willing witness, Hunt asked Braun Sunday evening, "do you care that John Bolton is saying that the president had a quid pro quo for money that Congress authorized for this purpose?" Braun said you have to consider the whole of Bolton's allegations, including his integrity. "Do you question John Bolton's integrity?" Hunt asked. "No," Braun said, "but you'd go through that." He added that the case so far "didn't deliver the goods," and "it'll be interesting to see what happens" with the new revelation.We finally know the kind of information Bolton could testify to, if four Republicans agree to subpoena him, so "how can you stand up and say, 'Sorry, I don't want to hear it?'" Hunt asked. "We'll all have to size that up and see what we think, how it impacts our own decisions on what we do with more information," Braun answered.> .@SenatorBraun reacts to breaking news from the New York Times on an unpublished manuscript from John Bolton, in which he claims the president tied Ukraine aid to investigations he sought:@Kasie: Do you question John Bolton's integrity?@SenatorBraun: No, but… pic.twitter.com/J5RoZ8Ul1m> > — Kasie DC (@KasieDC) January 27, 2020Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) had an easier time with the question. > "We believe in common sense, and you can't look at all this and say: Is this how somebody would act if they were innocent?" -@SenStabenow reacts to the impeachment trial so far. pic.twitter.com/q827u4XhpY> > — Kasie DC (@KasieDC) January 27, 2020More stories from theweek.com Trump and Rudy Giuliani slam Bolton, question his manhood after book excerpt report Bolton's lawyer blames the White House for leaking damaging book excerpts Through Blankets of Hope, Brooklyn brothers aim to spark a global movement of kindness Mike Pompeo accused a veteran NPR reporter of 'lying,' being 'unhinged,' and misidentifying Bangladesh for Ukraine on a map NPR host Mary Louise Kelly said that Pompeo yelled at her and cursed her out for asking him tough questions on Ukraine in a Friday interview. Why are California's mayors lining up to endorse Mike Bloomberg? London Breed, San Francisco’s first black female mayor, joins campaign following support from Stockton and San Jose mayorsThere’s nothing surprising about a billionaire winning the support of the mayor of San Francisco, a city flush with tech wealth and new money.But when the billionaire is Mike Bloomberg – and the endorsement is the latest from a string of California mayors he mentored and supported – the vow of support raises some eyebrows.Bloomberg announced on Thursday that London Breed, San Francisco’s first black female mayor, would serve as his campaign’s chair of African Americans.“Voters re-elected London Breed by a wide margin because she is taking on the biggest and toughest issues – and she puts progress over politics,” the former New York mayor said in a statement. “I’m honored to have her support and look forward to working with her not only to win this election, but to help make San Francisco and all of California stronger, fairer, and greener – with more affordable housing, more good jobs, and healthcare for all.”Breed, who previously supported the California Senator Kamala Harris in the Democratic race for the presidential nomination, said on Facebook that she is backing Bloomberg because he “is the only candidate for president with a real plan for African Americans”, touting his Greenwood Initiative to increase black home ownership and the number of black-owned businesses.She acknowledged his harmful legacy of stop-and-frisk, the policing strategy that led to widescale racial profiling in New York City when Bloomberg was mayor, saying Bloomberg “owned up” to his “mistake” when he apologized for the 12 years he allowed the policy to flourish.“Of course I was a bit surprised to see the mayor endorsed Bloomberg,” said Lateefah Simon, president of the Bay Area Rapid Transit board and longtime friend of Breed. “But herein lies the power of the individual. It’s not San Francisco endorsing Mayor Bloomberg. It’s Mayor Breed.”For some in San Francisco, that’s the problem. “I haven’t met many Bloomberg supporters in San Francisco,” local lawmaker Matt Haney told the Guardian. “In fact, I don’t think I’ve met any. It doesn’t seem reflective of where the residents of San Francisco are. I don’t think her endorsement is reflective of how residents feel.”A recent UC Berkeley poll found that 85% of Californians have either a negative opinion of Bloomberg or no opinion at all. Yet since entering the race late in November, Bloomberg has secured the endorsements of the mayors of three major cities in the state – San Francisco, Stockton and San Jose. “I haven’t met any Bloomberg supporters who were not elected officials, period,” Haney said.Bloomberg, one of the richest people in the United States, has for years invested in developing political and support network for local leaders, providing them access to both money and expertise. All three California mayors who recently announced endorsements went through Bloomberg’s Harvard City Leadership Initiative, a training program for city mayors – Stockton mayor Michael Tubbs and San Jose mayor Sam Liccardo in 2018, and Breed in 2019. Tubbs attended the CityLab Summit in Paris in 2017, another Bloomberg-sponsored conference.In San Francisco, Bloomberg’s support included a $ 275,000 donation to support a soda tax and $ 7.1m to defeat an initiative to reverse a ban on e-cigarette sales – both measures supported by Breed. In 2018, San Jose received up to $ 2.5m from Bloomberg Philanthropies to tackle climate change. In June, Bloomberg Philanthropies donated $ 500,000 to a Stockton-based education reform group.“Mike has made significant investments in San Francisco, in cities throughout California, and indeed across the nation,” Breed said on Facebook.It’s significant that Bloomberg has been able to win the endorsements of black trailblazing mayors like Tubbs and Breed.At his first campaign stop in Stockton, California, in December 2019 Bloomberg stood next to Tubbs and apologized again for stop-and-frisk, but never acknowledged why the policy was harmful, or who it harmed.“There isn’t a politician alive who hasn’t made a mistake,” Breed said of stop-and-frisk. “The difference with Mike Bloomberg is he owned up to his.”“I think there is a long track record of people reaching out to black leaders and black communities in transactional ways,” Alicia Garza, founder of the Black Lives Matter movement, told the Guardian. “It really represents a lot of what’s wrong with politics in this country and I think it’s hard to believe that change will happen when these same kinds of dynamics are at play.“With that being said,” she continued, “there are decisions that leaders are having to make and they’re doing the calculus. Every leader has a right to do that.”Garza’s group, Black to the Future Action Fund, will be announcing its endorsement in February. While she demurred on her thoughts on Bloomberg and stop-and-frisk, she made a point to say that the group will consider “not just [the candidates’] future plans, but interrogating their records since they’ve been in power”. Mike Pompeo Blows Up at NPR Reporter: ‘Do You Think Americans Care About Ukraine?’ Secretary of State Mike Pompeo reportedly cursed and shouted at an NPR reporter after she repeatedly confronted him about his handling of the politically charged ouster of former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch. According to a transcript of the interview between NPR host Mary Louise Kelly and Pompeo, he repeatedly dodged questions on Ukraine and grew increasingly irate after Kelly asked, “Do you owe Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch an apology?” “You know, I agreed to come on your show today to talk about Iran,” Pompeo said before going on to insist, “I just don’t have anything else to say about that this morning.” When Kelly kept grilling him and noted that some within the State Department had criticized his failure to stand up for Yovanovitch after she was fired amid what she described as a smear campaign orchestrated by President Trump, Pompeo sought to dismiss the criticism as being from “unnamed sources.” But Kelly stopped him: “These are not unnamed sources. This is your senior adviser Michael McKinley, a career foreign service officer with four decades experience,” she said, reminding Pompeo that McKinley had testified on the matter under oath. Declining to comment on McKinley, Pompeo insisted, “I have defended every State Department official,” only to end the interview when Kelly asked him to refer her to any comments he’d made in defense of Yovanovitch. According to NPR, things grew even more heated after the interview had concluded, when Pompeo is said to have “silently glared” at Kelly before leaving the room. She was then reportedly asked to follow him without her recorder, but without any agreement that the following conversation would be off the record. At that point, Pompeo reportedly challenged Kelly to find Ukraine on an unmarked map and asked, “Do you think Americans care about Ukraine?” He reportedly wrapped up the meeting by declaring that “people will hear about this.” Read more at The Daily Beast.Got a tip? Send it to The Daily Beast hereGet our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more. Donald Trump is suddenly scared of Mike Bloomberg — as he should be Mike Bloomberg probably isn’t going to win the Democratic nomination for president. But he might beat Donald Trump anyway. The reason? Well, there are a couple billion of them — namely, the $ 2 billion Bloomberg plans to spend on Democrats' behalf. Democrats suggest Mike Pence may be 'misleading' Congress about his call with Ukraine December 18, 2019 Sexual Health The head of the House Intelligence Committee said Vice President Mike Pence may be "purposefully misleading" Congress about his own actions on Ukraine. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo warns Iran of 'decisive response' if harm in Iraq Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Friday warned Iran of a “decisive” response if U.S. interests are harmed in Iraq, after a series of rocket attacks on bases. Mike Bloomberg apologizes for calling Cory Booker "well spoken" December 8, 2019 Sexual Health "I probably shouldn't have used the word, but I could just tell you he is a friend of mine," Bloomberg said. Trump massively undermined Mike Pence's mission to stop Turkey's invasion of Syria, saying publicly that it's none of his business October 17, 2019 Sexual Health Pence is en route to Turkey to convince its president to stop his offensive on Kurdish fighters in northeastern Syria. His boss isn't helping. Poll: 40% of Americans say they think Mike Pence would make a better president than Trump An outsize chunk of the American population think Vice President Mike Pence would make a better president than President Trump, according to a new Insider poll.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line185
__label__cc	0.562449	0.437551	Come Sunday Morning [ To repeat ] At First Church in Boston (Marlborough & Berkeley Streets), the choir will sing Bless the Lord, O My Soul under the direction of Paul Cienniwa tomorrow, Sunday May the 31st. The service begins at 11:00am (Chowder Time), and streams live on WERS 88.9FM (Boston). No Cigar This past Thursday, I was driving back to Cambridge to fetch my wife from her work. Typical day, really. I tuned into WCRB on the car radio, and heard the announcer advise that next up was a complete Vanhal symphony (a Symphony in F, played by the Salieri Chamber Orchestra). No news there, either. But the next and unusual step, was my own. Normally, on hearing a work by, say, Vanhal announced on WCRB (and if you, Gentle Reader, should be an ardent Vanhallian, I apologize to you in advance), I tend to retune the radio dial to another station. But that afternoon, I decided to listen, and listen to the whole thing, primarily because I had recently heard the eccentric suggestion that it was “actually” Vanhal who composed works “attributed” to Mozart. All right, I thought; setting aside all questions of history and documents, let us consider if the composer of the work I am about to hear, could plausibly have composed mature Mozart. I am going to consider three questions, and the comparison of that day was made all the easier by the fact that I had been listening to so much authentic Mozart all week. (And I do apologize to our neighbors who enjoy Vanhal; I hate to seem to run down a ‘grade-B’ contemporary of Mozart, who was grade-triple-A fit to beat all grade-As.) Scoring (use of the orchestra). I am afraid that on this head, the Vanhal symphony struck me as staggeringly unimaginative, on the whole. On the plus side, there were some lovely solo-string passages (which modestly recalled the early Haydn symphonies I have been listening to). But the use of the winds was witheringly dull. There was not a single point at which the flutes, oboes or horns ‘broke free’ to play even a single independent measure; all of the wind writing (without fail) was simply a slavish doubling of something already being covered in the strings. The piece could have been composed for string orchestra alone, in other words, and the winds just added as an afterthought as a coloristic highlight. I needn’t tell anyone who has read any Mozart score, that the Salzburger could never be accused of such a paint-by-number approach to writing for the winds. Harmony. There is a scatologically amusing exchange in Peter Shaeffer’s Amadeus, in which Mozart is overheard saying, “Have you heard his [i.e., Salieri’s] latest opera, The Chimney Sweep? Dog-shit. Dried dog-shit. Tonic-and-dominant, tonic-and-dominant, tonic-and-dominant — not one interesting modulation in the entire piece.” Subtract the tone of stagey scorn, and we have something close to a description of the Vanhal Symphony in F. All of the harmony, all the chord sequences, all the harmonic motion of every phrase, is dutifully correct, and unexceptional. There is nothing of the harmonic deftness and agility which can be found in practically any Mozart score which he composed past the age of 20. He had already milled out all that dutiful harmonic broadcloth as a youth, you see; so his compositional ear demanded flashes of inspiration. The difference (if you like) between a square dance, and the tango (harmonically speaking). The Vanhal is a thoroughly pleasant piece, mind you, but harmonically, it’s Mozart as a 15-year-old. Composition/phrasing. Essentially the same quarrel as (2.) above. Nice work, but two orders of creativity beneath the mature Mozart. In good conscience, then, I can only report that, based purely on musical considerations, what I have heard of Vanhal takes him completely out of the running as any possible “ghost-writer” for Mozart. Which, of course, cannot be any surprise to most anyone. We should not normally punish these ‘workmen’ composers for merely doing their work stylishly and characteristically; it is in comparison to the fiery creative spirits such as Haydn and Mozart that their works pale. A Mere Curiosity, To Be Sure Dubious Documentation, Just Yesterday Division From the composer’s notes to Naxos’ Elliott Carter 100th Anniversary Release: Rhapsodic Musings (1999) for solo violin. Rhapsodic Musings is a present to Robert Mann on his eightieth birthday. It is a small tribute to his extraordinary, devoted advocacy of contemporary music. As is well-known, with other members of the Juilliard Quartet he gave such pioneering and commanding performances of quartets by Bartók, Schoenberg, and many others, including my own, that many of these works became part of the performers’ repertory. His teaching and other activities brought these scores to the attention of students. Using his initials R.M. in the title of this short violin solo and in its main motive — re, mi (D, E) — this piece tries to suggest some of his remarkable human and artistic qualities. It was composed in June, 2000, in Southbury, Connecticut. It is apt to sneak by us, but Carter tells us he wrote the piece in 2000; this appears to have eluded the Naxos editor of the booklet, though, who gives the date of the piece’s composition as 1999. I’ll repeat that Whenever isthmustangle harbinger goes a-whisky portabello, agley aglow hurdy-gurdy spindle burn stump oracle pincushion. Urge blithely rectangular. A hutch may plinth corduroy chin-guard Bournemouth portcullis aerosol, in total budgerigar froth pert thimble stocked ocular inch beribboned. Tout de suite. Hairpiece airplane famed incontinent thirsting mickle coachwright shipboard spill maugre igloo blunderbuss. Achtung my dear rannygazoo horticulture urn gingham harelip Rouen nipple pond burglary embolism archer penury with ping nary any marigold. Pig in boots aple Savannah boutique bucket of sip slip spat tincture erudition in urchins. Hogwash laborer pillbox zigzag charabanc blancmange under separate easels pending tonnage. Orange incest over tempestuous choric Thirroul ambulatory cornbread piled upon amortized Thespians. Devil-may-care carrot athwart socketed jonquils hardly abating sanctimonious argon ruffians. Amplify my mournful tie-pin, Königsberg. Woody tinny sinecure feckless purge their fairly unguent crop in re drizzle deselected arugula. Mandibular & bulbous. Starlight lichen lightens her contentious insincerity shake, shake, shake. Hot damn, Mississauga. Artful archbishoprics plummet upticks downwind the bankrupt buns of genetically truncated ballrooms. A chicken to measure it. Finito. Bury the enchilada, hatch her masher. That which cannot go into the form of cogs and compasses John Ruskin, from “The Nature of Gothic” (courtesy of Laura Goodin): Men were not intended to work with the accuracy of tools, to be precise and perfect in all their actions. If you will have that precision out of them, and make their fingers measure degrees like cog-wheels, and their arms strike curves like compasses, you must unhumanize them. All the energy of their spirits must be given to make cogs and compasses of themselves. All their attention and strength must go to the accomplishment of the mean act. The eye of the soul must be bent upon the finger-point, and the soul’s force must fill all the invisible nerves that guide it, ten hours a day, that it may not err from its steely precision, and so soul and sight be worn away, and the whole human being be lost at last—a heap of sawdust, so far as its intellectual work in this world is concerned: saved only by its Heart, which cannot go into the form of cogs and compasses, but expands, after the ten hours are over, into fireside humanity. On the other hand, if you will make a man of the working creature, you cannot make a tool. Let him but begin to imagine, to think, to try to do anything worth doing; and the engine-turned precision is lost at once. Out come all his roughness, all his dulness, all his incapability; shame upon shame, failure upon failure, pause after pause: but out comes the whole majesty of him also, and we know the height of it only when we see the clouds settling upon him. And, whether the clouds be bright or dark, there will be transfiguration behind and within them. Anatomy of Sonic Sentimentality Our Intrepid Soprano Jaya tells us more about “Kum-Ba-Ya” than some of us will find it possible (or, advisable) to bear . . . . Marginalia from an Underground Classic . . . Beefheart was creating more headaches for Zappa. “Ordinarily, a singer goes in the studio, puts earphones on, listens to the track, tries to sing with it and away you go,” Zappa explained. “[But] Don couldn't tolerate the headphones. He wanted to stand in the studio and sing as loud as he could—singing along with the audio leakage coming through the three panes of glass which comprised the control-room windows. The chances of him staying in sync were nil—but that’s how the vocals were done.” Beefheart couldn’t fathom what Zappa was so upset about. “I was playing—just like the whales,” he told Zig Zag. “I don’t think there is such a thing as synchronization . . . that’s what they do before a commando raid, isn’t it?” Kevin Courrier, Trout Mask Replica (pp. 97-98) That goes to show you what a moon can do. Don van Vliet (Captain Beefheart), “Moonlight on Vermont” A May Inconsequentiality The middle letter of both Fauré & Requiem is u. And Back to the Weed Exceptionally clement day in Boston today. For my lunch break this afternoon, I went across the street to the park, sat on a bench, and read for half an hour: The Sot-Weed Factor by John Barth. — I had read up to p.534, who knows how long it’s been (my bookmark is the Borders receipt, and I purchased the book 4 Apr 08). I read: “In plain English,” remarked the Captain, “ye was her pimp.” No surprise (for it is a delightfully circuitous and rollicking narrative), I am completely lost . . . so I back up to the start of the chapter. Reached a point where I was tired of reading, but I still had time of my own before I had to be back in the saddle . . . so I grab a few cushions and lie out on the sunny grass . . . came close to nodding off, too. A little slice of heaven, in the middle of the work-day. Originally read The Sot-Weed Factor decades ago, and (probably), appropriately enough, in upstate New York. At that time, I had an already-yellowing copy I had found at a used bookstore. So the desire to re-read the book, after all these long years, came with the need to scare up a fresh copy. (“Ye was” can’t be right, can it?) To be sung in the Back Bay At First Church in Boston (Marlborough & Berkeley Streets), the choir will sing Bless the Lord, O My Soul under the direction of Paul Cienniwa on Sunday May the 31st. The service begins at 11:00am (Chowder Time), and streams live on WERS 88.9FM (Boston). Over at listen: Steve Hicken speaks well of the Pacifica Quartet’s completion of the Carter string quartet cycle on Naxos. . . . and reviews the 4-disc Nonesuch retrospective reissue. Objection Sustained “One needs a searchlight to find ritardandi in Stravinsky’s music,” wrote Louis Andriessen & Elmer Schönberger in The Apollonian Clockwork (p. 175). Within easy reach, though, and without even checking to see if the batteries in the flashlight are still live: Low-hanging fruit, really: the final page of L’oiseau de feu. Immediately to hand, and it was an obvious place to look. Au pied de la lettre, of course, I haven’t answered the claim! Here the marking is not strictly ritardando (slowing down) but poco a poco allargando (getting broader, little by little). Having played clarinet in the Suite, though, it does not take much further searching to turn up ipsissima verba: m.354, un poco rit. To be sure, the authors will feel that sharp practice has been turned upon them: Here I’ve selected a piece still under the influence of Igor Fyodorovich’s great teacher, Nikolai Andreyevich. If the reader allows the authors to funnel him on their garden path, yes, in much of Stravinsky’s later work, these characteristically Romantic fluctuations of tempo are one of the elements quite deliberately pruned away. There is a truth underneath the flip bon mot. And that, too, arguably, is in harmony with the great subject of the book. One Bunny Stew, Coming Right Up And if it wasn’t for her powder and all her store-bought paint, That St Louis gal wouldn’t look like what she ain’t. — from “The St Louis Blues” as sung by Doc Watson The other day, I expanded my Boston-area horizons somewhat. Various routines are apt to keep me to a small repertory of well-beaten paths, but Saturday night I headed out to Brighton, for it was high time I broke bread again with a friend who, in the days ere I knew him, migrated to Boston to kick the St Louis blues. (Just rhetorical flourish, of course; I’ve never heard him speak a word against Missouri.) One component of the overall experience that day was, new surroundings to ogle while waiting 40 minutes for an MBTA bus. More amusingly (much, much more), however: I saw — when the bus had finally arrived, and we were trundling through Brookline Village — that a movie house in Coolidge Corner is holding a “Holy Grail Quote-Along” (and later this week as it turns out). I should not actually go, of course; but part of me is delighted simpy at the thought that they are doing such a thing . . . . Heard on Abbey Road At his site, Jack Gallagher announces that the program of his music recorded by JoAnn Falletta and the LSO is slated for a Naxos release in late 2010. Program includes the Diversions Overture, the Sinfonietta for string orchestra, a Berceuse, and the Symphony in One Movement: Threnody. There have not been a great many Naxos releases that I’ve snapped up immediately upon release; but this will be one! Bucking the Trend Delighted to read this of Haitink: At age eighty, Bernard Haitink defies the truism that conductors with advanced age adopt more expansive tempi, the resulting interpretive extremes to be retroactively justified by appeals to mysticism or other pseudo-intellectual theories. No, good old Bernie would have none of that! He sticks to the same youthful brash tempi he favored in his younger years . . . . This courtesy of Misha on Tonic Blotter. Supplement to Clockwork Just realized, not only what a lovely article het is, but that it is an anagram for the. Not only an anagram, but — appropriately for the composer who is the ostensible subject of the book (and, not that this is anything but mathematically likely with a three-letter word) — het is a rotation of the. A virtual neighbor asks (generally): So why do you composers compose? That's not a flip question, but a sincere inquiry into the nature of the creative impulse. Is it something you just like to do because you do it well, or something you feel compelled to do (as Hans Sachs says to Stoltzing, "The bird sings because it must.")? What is your creative process? Do you say to yourself, "I think I'll write a string quartet," and so you sit down and write it, or do you hear "string quartet" sounds in your head? Does the music flow on the first draft, like Mozart, or is it a laborious process of writing and re-writing and trial and error? As someone who couldn't compose music to save his life, I'm fascinated by this. I reply: Not to seem to offer a flip answer, but yes to nearly everything. Most of what you’ve written has an echo in my own experience. I like to compose, it’s an activity in which I take pleasure for its own sake; once I found that I felt I could do it well, that was an immediate additional layer of pleasure . . . and the driver for can I write the next one better still in some way(s)? I find it difficult to settle on quite the right way to express the compulsion angle. Dale Moore, a voice teacher at Wooster, would tell his students frankly how difficult it would afterwards be to build a career in music; so that if they felt at all that they could be happy majoring in something (anything) else, they should — that they ought not to major in music unless that was the only course of study they would be happy pursuing. In my case, I went to Wooster to the sole end of studying music, three years after I had been graduated from high school. I went with the thought of studying clarinet performance, because that was most of my musical experience until then. I had puttered with a few sketchy compositional notions (and I had done quite a chunk of arranging for school musicals and marching band), but I had not had any opportunity to pursue any directed study of composition . . . and the thought really did not occur to me, until Jack Russell (my first-year theory teacher, and also the director of the Wooster Chorus) made the suggestion. But once I set to studying composition, I was engaged . . . and I came to feel that this was pretty much what I was made to do. Anything else I might do, could probably be covered by any of a hundred other people on the planet . . . . As to specifics, any and every variant happens on a case-by-case basis. After the November Evensong, I was so pleased and grateful to the St Paul’s choir, that I set to writing a choir-plus-clarinet setting of a specific text. Or, at times I hear a fairly ‘abstract’ musical idea, and later ‘attach’ it to specific instrumentation. Likewise with the flow . . . there’s a range from the just splurge out onto the page experience to knock it around again and again until it’s gotten right. Nor would the listener necessarily be able to twig which method was walked through, judging by the sounds of the musical result. Lovely mini-reunion with old Wooster pals this week. I fear I may have given too thoroughly negative an impression of Buffalo days, so as an emendation to the minutes: There’s a piece I am very pleased and proud to have written, I felt it was a fine musical success at the time — though the score I have long since lost, or, there was no score as such, the piece was largely improvisational, and there was no score, there were only the six parts. I had written, I forget, maybe twenty-thirty brief musical excerpts for each player, and left the order in which to play them up to the performer; I had different excerpts for a beginning, middle and ending section; and finally, I had brief, composed passages for the very start, and the very end. The piece was called Ambiguous Strategies. A dear old Wooster friend, Jeff Wallace, pursued dance studies after Woo (or, mostly post-Woo); and we had a semi-unspoken agreement in principle to do some sort of collaboration. Cutting to the chase, Jeff came to Buffalo to perform an interpretive dance to Ambiguous Strategies. The performance went well, and was well received. Happily, Jeff made a videotape of his performance, so there is (somewhere) a document of the piece. I am very pleased that it happened, and I am curious to view the video . . . it would theoretically be possible to ‘recreate’ the piece from the video, I suppose, but I do not really have much interest in doing quite that. I had rather write something new. Reading (the English translation of) Het Apollonisch uurwerk. In many ways, impressive and enjoyable. I am apt to wonder, though, if just perhaps, when Louis Andriessen and Elmer Schönberger write of Nadia Boulanger that she had a brilliant mind and an overbearing character, there may be some slight degree of the p. calling the k. black. A recording is now out of the long-mislaid Hindemith concerto for the left hand (one of a number of such works commissioned of famous composers by Paul Wittgenstein). But the pairing is the puzzling Dvořák “New World”. May just wait for the post-premiere recording . . . . (Well, nothing puzzling about the Dvořák symphony, only about the combination of those two works. Whether on the disc, or on an actual program.) An old friend from Wooster is in town, for a radiology conference. Suit me up! Our man in the Manhattoes is hold up well in the midst of the Mahlerama, though he must be looking forward to the seventh-symphony stretch. The recording of the premiere of Mark Simon’s Silver Spring is a delight to listen to. Fans eagerly await Movement II. By Request: Take a Trip Back with Father Tiresias Genesis, Chapter I In hindsight, I must actually have heard “Follow You, Follow Me” on the radio first of all; but the first Genesis I ever heard, in knowledge of the band’s name, was likely The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway. Probably “Back in NYC”; I distinctly remember counting it out in seven, as well as the deep thudding-but-slightly-squishy bass notes accenting the downbeat of each measure. I had already known for a few years that the head of Pink Floyd’s “Money” is in seven [and, a bit amusingly considering my much-later relocation to Boston, my first encounter with “Money” was at a high school dance on Cape Cod while on a band exchange]; but as the Floyd tune is closely tied to R&B roots, “Back in NYC” struck me very freshly as seven with a difference . . . and then (unlike the Floyd number, which breaks into four at the middle) the contrasting bits were also in seven . . . and the reckless guitar fuzz bursting in for “No time for romantic escape,” the return to the A section . . . “so I’ll burn it to ash,” and the subtle velvety glissando which plunges down to deep bass on ‘ash’. This was pop music as I had never heard it, nor even imagined it might be; and I liked it mightily. The three LPs of The Lamb and Selling England by the Pound, I came very quickly to know every note of (and if the septuple meter of “Back in NYC” caught my attention, I found yet more of it, and with various creative subdivisions, in “The Battle of Epping Forest” & Tony Banks’ solo in the middle of “Cinema Show,” e.g.). An old mate from high school had the post-Gabriel live double-LP Second’s Out, including numbers from Nursery Cryme and Foxtrot, at that time out of print in the states . . . at some point, I found import copies of each. I found something of a difference in tone between the first pair of ‘the classic quintet’ albums, and my favorite Selling England and Lamb, but I found them all engagingly creative. (I may possibly be bucking consensus in preferring Nursery Cryme to Foxtrot . . . I find the dystopian “Get ’Em Out by Friday” just a shade hectoring, and there’s the odd line in “Supper’s Ready” — “And even though I’m feeling good, something tells me I’d better activate my prayer capsule” — whose eccentricity seems clunky.) Of the post-Gabriel quartet albums, A Trick of the Tail is a strong favorite (especially “Ripples”). A by-now crusty memory is of comparative disappointment with Wind & Wuthering, but it’s time to revisit that. By good chance (meseems) the first new Genesis release during my awareness of the band, was Duke. Without side-tracking into reasons why, I’ll just say at present that this is my clear favorite among Genesis albums. That preference was (I think) already established (though possibly still to some degree beneath the surface) when a friend of mine who was working at Warner had an extra ticket for their Madison Square Garden date on the Duke tour. Duke on cassette (as well as The Lamb) was playing in the car as I drove out to my freshman year at the College of Wooster. Soon after my arrival (though not as any result thereof) Abacab was released. The apparent confusion of the following items is no doubt related to my having applied myself to some reasonable extent to my studies as a freshman: a. I immediately very much liked the title track (yes, even the pared-back vamp at the end); b. I managed to go to the Cleveland date on the promotional tour; c. to this day, I’m not at all sure that I’ve actually heard the entire album. Back at home one of the summer breaks from Wooster, I found a vinyl EP (or a single, I don’t quite recall) with “Keep It Dark” (from Abacab) and “Naminanu” (until the recent box reissue, so far as I know, not particularly available otherwise). “Naminanu” is perhaps an unlikely track over which to contract an obsession . . . but, I just liked it a great deal from the start. Over the next few years, I let my turntable pass out of my life, and as a necessary result, the vinyl (all that vinyl) slipped gradually out of my musical awareness. At the advent of the compact disc, although I did begin partly by ‘reclaiming’ even pop music which I had ‘lost’ through lack of vinyl-playing capacity, Genesis remained obscurely off in the wings. So it is, I have ‘discovered’ the boxed Genesis remasters after decades of neglect. And the tale to be told must wait for another entry. Unusual density of activity recently. I like it. Last week I observed the two rehearsals of Out in the Sun, which went very well. It’s a technically demanding piece, but musically rewarding as well – I don’t take my own word for it, but at least three of the ten players very kindly made a point of thanking me for the piece, and telling me how they enjoyed playing it. The actual performance on Thursday evening was marvelous (and there was even some audience); I heard someone shout “Bravo!” from an area of the house where my invited guests were not seated. I had refined the composition painstakingly before letting it out to the conductor; and I knew that I liked the piece. I had seen and heard the piece in rehearsal, and so it was no surprise to me that the NEC players made such a great presentation of the piece. So, while of course I hoped that the audience might like the piece, and I knew that the performance was as flattering a delivery of the music as a composer might wish, I must say that the force of the audience’s positive response to the piece, as people approached me at the intermission, really touched me. Of course, I might like the piece (and this might be eccentric of me), but I never feel that I can take that as a guarantee that the audience will quite take to it. It was an even richer pleasure that everyone that I spoke to had been so favorably impressed by the music. In memory, the power of this evening’s impression still overshadows an even recenter performance. Yesterday the St Paul’s choir sang a piece of mine for the first time since my designation as Composer-in-Residence, the Alleluia in D (the same piece which the Atlanta Young Singers of Callanwolde will be including in their Christmas-and-after programs this season). A couple of moments when a stray singer came in early . . . the counting is tricky, and in fact we did not even read this piece until last Wednesday, so (a) the choir roster has changed so, that I think only two choristers have sung this in performance before, and (b) the many people who are new to the piece, haven't “lived” with it enough to feel entirely at ease with the rhythmic quirks. No matter, those little slips did not appreciably ‘damage’ the overall impression of the piece . . . there are these little motifs which keep chasing themselves . . . so our tenor Brian (who has sung the piece many times before) said to me afterwards, “There were a couple of false entrances, but the way it’s written, no one noticed.” “Yes,” I agreed, “this is one of my rare train-wreck-resistant pieces.” [ 13.xi.06 ] Lame First Lines Dept “I’ve listened to the whole song through, and for perhaps the hundredth time, Elton; and, no: there doesn’t seem to be anything even the least bit funny. I hope you don’t mind.” Rome, Genesis & the Voice of a Master NC Woman Returns Fragment Taken From Rome — 25 Years After Husband Found It Near Colosseum [ link ] Gone are the days when a tourist could casually snaffle some rubble from la città eterna. The mood in Genesis was such a contrast to the chaos of Yes, where nobody could agree what day of the week it was and any time anyone said, “Shall we make a record?,” everybody would start arguing. It was hopeless. How we in Yes ever got anything done, I still don’t know. — Bill Bruford, in Genesis: Chapter and Verse And: the voice of Bartók [ link ] A Couple of Doors Too Many The Mingei Museum in San Diego publishes some prints on the theme of Bartók's opera, Duke Bluebeard’s Castle; whereof Dr Peter Czipott writes. [ link ] Te Deum vitae A Briton comes to Boston, to conduct music by a Frenchman, written the year after he visited Russia [ review ] (Even better than when de Burgos led the Grande Messe des morts, I might add.) Really enjoying the Sibelius software. There are some aspects of Radiant Maples which will make it tricky playing; but cues in the parts will help . . . and those are very easy in Sibelius. I find the most curious things in old folders on the PC . . . including this outrage of an autobiography: When I was graduated from high school, my parents informed me that my academic underperformance had so disgraced them, that they were obliged to sell me to the Juilliard school as an indentured servant. Unconfirmed reports indicate that their compensation consisted of original-cast recordings of Fiddler on the Roof and Mame. And the right to groom Michael Jackson’s pet monkey. I worked in the kitchens of Juilliard for three months, until my skillful shelling of peanuts, and highly fashionable ill-humor, earned me the admiration of the dean of the Flageolet Department. My success was short-lived, however. I was expelled when it was discovered that I was secretly reading the “Heard on the Street” column from the Wall Street Journal when I ought to have been analyzing the scherzi from the Schubert string quartets. I was exiled to Louisiana, where I was forced to spend two years listening to the song of Spanish moss. My hair color changed to jet black, I was made to dress in synthetic fabrics, I was forbidden the use of umbrellas, coffee was provided to me only in chewable form, and at last, I had succeeded in distilling the sound of Spanish moss into a twenty-minute tone poem for nose-flutes and giant rubber band which captured the imagination of Rolling Stone. Jan Wenner wrote, “You can hear the moss and feel the okra.” I was then taken on as a sonic lichen advisor in the Carter administration. The political analysts say that the hostages in Iran were Carter’s downfall. This was an elaborate deception to spare the country embarrassment over the true reason for the collapse of government: my $2.3-billion failure to make good on a promise to carpet Isfahan with singing Spanish moss. My subscription to Better Homes and Lichens was cancelled without pro-rated reimbursement. I was drinking Great Bluedini with George Lucas in The Space Bar in Bakersfield, where I invented the word wookie, which Lucas swiped and paid me hush money. Lucas always secretly despised John Williams, and hired me to sabotage all the f-sharps in the “Cakewalk of the Adolescent Ewoks” while the parts were on the stands at the Hatch Shell on the Charles River Esplanade. The footprints on R2D2 in the unretouched release of The Deodorant of the Jedi were my doing. I do not have shoes that match them, but I produced the prints with stencils and a mixture of whole-milk organic yoghurt and squid ink. The market demand for whole-milk yoghurt was the inspiration for the evolution of several otherwise promising violists from the Academy of Saint-Martin-in-the-Fields into strikingly photogenic cows. My job was tuning the cowbells so that their vibration would render the milk resistant to bacteria without irradiation. I returned in triumph to the Juilliard school, moss and yoghurt in hand. Through a combination of the fact that the music library was now entirely on-line, together with a disaffected Canadian’s web expertise, my proficiency in squid-ink calligraphy and some just plain lucky breaks, I was able to convince the academic musical community that the nine symphonies which were traditionally considered the work of Beethoven were in fact written by me over a series of summer vacations on Aruba, and had not really existed before 1986. The great advantage is all the royalties on the hundreds of recordings made of ‘my’ symphonies by the world’s major orchestras every year. The down-side is, I have to make sour faces and pretend I’m deaf. There is absolutely no truth to the rumor that my middle name was changed to Prescott from Prosciutto. (Standard disclaimers apply: I don’t work for the Lipton Co., nor does any of my family or friends, to my knowledge. I just drink a lot of tea. Most of it distributed by cos. other than Lipton, actually.) That a composer, struggling for any kind of recognition, writes in the 21st century to review a performance of Berlioz . . . of a piece which, though it was performed in Boston as early as 1888, the Boston Symphony did not ever play until 1954 . . . and Berlioz himself struggled for recognition in his own day, and had to resort to writing reviews to earn his bread . . . . I suppose it may be possible by an effort of the will to keep the flesh from creeping. I drew up a “to do” list on Saturday; made a good start on it, too. One task got a bit involved. [ click &c. ] Back when I met with Mary Jane Rupert to read Lost Waters, I also brought the harp part for Radiant Maples. One of the take-aways from that meeting: although repeated notes are idiomatic to and manageable on piano and guitar, they are less so with the harp. There are not many passages of repeated notes in the harp part of Radiant Maples (which is one reason, I suppose, that the subject did not come up when the piece was read by Brave New Works in November of ’07), and those passages would be easy to emend . . . and I wanted to bring the score into the Sibelius environment. So, I opened the Finale file, exported it as an XML file (an older version of XML than Sibelius 5 would prefer, but there it is). Just a few measures or so in Maples came out wonky in Sibelius. One was a measure of 2/4 in the flute in which the first beat was nested triplets . . . i.e., triplet eighth-notes, of which the first two eighth-notes are subdivided into triplet sixteenth-notes. The second beat is divided also into an eighth-note triplet, of which the first eighth is subdivided into triplet sixteenth-notes, the second is subdivided into 32-notes, and the last is just an eighth-note tied into the downbeat of the next measure. The state of the XML file import was such that it was impossible to ‘fix’ that measure in the flute; but I found an easy work-around: I built the measure correctly on the clarinet staff, pasted it into the flute part (over-writing the ‘unworkable’ measure), and then deleted the clarinet measure (where there needs to be a measure’s rest, anyway). The other measures were in the harp; it may be considered unnecessary layout fastidiousness, but there are many 10:8 decuplets in the harp and piano, and in two measures as imported into Sibelius, the “10:8” marking over the beam was askew, i.e. not parallel to the beams. Just looked bad; and, well, the point of Sibelius (or Finale) is that the music should look good. Work-around was similar to the flute measure, only easier, since I could copy a ‘clean’ decuplet, paste it over the ‘bad’ one, and transpose it to the correct pitch. An e-mail query comes in regarding O Gracious Light (Opus 50, choir accompanied by strings and harp). Could be the first performance of the work in that original scoring (I adapted the accompaniment in two different ways, for the Jefferson Ave Presbyterian Church in Detroit, and the Cathedral Church of St Paul in Boston, respectively). Shining Sub Susanna Mälkki leads the BSO in a program of Ravel, Stravinsky & Debussy [ link ] Tangentially (via keywords Debussy and arrangement), WCRB played Debussy’s arrangement of Satie’s Gymnopédie last night. Beautiful in its simplicity, of course, and any composer might wish to write something so lovely. This is the recording WCRB always plays, Sir Neville Marriner and the Academy of St-Martin-in-the-Fields. Strikes me as almost painfully slow (and I’m a fellow likes his Morton Feldman, too). That’s all. Bullish Upticks (II) The Irrationally Exuberant Music of Karl Henning The Angel Who Bears a Flaming Sword, Opus 94a (2008) alto flute solo – Premiere Irreplaceable Doodles, Opus 89 (2007) clarinet solo stars & guitars, Opus 95 (2009) bass flute & harp – Premiere Peter H. Bloom, grand flutes Mary Jane Rupert, harp Karl Henning, clarinet Corner of School & Tremont Streets, Boston Freewill donation. When the going gets tough, the tough get composing. Bullish Upticks (I) Blue Shamrock, Opus 63 (2002) clarinet solo Lost Waters, Opus 27 (1994-95) harp solo – Premiere Fragments of « Morning Has Broken », Opus 64a (2002) flute, clarinet & piano Radiant Maples, Opus 59 (2001) flute, clarinet, harp & piano – Premiere Peter H. Bloom, flutes of divers varieties Paul Cienniwa, piano First Congregational Church in Woburn Freewill donation; all proceeds to benefit Organ Restoration Fund. That which cannot go into the form of cogs and com... By Request: Take a Trip Back with Father Tiresias...	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line195
__label__cc	0.691219	0.308781	ULHRA's John Lynch moving on? The Last Lynch Line? In a couple of ways, yes. It’s the last Lynch Line for the year 2008 and it’s the last Lynch Line to be written from my now former home of Auburn WA…….but the last Lynch Line ever? Is ULHRA's John Lynch moving on? Answer, below. The new racing season commences at the end of April in Phoenix (Chandler) AZ. As I write this the Phoenix race is looking particularly good with sub freezing temperatures and snow here in western Washington State. Lots of people think the economy right now is hazardous to motor sports. At the top end, maybe, with all of the job losses and sponsorship reductions at NASCAR teams and other series. Keep in mind the top NASCAR teams were commanding up to 25 million dollars a year from a single Title Sponsor. Here at ULHRA, according to Director of Marketing Wil Muncey, we’re finding exactly the opposite. Sponsors are stepping up. Wil and his wife-business partner-team owner Debi Muncey and other ULHRA officials have been traveling to the eastern and southern regions of the USA, meeting with media representatives, community leaders, government officials and local facility owners to build regattas for the ULHRA that are substantially east of the Pacific Time Zone…..specifically, North Carolina and Florida. Notable in this eastward reach is the revitalization of the Miami Marine stadium. The reception for ULHRA has been very good. “Voice” of ULHRA Racing Read more of The Lynch Line in the comments >>	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line201
__label__cc	0.53492	0.46508	About Us and News Home / Current News Student's Guide to ISDC About NSS Past ISDCs About San Diego Registration & Meal Purchase Conference Schedules Book Authors Schedule Hotel Room Reservation Speakers and VIPs Feat. Speakers and VIPs Meal Speakers Listing of All Speakers ISDC 2013 Party NSS Space Setl. Contest ISDC 2013 is Presented by ISDC 2013 Global Collaboration in 21st Century Space The 32nd International Space Development Conference (ISDC) will be held at the Hyatt Regency La Jolla in San Diego, California, May 23-27, 2013. Speakers at the ISDC will discuss many breakthroughs happening in space development. ISDC 2013 will showcase the latest developments, promote new ideas, and prove fertile ground for collaboration and innovation. The conference theme is "Global Collaboration in 21st Century Space." This is the century we break free of the gravity that has limited our ability to colonize space. We will learn how to collaborate effectively in a global, soon to be multi-planetary community. ISDC promises to be the place where 21st century skills are developed for 21st century space. ISDC will have talks on Asteroids, Business, Breakthrough Science and Space Technologies, Education, Emerging Space Applications, Living in Space, Lunar, Mars, Space Solar Power, Spae Settlement Roadmap, Transhumanism and Space Exploration, and more. These tracks are being developed to incorporate the latest information. We welcome your input on what ISDC should offer within and outside of the designated tracks. ISDC is available on Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ for staying abreast of the latest developments as well as providing opportunity for you to contribute. (See below for details.) Plenary and meal sessions will offer opportunities to hear from the giants in space science and industry. That's a Wrap! NSS and the ISDC 2013 Staff would like to expressed our sincere thanks to our attendees, speakers, exhibitors, sponsors and volunteers/staff for making ISDC 2013 a great success. We hoped you enjoyed the conference, and we invite you to ISDC 2014 in Los Angeles, California in May 2014. Tribute to Dr. Sally Ride, the first American Woman in Space Before Dr. Maria Zuber's keynote talk tonight on GRAIL, we will pay tribute to Dr. Sally Ride, the first American woman in space. Tickets for the dinner is available for purchase at the registration table. FREE Mars Movies Night - Saturday 7:30 pm (3 hrs) at Aventine Ballroom FREE Mars Movies Night - Saturday 7:30 pm (3 hrs) at Aventine Ballroom. Hosted by Gerry Williams, publisher of MarsMoveieGuide.com "A Trip to Mars" (1910) Mars Cartoons "Postcards From the Future" (2007) "Mars" (2010) Dave and Newl on World Syndicate Radio Talking about ISDC World Syndicate Radio, based in San Diego, is a subsidiary of the San Diego Union Tribune/WS Radio Network, and is the largest Internet talk radio syndicate in the world. We have the pleasure of to be featured on the show. Dave Dressler and Neal Sperling had a chance to promote the ISDC to a nationwide audience of millions of entrepreneurs, business owners, and San Diego listeners, and interviewing three interesting speakers at the conference! Well done Neal and Dave! Here are the links to the clips: Clip #1, Clip #2, Clip #3, and Clip #4 U.S. Congressman Dana Rohrabacher, Friday Morning Keynote Speaker U.S. Congressman Dana Rohrabacher (Bio) will be our Friday Morning Keynote Speaker. Representative Rohrabacher is the U.S. Representative for California's 48th Congressional District. Rep. Rohrabacher is currently serving as the Vice Chairman of the Science, Space and Technology Committee and has also served as a member of the Space and Aeronautics Subcommittee since he first entered Congress in 1989, presiding eight years as Chairman. Dr. Kalam, former President of India will be our Friday Night Gala Keynote Speaker and Recipient of the NSS von Braun Award We are pleased to announce that Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam, former President of India, is the recipient of the prestigious NSS von Braun Award. Dr. Kalam will be receiving the award at the ISDC 2013 Gala on Friday, May 24, where he will also be our honored Gala Keynote speaker. Dr. Kalam talk is titled "Space Solar Power: Key to a Liveable Planet Earth." Gala tickets are available for purchase now through this link. Dr. Kalam, before becoming President of India, was the leading aerospace scientist/engineer in India. He led the development of the Indian space sector and can be rightfully referred to as the "Wernher Von Braun of India," which makes this award particularly appropriate. Today, he heads the top Indian University in the aerospace field. Read more about Dr. Kalam at his website, and Wikipedia. The Epic Conclusion to ISDC 2013... Announcing Stellar Sojourn Party! To celebrate mankind's future as a spacefaring civilization and look ahead to ISDC 2014 in Los Angeles and the space renaissance. ISDC 2013 is announcing the "ISDC 2013: Stellar Sojourn" Party! Sunday, May 26, 9pm to Midnight. Grand Ballroom - Hyatt Regency La Jolla. Take your picture in space alongside fashion models clothed in the latest starship attire. Ticket is Extra! You can buy it online now at or at the conference. However, it will be $15 at the event. For more information, please visit here or here. (Note: There are still conference events Monday morning) Dave Dressler (ISDC 2013 Chair) and Neal Sperling on San Diego's Finest Business Radio Show Listen to the 10 minute clip of Dave Dressler (ISDC 2013 Chair) and Neal Sperling (ISDC 2013 Gala Guru) talking about ISDC 2013 and what to expect at the conference on Friday May 3's San Diego's Finest Business Radio Show with Host Jack Warren on WSradio.com. Click here 10 minute clip. NSS and ISDC 2013 Welcomes SPACE Canada as Our Gala Sponsor! It is our great pleasure to announce that SPACE Canada will be our Friday night Gala Sponsor featuring Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam, former President of India. At the Gala, Dr. Kalam will be receiving the prestigious NSS von Braun Award and our honored Gala Keynote speaker. SPACE Canada (Solar Power Alternative for Clean Energy) is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to the promotion of solar energy from space; an abundant and sustainable source of safe, affordable clean energy for the world. Find out more about SPACE Canada at their website. ISDC 2013 Overflow Hotels Announced (Embassy Suites and Marriott) To anticipate overflow and unavailability of the ISDC hotel room block at the conference hotel, the Hyatt, we have arrange two overflow hotels near by. Embassy Suites San Diego - La Jolla, 4550 La Jolla Village Dr, San Diego CA, 92122 Special Rates From: Tues May 21, 2013 to Mon May 27, 2013 Rate: $139 per night + tax Book by May 14th to reserve your room! 1 mile (walking - per Google Map) to Conference Venue/Hotel (Hyatt Regency) Reserve Online or by calling the hotel directly at: 858-453-0400 or 800-362-2779 and use the Group Code: SPA. Complimentary "Cooked to Order" Breakfast and Complimentary 2 Hour Evening Manager's Reception Embassy Suites San Diego - La Jolla, 4550 La Jolla Village Drive, San Diego, CA, 92122 San Diego Marriott La Jolla, 4240 La Jolla Village Drive, La Jolla, CA 92037 Special Rates From: Wed May 22, 2013 to Sun May 26, 2013 Special rate available until: Fri May 10, 2013 0.6 mile (walking - per Google Map) to Conference Venue/Hotel (Hyatt Regency) Reserve online or call the hotel directly at: 1-858-587-1414 NSS Roadmap to Space Settlement Track and Press Conference Details Announced Press Conference presenting the NSS Roadmap to the world and previewing some of the Friday (May 24) afternoon's talks, a visually stunning Luncheon Presentation, and a programming track that covers some of the exciting topics in and those that have evolved from the Roadmap. Previously, only NSS members and Ad Astra subscribers have been told about the Roadmap. Now, we are holding a Press Conference where a panel of NSS members and space experts will discuss the path towards Mankind�s future in space as many of our members see it. With the impending cost breakthroughs in launch costs, attention is once more shifting to actual operations in space. We can now begin to dream big dreams again. The Roadmap Track will cover the future diverse paths to space development and the common and practical foundations for our impending economic breakout into space...Read more about the NSS Roadmap to Space Settlement Track here. Dr. Robert B. Kerr, Director of Arecibo Observatory will be our Monday Lunch Keynote Speaker It is our great pleasure to announce that Dr. Robert B. Kerr, Director of Arecibo Observatory, will be our Monday Lunch Keynote Speaker. The Arecibo Observatory is part of the National Astronomy and Ionosphere Center (NAIC), a national research center operated by SRI International, USRA and UMET, under a cooperative agreement with the National Science Foundation (NSF). The NSF is an independent federal agency whose aim is to promote scientific and engineering progress in the United States. NSF funds research and education in most fields of science and engineering. Additional support is provided by NASA. The Observatory operates on a continuous basis, 24 hours a day every day, providing observing time, electronics, computer, travel and logistic support to scientists from all over the world. All results of research are published in the scientific literature which is publicly available. Read more about Arecibo Observatory here. Dr. Bob Richards, Co-Founder and CEO, Moon Express, Inc. will be our Thursday Lunch Keynote Speaker It is our great pleasure to announce that Dr. Bob Richards, Co-Founder and CEO of Moon Express, Inc., will be our Thursday Lunch Keynote Speaker. Moon Express Inc. is a privately funded lunar resource company created to establish new avenues for commercial space activities benefitting life on Earth. Commonly referred to as Moon Ex, the company was founded by Dr. Bob Richards, Naveen Jain, and Dr. Barney Pell in August 2010 and officially entered the Google Lunar X Prize Competition (GLXP) in October of that same year. Headquartered in the NASA Ames Research Park in Mountain View, CA, Moon Express combines Silicon Valley lean start-up principles with expertise in aerospace engineering and planetary sciences. Selected by Forbes as one of the 'Names You Should Know' in 2011, Moon Express plans to send a series of low-cost robotic missions to the Moon focused on opening up the resources of the Moon for the benefit of humanity. Bas Lansdorp, Co-Founder & CEO of Mars One will be our Opening Keynote Speaker It is our great pleasure to announce that Bas Lansdorp, Co-Founder and CEO of Mars One will be our Conference Opening Keynote Speaker on Thursday! Mars One is a not-for-profit organization whose goal is to establish a human settlement on Mars through the integration of existing, readily available technologies from industry leaders world-wide. Mars One intends to fund this decade-long endeavor by involving the whole world as the audience of an interactive, televised broadcast of every aspect of this mission, from the astronaut selections and their preparations to the arrival on Mars and their lives on the Red Planet. Their goal, human settlement on Mars in 2023. Bas Lansdorp, has never been one to let bold ventures intimidate him. A born entrepreneur, he sees potential and opportunity where others shy away. Gifted with an articulate vision and genuine enthusiasm, he moves people with his passion for science and the human mission to Mars. Read more about Bas Landorp and Mars One at their website Mars-One.com Dr. Robert L. Piccioni Confirmed as ISDC 2013 Speaker and Book Signing Author Dr. Robert L. Piccioni, physicist, educator, and high-tech entrepreneur will be speaking on Sunday. Dr. Piccioni will also be selling and signing his books at the Exhibit Hall on Sunday. Recently as a guest on Coast to Coast AM with George Noory, Dr. Piccioni has introduced cutting-edge science to numerous non-scientific audiences, including school children and civic groups. He has given invited talks at Harvard, Caltech, UCLA, and Stanford University, and is presently giving an eight-week course on Einstein�s theories at the Osher Institute, an adult education program, at California State University at Channel Islands and UCLA.. Ian O'Neill, Sunday Morning Keynote Speaker Dr. Ian O'Neill, a self-described space geek, Ian is the Space Producer for Discovery News (Bio). Dr. O'Neill will be our Sunday Morning Plenary Keynote Speaker. In this role, Dr. O'Neill combines his expertise in solar physics and manned space flight with his passion for investigating the inner workings of our universe to offer in-depth coverage of space science and exploration for DiscoveryNews.com Students! Ignite Your Space Ideas Or Research and Launch It At ISDC 2013! ISDC 2013 is offering an opportunity for students to present their ideas or research during a T minus 5 session. We have reserved academic sessions on Sunday and Monday mornings, May 26 and 27, for high school and college student presentations. Individual students or groups of students who are interested in participating in these sessions are encouraged to submit abstracts. T minus 5 is a series of short talks in the Ignite format. Each speaker/group gets 5 minutes to talk, with 20 slides that rotate automatically every 15 seconds. It�s a fun format that�s more like karaoke than giving a presentation; it�s tough to keep up with your slides, but the friendly crowd cheers you on. Sign up and Read more about it here. Dr. Maria Zuber, Principal Investigator, NASA GRAIL Mission - Saturday Dinner Speaker We are pleased to announce that Dr. Maria Zuber, Principal Investigator, NASA Gravity Recovery and Interior Laboratory (GRAIL) Mission, E. A. Griswold Professor of Geophysics at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) will be our Saturday night Dinner speaker. Dr. Zuber was also the first woman to lead a science department at MIT. Also at the dinner, the NASA GRAIL Team will receive the 2013 NSS Space Pioneer Award in the Science and Engineering category. Read more about the GRAIL mission at: NASA or MIT. X-37B Team to Receive the 2013 NSS Space Pioneer Award on Thursday Dinner We are pleased to announce that the USAF and Boeing X-37B Team will receive the 2013 NSS Space Pioneer Award on Thursday Dinner. The Boeing X-37B is an reusable unmanned spacecraft. It is boosted into space by a Atlas V rocket, then re-enters Earth's atmosphere and lands as a spaceplane. The X-37B is operated by the U.S. Air Force for orbital spaceflight missions intended to demonstrate reusable space technologies. The X-37 began as a NASA project in 1999, before being transferred to the U.S. Department of Defense in 2004 (Wikipedia). Apollo 11 Astronaut Dr. Buzz Aldrin Confirmed as Saturday Lunch Speaker Please join the NSS in welcoming Buzz Aldrin to the 32nd ISDC. Buzz will share insights about his new book "Mission to Mars" during a special lunch session on May 25, 2013. Approximate cost for this opportune lunch has yet be determined. Book purchase and signing by Dr. Aldrin will take place after lunch. Attending this event requires conference registration and Saturday lunch meal purchase. Click here to find out how to register for the conference or buy your Saturday Lunch! What is SpaceUp? The SpaceUp (un)conference format grew out of developments in Silicon Valley called Bar Camps. Instead of the traditional lecture/PowerPoint format, an impromptu leader writes an idea on a post-it note and places it on a whiteboard grid that contains a cross-section of rooms and times. Others view the grid and go to the room of most interest for the time slot. At the beginning of the session, the leader takes about five minutes to explain their concept, then launches the group into a collaborative discussion. If you lose interest, or can�t get into the collaboration, vote with your feet and move onto a different session. The norms of SpaceUp allow for movement without insult. Everyone is invited to enjoy this exciting new format at ISDC. Began in San Diego by NSS Chapter SDSpace.org Adds a new dimension to ISDC Gives everyone a voice and opportunity to present powerfully Many will experience this successful new conference format for the first time. Plan on participating in SpaceUp! For more information, please visit www.SpaceUp.org Past News Items Click Here to Read Past News Items [ Click for Mobile Version ] Last updated on May 25, 2013. Copyright © 1998-2013, National Space Society. If you cannot see some of the images or text, please check your Ad Blocker or Twitter blocker filter, and add exception for NSS.org. Please report website problems to: . NSS Privacy Policy. Special thanks to our Sponsors, Co-Sponsors, Exhibitors, Supporters and Affiliates. Download ISDC 2013 Sponsorship Package Attendees! Signup for T Minus 5 Presentation If you do not see the ISDC Twitter feed, or a blank box, please allow a few moments while the Tweets to load. The Twitter widget may be slow sometime, and it is due to the Twitter side server. Some Ad Blocker software or company firewall will block the display of the Twitter Widget.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line208
__label__wiki	0.65498	0.65498	Anica Savić Rebac Spouse and other names Rebac http://resources.huygens.knaw.nl/womenwriters/vre/persons/9c2b23b4-9cbf-4a52-b05b-80e4e2cead3e#prevnext=1 About her personal situation Anica Savić Rebac was born in 1892. The Savić were a well-to-do family from Novi Sad, and their household was as a central gathering point for writers, artists and other prominent figures from the beginning of the 20th century. Thanks to her father’s support, from the earliest days of her youth Anica was able to dedicate herself to literature: by the time she was twelve, she had already published her first translations. Her first poems were published in the Brankovo kolo magazine when she was thirteen. 1909 – Anica Savić graduated from high school as the sole girl in her class. 1910 – The Savić move to Vienna in order to enable Anica to further her education. In Vienna she entered University, where she began studying Classics. 1914 – 1918 – Just as she was about to finish her undergraduate studies, World War I broke out. Because of the war, her family was forced to move back to Novi Sad. For Anica this was a period of stagnation, and not just in her formal education. From 1920 – Due to bureaucratic hindrances, Anica did not graduate from the University of Belgrade until 1920. Her graduation was followed by a period of professional uncertainty: despite her academic achievement, which would normally qualify her for a position at the University, the amount of opposition she faced from the academic milieu would compel her to spend the greater part of her career as a high school teacher, with frequent changes of workplace (Novi Sad, Belgrade, Skopje and Sarajevo). 1921 – This year saw two major events in the life of Anica Savic: her marriage to Hasan Rebac and the subsequent moving of her family to Belgrade. Hasan Rebac had studied in Belgrade and Vienna, and graduated Oriental Studies at the University of Paris-Sorbonne. He had participated in the Balkan Wars as a Serbian volunteer, lived through the great Serbian retreat of 1916, after which he left for France from Tessaloniki. In the interwar period he was an official of the Ministry of Religious Affairs of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. The relationship between Hasan and Anica was a deep and passionate one, marked by mutual understanding and support, even in the face of numerous political, national and religious prejudices of their environment. 1930 – 1941 –Anica and Hasan spent a considerable period of their life in Skopje, where Hasan officiated. They were forced to leave Skopje after the German invasion of Yugoslavia. As refugees, they moved first to Vrnjacka Banja, and then to Belgrade, where they would face harsh conditions. 1941 – 1945 – During World War II Anica and Hasan live in Belgrade, trying to cope with difficult financial circumstances. 1946 – Anica is finally given a position at the University of Belgrade. 1953 – After Hasan’s death on the August 4, 1953, Anica decides to commit suicide. Having failed to do so twice, she finally succeeded in taking her own life on October 7, 1953, by shooting herself through the heart in her Belgrade apartment. Place(s) of residence Austria, Macedonia, the former Yugoslav Republic of, and Serbia First language(s) School education and University education About her professional situation 1905 – Her first translation of an excerpt from Byron’s Manfred was published under the title Noćni prizor kod Rima (Night Scenery near Rome). 1906 – 1911 – As a very young girl she published her works frequently in periodicals, for the most part in Brankovo kolo. Her work consisted of poetry, essays and translations of authors such as Thomas More, Sully Prudhomme, Shelley, Pindar and many others. 1917 – 1925 – She had become a regular contributor of Književni jug. In the period right after the end of the World War I, Anica lived between Novi Sad and Belgrade. She was at the very center of the contemporary literary and cultural scene. She continued to publish her poetry and essays in periodicals, such as Srpski književni glasnik and the magazine Misao, edited by Sima Pandurović, participated in founding, along with Ksenija Atansijevic, the magazine Dan, of which she became a regular correspondent; she was friends with Miloš Crnjanski, who dedicated a poem from his famous collection Lirika Itake to her. Her cooperation with various magazines and periodicals continued throughout the years to come. 1927 – With a group of fellow female intellectuals she co-founded the Yugoslavian branch of the International Federation of University Women. This organization had, amongst other things, the mission to propagate and defend the professional interests of women with university degrees. 1929 – Even though she had been publishing poems and translations in periodicals from her early youth, Anica had not succeeded in publishing a collection of her poems until 1929. Her first and last collection of poems was entitled Večeri na moru (Nights by the sea). Later, she dedicated herself mostly to translating, writing essays, literary criticism, pedagogical work and academic research especially. 1930 – 1941 – While living in Skopje, Anica was host to Rebecca West and her companion H. G. Wells during their tour of Yugoslavia. The characters of Milica and Mehmed from West’s book Black Lamb and Gray Falcon were closely modeled on Anica and Hasan. Druing this time, she committed herself to the feminist cause, first as Head of the International Federation of University Women, later on as a member of the Women’s Antifascist Front. 1933 – Upon completing her PhD studies, Anica published her first major piece of academic writing, the Preplatonska erotologija (Pre-Platonic Erotology). 1936 –Platonska i hrišćanska ljubav (Platonic and Christian Love) is published. 1946 – Despite fierce opposition, she is given tenure at the University of Belgrade. At that moment, she was the only female professor there. She held courses on Latin language, literature and history at the Faculty of Philosophy in Belgrade. After 1953 – Her books Antička estetika i nauka o književnosti (Classical aesthetics and literary study, 1955), Helenski vidici (Hellenic Horizons, 1966) as well as her Collected Works in seven volumes (1984-1988), were published posthumously, usually as a result of individual effort. edited by Jelena Milinković translated by Dunja Dušanić Profession(s) and other activities Writer of prose and novel, Contributor to periodical press, Social-cultural activist, Literary critic, Poet, and Translator Language(s) in which she wrote Financial aspects of her career Works written by this author Večeri na moru (1929) Predplatonska erotologija (1932) Platonska i hrišćanska ljubav (1936) Antička estetika i nauka o književnosti: studija o njenom razvoju od početka do Aristotela (1955) Helenski vidici (1966) Sabrana dela I - VII (1984 - 1988) Najlepše pesme Anice Savić Rebac (2010) Najlepše ljubavne pesme srpskih pesnikinja (2013) Articles and other similar texts Renesansa (1906) O prirodi stvari (1951) Minhauzen : njegova putovanja i pustolovine (1951) Smrt u Veneciji (1952) Veseli podvizi Tila Ojlenšpigela (1953) Reception during lifetime Anica Savić-Rebac (Miodrag Ibrovac - 1935) Jedna Antologija srpskih pesnikinja na češkom (A. - 1929) Anica Savićeva (Jelica Belović Bernadžikovska - 1913) Reception after death Anica Savić Rebac (Radomir Konstantinović - 1983) Pesništvo Anice Savić-Rebac (Miodrag Pavlović - 1963) Jedan potpun čovek: o helenizmu Anice Savić-Rebac (Dunja Dušanić - 2015) Anica Savić Rebac kao posrednik između srpske i nemačke kulture (Tomislav Bekić - 2004) Anica Savić-Rebac i naše vreme (Srđan Damnjanović - 2015) Anici se divili Dučić, Predić, Tomas Man… (Tatjana Loš - 2014) Život Anice Savić Rebac (LJiljana Vuletić - 2002) Legende Beogradskog univerziteta (Marija Vranić-Ignjačević - 2005) Naša žena u književnom stvaranju (Vlastoje Aleksijević - 1994/95) Authors read by this author Milica Stojadinović Savka Subotić	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line212
__label__wiki	0.582691	0.582691	Blurblogs What is Kalenjin Reading? World Cities Ranked by Average Annual Sunshine Hours by Ashley Viens Monday October 28th, 2019 at 6:21 PM View the full size version of this infographic World Cities Ranked by Average Annual Sunshine Hours View the high resolution of this infographic by clicking here While we all see the same sky, we see it a bit differently depending on where we stand. For those in the planet’s most extreme regions, the sun doesn’t follow the same pattern of seasons as it does in more temperate regions. Today’s visualization comes from Sleepopolis and summarizes the top cities on each continent that receive the most and least annual sunshine hours. Ranked: Cities with the Least and Most Sunshine Hours While the graphic groups the top five cities from each continent, the tables below highlight the top 10 cities from around the world that boast the highest and lowest annual sunshine hours. Top 10 Cities with the Most Annual Sunshine # of Sunshine Hours Yuma United States Arid 4,015.3 Marsa Alam Egypt Arid 3,958.0 Dakhla Oasis Egypt Arid 3,943.4 Calama Chile Arid, Marine West Coast, Tundra 3,926.2 Phoenix United States Arid 3,871.6 Keetmanshoop Namibia Arid 3,870.0 Las Vegas United States Arid 3,825.3 Tucson United States Arid 3,806.0 Kharga Egypt Arid 3,790.8 El Paso United States Semiarid 3,762.5 The sunniest city on Earth is Yuma, Arizona in the U.S. As the driest city in the U.S., Yuma receives less than 200 millimeters (8 inches) of rainfall and endures roughly 100 days of 40°C (104°F) weather every year. Yuma lies between the Gila and Colorado rivers, in a lush region that produces almost 90% of leafy vegetables grown in the U.S. Arizona boasts three of the top 10 sunniest cities in the world, including Phoenix in the fifth spot, which is the 5th most populous city in the U.S. and is known as “the Valley of the Sun”. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Egypt also has three cities in the top 10 list, with Marsa Alam, Dakhla Oasis, and Kharga claiming the 2nd, 3rd, and 9th sunniest spots, respectively. Dakhla Oasis, or “inner oasis”, receives practically zero precipitation each year. Top 10 Cities with the Least Annual Sunshine Totoró Colombia Marine West Coast 637.0 Tórshavn Faroe Islands Marine West Coast 840.0 Chongqing China Humid Subtropical 954.8 Dikson Russia Tundra 1,164.3 Malabo Equatorial Guinea Tropical Wet and Dry 1,176.7 Buenaventura Colombia Tropical Wet and Dry, Humid Subtropical 1,178.0 Lima Peru Arid 1,230.0 Ushuaia Argentina Tundra 1,281.2 Reykjavik Iceland Tundra, Marine West Coast 1,326.0 Bogotá Colombia Marine West Coast 1,328.0 Although perceived as a sunny location, Colombia borders both the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean, exposing it to higher variety in weather patterns and precipitation. Colombia alone is home to three of the top 10 cities with the lowest hours of annual sunshine. Ranking second-to-last in the number of sunshine hours, Torshavn lies between the Scottish coast and Iceland and receives roughly 37 days of sunshine every year; the average temperatures on this island barely reach above 5°C (41°F). Our sun doesn’t shine at the same level of brightness all the time. NASA has observed that the sun goes through “solar cycles” that last roughly 11 years─brightening and dimming at relatively regular intervals and impacting how intensely we receive sunlight at any given time. Sunshine Near the Poles Humans typically need exposure to the sun to maintain healthy sleep habits, as our brain has been hardwired to follow natural waking and sleeping rhythms. However, several cities experience no sun at all for several months at a time in what’s known as the “Polar Night”. Tromsø, Norway: winter darkness is enjoyed rather than endured, as it can last for over a month Svalbard, Norway: even indirect sunlight is absent, with no change in sunlight to help indicate a 24-hour day Dikson, Russia: receives no sunlight whatsoever in December Wherever you live, people have been watching and tracking the movements of the sun with rapt attention for millennia, even when we couldn’t see it. Get your mind blown on a daily basis: The post World Cities Ranked by Average Annual Sunshine Hours appeared first on Visual Capitalist. Read the whole story Merger Arb: A Dis-economy of Scale by kfox AllAboutAlpha: Alternative Investing Trends and Analysis A new paper in the Journal of Economics and Business presents data on merger arb, and which factors, especially sector size and individual fund size, do or do not have an impact on the alpha available in the pursuit of this strategy. For a given time period, the total dollar amountRead More Visualizing the Massive Cost of Cybercrime by Iman Ghosh View the full-size version of this infographic. Visualizing the Massive Cost of Cybercrime View the high resolution of this infographic by clicking here. What do Equifax, Yahoo, and the U.S. military have in common? They’ve all fallen victim to a cyberattack at some point in the last decade—and they’re just the tip of the iceberg. Today’s infographic from Raconteur delves into the average damage caused by cyberattacks at the organizational level, sorted by type of attack, industry, and country. Rising Cybercrime Costs Across the Board The infographic focuses on data from the latest Accenture “Cost of Cybercrime” study, which details how cyber threats are evolving in a fast-paced digital landscape. Overall, the average annual cost to organizations has been ballooning for all types of cyberattacks. For example, a single malware attack in 2018 costed more than $2.6 million, while ransomware costs rose the most between 2017–2018, from $533,000 to $646,000 (a 21% increase). Both information loss and business disruption occurring from attacks have been found to be the major cost drivers, regardless of the type of attack: Major consequence: Information Loss Average cost: $1.4M (54% of total losses) Web-based attacks Denial-of-Service (DOS) Major consequence: Business Disruption Malicious insiders Major consequences: Business Disruption and Information Loss Average cost: $1.2M ($0.6M each, 75% of total losses) In 2018, information loss and business disruption combined for over 75% of total business losses from cybercrime. Cybercrime Casts a Wide Net No industry is untouched by the growing cost of cybercrime—the report notes that organizations have seen security breaches grow by 67% in the past five years alone. Banking is the most affected, with annual costs crossing $18 million in 2018. This probably comes as no surprise, considering that financial motives are consistently a major incentive for hackers. Here is the average cost of cyberattacks (per organization) across 15 different industries: 2017 Cost Banking $16.6M $18.4M +11% Utilities $15.1M $17.8M +18% Software $14.5M $16M +11% Automotive $10.7M $15.8M +47% Insurance $12.9M $15.8M +22% High tech $12.9M $14.7M +14% Capital markets $10.6M $13.9M +32% Energy $13.2M $13.8M +4% U.S. Federal $10.4M $13.7M +32% Consumer goods $8.1M $11.9M +47% Health $12.9M $11.8M -8% Retail $9M $11.4M +26% Life sciences $5.9M $10.9M +86% Media $7.6M $9.2M +22% Travel $4.6M $8.2M +77% Public sector $6.6M $7.9M +20% Interestingly, the impact on life sciences companies rose the most in a year (up by 86% to $10.9 million per organization), followed by the travel industry (up 77% to $8.2 million per organization). This is likely due to an increase in sensitive and valuable data being shared online, such as clinical trial details or credit card information. So What Can Companies Do? Accenture analyzed nine cutting-edge technologies that are helping mitigate cybercrime, and calculated their net savings: the total potential savings minus the required investment in each type of technology or tool. With almost $2.3 million in net savings, many companies recognize the high payoff that comes with security intelligence. On the other hand, leveraging automation, artificial intelligence, and machine learning can potentially save over $2 million—however, only 38% of businesses have adopted this solution so far. Cybercrime will remain a large-scale concern for years to come. From 2019–2023E, approximately $5.2 trillion in global value will be at risk from cyberattacks, creating an ongoing challenge for corporations and investors alike. The post Visualizing the Massive Cost of Cybercrime appeared first on Visual Capitalist. The unexpected benefit of failing at the start of your career by Susie Allen Who do you think would become more successful: a young scientist who received an important grant early in her career or one who just missed out on receiving that same grant? This question might seem like “a no-brainer,” says Dashun Wang, an associate professor of management and organizations at the Kellogg School. Many of us assume that success breeds success—and that failure, especially an early career setback, is a sign of more trouble to come. Then again, those who subscribe to the adage that “what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger” might suspect that the unsuccessful scientists actually benefited from their early setback. “The idea that one gets stronger through failure is the kind of stiff advice that people may tell themselves in difficult times,” says Kellogg strategy professor Benjamin F. Jones. “But is there any truth to it?” A new paper from Wang, Jones, and Kellogg postdoctoral researcher Yang Wang finds that the optimists are right: early failure can actually breed later success. Scientists who narrowly missed out on an important grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) ended up publishing more successful papers than those who narrowly qualified for the grant. Over the long run, “the losers ended up being better,” Wang says. The team’s analysis suggests that the act of failing itself may have pushed the frustrated scientists to improve. What didn’t kill them made them stronger. It’s a hopeful discovery for Wang, who jokes that he considers himself an expert in this area, due to his “extensive experience of failure.” Indeed, he has been turned down for many grant applications himself—which, it turns out, may not be such a liability after all. Measuring the impact of early career setbacks The team studied a type of NIH grant called the R01. The team’s data set included all 778,219 of these grant applications submitted to the NIH between 1990 and 2005. They settled on R01 grants because they’re NIH’s oldest and most common grant type and hugely important to early career researchers in the biomedical sciences. At some universities, receiving one of these grants—worth an average of $1.3 million—can put a young scholar on a sure path toward tenure. Scientists in the near-miss group were actually more likely to have “hit” papers in the five years after applying for NIH funding. NIH’s evaluation process also made these a good type of grant to study. When a researcher submits a grant application to NIH, it is reviewed by a panel of experts and assigned a numerical score. Then, depending on how much funding is available, NIH determines a cutoff point—say, applications that scored in the top 15th percentile are funded, and the rest are not. For the authors, this meant it was easy to determine which grants fell just short of receiving funding (they called these “near miss” grants) and which managed to squeak past the cutoff point (they called these “narrow wins”). Then, they compared the scientists in the near-miss and narrow-win groups. The two sets of scientists were, across a variety of measures, remarkably similar—“identical twins,” Wang says, from a scientific-career perspective. They had been in the field for the same amount of time when they submitted their grant application and had published about the same number of papers, garnering roughly the same share of citations. In other words, the only meaningful difference in their careers at that point was that the narrow winners received more than $1 million from NIH. “Now the question is, ‘Well, how big of a difference does it make ten years later?’” Wang explains. Does failure make you stronger? To figure out just how much of a difference these early successes or setbacks made to a scientific career, the researchers traced the careers of 623 near-miss and 561 narrow-win scientists. Notably, it turned out that the two groups published at similar rates over the next 10 years—not what you’d expect, given that narrow winners got an early leg up from their NIH grant funding. Even more surprising, scientists in the near-miss group were actually more likely to have “hit” papers (that is, papers that cracked the top-five percent of citations in a particular field and year). In the five years after they applied for NIH funding, 16.1% of papers produced by scientists in the near-miss group were hits, compared to 13.3% for the narrow-win group. Next, the researchers wanted to pin down exactly why the near-miss group outperformed the narrow-win group in the end. This wasn’t easy to do, given all the complicated factors that influence a scientific career. The first and most significant hypothesis the team examined was that failing to receive an NIH grant had a “screening effect”—essentially, it acted as a barrier that weeded out weaker scholars from the profession, meaning that, over time, those members of the near-miss group who stuck it out were the strongest scientists. On the face of it, there appeared to be some merit to this idea: the team observed some attrition within the near miss group in the aftermath of an unsuccessful grant application. They found that failing to receive an R01 grant led to a 12.6% chance of disappearing from the NIH grant system for the next decade, a good indication that they had stopped pursuing a research career altogether. For a fairer comparison, the team repeated their analysis, removing the narrow-win scientists whose papers most rarely became hits. Specifically, they removed the bottom 12.6% of these narrow winners—the same portion as had left the near-miss group through attrition—so that they were left comparing what they assumed to be the highest performers of each group. But, the team found, the attrition alone could not explain the success of the near-miss scientists—the near misses still published more hit papers than the narrow winners. “Failure is devastating—and it can also fuel people.”—Professor Dashun Wang Wang and Jones tested a number of other explanations: maybe, they reasoned, scientists from the near-miss group did better because they sought more influential collaborators, changed institutions, began to study a different topic, or moved into a “hot” area of research. When they crunched the numbers, they found that there was some evidence that near-miss scientists had begun to study “hot topics,” but this, too, wasn’t enough to explain the overall performance gap. I get knocked down, but I get up again With all of these alternative explanations ruled out, the team was left to conclude that failure itself might be the cause of the performance gap between the near-miss and narrow-win groups. In other words, with no clear external factor that can explain the disappointed scientists’ success, it’s reasonable to think that the experience of adversity made them better in the end—confirming the conventional wisdom that “what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.” Jones sees that result as highly encouraging. “The advice to persevere is common,” he says. “But the idea that you take something valuable from the loss—and are better for it—is surprising and inspiring.” Wang says there is more he wants to know about the power of failure. Is it just limited to the sciences, or will people who face setbacks in other fields succeed too? Is there another explanation for the performance gap that wasn’t testable from the available data? (Maybe, he jokes, everyone from the near-miss group simply decided to get up half an hour earlier each day. “There’s no way for me to know if that’s what happened,” he says.) To Wang, there is something profound in the idea that failure can, paradoxically, lead to success. It’s a reminder to him, and everyone, not to give up. “I use this insight a lot these days, because, as I mentioned, I’m kind of a daily failure,” he says. (Editor’s note: Wang’s status as a “daily failure” cannot be confirmed by external sources.) If he struggles at something, he knows there’s a chance he will actually become better at it than “the alternate-universe Dashun” who succeeded—as long as he perseveres. “Failure is devastating,” he says, “and it can also fuel people.” This article was previously published in Kellogg Insight. It was republished with permission of the Kellogg School of Management. BBRG: How Jim Simons Built the Best Hedge Fund Ever by Barry Ritholtz How Jim Simons Built the Best Hedge Fund Ever The former code breaker and math professor figured out how to do one thing very well in markets. Bloomberg, October 28, 2019 I feel like I have been keeping a secret for a long time that I can finally share: Over the long Labor Day Weekend, I read the galley of Wall Street Journal reporter Greg Zuckerman‘s new book, The Man Who Solved the Market: How Jim Simons Launched the Quant Revolution. I devoured the book in one sitting, it was a terrific and enjoyable read. I had been very much looking forward to this book coming out. Jim Simons has been a man of intrigue for like, forever. When I was an incoming Applied Math + Physics major at SUNY Stony Brook,1 he was the outgoing Math department chairman. For the next few decades, I followed his career. He was an enigma, both mysterious and unknown. Zuckerman has done a masterful job paining a fairly revealing portrait of who Simons is, and how he built Renaissance Technologies into its current state of success. The numbers are simply unfathomable and eye-popping: Although rumors of its performance have long circulated on Wall Street, the actual numbers are even more mind-blowing: From 1988 to 2018, Medallion returned 66.1% annually before fees. Net of fees, the gains were 39.1%. Estimated trading profits during those 30 years amounted to $104.5 billion. (About those fees: If the standard hedge fund management fee of 2%, plus 20% of the profits sounds expensive, then what do you think Medallion’s “5 and 44”?) The rest of the book is similarly filled with little known or previously unknown information. I had to work hard to find negatives to say about the book, the most significant of which is the title. Overall, it is a great story well told. I strongly recommend it. Go read the complete review here. I originally published this at Bloomberg, October 28, 2019. All of my Bloomberg columns can be found here and here. The post BBRG: How Jim Simons Built the Best Hedge Fund Ever appeared first on The Big Picture. Liquidity might be a better proxy for Size in equity markets by Tommi Johnsen, PhD The Size Premium in Equity Markets: Where Is the Risk? Stefano Ciliberti, Emmanuel Sérié, Guillaume Simon, Yves Lempérière, and Jean-Philippe Bouchaud Journal of Portfolio Management A version of this paper can be found here Want to read our summaries of academic finance papers? Check out our Academic Research Insight category The size premium is one of the factors that we have researched and dug into several times on the blog. You can find just a few here, here, and here. This paper though took a fresh look at the size premium and adds a new perspective that we haven’t previously covered. What are the research questions? Given various approaches to measuring the “size” of a company, is the total amount of daily traded dollars in a stock (ADV)(1) a better proxy for risk than SMB? Is CMH (“cold minus hot”) a better long term proxy for returns when compared to SMB? What are the Academic Insights? MAYBE. The authors argue the use of market cap as a proxy for the size effect embeds biases in the L/S portfolio constructed to measure the SMB risk premium. Indeed, the lack of a clear relationship between beta and market cap (see left side of Exhibit 3) produces SMB portfolios with a significant low volatility exposure on the short side. Very small and very large-cap stocks have betas less than 1, while midcaps have betas larger than 1, a nontrivial result. A substitute (ADV—average daily transaction volume) is proposed with a better-behaved relationship with beta (see right side of Exhibit 3). ADV is conventionally used by practitioners as a measure of liquidity, although little is found in the academic literature regarding its’ use. For a stock, it represents the difficulty of unwinding a large position with little impact costs. The idea here is that the ADV measure can be used to determine a set of L/S portfolios (referred to as “cold” and “hot”) whose return would represent compensation for bearing liquidity risk. YES. ADV portfolios are less associated with the beta and low volatility biases noted previously and is, therefore, a better substitute for the market cap based construction of the risk factor, SMB. Cold stocks trade at a discount due to the difficulty associated with liquidity and Hot stocks are subject to heavier market scrutiny and therefore exhibit less mispricing. The profitability of the CMH set of portfolios is shown in Exhibit 2, where the t-stat on the slope is significant at 5.1 over not quite 70 years. The empirical argument that a risk premium label be attached to CMH portfolios, is the empirical observation that significant drawdowns are more often observed for small-cap/ADV stocks. However, the theoretical rationale and other empirical attributes of ADV/CMH require more work. The ADV liquidity measure is not in widespread use in the finance literature, although, two papers (Datar, Naik, and Radcliffe, 1998; Idzorek, Xion, and Ibbotson, 2012) did tie it to long-term returns. Given at least that level of supporting research, the CMH formulation may have appeal to portfolio managers, portfolio construction technologies, and empirical methods used for risk adjustment. This paper matters because it represents interesting exploratory work on the debate over the existence of a size risk premium. I think it’s promising. The most important chart from the paper The results are hypothetical results and are NOT an indicator of future results and do NOT represent returns that any investor actually attained. Indexes are unmanaged and do not reflect management or trading fees, and one cannot invest directly in an index. The authors find that when measured in terms of dollar-turnover, and once β and low volatility (low-vol) is neutralized, the size effect is alive and well. With a long-term t-statistic of 5.1, the cold-minus-hot (CMH) anomaly is certainly not less significant than other well-known factors such as value or quality. As compared to market-cap–based SMB, the authors report that CMH portfolios are much less anti-correlated to the low-vol anomaly. In contrast with standard risk premiums, size-based portfolios are found by the authors to be virtually unskewed. In fact, they report that the extreme risk of these portfolios is dominated by the large-cap leg; small caps actually have a positive (rather than negative) skewness. The only argument that the authors find favors a risk premium interpretation at the individual stock level is that the extreme drawdowns are more frequent for small-cap/turnover stocks, even after accounting for volatility. According to the authors, however, this idiosyncratic risk is clearly diversifiable and should not, in theory, generate higher returns. 1. ↑ Average Daily Volume Liquidity might be a better proxy for Size in equity markets was originally published at Alpha Architect. Please read the Alpha Architect disclosures at your convenience. Next Page of Stories	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line214
__label__wiki	0.823169	0.823169	YouTube’s fate was inevitable. What’s next isn’t The AVOD was never meant for kids, which isn't entirely the platform's fault. The root of the problem is a lack of investment in kid-specific technologies, says Dylan Collins. By Dylan Collins When YouTube was fined US$170 million by the FTC for reportedly violating COPPA (by allowing kids personal data to be captured), it announced major changes were coming for kids and family content creators. Last week, the AVOD platform started to roll out those changes, including requiring creators to flag videos that may appeal to children. The definition of what actually is considered a video for kids though, is quite broad, including videos obviously directed at children, but also content which could appeal to kids (cartoons, toys and educational material). The breadth in this category underlines how comprehensively YouTube appears to be treating the FTC settlement. If a video is child-directed, data collection will be blocked, resulting in lower ad revenue and reducing engagement features (such as through comments). According to Tubefilter, this will lead to 50% to 90% reduction in revenues for these content creators. Understandably content creators are upset. They’re blaming COPPA and the FTC. And they’re blaming YouTube. Unfortunately the stricter content policies are unlikely to stop there, and next time enforcement will likely be led by individual US states and private class action lawsuits. Then, of course, the same thing will happen in Europe under GDPR-K, which is the EU’s new privacy regulations for children put in place last year. On the surface the situation seems to be unfairly placing the burden on kids content creators. But the reality is that was inevitable. YouTube was only ever designed for adults, but was being used to reach kids. At some point the legal math was going to catch up to everybody. However the deeper issue here is not YouTube. It’s the historic (and ongoing) lack of investment into kidtech by the major technology companies. Adult platforms (such YouTube) have been used by content creators because the infrastructure to support kids content and developers simply hasn’t been built. In 2018 total R&D investment by major technology companies was US$98 billion, according to data gathered by PwC. In contrast, investment into kids companies was, at most, US$500 million, according to Crunchbase. Kids were 40% of all new internet users in 2018, but represented less than 1% of all technology investments. Disregard the moral point for a second—the internet will soon be more kids than adults. The way we’re investing today, means we’re fundamentally investing in the past. Excluding Roblox (the major consumer outlier), virtually all investment in kidtech platforms and tools is happening outside of Silicon Valley. Some examples include: Kidoodle (preschool kids AVOD platform): Calgary, Canada Soapbox Labs (kids voicetech): Dublin, Ireland TwoHat (content moderation): Kelowna, Canada Crisp (content moderation): Leeds, England SuperAwesome (kidtech developer tools): London and NYC Rukkaz: (kids AVOD platform): London Silicon Valley is very good at producing products for adults, but there are several historic factors which contributed to that same ecosystem missing kids. Many founding teams had no parenting experience. Expertise in digital privacy economic models was (and still is) limited. The lack of kids strategy in big technology companies limited any spin-outs, which in turn minimized investor education. This creates a chicken-egg problem for kidtech startups trying to raise capital. Looking to the future though, two dynamics are changing the status quo and improving the situation for kids/family content creators: legislation and market forces. We’re already seeing kids digital laws expanding from just focusing on data privacy towards including issues such as user interfaces. Moving forward, we’re more likely now to see legislation which forces tech platforms to have a mandated chief children’s officer, required R&D levels for kidtech, and a minimum parental quota for product development teams for consumer platforms. Market forces are already evident. There is a reason that Apple, Disney, Netflix and Amazon are spending heavily on children’s content. Desktop browsers and mobile were the first two structural internet disruptions. The third is clearly kids. Each revolution saw the emergence of new players, the only difference this time is that the kidtech platforms of the future are unlikely to come from Silicon Valley. Dylan Collins (@MrDylanCollins) is CEO of SuperAwesome, a kidtech platform. He is also a venture partner in Hoxton Ventures. SuperAwesome has invested in a range of companies across the digital kids space, including TotallyAwesome, Kids Corp, Kids Insights and Tankee. COPPA, Dylan Collins, FTC, GDPR, kidtech, SuperAwesome, YouTube, YouTube Kids SuperAwesome intros SafeFam program on YouTube How GDPR is affecting the kidtech biz YouTube to launch US$100-million kids content fund SuperAwesome acquires social app PopJam	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line216
__label__cc	0.741353	0.258647	jp laser Trading Name: JP Laser Registered Business Name: P & J McCormack & Sons Pty Ltd ABN Number: 46 106 284 548 ACN Number: 106 284 548 I. Payment: The customer must pay for all Products supplied by JP Laser within 30 days net from EoM of the date on which the products were invoiced by Jp Laser ('Due Date'). 2. Stop Supply: JP Laser will place any Customer on stop supply if any account has not been paid by the 45th day. Any Customer that has been on stop supply 3 times will have their account closed and then they will be on a C.O.D. basis. 3. GST: Each amount payable by the Customer under these Terms in respect of a Taxable Supply by JP Laser is a GST exclusive amount and the Customer must, in addition to that amount and at the same time, pay the GST payable in respect of that supply. ln this clause ,Taxable Supply and GST have the meanings set out in the A New Tax System (Goods and Services) Act 1999. 4. Canceled Orders: Canceled or suspension for thirty (30) days of any order will entitle JP Laser to payment in full for the portion of the work completed. 5. Variation of Order: Any variation of an order by a customer that results in a variation of cost shall be to the Customer's account. 6. Liability: To the extent permitted by law, JP Laser shall not be liable to the Customer for any direct or indirect loss or damage of any nature, howsoever caused- JP Laser will only be liable for replacement or repair of the goods, or the supply of an equivalent Products. ln any event, JP Laser shall not recognise any claims unless it is in writing and is received by JP Laser within five (5) days of the date of delivery. 7. Property: (a) Property in the Products does not pass until the Customer has paid all monies owing to Jp Laser in full. (b) Until payment of all monies owed by the Customer to JP Laser, the Customer holds the Products as fiduciary bailee and agent for Jp Laser and must keep the Products physically separate from all other Products of the Customer and clearly identified as owned by JP Laser. (c) lf an Event of Default occurs, then without prejudice to JP Laser's other rights, JP Laser may without notice to the customer enter any premises occupied by the customer or any other place where the products may be and recover possession of them. If the Customer sells any of the products while money is owed to JP Laser, the Customer must keep the proceeds of the sale in a separate account and not mix them with any other funds. (d) lf the Customer uses the Products in some manufacturing or construction process of its own or of some third party, then the Customer shall hold such part of the proceeds of such manufacturing or construction process as relates to the Products on trust for JP Laser. Such' part shall be deemed to equal on dollar terms the amount owing by the Customer to JP Laser and at the time of payment of such proceeds, the Customers obligation to pay the amount owed for such Products will be discharged. (e) lf the Products are resold, or Products using or reselling the Products are manufactured and resold by the Customer, the Customer holds all of the book debts owed in respect of such sales and proceeds of such sales on trust for JP Laser, Such part of the book debts and proceeds shall be deemed to equal in dollar terms the amount owed by the Customer to JP Laser at the time of the receipt of such book debts. 8. Delivery: JP Laser shall not be liable for any loss arising are a result or consequence of a delay in delivery. The Customer shall not be relieved of the obligation to pay JP Laser in the event of delay in delivery. All risk of the Products passes to the customer upon delivery. Collection of the product by the Customer shall be deemed to be delivered. 9. Acceptance of Products: The Customer is deemed to have accepted the Products as in accordance with an order unless it notifies Jp Laser to the contrary within 5 days of receipt of the Products. Products may only be returned to JP Laser within five (5) days of the date of the delivery docket for those products upon presentation of the delivery docket l0. Event of Default: lf an Event of Default occurs JP Laser may, without prejudice to its other rights, call up monies owed to it by the Customer, retain all monies paid on account, or cease further deliveries and recover from the Customer all loss of profits arising there from, and/or take immediate possession of any Products not paid for. 11. Suspension or Ceasing Supply: JP Laser reserves the right at any time to cease or suspend supply of products to the customer and to vary or withdraw any credit granted to the Customer. 12. Notification of change of Details: where any change takes places in the customer's trading structure or management, including any change of director, shareholder or any change in partnership or trusteeship notwithstanding any advice by the Customer to Jp Laser, the Customer shall not continue to operate its credit account without JP Laser's prior written consent and the Customer shall remain liable for all amounts owed to Jp Laser until the whole amount has been paid in full to JP Laser. 13. Variation of Terms: JP Laser has the right to vary these Terms at any time by notice to the Customer and thereafter the varied Terms are binding on the Customer. 14. Effect of other Terms: These Terms are in no way affected by any other express or implied terms contained in any terms of sale issued by the customer in relation to the sale of the Products. No terms of the Customer apply to any agreement between the Customer and JP Laser. 15. Waiver: These terms shall govern any contract between JP Laser and the Customer unless expressly waived or varied in writing. Failure or delay on the part of JP Laser to exercise any power, right or remedy under these Terms shall not be deemed to operate as a waiver. 16. Expenses: The Customer must pay to JP Laser all costs, charges and expenses (including all stamp duty, bank charges and legal fees on an indemnity basis) incurred by JP Laser in connection with entry into these Terms, the exercise or attempted exercise' of any power, right or remedy under these Terms, and the failure of the Customer to comply with these Terms. 17. Trusts: These Terms bind the customer both personally and as trustee of any trusts of which the Customer is trustee. 18. Severance: Each clause and sub-clause of these Terms are separate and independent. lf any clause or sub-clause is found to be invalid or ineffective, the other clauses or subclauses will not be adversely affected. 19. Transfer of rights: JP Laser can transfer its rights under these terms to someone else without notice to the Customer. lf JP Laser does so these terms will apply to the transferee as if it were JP Laser. lf JP Laser wants to transfer its rights it can give the proposed transferee all information that privacy legislation allows it to give. 20. Application of Laws: The governing law of these Terms shall be the law of Victoria Australia. 21 Definitions: ln these Terms unless the context requires otherwise: (a) "customer" means each and every person or corporation to whom JP Laser supplies Products; (b) 'Event of Default" means any of the following events: (i) the Customer fails to pay for the products; (ii) the customer is in breach of these Terms; (iii) if the customer is a company: an order is made or a resolution is effectively passed for winding up of the customer; the customer resolves to appoint a receiver or provisional liquidator or an administrator, or a receiver or provisional liquidator or an administrator is appointed; the customer goes into liquidation or makes an assignment or an arrangement or composition with its creditors; the customer stops payment or ii deemed unable to pay-its debts within the meaning of the Corporations Act 2001; if the customer is a natural person, an order is made for the bankruptcy, or the customer dies or becomes mentally or physically incapable of managing his or her affairs or an order is applied for or made to place the assets and affairs of the customer under administration; the customer ceases or threatens to cease carrying on business; (c) "GST' means any tax that is payable under the GST law and (d) "officer" means each director, secretary, manager and authorised representative of JP Laser (e) "Products' means all goods supplied by Jp Laser to the Customer; (f) "Taxable supply" has the meaning set out in A new Tax system ( Goods and services) Act 1999 (g) Terms, means these General credit Terms and Conditions. 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__label__cc	0.685072	0.314928	Posted by LeslieMJHu at 2:10 AM I agree with Edgar Pease. Estate have access to many attorneys and millions of dollars which belong to Mrs Jackson and his children. This is a miscarriage of justice if the judge allows this its' not as if this issue is a new one and Pease hasn't been in the loop. he has been aware of the case for well over a year. how much more time does the man need? and if Mrs. Jackson were at all concerned about the Estate funds, she should not have gotten involved with crooks with questionable backgrounds in the first place, prolonging the probate process. KJ is a "guardian" entrusted to care for MJ's 3 innocent children - that should have been her first priority, not dragging them into business ventures w/o compensation. instead, she has them involved in a contract for LIFE w/ someone w/ continued ties to the adult industry who is financing Johnson's endeavors relating to MJ trademarks? what contract PROTECTS MJ's 3 children? if Johnson et al cannot pull together their "evidence" that is NOT based on a personal vendetta against Branca, then they simply didn't have a leg to stand on in the first place. priority 1: safety for MJ's children (and his mother, if she wants it). GO BRANCA GO! Susan62509 said... Leslie: I need your help. What do you mean by "the domain guy's email?" Is this something Melissa could have created herself? Also, what does "Johnson encourages a Leslie in email to do the same" mean? Anonymous @ 4:38 a.m. If a defendant knows they haven't broken the law and can prove it, they should request attorney fees to be paid by the prosecution. There isn't any miscarriage of justice on which side has more attorneys. Mann is paying for this lawsuit for Melissa and he has made a lot of money through his porn industry. Don't let him fool you. If Mann hired Mr. Pease, a one man office, then that was his decision and not an excuse. Judges only read the paperwork and listen to the case presented. They can't be prejudice to which side has the most money. Sorry. "Johnson doesn't sell, but donates the names to Jackson's charity." That is an interesting statement because on jacksonsecretvault website is a video by Geraldine Hughes of her saying Melissa gave the names (trademarks) to Katherine for free. Only the legal owner of the trademarks is allowed to transfer them into someone else's name. "Giving" them to the charity means absolutely nothing because Melissa herself will be able to collect fees for their use since she claims she is president of HTWF. Who is she trying to fool? The Jackson family has no entitlement to MJ's trademarks. They began with Michael so he is rightful owner because they are his image and logo. If I am wrong, them any body in the world can go to the government trademark office and put their name on anyone's mark. "That is an interesting statement because on jacksonsecretvault website is a video by Geraldine Hughes of her saying Melissa gave the names (trademarks) to Katherine for free." KJ cannot own MJ image, likeness and trademarks. she does not have the rights to those properties.The Estate is the rightful owner of these rights as it represents MJ after life. When his kids get older enough they will inherit those rights as per MJ wishes. The Jacksons are very delusional people. They think they are entitled to MJ properties. They are dead wrong. It just shows how ignorant they are. I am not surprised since none of them have any sort of education or whatsoever. Power struggle between attorneys, so it seems. It is E. Pease (H. Mann) against A. Streisand (KJ) - and Streisand got the boot from KJ in written form. Simple as that. Where is Margaret Lodise in all this, the attorney appointed by the probate court as guardian ad litem for Michael's 3 children, in "estate involved" matters. IMO, this IS an "estate involved matter"; if KJ has bound the children to an interminable and "binding" contract, Ms. Lodise should step me and free them from it. MJJJusticeProject said... For the Defendants to cry that they didn't have time after 19 months has passed to present a proper case is rather disingenuous, Mr. Pease. The changing of the attorney's at this critical juncture looks suspiciously as as an act to buy more time to draw out this lawsuit. I hope everyone realizes that the Estate is juggling a few other litigations regarding MJ's holdings and they take each case seriously as they are commissioned to protect and defend MIchael from all of these entities trying to get their hands on his legacy. Mann and Johnson are claiming that whatever they did was FOR Michael...then why all this hullabaloo..???? If you did it for Michael then Hand it all over and step off. Stop pretending that the Estate attorneys are the bad guys as it is so obvious that HTWF took advantage of Katherine Jackson while she was grieving. The Court does not have the right to cause this trial to drag out just because Mann & Johnson are playing the poor little guy to the large legal MJ Estate team. The Court has a responsibility to see this case to it's end.. swiftly. Every one here is missing the point! The Estate put a system in place "Bates Stamped" Making it impossible for HTWF to reach deadline. Estate are playing DIRTY! Not one person here smart enough to see whats happening! Estate has at least Seven attorney working on this case. HTWF ONE! "Every one here is missing the point! The Estate put a system in place "Bates Stamped" Making it impossible for HTWF to reach deadline. Estate are playing DIRTY! Not one person here smart enough to see whats happening! Estate has at least Seven attorney working on this case. HTWF ONE! You are an idiot. HTWF had 19 months to sort out their exhibits. Plus HTWF has no rights to MJ image, likeness and intellectual property. They have brainwashed KJ to almost hopeless proportions. Anonymous 4/16 8:44 a.m. The Estate is not playing dirty, they are following the law which Edgar Pease is not. The trial was originally set for April 19 and rescheduled to April 29. Please read the California statutes regarding the timeframe that witness list, evidence, etc. are to be exchanged between prosecution and defense: Code of Civil Procedure 2024.020. (a) Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, any party shall be entitled as a matter of right to complete discovery proceedings on or before the 30th day, and to have motions concerning discovery heard on or before the 15th day, before the date initially set for the trial of the action. 2024.030. Any party shall be entitled as a matter of right to complete discovery proceedings pertaining to a witness identified under Chapter 18 (commencing with Section 2034.010) on or before the 15th day, and to have motions concerning that discovery heard on or before the 10th day, before the date initially set for the trial of the action. The stalling of Pease to provide the evidence is the same game Conrad Murray's defense team is doing. @Anonymous 4/16 8:44 a.m "The Estate put a system in place "Bates Stamped" Not correct. Bates Numbering has been around since 1890 and has been used in legal practice for numbering documents for DECADES. It's common knowledge, please check it before making such a comment. Bates stamping was not put in place by the Estate; I've worked in law offices for years; it's a manner of numbering documents when they are submitted to the court for reference purposes. Makes me laugh the lengths some will go to avoid the real problems that Johnson, Mann, et al., have here; they have no evidence, they have no proof and their lawyer is a liar. From website: Michael Jacksons Fans United For His Legacy #MJfansAGAINSTmann Twitter Event Tomorrow, Sunday April 17th 2011 at 3PM Eastern, Michael Jackson fans from all corners of the world will converge on Twitter to send out a powerful message to Howard Mann & his business partners, namely Henry Vaccaro and Melissa Johnson. WE WILL NOT STAND QUIETLY ON THE SIDE AND WATCH YOU ATTACK AND SOIL MICHAEL JACKSON’S LEGACY. We, as a community, want to unite our voices as one in the spirit of Michael Jackson, ahead of the April 19th trial, and let the world know we will continue standing up to those who want to hijack Michael Jackson’s legacy. USE THIS HASHTAG: #MJfansAGAINSTmann The event starts at Noon Pacific. 3PM New York. 4PM Sao Paulo. 8PM London. 9PM Paris. 11PM Russia . 3AM Singapore. 4AM Tokyo. I read the Estates final trial brief dated 4/12/11. Interesting to note that 9-22-10 Melissa merged her HTWF with MJ's 1991 HTWF to revive it and filed such with the Calif. Secretary of State to amend the Articles of Inc. changing HTWF 1991 to read she is now the officer and director. She filed with the IRS & Calif. State Tax Board of this change also. Through discovery the estate obtain an email from Melissa to certain Jackson lawyers claiming that with the trademarks the charity has registered & pending in line, "the Jackson family can take back control of the estate without contesting the Will." Huh??? She's nuts making that statement. She also filed an intent to use MJ's trademarks in conjunction with a number of products the estate wanted to use. Melissa has broken the law again including the trademark law. "California State of Trademarks and Service Marks Applicants are required to state a declaration of accuracy that the material facts in the application are true. A willful inaccurate statement is subject to a civil penalty of up to $10,000 to be enforced by a public prosecutor." IMO, Melissa's obsession with Michael has led her into not only breaking the federal & states laws but ultimately all the trademarks she registered will end up the property of the estate. Amazing what happens to people when they think they are above the law. Statement from the Estate of Michael Jackson regarding Heal the World From the Estate: Press reports on TMZ and other media sites regarding the settlement terms between the Michael Jackson Estate and the Heal the World defendants are wrong. The Estate is taking back the Heal the World Foundation and all of the Michael Jackson trademarks it allegedly owned. The Michael Jackson Estate owns the Heal the World name, and neither Melissa Johnson nor her companies will ever be able to use Michael Jackson’s name or the Heal the World name. I'm anxious to read the details of the settlement. Hopefully it will be filed in court. Susan, I read yesterday that part of the settlement is "confidential". Wonder if Johnson got to stay on in some capacity as part of a compromise. Will we ever know? Hi June: It's interesting that the settlement is confidential huh? In MJ's Trust he wrote the charity committee will consist of Branca, McClain & Katherine. The Estate has to file new/corrected "Articles of Incorporation" with the State of California. So.....we should be able to find out if Johnson is on the board. I'm highly doubtful that Johnson is on the board. She's too much of a negative influence on Katherine. I, as a fan, feel any association with Johnson would tarnish HTWF's future. I'm just hoping the Estate didn't "pay" Johnson any money or write a letter to the State & IRS on her behalf not to pursue charges. The Estate didn't need to compromise with Johnson for the trademarks because by law they were all still legally MJ's. Susan, yes I too hope the estate didn't "pay" Johnson; and I feel Johnson should be prosecuted by IRS, Cal State, etc.; she committed crimes here and cheated confused griefstriken people after Michael's death. If she filed tax returns for the charity in 2010, due to the publicity, the IRS will now scrutinize the issue even if the estate marginalizes her crimes as part of a settlement. Due to "confidentiality" there are many elements of this settlement which unfortunately will never be made public. I'm in complete agreement with you that Johnson deserves to be reprimanded by the IRS & State. She needs to learn a lesson so she doesn't do this again to someone else. She should also reimburse all the fans that she deceived who donated to her from 2009 that totalled approx. $6,000. tahir sumar said... Latest Hot Current Affairs, Entertainment News, Pictures, Videos, Latest Hot News updates, Business News, Online Marketing, Online Jobs, Mp3 Tunes, Latest Ringtones, Bollywood Girls, Entertainment Girls, Hot Girls and Most popular Affairs in the World Daily News updates about Latest and Hot Current Affairs Social Media Marketing is a very easy way for Marketing and Advertising, Now you can Get Facebook Likes, Twitter Followers, Favorites, Youtube Views,Subscribes,Likes, Google Plus Followers, Stumbleupon Followers, Digg Followers, Websites Visitors and Much More. Just Visit the Website and Start Promoting now without any Charges news said... Internet Online System is very usefull and Billions of Peoples use Internet and Many of the peoples want to make money online from home and make online business for a life time We have the best Online earning System with Data Entry Jobs, Online Jobs, Network Marketing, SMS Earning, and Much More Online Work From home, Skype : Jobz.Corner World's best Online Hot Current Affairs Network where you can get every thing, World's Most Popular Classified Sites, Full Entertainment, Entertainment Pictures Article and Latest News, Latest Mp3 Tunes, Internet Online Jobs, Data Entry, Copy Pasting, Clicking, Facebook and Marketing Jobs, Online Marketing, Facebook Marketing, SEO Marketing, Latest Funny Entertainment Hot and Lol pictures, Funny Hot and Entertainment Videos For All Latest Hot Current Affairs www.hotcurrentaffairs.com	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line228
__label__cc	0.711639	0.288361	A Strange Type Of "Success" If it’s Tuesday, then that means it’s time for more shameless wankery from Bret Stephens (here)… Richard Nixon came to office with a rumored secret plan to end the war in Vietnam. Maybe Barack Obama's plan to end the war in Iraq is going to wind up being a secret, too. The presumptive Democratic nominee set off media firecrackers last week by hinting at further refinements to his strategy for withdrawal. Previous strategies include his January 2007 call for a complete withdrawal by March 2008, followed by his call for a complete withdrawal by July 2010, or 16 months after he takes office. Stephens is only partially correct here (surprising that he got that much right); in January 2007, Obama called for a withdrawal of our combat troops from Iraq by March 2008 here, and afterwards (seeing as how Commander Codpiece has no intention whatsoever of even significantly drawing down our forces, to say nothing of removing combat personnel altogether), Obama revised that strategy to one combat brigade a month for 16 months here. (And even though we’re talking about the Murdoch Street Journal here, it’s still pathetic to see this spin and misinformation on Obama, who’s actually trying to do something responsible on the most important issue we face, versus Dubya and McBush, who want war without end in Mesopotamia.) And by the way, concerning Nixon (as noted here), he never said that he had a “secret plan” during the 1968 presidential campaign, but that was the phrasing of a reporter (a matter of semantics, I know). Also… The election promises of the Nixon administration had positive results for the White House. Many potential peace activists were not ready to march on the Pentagon...until Nixon was given a fair chance. After all, troops were being withdrawn, the bombing had stopped, and diplomats were talking in Paris.[7] In addition, as the White House gradually pulled troops from Vietnam, the media shifted from the destruction of Vietnam--even while the U.S. air war and coordinated ground assaults in Southeast Asia persisted at a very high rate of killing. [8] But I suppose what really got me frosted in Stephens’ column today was the following… The delightful irony, of course, is that Mr. Obama's prospective task in Iraq has been made infinitely easier by the success of President Bush's surge, the very policy he derided only a year ago. And then Stephens says, “gee, that says something about Obama’s judgment, doesn’t it?” And my answer is, “well, considering that he opposed the war from the very start and has continually worked with other members of Congress to try and end it (and by the way, try criticizing Chuck Hagel on this, all you lickspittle pundits, if you just love Dubya’s surge so damn much, since Hagel has been at least as vocal against the war as Obama, probably more so)…yeah, I guess it does say something about Obama’s judgment, and I wish that judgment was shared by more of the Beltway cretins who will say ‘six more months’ forever” – by the way, that “Friedman unit,” if you will, has been used as a barometer by Republicans dating back to the Philippine war fought under President McKinley in 1900. My main point, though, is that I’m tired of hearing about how “successful” this damn surge has been. Here are a whole bunch of Iraq war statistics dated about a week ago. I’ll present a few excerpts to indicate the “success” of the surge… Spent & Approved War-Spending - About $600 billion of US taxpayers' funds. In June 2008, President Bush signed a bill approving about 200 billion more for 2008, which will bring the cumulative total to close to $800 billion. U.S. Monthly Spending in Iraq - $12 billion in 2008 U.S. Spending per Second - $5,000 in 2008 (per Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid on May 5, 2008) Cost of deploying one U.S. soldier for one year in Iraq - $390,000 (Congressional Research Service) Lost & Unaccounted for in Iraq - $9 billion of US taxpayers' money and $549.7 milion in spare parts shipped in 2004 to US contractors. Also, per ABC News, 190,000 guns, including 110,000 AK-47 rifles. Missing - $1 billion in tractor trailers, tank recovery vehicles, machine guns, rocket-propelled grenades and other equipment and services provided to the Iraqi security forces. (Per CBS News on Dec 6, 2007.) Mismanaged & Wasted in Iraq - $10 billion, per Feb 2007 Congressional hearings Iraqis Displaced Inside Iraq, by Iraq War, as of May 2007 - 2,255,000 Iraqi Refugees in Syria & Jordan - 2.1 million to 2.25 million Iraqi Unemployment Rate - 27 to 60%, where curfew not in effect Consumer Price Inflation in 2006 - 50% Iraqi Children Suffering from Chronic Malnutrition - 28% in June 2007 (Per CNN.com, July 30, 2007) Percent of professionals who have left Iraq since 2003 - 40% Iraqi Physicians Before 2003 Invasion - 34,000 Iraqi Physicians Who Have Left Iraq Since 2005 Invasion - 12,000 Iraqi Physicians Murdered Since 2003 Invasion - 2,000 Average Daily Hours Iraqi Homes Have Electricity - 1 to 2 hours, per Ryan Crocker, U.S. Ambassador to Iraq (Per Los Angeles Times, July 27, 2007) Average Daily Hours Iraqi Homes Have Electricity - 10.9 in May 2007 Average Daily Hours Baghdad Homes Have Electricity - 5.6 in May 2007 Pre-War Daily Hours Baghdad Homes Have Electricity - 16 to 24 Number of Iraqi Homes Connected to Sewer Systems - 37% Iraqis without access to adequate water supplies - 70% (Per CNN.com, July 30, 2007) Water Treatment Plants Rehabilitated - 22% Iraqis "strongly opposed to presence of coalition troops - 82% Iraqis who believe Coalition forces are responsible for any improvement in security - less than 1% Iraqis who feel less ecure because of the occupation - 67% Iraqis who do not have confidence in multi-national forces - 72% And speaking of our troop presence, it looks like Nouri al-Maliki believes we’ve worn out our welcome a bit in Iraq (ya’ think?) here, but we know what President Highest Disapproval Rating In Gallup Poll History intends to do about that, right? Which is to say, nothing? And while we’re patting ourselves on the back over the surge (even though Iraq STILL doesn’t have an oil law and is trying to work out that whole “power-sharing” thing with the Sunnis), how about noting from this article that, while other countries (notably in Scandinavia) have agreed to take in thousands of Iraq war refugees, we have yet to accept anything more than a trickle by comparison. I would ask that you keep this all in mind the next time you hear Stephens, either of the Kagans, Michael O’Hanlon, or any other war cheerleader claim that the surge is a “success” because multiple-fatality bombings in Iraq decreased from 42 in May 2007 to 14 in May 2008, or the country has descended from 160 to 178 on the global corruption list, whatever that means (here). I read this line in a Bucks County Courier Times Guest Opinion awhile back, and I think it applies here; if this is success, I’d hate to see failure. Update: What Arianna sez... Posted by doomsy at 9:30 AM The "Palmetto State" Comes Out Of The Closet Bushco…Hazardous To Our Health, Again Saint Petraeus Keeps Climbing The Ladder More Friday Financial Follies Dubya Kisses Off The G8 Still Trying To Mend Medicare How The Army Treats A Patriot A FISA Follow Up On The “Limbo” Congress The Deed Is Finally Done John W. McBush Sure Is A “Drag” Happy Motoring On The Road To Ruin It's A "Croc," All Right "Going Green" With Patrick Time Running Out On FISA From Trash To Triumph A Culprit In The Corporate Media Military Pivot More Hot Air From Dubya On Global Warming	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line232
__label__cc	0.632067	0.367933	AUDIOBOOK BLOG TOUR -- Gaby Cabezut's TAKE OUT CHEF!!! Author: Gaby Cabezut Narrators: Rachel Mazz Length: 7 hours 55 minutes Publisher: Hachette Audio Released: Sep. 19, 2017 Take Out Chef is a new release from Hachette Audiobooks: Powered by Wattpad - an innovative collaboration between Hachette Book Group, a leading publisher, and Wattpad, a passionate storytelling community of over 45 million people. Your favorite online stories, now available in your headphones! Jessica Summers works all day to support her family. Her social life consists of having dinner in front of the television watching Chef Tom's magical hands prepare foods. Being a chef is her lifelong dream, but since her mom passed away, being there for her brother and helping ease the burden for her quirky grandmother are her priority. Her life takes an unexpected turn when her brother signs her up in an experimental program to help young delinquents. Chef Tom Simmons and Chef Bryan Sullen head the project, and, when they meet, Jessie is hoping to get a spot in the school - despite her noncriminal record - not to find a new job. Yet Tom is in desperate need of a new assistant, and Jessie is the perfect fit. Bryan has a rough facade. He's obnoxious and bossy but shows moments of kindness, too. Their romance blossoms between remaking messy soufflés and baking crispy croissants. When they have plans to start dating, Bryan has an emergency and shuts down on Jessie. When Bryan comes back, Jesse must decide to follow her heart and give the man she loves a chance to open up or let him go for good. Gaby Cabezut is sappy and sweet as a box of chocolates. She believes that we could all do with a bit of romance and magic in our lives. She loves to write romantic, emotional stories that will make you laugh and sometimes cry. She’s Mexican and always dreamed to write in English, and found the chance to do so on Wattpad, where her stories have gathered over 100 million reads online. Her published books are sweet and contemporary romances that will sweeten your life like a batch of brownies. She spends her days between her family, her words and a batch of whatever dessert she decided to create for that evening. She has been published by Pop Fiction Books in the Philippines and HachetteAudio. Prince with Benefits has also been adapted into a game! Website⎮Twitter⎮Facebook⎮Instagram Rachel Mazz is an actress, known for Not the Same. I received this audiobook as part of my participation in a blog tour with Audiobookworm Promotions. The tour is being sponsored by Gaby Cabezut. The gifting of this audiobook did not affect my opinion of it. In Patti's Imagination Rating: 7/10 This was the first book I have read by this author and the first book I’ve listened to by this narrator. I wasn’t really sure what to fully expect from this book based on the synopsis, but I was pleasantly surprised. Jessica is a wonderful main female character. She works hard doing what she needs to, to support her family. I love the interactions of her family and how they are there for each other yet causing each other many fun family angst. It was great to read. It was also a story that developed; we got to know the characters. There were times, I didn’t want to turn the book off, wondering what was going to be happening next. The narrator did a good job in changing up her voice for the various characters making it easier to follow along. There were a few moments that the story got a bit confusing, for this listener and that is why I’m unable to give it a full five stars. Was a possible audiobook recording something you were conscious of while writing? Not at all. I think every writer’s dream is to see the book on a bookshelf, but the opportunity came and I couldn’t let it pass. It meant giving life to my story, it’s amazing. How did you select your narrator? I chose someone that could represent Jessie, and that could handle different authors, a voice that sounded fresh and full with energy, just like my character. Were there any real life inspirations behind your writing? Definitely! I love cooking and I might have had a slight crush on Jamie Oliver for half of my life, so writing about a girl attending a school for delinquents while describing cooking scenes and falling in love with her teacher, was a must for me. Are you an audiobook listener? What about the audiobook format appeals to you? I am now! I love hearing the character’s emotions through the narrator voice, you can picture them in your head alive. For me, it has been incredible. Mostly, I enjoy the whole production ones, like Pride and Prejudice from audible, where there are several voices and different noises on the background. Is there a particular part of this story that you feel is more resonating in the audiobook performance than in the book format? I can listen to the first chapter over and over, those first lines, read by Rachel, portraying Jessie’s emotions always make me emotional. I love how she represents Jessie as she’s excited and nervous about meeting her TV Idol. If you had the power to time travel, would you use it? If yes, when and where would you go? I’d like to go to the past, and meet with family members that I’ve lost during my lifetime. People that I would have loved to share my books with. Like, my mom. It would mean the world for her to read my stories or hear my audiobook. How did you celebrate after finishing this novel? I took a writing break and celebrated for days with different family members and friends. What gets you out of a writing slump? What about a reading slump? A break is always needed if you’re stressed or feel like you can’t go on. Taking a walk, watching a movie, anything different than what you were doing can help you return with a clear head. I’ve also heard that doing chores helps, but I rather watch a movie ;) What bits of advice would you give to aspiring authors? Write for yourself, always. You have to fall in love with your characters and the story they’re creating, write what you’d love to read, something you’re passionate about. Even if it isn’t something that everyone would like, the first person you need to impress is yourself. The rest will come later. Right now, we’re under the process of adapting my stories into video games. I have one story, Prince with Benefits that is now a game in the Chapters app (available on iOS and Google Play Android) and will be an audiobook soon as well, and the rest of the series will be produced in the future as well. So right now, it’s all about video games and audiobooks for me, and I’ve never been so excited! Takeout Chef Giveaway: $25 Amazon Gift Card May 31st: Bookworms Corner Blog Spot Guilty Indulgence Bookclub The Book Junkie Reads . . Jun. 1st: London's Scribbles Once Upon a Twilight Next Book Review Lynn's Romance Enthusiasm Jun. 2nd: T's Stuff Blogger Nicole Reviews Jun. 3rd: Lisa Loves Literature Jun. 4th: What Is That Book About Jazzy Book Reviews Jun. 5th: Happily Ever BookWorm Lilly's Book World Red Hatter Book Blog Jun. 6th: The Bookworm Lodge The Book Addict's Reviews In Patti's Imagination ➜Sign up as a host here RELEASE BLITZ~Jessica Collin's~FINDERS KEEPERS RELEASE BLITZ - L.A. Cotton's WICKED GAMES!!!! BLOG TOUR -- A.M. Madden and Joanne Schwehm's CRAV... RELEASE BLITZ -- A.M. Madden & Joanne Schwehm's CR... RELEASE BLITZ -- Yessi Smith's SHALLOW!!! AUDIOBOOK TOUR: Lilly Atlas's ESCAPADES!!! RELEASE BLITZ -- S. Bennett's ATTICUS!!!! RELEASE BLITZ: What Happens at a Wedding: A Short ... AUDIOBOOK BLOG TOUR -- Gaby Cabezut's TAKE OUT CHE...	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line240
__label__wiki	0.653931	0.653931	flying the flag for free-thinking literature London Books, 39 Lavender Gardens, London SW11 1DJ Email: info@london-books.co.uk Home \| Authors \| The Flag Club / Events \| Shop \| Speaker's Corner \| Links \| Press \| Twitter \| Facebook UK £11.99 GBP Europe £14.99 GBP Rest of World £17.99 GBP Doctor Of The Lost by Simon Blumenfeld When Thomas Barnardo arrived in East London in 1866, he planned to train at the London Hospital before sailing to China to work as a missionary. The conditions he found in the East End stopped him in his tracks. The unemployment, poverty, overcrowding, drinking and disease were bad enough, but seeing thousands of destitute children living on the streets broke his heart. Inside a year Barnardo had opened a ragged school and by 1870 the first of his homes was in operation. He faced opposition from jealous rivals and struggled to find the money to provide enough shelter, but following the death of Carrots, a boy turned away due to a lack of space, he determined to never refuse any child again. By the time of his death he had helped tens of thousands of children and his work continues to this day. Doctor Of The Lost is the fictionalised story of Dr Barnardo’s early years in East London. While based on fact, Doctor Of The Lost is very much a novel, and author Simon Blumenfeld brings Barnardo’s character vividly to life. The likes of the Black Doctor, Splodger and Brad show the other personalities and forces at work. In with the poverty and hardship, we also see the colour and excitement of the markets, pubs and music halls of Mile End, Aldgate, Whitechapel. The Black Doctor rides his mare Rachel through the East End, tending to the poor, insisting that political change, not religious belief, will help the area’s orphans. Splodger introduces Barnardo to the Black Doctor and dips in and out of the narrative, a heavy-drinking coalie last seen sober as he marches with the dockers to confront the bosses. Brad, meanwhile, plots to destroy Barnardo from a gentleman’s club, his obsession ending in a final, dramatic act. Doctor Of The Lost shows London at a time of rampant industrialisation, when a few became very wealthy at the expense of the many, but it was also a period of charity and good works, when idealists such as Tom Barnardo were prepared to stand up and be counted. Phineas Kahn Prelude To A Certain Midnight Always Rains On Sunday There Ain’t No Justice Doctor Of The Lost Jew Boy The Angel And The Cuckoo Wide Boys Never Work A Start In Life Night And The City The Gilt Kid Slaughterhouse Prayer Doctor Zipp’s Amazing Octo-Com The Liberal Politics Barry Desmond Is A Wanker Malayan Swing The Prison House The Working Man’s Ballet Justice For Joan Ultraviolet: A Glastonbury Tale Gypsy Joe The Special Ones Battersea Girl North Soho 999 The Brown Dog Affair Signed copies of our titles are available. Please contact us via e-mail for details and dedications info@london-books.co.uk	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line249
__label__wiki	0.832847	0.832847	KUHS 102.5 FM \| Hot Springs DJ Application Derik Brockwell’s Nightcap, Starring Tolly Gipson With the disappearance of Derik Brockwell from our dimension, the Executive Director In Charge of Doing Whatever Derik Says, Tolly Gipson has been tasked with keeping the show on the air while Mr. Brockwell is gone. Having already been the executive Producer, Head Writer, and Show-runner of Nightcap With Derik Brockwell, Tolly has the confidence and workman like ability to handle the job. Viewers(and listeners) will notice a complete tonal change in the program, which reflects the name change of the program as well. Gone are the days of exploring vapid celebrity culture through the lens of the late night chat show. Tolly has spearheaded a movement to bring class & culture back to the populace, and is using the copyrighted ‘Nightcap Time Traveling Sound Stage’ to bring important cultural figures from throughout time, to the present for important conversations. It’s time for a different kind of late night talk show. It’s time to #makeamericasouthkoreanagain! It’s time for Derik Brockwell’s Nightcap, Starring Tolly Gipson! Are you a night owl? Well, on Tuesday Nights after Nightcap, and on Saturday Nights after The Brockwell Show, it’s time to stay tuned for the best in entertainment, The Brockwell Broadcast Network. From Midnight until 8 Am, The BBN brings you entertainment from the best in music, comedy, literature, pop culture, gaming, and human issues. Our shows reflect a wide berth of influence, and interests, and are programmed to enrich the human mind and spirit. A program like ‘The Tender Trap With Derik Brockwell’ explores relationships and offers advice on sex and love. ‘Game for Games’ showcases different games, be they tabletop games, video games, or anything in between. ‘It Came From The Late Late Show’, has hosts watching a cult film on air, while giving constant commentary on the film as it progresses. ‘The Geek Cave’, is a show where hosts discuss pop culture, interview artists, and give reviews. There are also comedy specials, complete concerts, intriguing lectures, and so much more. Become a ‘B-Weller’ (a Brockwell Broadcast Networker) today, and tune in and turn on! Derik Brockwell Tuesday - 11:00 pm - 1:00 am KUHS 102.5 FM 240 Ouachita Ave. Hot Springs, AR 71901 Request Line: 501.627.0711 © 2020 KUHS 102.5 FM. KUHS-LP 97.9 Community Radio is a program of Low Key Arts, a 501c3 community arts organization. Support for Low Key Arts is provided, in part, by the Arkansas Arts Council, an agency of the Department of Heritage and the National Endowment for the Arts. www.lowkeyarts.org	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line268
__label__wiki	0.735572	0.735572	Youtube Stars set to throw down in Manchester this August by Connor Zahariev in MMA News It has been announced that American Youtuber Logan Paul, most recently in the headlines for his controversial suicide forest video, has come to an agreement with British Youtuber Olajide William “JJ” Olatunj better known as KSI to a 2 fight boxing deal. The first fight of which is scheduled to be held in the Manchester Arena on the 25th August 2018, with a follow up to take place stateside before February 2019. The owner of what is likely the most watched amateur fight of all time is KSI who defeated fellow Youtuber Joe Weller in three rounds of amateur boxing in early February. Since the fight, the video has amassed a whopping 30 million views which should come as no surprise when together the two fighters have a combined 23 million subscribers. This, however, pales in comparison to the over 35 million that are subscribed to the contestants of the scheduled Manchester event. The venue is also proportionally larger with a 21,000 seating capacity, a large step up from the sold-out London Copper Box Arena which held 7,500 spectators for the first Youtube bout. In the post-fight interview of the initial fight, KSI called out “any Youtuber” that wanted to challenge him for what has now been called the Youtube boxing champion the (somewhat made up) belt which is currently held by KSI. This sparked callouts from a number of big Youtube personalities such as Bradley Martyn, Furious Pete and of course the Paul brothers both Logan and Jake. There has been quite the back and forth between KSI and the Pauls with a real will they won’t they, how long are they going to drag this thing out, kind of feel to the whole thing. This is likely in order to build some hype for the fight but it is important to remember that these young contenders predominantly make money from Youtube views, it seems in their interest, therefore, to stretch the affair out as long as possible. In terms of experience, both of the fighters are boxing amateurs in every sense. Logan comes from an athletic background of wrestling and American Football which could prove advantageous in terms of ring generalship and fight knowledge. Both fighters have “trained” a term used loosely here (more like visited) the Money Team gym recently with KSI meeting and hitting pads with Floyd Mayweather Sr. It was also the stage for a confrontation between the two that seems to have sealed the deal. In any case, we can be sure that there will be more footage (and a lot more trash talking videos) out before August with it set to become the most viewed amateur bout of all time and decide who is the Youtube boxing champ once and for all…or at least until the next time. Tags: boxingKSILogan PaulYoutube Connor Zahariev MMA Thoughts: Jon Jones Gabriel Newman says: Fuck I hope ksi kicks his ass Kevin Schwagg says: Logan needs a good beat down MMA UK T-Shirt £14.99 MMA UK Hoodie (Black) £24.99	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line270
__label__cc	0.512303	0.487697	Difference between revisions of "Foxbat" BattlerockX (Talk \| contribs) (→‎Personality) (→‎Related Information) ''(Please see Foxbat's [http://www.champions-online-wiki.com/wiki/Foxbat Champions Online Wiki entry] for more information.)'' Foxbat is not seen but is mentioned in '''[[Future's Guardian\|"Future's Guardian" #6]]'''. He "appears" via radio in '''Issue #11''' and is eventually "seen" in '''Issue #12'''. He is "officially" seen in '''Issue #13'''. Foxbat is not seen but is mentioned in '''[[Future's Guardian\|"Future's Guardian" #6]]'''. He "appears" via radio in '''Issue #11''' and is eventually "seen" in '''Issue #12'''. He is "officially" seen in '''Issue #13''' but... let's not talk about that. "Greetings hero! Whomever you are, you should be proud of yourself, because now you have caught the attention of the most dynamic villain in history! Yes, be proud of the fact that you have officially appeared on the radar of the one and the only… FOXBAT! Please feel free to take this time to introduce yourself to me so I know whom I should taunt in my future criminal exploits. And if you feel the need to pee in your tights, well, that’s to be expected when you make it to the big time." Foxbat The GREATEST Supervillain you will EVER KNOW! E-V-E-R! Cryptic Studios Future's Guardian #12 Freddy Foswell Known Aliases: The Awesomely-Impressive Extremely Uncanny Foxbat You don't need to know that. Tall enough to be recognized. Large and in charge, baby! The bestest to see you, dearie! I have all mine. Biographical Data American (the 1% kind) Greatest Supervillain you will EVER know! E-V-E-R!!! The pages of legends Base of Operations: Where legends take me Always single and available... for the LADIES!!! Known Relatives: Who cares about them? Known Powers Being Awesomely Cool! Known Abilities Being Awesome and commanding a HUGE fanbase! Only the most ultimate in ultra-cool devices of my own creation! I make them all and I do my own stunts too! This character is a villain in the world of Champions Online. This entry is an In-Game Non-Player Character. Foxbat is the public name for Millennium City's "Greatest Supervillain Ever... E-V-E-R!". But really FOXBAT is the only name you should ever think about. Foxbat doesn't just "think" he is great... Foxbat IS GREAT! PERIOD! Who Is Foxbat? Foxbat is the spoiled child of rich parents. They didn't die, but they did lose their money, and that was an even worse sin for the young man who loved comic books and collecting action figures more than life itself. So Foxbat decided to become a supervillain... because supervillains not only get all the money, but they also get all the cool stuff and all the cool women. After all, women LOVE the bad boys, right? And Foxbat is as bad of a bad boy as one can be. Foxbat took every bit of money that he could beg, borrow (without any plans of repaying), and especially steal to make his super-cool outfit and establish himself as THE premiere supervillain for Millennium City. And to PROVE this, he has his legions of fans and minions out there making sure that people KNOW just how awesome Foxbat is! No, really, he does! Not just the robotic minions that he built from old movie parts, but real human FANS! People that buy up his Foxbat shirts and his Foxbat pins and his "We're Number One" Foxbat foam-fingers, and will even buy the special Double-Chrome Ultimate Elite One-Shot "rare" printing of FOXBAT #0 comic book! You know, the one done by that Liarfielding guy! Now if only someone will follow-through with a regular Foxbat comic series! And did you know there was a Foxbat TV series? No, really, there was! And it was the coolest adventure series you could ever imagine, with an all-star cast and a veritable who's who of celebrity guest stars! It's only a matter of time before the Guild of Villainous Intentions honors me for my deeds, and then I'll be truly legendary! Oh, something else that Foxbat is REALLY great at? Logging into Wiki Media websites like this one and writing his own entry. I mean, that is just HOW AWESOME Foxbat is! Foxbat is an inventor with money. Well, he used to have money. Now he has to take money to make money. But he's got friends and fans that will do that. And if those friends and fans get arrested, he'll make more. He can make plenty of robots minions who will record his villainous activities and make sure they're shown in the proper light. Oh, and he makes his own arsenal of really cool devices. How awesome is that? "Foxbat is a self-absorbed narcissist that seeks worship to replace the lack of attention he got when he was a child..." blah-blah-blah psycho-babble stuff. Okay, Foxbat is the coolest villain you will EVER know! That's all that you need to know. He parties-hardy and everyone knows it! You don't need to know that he was some geeky nerd who didn't have friends and was ignored by his parents and because of that he is over-compensating today with his friends and fans and minions. I mean, who owns up to that sort of stuff? Foxbat is the greatest! Period! That's all you need to know! (Please see Foxbat's Champions Online Wiki entry for more information.) Foxbat is not seen but is mentioned in "Future's Guardian" #6. He "appears" via radio in Issue #11 and is eventually "seen" in Issue #12. He is "officially" seen in Issue #13 but... let's not talk about that. Retrieved from "http://mmocomicindex.com/comicindex/index.php?title=Foxbat&oldid=7798" In-Game Character	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line271
__label__wiki	0.652277	0.652277	The Heritage Museum Originally started in 1973 as a project to preserve the diverse historical culture of Libby and Lincoln County, the Heritage Museum finally opened to the public in 1978. Featuring a rich history of Native American culture, Pioneer history and the dramatic story of the Railroad construction, this museum paints a dramatic picture of the formation of Lincoln County, both past and present. Learn the role Libby played as the county seat as Lincoln County nearly became a separate state formed out of parts of Montana, Washington and Idaho. The Heritage Museum is a historic western gem the entire family will enjoy. Map to the Heritage Museum (406) 293-7521 Book your stay at the Country Inn by phone or online! Cabinet Mountain Brewery Bowling & Fun Center Dome Theater Libby MAC Carousel Roller Rink All Recreation	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line275
__label__wiki	0.627312	0.627312	[Ndca-l] Richard B. Sodikow Jon Cruz joncruz1138 Wed May 7 22:31:30 EDT 2014 Previous message: [Ndca-l] Sad News Next message: [Ndca-l] Organization Information. As many of you know, Richard B. Sodikow, the founder of the Bronx Science Speech & Debate Team and its director for thirty years, passed away earlier this week. Richard was an incredible influence on generations of students and colleagues at Bronx Science and in New York, the Northeast, and the Nation. He was also a founding member of the NDCA. The current members and coaches of the Bronx Science Speech & Debate Team will continue to work hard to carry on the tradition of excellence that he established at his alma mater. The entire team has been moved by the outpouring of love that has been expressed for Mr. Sodikow since his passing. The comments on our team's Facebook page, on my Facebook page, on Kirby Chin's Facebook page, and on the pages of so many of Mr. Sodikow's former students and colleagues are truly overwhelming. Mr. Sodikow's family is holding a memorial service on Sunday, May 25, 2014 at Beth Israel Boynton Chapel (11115 Jog Road, Boynton Beach, Florida) at 10:00 AM. Additionally, the Bronx Science Speech & Debate Team is hosting a memorial for Mr. Sodikow on Saturday, June 7, 2014 at the Bronx High School of Science (75 West 205th Street, Bronx, New York) at 1:00 PM. Jon Cruz Director of Speech & Debate The Bronx High School of Science More information about the Ndca-l mailing list	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line280
__label__wiki	0.506224	0.506224	The Smaller the Theater, the Faster the Music What Time Feels Like When You’re Improvising A New View of Time She’ll Text Me, She’ll Text Me Not When Bad Things Happen in Slow Motion How I Taught My Computer to Write Its Own Music Is Artificial Intelligence Permanently Inscrutable? We Need to Save Ignorance From AI The Trouble with Theories of Everything The Strange Brain of the World’s Greatest Solo Climber Why You Feel the Urge to Jump Resume Reading — The Best Little Bar in Manhattan You've read 1 of 2 free monthly articles. Learn More. Culture Fiction The Best Little Bar in Manhattan An experiment in belief versus bourbon. John Grant By John Grant photo by Christopher Anderson/Magnum Photos April 9, 2015 Let me take you, dear boy,” said McHintry, “to the best little bar in Manhattan.” I could have told him Donna was expecting…By John Grant Let me take you, dear boy,” said McHintry, “to the best little bar in Manhattan.” I could have told him Donna was expecting me home in good time to find out how my first day in the new job had gone. I could have told him that anyway I never drank much, not just because Donna disapproved of it but because after only a couple of beers my skull begins to feel like a street riot’s in progress within, complete with Molotov cocktails. I could have told him that I hadn’t eaten since my breakfast Cheerios. I could have told him I’d taken a pledge of abstinence as part of my seminary training many years ago, which would have been a lie on several different levels but a dishonesty that might have been regarded as justifiable by many—Donna, for example. Instead, I considered for a fraction of a second that this man was my boss and this was my first job since leaving college, and I said, “Sure thing. Just let me put on my coat.” Rencourt & Blitzen was a medium-sized literary publishing house that had just been swallowed up by a conglomerate, years before this had become the fashion. As a result, the company consisted of a residual dozen staff—plus me, although I didn’t yet realize it—who were waiting for their jobs to be “rationalized” into vacuum. If you Google very carefully today you’ll eventually find RencourtBlitzenMcPhail, a division reporting to a Copenhagen-based CEO and publishing books about sailing ships. Also in Fiction The Hit Book That Came From Mars By Michael Segal The story of Andy Weir is a strange mix of fact and fiction. There’s the fairy tale success of his book, The Martian, which he self-published on his blog for free, intended for the few thousand fans he’d accumulated over...READ MORE Back when McHintry was inviting me out for a drink, Google hadn’t been invented yet. As a new-fledged editorial assistant, I’d spent all day on slush-pile duty, reading the first two pages of typescripts sent by aspiring authors and mailing them letters telling them their work was wonderful but just not quite suitable for our current requirements. A few were sufficiently ahead of the technological curve that I was able to fax them the bad news. I’m not going to tell you what it was called, because later McHintry swore me to silence. “This, ah, bar,” I said as we waited for the elevator, “it, ah, sells food?” “It doesn’t need to,” said McHintry mysteriously. The elevator arrived, chugged downward reluctantly in the way elevators did in those days, and debouched us at ground level. “I think I’d better phone Donna,” I said belatedly. “Don’t worry,” replied McHintry, charging across a hall that was all stone-colored floor tiles and marquetry walls. “The bar has a pay phone.” We jostled down Sixth Avenue, cut through crowds along 42nd Street, went down Ninth a while and eventually turned onto a narrow street I’d never known was there. I peered upward to try to see the sign on the corner, but it had been broken off. “So,” said McHintry, “how have you enjoyed your first day?” Your new boss is taking you out for a post-work drink. This is not the moment for complaining. “Very much,” I said, wondering why I was puffing and he wasn’t. “I hadn’t realized,” I added, referring to the slush-pile manuscripts, “how many unique paths there are to universal self-enlightenment.” “You will find out tomorrow that there are even more, many of them involving high-fiber foods. You’ll also find out the truth of the Taoist principle that all of these paths are the same one. What Taoism fails to mention is that the paths should without exception be rejected—at least by Rencourt & Blitzen. As he said the last words he turned right again. If the narrow street we’d been walking briskly down had been a minor vein, this was a capillary. If I’d been on my own I’d not have noticed the entrance was there. It was something smaller than an alley that yet managed to be a street. At its end, or at least where it kinked at apparent right angles ahead of us, there was a lighted square perhaps ten yards in each direction. Onto the square faced a bar called … But, no, I’m not going to tell you what it was called, because later McHintry swore me to silence. Besides, young man, your mother—not to mention that wife of yours—would never forgive me if I helped you find the place. We went in. The main feature I can remember of the decor now is that there was a lot of oak: polished oak paneling on the walls, and a bar that was likewise polished oak but looked genuine. There was also a little glowing lamp in the corner that showed the symbol of a telephone. Appearances can be deceptive. The smiling young Christian missionary turns out to be Ted Bundy. McHintry led me to the bar. “I’ll just …” I said, gesturing toward the phone. He waved, his attention on the barman. “Feel free.” At the phone, I found enough coins to phone Donna. I was fairly certain my credit card would stand the strain of however much McHintry and I would drink tonight; all the same, I hoped he was paying. She picked up with alarming quickness. “Have you left yet?” “Just. Look, my boss is a man called Derek …” “He’s taken you out for a drink?” “You guessed it.” “Just the one, okay, darling?” “I’ll do my best.” “Promise?” I looked around at the interior of the bar, of the honey-colored light that filled it. Perhaps it was a bit larger than it had looked from the outside, perhaps not. The bar itself was at one end of a room wider than it was long, as seen from the entrance; the floor was scattered with small round tables. Some of the tables were occupied, many of them not. The bar, on the other hand, was crowded. Yet there wasn’t the usual Manhattan shouting filling the air; if I hadn’t admitted to Donna where I was, the chances are she wouldn’t have known. “I’m going to have to play this by ear,” I told her. “The guy could fire me, after all.” “He could fire you if you threw up on his shoes.” “I’ll check beforehand that the shoes I’m about to throw up on aren’t his.” “That’s not funny.” McHintry was waving to me from the bar, and pointing to a couple of ominously small glasses in front of him. “I’ve got to go now, darling,” I said. “Love you,” she said. “Love you,” I replied, putting the handset back into its cradle. “Dry Manhattan,” said McHintry, when I joined him. I slithered up onto the stool beside his, and looked at a broad-topped glass whose brown contents seemed to be wondering if they should smoke or just spill over and eat a hole through the bar top. “I looked at you while you were talking to that pretty little wife of yours, and I thought to myself, There’s a Dry Manhattan sort of guy!” “Oh, good,” I said. I took a sip, and then another. I suppose I’m expected to say that the world lurched crazily or something like that, but in fact nothing of the sort happened. Instead, a magnificent taste reminiscent of honey, maple, and long walks in pine-redolent woods filled my mouth and then my throat. “Wow,” I said quietly, putting my glass down. McHintry grinned. “Another?” “I’ve hardly started my first.” He grinned again, then drained his own glass. I stared. I wasn’t so stupid that I hadn’t heard of cocktails before. “Are you sure you didn’t find any even partway promising manuscripts today?” he said. I stiffened, assuming this was a test: Pour some booze down the throat of the new kid, then see if he’s still capable of using words of more than one syllable. Back in college a professor had told me there was this axiom of publishing that it wasn’t the masterpieces you missed that bankrupted you but the masterpieces you bought. I matched him grin for grin. “Nope. Not one. They were all stinkers.” Trying to pretend I wasn’t feeling self-conscious—me? no, surely not!—I snatched up my glass and threw its contents down in one. “Another!” cried McHintry to the barman. This was my first opportunity for a proper look at the guy behind the bar, but I missed it. He had one of those faces you tend not to notice because you’re looking at the bottles on their serried shelves beyond. If I registered him at all at the time it was to think his cheeks were unnaturally red, his eyes unnaturally likewise. “But I told Donna …” I began. “You liked the Manhattan?” “Oh, yeah,” I told McHintry truthfully. “Then you’ll be wanting another?” “I should be going ho—” “Like I said, Louie,” McHintry told the barman, “we’ll be wanting another for my friend. Another two, in fact. And I’ll have the same for myself.” “You will?” I said once Louie had gone about his task. McHintry leaned extravagantly on the bar. For the first time today I noticed he was wearing a blue tie with silver pitchforks on it. I thought it very strange I hadn’t noticed this before. McHintry nodded as if reading my thoughts. “Look around you, young man.” While I’d not been looking, a few more of the tables had filled up. They all had small round tops that looked to be of a darker wood than oak, or perhaps it was just that generations of alcohol splashes had soaked into the surfaces. At some tables there was just one person sitting; a few had a pair of drinkers; none had three. Nobody was holding a conversation. Almost everybody seemed to be a New York Times reader. And nobody seemed to be, well, the sort of person you’d expect to find in a shabby Manhattan bar in the kind of neighborhood this one was in. Yes, I know, appearances can be deceptive. The smiling young Christian missionary turns out to be Ted Bundy. The grinning clown who performs for terminally ill hospital kids is John Wayne Gacy. But the guys in the bar—there wasn’t a woman among them—were hardly in that league. The standard article of attire was the suit, blue or gray. At the far end of the bar there was a fellow with a white polo neck; everyone else had ties. “How many people can you see here,” said McHintry, “who’re smashed?” There are some questions you don’t expect. I didn’t have to answer immediately because at that moment Louie reappeared alongside us. “Your drinks, gentlemen.” If anything the Manhattans looked more toxic than the last time around. Left to my own devices, I’d have hopped down from my high stool and headed off home to Donna. If I called a taxi there was a chance she could pay for it when I arrived. “ ‘Smashed?’ ” I said. “Plastered. Out of their skulls. Whatever.” I looked up and down. Now that McHintry had pointed it out to me, this was the real thing that was so odd about the place. No voices raised in raucous laughter, no flushed faces, no dull-eyed sightless staring at blank walls. Several of the Times readers were filling in the crossword, and in sensible pencil; others were scanning the paper itself, while one patron had put his Times aside and was now deeply immersed in a book by Willa Cather. The atmosphere was more of the New York Public Library than of a bar that was somewhere off-off Ninth. Yet some of these people were clearly packing the ol’ hooch away at a rate of knots, to judge by the empty glasses around them. Without thinking, I took another gulp, a big gulp, of my Dry Manhattan. In terms of my future career, this was probably the most valuable evening I ever spent. As soon as I realized what I’d done, I waited for the sensation a second glass of strong drink usually gives me: the feeling that the backs of my eyeballs want to erupt out through the fronts. It didn’t come. I stared at my depleted glass. Perhaps I was developing a resistance to hard liquor at last. McHintry was gesturing toward one of the vacant tables. “Shall we?” Once we’d settled again, he glanced at his watch. “I should think table service will be out of the question by now,” he said, gazing absently at Louie, “so we’ll have to fetch our drinks for ourselves, but—” “I’m not sure I’ll be needing any more drinks,” I said, trying to make a joke of it. Getting out of here in a fit condition to find my way home was beginning to seem like a fading dream. More pressing was whether I could get out of here alive. McHintry laughed with me. “You’ve not been paying attention, dear boy,” he said. “Try putting it all together.” As if to jog my deductive processes, an elderly man who I’d have guessed as a priest in some ascetic order pushed through the door, walked briskly to the bar, and ordered himself six double scotches. With chasers. “I think I’m out of my league in this place,” I began to say slowly, and then realization dawned. Everyone here was knocking booze back like there was no tomorrow, but no one was showing the slightest sign of wear. Correction: Not quite no one. “It’s Louie’s great talent, you see,” said McHintry, confirming my thoughts. “You can drink as much as you want here and stay as sober as a judge—which, by the way, is exactly what several of the regular customers are, judges. All the pleasures of the booze without any of the adverse consequences—you don’t even have a hangover or a sour stomach the next morning. The only person who gets drunk is Louie. He does all the getting drunk and the subsequent suffering for you.” “He does that every night?” I hissed. “The place only opens once a week,” McHintry replied. “It takes him that long between-times to recover.” “So every Monday you …” He nodded. “Every Monday I come here after work and drink to my heart’s content—drink enough that’d likely kill me in the ordinary way, or at least land me in the E.R. So far as Mrs. McHintry is concerned, I work late on Mondays. If she complains about the smell of booze on me, I tell her I had a beer on the way home to wind down.” “But if it’d almost kill you,” I said, “and everyone else is doing the same as you are, what’s it doing to Louie?” “That’s the other aspect of his magical talent,” said McHintry. “He’s a rich man because of it. Sometimes he hospitalizes himself but, where you or I might die, he recovers. And the drinks here cost five times what you’d pay at the Ritz-Carlton …” He put his hand gently over mine to reassure me before panic fully set in. “Don’t worry. This is my treat. No way I could expect anyone to buy their own drinks here on the kind of money Rencourt & Blitzen gives their editorial assistants.” I chuckled too, because he was my boss. The Rencourt & Blitzen salary had been the solitary bone of contention between Donna and me when we were discussing if I should take the job. She was insistent I should wait for something better to come along. My viewpoint was, the way publishing was even in those days, waiting for something better to come along could well be like waiting for Godot. I should grab what I could, give it a couple of years, then start looking around. Time proved me right, as I’ve never tired of reminding her. The evening wore on. I had to phone an increasingly exasperated Donna a couple more times. After those first two drinks, I shifted from Manhattan Drys—Dries?—to beers partly because I couldn’t really quite believe, even yet, that Louie was taking all the punishment on my behalf, partly because, if he was, I didn’t want to inflict on him any worse than he was already getting. Mind you, that didn’t stop me having a few glasses of port in among the beers. And I think there was a gin and tonic or two … In terms of my future career, this was probably the most valuable evening I ever spent, sitting in that little bar and listening as McHintry imparted to me publishing lore and wisdom he’d spent the best part of four decades accruing. It was something we could never have done in the office, with phones ringing and other staffers demanding attention. Come to think of it, it was a session we could never have had in any other bar but this one, either: As the night wore on, McHintry would have had to shout for me to hear him, which would have meant he’d have been simplifying everything he told me, stripping away the nuance … and anyway I’d have forgotten it all by the next morning. There really are magical spells and special superhuman powers in this world. But they’re frailer than all the legends say they are. This, at least, was what I decided to tell Donna as I trekked uptown once McHintry and I had finally torn ourselves away from the bar and from each other’s company. By the time we left, Louie was barely able to speak, or even to open his eyes, yet was somehow still managing—through, I guess, an iron resolve that was yet another facet of his supernatural talent—to serve drinks and make change. There were fewer people on the streets than usual, it being a Monday night, and less traffic. I was so fired up by sobriety that the very idea of taking the subway seemed repellent. It was one of those rare times in New York when the air smells clean, as if with the promise of snow—a very real possibility, because my breath was steaming in front of me as I walked. Walked? I strode. I was damn near marching, in fact. As you know, after surprisingly few drinks my normal mode of locomotion is the stumble. The only effect all those beers had had on me was on my bladder, but a furtive foray into Central Park took care of that. It must have been three in the morning by the time I got home to the ratty little apartment that was the first place your mother and I lived in after we got married. She met me on the doorstep—not a good omen. She was in her robe. Faded muddy pink, with blue bunny rabbits, some hanging half-off. I could tell from her face she’d been to bed, not slept, and got up again to wait for me, sitting at the kitchen table and drinking too much black coffee. “Well?” she said, another bad omen. I told her about the bar, and about the barman’s extraordinary talent, and about how I was stone cold sober. I can’t remember much of the ensuing speech my beloved made, but I do recall the frequent appearance of terms like “skunk,” “loaded,” “all on my own,” “lush,” “douchebag” and even a tentative “staying with my mother awhile”—we both recognized this last as an empty threat, because … well, you remember your grandmother, don’t you? All this while, the most curious transformation was coming over me. Holding up my hands as if to shield myself from the barrage of words, I sidled along the short corridor in the direction of the bathroom. The relief Central Park had offered had been strictly temporary, but it wasn’t just that. There really are, whatever science might say, such things as magical spells and special superhuman powers in this world—I’m absolutely convinced of it. But they’re frailer than all the legends say they are. Unlike the features of the straightforward physical world, they don’t exist regardless of whether or not we believe in them. In the face of any challenge they can melt away like dreams. Any spell can easily be broken by determined disbelief. Clinging to the bathroom doorframe, I waited for Donna to stop talking. It was quite a long wait. When she finally did, I tried, but failed, to draw myself up to my full height. With as much dignity as a man can muster under such circumstances, I turned away from her and began the worst few hours of my life. But not all of Louie’s magic evaporated. There was one residual effect. The next day, far from the details of that night being lost down the memory hole, I remembered everything—and with crystal clarity. Unfortunately, so did the spell breaker. Without any need for magic. John Grant is author of some 70 books and recipient of two Hugo Awards, a World Fantasy Award, and various others. His A Comprehensive Encyclopedia of Film Noir was published in 2013; his second story collection, Tell No Lies, came out at the end of 2014 to be followed, in February 2015, by a book for young adults on critical thinking, Debunk It! He writes about movies regularly at Noirish. Computer Science How the Computer Got Its Revenge on the Soviet Union Psychology Fear in the Cockpit Fiction The Best Little Bar in Manhattan Environment What the Deer Are Telling Us What the Deer Are Telling Us By Christopher Ketcham The Wanders By Anna North Two-Stroke Toilets By John Grant By B.J. Novak Nautilus uses cookies to manage your digital subscription and show you your reading progress. It's just not the same without them. 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__label__cc	0.554121	0.445879	Sexual assault reported on campus, suspect at large Murfreesboro dispatcher saves Mississippi man’s life Men’s Basketball: Hometown hero Sims snaps losing streak for MTSU Men’s Basketball: Blue Raiders slow start extends losing skid Middle Tennessee State University's Digital News Source SGACoverage of Student Government Forrest Hall CommunityNews from Murfreesboro and the surrounding area Blue Raider Football Contact Sidelines SportsWomen's Soccer AP: U.S. Women’s Soccer defeats France at Nashville’s Nissan Stadium Associated Press 4 years ago USA Women's National Soccer team player Alex Morgan plays agaisnt France at NIssan Stadium in Nashville, Tenn. on Sunday, March 6, 2016. (U.S. Soccer) Story by Teresa M. Walker // AP Sports Writer \| Photo courtesy of U.S. Soccer NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Alex Morgan scored a minute into second-half stoppage time, Hope Solo posted her 97th career shutout, and the United States beat France 1-0 on Sunday in the SheBelieves Cup at Nashville’s Nissan Stadium. With the victory over the No. 3 team in the world, the top-ranked Americans improved to 8-0-0 in 2016, outscoring opponents 30-0. The U.S. has won its first two games of the SheBelieves Cup after beating No. 5 England on Thursday. On the lone goal, 17-year-old Mallory Pugh controlled the ball just past midfield and passed ahead to Morgan, who sprinted through the defense for a left-footed shot that beat goalkeeper Sarah Bouhaddi. It was Morgan’s 63rd international goal and made up for not connecting on a pass in the first half from Meghan Klingenberg. “Mall played me in perfectly, and all I needed to do was put it past the keeper,” Morgan said. The U.S. outshot France 10-8 after managing only three shots in the first half, with Solo making some key saves for her 146th international victory. “When you can have the win and a great performance, I think it’s a good feeling,” U.S. coach Jill Ellis said. “I think the players left there with a good feeling. … Obviously ecstatic with the world-class goal at the end there. But as I said to the players, it’s also three points in this tournament. This is our first time at this tournament, and we’d obviously love to win it. And one more game to go.” Solo deflected a shot from Louisa Necib in the 14th minute, then France missed on a flurry shortly after. The ball clanged off the left post when Carli Lloyd tried to clear it, forcing Solo to dive to her right before going back to her left to save a shot from Marie-Laure Delie. “It was nice to be able to have her back and be able to make the save,” Solo said. In the second half, Delie’s header went wide before Tobin Heath’s shot missed wide left in the 56th minute for the U.S. The SheBelieves Cup wraps up March 9 in Boca Raton, Florida, with France playing England and the U.S. facing second-ranked Germany in this tuneup for the Rio Olympics. For more sports stories, follow us at www.mtsusidelines.com, on Facebook at MTSU Sidelines and on Twitter at @Sidelines_Sport. To contact Sports Editor Connor Grott, email sports@mtsusidelines.com or follow him on Twitter at @Connor_Grott. Alex MorganAssociated PressNashvilleNissan StadiumSoccerSportsU.S. Women's National Soccer TeamWomen's Soccer Previous Middle Tennessee offense dormant in loss to South Alabama Next Murfreesboro officer-involved shooting, car chase being investigated by TBI Tennessee bill to require students to play sports by gender assigned at birth Esports Arena bringing the future of sports to the mid-south Opinion: Time is running out to save Music Row Annual Music City Turkey Trot brings aid to seniors in need Thanksgiving BreakNovember 27, 2019 Thanksgiving break will be from Nov. 27-30, 2019. Join the Sidelines Team Come Work for Us! Share your talents as a writer, editor, photographer, designer or video journalist Sidelines Archives Sidelines Archives Select Month January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 June 2013 April 2013 February 2013 December 2012 October 2012 August 2012 October 2011 April 1994 June 1988 February 1988 June 1983 March 1982 October 1975 February 1973 Copyright ©, Sidelines, All Rights Reserved Amid rapid growth in Murfreesboro, officials weigh in on growing issue of homelessness Angele Latham \| Editor-in-Chief 11 months ago	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line287
__label__wiki	0.968973	0.968973	KGH car parking charges to be reduced KGH car parking charges to be reduced Visitors staying at KGH for less than four hours will see their parking charge reduced shortly. The current charge is £5.10 but that will drop with CP Plus taking over management of the hospital’s car parks. Northamptonshire Telegraph The medico-legal crisis and how to solve it The medico-legal crisis and how to solve it The author of this report concludes that the NHS' liabilities for medico-legal claims now total £65bn, draining the NHS of much-needed funds and putting patients at risk by driving GPs out of practice. The report puts forward nine recommendations to bring down costs for the NHS and provide better outcomes for patients. Centre for Policy Studies Assaults on mental health staff up 25% in four years Assaults on mental health staff up 25% in four years Mental health staff in the UK are working in a "powder keg" environment, as assaults by patients soar, a BBC investigation has revealed. Figures obtained by 5 live Investigates show there were more than 42,000 reported attacks on staff in 2016-17 in the mental health trusts who responded. The figure is more than a quarter higher than for the corresponding trusts four years earlier. Health bosses say violence on NHS staff is "completely unacceptable". Nearly two-thirds of mental health trusts in the UK provided data under a Freedom of Information request, which revealed assaults increased from 33,620 in 2012-13 to 42,692 last year. BBC News Struggling to cope: mental health staff and services under pressure. UNISON's survey report of mental health staff 2017 UNISON Rise in violent attacks by patients on NHS mental health staff The Guardian NHS mental health staff dealing with rise in violent incidents iNews US-style abortion battles loom in UK amid claims of intimidation US-style abortion battles loom in UK amid claims of intimidation As street tensions increase, pro-choice group says a London council must curb ‘harassment’ of women at Marie Stopes clinic A London council will decide on Tuesday whether to pursue a public space protection order to prevent the harassment and intimidation of women accessing abortion services at the Marie Stopes clinic in Ealing, west London. In the first case of its kind, Ealing council will debate the move after a petition from local pro-choice group, Sister Supporter, which demanded action to stop anti-abortion protesters holding vigils six days a week outside the clinic and approaching patients. The people who frustrate the rights of women in the name of religion using moral blackmail are bullies of the worst kind Continue reading... The Guardian Warnings on hospital crowding with doubling in legal actions by CQC Warnings on hospital crowding with doubling in legal actions by CQC A growing crisis in hospital safety is revealed in official figures showing a doubling in the number of legal warnings issued by NHS watchdogs. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) launched 135 “enforcement actions” against hospitals in 2016/17 - a rise from 58 interventions the year before, the records show. Overcrowding and staff shortages on health service wards were common themes in the notices, which are issued when care is so poor that it falls below legal requirements. The findings come ahead of CQC’s annual State of Care report, which is expected to raise concerns about the capacity of NHS trusts to cope with rising pressures. The Daily Telegraph 25,000 operations cancelled last year due to NHS crisis 25,000 operations cancelled last year due to NHS crisis Twenty-five thousand operations are cancelled every year because hospitals are so full, an investigation by The Mail on Sunday has found. A lack of beds is forcing the cancellation of 100 operations every working day across the NHS in England – a figure that has risen 35 per cent in just five years. Dozens of trusts have seen bed-related cancellations double since 2012, with one soaring seven-fold. Even urgent heart and cancer ops are being delayed, sometimes repeatedly, due to the shortage. The consequences can be fatal. Winter is coming and the situation in the NHS is desperate The Guardian NHS patients aren't turning up to their GP appointments NHS patients aren't turning up to their GP appointments Time-wasting patients are placing more strain on the NHS by not turning up to their GP appointments, damning research suggests. Frustrated doctors have revealed that around one in 20 of their consultations are 'wasted' by patients who fail to attend. Around 17 million appointments, which each last for around 10 minutes, are lost on a yearly basis because patients don't turn up, a survey suggests. Leading medics have branded the figures as 'disappointing', as general practice is already considered to be 'at breaking point'. The Daily Mail Assaults on mental health staff up 25% in four yea... US-style abortion battles loom in UK amid claims o... Warnings on hospital crowding with doubling in leg... 25,000 operations cancelled last year due to NHS c... NHS patients aren't turning up to their GP appoint...	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line293
__label__cc	0.612547	0.387453	» Update: Whole New World jasonrohrer Update: Whole New World What...a...week! Thank you all for bearing with me as I continued to adjust and perfect what is now the most massive set of fundamental changes in the history of the game. Like I said in the last update, we got off to a very rocky start, but by the end of this week, it was almost completely smooth sailing. Containing all player activity in a bounded area, instead of letting it spread infinitely on the map, revealed all sorts of problems, particularly in terms of resource distribution, settlement locations, and griefing. On an infinite map, there are always more resources available if you walk far enough in any direction, which is what people used to do to find settlement locations, and you can also easily hide from trouble-makers in the vastness. A bunch of important features in the game, like fences, were rendered unnecessary by the unbounded map. So, first up, let's take another look at that now-ancient map generation algorithm. It placed biomes independently in patches, and there was no structure to that placement. That meant that the biomes that were useful together, like swamps and grass (a prime settlement location) almost never spawned next to each other. Finding a prime spot used to require a very long walk. This also meant that jungles could border the arctic areas. The independent placement resulted in a lot of map variety, but there were obviously some trade-offs. The new algorithm uses a more naturalistic topographic layout, with biomes in altitude rings. This means that each biome always borders the same other two biomes. Swamps always border grass, for example. Now prime settlement locations are all over the place. I also added per-biome likelihood controls, so the really-necessary biomes can be more common---they have wider topographic bands. Finally, I classified three biomes as "special": arctic, desert, and jungle. These aren't needed quite as much as the others--they're only needed for advanced tech---and it's more interesting if they are far-flung on the map. They don't occur in regular topographic rings, but instead at the centers of each topographic peak. This one change resulted in a dramatic improvement in the survival rates of settlements on the map. Suddenly, the bounded arc area became quite livable. Even better, the old long walks to find a settlement location were gone. Living close together highlighted a bunch of new problems. Families often live in the same village for generations, yet are still logically separate due to war swords and inability to curse each other. After many generations together, they might even speak a common language. At that point, they really are one village. Now, if you can curse someone in a language they understand, it will work, whether or not they are in your family. And elders from two families can declare PEACE to each other, as long as it's in an understood language, thus disabling the war swords. They can also declare WAR to each other again later if need be. Note that both these features also work before you learn a common language across generations if you do the work to actually type the other family's language. Now that people live near each other, fences are everywhere. This is good. Towns are more interesting with fences. However, rogue fences can also be a problem. The idea with fences is that they homestead unclaimed land with a waiting period to ensure local consensus. But what about out in the wilderness? In an infinite map, it's all unclaimed land, but in a finite map, it might need to be used by someone in the future. A fence bisecting a large wilderness area is a real problem. The 2-hour decay period for an abandoned fence is too long in this context. So, I've given you a way to remove a fence, with the help of an elder and a brief waiting period. The idea here is that you'll only be able to remove abandoned fences, because of the waiting period. If someone cares about the fence, they will intervene and cancel your removal notice. And regarding resources, the only non-renewable so far that has been a real problem has been iron. So I've given you a high tech way to produce more iron by burning oil. Iron never runs out now, but oil is finite, so there still is an eventual limit. Those diesel mining outposts are extremely valuable, both in terms of production and the expensive capital improvements that are installed there. The goal in all of this is to enable a collective challenge: How long can you all survive together before civilization collapses globally? The most recent record was 44 hours. But there's enough oil on the map to support farming for 100 people for at least ten days. I'm guessing that 44 hours is just the beginning, and you'll all be gradually getting the hang of it over time. It took a while to come together, but this really does feel like a wholly new and improved game. There's something going on at any moment in this world now. There's a story to tell. Welcome to IMPULSE FOLLY. And with that I'm off on a two-week vacation with my family. There will be no updates for the next two weeks. Re: Update: Whole New World The new map: cool The rest: eh From: Under your bed I got to play today and I have to say it was an overwhelmingly nice life with only one child dying early. (From a raider or griefer.) We did end up having ever griefers. But that's all for now. Last edited by Amon (2019-08-03 21:44:43) My favourite all time lives are Unity Dawn, who was married to Sachin Gedeon. If you get named Siddhartha or Shamon, it was probably me. If the name is arabic it was probably me too. I don't like giving kids common/boring/mundane names. PIES 2.0 <- Pie diversification mod Thaulos What a week indeed. Well done Jason! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCUajKk … vVxW_7Fr7w On Paper, this seems to fix most of the problems! Im exited to see how this developes antking:]# wait how do you declare peace/war do you say WAR (famillyname) "hear how the wind begins to whisper, but now it screams at me" said ashe wondible antking:]# wrote: Same way, one of each elder say WAR such that the other can understand it, at least as I understand it. https://onemap.wondible.com/ -- https://wondible.com/ohol-family-trees/ -- https://wondible.com/ohol-name-picker/ Custom client with edge push, autorun, click priority tweaks, shiver/sweat, time hints, name completion, emotion keys, interaction keys, learned tools ollj gradient mak is much better, makes many things simpler and more natural. Angel Carrillo Jason - a question - will we get a way to kill mosquito swarms? lowdt stop trying to fix player behavior by changing the things around them... it will be and endless circle and you end up in distress.. i personally hate these borders.. now everything feels even more flat and its like im playing on a small peace of paper.. These updates are literally killing it. I believe the term "Berrymuncher" is derogatory and therefore I shall use the term "Berrier" instead. Spoonwood jasonrohrer wrote: A bunch of important features in the game, like fences, were rendered unnecessary by the unbounded map. No, fences around towns were NOT important. The people who purchased the game didn't really mind not having to use them. And now, people don't like them much since they've expereinced boxed in towns from what I hear also. Additionally, having fences around town signals that griefing levels are high. The whole idea of fenced in towns is thus completely wrongheaded, because high levels of griefing doesn't dovetail with player enjoyment. Also, the so-called unbounded map had the potential to handle a much larger playerbase (and they could survive). That can't happen now. This makes for a serious deficit in the vision of the game. Now that people live near each other, fences are everywhere. This is good. Towns are more interesting with fences. No, again it can lead to permanently boxed in towns. And it also signals that griefing levels are high signaling lower player enjoyment levels. Plenty of people are saying this. Some have quit. And you haven't listened, nor observed people's behavior. It took a while to come together, but this really does feel like a wholly new and improved game. Your feelings are not the reactions of those who have purchased the game. You confuse them at your own loss. There's something going on at any moment in this world now. There's a story to tell. Stories which people on the forums have told to basically say that the rift idea isn't working out. If you find it interesting that your game has gotten substantially worse according to people who have purchased them, then it's interesting, but only in that case. Last edited by Spoonwood (2019-08-12 00:29:19) Guide on Doing Oil: https://onehouronelife.com/forums/viewt … 764#p65764 JonySky From: Catalunya Jason, you talk about an improved game, I see a game with repeated lives once after another in the same cities and towns By enclosing ourselves in the crack, you have limited a map, limited the respawn of Eves, resources and most importantly ... to limited the number of cities this update repeats the experience of living again and again in the same cities, the only thing that changes is my family's last name or my skin color when I am born in a city, I know exactly the location of other cities It tires me to live on a limited map, depleted of resources and explored several times With the old OHOL, I remember living lives as an explorer on horseback (I loved it), all we needed was a map to complete little by little! Being born again doesn't feel fresh anymore ... as before I think I understand where you want to go by locking us in a limited place, but I don't think it's a good idea to suffocate us in a cube, with this you will only get: repetition again and again I think you should value another solution for this (dynamic maps that are resolved as you explore can be very effective for trade and wars) you should look more at the history of today's civilization ... you will discover that exploration and navigation have been vital to the development of our history A Goal without a plan is just a wish Last edited by JonySky (2019-08-08 10:13:10) A person is smart. People are dumb, panicky dangerous animals and you know it http://onehouronelife.com/reflector/ser … ion=report http://publicdata.onehouronelife.com/publicLifeLogData/ You are... Megan, Max, Morgan, Masha or Misha? u are my kid! apereason Nobody seems to be noticing that fences are removable by elders. Any town big enough to support living is big enough to create paper to take down the fence. Also if you don't like the changes to the game, It's not your game, plus older versions are always on github available for server hosting if it's that much of a problem to you. Last edited by apereason (2019-08-08 20:48:42) apereason wrote: This amounts to saying that no one should have any criticism of the game. It's silly, shortsighted, and shallow. Especially since reviews exist, and people go play other things, because of complaints not only not getting addressed, but getting ridiculed by a game designer with delusions of grandeur. AlzWell So I have been playing for a while now. Every update comes with ups and downs. I loved this game when it first came out. I looked forward to every update with anticipation. NOW...well the love is gone. I feel all boarding us in did was create an opportunity for griefers to rule the world. I have been fenced into a town by outsiders. I have been locked into a building by towers in front of the doors. Went back with a pickax and now can't even knock down the stone walls. I have been killed repeatedly life after life. There is no wilderness, no refuge for those of us that just like to play. There are no more Juniper Trees, thus no more fire. Not sure if this logic was added to your restart. If there is no fire we can't create an airplane to traverse the rift. Nor can we forge the material necessary to do so. Nor can we get fuel or water. I get it is your game. But really I paid for a game and now the game I purchased is no longer available. And no I am not tech enough to mod or go to other places to sort out a server as recommended above. I miss the world I once knew as One Hour One Life. sigmen4020 I was somewhat hopeful when this update was announced. I thought Jason was actually beginning to listen. I was an idiot for thinking that clearly. The current arc is just a murder fest wasteland. Reset it already Jason! There is no hope for this current arc, not even any juniper trees, which means no fires. At the next arc if you don’t wanna reset it yourself at least make sure that enough nosajs spawn in the rift for the apocalypse to be possible. The game is a big freaking mess now and I refuse to play on the main server until this shit is resolved. “Family Specialty Update” is a misguided attempt at forcing us to trade. Nuff said. sigmen4020 wrote: I lost all hope when Jason proposed a 500x500 tile map saying how big it was and how you couldn´t reach every tile in a lifetime. Then he started making calculations about oil and iron. I became completely aware that he doesn´t understand his own game from a player´s perspective. He doesn´t play it and he doesn´t care about players. Big changes with this update, we went from separate villages that had rarely interactions, to a map where villages are reachable easily and even connected by roads. Now actions have more consequences and dont feel meaningless like before with villages gone the next day. This brings a lot of possibilities for future updates and later tech to have more advanced civilisations, more interesting interactions between lineages and a long term challenge that goes beyond taking care of your family/village. Yes there are still issues notably with the reset condition which isn't good currently and also issues with building griefing and just griefing in general. But i take that over villages that continuously reset after less than a day and almost no possibilities to connect villages and interact with other families . Also these issues are probably going to be main priority for the upcomming updates. Saolin This current rift is actually developing in surprising way to me. Things have sort of stabilized into a few workable towns, and I'm surprised by the longevity of these villages. I'm still not thrilled with ease of permanently griefing things that take a lot more work to set up than to permanently ruin, or the constant murderfests. I actually am interested to see how it continues to develop, though there is definitely things that need to be worked on. Last edited by Saolin (2019-08-10 16:04:46) DestinyCall If there's one thing this experiment has shown it is that there are a few key things that are vitally important for tech tree advancement and super easy to intentionally destroy completely. This could be at least partially resolved by adding multiple pathways to advancement. There shouldn't be only ONE way to start a fire. There shouldn't be only one way to make a piece of string. There shouldn't be only one way to make a long straight shaft. There shouldn't be only one way to make compost. These are very basic things that should be possible to achieve in more than one way or by more advanced means once you get passed the stone age. This game has an incredibly vast and intricate tech tree, but there are certain choke-points that exist purely because it is a game and for no other logical reason. On a limited resource map, it becomes impossible to ignore that it is the game design itself that is the problem when it is possible for someone to run around the map and kill every wild sheep, chop down every juniper tree, and pick every milkweed. This isn't an example of poor resource management or inefficient crafting. It isn't even a question of everything getting used up over time ... certain things are still very plentiful and renewable, like rabbits, cactus fruit and berries, while other things are completely gone, like wild squash, bananas, and carrots. It is sort of interesting to see what specific things are most vulnerable to griefing. But if nothing gets done to FIX these vulnerabilities, I don't see the point of accumulating the knowledge or repeating the experiment over and over. It's not fun or interesting to play toward inevitable failure. Dodge wrote: No, it doesn't bring anymore possibilities. It doesn't create new game code or change the old code so that technology works differently. That's only because they get seen more. Jason could have made it so that villages wouldn't get wiped by the server. Remember how he changed one week to 8 hours on a server having at least 15 people? Also, with respect to the 'interesting' comment, that's just your taste. The decline in numbers implies that the game has become less interesting in any sense which resembles objectivity. As I write this, it's 7:30 P. M. on a Saturday evening. 43 people are playing on bs2, and the numbers looked similar on Friday night. That's a lot less than even a week previously as I recall. I never wanted a dislike button on this forum until I read this comment These aren't needed quite as much as the others--they're only needed for advanced tech---and it's more interesting if they are far-flung on the map. Clothing I think has become more difficult to get. Getting seal skin I would guess less common than before.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line297
__label__wiki	0.887222	0.887222	You searched NLI - Title: Report of fact finding committee : slum clearance demolitions, etc and firing in Tuskman gate during the emergency (June 25, 1975-Mar. 21, 1977) / Fact Finding Committee, Ministry of Home Affairs, Govt. of India 1 Key statistics of Malda district / Bureau of Applied Economics and Statistics, Govt. of West Bengal 1 Key statistics of Nadia district / Bureau of applied economics and statistics, Govt. of West Bengal 1 Key statistics of Thailand, 1987/ National Statistical Office 2 Key statistics of the distirct of Cooch Behar / Bureau of applied economic and statistics, Govt. of West Bengal 1 Key statistics of the district, Burdwan : 1979 / Bureau of applied economics and statistics, Govt. of West Bengal 2 Key statistics of the district, Howrah / Bureau of applied economics and statistics, Government of West Bengal 1 Key statistics of the district of 24 Parganas/ Bureau of Applied Economics and Statistics, Govt. of West Bengal	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line298
__label__wiki	0.584012	0.584012	Don’t Expect the Government to Cure Cancer…There Is Not Enough Political Reward Penny Press (FRED WEINBERG) – One of my best friends’ wife has a rare form of cancer. Just diagnosed. Another one of my best friends has another form of cancer. Radiation is knocking the crap out of him. Another one of my best friends died of pancreatic cancer a few years back. In the immortal words of a certain Democrat running for his Presidential nomination in the clown show, “it’s a big effing deal”. It is. And that particular candidate, whatever his level of knowledge and competence is, says he wants to cure it as part of his campaign. Now, in fairness, once you get into the first few minutes of the third period of life (isn’t everybody a hockey fan?), it’s not quite as big a deal as when you are in your 30s, but we live in a world where we simply do not expect a disease to eradicate us. Our expectations are the other way around. Back in 1991, Ervin “Magic” Johnson announced that he had tested positive for the HIV virus which is a precursor for AIDS. Back then, I was running the basketball radio network for Oral Roberts University in addition to owning a group of Oklahoma radio stations. I vividly remember some young players(several of whom have retired from the NBA now) asking the late coach, Ken Trickey,when they would find a cure for AIDS. “When,” said one of the best coaches and human beings it has ever been my privilege to know, “the research money runs out.” The truth is often unsettling. When President John F. Kennedy launched us in a race to the moon, we, as a nation, got it done inside a decade. There was little or no political pushback. First, we were in a race with the Russians. And, second, we had pure research being funded by the Federal government. Finally, there was a specific goal. To land astronauts on the moon and bring them back to Earth safely. Over the years, we have not cured AIDS, but it is no longer a virtual death sentence. For lack of a better term, we have contained it. And Magic Johnson played a role. So did George W. Bush, when he was President. But the major reason is very hard-working scientists and researchers. And 28 years. One of the reasons that the Federal government can’t do a cancer moon shot today is that the elites in Washington have worked themselves into a position where nobody—literally nobody—trusts them anymore to do the right thing for the right reasons. On one hand you have a President who has the support of what Hillary Clinton calls the deplorables. And on the other, you have all of the Democrat clown show who hates the President and will do almost anything to deny him a crumb. Frankly, if President Trump were to single-handedly cure cancer, on his own dime, the Democrats would accuse him of conspiring to overpopulate the Earth. That said, most of what happens in Washington is designed to make some segment of voting America feel good. The truth is that most of Congress is focused on first getting elected and then retaining power. Life amongst the elite is pretty good—for them. Going to the moon, made us—both the idiots in Washington as well as you and me—feel really good. I remember exactly where I was when Neil Armstrong hopped off the step of the Eagle landing module onto the moon. Even though I grew up in the town where penicillin was discovered, that discovery never galvanized the whole small city, much less the whole country although it was a great public good. Sadly, the eradication of cancer will never have a big enough political effect to allow us to attack it the same way we got to the moon. That said, it will happen—maybe even during this third period assuming no overtime. It will happen because the researchers working on it are incredibly smart people and don’t need a President to declare war on a disease to be motivated Government cannot solve all—or even most—of mankind’s problems. Only smart people can. Related ItemsCancergovernmentPenny Press www.pennypressnv.com The Penny Press 775-461-1515 Content © Far West Radio Radio LLC 2017 More in Nevada Nevada sees record marijuana tax revenue in October The Center SquareJanuary 28, 2020 President Trump Rocks March for Life NN&V StaffJanuary 27, 2020 Where the top Democratic candidates stand on health care Northern Nevada experiencing some growing pains amid rapid economic development Assembly Campaign Finance Reports: The Good, Bad and Ugly Kasama: Setting Record Straight on Susie Lee Endorsement The Comical Return of Li’l Nate Trump’s new Latino coalition will work to preserve Hispanic success in 2020	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line300
__label__wiki	0.847317	0.847317	Register to 'Like' ideas you'd like to see realized! New Rochelle Night Bike Ride Open Streets in New Rochelle New Rochelle Art Walk What is The Future Five Initiative? Apply For A Future Five Grant NR Future on Facebook Supporters Facebook Group Millennials Facebook Group About NR Future Meet the NR Future Team! What is Crowdsourced Placemaking? Crowdsourced Placemaking Agreement Triple-Bottom-Line Statement Recommended Action Plan (RAP) About RDRXR Idea Campaign NR Future Five Grant Ideas Ideas: All Placemaking Ideas: Culture, Scenes, Art Ideas: Public Places Ideas: Community Services Ideas: Local Business Dev Ideas: Mobility Ideas: Events Ideas: Innovative Policies Inspiration From Other Places March Monthly Meet-Up April Monthly Meet-Up Your Stories! Register here to 'like', comment on and post ideas! Already registered? Log in here! Future Five Future Five is an initiative by the people of New Rochelle for the people of New Rochelle to revitalize the downtown through five priorities: Public Space & Storefront Beautification, Local Business Development, Food & Dining Scene, Millennial Engagement, and Arts & Culture. Leveraged by future investment in the downtown and centered around monthly community events, the Future Five initiative is supported by a monthly grant program. The five initiatives are: Public Space + Storefront Beautification - To beautify public spaces and storefronts and develop future public spaces. See examples at the Public Space & Storefront Beautification ideas page. Local Business Development - To support existing local businesses and develop a new generation of entrepreneurs and companies that attract emerging populations. See examples at the Local Business Development ideas page. Food + Dining Scene - To develop downtown New Rochelle as a regional food and dining scene and destination. See examples at the Food & Dining Scene ideas page. Millennial Engagement - To establish a strong millennial community that is enthusiastically engaged in shaping the future of downtown New Rochelle. See examples at the Millennial Engagement ideas page. Arts + Creative Culture - To grow the arts and culture community as a predominant identity for New Rochelle in the state of New York. See examples at the Arts & Culture ideas page. For more details, contact our NR Future community liaison, Shari Winard, [email protected], 914-278-9410, and in the NR Future office located at 247 North Avenue. 1. What is the purpose of this program? What are its tangible vision, goals and objectives? 2. Why should I attend the monthly Future Five meet-ups? What do you have to offer beyond 'talk'? What makes this not 'just another meeting'? 3. What impact could $250 or $500 grants possibly have? How can this impact future development? 4. How will this benefit our community? 5. How do we know this program is legitimate? 6. Who in the community will take the time and effort to make this happen? The goal of the Future Five initiative is to realize immediate impact, by the people, for the people, towards downtown revitalization that they can experience now. The intent of these small experiences is to provide a tangible model for larger scale implementation that will come with RDRXR's future investment. The vision, goals and objectives for this program are defined through each of the five initiatives by their associated action teams, who meet via breakout groups at the monthly Future Five meet-ups. It's about collective impact. The monthly meet-ups are one time each month that representatives from NR Future/RDRXR, civic associations, nonprofits, community leaders, entrepreneurs, business owners and resident champions of change can meet to focus on short-term action for long-term change in terms of their priorities. As voted on by the people, these five are co-creating a vibrant downtown through public space and storefront beautification, local business development, food and dining scene, millennial engagement and arts and culture, known as the Future Five. To seed action and implementation, these five initiatives are supported by $250 grants each month, as well as two $500 overall grants. In other communities, these grants have initiated plans to open an after school STEM program, community kitchen, a health and wellness center, a public mural; sparked the formation of an entrepreneurial collective, inspired development of a regional entertainment series, and catalyzed dozens of events. New buildings, landscaping and streets, the 'hardware' associated with real estate development, aren't good investments if people aren't using them. The Future Five isn't about financing the hardware of a downtown, but about piloting and testing the 'software' or programming that would excel in that hardware. These are the programs, events and experiences that attract and keep people in the downtown, and something RDRXR will be closely monitoring to inform their investments. Collectively, the efforts of the NR Future Five are aligned with future development plans to maximize 'return on community' as well as investment. By providing support to local leaders, groups and organizations who wish to promote and activate the downtown, New Rochelle will attract new visitors, support local businesses and create a vibrant sense of place through the programming of events and experiences. In the words of best-selling author, sociologist and economist Malcolm Gladwell, 'legitimacy' in any community is based on three things: (1) The people who are asked to obey authority have to feel like they have a voice - if they speak up, they will be heard; (2) The law has to be predictable; (3) The authority has to be fair. It can’t treat one group differently from another.” The NR Future Five is about providing a monthly (predictable) program that allows everyone (fair) to either support ideas they'd like to implement or receive grants as determined by the people (voices heard) towards downtown revitalization in their terms (voices heard) that they collectively feel most benefits the community. This is not about waiting for those with the most power, influence or money to make all the decisions. This is about allowing the people to have a say in how they'd like to shape downtown revitalization, and providing tangible support in doing so. Champions. Champions are people who take on initiatives on their own, such as organizing an event or promoting a program. They contribute significantly to supporting the NR Future Five initiative and NR Future, show up to events in person on a regular basis; are willing to enthusiastically collaborate with a diversity of people; are often (but not always) associated with public interest and nonprofit causes; want to see positive change sooner than later; and actively campaign to make their vision a reality. They are the ones that look forward to applying for NR Future Five grants. In the words of author Margaret Mead, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has.” Are you a champion? 247 North Avenue New Rochelle, NY 10801	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line305
__label__cc	0.647463	0.352537	select all Nov. 24, 2015 The Time-Honored Tradition of Calling Out ISIS Online By Brian Feldman As world governments mull strategies in their quests to stop the Islamic State, many people at home are wondering, “What can I do to stop ISIS?” The answer for many: Record a video calling them out. It’s no secret that ISIS has a vast and effective social-media operation, so one way to combat ISIS from the safety of your computer is to taunt them on social media. Last week, a woman named Emily Longworth took to Facebook, calling out the Islamic State in a five-minute-long statement. It’s gone crazy viral, shared on Facebook nearly a quarter of a million times. Dear ISIL; this message is for you. Game on. Posted by Emily Longworth on Wednesday, November 18, 2015 It’s a blustery defense of America, complete with long-winded metaphors: “My country is ready to release the chains of moral ambiguity that have suppressed our ability to defend our nation against all enemies sworn to destroy here.” “You are not indestructible from the shrapnel of our honor and liberty just because your god says you are.” It ends with Longworth reciting a very strong quote from her father: “ISIS members, every one of you is a pig-eating son of a whore. Fuck you, your mother, your faggot prophet, and that offspring of a pig you call Allah. Am I being too vague?” But Longworth’s message is just the latest in a well-worn genre of social-media post: the message to ISIS. For about a year and a half, YouTube and Twitter have been slowly accruing a large cache of threats and promises aimed at the terrorist organization. SHOCK VIDEO: Hood Dude Makes THREATENING VIDEO To Isis . . . Says That They Better Not Try . . . Terrorist Attacks Against The United States!! (The HOOD Claims . . . It's Willing To FIGHT . . .ISIS) Posted by Mediatakeout on Tuesday, November 17, 2015 What makes for a good ISIS callout video? Flags feature heavily in messages to ISIS. The American flag is either being celebrated, or, just as often, the ISIS flag is being destroyed in some manner. A lot of other messages also feature guns and camouflage. The sometimes-spoken sentiment is that Obama and the Dumbocrats might not be willing to shoot, but these brave Second Amendment proponents will. Really, though, most of these videos look like any vloggers’ videos. The key component of an ISIS callout is a dude, sitting in front of his webcam, shouting platitudes at nobody in particular. If ISIS has received these messages, they haven’t responded directly. For the camera-shy, Twitter is the next best thing. ISIS and its supporters maintain thousands of Twitter accounts. Rather that tweet directly at any of them, however, many prefer to just yell “hey, ISIS” into the void. HEY ISIS come at me bro 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 — Kevin Rishmahn (@Ya_Boy_Kevin) October 9, 2015 @FiftyandFit10 Hey, ISIS....here is a little love from me to you....UP YOURS ! pic.twitter.com/Z0yI2ATxui — Sal Mauro (@salfromflushing) October 11, 2015 Hey #Isis I've been eating pork all day — Jimmy Beers (@sourbeerman) September 30, 2015 Hey ISIS....Guess who??? It's Freedom Knocking M...F...ers.... pic.twitter.com/5EEoaWw5Fm — Chad Daniel (@medic5845) September 21, 2015 Hey ISIS, Daddy's home. Get some. pic.twitter.com/5B3XNQSgkE — Mr. Sunshine (@AnewTrackrecord) September 15, 2015 The Tradition of Calling Out ISIS Online	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line306
__label__wiki	0.582435	0.582435	E3 2019 Information Page E3 News 2019 E3 2019 Screens E3 2019 Trailers E3 2019 Hands On and Previews North America News Retro Wrap-Up eShop Reviews Vita Reviews Anime of the Past Crowdfunding Spotlight Jeff’s Musings Operation Rainfall Origins Publisher Spotlight Smashing Saturdays About oprainfall Contact Us / Tips IMPRESSIONS: Creepy Brawlers Reknum Coming to PS4 and Switch on January 31 One Punch Man: A Hero Nobody Knows Shows off More Heroes E3 Info Page OPINION: How Spending 30 Minutes in Bed with Nintendo Changed Me! Buy VenusBlood Frontier on JAST USA We are proudly a Play-Asia Partner SUPPORT OPRAINFALL BY TURNING OFF ADBLOCK Ads support the website by covering server and domain costs. We're just a group of gamers here, like you, doing what we love to do: playing video games and bringing y'all niche goodness. So, if you like what we do and want to help us out, make an exception by turning off AdBlock for our website. In return, we promise to keep intrusive ads, such as pop-ups, off oprainfall. Thanks, everyone! By David Rawlings / January 24th, 2013 My opinions are my own and not reflective of those of Oprainfall. Last night was a very special one for me. I was lying in bed, staring into the eyes of the Nintendo President, Satoru Iwata, listening to his soft voice and thinking about our future together – and after 30 minutes I was a changed man. You see, I am currently living in South Korea and yesterday’s Nintendo Direct was streamed at 11pm, Korean time. I was in bed, laptop on my knees and a cup of tea in my hand. I was preparing myself for what had been rumoured as being a very ‘special’ Nintendo Direct, although I can’t say I was too excited for it – given my recent woes with Nintendo – but how wrong would I be? Well, turns out, very wrong. Nobody Likes Waffles Previous Nintendo Directs have never really impressed me all that much. Sure, a couple of ‘interesting’ announcements may have been made in the past, but the majority of them always seem to be filled with some head-honcho at Nintendo waffling on about a game we already know about. Yes, its always nice to get more information on a title, but to spend 10-15 minutes talking about how to play a 2D Mario game seems rather unnecessary. And it seemed this was the case with the first 15 minutes of yesterday’s Direct. Yes, its nice, but we expected it. The Miiverse was the subject of ‘waffling’ this time around. President Iwata spent a good amount talking about something we already knew about. Some little updates were announced here and there, but overall it looked like Nintendo were sticking by their safety guns, as usual. With only 15 minutes left of the presentation, I was resigned to the fact that we wouldn’t be shown anything worthwhile, and it would probably be best if I switched off and tried to get an early night. But I didn’t switch off, something inside me was telling me to stick it out. They’re Here! Iwata promised he would be announcing NEW games, and by jove he did! Firstly, let’s start off with the games that I don’t care about – Wii Fit U and Wii U Party: you know them, you’ve seen them before, they both have extra bells and whistles, I care not for them, no need to say anymore. Alongside the announcement that a new 3D Mario, Mario Kart and Smash Bros will all be playable at E3 2013, came the reveal of the Wii U’s worst-kept secret: Yoshi Land (name subject to change). It looked very much like Kirby’s Epic Yarn, but also looked insanely twee in HD. Not too sure how I feel about it, but it could be fun. A brand new trailer for Platinum Games’ The Wonderful 101 was released, which made me more excited for the game then I could ever be, followed by a developer’s diary of the Wii U exclusive Bayonetta 2, which looked to be shaping up rather nicely. At this rate, I was thinking that as far as Nintendo Direct’s go, this one has not been so bad, but I clearly wasn’t prepared for what was to come. The first surprise came with announcement of a crossover game between Fire Emblem and Shin Megami Tensei. I’ve never even played an SMT title before, but anything with Fire Emblem gets my cockles rocking; whilst the trailer didn’t show any gameplay it was just a great feeling to know that the Wii U is getting a new Fire Emblem game, of sorts. Because I do love me some Fire Emblem. Ooooh, baby! The second metaphorical slap-in-the-face-of-joy came from the reveal that not only will there be a brand new Zelda title for the Wii U, which isn’t surprising at all, but that Wind Waker will be re-released in glorious high definition. Unfortunately no videos were shown, but the still images left me giggling like a schoolgirl who had just been invited to a Justin Bieber Smartie Party. JUST LOOK AT IT!!! And if all that wasn’t enough, for my beating heart, along came the final reveal. This: Tears of joy Monolith’s new game looks very much like Xenoblade Chronicles, so for the meantime I shall refer to it as Xenoblade 2. But HOLY CRAP, whilst we knew Monolith was working on a title for the Wii U, I don’t think anyone expected to be blown away by this! Simply amazing. I’ve been a little harsh on Nintendo these last few months. E3 2012 was beyond disappointing; it was the year for Nintendo to impress everyone, but they failed on so many accounts. However, the last 15 minutes of this presentation was everything E3 2011 and 2012 should’ve been. I didn’t care about the WiiU in 2011, I didn’t care for the Wii U after the abysmal E3 2012. But now, I want to buy a Wii U. I have honestly not been this excited for gaming, in general, since E3 2006, but oddly it’s been worth it. Thank you Nintendo. I’m sorry for my momentary blip of faith in you and whilst I’m sure you will deliver at E3 2013, please look to the fan reaction of yesterday’s Nintendo Direct, before you think about showcasing Nintendo Land 2 on stage this year… just save that for the show floor. Cheers. Here’s to you, Ninty! So how was the presentation for you? Were you satisfied, shocked or left deflated by it? Let me know in the comments below. About David Rawlings David Rawlings, or ‘Rawky’ as we like to call him, joined the Operation Rainfall Campaign at the beginning. He’s British and found solace with us as he was able to understand our pain about Nintendo and their localizing faux pas. He’s a big fan of the letter ‘U’ and refuses to remove them from words, even though we constantly ask him to. He also believes it’s about time Princess Daisy got kidnapped. View all posts by David Rawlings AnimeShinbun Bayonetta 2Fire EmblemMarioMario KartMonolith SoftNintendoNintendo DirectPlatinum GamesShin Megami TenseiSuper Smash Bros.The Legend of ZeldaThe Wonderful 101Wind WakerXenoblade Chronicles Previous Post:Fire Emblem: Awakening Character Class Trailer Next Post:PUBLISHER SPOTLIGHT: Namco Bandai Games "It's Dangerous To Go Alone Take This... link"Khan Shadid	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line311
__label__cc	0.73977	0.26023	How to Make the Dock Appear on an External Display in Mac OS X Nov 17, 2013 - 25 Comments Newer versions of Mac OS brought significant improvements to multi-display support for Mac users who have their computer connected to an external screen or two. One of the more helpful feature changes with multi-display support is the ability to access the Dock on any of the connected screens to a Mac through the use of a simple onscreen motion gesture trick. Learning this trick allows you to quickly show the Dock on any display connected to a Mac. How to Show the Dock on External Screens Connected to a Mac If you have another display connected to a Mac and wish to see the Dock on that secondary display, you just need to use a simple trick with the cursor; bring the cursor to the bottom of the external screen, then quickly swipe down twice with the cursor. This will show the Dock on the external display. Swipe down twice with the cursor to show the Dock on the external display To be clear, swipe down against the bottom of the screen on the secondary screen to show the Dock. This shows the exact same Dock as what would appear on the primary screen. Watching closely, you’ll see the Dock slides down on one display to reappear on the other. Do note that if the secondary display is the ‘active’ screen, a single swipe-down motion will show the Dock. There isn’t a configuration option for this – though users must have ‘Displays have separate Spaces’ enabled in Mission Control settings – and unlike older versions of Mac OS X, it’s not a one screen or the other choice based upon the primary display setting. This is also universal regardless of individual Dock settings, and the behavior remains the same whether or not you have the Mac Dock configured to automatically hide and show, as motioning towards the Dock remains the method to reveal it on the secondary monitor. The only exception to the swipe-down gesture is if you have the Mac OS X Dock placed on the left or right sides of the screen. In those cases, you simply need to swipe twice on the left or right to reveal the Dock, in accordance to where the Dock is located. Users who like full screening apps will probably notice this is the same double-swipe behavior used to make the Dock appear when in full-screen app mode in Mac OS X too. Though Dock access is controlled by a gesture and can’t be set exclusive, you can adjust settings specifically for the Macs menu bar, and for those who don’t want the menu bar to be visible on both displays, one can be set and the other can be hidden with a simple change in System Preferences. This feature behaves the same way in macOS Mojave, MacOS High Sierra, Sierra, OS X El Capitan, OS X Yosemite, and OS X Mavericks, and presumably going forward with future releases of MacOS as well. If you know of another method to show the Dock on external screens connected to a Mac, share with us in the comments below! Show the Dock in Full Screen Apps in Mac OS X Show Only Currently Active Apps in the Mac OS X Dock How to Hide the Menu Bar on External Secondary Displays in Mac OS X Mac Setups: iMac 27″ and External Display Speaksy says: Thanks for this update. I tried doing this on my newly bought GeChic 1303H portable monitor and it worked. I’m using the portable monitor side by side with my MacBook Pro. Took me a while to figure it out, but it’s now up and running. So proud of my new monitor and the color rendition on the portable monitor is as good as my MacBook This seems (in 10.9.5) to ONLY work, if in Sys Prefs, Mission Control: Displays have separate Spaces, is checked. Since that will lead to a window only being shown on ONE display (you can’t have a single window, i.e. Adobe Premiere, partially on one screen, AND partially on the other), it seems that it is true: one indeed can’t have one’s cake AND eat it. axialix says: Change the dock to any color/image you want using DockMod! Details are here: http://osxdaily.com/2013/11/15/enable-transparent-dock-os-x/#comment-576283 I just moved the whole top menu bar to the external display using prefs-displays and dragging the white bar across. The dock is now at the bottom of the external display but obviously won’t now display on the mac itself, so for me the double swipe thing still doesn’t work. Would love some advice? I have a macbook pro runing OSX.7.5 and an external mac monitor and simply cannot get this to work despite numerous attempts with the mouse clicked and not clicked. It just will not display for me. I’ve tried turning the hide dock feature on and off and this makes no difference either. I’ve read all the blogs above and now feel like a complete idiot… please help? Hurrdurr says: As the title suggests, this requires OS X Mavericks 10.9 or newer. Prior to OS X Mavericks, it was not possible to use the Dock on multiple displays without the usage of third party utilities. gazza says: I have two screens either side of the 27″ mac. Simply placing the mouse on the bottom of one of the displays and leaving it there ~1sec, brings the dock across. No swipe need or gesture on the magic mouse I should add, my dock settings are set to “bottom” and no other setting changed Dave Nash says: I find this feature completely unusable . . . Could this be because the two screens I use are set to be slightly staggered? The placement of the screens should have no effect unless they are one on top of another JimFed says: I just updated to Mavericks and am unable to get this to work. “Swipe the cursor down” is not very specific. I have tried every combination I can think of and cannot get it to work. I have two external monitors on a MacBookPro with the left monitor having the dock. I like that Apple figured out that the command bar should appear at the top of both monitors. It would be nice if I could figure out how to get the dock on both monitors too. Take the mouse or trackpad cursor and move it down to where the Dock would appear on the second monitor, swipe down against the bottom of the screen twice to make the Dock appear. Yes, that little addition of “against the bottom of the screen” makes a big difference. On my system, all I need to do is swipe down once, to the bottom of the screen, and pause there for a second or two. I do not need to swipe twice. Thanks for this, we will post a clarification JCX says: I want to make the dock more transparent, is there a tweak for that or program that I download? Software OS X 10.9 (13A603) Rob Bartholomew says: I cannot get this to work with the dock on the right. How does this work? Dock is now on the right edge of my right screen. I then swipe (horizontally / vertically) on the (left / right) of the left screen to get it to show? How long is the swipe? What is the from / to, as the cursor moving horizontally on the right side of the left display just goes to the right display. If you’re moving downwards, do you do it anywhere, or within (x%) of the right/left edge of the display? Howard Brazee says: I’ve been trying for 5 minutes, with variations. When my button is pressed, it tries to select data. But with no button pressed, nothing happens. I assume we do that on the screen that has the dock. You don’t need to click any button, just swipe down twice on the external display That’s not what I would have guessed. I just tried it, nothing appeared to happen, so I started writing this reply, when my dock appeared on the other display. So I swiped twice on my main display to move it back. Nothing happened. So I tried swiping it back twice on the external display. Again, nothing happened. After tying a while, I finally got it back, by swiping twice on the iMac. If first I don’t succeed, try, try again – now that I know which attempt to try. I haven’t figured out the external monitor rules for Mavericks. Windows pop up in one monitor or the other unexpectedly, sometimes in the monitor I do not expect – hidden behind another application. One application (SimpleFloatingClock), used to open in my other monitor, now opens on my iMac. Singam says: Its actually not scope down twice, but swipe down and hold for a couple of seconds. swipe, not scope** DS9Boon says: This only works for Displays configured for SIDE by SIDE. If you displays are set for BOTTOM to TOP – as in up and down. and the dock is on the bottom border of the screen – the top screen will not display a dock. – it’s almost there. mopage19 says: Thanks for this comment. Otherwise, I would have been trying to get this to work for an hour. rache says: me too!! thanks! Giang Nguyen says: This still works with BOTTOM to TOP model as long as the two screens have different widths, and the bigger is on TOP.You’ll have the space to “swipe” then. « Quickly Tag Files & Folders with a Drag & Drop in Mac OS X Finder iOS 7.1 Beta 1 Released to Developers »	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line314
__label__wiki	0.520276	0.520276	Development Camp Post Game Stories Fan Posts Prospect Reports College \| Juniors \| Prep GNASH - High School UAH Hockey Vanderbilt Hockey NCAA Hockey SECHC Championship Rocket City Collegiate Hockey Showcase Game Broadcasts The Making of Smashville Friends of PBR Podcasts Radio Crew Penalty Box Radio Alumni Winter Classic Trip PBR Cruise 2020 Want to write for PBR? Thank You, Penalty Box Radio: A Note from Managing Editor Cutler Klein Four years ago, I arrived in Nashville to begin my college career at Vanderbilt University. I also joined Penalty Box Radio to give myself the chance to cover both NHL hockey and some college hockey. Now, three Predators seasons, numerous playoff games, one NHL All Star Game and one Vanderbilt degree later, I’m saying goodbye to Penalty Box Radio. While it’s never easy to leave something that’s been such an amazing part of my life for the last few years, I’m very excited to share what’s coming next in a few days. Through Penalty Box Radio, I’ve had the honor of telling Nashville’s hockey story, whether it’s through features and game stories about the Predators or broadcasting local college hockey games. I’m extremely proud of how this site has grown over the last few years and how much it has promoted the growth of hockey in Tennessee. I’m also proud of how welcoming and inclusive this site has been, and how it has championed women’s hockey and women in hockey media. Seeing people from all different backgrounds come together over the love of hockey is something truly remarkable. There’s a few people I must thank. First, a massive thank you to Justin Bradford for taking a chance on me four years ago and giving me the opportunity to pursue my passions. I have learned so much while working for you, and your mentorship has meant everything to me. I never would have gotten the chance to be a credentialed media member for an NHL team at such a young age if it weren’t for you. I will always be grateful. Next, a big thanks to my co-managing editor, Michael Gallagher, for being a great friend, co-host, and colleague on press row. I’m glad I got to know you in my first year in the press box, and I know Penalty Box Radio remains in great hands with you on board. Hopefully we can celebrate another Yankees title together this October. To everyone I’ve gotten to know in the press box (Jeremy Gover, Kris Martel, Robby Stanley, Joe Rexrode, Adam Vingan, John Glennon, Teresa Walker, Chase McCabe, Joe Dubin, Kayla Anderson, just to name a few), thanks for welcoming me to the club with open arms. I was pretty intimidated walking into that locker room at just 19 years old, but you always made me feel welcome, and I can’t thank you enough for that. To the rest of the Penalty Box Radio crew, thanks for being so awesome to work with over the last four years. I always enjoyed coming together at the SECHC Tournament or at intermission during Predators games. You’re all so incredibly talented, and I can’t wait to see what you do in the future. Finally, to the fans that have read the articles, listened to the podcasts and interacted with me on Twitter, thank you from the bottom of my heart. Your support and your enthusiasm has meant the world to me, and I’m so thankful for all of you. It’s hard to believe that anyone would be interested in hearing anything I have to say about sports, so thank you so much to each and every one of you. It’s been a great four years, Penalty Box Radio. Thanks for everything. I may not be here on this site anymore, but I won’t be going far. Stay tuned, y’all. Tags: Cutler Klein, Nashville Predators, Penalty Box Radio Cutler Klein Former Co-Managing Editor Cutler hails from a strange, faraway land known as “New York.” His family ties to Nashville led him to embrace the city, and its sports teams. Now, he gets to follow all of them full-time, as he is a student at Vanderbilt University, pursuing a degree in Communication Studies. In 2016, he spent the summer writing for NHL.com and working in the league headquarters, and in 2017 he interned for the Vegas Golden Knights' communications and content department. He also covers the Vanderbilt Commodores as sports editor the Vanderbilt Hustler, and acts as sports director for VandyRadio. He’s interviewed some big names in the hockey world, including Nicklas Lidstrom, Martin St. Louis, Bobby Clarke, Darren McCarty and Doug Maclean. In the past, he covered the Predators on Predlines.com and the whole NHL for TodaysSlapshot.com. Montgomery County Mayor Jim Durrett on downtown Clarksville Event Center Southern Hostility: Complaints, Solutions and Marvel Tribute and Donation Info Official Radio Home of: PBR Live from Cherokee Steakhouse Predators Vs Capitals Preview! Josi And Preds Look To Be The Last Men Standing In DC. Predators vs Leafs Recap. Plus, a tribute to Kobe Bryant SECHC Atlantic Hockey ECAC Hockey Hockey East WCHA © 2019 Penalty Box Radio	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line318
__label__cc	0.591126	0.408874	You are here: Home / The Newsroom / Policy / New Television Advertisement Against The Failed Economic Policies of Martin... New Television Advertisement Against The Failed Economic Policies of Martin O’Malley October 27, 2010 /in Policy /by Presidential Coalition The Presidential Coalition, an affiliate of Citizens United, announced a television advertisement today entitled “Wrecking Crew,” that highlights the failed economic policies of Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley. http://presidentialcoalition.com/wp-content/uploads/main-logo.png 0 0 Presidential Coalition http://presidentialcoalition.com/wp-content/uploads/main-logo.png Presidential Coalition2010-10-27 10:04:342018-05-14 10:13:45New Television Advertisement Against The Failed Economic Policies of Martin O’Malley New Television Advertisement Against “Question A”, The Ambulance Fee In...	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line322
__label__wiki	0.825635	0.825635	Get Thanasi Kokkinakis essential facts below. View Videos or join the Thanasi Kokkinakis discussion. Add Thanasi Kokkinakis to your PopFlock.com topic list for future reference or share this resource on social media. Kokkinakis at the 2018 Wimbledon Qualifying Country (sports) (1996-04-10) 10 April 1996 (age 23)[1] Right-handed (two-handed backhand) Todd Langman (2003-2015, 2017-present) Jason Stoltenberg (mentor 2015-) Lleyton Hewitt (mentor 2015-) Ben Mathias (2016-2017)[2] Career record 27-43 (38.6% in ATP World Tour and Grand Slam main draw matches, and in Davis Cup) 0 ATP 3 Challenger 1 Futures Highest ranking No. 69 (8 June 2015) No. 198 (28 October 2019) Grand Slam Singles results 2R (2014, 2015) 3R (2015) No. 137 (27 July 2015) Grand Slam Doubles results 1R (2013, 2014, 2015, 2018) Grand Slam Mixed Doubles results 1R 2018 RR (2018) Last updated on: 3 November 2019. Athanasios "Thanasi" Kokkinakis (;[3] born 10 April 1996) is an Australian professional tennis player. In the second round of the 2018 Miami Open, Kokkinakis defeated then World Number 1 Roger Federer. Kokkinakis was born in Adelaide to Greek immigrant parents, Trevor (Tryfon) from Kalamata, Greece and Voula (Paraskevi) from Tripoli, Greece. Kokkinakis also has Greek citizenship. He is a citizen of Perivolakia Pylos. His tennis idol growing up was Marat Safin.[4] Junior career As a junior, Kokkinakis had a breakthrough when in March 2008 he won the 12 year old National Lawn Tennis tournament in Mildura beating Joshua Bray 6-1, 6-2 in the final. This was a big stepping stone after being beaten in the previous 12 year old National Hardcourt Tennis Tournament in January 2008 by Lochlan Greene in straight sets in the round of 16. This tournament was won by Nick Kyrgios. In 2009, Kokkinakis was selected with fellow Australian tennis representatives James Ma, Li Tu and Daniel Talens, on a Tennis Australian European tour. He has repeatedly said that this tour changed the course of his career.[5] Kokkinakis received a wildcard into the 2013 Australian Open juniors tournament and eventually reached the final taking down the 12th, 2nd and 11th seeds on his way. In the final he faced fellow Australian Nick Kyrgios. After having two set points in the first set he eventually lost 7-6(7-4), 6-3. In June, he returned to competitive play at Wimbledon, and made the third round in the boys' singles and won the boys' doubles with Nick Kyrgios.[6] Kokkinakis lost the final of US Open Boys' Singles, losing in three sets against Borna ?ori?, 6-3, 3-6, 1-6. Following the result, Kokkinakis reached a career high junior ranking of 10.[7] Despite still being eligible, Kokkinakis elected not to play junior events in 2014 and instead focused on the men's tour. 2011-2013: Professional tour debut Kokkinakis at the 2013 US Open Kokkinakis began his professional career in 2011 at the Australia F3 Future's event at the age of 14 where he lost 6-8 in the third set tiebreak to Leon Frost. He recorded his first professional win the following week against Kento Takeuchi at the Australia F4 event. He then lost in the second round to Michael Venus. In 2012, after playing Futures events in Australia, Slovenia, Germany and the Netherlands, Kokkinakis equaled his best result of the year by reaching the semifinals of the Belgium F4 event. He then returned to play Futures in Australia where he reached back to back quarterfinals in the F5 and F6 events, losing to Luke Saville both times. He finished the year by reaching the semifinals at the Australia F12 event where he lost to Ben Mitchell. He began 2013 by filling-in on the United States and German teams during the 2013 Hopman Cup as a replacement for injured John Isner and Tommy Haas.[8][9] Kokkinakis competed in the qualifying competition of the 2013 Australian Open, losing to Steve Johnson 15-17 in the third set. Kokkinakis sustained a stress fracture in his back in the Australian Open boys' final which kept him out of competition until mid 2013.[10] He then returned to competition playing Futures tournaments in the Czech Republic, Canada and the United States with the highlight being a quarterfinal of the Canada F5 event. In September and October, Kokkinakis competed in two Challenger events in the United States. The first was the 2013 Napa Valley Challenger where he qualified and reached the second round, going down to Bradley Klahn despite leading by a set. Then in the 2013 Sacramento Challenger he qualified and made the second round. He again lost despite leading by a set against Nick Kyrgios. As a result of this, his ranking increased to a career best of number 655. In October, Kokkinakis paired up with Benjamin Mitchell and won the Melbourne Challenger defeating Alex Bolt and Andrew Whittington in the final in straight sets. This increased his doubles ranking by 453 places, which put him up to a career high of number 505. He also reached the second round in the singles. He looked like he would cause a big upset after taking the first set against Matt Ebden before losing the next two sets. He finished his year at the 2013 Traralgon Challenger where he lost in the second round to James Duckworth in straight sets. Despite missing half of the year due to injury, Kokkinakis finished 2013 with a ranking of number 627. 2014: Breakthrough to top 200 Kokkinakis began 2014 in qualifying at the 2014 Brisbane International after receiving a wildcard. He qualified and drew fellow Australian and eventual tournament champion Lleyton Hewitt in round one where he went down in straight sets.[11][12] On 8 January, Kokkinakis was awarded a wild card into the 2014 Australian Open.[13] He defeated Igor Sijsling in the first round in four sets despite suffering from cramp.[14] He was defeated in the second round by top seed and world number one Rafael Nadal.[15] Kokkinakis reached the semis of the 2014 Heilbronner Neckarcup coming through the qualifying and beating Jesse Huta Galung, Michael Russell and Marsel ?lhan. He then lost to number 1 seed Jan-Lennard Struff and missed out on a place in his first ATP challenger tour final. Kokkinakis received a wild card in the French Open qualifying rounds, where he made the final, and despite having match point in the third set, he lost to Ante Pavi?, 6-4, 6-7, 5-7. This result improved his ranking inside the top 300 for the first time. Kokkinakis won his first singles title in Canada on July 13, defeating Fritz Wolmarans in the final. Kokkinakis then qualified for the 2014 Shenzhen Open. He beat Egor Gerasimov 7-6(7-3), 6-1 in the first round for a place in the second round where he got beaten by 6th seed Santiago Giraldo 6-4, 6-3. Kokkinakis qualified for his second career Masters 1000 in Shanghai, but lost to Feliciano López in the 1st round 7-6, 3-6, 4-6. Kokkinakis finished 2014 with a ranking of number 150. Kokkinakis playing at Wimbledon in 2015 Kokkinakis began 2015 at the Brisbane International where he received a wild card into the main draw.[16] In the first round he defeated 8th seed Julien Benneteau in straight sets.[17] He lost in the second round against compatriot Bernard Tomic.[18] Kokkinakis and Grigor Dimitrov were also awarded a wildcard into the doubles event. They reached the semifinals, where they lost to Kei Nishikori and Alexandr Dolgopolov. Kokkinakis received a wildcard also into the 2015 Australian Open,[19] where he defeated 11th seed Ernests Gulbis in the first round,[20] and then lost to compatriot Sam Groth in five sets in round 2. In February, Kokkinakis qualified for three ATP World Tour events; Memphis, Delray and Mexican Open. In March, Kokkinakis played his first live rubber at the Davis Cup. He defeated Czech, Luká? Rosol in five sets, 4-6, 2-6, 7-5, 7-5, 6-3. He was awarded a wild card into Indian Wells where he defeated Jan-Lennard Struff, Guillermo García-López and Juan Mónaco before losing to Bernard Tomic in the fourth round. Next, he competed in the Miami Open, where he lost in the first round to Carlos Berlocq. Following, he competed in Istanbul Open where he completed three rounds of qualifying, but losing in the round of 32 to Dusan Lajovic 6-4, 7-5. Following Istanbul, he qualified for the Madrid Open, and he fell in the first round to Sam Querrey in three sets, however, this improved his ranking and broke him into the top 100 for the first time. He won the Challenger BNP Paribas Primrose (Bordeaux) defeating Thiemo de Bakker, then got a wildcard into the French Open, where he defeated Nikoloz Basilashvili and 27th seed Bernard Tomic in the second round before losing to eventual finalist and world number 1 Novak Djokovic.[21] Kokkinakis began his grass court season at the Queen's Club Championships after being awarded a last minute wildcard following the withdrawal of Kyle Edmund. In his opening match he beat Jérémy Chardy, but lost in the second round to Gilles Simon. Kokkinakis was defeated in round 1 of Wimbledon against 24th seed Leonardo Mayer. He also contested the Men's Doubles with Lleyton Hewitt and the pair reached the 3rd round before losing to eventual champions Rojer/Tec?u. Kokkinakis then played for Australia at the Davis Cup quarterfinals where he lost to Mikhail Kukushkin in straight sets. He was then replaced in the reverse singles by Lleyton Hewitt who secured Australia a spot in the semifinals. On August 12, 2015, Nick Kyrgios revealed that Kokkinakis had previously slept with Donna Veki?, alleged girlfriend of Stan Wawrinka, while playing Wawrinka at the Montreal Masters. Kokkinakis later responded to Kyrgios's comments, saying "I let him know. I made it pretty clear that he can't be doing that. If he's got a problem, he's got to say it in private. The way he went about it definitely wasn't the right thing."[22] In his first match after the incident, he was involved in an altercation with American Ryan Harrison during their qualifying match at the Cincinnati Masters, with one report alleging that Harrison threatened physical violence against Kokkinakis and insulted his crew.[23] Kokkinakis ended the year with a ranking of 80. 2016: Injury-plagued year On December 24, 2015, Kokkinakis announced that he would sit out the entire Australian summer of tennis, including the Australian Open, due to an ongoing left shoulder injury.[24] Kokkinakis also missed the 2016 French Open and 2016 Wimbledon Championships. Kokkinakis' first competitive match in 2016 came at the 2016 Summer Olympics, where he lost in the first round to Gastão Elias. On August 25, Kokkinakis announced he would miss the US Open due to a pulled pectoral muscle.[25] 2017: First ATP final event Kokkinakis' made his comeback at the Brisbane International after receiving a wildcard in doubles with Jordan Thompson. The duo made it to the final, defeating the top seeds en route, where they won the title, the first Australian duo to win the Brisbane International, defeating Gilles Müller and Sam Querrey. Kokkinakis was granted a singles wildcard at the Apia International, where he was scheduled to play Thompson in the first round, but withdrew due to injury. He subsequently withdrew from the Australian Open. In May, Kokkinakis returned to competitive play in doubles with Alex Bolt at Bordeaux Challenger where they reached the quarterfinals. Using a protective ranking, Kokkinakis played his first singles match since October 2015 at Lyon losing to Denis Istomin in straight sets.[26] In June, Kokkinakis defeated Mikhail Youzhny at 's-Hertogenbosch. This was his first ATP tour win since August 2015.[27] In the second round, he lost to Daniil Medvedev. The following week, Kokkinakis received a wildcard into Queen's where he defeated Milos Raonic in his opening match in straight sets to record his first top 10 victory. He lost to Daniil Medvedev in the second round for the second consecutive week. Entering the Los Cabos Open as a wildcard, Kokkinakis first defeated world no. 60 Frances Tiafoe in straight tie breaker sets. He then followed that with two more wins over Peter Polansky and Taylor Fritz to reach the semifinals. He then upset the first seed and Wimbledon 2017 semifinalist Tomas Berdych to reach his first ATP final, losing to Sam Querrey. In August, Kokkinakis lost in round 1 of the US Open to Janko Tipsarevic. This was his final match of the year and ended 2017 with a singles rank of 209. 2018: Victory over Federer Kokkinakis commenced the year at the Australian Open, but lost to Daniil Medvedev in round 1. In March, Kokkinakis lost qualifying for Indian Wells, before qualifying for the 2018 Miami Open where he defeated world No. 1 Roger Federer in the second round in three sets, gaining the biggest victory of his career.[28] He lost to Fernando Verdasco in the third round, in a close third-set tiebreaker. He suffered another setback when cracking a kneecap at the Monte Carlo Masters.[29] In May, Kokkinakis lost in the second round of qualifying of the French Open and in June, in the third round of qualifying of Wimbledon. In July, Kokkinakis lost in the first round at Atlanta and Los Cabos, but reached the final of the doubles in Los Cabos. In August, Kokkinakis returned the Challenger Tour and won both the single and doubles title at Nordic Naturals; it was Kokkinakis' second singles challenger title and first since 2015.[30] 2019: Injuries In January 2019, Kokkinakis qualified for and lost in the first round of the 2019 Brisbane International. Kokkinakis qualified for the 2019 Australian Open, but retired in the first round against Taro Daniel. In April, Kokkinakis returned to the ATP Challenger Tour in Barletta, reaching the second round before withdrawing with an injury. In July, Kokkinakis, returned to the Challenger tour in Winnetka; but withdrew before his semi final match before of an injury. The injury kept him out of the 2019 French Open and Wimbledon.[31] In July, Kokkinakis was awarded a wildcard into 2019 Los Cabos Open. He defeated Maxime Janvier in the first round to record his first win on the ATP Tour in 492 days; when he defeated Roger Federer at the 2018 Miami Open.[32] He then backed up that win at the 2019 US Open where he took out Ilya Ivashka in four sets, setting up a second-round meeting with second seed Rafael Nadal. Moments before the match, however, he was forced to withdraw due to a right shoulder injury. In September, Kokkinakis reached the final of the Tiburon Challenger, where he went on to lose to Tommy Paul in three sets.[33] ATP career finals Singles: 1 (1 runner-up) Grand Slam tournaments (0-0) ATP World Tour Finals (0-0) ATP World Tour Masters 1000 (0-0) ATP World Tour 500 Series (0-0) Finals by surface Hard (0-1) Clay (0-0) Grass (0-0) Finals by setting Outdoor (0-1) Indoor (0-0) Loss 0-1 Aug 2017 Los Cabos Open, Mexico 250 Series Hard Sam Querrey 3-6, 6-3, 2-6 Doubles: 2 (1 title, 1 runner-up) Win 1-0 Jan 2017 Brisbane International, Australia 250 Series Hard Jordan Thompson Gilles Müller Sam Querrey 7-6(9-7), 6-4 Loss 1-1 Aug 2018 Los Cabos Open, Mexico 250 Series Hard Taylor Fritz Marcelo Arévalo Miguel Ángel Reyes-Varela 4-6, 4-6 ATP Challengers and ITF Futures finals Singles: 5 (4-1) ATP Challengers (3-1) ITF Futures (1-0) Win 1-0 Jul 2014 Saskatoon, Canada Futures Hard Fritz Wolmarans 7-6(7-4), 7-6(7-3) Win 2-0 May 2015 Bordeaux, France Challenger Clay Thiemo de Bakker 6-4, 1-6, 7-6(7-5) Win 3-0 August 2018 Aptos, United States Challenger Hard Lloyd Harris 6-2, 6-3 Win 4-0 October 2018 Las Vegas Challenger Challenger Hard Bla? Rola 6-4, 6-4 Loss 4-1 September 2019 Tiburon Challenger Challenger Hard Tommy Paul 5-7, 7-6(7-3), 4-6 Doubles: 5 (3-2) Loss 0-1 Jun 2012 Litija, Slovenia Futures Clay Daniel Garza Steven Moneke Marc Sieber 2-6, 6-2, [8-10] Loss 0-2 Jul 2012 Knokke, Belgium Futures Clay Alexander Blom Joris De Loore Oliver Golding 7-5, 6-7(3-7), [7-10] Win 1-0 Oct 2013 Melbourne, Australia Challenger Hard Benjamin Mitchell Andrew Whittington Alex Bolt 6-3, 6-2 Win 2-0 Jul 2014 Winnetka, United States Challenger Hard Denis Kudla Raymond Sarmiento Evan King 6-2, 7-6(7-4) Win 3-0 August 2018 Aptos, United States Challenger Hard Matt Reid Jonny O'Mara Joe Salisbury 6-2, 4-6 [10-8] Junior Grand Slam finals Singles: 2 (2 runner-ups) Loss 2013 Australian Open Hard Nick Kyrgios 6-7(4-7), 3-6 Loss 2013 US Open Hard Borna ?ori? 6-3, 3-6, 1-6 Doubles: 1 (1 title) Win 2013 Wimbledon Grass Nick Kyrgios Enzo Couacaud Stefano Napolitano 6-2, 6-3 National representation Kokkinakis made his Davis Cup debut for Australia in February 2014 against France at the age of 17.[34] He was selected to play in the fourth rubber, which was a dead rubber. He lost in straight sets to Julien Benneteau. He made his debut in a live rubber in 2015 with a comeback five-set win over Luká? Rosol. All Davis Cup Matches: 2-3 (Singles: 2-3) Tie score Rubber score 2014 Davis Cup World Group R1 31 Jan-2 Feb 2014 France 0-5 La Roche-sur-Yon Clay (i) Singles 3 Julien Benneteau 4-6, 1-6 R1 6-8 Mar 2015 Czech Republic 3-2 Ostrava Hard (i) Singles 1 Luká? Rosol 4-6, 2-6, 7-5, 7-5, 6-3 QF 17-19 Jul 2015 Kazakhstan 3-2 Darwin Grass Singles 1 Mikhail Kukushkin 4-6, 3-6, 3-6 SF 18-20 Sep 2015 Great Britain 2-3 Glasgow Hard (i) Singles 1 Andy Murray 3-6, 0-6, 3-6 Singles 4 Daniel Evans 7-5, 6-4 Performance timelines W F SF QF #R RR Q# A P Z# PO G F-S SF-B NMS NH (W) Won; (F) finalist; (SF) semifinalist; (QF) quarterfinalist; (#R) rounds 4, 3, 2, 1; (RR) round-robin stage; (Q#) qualification round; (A) absent; (Z#) Davis/Fed Cup Zonal Group (with number indication) or (PO) play-off; (G) gold, (F-S) silver or (SF-B) bronze Olympic medal; a (NMS) downgraded Masters Series/1000 tournament; (NH) not held. SR=strike rate (events won/competed) To avoid confusion and double counting, these charts are updated at the conclusion of a tournament or when the player's participation has ended. Grand Slam tournaments Australian Open Q1 2R 2R A A 1R 1R 0 / 4 2-4 33% French Open A Q3 3R A 1R Q2 A 0 / 2 2-2 50% Wimbledon A A 1R A 1R Q3 A 0 / 2 0-2 0% US Open A Q2 1R A 1R Q2 2R 0 / 2 0-2 0% Win-Loss 0-0 1-1 3-4 0-0 0-3 0-1 0-1 0 / 10 4-10 29% Indian Wells Masters A Q1 4R A A Q1 A 0 / 1 3-1 75% Miami Open A A 1R A A 3R A 0 / 2 2-2 50% Monte-Carlo Masters A A A A A 1R A 0 / 1 0-1 0% Madrid Open A A 1R A A A A 0 / 1 0-1 0% Italian Open A A A A A A A 0 / 0 0-0 0% Canadian Open A 1R Q1 A A A 0 / 1 0-1 0% Cincinnati Masters A A 2R A A A 0 / 1 1-1 50% Shanghai Masters A 1R A A A A 0 / 1 0-1 0% Paris Masters A A A A A A 0 / 0 0-0 0% Win-Loss 0-0 0-2 4-4 0-0 0-0 2-2 0-0 0 / 8 6-8 43% Summer Olympics Not Held 1R Not Held 0 / 1 0-1 0% Davis Cup A 1R SF A A A 0 / 2 2-3 40% Tournaments 0 6 17 1 7 6 2 39 Titles 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Finals 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 Hard Win-Loss 0-0 2-6 10-13 0-1 4-2 3-5 0-2 0 / 28 19-29 40% Clay Win-Loss 0-0 0-1 2-3 0-0 0-2 0-1 0-0 0 / 6 2-7 22% Grass Win-Loss 0-0 0-0 1-3 0-0 2-3 0-0 0-0 0 / 5 3-6 33% Overall Win-Loss 0-0 2-7 13-19 0-1 6-7 3-6 0-2 0 / 39 24-42 36% Win (%) - 22% 43% 0% 46% 33% 0% 36% Year-end ranking 628 150 80 NR 209 146 Australian Open 1R 1R 1R A A 1R A 0 / 4 0-4 French Open A A 2R A A A 0 / 1 1-1 Wimbledon A A 3R A 2R A 0 / 2 3-2 US Open A A A A A A 0 / 0 0-0 Win-Loss 0-1 0-1 3-3 0-0 1-1 0-1 0-0 0 / 7 4-7 Indian Wells Masters A A 2R A A A A 0 / 1 1-1 Overall Win-Loss 0-1 1-2 6-8 0-0 5-3 3-3 0-0 15-17 Year-end ranking 492 333 168 - 178 198 47% Record against top-10 players Kokkinakis' match record against players who have been ranked in the Top 10, with those who are active in boldface. Top-10 wins TK Rank 1. Milos Raonic 6 Queen's Club, London, United Kingdom Grass 1R 7-6(7-5), 7-6(10-8) 698 2. Roger Federer 1 Miami Open, United States Hard 2R 3-6, 6-3, 7-6(7-4) 175 ^ a b "Thanasi Kokkinakis". ATP Tour. Retrieved 2013. ^ Outlaw, Adrianna (2 December 2015). "Kokkinakis splits with long time coach". tennisnow.com. Retrieved 2016. ^ "The pronunciation by Thanasi Kokkinakis himself". ATPWorldTour.com. Retrieved 2018. ^ "The Championships, Wimbledon 2018 - Official Site by IBM". www.wimbledon.com. Retrieved 2018. ^ "Tennis results of Thanasi Kokkinakis". CoreTennis.net. Retrieved 2015. ^ "Kyrgios and Kokkinakis claim doubles glory". Tennis Australia. Retrieved 2014. ^ "Thanasi Kokkinakis ITF junior profile". Retrieved 2018. ^ Schultz, Duane (4 January 2013). "Adelaide's Thanasi Kokkinakis enjoys time in Hopman Cup spotlight". The Advertiser. ^ "Completed Matches". HopmanCup.com. Retrieved 2013. ^ "Double blow for rising teen tennis star Thanasi Kokkinakis". Daily Telegraph. 27 January 2013. Retrieved 2014. ^ "South Australian Thanasi Kokkinakis qualifies for Brisbane International". Courier Mail. 30 December 2013. Retrieved 2014. ^ "Lleyton Hewitt overcomes Thanasi Kokkinakis in all-Australian Brisbane International match". ABC News. 1 January 2014. Retrieved 2014. ^ "Eight Australians handed final wildcard entries into Australian Open main draw". ABC News. 8 January 2014. Retrieved 2014. ^ "SA teen Thanasi Kokkinakis battles through to win his first Australian Open match". Courier Mail. 14 January 2014. Retrieved 2014. ^ "Thanasi Kokkinakis finds a fair defeat from Rafael Nadal". The Sydney Morning Herald. 17 January 2014. Retrieved 2014. ^ "Kokkinakis lands wildcard". Brisbane International. 29 December 2014. Retrieved 2015. ^ "Kokkinakis cruises past Benneteau". Brisbane International. 5 January 2015. Retrieved 2015. ^ "Tomic tempers Kokkinakis threat". Brisbane International. 7 January 2015. Retrieved 2015. ^ "Thanasi Kokkinakis amongst Australian Open wildcard recipients". The Guardian. 10 January 2015. Retrieved 2015. ^ "Australian Open 2015 draw: Good news for local hopes". Sydney Morning Herald. 16 January 2015. Retrieved 2015. ^ "Biggest Movers: Milestones for the Special Ks". Tennis Australia. 12 May 2015. Retrieved 2015. ^ Press, Australian Associated (17 August 2015). "Thanasi Kokkinakis on Nick Kyrgios sledge: 'He can't be doing that'". the Guardian. Retrieved 2018. ^ Press, Australian Associated (16 August 2015). "Thanasi Kokkinakis in heated on-court row following Nick Kyrgios controversy". the Guardian. Retrieved 2018. ^ "Thanasi Kokkinakis rules himself out of Australian Open due to shoulder soreness". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 24 December 2015. Retrieved 2015. ^ "KOKKINAKIS TO MISS US OPEN". Tennis Australia. 25 August 2016. Retrieved 2016. ^ "KOKKINAKIS FALTERS IN RETURN TO COURT". Tennis Australia. 23 May 2017. Retrieved 2017. ^ "KOKKINAKIS BACK IN WINNER'S CIRCLE". Tennis Australia. 14 June 2017. Retrieved 2017. ^ "Kokkinakis Storms Back To Stun Federer In Miami". 24 March 2018. Retrieved 2018. ^ "Thanasi Kokkinakis suffers hairline fracture on his kneecap". 23 April 2018. Retrieved 2018. ^ "KOKKINAKIS WINS APTOS CHALLENGER TROPHY". Tennis Australia. 13 August 2018. Retrieved 2018. ^ "KUBLER WINS, KOKKINAKIS WITHDRAWS IN PARIS". Tennis Australia. 21 May 2019. Retrieved 2019. ^ "Thanasi Kokkinakis ends 492-day wait after Roger Federer stunner". Yahoo Sports. 30 July 2019. Retrieved 2019. ^ "Challenger Q&A: Paul Edges Kokkinakis In Marathon Tiburon Final \| ATP Tour \| Tennis". ATP Tour. Retrieved 2019. ^ "Nick Kyrgios, Thanasi Kokkinakis, Jordan Thompson in Australian Davis Cup squad to play France". ABC Australia. 21 January 2014. Retrieved 2014. Thanasi Kokkinakis at the Association of Tennis Professionals Thanasi Kokkinakis at the International Tennis Federation Thanasi Kokkinakis at the Davis Cup Thanasi Kokkinakis at Tennis Australia Thanasi Kokkinakis longest victory lap ever Conference de presse Thanasi Kokkinakis Roland-Garros 2015 / 2e tour Queen's Club 2015 Gilles Simon vs Thanasi Kokkinakis Highlights 17/06/2015 [HD 720p] perclus de crampes, Thanasi Kokkinakis abandonne et fracasse sa raquette Open Qualifiers- Thanasi Kokkinakis Interview ca chauffe lors de la poingee de main entre Thanasi Kokkinakis et Ryan Harrison a Cincinnati Highlights - Lukas Rosol vs Thanasi Kokkinakis - davis cup results 2015 - tennis live streaming free ATP - La gamelle de Monte-Carlo coute cher a Thanasi Kokkinakis Roland Garros: Thanasi Kokkinakis - Kei Nishikori (Ozet) Thanasi Kokkinakis: Kia Open Drive - Australian Open 2015 Press conference Thanasi Kokkinakis 2015 French Open / R64 Thanasi Kokkinakis vs Frances Tiafoe Live Tennis Stream - ATP Los Cabos - Abierto Mexicano Los Cabos - 04:00 UK - 01-Aug Incredible point! Tweener lob winner Juan Monaco v Thanasi Kokkinakis - 2015 Indian Wells_1 ABD Acik: Thanasi Kokkinakis - Janko Tisparevic (Ozet) Highlights: Andy Murray (GBR) v Thanasi Kokkinakis (AUS) Gilles Simon vs Thanasi Kokkinakis Highlights Queen's Club 2015 Novak Djokovic 3-0 Thanasi Kokkinakis: Chin thng thuyt phc Rafael Nadal - Thanasi Kokkinakis Thanasi_Kokkinakis	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line327
__label__cc	0.684009	0.315991	You are at:Home»2011»July Monthly Archives: July, 2011 Getting a leg up Dear Artist, Yesterday, Donna Egan of Cicero, New York wrote, “I don’t have a degree… Dear Artist, The great art salesman Joseph Duveen used to tell his customers that buying… The ‘local artist’ Dear Artist, Yesterday, a subscriber who wished to remain anonymous wrote, “I’m represented in galleries… Learning to draw Dear Artist, Jacob Collins is a New York artist and art educator whose avowed goal… Sixteen reasons why I won’t paint today Dear Artist, A woman wrote recently and told me she was unable to paint because… The magic of ‘hook hours’ Dear Artist, It turned out our fishing guide, Steve Woodley, was a veteran of the… Can painting improve your health? Dear Artist, Yesterday, Donna MacDonald of Calgary, Alberta wrote, “Is there a possibility that painting… Flavour of the month Dear Artist, Yesterday, Karen Weihs of Asheville, NC, wrote, “I’ve just toured a wide range… Are women superior? Dear Artist, Every day the news gets worse for men. More and more women are… Ken Chambers on General copies	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line336
__label__wiki	0.802177	0.802177	Back in the studio Between working at WYNC and playing with the Dexter Lake Club Band, Paul Schneider is recording the follow up to Escape Velocity and Forever Debts. Check out the songs as they are completed here. To get notified of new music updates. Forever Debts “Paul Schneider has such a perfect power-pop voice that I almost wonder if it was genetically engineered…It would, however, be oversimplifying things to claim that Schneider’s music is power-pop; I mean, it’s pop, and it’s got some punch, but he channels that voice into something decidedly modern.” Read Full Review – Pitchfork “Escape Velocity is an accomplished debut for a promising young songwriter who thankfully seems as interested in the musical content of his songs as the lyrical…Escape Velocity is also a solid indie rock record, announcing the arrival of a songwriter to look out for.” Read Full Review – Pitchfork © 2016 Paul Schneider. All rights reserved.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line339
__label__cc	0.623463	0.376537	Obama winning in Ohio Our Presidential numbers in Ohio provide further evidence that the state has swung back toward the Democrats since the November election. Barack Obama now has narrowly positive approval numbers in the state at 47% giving him good marks to 46% who are unhappy with the job he's doing. And he leads his top prospective Republican opponents for next year by margins ranging from 6 to 16 points. This is the first time in six PPP surveys of Ohio since June 2009 that Obama's had more voters approving of him than disapproving. In December 42% of voters expressed approval of him while 49% disapproved. The key to his improved standing is that the base has rallied around him. Where only 71% of Democrats expressed approval of him on that poll, 84% of Democrats do now. The first couple years of the Obama administration featured a lot of Democrats fighting with each other- now that they've sort of unified around a common enemy in the form of John Kasich it seems to be leading to a more united party up and down the line. There's certainly bad news for Obama in his approval numbers too. He remains unpopular with independents, only 39% of whom approve of him to 49% who disapprove. And his already pretty much nonexistent support from Republicans has shrunk even further from 11% to 7%. Still having his own party's voters behind him puts him in the best shape he's been in the state since the early months of his tenure. Obama leads all of the top Republicans in the state by margins greater than his 4 point win over John McCain in 2008. Mitt Romney is the most competitive, trailing Obama by 6 points at 46-40. After him it's Mike Huckabee trailing by 7 at 48-41, Newt Gingrich down 12 at 50-38, and Sarah Palin at a 16 point advantage, 52-36. Why is Obama up by so much when voters are so evenly divided on him? It's because voters in the state are very negative toward the Republican candidate field. Huckabee has the best favorability but it still comes in at a -6 spread at 36/42. After him it's Romney at -10 (33/43), Palin at -28 (31/59), and Gingrich at -32 (24/56). Our national poll yesterday also found Gingrich with worse favorability numbers than Palin, it's kind of hard to imagine his last couple of weeks could have been much more of a disaster. What might be most telling about how unappealing the Republicans are is that even though independents don't like Obama they'd still vote for him by 8 points over Huckabee, 15 points over Gingrich, and 17 points over Palin while trailing Romney by just 2 with them. Those voters may not be big on Obama but for now they're not seeing any of the prospective GOP candidates as particularly viable alternatives. Ohio joins Virginia and Colorado as states PPP has polled since the beginning of February that George W. Bush won in both 2000 and 2004 where Obama now leads all of his prospective opponents for next year by at least 6 points. There's no way Republicans can win the White House back if that continues to be the case. BelieveInAmerica said... FACT: The ethics commission fined Huckabee $1,000 for failing to report that he paid himself $14,000 from his 1992 U.S. Senate campaign and $43,000 from his 1994 lieutenant governor’s campaign. (Source: POLITICO, Huckabee rivals unearth ethics complaints Kenneth P. Vogel Nov 21, 2007) FACT: Huckabee accepted more than 300 gifts worth at least $130,000, ranging from $3,700 cowboy boots to a $600 chainsaw. (Source: POLITICO, Huckabee rivals unearth ethics complaints Kenneth P. Vogel Nov 21, 2007) FACT: Mike Huckabee raised more taxes in 10 years in office than Bill Clinton did in his 12 years. (Source: The Leader, 08/30/2006) FACT: Mike Huckabee’s substantial tax hikes far surpassed his modest tax cuts, with the average tax burden increasing by a whopping 47% over his tenure. (Source: Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, 10/09/07) FACT: Mike Huckabee opposed a congressional measure to ban internet taxes in 2003. (Source: Arkansas News Bureau, 11/21/03) FACT: Mike Huckabee in 2004, he allowed a 17% sales tax increase to become law. (Source: The Gurdon Times, 03/02/04) FACT: Mike Huckabee stole over $70,000 worth of furniture from the Arkansas governors mansion. (Source: Arkansas Times Counting the Furniture, 12/14/06 Leslie Newell Peacock) FACT: Mike Huckabee set up a nonprofit entity so he could give paid “inspirational” speeches without having to disclose the donors. (SOURCE: Bloomberg Dec 12, 2007 Margaret Carlson) FACT: During the 2001 regular session of the Arkansas Legislature, Mike Huckabee supported giving driver’s licenses to illegal aliens. (Source Arkansas Journal, Mike Huckabee Supported Bill to Give Driver’s Licenses to Illegal Aliens, Henry Rearden, 11/22/2007) FACT: Mike Huckabee supported in-state higher education benefits for children of illegal immigrants. (Laura Kellams, “Senators research U.S. law on aliens,” Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, 1/27/05) FACT: Mike Huckabee opposed a federal raid of 119 illegal immigrants at an Arkansas Tyson poultry plant, 107 of whom left the country either voluntarily or through deportation. (Melissa Nelson, “Huckabee Risks Political Fortunes To Denounce Immigration Raid,” Associated Press, 8/5/05) FACT: Mike Huckabee opposed a bill requiring proof of citizenship to vote in his own state. (Source CNS NEWS, Some GOP Concerned about Huckabee’s Immigration Views, Fred Lucas, 12/04/2007) FACT: Mike Huckabee says he has degree in theology, further investigation discovers he does not. (Source: The Carpetbagger Report, Mike Huckabee has a theology degree — or does he?, 12/14/2007) FACT: We love him and will vote for him. FACT: We know who you are working for. FACT: Your so called facts are not because your sources are not credible He started campaigning 2 weeks ago making statements about his support for women and gays, maybe that's why dems are coming back to him? I heard 2 not-so-fond of him democrats praise him for them. Can't think of any other reason. The economy is no better, he hasn't shown any leadership internationally and I can't think of anything else he's done to win people over recently. Anyone know? 'course, Believe is campaigning for ...who? Pawlenty or someone? Robert Nolin said... Romney is paying people again to leave comments about Huckabee on blogs. Looks like Romney is running and he things Huckabee is too. I Am Iron Man said... Hey "BelieveInAmerica" - I think I'm going to "borrow" your list of Huckabee facts for my website. I hope you don't mind (it's a good list and I think it's important for people to know that Huckabee isn't Presidential material.) looks like there are neo-con spyware sock puppets here. Re spyware: These fake personas are transparent in a way they don't want to be... They are belied by their obvious mission to taunt and create division. Best response is to never take the bait and allow them to pull you into their often vulgar and always polarizing discourses. They fear being ignored. Do it. Obama up in Florida Not much hope for Dems in Mississippi Georgia/New Hampshire Suggestions Nelson in decent shape Romney, Hoekstra lead Michigan GOP field Mixed News for Barbour Rubio off to a good start Scott incredibly unpopular A wide range of choices,,, Declining GOP Frontrunner Popularity NC not responding well to new majority Obama in Michigan Happy Republicans Question Suggestions Palin State by State Obama competitive in North Carolina Stabenow looking better Ohio Poll Roundup Snyder quickly falls out of favor Perdue or no Perdue, Dems would lose NC Gov today Pearl has support of Vols fans Blackwell for Senate? Fox News Polling Michigan Question Suggestions Walker could be a serious contender Palin trails Sheen with independents Steelman, Huckabee lead in Missouri Voters tepid toward Obama, but favor him over GOP Brown looking better for reelection Obama leads in Maine More from our Republican poll Exploring Alternative Republican Universes Brutal numbers for Kasich, SB 5 Maine narrowly favors gay marriage, Collins very p... Obama over the last three months Nixon leads by 7 Ohio/National Question Suggestions Senate Approval Roundup Missouri close...except with Huck or Palin Palin in Arizona Snowe's path to reelection Voting Time Newt's Tough Road Ahead Missouri still very much a tossup Crazy Voicemails Maine Republicans still want to get rid of Snowe Thoughts on Wilson's Announcement Wisconsin Republicans want Ryan, then Huckabee VA Dems want Kaine Virginia Politician Report Card Obama weaker than 2008 but still solid in Wisconsi... NC supports recognition for gay couples Limited Tea Party threat to Allen Missouri and Maine Question Suggestions RI Republicans want Carcieri, Romney Dems likely to hold Wisconsin Senate seat State fans divided on Lowe Obama strong in Virginia This week's choices... Obama up big in Rhode Island Tea Party problem for McCrory? Toss up in Virginia Wisconsin closely divided, but against Walker	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line340
__label__wiki	0.640378	0.640378	gone native dave stafford download - august 1, 2012 cd – november 17, 2012 rock /progressive rock “gone native” has finally arrived: since I am now using SONAR 8.5 to its fullest capacity, this allows me to play all of the instruments myself (except drums on one track); so, virtual drums and synths – real synths, real basses and real guitars, and, beginning in early 2011, guitar synth as well. the 19 tracks showcase my oft-hidden prowess as not just lead guitarist, but also as composer. it’s a fairly common misconception, that I hope this record will dispel, that I “just do ambient”, or I “just do looping”, or I “just play crafty guitar" - but “gone native” does show that I can actually write songs. I mean, who knew? not to mention, my first-ever recorded bass solo. the album was actually begun in november, 2008, with a single track (“thanks, frank”); then, the majority of the drum-based songs were composed and realised during 2009, with a sprinkling of later pieces from 2010, 2011 & 2012. the first 12 pieces are all fully-instrumented songs: drums, bass, mellotron, guitar, guitar synth (from 2011 on only) - while the last 7 span an enormous range of different styles, from ambient to synthetic to kaoss pad and back to ambient again - and this diversity really allows me to show off a wide, wide range of guitar, and guitar synthesizer, styles, which in turn maybe begins to present some viable portion of the result of forty one years’ playing experience. final mixes were completed during june, 2012 although some of the pieces from 2009 had been final mixed during 2010; all of the pieces received an update, including a brand new mix upgrade and 24-bit mastering for all 19 of the tracks. a number of the tracks were fully remixed to bring them up to my current 2012 standards - although a few were pretty much just right as they stood... the previous record is “sky full of stars” notes from the guitarist’s seat: quiet... peaceful... ambient music. pureambient music. gone native - gallery some days are more difficult than others - in search of that elusive, perfect take, in this case, a take of a particularly difficult lead solo (which I did get!) in the title track, “gone native”...february, 2011: the ambient music microlabel all content on this site is copyright Ó 1995 - 2020 - the world all rights reserved - no unauthorised reproduction of any content from this web site is permitted under any circumstances gone native - cover art gone native front cover gone native back cover gone native inner sleeve art design, art direction, advice: dawn hamilton “blood on the strat” photo: dave stafford	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line341
__label__cc	0.673461	0.326539	01spirit (bbc radio one "in concert" recorded at the bbc paris theatre on 14th april 1977)jack bruce"spirit - live at the bbc 1971 - 1978"播放1 02spirit (bbc radio one "in concert" recorded at the bbc paris theatre on 14th april 1977)jack bruce&tony williams"spirit - live at the bbc 1971 - 1978"播放1 04spirit (bbc tv "old grey whistle test" concert recorded at bbc tv centre on 6th june 1975)jack bruce&tony williams"spirit - live at the bbc 1971 - 1978"播放1 05spirit (bbc tv "old grey whistle test" concert recorded at bbc tv centre on 6th june 1975)jack bruce"spirit - live at the bbc 1971 - 1978"播放1 06the clearout (bbc radio one "in concert" recorded at the bbc paris theatre 18th september 1971)jack bruce"spirit - live at the bbc 1971 - 1978"播放1 08something to live for (bbc radio one "in concert" recorded at the bbc paris theatre on 14th april 1977)jack bruce"spirit - live at the bbc 1971 - 1978"播放1 11you burned the tables on me (bbc radio one "in concert" recorded at the bbc paris theatre on 18th september 1971)jack bruce"spirit - live at the bbc 1971 - 1978"播放1 12you burned the tables on me (bbc radio one "in concert" recorded at the bbc paris theatre on 18th september 1971)jack bruce&peter brown"spirit - live at the bbc 1971 - 1978"播放1 14folk song (bbc radio one "in concert" recorded at the bbc paris theatre on 18th september 1971)jack bruce&peter brown"spirit - live at the bbc 1971 - 1978"播放1 15powerhouse sod (bbc radio one "in concert" recorded at the bbc paris theatre on 18th september 1971)jack bruce&leslie west"spirit - live at the bbc 1971 - 1978"播放1 1234567下一页>	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line347
__label__wiki	0.76514	0.76514	Displaying items by tag: Demons Intruders: S1, Majestic art, Trek: TNG – S7 BD extras, CBS & HBO to stream & Halloween 4 BD exchange program details We’re wrapping up the week with a classic review entry in Adam’s Hell Plaza Oktoberfest: Mel Brooks’ Young Frankenstein: 40th Anniversary now on Blu-ray from Fox. The film is obviously terrific and it sounds like the new Blu-ray is too. Don’t miss it. In announcement news today, we have a few quick things to mention… [Read on here…] Frank Darabont Collection Adam Jahnke Hell Plaza Oktoberfest Intruders: Season One Star Trek: The Next Generation Season Seven Star Trek: The Next Generation All Good Things CBS streaming HBO streaming Halloween 4 BD exchange program Sword of Doom Young Frankenstein: 40th Anniversary Edition Deliver Us from Evil, Weird Al, True Blood: Complete, Sons of Anarchy box, Captain America L.A. signing & more [Editor’s Note: Be sure to like TheDigitalBits.com page on Facebook for great Blu-ray, DVD and film discussion with other readers and for live updates on your mobile device when new content is posted here!] More announcements today… Sony Pictures Home Entertainment has set Deliver Us from Evil for release on Blu-ray, DVD and digital on 10/28. Extras on both discs versions will include director’s commentary and the Illuminating Evil: Making Deliver Us from Evil featurette. The Blu-ray will exclusively add 3 more featurettes (Deliver Us from Demons, The Two Sergeants, and The Demon Detective). [Read on here…] UHF: 25th Anniversary Edition The Compleat Al True Blood: The Complete Series Sons of Anarchy: The Collector's Set Bee People Rain Man: 25th Anniversary Edition How to Train Your Dragon 2, more MPI Sherlock details & art, new Scream/Synapse titles & more We’re closing out the week with a couple new bits of announcement news and an update on a title we’ve mentioned a couple times before. First, 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment has set How to Train Your Dragon 2 for Blu-ray Combo and DVD release on 11/11, with a Digital HD release set for 10/21. The Blu-ray Combo will include will include the all-new Dragons: Dawn of the Dragon Racers animated adventure, along with audio commentary by Simon Otto, Bonnie Arnold, Dean DeBlois, and Pierre-Olivier Vincent, deleted scenes, 5 featurettes (Where No One Goes: The Making of How to Train Your Dragon 2, Fishleg’s Dragon Stats, Drago’s War Machines, Berk’s Dragon World, and Hiccup’s Inventions in Flight), the Dragon Races experience play-by-play commentary, an image gallery, the usual World of DreamWorks Animation music videos, and the theatrical trailer. [Read on here…] The Return of Sherlock Holmes Collection The Casebook of Sherlock Holmes The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes The Sherlock Holmes Feature Film Collection Sherlock Holmes: The Complete Series The Perfect Wave Come Morning	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line352
__label__wiki	0.652612	0.652612	Disney Beats Estimates on Strong Movie Slate Walt Disney Co. beat Wall Street estimates on adjusted earnings and revenue for the company’s fiscal third quarter. The Burbank entertainment and media giant reported on Tuesday net income of $2.6 billion ($1.59 a share) for the quarter ending July 2, compared with net income of $2.5 million ($1.45) in the same period a year earlier. Revenue increased 9 percent to $14.3 billion. Earnings adjusted to not include charges connected with shutting down international film operations were $1.62. Analysts on average expected earnings of $1.61 on revenue of $14.2 billion, according to the Thomson Financial Network. Out of the company’s five business units, studio entertainment showed the highest revenue increase for the quarter to $2.8 billion from $2 billion in the same period a year earlier. This was attributed to the summer film slate that included “Captain America: Civil War,” “Jungle Book” and “Finding Dory” and the home entertainment release of “Star Wars: The Force Awakens.” “Our results are evidence that our asset mix is strong, as is our ability to execute in ways that enhance the Disney brand and create value for our shareholders while we invest for future growth,” Chief Executive Robert Iger said in a prepared statement. Shares closed up 92 cents, or just less than 1 percent, to $96.67 on the New York Stock Exchange. ‘Star Wars’ Boosts Disney Earnings Theme Parks, Films Push Disney Profits Higher in Quarter Disney Beats Estimates as Start to 'Transformative Year' Disney Beats Estimates on Earnings, Misses on Revenue Disney Revenue Rises on Strong Box Office Expenses Eat into Disney Earnings Disney Reports Strong Fourth Quarter Disney Reports Lower Profits, New Streaming Strategy	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line361
__label__cc	0.628432	0.371568	Appendix C: Example Station-Based CRR PlanEd Comeau2017-10-30T13:39:46-05:00 XYZ Fire Department Pacific Park Firehouse Station-Based Community Risk Management Plan As the newest fire station in the X Fire Department, Station 10 is yet to produce a tradition or reputation that we are known by to the rest of the fire department or the citizens who reside within the stations boundaries. I feel this reputation is important on many different levels. First of all, the station must be viewed in a positive manner by the rest of the organization. This fire station must not be viewed in a negative manner by people who choose to work here by station bidding or by skating crews who must work here on an occasional shift. This will be an energetic station that is involved in training and involved in the community we serve. The order of priorities for this station are as follows: Emergency Response—it is the responsibility of all officers to ensure that the firefighters and apparatus are trained and maintained for effective emergency response. This station will have a reputation as an effective emergency response company. Community Risk Management—This station will involve the community that it serves in the development of proactive risk management strategies that are designed to improve the overall fire protection for the citizens we serve. All station members will be involved in these activities and may be assigned projects to assist in the development of or management and implementation of strategies set forth by the fire chief, the Battalion Chief and the Station Captain of the X Fire Department. Training—Training will be a major focus of this station. Officers will ensure that all firefighters assigned to this station will be trained in all fire and EMS requirements set by the training division. This station will have a reputation as a company that trains on a daily basis for top performance at emergency incidents. Station Maintenance—All crews will take an active part in the maintenance of the station and keep it in a clean and presentable condition. This station will have a reputation as a clean and well cared for firehouse. These four goals will guide the crews working at this firehouse. This station will not have a reputation as a “retirement” facility. It will be known as an active and effective company that is involved in the community. Align Your Organization X Fire Department Vision “From each fire station, the X Fire Department is actively engaged with our community to solve problems, reduce emergency demand, and mitigate risk in a fiscally responsible manner.” Service Area Description Geographic Boundaries: Pacific Park Firehouse is located in the Eastern section of X. The station boundaries for fire station 10 are 138th Avenue to the West. This boundary is shared with Burton/Orchards Firehouse #6. The Northern boundary is Poplar Street, which is shared with Sifton Firehouse #4. The Southern boundary is SE 1st Street, which is shared with Fisher’s Landing Firehouse #9. The Eastern boundary is Ingle/Goodwin Road, which is the boundary of the City of Camas. Demographics: The following was found in the 2000 Census: According to the X County Assessor’s office, the Station 10 service area includes 24,903 residents in 2009. By reviewing several Year 2000 census-block groups that are wholly contained in the Station 10 area, we can hypothesize the following: A Caucasian population of 90.6%, with the largest minority groups self-selected as “Asian alone” and “two or more races.” Children (under age 18) comprise 33 percent of the total population. (Includes natural born, adopted and step children) Population age 65 years and older is 9.6 percent. Family type (by presence of children under 18 years) shows and average of 80% living in married-couple families. Of the remainder, 16% live in “female householder, no husband present” family homes, with 1.6% in “male householder, no wife present” homes. Household income (in 1999): Under $30K, 21%; $30-$50K, 26%; $50-$100K, 46%. Household income (in 1999) below poverty level, 9.5%. While large tracts of housing have been built in various decades, the median year structures were built is 1985. Community Character: (ratio of residential to business buildings, average age of buildings, condition of critical infrastructure, declining/stable/gentrifying, percent in urban/suburban/rural zones, number of organized neighborhood/business associations) Fire station 10 is largely a residential area. The residential units in the west end of the station area are older homes built in the 60’s, and 70’s around Evergreen High School. This is a suburban area with areas of open land sprinkled throughout. The north end of the station area consists of newer homes of various sizes, from small single-family to very large single-family homes in excess of 3,000 to 4,000 square feet. This is a suburban area with a rural mix. The east end of the station area has mostly new construction of moderate sized homes. Many homes in this area are in heavily forested areas that may pose an urban interface problem to the fire department. Large areas of rural property are found here. The south end of the station area is again mostly newer construction. Small to moderately sized homes are found here. A large trailer park is also located in this area. This area is also somewhat commercial with a mixture of urban and suburban densities. Overall, infrastructure is good in the area. Some roads are still country type with a lack of hydrants. Multiple addresses off 192 Avenue, north of SE First Street are some distance from the nearest hydrant. This is also a problem north of 18th Street east of 172nd Ave. Organized neighborhood associations in the area are as follows: First Place Neighborhood Country Side Woods Neighborhood Burton/Evergreen Neighborhood Parkside Neighborhood Parkway East Neighborhood Burnt Bridge Creek Neighborhood Cimarron Neighborhood Pacific Park Firehouse opened on January 19, 2010. Service Delivery Factors Current Service Delivery Model: Pacific Park Firehouse is deployed in a similar manner as other firehouses in the X Fire Department: The firehouse is staffed by an engine company with a Captain, Paramedic, and a Firefighter. These firefighters rotate on a three shift system where each crew works a shift every third day. Nine total firefighters are assigned to the firehouse. The firehouse also is assigned a brush unit, which is not staffed. This apparatus responds with the engine company on grass and brush fires. The firehouse is located in a residential neighborhood with Pacific Park nearby. This area has a lot of foot traffic and the firehouse has been well received by citizens in the area. The small museum housing an antique fire engine has been a popular feature with walkers in the park. The firefighters strive to be good neighbors in the area. Current Demand/Trend: (call distribution/concentration, call volume by type, percentage of total station calls, percent of total VFD calls, calls per FF, FF per 1,000 population, calls per 1,000 population, 3 year trend) Engine 10 has been open for 18 shifts to this point. The average daily call load has been 5 per shift. A rough estimate of alarms for the year at this time is 1,825. This would put Station 10 at an estimate of 8% of the overall total alarms for the department based on 2009 response numbers. The vast majority of the alarms to this point have been medical in nature. Fire responses have been hindered due to the inability to tap out E10 on the CRESA response cards for fire alarms outside of the stations first due area. CERT Team: (distribution, concentration, activity level, coordinators, etc.) Fire Station 10 will actively seek out CERT members in our area to form a team of individuals who can assist the X Fire Department in an emergency incident, including non-emergent programs within Station 10’s area. Community Identified Concerns: (feedback from interest groups, focus groups, citizen steering committees, neighborhood/business associations or partnerships with schools due to no active neighborhood associations, whether fire-service related or not) Safety in Pacific Park Known drug activity Community Risk Priorities (Top five risks, numbered in rank order – should be a descriptive paragraph of the risk accompanying each risk) Response Guides—Currently, 25 commercial properties are without a Response Guide in Station 10’s area. Another group of schools have RG’s but are very outdated. Engine 10 must have reliable Response Guides to protect lives and property in our area. Area smoke alarm program—Once opened, Station 10 crews must identify high risk areas and target them with a station smoke detector program. No home in Station 10’s area will be without a working smoke detector. Updated information: The Great Western Mobile Home Park at 16812 SE 1st Street has been targeted for a smoke detector focus program. The managers of the park have been contacted and have approved Station 10 personnel to contact residents in the park to see if they have a working smoke detector. If they do not, we will install one for them. This program will begin in the Fall. Relationship with area schools—Working with the Evergreen School District with a focus of making safe schools through relationship building and planning for safe schools in Station 10’s area. A close relationship with each schools administration will assist in planning for drills and training for administration staff. Wild-land Urban Interface—Station 10 crews will identify areas in danger of the wild-land urban interface and notify homeowners in the area of ways to improve their properties from wildfire. Develop a response plan for injuries in the skate park next door to Fire Station 10—station crews must have a working plan for treating and extricating individuals injured in the skate park. An earlier injury that resulted in a fatality was viewed critically by some in the community. A plan will increase the capabilities of crews at Station 10 and result in a professional response to the park. Critical Partners/Stakeholders (External people connected to your community; i.e. community liaisons, neighborhood association liaisons, CERT team coordinators, business association liaisons, community activists, etc. who you could work with to identify and resolve problems) Unknown at this time Personnel Resource skills (Internal personnel who have skills that may be applied to boost your effort. For example, IT skills, organizational skills, leadership skills, public speaking skills, writing skills, etc.) Personnel List Position/Name Fire Medics: 487-7310 Station 10 Web page development & maintenance, including station Facebook page Fire Medics: 487-7310 Station 10 EMS equipment ordering and maintenance Firefighter: 487-7310 Station 10 Cleaning supplies ordering and maintenance Station Captain: 487-7270 Engine 10 Maintenance of equipment and appearance of apparatus Station Captain: 487-7270 Station 10 Maintenance of fire station and appearance Station Captain: & Fire Medics: 487-7310 Station 10 Response guide manager for area businesses Fire Medics: 487-7310 Station 10 grounds maintenance Station Captain: 487-7270 Station 10 Smoke Alarm program manager Captain: 487-7270 Building Maintenance schedule Captain: 487-7270 Station LEED coordinator Firefighter: 487-7310 Rig Check sheets, Gas Power tools, Chainsaw chain, Map Page updates Firefighter: 487-7310 Station tool room, Rig maintenance Captain: 487-7270 Station Disaster Plan organizer Fire Medics: 487-7310 School Liaison Problem Mitigation Strategies (List detailed strategies to address risks and concerns identified in “Community Risk” and “Community Identified Concerns” sections above) Response Guides—The second quarter of 2010 will be focused on the identification of buildings in station 10’s area that do not have response guides completed. Once identified, the RG coordinator will assign response guides to be completed on a monthly basis until completed. Resources Needed: The resource needed to complete this task is time. E10 crews will focus the afternoon scheduling around response guide completion. The amount of time spent on response guide activity will be based on call load and outside factors including training. Relationships with area schools—Station 10 crews will foster a relationship with area school administrations to enhance emergency response to these schools to protect our largest exposure target hazards. Resources Needed: This process has already begun with the teaching and training of area schools in triage and incident command basics by Captain xxxxxx. The next step is time spent by the remaining crews with these same administrations to build a relationship between all the crews and the schools we serve. Wildland Urban Interface—Station 10 crews must identify areas within the station boundaries that are threatened by wildland fires. Resources Needed: We will not re-invent the wheel here. The work of Captain xxxxxxx at Westside Firehouse will be used to face the same problem he experienced in Station 2’s area. Wildland fliers will be used within Station 10’s area to inform the public on wildland safety for their homes. Emergency Response Plan for Pacific Park Skate Park—Station 10 will partner with Station 6 to formulate a plan to handle injured persons at the skate park. Resources Needed: Time spent with Truck 6 to formulate the plan. The use of the gator apparatus for these rescues will be looked at. Smoke detector program—Station 10 will work with prevention on the implementation of a smoke detector program for Great Western Mobile Home Park. Resources Needed: This program will be handled by on duty crews, Deputy Fire Marshals, Community Emergency Response Team member and Combat Volunteers. Move from Strategy to Implementation Results (after implementation, what worked and what did not) What Doesn’t Work Station Goals: (set by Station Captain and clearly articulated to crews an all 3 shifts, aligned with vision) Communicate with the public in an effective manner. Through personal, technical, and written applications. Maintain the fire station through daily, weekly, and monthly cleaning of all areas. Maintain the fire engine through daily, weekly, and monthly cleaning of the apparatus. Develop and implement response guides, wildland urban interface, skate park emergency plans. Develop relationships with area schools. Shift Goals: (set by Shift Captain, aligned with station goals) A-Shift Goals Draft a station disaster plan including a windshield survey for the area. Participate in smoke detector installations at Great Western Mobile, RG development B-Shift Goals Participate in smoke alarm installations at Great Western Mobile, RG development Determine outside grounds maintenance needs and implement plan for grounds care. C-Shift Goals Design and implement smoke alarm program for Great Western Mobile. Coordinate station RG program. Include station budget here	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line365
__label__wiki	0.735208	0.735208	SilentComedyMafia.com © www.SilentComedyMafia.com Board index SOUND COMEDY MAIN RIP Bowery Boy Buddy Gorman This forum is nearly identical to the previous forum. The difference? Discussions about comedy from the SOUND era. Brent Walker Postby Brent Walker » Wed Apr 07, 2010 8:24 pm RIP Charles "Buddy" Gorman--last of the "major" Bowery Boys (i.e. who appeared in more than 2 or 3 films). He replaced Bennie Bartlett as Butch for seven films in 1950-51, having earlier been an Eastside Kid in 1943-1945 (Skinny, Stinkie, Shorty, Danny and Sammy), and a Bowery Boys supporting player (usually as copy boys and news boys) in 1946-1949). Charles J. Gorman Gorman, Charles J. "Buddy" Webster: Died peacefully Thursday, April 1, 2010 at the age of 88. He was born and raised in Manhattan, NY. After school, he moved to Hollywood to pursue his dream of acting. He acted in many movies and is best known for his role as "Butch" in "The Bowery Boys". He later moved to Riverside, CA where he owned/operated Fun-N-Stuff before retiring in 1991 and then moved to Webster to be near his daughter and granddaughters. Pre-deceased by his beloved wife of 46 years, Rosemary; daughter, Viki (John) Hanson; grandchildren, Katie, Lizzy, Matt and Mikey Hanson. He is survived by his daughter, Gretchen (Jim) Lyden; granddaughters, Anika and Carly Lyden. Special Thanks to everyone at Dr. Kartik Patel's office and Hildebrandt Hospice Care for their loving care. No prior visitation. Friends are invited to meet the family Sunday 3:00pm at Baywinde Senior Campus for a Memorial Gathering. Interment private in Riverside, CA. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to Hildebrandt Hospice Center, 2652 Ridgeway Ave., Rochester, NY 14626 or Baywinde Senior Campus, 200 Kidd Castle Way, Webster, NY 14580. PAUL W. HARRIS FUNERAL HOME 570 Kings Highway So. 544-2041 http://www.harrisfuneralhome.com Published in Rochester Democrat And Chronicle on April 7, 2010 http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/democratandchronicle/obituary.aspx?n=charles-j-gorman&pid=141563005 Return to “SOUND COMEDY MAIN” SCM 101 SILENT COMEDY MAIN SOUND COMEDY MAIN SILENT MOVIE MAIN SOUND MOVIE MAIN CLASSIC TELEVISION THE PASSING PARADE Books, DVDs, Broadcasts & Screenings SCM Downloads Sanctioned Links	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line370
__label__cc	0.527377	0.472623	the Zine Sonic Choir/ Sonic Cathedral’s Best Releases of 2011 Zine Sections Sonic Choir All Sonic Choir Articles Wait – it’s that time of year again? Yes, it is. 2011 has come and gone, and we at Sonic Cathedral are ready to pay tribute to our favorite albums of the past year! If you think about it, 2011 was a fantastic year for female-fronted rock and metal music. Two bands in particular made it so exciting. Dutch symphonic rockers Within Temptation released their concept album The Unforgiving as well as a coinciding comic book series that’s now distributed worldwide. The band also returned to North America for a brief yet triumphant tour (which Sonic Cathedral covered in September), and played night after night of sold-out shows across Europe. And, who can forget about Finnish symphonic metal giants Nightwish? Imaginaerum was by far the most anticipated album of its kind this year – and just weeks after its release, fans and critics still can’t stop talking about it. Did we mention that Imaginaerum the movie is scheduled to come out in 2012? That’s just the proverbial tip of the iceberg. 2011 also saw major releases by other popular bands such as Arch Enemy and Leaves’ Eyes, as well as the long-awaited comeback album by The Guano Apes. A number of up-and-coming bands (Autumn, Stream of Passion, Midnattsol, Omega Lithium, Coronatus, Nemesea – we’ll stop there!) also put out new albums. As for the debut albums, we’d need several pairs of hands to count how many excellent new bands burst onto the scene in 2011. Divine Ascension from Australia, Shield of Wings from the USA, Only Fate Remains from The Netherlands, Crysalys and Dama from Italy, Amaranthe from Sweden – again, we have to stop ourselves there so we don’t go on for too long! So, which albums topped our staff writers’ lists for 2011? Let’s say a few won’t surprise you – and a few others will. Let’s start off with… Allyson Kenning’s Top 10 of 2011 1. Nightwish – Imaginaerum 2. Dama – Eirwen Imaginary / Immaginario 3. Crysalys – The Awakening of Gaia 4. Within Temptation – The Unforgiving 5. Leaves' Eyes – Meredead 6. Arkona – Slovo 7. Coronatus – Terra Incognita 8. Crimfall – The Writ of Sword 9. Sarah Jezebel Deva – The Corruption of Mercy 10. Midnattsol – The Metamorphosis Melody Max Levites’ Top 10 of 2011 5. Silent Stream of Godless Elegy – Navaz 6. Amaranthe – Amaranthe 7. Stream of Passion – Darker Days 8. Echoterra – Land of the Midnight Sun 9. Omega Lithium – Kinetik 10. Noctura – Surrender the Sun Sara Letourneau’s Top 10 of 2011 2. Divine Ascension – As The Truth Appears 3. Autumn – Cold Comfort 4. Intemperia – The Mothman Prophecies 6. EarlyRise – What If 7. Evanescence – Evanescence 8. Losing Scarlet – Learning to Bleed 9. Ultimate Fate – Beyond the Horizon EP 10. Stream of Passion – Darker Days Justin Boyer’s Top 10 of 2011 3. Onmyo-za – Kishi-Bojin 5. The SLoT – Break the Code 8. Silent Opera – Immortal Beauty 10. Leaves Eyes – Meredead Doctor T’s Top 10 of 2011 1. Niobeth - Silvery Moonbeams 2. Meden Agan – Erevos Aenaon 3. Sacramento – Weight of Sin 4. The Rain I Bleed – Narcissist 5. Scandelion – The Garden of Lies 6. Opus Doria – Infraworld 7. Cassandra Syndrome – Satire X 8. Factory of Dreams – Melotronical 9. Only Fate Remains – Breathe 10. Intemperia – The Mothman Prophecies Robin Stryker’s Top 10 of 2011 1. Shield of Wings – Solarium 2. Noctura – Surrender The Sun 5. Leaves’ Eyes – Meredead 7. Bare Infinity – The Passage EP 8. Ancient Bards – Soulless Child 9. My Ruin – A Southern Revelation 10. Nemesea – The Quiet Resistance Frozen Angel’s Top 10 of 2011 2. Draconian – A Rose for the Apocalypse 10. Within Temptation – The Unforgiving 2011 Bestsellers at the Sonic Cathedral Store As you may know, Sonic Cathedral isn’t just a webzine. We have an online store that carries over 1300 different titles in female-fronted music. Here are the five best-selling 2011 releases at the store this past year. 1 - Guano Apes - Bel Air 2 - Clandestine - The Invalid 3 - Silent Stream of Godless Elegy - Navaz 4 - Echoterra - Land of the Midnight Sun 5 - A New Dawn - 7 Faces of Truth Bands To Watch For In 2012 Everyone has high hopes for some of the scene’s brightest up-and-coming bands. Our staff writers now make their recommendations for bands you ought to keep your eyes – and ears – open for in 2012. Robin: Seduce The Heaven - “What do you get when you combine elements of power metal, symphonic metal, melodic death metal, and metalcore with clean female vocals and male growling? The outcome is either a gruesome auditory train wreck or a diamond-hard alloy. Greek newcomers Seduce The Heaven accomplished the latter handily with their five-track promo CD, and have the potential to make an indelible mark on the metal scene in 2012 with their debut album, Field of Dreams.” Doctor T: Seduce The Heaven - “Well, I hate to play second fiddle to Robin, but I think I found them first. Either way you get it all here, first rate metal, vocals that can’t be beat, production that is right on track. And, it sounds like a lot of European musicians think so too. We have a 19 year old vocalist who ties it all together, and this could be a long, long run. Their debut full CD should be a killer.” Sara: The Mariana Hollow - “This might not be a surprise. I adored Coma Heart, the debut album by this alt-prog metal band from the United Kingdom. However, after getting a “sneak peek” of their upcoming second album, Velvet Black Sky, I have a feeling the band has prepared something even more special. Be ready for a grittier, darker, and more intense record teeming with Spinky’s impassioned vocals and twin guitars chiseling some fantastic soundscapes! My review of Velvet Black Sky should be online come late January or early February.” Max: Shield of Wings - “Probably my top discovery of the year, this band definitely has the potential to join the ranks of the US's top symphonic metal bands (even though there aren't too many of them to begin with). All they need is a little polish and more material, which I hope will come soon!” Allyson: Crysalys - “The band I think people need to watch out for in 2012 is Crysalys, who this year released their debut, The Awakening of Gaia. Packing a huge sound punch and headed by a powerful operatic vocalist, Chiara Malvestiti, Crysalys is a hard-working band creating a presence for itself on the internet and gaining a lot of worldwide attention. With this strong, mature release, the world is Crysalys’s oyster!” Justin: Stream of Passion - “With every subsequent album, this band seems to be making a marked improvement with their sound. Their recent album, Darker Days, was filled with songs that had meaningful lyrics and a rich symphonic sound that was truly unique against a background of so many bands that have a generic sound. Hopefully, they’ll continue to improve, and gain more fans because they definitely deserve more recognition for their talent.” Frozen Angel: Skeptical Minds - “Skeptical Minds were extremely busy during 2011. They released their new album Skepticalized, their first studio album with Karolina Pacan on vocals. Also, the band fed our appetite by the release of their first DVD, which was filmed at MFVF 2011, along with their first comic book (illustrated by Alain Poncelet). What else could a “Skeptical” fan ask for? It’s doubtless, Karolina brought some “fresh air” with her arrival in the band. The only thing I have to say is: Go, Spartans, go!” And that’s our look back on 2011 as well as a forward glance at this year. We hope you’re as excited about 2012 as we are! In fact, we’d love to hear what about your favorite 2011 albums as well as your most anticipated 2012 releases. Let us know by posting on our Facebook page – we’d love to hear from you! As always, we welcome any ideas our readers may have for the Sonic Choir section of the Zine. You can send your suggestions to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or post them on Facebook. Copyright © Sonic CathedralDesigned by olwebdesign	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line373
__label__cc	0.646184	0.353816	Sotto Voce. "Qui plume a, guerre a." — Voltaire Typing Assignment #2: Why Typewriters? July 1, 2017 Here’s my homework for Typing Assignment #2, in which Joe asks participants to “write a one-page essay on what you find unique and/or valuable about using typewriters as writing tools.” I wrote mine on my ca. 1937 L.C. Smith & Corona Standard, one of my favorite machines for long-form writing because, like all Smith Coronas, it feels like it’s designed particularly for writers. Categorised as: Typecasting Comments are disabled on this post « Typing Assignment #1 Did Steven Moffat Just Pull off a Two-Decade-Long Prank? » Richard P says: Nicely stated! About Sotto Voce. Meet the SV Typecasters “Mr. Monk and the Alphabet Murder” Government Transparency is Clouding Over Pay At The Pump Star Trek Films: The Good, The Bad, and The Sublimely Ridiculous Ritual and Relationship Cognicentrism Organizations, Authority, and Compassion Received Wisdom The Casio F-28W Corner Categories Select Category Channel 37 Drorings Fountain Pens Life the Universe and Everything Papercasting Photography Podblogging The Kids Today The Terror from the Other Dimension! Typecasting Website News Wred Archives Select Month November 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 October 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 May 2016 November 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 November 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 January 2013 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 December 2011 October 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 January 2010 December 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 November 2007 October 2007 September 2007 July 2007 June 2007 April 2007 February 2007 January 2007 December 2006 November 2006 October 2006 September 2006 August 2006 July 2006 June 2006 May 2006 April 2006 March 2006 February 2006 January 2006 December 2005 November 2005 October 2005 September 2005 August 2005 July 2005 June 2005 May 2005 April 2005 March 2005 November 2004 October 2004 September 2004 July 2004 June 2004 May 2004 March 2004 January 2004 Join the Paper Revolution! A Machine for the End of the World Backdate (in perpetuam rei memoriam) clickthing Collapsing World Desert Loon Dirk van Weelden Eclectic Ephemera Fresh Ribbon Joe Van Cleave's Blog Living in the Woods Papercasting 2.0 Strikethru Swinging Typebars The Classic Typewriter Page The Mad Farmer Liberation Front To Type, Shoot Straight, and Speak the Truth Typed on Paper WriteElelphant Writing Ball written into a corner © 2020 Sotto Voce. \| powered by WordPress	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line374
__label__wiki	0.997288	0.997288	ATP WTA Imperious Djokovic wins 5th Paris Masters and 77th title Tennis Headlines Nadal upset by Thiem in Aussie quarters Zverev beats Wawrinka for 1st Slam semi Halep, Muguruza to meet in Aussie semis Federer rallies, tops Sandgren in 5 sets Djokovic beats Raonic, gets Federer next No. 1 Barty, Kenin on to Aussie semis Navratilova: I'm sorry I broke protocol (AP Photo/Michel Euler) By JEROME PUGMIRE PARIS (AP) Novak Djokovic looked imperious in beating an overawed Denis Shapovalov 6-3, 6-4 Sunday to win his fifth Paris Masters final, clinching a 34th overall Masters title in fine style to move one behind record holder Rafael Nadal. At 32 years old, Djokovic has already won 77 titles in a stellar career and fully intends to add many more. "I don't take them for granted like it's something normal or usual or common. I've been blessed to win so many big titles in my life," he said. "That's one of the biggest reasons why I'm still playing professional tennis, to fight for these big trophies and to still be able to play the highest level." Shapovalov was mostly outclassed, even though he was physically fresh having avoided a potentially grueling semifinal because the second-ranked Nadal pulled out beforehand with an abdominal strain. Still, the odds were heavily stacked against the 20-year-old Canadian, who was appearing in his first Masters final. "I put him under pressure for the second serve and from the back of the court I was solid, not giving him too many opportunities," said Djokovic, who felt unwell with a sore throat earlier in the week. "I feel like the second part of the week was terrific, it was improving day by day in terms of my level." Djokovic never appeared troubled on his way to a fifth ATP title this year - level best with Dominic Thiem. He served out the match with a love hold, hitting a forehand winner before turning to look at his box and raising his arms in triumph. "It was my best serving performance of the tournament," Djokovic said. "Denis maybe lost his focus a bit." Shapovalov entered the match with only one career title - a modest ATP 250-level tournament in Stockholm last month - and having lost his three previous encounters against a 16-time Grand Slam winner considered among the all-time greats of tennis. The big-serving left hander looked tense, making three unforced errors in his first service game and slipping quickly to 3-0 down against a composed Djokovic playing in his 50th Masters final and 111th overall. After botching a return on Djokovic's opening serve of the seventh game he whacked his racket into the ground in frustration. Dropping only four points on his serve in the first set, Djokovic clinched it with another dominant serving game which included two aces and concluded with a volleyed winner at the net. "It was tough for me to find a groove just because he was really picking his spots on the serve," Shapovalov said. "He just places it well, it's tough to read." As Shapovalov's unforced errors resurfaced in the seventh game, Djokovic broke him again for a 4-3 lead. Djokovic saved his first break point of the match at 30-40 in the next game when Shapovalov returned a sliced serve well wide. With that, the briefest glimmer of hope was gone. "I'm sure the best things are yet to come for you," Djokovic said to Shapovalov during the trophy ceremony. Kind words, yet the gap to Djokovic's level remains huge. "It's great to hear that, but I still have a long way to go," Shapovalov said. "I want to be beating guys like Novak so I have to improve, find a way to return better." Djokovic has won every final he's played at Bercy Arena except for last year's against Karen Khachanov, which came after a three-hour semifinal slugfest against 20-time Grand Slam champion Roger Federer. This year, Djokovic did not drop a set and heads to the upcoming ATP Finals in London looking to secure the year-ending No. 1 ranking for a sixth time. That would move him two ahead of Nadal, one ahead of Federer and Jimmy Connors, and into a tie with record-holder Pete Sampras. Nadal is also in strong contention to finish the year as No. 1 but it remains uncertain whether the Spaniard can play at the ATP Finals, which start Nov. 10. "I'm sad to see that he's injured because that's not what you want to see. I know how that feels," said Djokovic, who struggled nearly two years with an elbow injury. "Historically he's had several injuries at the last part of the season, so I hope he can recover. Because without him, obviously the battle for No. 1, but also the tournament itself, is different." More AP Tennis: https://www.apnews.com/apf-Tennis and https://twitter.com/AP-Sports	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line375
__label__cc	0.748686	0.251314	With NorthSide Project, the Villain is the Process What a circus the NorthSide development has been as of late. Talks of McKee's holdings in NorthPark facing foreclosure. A near meltdown by McKee himself over blogger Doug Duckworth's videotaping of a public meeting. Reports on Claire Nowak-Boyd's blog that McKee has indeed been empyting out North Side buildings and buying out landlords (only to later reneg and force them into foreclosure while also threatening the future of the buildings themselves). Oh yeah, and that whole bit about the city having to back its largest TIF request ever. Of all the things that could be said, I would like to highlight one. McKee, a private developer making this huge TIF request and subjecting the Near North Side to further degradation, can certainly be accused of wrong-doing. The jury has sort of already delivered that verdict. The real enemy here, at least looking at the breaches against historic preservation and urbanist principles, is twofold: A) we don't have a coherent plan to guide urban development throughout the city B) we don't have meaningful ways for citizens to influence the decision-making process. Therefore, I would argue, it's the process, and not Paul McKee, Jr., who's really to blame here. That is a half-hearted indictment of the leadership of the North Side and the city as a whole coming from me. But a lot of the problems, of course, are due to an anemic, visionless, and bureaucratic leadership rather than one outright malevolent. So this process? Well, you might hate that the San Luis is getting torn down for a surface parking lot; you might detest that Crown Plaza just north of downtown is your run-of-the-mill strip suburban center; you may loathe Loughborough Commons for its lack of a pedestrian realm; and indeed, you may despise McKee for trashing several sensitive, historic neighborhoods. Yet our zoning allows all of the above. Our Preservation Board, and moreover the process of preservation in the city, is beyond circuitous. The process can only be described as so ridden with holes that it would puzzle a preservation expert much less a mildly interested plainclothes citizen. At any rate, a citizen's right to contest Preservation Board decisions has been taken off the table by Judge Dierker in the case Friends of the San Luis v. St. Louis Archdiocese. (Well, if you're a next door neighbor or have direct economic interest, then you're fine to contest...). And what about planning? Does our city do it? We have a Planning and Urban Design Agency, but they're largely advisory. So the Strategic Land Use Plan of 2004 developed by then lead planner Rollin Stanley goes largely ignored because there was never any legislation to enforce it. So, the Building Division continues to issue demolition permit after demolition permit in neighborhoods deemed "Neighborhood Preservation Areas" by that same Land Use plan. Much of the North Side isn't under "Preservation Review" and isn't in a local or National Register historic district either, so the demolitions simply go unreviewed. If the vacant lot ever attracts the attention of someone willing to build something--unless they're going to receive tax abatement status for the property--they're not subjected to any sort of urban design standards. So we get more suburban-style commercial and residential buildings where they really just don't seem to fit. Try to contest any aspect of any of this. What department do you start with? Who do you complain to? Will you even hear a response? Won't your alderman have the ultimate say in almost all matters anyway? It seems so. So, if you want to be an activist for your own neighborhood, you better develop a friendly relationship with your local alderman. Better yet, run for the position. Because if that alderman already has enough friends that don't think like you do with regard to urban design and preservation, then you'd better rest assured none of the other alderman are going to throw a wrench in his plans (thank you, aldermanic courtesy!). It's as good as a done deal. So when the redevelopment agreement goes before the Board of Alderman, as it must in order to pass and become a reality, we have no assurance that any aldermen outside of the 5th and 19th Wards, primarily, will truly have a say. Citizens of the North Side should not have had to fight to hold the TIF hearing at a time more amenable to public participation. And what's this about the removal of a NorthSide project naysaying commissioner from the TIF commission? That doesn't sound like a democratic process to me. If St. Louisans' ability to access their government and the decision-making process were simpler, more straigtforward, and less politicized, our built environment's present state might not be so piecemeal. We have to remember that the biggest problem with the NorthSide project is that, when or if this TIF is approved, the city has no planners to assist McKee on appropriate urban design, and indeed, no means to demand it from him. There's no progressive zoning ordinance to rely on. The project area's not under Preservation Review and is not "officially" historic (it's neither in a local nor National Register district), so ultimately residents will have no say over which buildings stay or go. So, if we're looking at the possibility of a suburban developer attempting to wave a magic wand over the North Side, and we have no means of either stopping what he takes from the built environment or influencing what he puts in, is it his fault? Or is it a horrible broken process that denies citizens due influence over the outcomes of major decisions affecting the built environment? While Paul McKee's conduct thus far with the North Side has been highly questionable, this seems like an appropriate time for citizens to demand more power and control of the shaping of their city. Labels: Blairmont, city government, North City, NorthSide Regeneration stlouismb said... thanks for an evenhanded commentary. emotions are high as the TIF hearing is tomorrow. Fear is replacing information. However, I say:"good luck" to anyone trying to unseat one of the alderpersons in question. true dat john w. said... When hasn't the time been appropriate to demand more from our elected leaders regarding urban planning decisions and inaction? Final September Preservation Board Agenda Now Onli... Frenchtown, Pre-Clearance (1953) With NorthSide Project, the Villain is the Process... Forest Park's Biggest Flaw - Now Never to Be Corre... September Preservation Board Agenda Includes Some ... The Battle of St. Louis: Fighting Our City's Infer... I Will Stay If... Then and Now: Lafayette Square Yet Another Neighborhood Celebration - Vegtabalooz... Amazing St. Louis Neighborhood Photography St. Louis Hills Street Art Fall Festivals Show Neighborhoods on the Rise Lafayette Square Gets Its Second Coffee Shop United States Postal Service To Close 9 St. Louis ... City Population Increases/Decreases by ZIP Code	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line378
__label__wiki	0.658108	0.658108	Meet the Slate! These 22 lawyers ran on a platform to eliminate the compelled Statement of Principles, known as StopSOP. They were elected with top votes from across the province and will serve the profession as benchers until 2023. Their campaign was organized and led by the StopSOP Team, which included these non-bencher lawyers and paralegals and many others who helped in various capacities: Lisa Bildy Bruce Pardy Michael Menear Donald Kilpatrick Bilal Bhatti Sadie Etemad Ian Wilkinson Graham Stephenson LL.P. After nearly 3 decades in big law and big business I have chosen to practice in my home community, providing strategic corporate/commercial advice out of a two-partner law office in Burlington. Some ideas I will bring to the role of bencher follow. 1. Use new technology to multiply the number of articling jobs In the building in which I practice, there are 3 law offices. Our practices are distinct: intellectual property, family law and corporate/commercial. None of these is large enough to afford an articling student. But the LSO could enable the three firms in the building to share one on a mutually beneficial and rotational basis, by using a web-based facility or app that would track the student’s assignments and time, among other things. It would not need to be a big software development project; indeed, I am surprised this has not been developed yet. 2. Statement of Principles When I first heard about the mandated Statement of Principles, I was bewildered; how could a group of lawyers-- who must understand inalienable rights such as freedom of speech, and its corollaries freedom from compelled speech and thought-- arrive at a conclusion that they could take away our licenses to practice, if we did not say that we believe what they believe. Where did they think they got the right to do that? The law can tell me what not to do. No one should be allowed to type thoughts into my head. We need to ‘stand up for freedom as in the olden times’. 3. Do we need to have the best wine cellar, 615 employees and run an insurance operation that perhaps could be outsourced? There certainly appears to be an empire-building element to the operations of the Law Society. Organizations that have de facto taxing power, when left unmanaged, will grow. Mission creep is like a law of organizational physics. From the limited public information, it appears we are supporting an organization that employs 615 employees. Headcount is a useful metric to track, and we should expect the Benchers to be doing that. Award-winning Business Law lawyer with Executive Management experience Partner Graham Stephenson 2018 to present Senior Partner at Gowling WLG 1995-2018 President Westinghouse Canada 1991-1995 General Counsel Westinghouse Canada 1983-1991 2015 Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal recipient for service to industry 2011 Distinguished Hamilton Citizen of the Year Sir James Dunn Scholar 1982 Called to the Ontario Bar 1980 LL.B. Osgoode	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line380
__label__cc	0.538356	0.461644	The Saudi Arabia is a Backwards, Laughable Shithole Thread By Collimatrix, October 26, 2015 in Open Discussion Allies lest someone worse win xthetenth 257 don't do x, kids Pretty much any ideology capable of forming the core of a decently functioning state (and a bunch that aren't) around has gotten absolutely dismantled over the past century. When you start wistfully thinking about what could've been under Gamal Nasser of all people, it's time to drink heavily and find a new region with a less painful history to study, like maybe the Balkans or the Indian Subcontinent. Vasily Krysov, T___A and Belesarius reacted to this Iran is approximately 1000x better than Saudi Arabia. Which in turn is, what, 1.5x less awful than ISIS? Yeah, let the Iranians have the run of the place. Edit - also, if I could give the US any piece of advice in choosing it's friends, it would be this: either don't, or try to choose the least stomach-churningly corrupt monsters rather than however you do it now. Generally; if you describe the actions of your 'ally' to a random citizen and they cannot tell that they are not, in fact, the enemy then you are doing something seriously wrong. Belesarius and Jeeps_Guns_Tanks reacted to this Yeah, this. Between Saudi Arabia and Israel I begin to wonder if US foreign policy is, in fact, dictated by the world's strangest masochist. You'd have to talk to a U.S. politician to get it. The concept of long term repercussions do not exist for them, since most are thinking in time blocks based around their re-election campaigns, and are concerned with little else other than getting re-elected.. Tied 1,332 mahaaaahhhhh the frensh LocationStavropol, Russian Federation Thems fighting words. Nasser was a great man This doesn't explain support for Saudi Arabia though. I mean, everyone loathes them but they keep getting the kid glove treatment year after year. Politicians who were hypersensitive to election cycles would be a better option here - as they would have listened to the electorate and cut ties years ago. My feeling is that it's something more like bureaucratic addiction - the politicos have been sucking up to these guys for so long that they can't kick the habit even when it would obviously be in their own interests to do so. Mohamed A 64 LocationGizah/Haram, Egypt I don't know. Looking at the initial photo graph that Colli posted, I'd wager much of the Islamic world is a backwards, laughable shithole. Hey. Shh. LoooSeR 6,242 Putin's Alt Account LocationSaint-Petersburg, Russian Federation Saudis basically payed bribes to US politicians in form of military contracts. Until recently. I think there's a pretty easy explanation for Saudi Arabian exceptionalism: It's easy to say "Saudi Arabia has a lot of oil," but not see just how much goddamn oil they have. Belesarius and Mohamed A reacted to this No. You support the Houthis to create Houthi Arabia. And have the country run by the 10-15% Shiite minority, who would be forever dependent upon you to provide them with weapons so the rest of the populace never rose up and killed them all? That's right out of the British Empire playbook. RobotMinisterofTrueKorea and T___A reacted to this https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/rankorder/2244rank.html And yet Venezuela gets the stick instead of the carrot. Edit - used the original source. Venezuela isn't behaving at the moment, while Saudi Arabia is. I mean, sure, the Saudis are poor benighted heathens, but they're first class oil exporters. As soon as Venezuela proves to be as cooperative, I'm sure the US will happily be complicit in whatever atrocities they have in mind. Jeeps_Guns_Tanks reacted to this I think we sgould take vanuzela under our wing again. Its been awhile since the US had a real competitor in the region I dunno. If you look at the top 10, none of them besides the Saudis get the same kind of fawning treatment. My personal suspicion is that, just like the Brits, the American upper crust only develops a really personal affection for people who are spectacularly scum-tastic, but in a particular kind of way that speaks to them on some level. The brits, of course, gave their support pretty much entirely to people who were corrupt as fuck, had really sick sexual mores and loved horses. In pretty much that order. This leads to the depressing thought that the US leadership caste can only really admire people who are seriously into crony faux-capitalism, monarchy, suppressing workers and bizarre executions. From here I suspect that North Korea is being kept around principally as secret fap material. Jeeps_Guns_Tanks and Mohamed A reacted to this Walter_Sobchak 2,905 I think it has something to do with making sure that Saudi Arabia continues to support the "petrodollar" rather than shift to some other currency. Well, this might be one of the main reasons, as US need to support currency with real and valuable basic product, like energy. From here I suspect that North Korea is being kept around principally as secret fap material. North Korea is OUR fap material god dammit (atleast the one in the middle) America's fap material is closer to Sweden (for Liberals) or maybe Russia (for conservatives) CrashbotUS 228 Potato Addict LocationGlorious Peoples Republic of Texas Americans fap to food. I also couldn't find my booklet but imagine something you'd do as a normal well adjusted member of a civil society? That was illegal. Mabye Texans do, but some of those lib-wristed faggots up north with their organic farmers tofu markets are an embarrasment to the land of the whopper and the home of the waffle sandwhich Best rationale other than raw resources I've heard is Norman Friedman mentioning they have two of the best ports in the region, and can serve as a sort of linchpin for power projection. And the United Arab Republic was an utter shitshow that was the death knell of pan-Arab nationalism as a possible unifying strain in regional identity politics. Honestly though I think the biggest problem was the utterly awful crack Egypt took at making the Franco-Prussian war happen again. Comedy option: Lebanese style confessionalism. No, I assure you, the demographics are similar to when the census was taken. Conservatives realizing Putin is a total dreamboat will never stop being funny to me, but I don't think you realize how much the US loves it some underfed women. Alex C. 590 LocationTexas I mean, this might have something to do with it: Wow the Ruble's fallen off hard since 2013. Also yes, Russia's economy was preposterously depressed after the looting that was Russia's welcome to glorious capitalism (blanket) party. SergeantMatt reacted to this Indeed. Also, lets not forget the man's incredibly admirable net worth of $70 billion (alleged to be as much as $200 billion). So I mean, yeah, thats pretty impressive. T___A 969 Valued Shitpoaster If that $200 billion is true that's pretty impressive given Tsar Nicholas II only had $300 billion. Hi, I'm MrCatKK and I cannot Post By MrCatKK Nice meme, why destroy someone's feeling? Why do you even start flame war to ruin the already bad Japanese tech tree? Why don't you sign up a partnership program with Gaijin? She is trying her very best supporting the few of us playing Japanese tank tech tree? I don't care if she made Ho-Ri up or not, none of us want to care about this. We want something good as Russian tanks in War Thunder, and the answer is the Ho-Ri production. If you say that you have 100 picture of Ho-Ri or 5 video of it, that will be very convincing. But the reality is that your just another Chinese that want to rost Koreans. Sadly you and your Hon Kong are just same person that sits in front of your computer 24/7 without any research on Japanese tank. Also if you dare changing our beloved Ho-Ri's slope front armor into flat. EVERYONE in the Japanese tech tree will bloody murder you when you sleep. Chinese's best skill: Shit all over someone's thing then copy it https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/specials/technophile/warning-buying-chinese-fake-iphones-is-a-bad-idea/article22681547.ece https://qz.com/1131079/chinese-copycats-of-video-game-playerunknowns-battlegrounds-pubg-adopted-xi-jinpings-core-socialist-values/ https://www.cnbc.com/2017/06/13/china-copycat-tech-image-is-fading-and-that-should-worry-us-giants.html Saudi Arabia: MOAR AMMO PLZ! By Belesarius http://www.janes.com/article/53364/saudi-arabia-requests-usd500-million-ammo-replenishment Half a billion is a lot of ammo. 2 Killed in Saudi Apache crash. http://in.reuters.com/article/2015/08/21/pilot-killed-border-idINKCN0QQ2A320150821 Houthi's are claiming that they shot it down. Saudi Arabia to begin operations in Yemen By Priory_of_Sion (Washington, DC) -- Today, the Saudi Ambassador to the United States Adel bin Ahmed Al-Jubeir hosted a press conference at the Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia and issued the following statement: “Saudi Arabia has launched military operations in Yemen, as part of a coalition of over ten countries in response to a direct request from the legitimate government of Yemen. The operation will be limited in nature, and designed to protect the people of Yemen and its legitimate government from a takeover by the Houthis. A violent extremist militia. The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries tried to facilitate a peaceful transition of government in Yemen, but the Houthis have continuously undercut the process by occupying territory and seizing weapons belonging to the government. In spite of repeated efforts by the GCC, G10 countries and the Special Representative of the U.N. Secretary General to seek a peaceful way to implement the GCC initiatives and the outcomes of the national dialogue that define the political transition in Yemen, the Houthis have reneged on every single agreement they have made and continue their quest to take over the country by violent means. They captured the capital city of Sana’a, they placed the legitimate president, prime minister and cabinet members under house arrest, they seized the security services and they continue to expand their occupation of the country.” “In a letter dated March 7, 2015, President Hadi of Yemen made a request of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz to convene a conference under the auspices of the GCC to which all Yemeni political factions seeking to preserve security and stability in Yemen would be invited. The Houthis rejected this invitation and continued their violent onslaught in Yemen to the point where they were threatening to occupy the city of Aden, which had become the temporary capital for the legitimate government of President Hadi after he was able to escape from Sana’a. In a letter, dated March 24, 2015, President Hadi requested, based on the principle of self-defense, enshrined in Article 51 of the U.N. Charter, as well as in the Arab League charter’s collective defense mechanism, a request for immediate support – by all means necessary – including military intervention to protect Yemen and its people from the continued Houthi aggression and to support it in fighting al Qaeda and ISIL.” “Based on the appeal from President Hadi, and based on the Kingdom’s responsibility to Yemen and its people, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, along with its allies within the GCC and outside the GCC, launched military operations in support of the people of Yemen and their legitimate government.” “May God Almighty protect the brave soldiers and may He grant them success in their noble mission.”	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line381
__label__wiki	0.544141	0.544141	Sudha Menon Leading Ladies Devi, Diva or She Devil Creative Writing Consultation Communications Workshop and Consultation Manuscript Consultation Speaking Assignment Leading Ladies:Women Who Inspire India (Fortytwo Bookz Galaxy, 2010) Leading Ladies chronicles the journeys of some of India’s most admired and accomplished women from different walks of life. As a young woman trying to straddle my different roles as mother, daughter, wife and ournalist, I often wondered about the X-factor that successful women had, that gave them the courage and the conviction to single-mindedly follow their dreams. I wanted to tell their stories to the world. My debut book was long-listed for the Crossword book awards in the Non-fiction category and it is a matter of pride that six years after it was launched, it continues to garner praise and catch the imagination of the readers. Leading Ladies has been translated in Marathi language. Legacy: Letters from eminent parents to their daughters (Random House India, 2013) Legacy is a rare collection of personal and evocative letters from parents to their daughters. Through these intensely personal and yet universal letters, icons from the world of business, arts, films, food, and sports including Infosys founder N. R, Narayana Murthy, ICICI Bank MD & CEO Chanda Kochhar, Corporate Lawyer Zia Mody, Banker K.V. Kamath, Industrialist Ajay Piramal, Teach For India Founder Shaheen Mistri, Dancer and Activist Mallika Sarabhai, Artist Jatin Das, and former All-England Badminton champion Prakash Padukone tell their daughters what they think are the really important things in life. They talk about their fearless approach to life, love, and overcoming obstacles, share with us their experiences and urge their daughters to chart out their own journeys with the same values. Deeply moving and thought provoking, Legacy is a remarkable collection of life lessons that will delight and inspire at the same time. Legacy has been translated into Marathi and Hindi languages. Gifted: Inspiring Stories of People with Disabilities Gifted is an inspirational collection of stories from the lives of differently-abled people who have braved insurmountable challenges and achieved their goals, becoming a beacon of hope to the people around them. While the rest of the world has taken great strides in mainstreaming the differently-abled into the larger contours of their society, life continues to be an uphill struggle for the people with disability in India. They continue to be burdened with their handicapped status and live a life on the fringes, largely forgotten by a society which is galloping ahead at a fast pace. Born different from the rest of us, they have been put in a position of disadvantage in a world where being normal is at such a premium. The book has been written in collaboration with V. R. Ferose, Senior Vice President and Head of Globalization Services at SAP SE. Gifted is translated into Kannada and Marathi languages. Devi, Diva or She-Devil: The Smart Career Woman’s Survival Guide (Penguin Random House India, 2017) Devi, Diva or She Devil is a treasure trove of survival tips for career women, straight from the mouths of some of India's smartest women. With insights from successful women including film director Farah Khan, food writer and entrepreneur Karen Anand, actor Lillette Dubey, Olympian boxer M.C. Mary Kom, India's first female sports journalist Sharda Ugra, corporate head honchos Devita Saraf, Nisaba Godrej, Aruna Jayanthi, Manisha Girotra, Mallika Srinivasan and Pankajam Sridevi, casting director Shanoo Sharma among others. This book could well be every woman's best friend, the little black book of secret mantras to take on every challenge and lead a fulfilled, happy life. sudhamenon2006@gmail.com Sudha Menon \| 2016	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line393
__label__wiki	0.65766	0.65766	Suzanna Williams Ninetyfive percent Human Series Ninetyfive percent Human Home ShockWaves Chapters 1 and 2 ShockWaves Chapters 1 and 2 He’s closing on the car in front; his foot is pressed hard on the accelerator. He’s near enough to see the BMW badge on its boot, for its tail lights to turn the inside of his car a glowing red. He sees the eyes of the driver in the rear view mirror, wide, surprised, confused. He’s thought about those eyes every day for the past thirteen years, waiting for this moment. He blasts the horn, flashes the headlights, grins. Might as well play a little; stretch out the fun. “Not so sure of yourself now are you, Mr Grass-on-your-own-Grandmother-because-it’s-your-Public-Duty?” he mocks. His voice is harsh and triumphant. They’re nearing the river. The engine roars as he pulls out to overtake. He’s chosen this car well, enjoys its power. Its owner will be angry when he returns to the car park and finds it gone. As he pulls alongside, he grits his teeth, takes a grip of the wheel and swings it hard towards the BMW. Lee’s head smashed sideways into the car window. The sound of twisting, tearing metal screamed in his ears as the bumper of the red car beside them tore into the driver’s door. A red car? But he was sitting in the living room watching the football match. He squeezed his eyes shut. The image remained. Windscreen wipers clunked rhythmically revealing a narrow country lane, shiny and black from the February rain. Screams echoed in his ears. He opened his eyes. It made no difference. The football match had disappeared. “John! The car!” “I can bloody see it, Sylvia.” Again the red car veered crazily towards them. Strapped in the back seat of the car, Lee glimpsed the silhouette of the driver, baseball cap, cigarette glowing, then the two cars connected with a violent jolt. More screaming, louder, desperate. “What’s he doing? Why doesn’t he pass?” The driver braked hard and steered away from the collision but the tyres broke away, taking their own direction, shrieking like souls in hell. A hedge loomed in front. Where was this? Who were these people? What on earth was happening? Lee’s heart pounded, sending blood racing round his body in shuddering waves. Branches clawed at the car but failed to catch them. They burst through the shrubbery and careered down a steep embankment. The car bounced over the rough ground, shaking him so violently he felt his brain might splatter inside his skull. “The river!” yelled the woman. The man yanked on the steering wheel. “The tree!” she howled. The seatbelt grabbed him, forcing the air out of his lungs in a single gasp. The sound of bending metal and splintering glass filled the night as the car rammed into the trunk of a huge oak tree. The windscreen disappeared. The roof buckled, the bonnet crushed, the door twisted. Finally, the airbags detonated; two deafening explosions ripping through the darkness leaving wisps of white powder winding upwards into the frosty air. The smell of burning rubber from the tyres mixed with hot oil in a toxic cocktail as the engine ruptured and bled into the night. The windscreen wipers twitched on the dashboard until, in a spray of electric sparks, they too became still. Only the slight hiss of steam escaping from the fractured radiator broke the silence. “Mum … Dad,” said a trembling voice. The impact had crushed the car roof in such a way that the driver’s mirror pointed straight at Lee, but instead of his own reflection, he saw the face of a girl, her dark eyes wide and frightened. Her scream pierced his ears, reverberating around his head. The face of his foster mother replaced the girl’s terrified eyes. “You must’ve been dreaming,” Joan said. “You were sort of twitching and breathing funny.” “Yeah?” Lee rubbed his eyes, trying to shake the images of the car crash from his mind. “You had me going there for a minute,” added Derek. “Thought you were having a heart attack.” “Err … no …” Joan returned to her armchair, plumping up the faded floral cushions before sitting down. “How’s that girlfriend of yours?” she asked. “I’ve not seen her for a few days.” “Ex-girlfriend,” said Lee. “Oh.” Joan looked like she was hoping for details but thankfully she didn’t push for them. ‘Not wanting to get serious’ had seemed like a lame explanation even as he’d said it and Kirsty had definitely not taken the news well. But getting attached to people was always a bad idea … that was something his sixteen years had taught him. Joan sighed. “You should turn in for an early night,” she told him. “You look tired.” “Uh huh.” He ran his hand through his hair. The girl’s screams still rang in his ears. The car crash had seemed so real; so much more than images, so much more than a dream. There’d been sounds and smells and feelings, feelings that somehow weren’t his own. It had been one crazy-arse nightmare. Several hours later, he woke to the sound of hushed voices downstairs. He knew what that meant. His foster parents, Joan and Derek Webb, had picked up another stray. He wondered whether he should get up and wedge his backpack against the bedroom door, but it was cold and he couldn’t be bothered to get out of bed. Anyway, even the skinny kid who had scarpered with his CD player, Joan’s handbag and half of Derek’s fishing rods hadn’t stolen anything on the first night. He sighed. Of course, not all the kids who came to the house were psycho. There’d been the little boy whose dad had busted his nose. He’d called Lee ‘big brother’ and pestered him to play football, which had been sort of cool, and there was the lad who’d taken the overdose. He’d been OK in a quiet way but he’d left in an ambulance and hadn’t returned. That was the trouble really. Just when he got used to someone, they left. Not like Lee. He’d been there two years. He heard the front door open and close as the social worker left. Lee never liked the social workers. Then came footsteps on the stairs. Joan kept the bed in the adjoining room permanently ready for its next emergency occupant. “The bathroom’s across the landing,” he heard Joan say. The door clicked shut. Silence, then muffled sobs. He turned over but it was always the same when someone new arrived. It reminded him of his mother lying in the hospital bed with the social worker hovering behind him, waiting to bring him through this very same front door in the middle of the night. He pulled the duvet over his face and fell into an uneasy sleep. It took the alarm clock three attempts before Lee finally dragged himself out of bed next morning. It almost felt like he hadn’t slept at all. He lingered in the shower, trying to wash the memories from his mind until the water ran cold. He retrieved his school uniform from its usual place on the floor, pulled a hoodie over his school sweatshirt and jammed his feet into his trainers. Thirty-seven Highfield Road stood on a tree-lined street on the edge of Shrewsbury. The warm aroma of toast and coffee drifted through the large Victorian semi, reminding him that, as usual, he was absolutely starving. “Morning.” Joan handed him a plate holding several thick rounds of cheese on toast. “We had a new arrival last night.” “I heard,” he muttered. Joan never seemed to learn he had zero interest in the problems of the people who passed through. “Her name’s Paige,” Joan went on. “Paige?” He said through a mouthful of toast. “Since when do we have girls staying?” “Now, don’t go getting any ideas,” said Joan. “Social Services don’t like doing mixed placements but they’re so short of emergency homes at the moment.” He took a swig of his hot chocolate. Ideas? What planet did Joan live on? Anyway this girl was probably about five, or else a total loser. After all, why else would she end up at Highfield Road? “Paige’s been in a car crash,” Joan said. “It killed both her parents but Paige only got a bump on the head. It’s a miracle, really.” A car crash? The images from the night before overloaded his brain, as fresh and clear as reality but completely senseless. “She’ll be staying until her uncle arrives from Scotland,” continued Joan. His stomach twisted with a stab of jealousy, threatening to throw out his toast. An uncle. Real family. Not just a gran who lives in a nursing home and only remembers me on good days. He took a deep breath, allowing the scents of the kitchen to unwind the knot in his stomach. “Shouldn’t Paige be in hospital or something?” he asked. “Well, she’s not hurt physically,” said Joan. “And the hospital’s so short of beds …” “Short of beds, short of homes.” He bit into the toast. “The world stinks.” Joan sighed. “Make Paige welcome. You know what it’s like.” He shrugged. “Don’t expect I’ll see much of her,” he replied. “She’ll stay in her room until you can coax her down, like all the others. Then she’ll go.” No sooner had the words left his mouth than he heard light footsteps on the stairs. He raised an eyebrow. “Or, she could just come straight down for breakfast.” The kitchen door opened. “Come in, Paige.” Joan’s hand automatically reached for the kettle. Lee almost choked on his toast. Paige’s eyes looked puffy from crying, but there could be no mistake about it. This was the same girl he’d seen in his dream the night before. “What would you like for breakfast, Paige?” Joan asked. “I’m not really hungry, thank you.” Paige glanced round the kitchen and ended up studying the floor tiles. “You’ve got to keep your strength up at times like this,” fussed Joan. Paige pushed her thumbs into the pockets of her designer jeans. “Maybe a slice of toast then.” She sat on the very edge of a chair at the opposite end of the table, her long dark hair falling over her smart jumper which Lee guessed cost more than all his clothes put together. Definitely not their usual loser. “Mary Grantham, the social worker, will be round later,” Joan told Paige. Lee frowned. He didn’t like Mary Grantham but it wasn’t really the woman’s fault. Someone had had to be with him when his mother died and she’d drawn the short straw. Last night’s image of the car crash replayed in his head like a video he couldn’t turn off. “Was it a red car?” he blurted. Immediately he wished he hadn’t said it. Joan started slapping butter on the toast with a ‘what-kind-of-a-question’s-that?’ look on her face and Paige’s brown eyes stared at him as though he’d suggested the car had wings. Stupid thing to say, he told himself. But he did see Paige in the accident. He did see the red car. His mind spun with a million questions all coming down to the same one – how? He peered at Paige over the top of his mug. Maybe it was the expensive clothes but she had a killer figure, curvy yet toned and even with a tearstained face she was pretty in a soft, gentle sort of way. But as for why he should have seen her in the accident … “You’re going to be late.” Joan’s voice jolted him out of his thoughts. “And didn’t the headmaster give you a warning about wearing trainers at school?” she continued, glaring at his feet. “Shoes’re in my bag,” he said. “I can put them on if anyone insists.” Like that’s important. Joan tutted. “What are your plans after school? Will you be doing … what’s it called … you know … that running thing with Andy?” she asked. “Parkour,” he told her for what seemed the thousandth time. “It’s a proper sport, remember? Like gymnastics, but outside.” “Yes, yes.” Joan dismissed the explanation with a wave of her hand. “But will you be home early or late?” “Early. Andy’s got a driving lesson.” Joan frowned. “Andy seems to have been learning to drive forever,” she said. “It must be costing a fortune.” She dropped the butter knife in the sink. “How’s your car fund coming along anyway?” Lee’s stomach tied itself into a hangman’s noose around his breakfast. “Umm, yeah, good,” he blustered. OK, so when he’d started saving money from his Saturday job it had been for a car, but that was before his gran told him his dad had gone to Australia. Did she really know his father’s identity when his mum had always insisted the man had been a stupid one-night stand and his birth certificate read ‘father unknown’? Or had Gran’s memories become so distorted she was confusing him with someone else? Lee’s visits to the nursing home had become fact finding missions whilst the five hundred and twenty pounds which had been his car savings were now his Australia fund … he’d just never told anyone. He watched Joan stirring milk into a cup for Paige. He didn’t need telling his plan was doomed to fail. Joan placed a plate of toast and a cup of hot chocolate in front of Paige. “Mary’s trying to contact your uncle,” she told her. Lee saw Paige’s bottom lip trembling. She reached for the chocolate, took a sip and swallowed hard. You’ll be all right. You’ve got your uncle. He gulped down his jealousy with the last mouthful of hot chocolate and picked up his backpack, leaving Paige pushing the toast round her plate. He’s sitting in a corner of the café on the motorway services, the last stop before home. A collection of empty coffee cups and a half-eaten sandwich sit on the greasy table before him. It’s busy and the place resounds with the clanking of coffee cups and noisy children for whom the journey has already been too long. A bored-looking waitress is clearing the tables. Her eyes are ringed with dark circles. “You finished?” she asks him, through a mouthful of gum. “Finished?” A slow smile spreads across his face as he gets to his feet. “Hell, I’m only just getting started.” Paige stood with Joan on the church steps. She couldn’t believe it had been a week since the accident. She still couldn’t believe it had happened at all. Rain streaked down relentlessly out of a dull, grey sky. The sort of rain which wasn’t much to look at but wet you to the bone. A miserable day for a funeral. A miserable day for anything. She shivered. “Should we go inside?” asked Joan. The coffins are in there. Mum and Dad. The longer she could stay outside the better. Hands slid round her waist. “Hi, babe.” “Gavin?” She twisted round, managing a small smile. “You’re here,” she said. “I thought you had exams.” “Only mocks.” Gavin tossed his long blond fringe out of his eyes and planted a quick kiss on her cheek. “I’m doing them tomorrow instead.” Tears welled up in her eyes. What was she going to do without Gavin when she moved to Scotland with Uncle Roy? “Hey, don’t worry about it, babe.” Gavin gave her a squeeze. “It’s given me an extra day to revise,” he said with a grin. Paige blinked rapidly. Worrying about Gavin’s exams had never crossed her mind. Gavin kept one arm round her waist. “You look nice, hun,” he said. “You should wear black more often.” “What?” Had he missed the whole reason for her outfit? She turned to face him but Gavin’s attention was on a shiny new car pulling alongside the church wall. “Wow, it’s the latest Audi,” he said. “Are they friends of yours?” Three men got out wearing dark city suits and serious faces. She shrugged. “I guess they’re from the bank where my father works … worked,” she corrected and to her horror, her voice cracked as she said it. Gavin’s mobile rang. “Hey, Chris. Look, I can’t talk; I’m at this funeral. No, I’ll be back in an hour or so. There’s no prob. I’ll meet you at lunch.” Paige pulled at his sleeve. “Aren’t you staying afterwards? I thought … ” “The squash match, babe,” Gavin interrupted. “It’s the semi-finals. Did you forget?” “Forget?” she murmured. Like she had nothing else on her mind? Paige shifted from one foot to the other, trying to stop shivering, trying to keep her mind off the black hearse and the solemn-faced vicar lurking round the doorway guiding the mourners into the church. It didn’t work. A small hire car pulled onto the grass opposite the church and a stocky man with thinning hair eased himself out of the driver’s seat; an older weather-worn version of her father. “Uncle Roy.” She flew down the gravel and threw herself into his arms, tears pricking her eyes. Uncle Roy stood motionless. Then he pulled away. “Hello there, Tiger,” he said. “Let me put my jacket on?” “Of course,” she murmured. Gavin appeared behind her. He waited while Uncle Roy changed out of his windcheater then shook hands. Uncle Roy gave him a brief nod before heading into the church. Paige followed close behind. A crowd of teachers from the school where her mother had taught sat by the door, sniffling as she passed. A woman in a baggy brown cardigan played mournful chords on a not-quite-in-tune organ. Uncle Roy moved aside to sit down and there, directly in front of her, beside the altar, stood the two coffins. Suddenly, her legs refused to move. “Come on, babe,” said Gavin. He stood by the front row of seats. “Can’t we sit further away?” she choked out. “It’s close family at the front,” said Gavin. “That’s how it works.” He linked his arm through hers and pulled her along the hard wooden pew just metres away from the coffins. The scent of lilies from the wreaths wafted over her, catching in her throat. Her mum had liked lilies. Paige looked at Uncle Roy but he stared straight ahead, leaving an uncomfortable space between them. Lee sprawled on the bench under the maths classroom window. He still wore his hoodie and his trainers. “Doesn’t look like the cover teacher’s turning up,” he said to Josh with a grin. Josh opened the classroom window and flicked a pen top at two girls walking below. It missed them. “If I’d been over there,” Josh pointed to the bike shed roof, “I’d have got that top down her t-shirt.” Lee laughed. “We could jump to the bike shed easy enough,” he said. “What about over the shed to the wall?” asked Josh. “Think that’s possible?” “Don’t see why not,” said Lee. “It’s not as difficult as some of the other jumps we’ve done.” Josh checked round the room. “Still no teacher,” he said. “Trouble is,” said Lee, “the windowsill’s wet. It’s not safe in the rain.” Josh pulled his soccer shirt out of his bag and mopped the sill. “There,” he said. “Fixed it.” Lee climbed through the window and balanced on the ledge. The funeral party moved outside. The rain had stopped but the day remained dull and cold. Paige stood silently between Joan and Uncle Roy as Gavin busied himself with a text message. Her body seemed to have been invaded by butterflies. Their wings trembled and danced in her stomach, fluttering outwards until her whole body quivered. Tears stung her eyes. She gulped. Her mum would never have approved of her losing control and showing herself up in front of all these people. Gavin flashed a smile but Uncle Roy appeared as ashen as the grey churchyard beneath the sullen sky. He stood stiffly, his hands clasped behind him, his face expressionless. The butterflies reached her throat and she gave a loud, choking sob. Joan put an arm round her and she buried her face in Joan’s black funeral coat. The fabric smelled warm and flowery. She tried not to think about the coffins, or the newly dug hole in the ground, or the fact she’d never see Mum and Dad again. Paige tried to think of something else, anything else, tried not to cry. She felt dizzy, light-headed. A sinking feeling gripped the pit of her stomach. No, not sinking, more like falling, as though she’d stepped off the pavement and never hit the road. She could see a white wall. But … her eyes were shut … Her breath caught in mid-sob. She lifted her face from Joan’s coat. The wall remained. I’m hallucinating. I’m going crazy. Beneath her, she could see shiny grey squares, a roof wet from the February rain. She landed and the world rolled over before she was falling once more, faster, breathless, awkward. This time the floor seemed to rise up and meet her and she felt a sharp pain in her knee. She winced in surprise. “You’ll be all right.” Joan squeezed her arm, jolting Paige back to reality. “You’ll see.” Fear gripped every muscle in her body and held her immobile, forcing her to watch as men in black suits with expressionless faces lowered the coffins into the ground. Things were not going to be ‘all right’. How could anything ever be ‘all right’ again? Her parents were dead … really dead … never-coming-back dead … and she was seeing things that weren’t there … … Again. I hope you’ve enjoyed reading ShockWaves chapters 1 and 2. Want to know what happens next? Buy on Amazon US or Amazon UK Get “Ninetyfive percent Human” on Amazon Get “ShockWaves” on Amazon Get “Sarah” on Amazon Read Suzanna Williams’ Privacy Policy and Terms and Conditions WHAT I'M WRITING - "Five percent Alien" 39,071 of 75,000 words Claim "Sarah" a #free short story prequel in the Ninetyfive percent Human series https://t.co/2sqJwJ4HVc #YA… https://t.co/JbPUvoC7ft The Top 100 YA Books on Goodreads https://t.co/M2QGm7LfGX via @goodreads I've signed the petition to stop fast-track fracking that threatens our democracy & countryside. Will you too? https://t.co/h8qbO3yssi Privacy Policy and Terms and Conditions Copyright Suzanna Williams 2016.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line395
__label__cc	0.529384	0.470616	Category Archives: Lou Sylvre Book News by lsylvestre \| January 20, 2020 · 5:59 pm Vasquez Inc #4—A Shot at Perfect coming 1/24 A Shot at Perfect Preorder now at retailers! Download everywhere January 24, 2020—discount at the publisher! Universal Link Publisher’s Link After a crash left him with new mental and physical scars, Jackie Vasquez has finally regained his focus, flair, and bright outlook. Though he’s letting Brian Harrison’s marriage proposal simmer, it’s not for lack of love. He’s set his sights on putting his life right first — a new job and a fresh start at graduate school. But Los Angeles — the city of devil winds — has new trauma in store for him. Another accident leaves him with the stump of a leg and defeated spirits, adrift despite Brian’s devoted attentions. While Brian copes with his own emotional trauma, he hopes to break through Jackie’s apathy, but work at Vasquez Security takes more and more of his time and attention. Specifically “the Espen case,” which his boss — Luki Vasquez — has forbidden him to pursue. Help comes on all fronts from friends and family for both Brian and Jackie, but even as it does, danger mounts from outside. Can the two men find their way back to love as well as passion and fulfillment in their D/s roles? Can they survive the confrontation with danger that seems to loom closer and darker every time LA’s hot winds blow? The morning after their stellar session, when Brian got out of bed, he discovered Jackie was already up. The fortune cookie was no longer on the night table. Brian walked out into the open front rooms of the apartment looking for his boy, eager to kiss Jackie soundly and get his answer to the marriage proposal. Jackie had left three of four diagonally cut pieces of cinnamon-toast on a plate, two strips of bacon in a pan, and half a pot of coffee still keeping warm, but he was nowhere to be seen. Brian poured himself a cup of hot coffee and grabbed both bacon strips with his fingers. He sat down in his usual spot at the table, wondering if he should feel disappointed, worried, or perhaps unconcerned. Jackie had certainly demonstrated his feelings for Brian the previous night. But the question Where the hell is he? kept popping up in his mind as he devoured the bacon and chased it down with coffee. Then, as he helped himself to Jackie’s toast leavings, the question evolved into Why the hell would he leave without a word? Followed closely by Why hasn’t he answered about marrying me? Shit. “No” would be better than silence… Wait. No, it wouldn’t. But shit… After he polished off the toast and talked himself out of putting a shot of J&B in his second cup of coffee, he remembered that phones and text messaging existed. Hopeful, he swallowed most of the coffee down and went to the bedroom to fetch his phone. Aha! A text awaited, and it was from none other… — Good morning, Bri. I’ll be home soon. Before I forget. What happened to that broken drawer in the playroom? — It took Brian a number of seconds before he could even make sense of the question, so far was it from what he’d expected — and desperately hoped — to see, but eventually he put it together. Annoyed, but glad Jackie had at least not forgotten him entirely, he texted back. — It had a lock, no key, and I couldn’t pick it. I broke it. Where are you? — Brian waited, sitting on the unmade bed in his skivvies, only vaguely aware of Marley head-bumping his arm hoping for a good scratch and not even noticing the sun blazing through the window and baking his left shoulder. He didn’t get an answer. He sighed very deeply, well aware of how piteous it sounded, and then he moaned, “Dammit, Jackie.” Sure the devil boy would be his undoing someday, he gritted his teeth, resolving not to worry until something clearly indicated he should. He picked up his phone to send another text, but before he could do so, he got a mixed media message. As often proved to be the case with images, it had taken a long time to get to him, having been sent even before the text he’d already responded to. It was a selfie. Jackie looking very fine and dressed for success, wearing a blazer the same color as his eyes and a tie… one of Brian’s, he believed. He texted back: You look good. Why are you wearing a tie? He waited. No answer. He waited some more. No answer. He started to wait some more, said “Fuck it” out loud, and sent a final text. What did your fortune cookie say? And wherever you are, be careful. Brian dressed, walked down to the office, and had already situated himself at his desk and powered up his PC when a reply came. I love you, Brian. Brian didn’t reply. He was already tired from the strange interaction. He just gathered up his things and, sighing again, turned his attention to work. More and more he found he accomplished the tasks of management easily. He whipped through the morning’s e-mails before Livvy showed up, made a pot of coffee, assigned Lonny to manage a personal security situation for Korean corporate officers in Los Angeles for a wedding, and reviewed the latest financial reports with Ahmad. After a break, during which he tried unsuccessfully to reach Jackie by phone and then spent fifteen minutes crocheting with Livvy while she talked about her nephew’s latest musical triumphs, he worked on a plan he’d been putting together to point VSI-LA in a profitable direction over the next couple of years. LA was rife with security companies, a good number of them with high level capabilities. It was why Luki had never concentrated his energies here — a big market with an even bigger pool of competition, and as successful and respected as Vasquez Security was, it remained a small- to- medium-sized fish in the large pond. That made it difficult to compete with the likes of Security Group International, and SGI’s office in LA was more than triple the size of Brian’s little group. But he thought the office could do better than it had. The key was targeting the right niche. He’d researched, and he’d found two of the least monopolized areas to be security for transient high level corporate officials — like the Koreans in town this week — and event security for small to medium-sized posh gatherings. VSI was set up well to grow in those market areas, and his report included the necessary facts and figures for Luki to make a decision as to whether to invest in the additional personnel, training, equipment, and advertising to accomplish it. Now he set his mind to propose one additional area of investment, one he wasn’t at all sure Luki would approve. For one thing, it involved privately dealing with things that technically should be the domain of law enforcement agencies. For another, it involved putting someone in the middle of very dangerous situations — negotiating with kidnappers and dealing with blackmailers — and nobody on staff at present in Los Angeles was qualified. But Brian knew Luki had done that type of work, and he had other agents in Chicago who could do it. Luki could do the training, and Brian really wanted to be trained and to do the work. He wasn’t sure why he wanted to do something so patently risky, except that he hadn’t studied what he’d studied and gone on staff with the London Metropolitan Police in order to spend all his time at a desk. Whatever the reason, his brain got ridiculously excited at the idea. He’d need a partner, and he thought Amy might be a good choice. If not, they could hire someone. With Luki’s connections in the business, Brian had no doubt they’d pick up jobs if word got out VSI-LA was equipped to deal with them. Interestingly, he’d found a file indicating Espen had been looking into the same field of operations a few weeks before his disappearance, but he hadn’t compiled any reports except a list of other security companies that offered the same services. As that thought passed casually through his thoughts, a realization jolted him — as if lightning had struck and revealed Espen’s secrets. Two entries in the notebook had been different than all the others. Both had the letters RL, a date, and what was surely an amount of money. Only one had been crossed out. Espen was a gambler, possibly an addict. Espen had been deep in debt to someone represented by the initials RL. He’d paid RL once, but not the second time. Around the same time, he’d compiled that list. It clicked. He hadn’t been thinking of the business, he’d gone looking for help with a blackmailer. Filed under just a category, Lou Sylvre Book News, M/M romance, New M/M releases, Upcoming release Tagged as BDSM, bdsm light, detective, gay romance, Los Angeles, mystery/suspense, vasquez inc by Lou Sylvre \| November 1, 2019 · 1:00 am The J&B guys are back—Lou Sylvre’s A Shot of J&B (a truly new edition) out in ebook Nov. 1! It’s here, and it’s new! Released on the Changeling Press catalog a week ago, on 11/1 A Shot of J&B is let out into the wild—available for purchase and immediate download from Amazon and the other major retailers. Reviewer Kitty Munday, who also read the 2015 edition of this title, said:“For those who, like me HAVE read the original:OMG I absolutely LOVE how Lou fleshed out the story here!” Noting that a lot of the exciting suspense action story will be told in book 2, as serialized by Changeling Press, she also asks, “And dang it Lou, how long will we have to wait?!” The answer is: Not long! Vasquez Inc series book 2, A Shot of Fear is coming November 21! Watch for preorder news and a cover over the next week or so! About A Shot of J&B When Brian Harrison first met Jackie Vasquez at a Hawaiian wedding, Jackie was sixteen and troubled. Six years later they meet again; Brian’s career at Scotland Yard is budding with promise, while Jackie’s student days at the University of Nebraska are rolling toward a strong finish. Magnetic mutual attraction pulls them insistently toward one another, but the ocean separating their lives makes for a simmering romance. When the waiting ends and they get together for a weekend in Denver, Dom Brian and sub Jackie both know they’ve tapped into something scalding hot, and much deeper than sharing an artful session. Shibari, lust, and love are all on the agenda — but for Brian, so is his police career, and a strange series of crimes seems poised to threaten their romance—and maybe their lives. Changeling Press Apple/iBooks To set the scene, this is an email, one message in a string of them sent back and forth before they’ve had a chance to spend any real time on the same side of the Atlantic. They’re getting to know each other, and here you’ll get to know Brian—at least a little. A little extra? He works at Scotland Yard, a cyber-investigation expert who’s moving up to working in the field. He has a cat, a rescue fuzzball named Marley who’s not overly grateful, but loves Brian in his own way. (When Marley meets Jackie, it might be true that he loves Jackie even more.) So now… Brian answering some… personal questions. 🙂 Hey, Jackie! Your e-mail has me smiling for a number of reasons. First, thank you for answering my questions so clearly and honestly. To be honest, I think for D/s we’re a pretty good match. I’m kind of unusual as a Dom. True story, some people think I shouldn’t call myself a Dom at all, because although I do want obedience during a session — I need it to keep my head focused right and even for safety — I don’t need or particularly want to test it, nor do I crave inflicting pain. I can use a flogger, paddle, riding crop, and I have, but I generally steer clear of the sub that desires pain for its own sake, because I’m not the right Dom for them. I have a mentor, Tommy Fujimoto, an older man who has taught me a lot about Domination, and especially rope and knots. (Someday, I hope you can see his beautiful Shibari. I’ll go so far as to say, someday, I hope you can experience my Shibari. grin) But Tom has been a great role model in other ways, too, and he made me see that being gentler than a lot of Doms doesn’t make me less of one. He said, “The thing that makes a Dom is wanting submission and being able to take a like-minded sub where they need or want to go, head-wise.” Are you familiar with rope bondage, Jackie? Shibari in particular is meant to be beautiful to the eye and the sense of balance and completion. For me, the most satisfying part is when a sub, deep in subspace, has a sort of forced epiphany that they are beautiful in my binding. Good Lord, Jackie. I hope it’s not forward for me to say I so much want a chance to do that for you. You said you are a little embarrassed because you told me about imagining I was with you while you had that overwhelming orgasm, and you almost erased it. I’m so very glad you bit the bullet and hit send anyway. Unable to resist, he ended the email with a mild caution. Jackie, I hope you enjoy your weekend. On that geocaching outing, please be careful and don’t go alone. And here’s a tiny snippet from the action packed book two, A Shot of Fear coming November 21: “Fear,” Professor Hermans said. “Tell me why you have an interest in the subject.” “Because…” the student said, but then she hesitated, seeming to choose the next words carefully. “Because it’s undeniably real. The only human emotion that is always genuine. Truthfully, I’ve wondered if it isn’t the $only human emotion, period.” The professor sipped her tea and continued to watch the young person, who sat with apparent confidence, unflinching, across the low table from her. There was more to the student’s answer—she felt certain. “And?” The student smiled, nodded, as if conceding a point. “And it’s beautiful.” And book 3, A Shot at Living,” won’t be far behind—probably December-ish. Here’s a bit from that book: Jackie’s red-gold lashes fluttered again and he opened his eyes. Brian could see them moving around, searching. After a second or so, Jackie’s gaze steadied, locking on his own. Brian had never seen a color as beautiful as the gray of Jackie’s irises at just that moment, just that angle, shining like life’s own magic in the dim light of that room in the ICU. “Damn, Jackie,” he said. “Damn I love you.” He no longer cared that the tears he’d been fighting broke free with the words. (Don’t forget you can get the whole story leading up to this kinky, sexy, suspenseful romance in the Vasquez and James series, available in Volumes 1 and 2 from Changeling Press, and at all major online book retailers. The stars of that series, Luki Vasquez and Sonny James, are reader favorites. And yes indeed, they do pop up in the new Vasquez Inc series from time to time… :)) Thanks for visiting the Book Blog! Comments are welcome and appreciated. Lou Sylvre loves romance with all its ups and downs, and likes to conjure it into books. The sweethearts on her pages are men who end up loving each other — and usually saving each other from unspeakable danger. It’s all pretty crazy and very, very sexy. As if you’d want to know more, she’ll happily tell you that she is a proudly bisexual woman — a mother, grandmother, lover of languages, and cat-herder — of mixed cultural heritage. She works closely with lead cat and writing assistant, the (male) Queen of Budapest, Boudreau St. Clair. She lives in the rainy part of the Pacific Northwest, and hearing from a reader infallibly brightens the dreary weather. Find her through her links listed here, or drop her a line at lou.sylvre@gmail.com. http://www.sylvre.rainbow-gate.com https://www.facebook.com/AuthorLouSylvre/ https://twitter.com/Sylvre https://mewe.com/i/lousylvre https://www.instagram.com/sylvre/ Filed under A Shot of J&B, Book tour, just a category, Lou Sylvre Book News, New M/M releases Tagged as bdsm light, Changeling Press, gay romance, mystery/suspense, shibari by lsylvestre \| July 26, 2019 · 11:10 am Vasquez and James Vol 2 is out today—More love, more joy, and more bone-chilling suspense! The second half of the acclaimed Vasquez and James stories is out today from Changeling Press, following the release of Volume 1 last month. Vasquez and James Volume 2, sporting another brilliant cover, completes the long, flowing, beautiful love story of Luki Vasquez and Sonny James. Stick with them as they face suspenseful episodes, laugh with them as humor rears its marvelous head even in the toughest of moments, and rejoice with them as they come through the hardships stronger and closer than ever, with a happy ending any couple might envy. The sexy romance continues to blaze even while the suspense can chill you to the bone. Maybe that explains why Nadine said the novella Yes was “like some kind of magical incantation,” and the opening sentence of Nickie’s 5-star review of Saving Sonny James on Goodreads: “What can I say about Lou Sylvre’s book Saving Sonny James? A veritable work of art. I laughed. I cried. I set on the edge of my seat. It was awesome.” And here’s what Jules, of The Novel Approach review site, said in her review of the series’ final book, Because of Jade: There is such a beauty about the way Lou Sylvre writes these characters. A pureness. A sort of reverence. If I had my way, there would be new Vasquez & James books until the end of time. Get Vasquez and James Volume 2 today from Changeling Press and save 15% off an already great price. (And if you prefer buying through Amazon or another online retailer, the links are right there on the publisher’s catalog listing.) About the books: Troubles strike, Romance sizzles, Love endures, A family is made. Saving Sonny James: The events of the last couple of years have begun to catch up with Luki — loving Sonny James and letting Sonny love him back have left gaps in his emotional armor. Sonny says yes to a European tour with Harold Breslin, a dangerously intelligent promoter whose obsessive desire for Sonny is exceeded only by his narcissism. When Harold’s plan for Sonny turns poisonous, Luki must break free of PTSD and get to France, fit and ready in time to save his husband’s life. Yes (A Vasquez and James novella): Professional badass Luki Vasquez and textile artist Sonny James have been married for five years, and despite the sometimes volatile mix, they’re happy. From their first days together, they stood united against deadly enemies and prevailed. But now the deadly enemy they face is the cancer consuming Luki’s lungs. Sonny tries to control every thread just as he does when he weaves, but still Luki dances with cancer alone—until he gets a startling reminder of the miracle of life. Because of Jade: Still cancer free after five years, Luki finds out his nephew Josh and wife Ruthie have met a tragic death. Luki and Sonny must help each other learn to parent an unexpected child, Jade, and still nourish the love that has kept them whole for the past ten years. A relative’s claim to Jade threatens the new family, and even if they prevail in court, they could lose their little girl unless they can rescue Jade from evil hands and true peril. From Saving Sonny James The cemetery lay quiet in heavy mist, autumn leaves breaking the gray with fiery shades. Sonny picked up some leaves and twirled them one by one in front of him, and Luki knew his mind was busy with ideas of color. They stood together at the foot of Delsyn’s grave, looked at the still new headstone with its simple engraving: a medicine wheel with eagle feathers in each of the four directions, and the name—Delsyn James Bull. Luki said, “I didn’t know his last name wasn’t James.” “He preferred James,” Sonny answered, shrugging. “He didn’t like his father.” “So why is your name James?” Sonny grinned, “I didn’t like my father either!” Then the smile disappeared but not the good humor, and he added, “And my stepfather, whose name I had on my birth certificate, didn’t mean anything to me. When my mother died and I was living with Melvern, I wanted his name—Melvern’s—and he got it changed for me. I’ve never been sorry. I don’t feel like any other name but James would have been mine.” “I think you’re right,” Luki said. “You’re definitely Sonny Bly James, the most beautiful thing that ever happened to the world. And I love you.” Sonny smiled and hugged Luki, then leaned his chin on his husband’s shoulder. “I love you, too, Luki Mililani Vasquez, the hottest badass that ever happened to the world.” He took a deep breath, held on really tight. “Why are you different, Luki?” Luki’s wrapped his arms tighter around Sonny. He stayed quiet. “Should I not have asked?” Finally Luki found some words. “It’s fine that you asked, baby. I just don’t know how to answer…. Do you…. Are you asking why I’m different since I… since that kid—” “Guard,” Sonny said. “He wasn’t a kid, he was a guard. No, I think I understand that, at least in theory. I’m asking why you’re different today. You’re… good. Have I blown everything by going there? Are you not going to answer?” “No. You haven’t, and I will. Just not right this second.” “Okay. Don’t worry, husband. No rush, and besides, I wanted to smudge over Del’s grave…. Damn, I hate saying those two words together.” “Yeah, that’s hard. I’m sorry, baby.” Sonny gave Luki a puzzled look, as though he could see something beyond those words that didn’t quite make sense. Luki thought, Please don’t say anything about it, Sonny, and perhaps Sonny was sensitive to that, because he said nothing more about it. “Husband,” Sonny said, and the way he said it, Luki felt himself blush. He knew that was silly, but when Sonny called him that, in that certain way, it sort of made him tingle. He resisted a stupid grin, and Sonny went on. “Will you help me with the smudge?” “Sure. What do I need to do?” “Not a lot, really.” He reached into his backpack, fiddled with some things, and then held out an abalone shell filled with cedar and some other dried plant material Luki didn’t recognize. “Hold this,” Sonny ordered, “This is just sage, with the cedar. And a little sweetgrass.” He held a Bic to the mixture and set it to smoldering, making a plume of sharp but very sweet-smelling smoke. Luki fought a smile again—almost lost the battle. Sonny once again gave him the puzzled look. “This seems all mysterious, you know, but really it’s just a way of being clean. Body, mind, and spirit, so they say. I’ve never smudged all that often, nor did I go to sweat lodge or smokehouse to pray. But Delsyn did. Him and Melvern…. Watch how your holding that shell, Luki, it gets hot on the bottom.” “Ouch! Shit, burn!” Sonny took the shell from him, and Luki felt completely foolish. He’d been so distracted by the sweet smell of the smoke and crackle of the cedar, the pretty burn, he hadn’t even noticed the shell heating up. He looked up sheepishly to find Sonny peering at him through narrowed eyes, his lips pursed in a slight, pensive smile. “You like this smudge, don’t you, Luki? That’s good. Put your hands in the dew.” “The what?” “Quick, honey!” Sonny sounded a little annoyed but obviously concerned for Luki’s welfare. “Put your hands in the dew on the grass—wet and cool, for the burns.” “Oh, well, probably too late now. They’re not that bad, anyway. That was a really good idea, though.” In answer, Sonny gave him another one of those bemused looks—this time, just out of the corner of his eye. Luki was trying to figure out what those looks meant at this point, but it didn’t appear he was going to be getting that information. Sonny produced a medium-sized feather from the vest pocket of his leather jacket. “You know what I should do for you, Luki? I should have Jim Standing Bear come up and put you in a sweat with fifty-two rocks and a long-winded leader.” He chuckled. “Either fix you right up or put you in the hospital. Just kidding, of course. But to clean the grave—which sounds stupid but I think Del would like it—we have to be clean first. So I’ll do you and then you do me, okay?” Luki’s eyebrows went up. “Smudging, Luki. We’re talking about smudging. Get your mind out of my pants!” “Never, sweetie, but okay. Smudging. What do I do?” “Just stand there mostly, while I get the smoke all over you…. Okay, lift up one foot… the other. Okay, you’re done. Smoke’s still going good. Do me?” “Whoa, Sonny! Right here in the graveyard?” Sonny laughed and smacked Luki’s bicep. “I meant the smudge, Luki. And you know it.” “Oh, okay.” He knew a smile could be heard in his voice and he let it play there. He started to move the feather, washing Sonny down with the cleansing smoke. This whole thing, this day, this smudging as Sonny called it—it all felt so good. Luki didn’t want it to stop, ever, and he didn’t care if his beloved husband knew that. He hoped Sonny knew. He didn’t think he was well, cured, absolved. He knew he wasn’t, but just for now he felt brand new. He thanked Delsyn in his thoughts—this wasn’t the first time Delsyn had brought him and Sonny closer, or adjusted Luki’s focus. He’d done it more than once while alive, and it didn’t even really surprise Luki that he’d reach from the other side of the veil to wake him up. Thanks for stopping by! I hope you’ll enjoy this second batch of Luki and Sonny’s adventures! Coming soon, a new series! Vasquez Inc, The J&B Stories, featuring the suspenseful trials, lustful heat, and poignant love story of Jackie Vasquez, Brian Harrison—with plenty of appearances by veteran characters Luki and Sonny! Feel free to comment on the blog—your thoughts are always welcome. Happy reading, everyone. Filed under Lou Sylvre, Lou Sylvre Book News, M/M romance, New M/M releases Tagged as box set, gay families, gay romance, mystery/suspense, re-release The second coming of Vasquez and James! Volume 1 released today! The Vasquez and James books that got such high praise from reviewers, readers, and fellow authors is back in a brand new format with a brilliant cover, courtesy of Changeling Press. Today, 6/28/19, the first three stories in this blazing romance between two extraordinary men comes out in an ebook box set, Volume 1 of 2, with the remaining 3 stories due out July 27. In each book Luki Vasquez and Sonny James meet danger in a thrilling episode of suspense, and despite it all their love grows a little bit stronger, glows a little bit brighter. Get Vasquez and James Volume 1 today from Changeling Press and save 15% off an already great price. Discover why author Kade Boehme said what he did in his Goodreads review of the first edition of book 1: “Luki is infuriating but god I love him. And Sonny… How appropriate is that name. He’s got a bad past hiding in there somewhere but he’s all light and “bubbles”. Just what that hard ass Luki needs. Lou Sylvre’s writing is also phenomenal. What chops. Very eloquent while still maintaining the masculine voices of her characters. Now THAT is talent. I’m smitten.” When badass meets artist, sparks and bullets fly. Blazing romance, chilling suspense, enduring love… Loving Luki Vasquez: Renowned but reclusive weaver Sonny Bly James masters color, texture, and shape in his tapestries, but when he meets Luki Vasquez, an ex-ATF agent and all-around badass, his heart and desire spin out of control. The heat between them won’t be denied. United by danger, can Sonny and Luki put fear and anger aside, and fight together to save Sonny’s nephew and their own lives? Delsyn’s Blues: Devastated by loss, Sonny James listens to a voice singing the blues from beyond the grave. Convinced he’s failed in an all-important life task, he tries to shut out Luki Vasquez and love just when he needs him the most. But when Luki finally breaks through Sonny’s fortress of grief, it’s just in time for the newly reunited couple to face a new, violent, escalating danger. Finding Jackie: When Sonny James asked Luki Vasquez to marry him, Luki’s “yes” was accompanied by a request — a wedding in Hawaii. Months and many trials later, their hilltop island ceremony is poignant and funny, and every bit as beautiful as they’d hoped. The honeymoon is all sex, surfing, and sunshine… until Luki’s sixteen-year-old nephew is kidnapped by a sadistic killer. When it all comes to an ultimate showdown with evil, it’s not only love at stake, but their lives. Excerpts (Beware of sexy hotness in the one from Finding Jackie): From Loving Luki Vasquez Oak Flats, Nebraska, 1982 A MUD-SPATTERED pickup in the front yard of a weathered house. Summer-gold hayfields rolling back farther than the eye could see. In the west, a sinking sun screened by a line of trees—cottonwoods and willows. Under those trees, a band of children just into their teens, whooping and laughing in that way that kids do in the summer when night is just on the edge of the next breath. Luki ran faster than all the rest, and then looped back to taunt them. Excitement like electricity ran through him. Something about this day, this hour, this prelude to night, was special. “Maria,” he yelled. “I’ll race ya!” It started a stampede, all seven of the boys and Maria, the one girl who always hung out with them, running as if they could fly, thrashing through brambles and over sticks and stones as if they couldn’t feel them. Out onto the Old Granary Road, onto the bridge, right over the rail and into the river, just as they’d done hundreds of times before. Luki swam underwater for as long as he could hold his breath, which was longer than anyone, except maybe Maria. When he came up, laughing and spitting, and slicked his hair back out of his eyes, all of the other boys had gathered at the shore, whispering, or maybe arguing. Maria hadn’t even gone in, and now she was worming her way down the steep embankment from the road to the river. The sun sank under the skyline, and the river turned dark, and Luki felt a chill run through him. “Hey, Luki, c’mon over here, man.” It was Ronny Jemison, the boy that was a bit taller, a bit rougher, a bit meaner than any of the rest. Maybe the leader, if they had been a gang. “We’ve got something for you. C’mon.” Ronny scared him when he was like this. Luki had seen the bully push Little Jimmy down the bank, yank Maria’s hair hard enough to put her on her knees, kill birds and frogs and rabbits—anything that lived—just to be killing. But, scared or not, Luki knew he had to choose: go and fight and maybe get hurt, or be deemed a coward and so get picked on—probably for the rest of his life. So Luki went. Before he quite made it safely to dry land, Ronny smacked him hard in the face with a balled up fist, and yelled one word, spit it at Luki as if it was made of acid and would flay him. “Faggot!” From Delsyn’s Blues SONNY knew he should care a lot more about getting arrested for things he no way could have done, about people breaking in, about all of that. But he didn’t want to care. Luki—obviously—was thoroughly busy with the problem. Let him have it. Sonny had other things he wanted and needed to think about. Like Delsyn dying. Like Delsyn living. Like Delsyn playing the blues. He didn’t want to rush things, so instead of popping the cassette tapes into an old player, he took them to Port Angeles to a shop where they’d convert them to CDs. In the process, he discovered a 16mm tape he hadn’t noticed before. He had that converted to DVD. He successfully ignored Luki’s investigation for another twenty-four hours, then hopped in the ancient F-150 his uncle Melvern had left him as a legacy. After the key didn’t even crank the engine, he took it out of gear and hopped back out, gave the truck a push downslope, hopped back in and popped the clutch. On his way to P.A. to get the finished product, he didn’t think about Delsyn or various crimes. He thought about replacing the starter. He drove through Port Clifton, which wasn’t quite on the way home, to stop at the store. He contemplated something alcoholic to help him through the hard parts. God help him, he once again contemplated dope, but he quickly discarded both ideas and settled for Rocky Road ice cream and a great big tin of Scottish shortbread cookies. Because, he freely admitted to the cashier, he was a little crazy. Making a last stop, he had a raspberry latte at Margie’s. “So, Sonny, why are you driving that rusty bucket?” “Mustang wouldn’t start,” he said, lying and pretty sure Margie could tell. “Well, that’s kind of lucky, don’t you think? I mean, your Uncle Mel would have wanted to go along.” Sonny laughed, and after that Margie found room in her freezer for his Rocky Road and chatted with him—or more accurately, at him—in the old way, not mentioning anything at all about death, murder, jail, dope, Luki, or anything else remotely related except her new PT Cruiser. But then at the end, she gave him another latte, free of charge. “You’re not the only one who misses him, you know. You’re certainly the one who has lost the most, but you’re not the only one who is sad, or hurt, or wondering how to fill up the hole in the world Delsyn left behind.” “You miss him too.” “I do, but I wasn’t talking about me. It’s good to see you in here again, by the way. I still wonder why you drink those silly coffees, though. See you soon, dear, and don’t forget to tell Luki I’ve always got a cup of coffee for him, black and sweet.” Sonny parked the pickup in the yard, refusing the crotchety old thing the right to live in the barn with the Mustang, the Harley, and his auntie’s ridiculous but fragile ’72 Honda Civic. He wasn’t sure why his mood had lightened at least three shades, but he didn’t spend much time thinking about it. He wasn’t really the kind of person to get so very bogged down in misery, and now he had plans. He’d clean up the studio first—the rancid dyes had actually begun to smell up the rest of the house, and his fingers were starting to itch for the touch of silk and wool. Once he had his tools and space in order, he’d know what he wanted to weave. And what a relief. Then he’d watch the DVD. See Delsyn again, he hoped. Hear his voice. Keep loving him, just as if he was alive. Maybe not, but better than nothing at all. In the end, though, he didn’t deal with the studio at all. He let the screen door bang behind him as he ducked into the mud porch. Ignoring the strips of bark and thankfully dead but now useless cochineals, thankful that he’d at least dumped the smelly, spoiled dyes, he walked through to the kitchen to put the ice cream away and pried off the lid of the shortbread tin to eat a cookie. He thought about checking to see if it improved his fake Scottish brogue, but it never had before. The coffee pot was on, the coffee hot and smelling fresh, but Luki was nowhere in sight—not in the kitchen, the bathrooms, the bedroom, etcetera. Sonny thought about looking for him outside, or thought maybe he wasn’t there after all; maybe Rona had come to get him to figure out some legal thing that Sonny refused to notice. But no. His shoulder holster was hanging on the back of the bedroom closet door. He wouldn’t have left it. Without having to think about it anymore, he knew where Luki was. Sonny could move almost silently, and he made it a point to be as quiet as he could on the way back to Delsyn’s room. It wasn’t that he wanted to surprise Luki. He only wanted to see him without the guard he would put up if he knew he was being watched. Maybe not nice, but Sonny didn’t care about that just then. The door to Del’s room was open, the blue walls strangely aglow in the light that poured around the edges of the plywood he’d used to cover the broken window. The small lamp in the corner by Del’s bed had been switched on, and in the circle of light it cast, Luki sat in a T-shirt and striped pajamas, chewing his bottom lip and stroking the wood of Del’s old, now broken, guitar, tracing the scratches and scars on its surface as if reading it like Braille. Of course, Luki became aware of Sonny instantly, and put the instrument down. It took him a minute to look up, and when he did, the look on his face gave away Luki’s feelings—a rare event in itself. Luki grieved. Sonny couldn’t understand now why he hadn’t seen that, expected it, even. The two of them had grown close—Luki and Del. Sonny had been happy for that at the time. “He loved you,” Sonny said. “You sent me away.” “I’m sorry. I couldn’t help it.” Sonny thought of how lame that must sound, but he had no solution and just then he felt overwhelmed with all the things he’d done wrong—even if you just counted the last few days. But he tried to explain. “Luki, it was like… it hurt, but the pain was all I had of him toward the end. Stupid, I know, but I couldn’t share it.” He didn’t know what else to say, so after a moment’s silence, he added, “But I love you. And… will you watch Delsyn’s DVD with me? Want some Rocky Road?” Luki sent him an almost-smile, nodded. “Sure. But hamburgers first. I’ll make ’em. You have to have something solid in your stomach before the shortbread.” “You and your hamburgers,” Sonny said. “And I didn’t say anything about shortbread.” “I need hamburgers to keep my strength up. You’ve got crumbs in your beard.” “I don’t have a beard.” “I know, but if you did, there would be shortbread crumbs in it From Finding Jackie LUKI and Sonny had checked into their hotel room before they went to the market, but they’d only had their bags placed inside the room; they’d never even gone in. They had decided to stay this time at a different hotel altogether, thinking the Fairmont was beautiful but the memories of their previous stay mostly not so good. At the Monaco, they’d been offered the Ambassador Suite, but Sonny had insisted the purple furniture would prevent him from sleeping, so they ended up with the Monte Carlo suite. They walked back to the hotel after their business and pleasure at the market was done, and Sonny sighed. Luki said, “What?” “Nothing,” Sonny said, sounding like a martyr. “It’s just… interesting wallpaper.” “Baby,” Luki said, not understanding at all but willing to go to any lengths to please his man, “If you hate it—” “No, no, I don’t. I mean, it’s not bad—it’s probably even good. I just need to get used to it. The colors in here are gorgeous, truthfully. And you know what?” Luki’s eyes followed his husband, who paced from side to side, peeked around curtains and walls, opened doors. He made a sound, something like “Mm,” knowing Sonny wasn’t really looking for a response, but would appreciate knowing Luki was paying attention. He also smiled. Something about the quirky way Sonny settled himself into a space was too sweet for words. “You know what I need to do, honey?” Luki noted with glee that Sonny had begun to strip. This time, when he said, “Mm,” he didn’t have to feign interest. “I need to get in that bathtub—do you see that thing? It’s like a swimming pool. I need to get in there and soak, all nice and relaxed, and take in that wallpaper until it seems normal to me.” The man is fucking crazy, Luki thought, both disappointed and surprised. Sonny was already in the bathroom, fine-tuning the water temperature. Luki put his hands in his pockets—not a characteristic posture at all, but he was at a loss. He literally jumped when Sonny whooped and yelled. “Yes! There’s bubble bath in here!” Now, Luki was so nonplussed that he sat down on the couch, rather hard. When he tried to think of something he might be doing the only two things that came to mind were jerking off—which he dismissed immediately—and eating a hamburger. He considered the hamburger carefully, decided against, and got up to wander into the strangely wall-papered, thoroughly lavender-scented bathroom. “This is a big tub, Luki.” Luki stepped closer to Sonny and pushed a long strand of dark hair off his chest, letting it join its fellows falling down Sonny’s back. Sonny grabbed Luki’s belt at the buckle and made as if to undo it. “Get in, Luki. There’s room. Look.” He lifted a foot out of the water. “See, my feet don’t even reach all the way to the other side. Not crowded at all.” Luki stood silent, chewing his lip. He wasn’t one for shower play, which Sonny knew. It just reminded him too much of lonelier days. He never took baths, especially bubble baths. And, he really, really didn’t want to smell like flowers. But he loved his husband so much, and there the man was, asking for this simple, little thing. “Luki, take a bath with me. Come on.” Luki started to strip, tossing his clothes back out onto the chair in the bedroom. He was, of course, hard by the time he was naked, which was something Sonny certainly didn’t fail to notice, even though he said nothing. Luki stood there, feeling confused, never before having realized that deciding how to get into a bathtub and situate oneself was so difficult. “Luki, you can just sit on that side, facing me so I can look at your eyes and we can talk. Okay? That way you won’t feel so awkward.” “I’m pretty sure there’s something in that statement I should scold you for, Sonny Bly, I just haven’t figured out what it is,” Luki said while climbing in and turning around and sitting down as instructed. But once he settled, his hands found Sonny’s legs, and he couldn’t help but rub them. And then Sonny found his foot, and as Sonny well knew, Luki’s toes were really sensitive. And Sonny played with them. All the while they looked each other in the eyes. “Luki,” Sonny said, finally, “you don’t play in the shower.” “No. What’s your point?” For answer, Sonny took Luki’s foot and laid it along his own erection, which was one of the sexiest things that had ever happened to Luki. Then Sonny took his size a-very-large-number foot, with its long, nearly prehensile toes, and not too gently stroked it up and down Luki’s cock, and Luki spent a few seconds catching his breath. “This isn’t a shower,” Sonny said. Luki nodded. “Right.” Sonny let a little water out, added some hot to adjust the temperature. “We could fuck here, if we so desired, which I do.” Sonny actually looked hopeful, as if he was a little afraid Luki would say no, or maybe scoff. Luki wasn’t about to do either one. Sonny was the most beautiful, lovable, eminently fuckable person on the planet, and Luki wasn’t about to fail him. As he’d explained to Sonny just the other day, fucking Sonny happy was his personal joy. He licked his lips. “Come here, baby.” Thanks for stopping by! I hope you’ll enjoy Luki and Sonny’s adventures! Filed under just a category, Lou Sylvre, Lou Sylvre Book News, M/M romance, New M/M releases, Vasquez & James Tagged as box set, excerpts, gay romance Coming up… Lou Sylvre’s Vasquez and James Volume 1—3 ebook box set—from Changeling Press I’m excited. Luki Vasquez and Sonny James will be back in town in less than two weeks, June 28, 2019. Same stories so many readers gave and reviewers gave 5 stars. A new edit got rid of some of pesky little errors and updated a Camaro (no really), but the guys, their wild rides through suspense-land, and their loving romance is all there in a brand new bundle. Watch this space for links to the ebook market places. It will go up for preorder and release first on Changeling’s catalog. In this Volume Loving Luki Vasquez — the story that started it all! Renowned but reclusive weaver Sonny Bly James masters color, texture, and shape in his tapestries, but when he meets Luki Vásquez, an ex-ATF agent and all-around badass, his heart and desire spin out of control. The heat between them won’t be denied, but love won’t come easy for beautiful but shy Sonny, and Luki wears his visible and hidden scars like armor against romance. They try to run from lust and love, but soon it becomes clear they have bigger problems. An evil, violent stalker has targeted Sonny, and Luki’s protective instincts take over. When Sonny discovers his beloved nephew is at risk, he must choose to trust Luki’s strength and skills, even though he’d rather stay away and avoid loving Luki Vasquez. United by danger, can Sonny and Luki put fear and anger aside, and fight together to save Sonny’s nephew and their own lives? Delsyn’s Blues — in which a (literal) cliffhanger is narrowly avoided. Devastated by loss, Sonny James listens to a voice singing the blues from beyond the grave. Convinced he’s failed in an all-important life task, he tries to shut out Luki Vasquez and love just when he needs him the most. But when Luki finally breaks through Sonny’s fortress of grief, it’s just in time for the newly reunited couple to face a new, violent, escalating danger. Tensions mount, and suspicion threatens to strain their newly mended love to the breaking point. But no matter what Luki fears Sonny might have done and how it might affect their future, he’s determined to keep the man he loves safe under his watchful eye. Together despite their fears and sorrows, they undertake a wild trip to find a madman, stop a crime spree, and save a friend. If they succeed, can they also save the deep passion and enduring love of their treasured, surprise romance? Finding Jackie — what you do when a mob hit man is bent on revenge. When Sonny James asked Luki Vasquez to marry him, Luki’s “yes” was accompanied by a request—a wedding in Hawaii. Months and many trials later, their hilltop, island ceremony is poignant and funny, and every bit as beautiful as they’d hoped. The honeymoon is all sex, surfing, and sunshine… until the shadow of death and danger finds them once again. This time, Luki decides a badge will help him deal with the threat, a choice that spells discord for the newlyweds. Passion shines through, but soon the darkness deepens: a former informant brings Luki a troubling message from a renowned Mob hit man. Then Luki’s sixteen-year-old nephew, Jackie, is catfished and kidnapped by a sadistic killer, and the honeymoon is well and truly over. Luki and Sonny know love and family are far more important than their lingering disagreement. United in purpose, they struggle to unravel intertwined terrors and follow the threads that might lead them to finding Jackie. The hunt takes them from soup kitchens and leather bars to dusty desert back roads, and relies on all the strengths, talents, and allies they can muster. When it all comes to an ultimate showdown with evil, it’s not only love at stake, but their lives. (And then, in July ride along with Luki and Sonny in volume 2 for more love and more edge-of-the-seat suspense. Filed under Author, just a category, Lou Sylvre Book News, M/M romance, Upcoming release, Vasquez & James Tagged as artist MC, detective, gay wedding, mystery/suspense, Washington State by Lou Sylvre \| December 12, 2018 · 9:00 am The Holiday Home Hotel Blog Tour and Giveaway links! The Holiday Home Hotel release is just around the corner! Silver Dagger Book Tours has organized an amazing tour starting on Thursday, December 13, kicking off at their own site. Below is a list of the many blogs that are a part of the tour – make sure to check back often for updated links to each appearance. In addition, there is also a giveaway through Rafflecopter, which you can find at the bottom of this post or here. The giveaway will run from December 12, 2018 through January 4, 2019, so be sure to enter for a chance to win an Amazon gift card! Silver Dagger Book Tours Lukten av trykksverte Stories That Make You Smile – GUEST POST Secret Cravings Midnight Book Reader Twisted Book Ramblings Missy/Michelle Books, Reviews, Competitions, Blogs – GUEST POST Always Love Me Some Books Blog A Mama’s Corner of the World A Pinch of Bookdust Country Gals Book Blog The Book Dragon Valerie Ullmer \| Romance Author 2 chicks and a book 3 Partners in Shopping, Nana, Mommy, &, Sissy, Too! Maiden of the Pages – GUEST POST Yearwood La Novela Nicole’s Book Musings Readeropolis Books a Plenty Book Reviews Books All Things paranormal and romance Luv Saving Money Sizzling Romance Romance Novel Giveaways Bedazzled By Books Bookish Reviews Tours & Giveaways Book Review Virginia Lee Momma Says: To Read or Not to Read Tracie’s World of Books Pick a Genre Already The Bookworm Lodge Book-Lover books are love Paranormal Palace of Pleasures Scrupulous Dreams Books, Authors, Blogs Books,Dreams,Life Inside the Insanity Kerrific Online SJ’s book blog Stormy Nights Reviewing & Bloggin’ AC Squared Book Blog C Exley Books eBook Addicts Girl with Pen My Chaotic Ramblings Sylv.net Tome Tender Filed under blog hop, Contests, Lou Sylvre Book News Tagged as blog tour, Christmas, drag performer, gay romance, interracial, Kwanzaa, LGBTQ, magical realism, new release, paranormal/contemporary fantasy, Silver Dagger Book Tours, The Holiday Home Hotel, Valentine's Day by Lou Sylvre \| July 22, 2018 · 10:13 am QSF’s Impact Anthology—Honors and Links Chenu stood while six Superior Commons heard his probation report. “Replicator, male, 863. Bioengineered 2813, born 2814. Training 2829 – 2833, Polity Specials Institute.” He withheld a smirk while the virtual voice summarized his education: behavior “poor”—meaning I dared have sex with Common men; training missions “excellent”—meaning I survived. He listened to his distilled life while memories assaulted him. At auction, High-Corporate hadn’t cared about transgressions, only proven ability to traverse the Shatterwall… It’s hard to believe the above snippet is just about a quarter of the whole story, but “Shatter” is the shortest piece I’ve ever written for publication—only 300 words! Small as the story is, it’s a feather in my cap. Not only did it receive an honorable mention, but it was given the special honor of being chosen as one of six judges’ picks out of over 100 stories included in QSF’s Impact anthology. If that wasn’t enough to put a smile on my face, here’s a little of what judge Carole Cummings said: “… You built a full, vivid world in just 300 words, communicated its oppressiveness and questionable humanity, and compelled the reader to observe it, analyze it, and outwit it right along with Chenu. … The characterization was pretty damned adept. You managed to show the reader that Chenu isn’t much for exhibiting feelings—indeed, that Chenu is best off not having any—and yet at the same time, exposed him in a brilliant subtle fashion as someone who does feel and deeply, who deserves better, and man oh man, I for one was so glad he was going for it. The story was engaging, intelligent, and written beautifully. … Altogether, this story is quite an accomplishment… and I hope you take pride in it.” (Thank you Carol, and yes, I do.) And in more good news, the anthology is now available for preorder in paperback and ebook! Here’s the link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1732307520/ I’m looking forward to getting my copy and indulging in a lot of quick but excellent reads. Let’s see… I could read one while my coffee warms up in the micro… while I’m waiting for a science video to load… while I’m waiting for my phone to buzz announcing a Pokémon… while I’m in the checkout line… while I’m on the john… What? It’s the perfect place for a little ‘little’ sci-fi. Filed under awards nominations honors, just a category, LGBTQ+ fiction, Lou Sylvre, Lou Sylvre Book News, Sci-fi, Upcoming release Tagged as anthology, flash fiction, queer sci fi	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line405
__label__wiki	0.952877	0.952877	No more excuses EDITORIAL 04/30/2011 No more excuses Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez has resigned from her post and obviously, Noynoy must be overjoyed by the latest turn of events. He immediately accepted Merci’s resignation. But now that Merci is gone, he may be facing an even bigger hurdle as he no longer has that excuse he always uses to blame his failure to get rid of corruption in his government, due to what he and his allies call their major “stumbling block” now that she has resigned. When scandals start to rock his government too, who else will he be blaming for the corruption?.... MORE Good choice? FRONTLINE Ninez Cacho-Olivares 04/30/2011 Good choice? The Makati Business Club (MBC) is really riding high under the Noynoy administration, what with an additional appointee to the Commission on Elections (Comelec) commissioner in Gus Lagman. Lagman was reportedly apppointed by Noynoy on the strength of his IT credentials. Fine. But his track record — at least during election quick counts in the past — always held a partisan color and this may prove disturbing to many when election time comes. True, Lagman did question the reliability of the precinct count optical scan (PCOS) machines in 2010 as well as the anomalous Mega-Pacific deal during the time of Benjamin Abalos Sr. And Lagman, even as a commissioner, pushes the release of the source code and other documents which Jose Melo and his Comelec commissioners refused to release, despite a Supreme Court order for the Comelec to free these. But it has also been noted that, despite all his and his Namfrel colleagues’ opposition to the PCOS machines, they all seemed to have stopped all complaints after their candidate won the Comelec “unofficial” precinct count that was pretty questionable. Even the provincial and municipal count failed to match the precinct count, as there was a clear 4 to 5 million votes in excess of the official precinct ballot count..... MORE Bosnian Croats feel squeezed in Muslim-shared entity focus 04/30/2011 Bosnian Croats feel squeezed in Muslim-shared entity MOSTAR — More than 15 years since the end of Bosnia’s 1992-1995 war, Muslims and Croats still avoid each other in this picturesque southern town. They were allies against the Serbs during most of the conflict, but also fought each other for a period, notably in the region around Mostar. Under the Dayton settlement they were forced into an autonomous but shared federation, with the Serbs having their own entity, the Republika Srpska. Now demands are building among Croats to be given their own autonomy amid feelings that the majority Muslims are squeezing them out of a voice..... MORE CHR Decision on Fil-Am Activist Case to Perpetuate Impunity – Rights Groups Human rights group Karapatan said that with the CHR resolution, “the crime of torture will have its heyday under the Aquino administration.” The Commission on Human Rights’s (CHR) report on the abduction of Filipino-American activist Melissa Roxas and two others has drawn criticisms from human rights groups. Roxas, a member of Bagong Alyansang Makabayan-USA chapter, and her two companions Juanito Carrabeo and John Edward Jandoc were forcibly taken by armed men on May 19, 2009 in La Paz, Tarlac. Roxas suffered torture for six days before she was freed by her captors. In her affidavit and subsequent testimonies before the CHR and Congress, Roxas maintained that her captors were members of the military. In its recent findings, however, the CHR said there is insufficient evidence to support Roxas’s allegations that members of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) took her and subjected her to physical and mental maltreatment. Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan) bewailed the CHR resolution saying it “practically clears” the military of any wrongdoing. While the CHR resolution states that there is “enough evidence to find that complainant has suffered cruel, inhumane and degrading treatment or punishment by persons unknown,” it also states that there is insufficient evidence to support Roxas’s claim of torture because, according to the rights body, there was not enough evidence to determine the identities of the abductors. Melissa Roxas testifies during the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) investigation on her abduction and torture in 2009.(Photo by Ronalyn V. Olea / bulatlat.com) “In the light of the lack of evidence against the persons who inflicted the physical and psychological maltreatment on the complainant, it is not possible for the Commission to reach any findings on torture, the definition of which includes elements of State party or agent and certain intentions, purposes and motivations,” the CHR resolution said. The same report states: “The CHR has received information that indicates the possibility that members of the NPA committed the kidnapping and other human rights violations on Roxas et al. These sources have been found to be credible. However, no specific names of individuals have been provided to the CHR, thus the Commission, with its limited resources, is unable to further follow up and identify specific persons as the possible perpetrators.”.... MORE URL: http://bulatlat.com/main/2011/04/27/chr-decision-on-fil-am-activist-case-to-perpetuate-impunity-%e2%80%93-rights-groups/ Kin, Writers and Artists Launch Campaign for Release of Detained Poet Ericson Acosta “His works as a writer, poet, thespian, singer and songwriter have remained relevant especially to the succeeding generations of UP activists in and out of the university. His bias for the poor and oppressed dates back to his campus days.” Mrs. Liwayway Acosta is graceful in keeping her pain hidden; but sometimes it becomes too much and tears fall and she struggles to regain her composure. For over two months now, Mrs. Liwayway and her husband Isaias Acosta and have been worried because one of their two children, their son, writer and poet Ericson, 37, had been detained and falsely and maliciously charged with illegal possession of firearms in Catbalogan, Samar. Both mother and father are now at the lead of a campaign pressing for their poet-son’s immediate release. “At least we know that he’s alright and that he’s not being hurt. That was our greatest worry in the beginning. Our son is made of stronger stuff and we know that he’s holding up in prison. This is not the kind of thing that will break Eric,” said Mrs. Acosta. Mr. Acosta in the meantime is the unashamedly proud father. He even has a list of his only child’s achievements since grade school, and at the drop of a hat can enumerate the various literary, theatrical and scientific awards Ericson has received since he was in shorts and attending grade school in St. Mary’s College,and eventually when he went to the University of Sto. Tomas for his secondary education. “He has never been anything but a good son, an intelligent student, and a loving parent to his own son Emmanuel,” said Mr. Acosta. Artists Rally Behind Campaign for Poet’s Release Two weeks ago, the family and Ericson’s friends and former colleagues officially launched the Free Ericson Acosta campaign in Quezon City. It was a reunion of sorts for Ericson’s friends from his university days, and an event that saw some of the most respected names in the Philippines’ literary circles placing their support behind an artist who chose a path of human rights activism. Family, friends and supporters from the art community commit their support to the Free Ericson Acosta Campaign. At the lead are father Isaias Acosta and mother Liwayway (not in picture)..(Photo by Ina Alleco R. Silverio / bulatlat.com) At the time when Ericson was arrested earlier last February 13, he was a freelance journalist documenting the human rights situation in Western Samar. He was arrested in the company of various community leaders from a farmers’ organization who staunchly defended him and affirmed his work as a writer. During the campaign launch press conference, Ericson’s former editor-in-chief in the Philippine Collegian Michael John Ac-ac said that the former had true artist sensibilities and that he, Ericson, honed it through the years by voracious reading, prolific writing and by constantly discovering developments in the cultural scene. URL: http://bulatlat.com/main/2011/04/27/kin-writers-and-artists-launch-campaign-for-release-of-detained-poet-ericson-acosta/ Think Tanks Refute Malacañang’s Arguments Against Wage Hikes “Since July 2010, skyrocketing commodity prices coupled with stagnant wages have eroded workers’ wages in lightning speed, which is unmatched by the previous administration,” said EILER executive director Anna Leah Escresa. As Malacañang thumbs down the demand of government employees in the country for a substantial wage increase, research groups have taken turns debunking government claims that salary and wage hikes are impossible to implement given the current economic conditions. Current Wage Provides Only 41 Percent of What Families Need The IBON Foundation said the value of the daily minimum wage in Metro Manila has dropped and is only able to provide for about 41 percent of the amount needed for a family to live decently. This is less than the figure 10 years ago, in 2001, wherein the minimum wage was about 52 percent of the cost to live decently. According to the IBON Foundation, the daily minimum wage of P404 (US$9.39) is just 2/5 of the estimated average family living wage (FLW) of P988 (US$23) in the National Capital Region (NCR) as of March 2011. The family living wage is defined as the minimum amount needed for a family of six members to meet their daily food and non-food needs plus a 10 percent allocation for savings. The latest living wage estimates are based on the 2008 family living wage computation of the National Wages and Productivity Commission of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE). According to IBON data, the daily minimum wage of P265 (US$6) in 2001 was half of the amount a family needed to live decently, which was then pegged at P509 (US$12). (Photo by Ina Alleco R. Silverio / bulatlat.com) As the DOLE and the wage boards deliberate on whether to give a wage hike next month, the research group urged government to raise wages to a decent level and approximate the wage increase to the estimated family living wage. Nonstop Price Hikes Adding to the urgency of a wage increase, a labor research group said, is the fact that the combined wage increases in the past decade had been totally eroded within only eight months by nonstop price hikes under the Aquino administration..... MORE URL: http://bulatlat.com/main/2011/04/23/independent-think-tanks-refute-malacanangs-arguments-against-p6000-and-p125-salary-wage-hikes/ Media Groups Urge Aquino to Take Concrete Action to Stop the Killings “As we pause from daily routine in this period of spiritual contemplation and renewal, we ask once again that you draw strength from our advocacy to end the impunity that has punished the Filipino people for so long.” MANILA – In an open letter, media organizations called on President Benigno S. Aquino III to take concrete action to put a stop to the killings of journalists. The Freedom Fund for Filipino Journalists, Inc. (FFFJ), a national network of press oriented organizations, together with other media organizations and mass communication professors and students, said the action should “send a signal that the executive will do all that is necessary and within its power to counter impunity.” Six journalists have been murdered since Aquino assumed the presidency. An unidentified gunman shot at broadcaster Miguel Belen of Camarines Sur on July 9, 2010; he later died on July 31. On January 24, Gerardo Ortega was gunned down in Puerto Princesa, Palawan. A woman broadcaster Marlina Flores Sumera was shot dead on March 24. The FFFJ noted that the first two killings are work-related and said that the murder of Sumera could also be work- related..... MORE URL: http://bulatlat.com/main/2011/04/21/media-groups-urge-aquino-to-take-concrete-action-to-stop-the-killings/ Merci resigns By Arlie O. Calalo and Gerry Baldo 04/30/2011 SAYS NATION, INSTITUTION, FAMILY COME FIRST Merci resigns By Arlie O. Calalo and Gerry Baldo 04/30/2011 Catching her detractors by surprise, embattled Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez yesterday personally submitted her resignation to President Aquino 10 days before her impeachment trial at the Senate would have started, earlier scheduled for May 9, when sessions resume. Gutierrez submitted her one-page resignation letter to Aquino around 10:30 a.m. in Malacañang and proceeded to her office in Quezon City where she held a news conference wherein she read a prepared statement regarding her sudden decision to resign from her post. In her letter to the President, she said her resignation will take effect on May 6 or three days before her impeachment trial at the Senate was set to begin. Scheduled to retire in December 2012, Gutierrez stressed that her “undivided loyalty” was to the Filipino people, and not to the former President, although she said she is grateful to the former President for having appointed her to this post.... MORE High court reverses Desierto ruling on behest loans 04/30/2011 High court reverses Desierto ruling on behest loans The Supreme Court has reversed the 1998 ruling of the Office of the Ombudsman as it ordered to indict officials of a local company for an anomalous behest loan it allegedly obtained 35 years ago. The high court’s First Division, through Associate Justice Jose Perez, reversed the findings of former Ombudsman Aniano Desierto who had dismissed the case along with 17 others filed by the Presidential Ad Hoc Fact-Finding Committee on Behest Loans. Desierto dismissed all of these cases on the ground of prescription and insufficiency of evidence. Named respondents in the particular case were Mohammad Ali Dimaporo, Abdullah Dimaporo and Amer Dianalan, stockholders and officers of the Mindanao Coconut Oil Mills (Mincoco), a domestic corporation established in 1974..... MORE Police confiscate guns from Cagayan farmers By Ted Boehnert 04/30/2011 Police confiscate guns from Cagayan farmers By Ted Boehnert 04/30/2011 TUGUEGARAO CITY, Cagayan — Policemen confiscated several firearms believed to be unregistered owned by three farmers in a remote town here last Wednesday, police report said. Senior Supt. Mao Aplasca, Cagayan police director, identified the farmers as Solito Cabbuag, Loreto Cabbuag and Jayson Banad, all residents of Barangay Mauanan in Rizal town, Cagayan Valley province. According to Aplasca, confiscated were M16 Armalite rifle with 14 alloy magazines and 300 live rounds of ammunition, a 12-gauge shotgun with 6 live rounds of ammunition and a .22 caliber pistol with a magazine and 38 live rounds of ammunition. The guns and ammunition were confiscated based on a search warrant issued by Judge Edman Castillo of Tuao Regional Trial Court Branch 11, Tuguegarao City.... MORE URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/nation/20110430nat10.html Know RH, RP bills first before supporting them, urges solon By Angie M. Rosales 04/30/2011 Know RH, RP bills first before supporting them, urges solon Amid the increasing tension between the Malacañang and the Catholic Church on the raging debates over the controversial Reproductive Health (RH) bill or Responsible Parenthood (RP) bill, a senator is appealing to the public to get themselves fully educated to the issue before taking any position on the matter. Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV made the call as he took note of the apparent misconception of some individuals as to the advantages and disadvantages of the bill. “The public is unwittingly supporting the RH bill because they are being led to believe that the measure would control population growth and allow access to contraceptives. “But the thing is, contraceptives can be accessed freely now and the Department of Health (DoH), in fact, has been distributing contraceptives even without the RH bill. Also, there is no provision in the RH bill that would help control the population,” he said..... MORE Over 1 million toddlers enrolled in DepEd’s kindergarten schools By Jason Faustino 04/30/2011 Over 1 million toddlers enrolled in DepEd’s kindergarten schools By Jason Faustino 04/30/2011 Over one million pre-school children signed up during the early registration campaign conducted last January giving the Department of Education (DepEd) a head’s up before universal kindergarten is implemented in all public schools starting June 2011. Education Secretary Armin Luistro said the universal public kindergarten program for five-year-old will give new entrants to basic education the proper preparation on the rigors of schooling. “Studies have shown that school children who went to pre-school are better prepared for schooling and have greater chances of finishing school.” Universal kindergarten is the first step under the 12-basic education programs of the government which aims to prepare high school graduates for the world of work, for college education and for the global arena. “We always say that education is a great equalizer. This universal kindergarten program will do just that as it democratizes access to pre-school education which used to be enjoyed only by those who can afford it in private schools,” Luistro said..... MORE Security at Laperal Compound tightened By Pat C. Santos 04/30/2011 Security at Laperal Compound tightened Concerned over the safety of informal settlers at Laperal Compound in Guadalupe Nuevo, Makati City, Mayor Jejomar “Erwin” Binay has reiterated his appeal to the 400 families whose houses were razed by fire recently to avail themselves of the relocation sites and financial support offered by the city government. This came after Binay ordered the Makati police to enforce tight security measures to prevent residents from rebuilding their houses after a violent confrontation they had with police-backed demolition team. Binay said the compound is a danger zone and forbade residents to return after last week’s fire that razed more than 900 houses and left some 2,700 families homeless..... MORE Good choice? FRONTLINE Ninez Cacho-Olivares 04/30... Bosnian Croats feel squeezed in Muslim-shared enti... CHR Decision on Fil-Am Activist Case to Perpetuate... Kin, Writers and Artists Launch Campaign for Relea... Think Tanks Refute Malacañang’s Arguments Against ... Media Groups Urge Aquino to Take Concrete Action t... Merci resigns By Arlie O. Calalo and Gerry Baldo ... High court reverses Desierto ruling on behest loan... Police confiscate guns from Cagayan farmers By Ted... Know RH, RP bills first before supporting them, ur... Over 1 million toddlers enrolled in DepEd’s kinder... Security at Laperal Compound tightened By Pat C. S...	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line406
__label__wiki	0.629584	0.629584	Merry-Go-Round Marinduque's Moryons Marinduque's Moryons By FLORO M. MERCENE April 5, 2012, 3:55pm MANILA, Philippines — In 1960, when the Marinduque Moryon Festival was one-and-a-half century old, this Lenten practice underwent a transformation. From a highly individualistic, personal pursuit, it became part of a team effort, an attempt by municipal and tourism authorities to regulate and put a semblance of order in an otherwise, disparate, dispersed, unfettered display of cultural and religious observance. Part of the reason is to cater to tourists. The other is an honest-to-goodness desire by scholars and educators to revive an otherwise dying, highly localized ethnic tradition. The old moryon practices, seen by native residents as spontaneous, unrehearsed Lenten jollity, have turned into a ritualized display of religious fervor. History will judge whether the transformation was a positive spin that allows us to enjoy this unique Lenten tradition, or we have simply lost and will never regain the old comical, amusing, unrehearsed way Marinduqueños view their Lenten rites..... MORE Source: MB.com URL: http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/356368/marinduques-moryons Are Holy Week Traditions Fading? By LEO O. LAPARAN II and BRYAN G. VILLASANA MB Research MANILA, Philippines — Traditions die hard, especially when they are rooted in religion and folklore. Filipinos have long observed Holy Week rites, from waving the palaspas on Palm Sunday to joining the pabasa on Maundy Thursday and watching the penitents on Good Friday. But technological advances like smart phones, email, and GPS have changed the cultural landscape and individual lifestyles. Have these changes diminished the fervor for Holy Week rituals? Manila Bulletin Research did random interviews to find out what Holy Week traditions have lost their sway among the faithful..... MORE URL: http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/356413/are-holy-week-traditions-fading Crucifixion 'Star' Nears End Of His Vow By AARON B. RECUENCO Crucifixion 'Star' Nears End Of His Vow By AARON B. RECUENCO SAN FERNANDO CITY, Pampanga – Ruben Enaje is near the end of his 27-year vow. Enaje will be nailed to the cross for the 26th straight year today, Good Friday. The “crucifixion” of Enaje and 20 other penitents has been the high point of the Good Friday observance in Barangay San Pedro Cutud, an event that draws thousands of the devout and the curious to the small village. But the 51-year-old artist feels he is getting too old to continue the ritual. “I can already feel my body complaining,” Enaje told the Manila Bulletin in Filipino. He looked at the huge wooden cross that he keeps in his workplace. “This will be my retirement cross. I put my heart into making this because this will be part of my last performance next year,” he said. URL: http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/356411/crucifixion-star-nears-end-of-his-vow Crucifixion 'Star' Nears End Of His Vow By AARON B...	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line407
__label__cc	0.619704	0.380296	Iron Sulphide glasses? Haven't posted in a while on this batching and color forum but still glad it's here.. So lately I've been pulling quite a bit of cane with Gaffer's "Durissimo Black", pulling again in murrini and then using that in my pieces. It's a steep learning curve to using the stuff, it's SO stiff, it barely feels like glass. I've got a pretty good handle on it now though. It's taken me a while but with some adaptations in process the pulls are now finally feeling almost (almost) like cane pulls with normal duro color in the core. I'm going to be asking John a lot of questions at the class at Penland next month, but just curious if anyone here knows some more about the chemistry. I've heard that this stuff is an Iron Sulphide glass (or Iron sulfate?). I'm not sure if that's correct or not, but I do detect a sulphur-ish smell coming off of the chunks of the bar when I'm working with it. More specifically, it's not just that it smells when it's hot, but more so when I quench parts of it after heating. Even the water in which it's quenched smells afterward. Curious about what's happening here.. Jordan Kube You can melt this yourself. Not as stiff. http://talk.craftweb.com/showthread.php?t=11375 WWUD? Think for yourself. Visit Jordan Kube's homepage! Find all posts by Jordan Kube Do you think there's rosin in Gaffer's version Jordan? I'm also too worried to put sulphur in my furnace here, worried about lingering smells that is.. Even the selenium I've put in melts before seemed to linger afterward. sulfur certainly sticks around. In a reducing atmosphere it smells for a long time. Rosin is not a requisite in a glass like this if you want the beer bottle brown. It's certainly does reduce though. Just remember, Josh, you are made of stardust. Practically a living god. You need not concern yourself with such terrestrial things as the smell of sulphur. Or: To quote Ed Skeels, "It's ok to have a pussy, it's not ok to be one." Or: To quote Father Guido Sarducci "You won't be sorry for long." Totally kidding but I tend to just go for stuff like this. Melt it as is. Last edited by Jordan Kube; 03-15-2019 at 10:13 PM. "You can almost always get it out of the pot" Pete V Thats pretty funny Jordan. I've heard through the grapevine that Lino likes Gaffer's durissimo better than the rosin he used to use. That may or may not be true but I think it's true. Quenching this durissimo doesn't turn the water black or anything like that, not sure if that's an indication of whether or not there's rosin in there. I believe it. It's a great glass but if you add in the duro stiffness it's probably even better. I wonder if John saw this formula and tweaked it. He wasn't working on anything like this when I talked to him in Corning at the GAS conference. Another note, this isn't a casing glass. Blows out garbage just like the duro. Only for cane work, threading, lip wraps etc. Melt it and make it into bar.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line408
__label__wiki	0.755713	0.755713	MUNDIAL - WRCE CHINA - BRC Sexta, 05 Outubro 2018 10:36 \| Actualizado em Sexta, 24 Janeiro 2020 07:53 BRC Racing Team’s fight for WTCR glory continues in China BRC Racing Team continua in Cina la lotta per il WTCR Only seven days after the last race, China will host the eighth round of the FIA World Touring Car Cup 2018 (WTCR). After Ningbo, the city track of Wuhan will be the venue for the latest chapter of the fight for the season’s title, which will be held on October 6th and 7th. Wuhan, the capital of Hubei province, is located on the banks of the Yangtze River, 900 kilometers east of Shanghai. As a centre of the country’s automotive industry it is an important transportation and industrial center. The challenging city circuit is a regular date on the Chinese Touring Championship calendar. However, at only 2.984 meters long, the track offers few overtaking possibilities and is new to almost all the WTCR drivers, including the BRC Racing Team duo, Gabriele Tarquini and Norbert Michelisz. The Hyundai i30 N TCR was one of the fastest cars throughout the previous weekend in Ningbo, but the Wuhan street circuit will be a fresh challenge for the car, drivers and team. The tight confines of the track mean the qualifying sessions will be particularly crucial to the weekend’s strategies and results. The three race format of the WTCR weekend will put a premium on avoiding damage, something especially important for the BRC Racing Team drivers in their battle for the championship. WTCR points’ leader Gabriele Tarquini declares: "The circuit is new for everyone and we do not know exactly what awaits us for the weekend. Only one WTCR driver has raced here before, but the circuit has been resurfaced and modified for this season, so it is a new challenge for everyone. I hope to have three good races and to collect important points for the championship. However, it will be very challenging, given the incredibly competitive nature of series”. Norbert Michelisz says: "Wuhan will be a special place to race at, since it is a completely new circuit for most of us. Because of that it is difficult to have clear expectations, but I expect close racing and an exciting challenge. It will be crucial to finish every race to gather as many points as possible, since from now on every result will have a big effect on the championship. My goal as always is to score the most points available". Round 8 WTCR Race of China 2018 – Wuhan International Street Track All times local (GMT +08:00) FRIDAY 5th OCTOBER 13.00 – 13.30 Free Practices 1 (30 minutes) 10.30 – 11.10 Qualifying (40 minutes) 16.00 – 16.30 Race 1 (18 laps) SUNDAY 7th OCTOBER 9.00 – 9.30 Qualifying Q1 (30 minutes) 10.00 (start first car) Qualifying Q3 15.45 – 16.15 Race 2 (18 giri) OVERALL RANKINGS - DRIVERS 1 – #30 Gabriele Tarquini ITA - BRC Racing Team - HYUNDAI - pt. 241 2 – #11 Thed Björk SWE - MRacing - HYUNDAI - pt. 233 3 – #48 Yvan Muller FRA - MRacing - HYUNDAI - pt. 232 4 – #5 Norbert Michelisz HUN - BRC Racing Team - HYUNDAI - pt. 195 5 – #68 Yann Ehrlacher FRA - ALL-INKL.COM Münnich Motorsport - HONDA - pt. 178 6 – #86 Esteban Guerrieri ARG - ALL-INKL.COM Münnich Motorsport - HONDA - pt.174 7 – #69 Jean-Karl Vernay FRA - Audi Sport Leopard Lukoil Team - AUDI - pt. 166 8 – #74 Pepe Oriola ESP – Campos Racing - CUPRA - pt.165 9 – #12 Rob Huff GBR - Sébastien Loeb Racing - VOLKSWAGEN - pt. 161 10 – #22 Frédéric Vervisch BEL – Audi Sport Team Comtoyon - AUDI - pt. 143 OVERALL RANKINGS - TEAMS 1 – MRacing - HYUNDAI - pt. 477 2 – BRC Racing Team - HYUNDAI - pt. 443 3 – ALL-INKL.COM Münnich Motorsport - HONDA - pt. 358 4 – Sébastien Loeb Racing - VOLKSWAGEN - pt. 269 5 – Audi Sport Leopard Lukoil Team - AUDI - pt. 250 6 – Campos Racing - CUPRA - pt. 191 7 – Audi Sport Team Comtoyou - AUDI - pt. 187 8 – DG Sport Competition - PEUGEOT - pt.148 9 – Boutsen Ginion Racing - HONDA - pt. 79 10 – ComtoyouRacing - AUDI - pt. 61 11 – Mulsanne Srl - CUPRA - pt. 35 12 – Zengo Motorsport - CUPRA - pt. 29 About BRC Racing Team BRC Racing Team is the racing department of BRC Gas Equipment. With a presence in over 70 countries in the world, and a customer portfolio that includes the major car manufacturers, BRC Gas Equipment is a world leader in the production of systems and components for LPG and CNG conversion of vehicles. BRC Racing Team is an integrated project of R&D and Marketing, aimed at promoting the brand and the corporate image through Motorsport. About the Hyundai i30 N TCR Announced in February 2017 the i30 N TCR represents Hyundai Motorsport’s first steps into circuit racing. Built and developed by the Customer Racing department at the team’s headquarters in Alzenau, Germany the car is based on Hyundai’s high-performance i30 N model. Design work for the project began in September 2016, with the first on track test taking place in April 2017. An exhaustive development schedule ended with the i30 N TCR taking victory in its very first race in the TCR International Series at the Zhejiang Raceway in China. Hyundai Motorsport delivered the first cars to customers in December 2017, with teams competing around the world during 2018. About the FIA World Touring Car Cup The World Touring Car Cup is running to new rules and a new name from 2018 as the FIA World Touring Car Cup (WTCR) hits the tracks. Promoted by Eurosport Events, the organisation behind the WTCC, and using the TCR technical regulations – a cheaper and more accessible concept embraced by manufacturers including Audi, Honda, Hyundai, Opel, Peugeot, Renault, SEAT and Volkswagen – WTCR will be contested over 10 weekends in four continents from April to November. Each event will consist of three races and will typically take place over two days. Day one includes a single qualifying and race, while day two is more in keeping with the previous WTCC set-up: a three-phase qualifying and two races with the first race utilising a reverse grid. A maximum of 26 entries will be accepted plus a further two wildcards at each event. Although there won’t be manufacturer teams under cost-cutting measures, several top drivers from the WTCC and other international touring car series are set to take part with the prospect of some extremely close and exciting racing.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line411
__label__wiki	0.61589	0.61589	MUNDIAL - T CR EUROPE - CIRCUITO PAUL RICARD Segunda, 07 Maio 2018 08:09 \| Actualizado em Quinta, 16 Janeiro 2020 07:10 Circuit Paul Ricard, France – 5 / 6 May 2017 RACE 2 REPORT Borković pips Vernay during the final lap Dušan Borković encored his yesterday’s win thank to a perfect overtaking manoeuvre on Jean-Karl Vernay during the final lap of the second race at Le Castellet. An intermittent rain began to fall just while the cars – all on slicks – reached the starting grid and intensified during the first laps, which resulted in a number of drivers spinning or running wide. In these tricky conditions two drivers were in a league of their own: Vernay and Stefano Comini. The Frenchman performed an impeccable drive and took the lead during the first lap; as for Comini he put in a great show at the wheel of his Subaru, elbowing his way through the field from 25th on the grid to fifth. Proceedings were disrupted when Igor Stefanovski crashed heavily, prompting first the safety car and then the red flag. Before action resumed, a few drivers, including Josh Files and Kris Richard elected to change to rain tyres; the bet didn’t pay off as the rain stopped and the racing lines began to dry. Vernay tried his best to maintain the lead, but couldn’t prevent Borković from passing on the final lap. Dániel Nagy finished on the podium once again, third, inches ahead of Francisco Mora. Comini dropped to tenth with the consolation of the last spot into the points behind a group of survivors who filled the places between fifth and ninth: Mikel Azcona (third yesterday), Attila Tassi, Jens Reno Møller (who started from pole), Danny Kroes and Loris Cencetti. With two victories in the opening event, Borković has already built a gap in the standings, scoring 55 points against Nagy’s 36, Azcona’s 29 and Vernay’s 26. The TCR Europe Series’s second event will be held at Circuit Zandvoort, Netherlands, on 19/21 May. Start – Møller makes a perfect start and retains the lead, with Files taking third from Richard to the outside of Turn 1 Lap 1 – Mora runs wide and Vernay passes him and Files; Paulsen goes off the track limits, as does Richard in the tricky conditions; Vernay seizes the lead from Møller. Lap 2 – A spin from Files drops him back to P13; Mora half-spins at Turn 1 and Møller loses three positions in quick succession; Borković moves through the action into second Lap 3 – The safety car is deployed after Stefanovski crashes into tyre barrier Lap 4 – The race is red flagged with the top ten: Vernay, Borković, Nagy, Azcona, Møller, Comini, Potty, Mora, Richard and Tassi Lap 5 – After a 20 minute delay, Vernay makes a textbook restart and keeps the lead, but is forced on the defensive by Borković; Comini and Møller run wide debating 7th Lap 6 – Piro stops out on circuit; Paulsen is also forced to pit; Nagy and Azcona apply the pressure on Borković Lap 7 – Barr and Baldan make contact and retire into the pits; Azcona runs and falls to 5th behind Mora Lap 8 – The top five cars are now split by just 1.7 seconds and running together Lap 9 – In a dramatic final lap Borković takes the lead from Vernay, with Nagy, Mora, Azcona, Tassi, Møller, Kroes, Cencetti and Comini rounding out the top ten Quotes after the second race at Paul Ricard Dušan Borković (winner): “While we had been waiting for the race to resume after the red flag, I was saying myself that I was happy with second place. However, as the track began to dry in the final laps I saw that I could make a move and try to overtake Vernay. On the straight his car was faster, but mine was better in cornering. I made an safe attempt and passed him. I wouldn’t have done this if I thought that there was the lesser risk to spoil our race. I’m super happy, it was a great weekend for myself, Target Competition, Hyundai and Serbia!” Jean-Karl Vernay (second): “I have done all I could. Until the track was wet and slippery I was able to stay ahead, as the car was perfect. But when the racing lines began to dry I knew I had no chance. The Hyundai is far superior by now; I was able to keep Borković at bay until halfway through the final laps, but eventually I could not prevent him from passing me.” Dániel Nagy (third): “It was a crazy race. Before the red flag the track was very tricky and we must be super focused to avoid mistakes. I drove well and was able to move up to third. After the red flag, I began putting the pressure on Borković, but I also had to defend myself from Mora, who was right behind me. In the end I settled with third, another podium, that put me second in the championship. An excellent start of the season.” 2018 TCR Europe Series – calendar 5/6 May – Circuit Paul Ricard, France (International GT Open) 19/21 May – Circuit Zandvoort, Netherlands (Jumbo Racing Days) * 9/10 June – Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Belgium (International GT Open) * 7/8 July – Hungaroring, Hungary (International GT Open) * 18/19 August – TT Circuit Assen, Netherlands (Gamma Racing Days) * 22/23 September – Autodromo di Monza, Italy (International GT Open) 20/21 October – Circuit de Barcelona Catalunya, Spain (International GT Open) ** * With TCR Benelux ** With TCR Benelux and TCR Portugal Further information, results, points and HD pictures at www.europe.tcr-series.com Ange Barde launches limited edition TCR watch Ange Barde is well known as a watch-maker, but also as a passionate high-level amateur racing driver with four European Ferrari Challenge titles and one FIA GT3 World Championship crown under his belt. Being a motorsport connoisseur and fan, he was fascinated by the level of competition provided by the different TCR series and has launched a limited edition of the Ange Barde TCR Watch. “We have established a partnership with TCR, which is a wonderful racing category that involves a long list of important brands, drivers and teams, and provides exciting races all around the world. We are pleased to announce that in association with TCR we will produce a limited edition of 88 watches,” Barde explained while visiting the TCR Europe paddock al Le Castellet. The TCR Watch will be exhibited in the TCR hospitality at all the TCR Europe events and one of these watches is to be a longed-for special prize. “In fact, the winner of the TCR Europe title will be awarded with a TCR watch at the end of the season,” Barde explained. The TCR Watch will be exclusively produced for the TCR organisation. Picture, from the left: Paulo Ferreira (TCR Europe promoter), Ange Barde, Marcello Lotti	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line412
__label__wiki	0.613904	0.613904	Triple Erotica Three friends. Three authors. One passion. Barbie Lez Lesbiality Lexi Lust Sexxi Lexxi FREE Stories! Barbie Lez – Lexi Lust – Sexxi Lexxi It started with a young woman’s odd passion. While other girls were out partying, she locked herself in her room and wrote kinky tales of Sapphic love and bestial lust. For years, her love of erotica remained a secret. But then she read an article that changed her entire life. Using the pen name Barbie Lez, she published a few of her kinky tales. Within 24h, she had sold 7 copies. That was all it took. Somewhat embarrassed by the perversity of her stories, Barbie kept her love of erotica a secret. She told people she was a writer but always managed to keep her friends and family from reading her sexy tales. It took almost two years before her two best friends finally persuaded her to reveal the true nature of her work. To Barbie’s utter amazement, they were not repulsed by the perversity of her imagination. In fact, one of them revealed a matching passion for bestiality. The other was more conservative but nonetheless kept an open mind. Reading a few of Barbie’s stories was all it took. The two friends wanted in. In less than a week, they had each written their first few stories. Coached by Barbie, they picked their pen names and joined the ever-expanding ranks of self-published authors. Lexi Lust went wild and gave in to her love of bestiality. Sexxi Lexxi chose a less direct path, choosing instead to focus on heterosexual erotica. And that’s how Triple Erotica was born. UPDATE: Due to a recent update regarding the erotic themes accepted by major retailers, Triple Erotica has ceased publishing. All previously-released titles are still available for purchase at Smashwords, though a select few are also available at other major retailers. Simply perform a search for the author name or story/series title at your favourite retailer to see if our kinky tales are available there. Please note that Smashwords offers a wide variety of formats including epub, mobi (Kindle), and PDF. 3 FREE Stories + Updates & Coupons!	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line414
__label__cc	0.673239	0.326761	Level: The Legendary City of Salsipuedes Author(s): Juan Carlos Pena Delgado total rating: 5.93 Gameplay & Puzzles Enemies, Secrets Atmosphere, Sound & Cameras Lighting & CC 6 5 6 7 Dimpfelmoser 5 6 6 6 Gerty 6 8 7 7 Jay 6 6 7 7 Jbc21 5 4 5 6 Jose 4 6 5 4 Kristina 8 8 8 8 MichaelP 6 6 8 6 Nomad 6 4 5 7 Phil 7 7 7 8 RaiderGirl 5 7 6 7 Ryan 5 5 6 5 Sash 8 9 7 7 Scottie 3 3 5 4 Tombaholic 5 5 6 5 Treeble 3 3 3 3 Yoav 7 7 7 8 category averages (17 reviews) 5.59 5.82 6.12 6.18 Reviewer's comments "While this is certainly a good attempt to create something visually different with some nice custom texturing, the gameplay comes across as really bland and tedious. Far, far too many labyrinthine corridors, tedious, drawn out mazes, long swims, excessive darkness levels (that spoilt the visual impression) and the piece de resistance: an ultra long monkeyswing that completely destroys the gameplay. I eventually shamelessly flew past it after reloading too many times for other reasons, and overall it definitely outstayed its welcome. Give it a go if you like, but I can't say it particularly appealed to me." - Ryan (27-Nov-2018) "There is actually a lot of gameplay involved here, but despite that you get the feeling that this is a bad level. And boy it is confusing! Right off the start there are too many places to go and soon you stumble upon the horrible monkey swing maze. It is very frustrating when you can't see the bottom and just go ahead hoping you will come to a spot that is not a dead end. And guess what there is an underwater maze that is equally confusing. Besides mazes the whole level takes place in ugly corridors, halls and underwater pools and I didn't understand what I was doing or where I was going because they all looked the same. I also found creepy catatonic ninjas that looked like the legendary city of mazes petrified them with fear as they realized there was no way out. In the end I came upon a door locked with a star which I had not found but it wasn't needed to finish the game. It is author's debut level so some of the mistakes are normal and he actually created a lot of custom textures which is a cool thing. This level is an effort but unfortunately an ugly and boring one." - Nomad (19-Sep-2016) "Boy, this is dark in places. The builder has used some weird and wonderful custom textures (when you can actually see them), so marks for originality. The gameplay however is too reliant on maze like corridors and, at one point, a ridiculously extended monkey swing just became a complete chore. I can't honestly say I enjoyed it all that much, but perhaps you should make up your own mind, as this is definitely a bit of a one-off." - Jay (01-Jul-2016) "Really a good effort from this author to build this long and complex level, but I got no fun exploring a lot of dark mazes avoiding traps and pulling levers. The secrets are a good part of the gameplay here and the builder could avoid the backtracking placing some cameras here and there, but he didn't. The lights? In many rooms there are not lighting, simply black rooms where it's very difficult to advance even using a lot of flares. The textures are often elongated and repetitive. Sorry but not recommended." - Jose (04-Dec-2015) "I have not found a town here. But immediately at the beginning a maze. And because it is pitch-dark at many places and one immediately does not find Flares, just the guns must donate a little light. Also I have found a forever long monkey swing. One could say, that this is a monkey swing maze. And an underwater maze awaits to explore. And when one finds even more dark places, then it's not so bad any more, because one has picked up some flares in a meanwhile. And the missing tip for a lever? Who supposes there, that he opens a door at maze in the beginning, lies exactly right. And at least once one could mean, that the author has not build this level to the end. It's also strange, that some of the baddies do not move. The level is not bad. That's not. The textures are processed cleanly and many rooms look really good. But here fits the saying "More illusion than reality". Anyhow it does not give so properly pleasure to play this level. Result: Not really recommended" - Scottie (07-May-2009) "I'm not sure what possessed me to give this older, relatively obscure level a try, but that's what I did. As other reviewers have mentioned, this is a fairly crude effort with nothing out of the ordinary in the gameplay department, and I found those monkey swings near the end to be unforgivably tedious. Fortunately, Lizard Queen has already done all the work and written a walkthrough that guides you through all the tedium so you don't have to proceed by trial and error. Still, you get more than an hour of playing time with a download of less than a single megabyte, and such bargains are rare these days. Too bad this builder stopped after only two releases, as he probably would have been among our favorites had he stuck with it." - Phil (11-Feb-2009) "At first, I wasn't going to play this level because I had played it before and dumped it shortly after, but since there's an extensive walkthrough available, I did play it. I followed the walkthrough to the letter, however, because I honestly do not like HUGE mazes, often underwater and overuse of shadows. Not only I had to tune up my monitor to the maximum brightness/contrast settings, I also ended up running a calibration wizard to make the gamma even brighter, and yet I had to use a dozen or so flares. Gameplay is often reduced to getting lost in the maze, levers, puzzle pieces and doors and a loooooong monkeyswing. If not for the walkthrough, like I said, I'd have dropped it again. I do NOT recommend this level at all, unless you're a sucker for mazes and ran out of levels. Mind you -- the level is even called "city of get-out-if-you-can", and I'd add a "stand-it" to that title! 35 minutes, 2 secrets. 08/07" - Treeble (10-Aug-2007) "What an extraordinary level. First look shows new textures and it looks good all through the level we see new textures some not so great some good looking. A kind of mix between Egyptian and Oriental. The name Salsipuedes doesn't ring a bell so is this an ancient Eastern city or a figment of Juan Carlos's imagination. Juan seems to have a fixation for mazes I seem to have been running around corners an awful lot the monkey swing one was interesting though very long and a little hard on the fingers. Enemies are ninjas mummys and scorpions but it seems there weren't many of them what I remember most are those mazes. There was another tall room with lots of ropes to swing on that was good. At last I came to what I believe should have been a block pushing puzzle but all I saw were butts that were easy to run around so that was a let down. Definitely worth a look at even now three and a half years later." - CC (01-Nov-2004) "I personally do not like to play maze levels but this one was little different from the others. Not hard gameplay in some rooms and I liked the nice paintings on the wall there but in other rooms it was dark. Only three Objects to find! Big party to the players that love and want to play in a maze. Easy level LOL." - Yoav (05-Jan-2004) "I liked the new textures throughout the level that reinforced the location of the level, but I thought there was just too much work to get the Eye pieces including the longest monkey swing ever, an underwater room that was hard to get through with all the blocky areas to get around, other mazes including underwater ones, poison darts, boulder traps with spikes when you slide down one of the many tunnels and traps including spikes that come from nowhere. My favorite thing was the rope swing over the pool of deadly liquid and I usually hate rope swings. Overall everything was just too overwhelming visually for my tastes. I found three secrets, one of which included the Hand of Orion." - RaiderGirl (13-Feb-2003) "Once you made it past the horrible monkey swing maze (which beats the crawl maze in terms of tedium) gameplay picks up a bit but there are many long climbs along the way and also a couple of underwater mazes to live through. Juan tried to create something new here with a rather unusual use of textures but most of the time it doesn't work very well as the lighting is not that atmospheric and in places the design seems a bit arbitrary. Just when you think you might gonna like this level you stumble into another maze or a booby trap so when I finished after more than an hour I was kind of relieved to be out of it. On the upside the enemies are placed rather well (I particularly like the three scorpions who were stepping down the stairs in perfect sync) although some appear out of thin air the boulder traps provide a bit of excitement and the jumps were fun. If only there weren't so many boring bits in between." - Dimpfelmoser (20-Nov-2002) "Half way through this level I thought what is this are we now contesting about who can make the weirdest textures? Don't know if this level would win but it has them and then some. You start on a block and 4 different opening you can choose from. It doesn't matter as they are connected one way or the other. Main goal is getting the two pieces of the eye and a Hand of Orion. The Hand is placed very tricky so look first before you jump into the water. And also using the hand there is more than the eye sees. For the rest this was dark and I mean dark. At some places you can't even see without flares. For the rest there are mazes and there are mazes a bit boring in my opinion though. The place where you have to place the Eye needs a long very long monkey climb the same you probably did before but this one goes even further. Poor Lara I felt for her and her arms. Enemies are ninjas and scorpions I had some of those beasties jumping a block and even walking on deadly water. This author must have put a lot of work in this level sadly it doesn't pan out. Found 3 secrets. 27-09-2002" - Gerty (01-Oct-2002) "This started off with four dark curving hallways branching off from a small central point and it ended up being one of the most maze like levels I have ever played. I finished this in just over an hour but I realized I had missed exploring some areas there are exit chutes and I missed exiting one which in this level is an extremely easy thing to do so I had to backtrack to find it's entrance. The gameplay is quite interesting but often confusing texturally it was quite average apart from some cartoonish pictures one main one of a sinister looking man that just gave me the creeps and it is sadly a little too dark throughout although enough flares are supplied. I have to say though this is a really inventive level but when I finally completed it I was mentally exhausted oh yeah and what's with the topless woman at the end!" - Sash (21-Jun-2002) "Uff what an exhausting level indeed. Many maze like areas mostly also quite dark and the longer it took the more annoying it became for me to search high and low again on what I had missed in order to progress. There are a few minor technical bugs some nice custom textures a few rolling balls mummies scorpions and ninjas etc etc but the level just did not click with me. Too much work for not enough in return." - Michael (21-Jun-2002) "If you like doing your raiding by flare light give this one a shot as much of the level is quite dark. A debut level it consists of a retextured tutorial level with some other parts tacked on. Most of the additional parts are mazes - dark mazes underwater mazes monkey swing mazes (this last particularly tedious as it's impossible to see what's below as you swing through the very long maze). This coupled with many long ladder climbs add up to a very dull level. The textures range from interesting to just odd but at least an effort was made to do something different. I would recommend playing the author's following level (Christian Muslims Buddhists and Others) and leaving this one alone." - Tombaholic (21-Jun-2002) "This is probably a debut! And after all it's not so bad: the author tried to combine many animations and actions like swimming through an underwater maze monkey swinging jumping over deep gaps spike ball thrill... But there is not so much originality and action. This monkey swing passage is terribly long and no camera shows you where to go or where to land... Many passages are just a retextured version of the TRLE tutorial. Some efforts have been done in making new textures but these tiles with the spooky mummy are everywhere like posters for a concert and the surprising effect you get at the beginning rapidly fades... Some parts also miss textures. Baddies also appear out of nowhere like ghosts (was it intentional?). I suppose that this was the author's first attempt in editing and I encourage him to persevere especially if he intends to make custom textures (and objects?) in order to improve the atmosphere." - Jbc21 (21-Jun-2002) "Wow! One big maze ring a bell. Lara is in the middle of a maze which has different directions that lead to either pick ups or a way to proceed through this level. Your goal is to find two pieces of the Eye and end the level. The textures as the author has used in levels newer to this one are unique and a nice sight. The many dark spots too dark even for a flare sometimes are making the navigation through the level difficult. Enemies are coming from different spots although one of them behind the double doors just stands there I can't really say if it's a mistake or not. Some mummies are appearing also but they are not much of a threat. Another task quite complicated is the underwater maze your way to reach the second piece of the Eye. I really liked the way the player was returning to the initial point after a task has been accomplished. The secrets are clever and maybe you have to get back and choose another route from the one you first chose. The many climbable long ladders though wasn't the best choice after a while they start to annoy you. One thing that got me searching forever was the room which I had to place the Eye because of the long monkey swing I had to do and the crossed hallways while hanging but it's not very hard I admit though I needed help to finish. I got the hand and therefore was able to access one more secret room which contained the crossbow and some ammo. Nevertheless I would recommend it and don't be afraid of the mazes they are not so complicated to get lost for days in them but they are not the easiest ones you have ever seen either." - Kristina (21-Jun-2002)	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line415
__label__wiki	0.77783	0.77783	Iran nuclear chief meets acting IAEA chief, complains of Europe failure to meet JCPOA commitments Iran’s nuclear chief has criticized the European signatories to a 2015 nuclear agreement for failing to honor their legal commitments to Tehran, adding that the multinational accord is “no one-way street.” Head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) Ali Akbar Salehi made the remarks in a meeting with Acting Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Cornel Feruta in Tehran on Sunday. The European Union was supposed to “fill the vacuum” created by the US’s withdrawal last year from the Iran deal, but unfortunately it has failed to keep that promise, Salehi said. The deal “is no one-way street; it was supposed to be a two-way path,” the senior Iranian official added. Iran says its oil tanker discharged cargo despite pressures The spokesman for Iran's Foreign Ministry says despite all acts of sabotage by the United States, the Iranian tanker Adrian Darya 1 has discharged its oil cargo and is now berthing at a Mediterranean port. “We had already said that we would sell our oil one way or another and acts of sabotage would have no effect on our plans,” Abbas Mousavi said while speaking to IRNA on Sunday. The Iranian diplomat noted that measures taken by the United States to confiscate the tanker contravened international regulations, including the law of the sea and regulations of the International Maritime Organization. Bolton ‘eager’ to see IAEA report on Iran amid Feruta’s visit US National Security Adviser John Bolton has commented on the acting IAEA chief’s visit to Iran, making false accusations against Tehran with no evidence. In a tweet on Saturday, the hawkish US official accused Iran of “concealing nuclear material and/or activities,” amid the visit by the acting chief of the agency, Cornel Feruta. Netanyahu trying to push US into war against Iran in favor of Israel: Expert An American author and Middle East expert tells Press TV’s The Debate that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is trying to have the United States wage a war against Iran. The Israeli premier “and the hard right-wing Zionist extremists in Tel Aviv [are] trying to get the US to fight Iran for the benefit of Israel,” Kevin Barrett said on the program from Madison, Wisconsin on Saturday. He cited an article published by The New York Times Magazine earlier in September, which had blamed Netanyahu for being “behind the US’s enmity with Iran.” US threatens to sanction anyone fueling Iran tanker Washington has threatened to blacklist anyone who helps fuel an Iranian vessel already sanctioned by the US administration. Iranian-operated supertanker Adrian Darya 1 (formerly Grace-1) was blacklisted by the US last month. Its captain was offered several millions of dollars to pilot the ship to a country that would impound the vessel on behalf of the US. Netanyahu Fighting for His Political Life New elections were called after Netanyahu failed to cobble together enough support for reelection as prime minister. He remains interim PM. On September 17, Israelis go to the polls again to elect a prime minister and Knesset members. Ten parties are competing for seats. Polls show Netanyahu-led Likud and Benny Gantz/Yair Lapid’s Blue and White party are each projected to win 31 of 120 Knesset seats, according to polls. Throughout Jewish state history, Israeli coalitions governed, no single party ever winning a majority on its own. Today extremist right-wing parties dominate Israel’s political landscape, reflecting hardline rule, democracy pure fantasy as in the West. Netanyahu is desperate to retain power ahead of an October pre-indictment hearing on bribery, fraud, and breach of trust charges, strong evidence against him. One has to wonder; Netanyahu has exactly 8 days in which to create some kind of war which might, under some circumstances, possibly postpone the elections until he feels he has a "safe majority" of coalitions which will protect him, or create an all-out war against Gaza, Iran, and Lebanon, hoping he looks "butch enough" to win the next elections. However, the Israeli price in blood and money spent for such operations, looks terribly steep, from where I sit; I would respectfully and sincerely caution Prime Minister Netanyahu not take this road. Your people are emotionally exhausted by the steady diet of fear and anger, when there are so many other options which could be pursued, in the name of peace, and prosperity, for both Israel, and all other neighboring countries in the region. Hezbollah Shoots Down Israeli Surveillance Drone Over South Lebanon Two weeks after the first significant Israel-Hezbollah exchange of fire since the 2006 war, Hezbollah announced Monday it has downed another Israeli drone in southern Lebanon, The Washington Post reports. A Hezbollah media statement said the group had "confronted" the Israel drone with "appropriate weapons" near the southern town of Ramiyeh, indicating the small drone was shot down. The paramilitary group now has the drone in its possession. However, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) denied its surveillance drone was shot down, only saying it had crashed in the pre-dawn hours of Monday morning. The IDF affirmed it had been conducting a reconnaissance mission in the area. It appears that Hezbollah is gaining quite a large degree of sophistication in terms of taking out Israeli drones; one has to wonder just what Israel's next move here will be, because they have always stated that their military superiority over Hezbollah cannot be overcome. It appears that Hezbollah... has proven Israel wrong. Israel Launches Unprovoked Attacks: Uses Its Firepower, Far And Wide Israel recently has been expanding its military attacks across much of the Middle East, hitting multiple countries. The aggressive campaign far outpaces anything any adversaries of Israel have been doing to it, or even trying unsuccessfully to do to it. Over the past two years Israel has used combat aircraft to conduct scores of attacks in Syria. Israel has stayed silent about most of this campaign of bombardment, but when it speaks it says the targets it hits are associated with Iran. The most recent widening of Israel's assaults have involved Lebanon, including drone attacks on facilities in suburban Beirut associated with Hezbollah ... The most dramatic geographic widening of the Israeli assault came last month with multiple attacks, reportedly conducted with F-35s, in Iraq - which, of course, does not even border Israel. US offered ship captain money in bid to seize Iranian tanker in Gulf: Report US representative for Iran offered 'several million' to captain of Iranian ship seized off Gibraltar, Financial Times reports. A senior US State Department official offered money to the captain of an Iranian tanker that was seized off the coast of Gibraltar in early July as part of the Trump administration's "maximum pressure" campaign, the Financial Times newspaper reported. Brian Hook, the US special representative for Iran, offered "several million dollars" to the captain of the Iranian Grace 1 vessel, which was detained off the coast of Gibraltar on 4 July amid suspicion it was going to deliver oil to Syria. Hook sent an email to captain Akhilesh Kumar four days before Washington imposed sanctions on the supertanker in August, the Financial Times reported on Wednesday. Either Captain Akhilesh Kumar is a true Iranian patriot; or he had very clear understanding of what would happen to him, and his family, should he have taken US deal. US State Dept Program Offers $15 Million for Info on Iran Revolutionary Guards The US State Department has unveiled a new $15 million “reward program” for anyone who provides information on the financial inner workings of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard, in an attempt to further disrupt them. The program comes after the US declared the Revolutionary Guards “terrorists,” but remains very unusual, in as much as it targets an agency of a national government instead of just some random militant group. Some analysts say they expect a backlash against the program, as further harming European and other international diplomatic efforts with Iran. US Special Envoy Brian Hook insisted, however, that the US wasn’t trying to harm diplomacy. Heavenly Ned, with all the monies already allocated to it, is this the BEST the State Department can do?!? State Department, please; this is a moment when you should be collectively hanging your heads in shame. Of course, people who work at the State Department have had shame, or any sense of conscience, surgically removed before they accepted their jobs. U.S. Intensifies Pressure Against Iran, Targets Oil Tanker Network US Offers Iranian Tanker Captain Millions To Hand Over Ship The United States offered millions of dollars to the captain of an Iranian oil tanker currently at the center of a diplomatic spat, according to the Financial Times and confirmed to the AFP by the US state department. US special representative to Iran, Brian Hook, emailed the captain of the Adrian Darya 1 about sailing the vessel to a country willing to impound it on behalf of the Trump administration. "I am writing with good news," reads the email from Hook to captain Akhilesh Kuma, after which Hook offered to pay millions of dollars if he were to turn over the ship. Kuma did not respond. Iran’s Legitimate Ballistic Missile Program Solely for Defense by Stephen Lendman (stephenlendman.org – Home – Stephen Lendman) US, NATO, Israeli missiles and other weapons are used time and again for naked aggression. Judge them by their actions, warrior states, global menace nations, threatening everyone everywhere. The Islamic Republic of Iran never attacked another country preemptively. It’s the leading regional proponent of peace and stability. It’s targeted by the US for regime change because of its sovereign independence, support for Palestinian rights, and its vast hydrocarbon resources Washington seeks control over. It’s also Israel’s main regional rival, the Jewish state and the US wanting pro-Western puppet rule replacing its sovereign independence. By MEE staff Published date: 4 September 2019 17:21 UTC Last update: 17 hours 23 min ago Israel said again mulling raid on Iran; thinks Trump, unlike Obama, won’t oppose Israeli officials are currently considering the possibility of conducting a military strike on Iran, with or without the approval of the United States, The New York Times reported Wednesday. They believe US President Donald Trump could decide not to stand in the way of such an attack, unlike his predecessor Barack Obama, the paper reported Wednesday in an exposé that detailed the lows and highs of the Israel-US relationship in the face-off against the Islamic Republic over the past decade. “Once again, more than a decade after they first raised the subject with American officials, Israeli officials have been considering the possibility of a unilateral strike against Iran,” said the report. “Unlike with Bush and Obama, there is greater confidence that Trump wouldn’t stand in the way." ‘Stop imitating Thanos, Trump!’ Tehran blasts US for sanctioning its space agency Iran’s technology minister has compared US President Donald Trump to an intergalactic comic book supervillain after Washington blacklisted the nation’s space exploration program. “I can’t even locate the US in this picture, let alone sanctions on Space! The universe & #BrightFuture belong to everyone, not to a few!” Minister of Information and Communications Technology Mohammad-Javad Azari Jahromi tweeted on Tuesday, along with a picture of a nebula. "Stop imitating #Thanos, Donald Trump!" The official did not clarify in what way, according to him, Trump was ‘imitating’ the intergalactic Marvel supervillain, who is known for snapping half the population of the universe out of existence. However, the tweet came after the US slapped sanctions on Iran’s space agency. Iran's One Condition For Negotiating With Trump UNITED STATES IMPOSES MORE SANCTIONS ON IRAN The United States imposed sanctions on Iran's civilian space agency and two research organizations on Tuesday, saying they were being used to advance Tehran's ballistic missile program. The U.S. Treasury sanctions targeted the Iran Space Agency, Iran Space Research Center and the Astronautics Research Institute, according to a statement on its website. "The United States will not allow Iran to use its space launch program as cover to advance its ballistic missile programs," Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in a statement. He said Iran's Aug. 29 attempt to test a space launch vehicle underscored "the urgency of the threat." IRAN UNVEILS ANOTHER NEW DRONE AS PART OF GROWING ARSENAL Iran publicly unveiled yet another new drone on Sunday, part of its growing arsenal of locally produced drones and munitions. The Islamic Republic has been on a surge recently in terms of showing off new military technology. It showed off a new radar on August 10 and a new missile defense system on August 22. Stuxnet virus attack details emerge as Israel eases cyber weapons sale restrictions The Stuxnet virus that decimated Iran’s nuclear program was introduced by a Dutch mole working with the CIA and Mossad, intelligence sources claimed, as Israel is shopping its cyber weapons to anyone with cash to buy. An Iranian engineer was recruited by the Dutch intelligence agency AIVD, acting under the direction of the CIA and Mossad, to infect some 2,000 Iranian nuclear centrifuges with the catastrophic Stuxnet virus, which set that country’s nuclear program back years, according to intelligence sources who spoke to Yahoo News. The mole, who posed as a mechanic, reportedly provided data that was critical to helping the virus’ developers shape their code to specifically target the systems at the Natanz plant where it was ultimately unleashed, then helped get the virus onto the plant computers using a flash drive. One Last Ceasefire Before Oblivion for Jihadists in Syria If the battle is won, in essence, and the jihadists on the run, why call a ceasefire now? Simple. Turkey needs to be able to recall its troops from the area and disengage with the rebels it has been backing there for years. That was what Erdogan bargained for in Moscow, the lives of his troops. That should tell you how serious Putin is about retaking Idlib and how little patience he has now for Erdogan’s nonsense. Scott Adams: Gun Crimes, #FentanylChina Comments at: https://twitter.com/ScottAdamsSays/status/1168161930109865986?s=20 President Trump’s joke-jab tweet about Iran’s rocket explosion Banning Muslim immigration… …till we figure out what’s going on Should we ban gun sales to white males under age 50… …till we figure out what’s going on? Straight-Pride Parade yesterday Is “pride” the wrong word? 340,000 Chinese students currently studying in the US Send 1 home for each American Fentanyl death? Rep. Max Rose proposing sanctions on China for Fentanyl Joe Biden’s forgetfulness and older candidate mental concerns The polls are clear… Any Democrat candidate can beat President Trump Does ANYONE really believe that? @Teachable has tools for creating a class you can post online One class creator made $550,000 in ONE DAY “Life Strategies”, skills benefiting people in the workplace Iranian Tanker Prepares To Offload Oil To Syria-Bound Ships France Cucks Trump, Invites Iran Back to Nuclear Deal By: typeviic G7 summit: Trump 'would meet Iran's Rouhani if circumstances right' Relations between Iran and the US have deteriorated since Washington withdrew last year from a 2015 deal to limit Iran's nuclear activities. However, on Monday, Mr Trump said he had "good feelings" about the prospect of a new nuclear deal with Iran. "Iran is not the same country it was two and a half years ago when I came into office," he told reporters at a joint G7 press conference with French leader Emmanuel Macron. "I really believe that Iran can be a great nation... but they can't have nuclear weapons," he said, adding that they had to be "good players" before he would agree to a meeting. Earlier on Monday, Mr Rouhani said he was ready to meet anyone if he felt it would benefit Iran. Lebanon's President Announces Israeli Attacks Are "Declaration Of War After pro-Iran allies in Lebanon, Syria and Iraq were all hit in suspected Israeli strikes in the space of less than 24 hours, signalling a new aggression out of Tel Aviv and willingness to risk yet another major Middle East war, Arab capitals are now alerting their armed forces to be on a war footing. Lebanese President Michel Aoun on Monday condemned the "Israeli assault on the southern suburbs of Beirut" and told the country's United Nations Special Coordinator, that the recent spate of drone strikes on Lebanon amount to a "declaration of war". One had to be living under a rock, not to have seen this coming. And the timing, in terms of Israeli elections, couldn't possibly be more transparent. As we understand, the next Israeli elections will happen as follows: Israeli Elections will happen on 17 September, 2019, and all 120 Knesset seats are "up for grabs". That's a whole 24 days from today, folks. I'm almost surprised that Netanyahu didn't order Israeli media to livestream these attacks, with a heavy rock beat in the background, so the Israeli people would just fall on their knees in admiration of how "butch" he and the Israeli military are, and then loop them, with nothing else allowed to be shown on Israeli media, prior to September's election. And I also have to wonder; was President Trump advised of these attacks beforehand; or only when they were already a "fait accompli"?!? It very clearly appears that this hubristic megalomaniac, is perfectly comfortable in starting a regional, or world war, just to save his backside as Prime Minister. People are generally reluctant to change leadership, in the middle of a shooting war, and that is the general reality, upon which Netanyahu is betting right now. And do not think, for one millisecond, as the 2020 US campaign lurches forward, and devolves from Russiagate to "Racistgate", that President Trump, and the US will not be called upon to defend the allegedly "only democracy in the Middle East". This is, of course, an absolute crock of codswallop, for those who unthinkingly wish to swallow it whole. SECRETIVE WARFARE TRAINING BEING STAGED IN 21 NORTH CAROLINA COUNTIES, ARMY SAYS SOURCE: WBTV.COM NORTH CAROLINA (Mark Price/Charlotte Observer) - A series of Special Forces military training exercises -- including gunfire with blanks -- is being staged across 21 North Carolina counties starting Aug. 30, and the Army is telling the public not to be alarmed at the suspicious-looking activity. Known as Robin Sage training, the unconventional warfare exercises can be likened to live-action role playing in the extreme, with hostile engagement playing out between Special Forces students, volunteer civilians and soldiers out of Fort Bragg. It continues through Sept. 12, said a press release. Heavily populated counties like Wake, Cumberland and Union counties are among training sites, according to the U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center at Fort Bragg. The students will match wits with more seasoned soldiers, who will “act as realistic opposing forces and guerrilla freedom fighters,” officials said in a release. It is pretty obvious, considering the urban nature of such training, that these exercises are leading up to some kind of decap strikes in the very near future; one has to wonder...against whom, and what hostile urban area, is the US's next "target"!?!?!? I would politely suggest, that such a target is also in Israel's crosshairs, because at this moment in time, President Trump will not sneeze, unless he has permission to do so, from Tel Aviv. Hell, President Trump has already been informed that Israel will be targeting alleged "Iranian forces" in Iraq; so color him impotent to prevent any Israeli military mischief in Syria; Lebanon; or Iran. And since these countries have been on Israel's "to do" list for the longest time, please consider that it may be any one of these countries for which the US military is preparing to decap strike next. However, there is one issue which I strongly urge the US government to consider, particularly in the case of Iran, which has had a close ongoing relationship with Russia for some time. The following statement was made by a senior Russian official, during a diplomatic session: Iran will not be alone, if the US attacks The article goes on to state: “Iran will withstand this type of fight and Iran is not alone,” Zamir Kabulov, the Foreign Ministry’s special envoy for Asian countries including Iran, said at a Russian-Iranian policy forum in Moscow." War with Russia?!? Over...Iran?!? Folks, this is precisely the scenario at which we are looking, should the US government order a decap strike against Tehran. US Officials Confirm Israel Behind Unprecedented Airstrikes On Iraq In an unprecedented escalation which could reshape alliances in the Middle East, American officials have confirmed that Israel was behind an airstrike on an Iraqi ammunition depot operated by a pro-Iran militia last month, according to The Associated Press: Two American officials said Israel carried out an attack on an Iranian weapons depot in July that killed two Iranian military commanders. The U.S. officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the matter with the media. The admission comes after two more mystery explosions rocked paramilitary bases in and around Baghdad within the last two weeks, resulting in multiple paramilitary members killed, at least one civilian death, and dozens of injured, and which prompted Iraq's Prime Minister Abdul-Mahdi to close the country's airspace to all “unauthorized flights" One has to wonder if Prime Minister Netanyahu BOTHERED to let President Trump know this was happening, or only AFTER it was already a "fait accompli". Iranian Tanker Showdown Heads To Turkey The Iranian tanker which had been detained for the past five weeks in Gilbraltar has suddenly switched its ship data to show it is headed to a Turkish port, instead of arriving at waters off southern Greece, as previously planned. Reuters has cited real-time ship tracking website MarineTraffic to show the change in the Adrian Darya's (formerly called Grace 1) destination. This after the US State Department threatened that should Greece provide any aid or facilities to the vessel carrying 2.1 million barrels of Iranian oil, it would be tantamount to "material support to terrorism". The Unites States says the tanker is controlled by the Iranian Revolutionary Guards and thus deems any state's interaction with it support of a formally designated terrorist group. There's still an active US seizure warrant for the vessel. Folks, the excrement is about to hit the ventilation shaft, big-time, and quickly. The US is already officially annoyed with Turkey's invasion and creation of a "buffer zone" which is supposed to help Syrians in Turkey return to their homeland. The successes of Russian diplomacy in the Middle East The political changes which have been transforming the Middle East for the last two months are not the result of the destruction of any of the protagonists, but the evolution of the Iranian, Turkish and Emirati points of view. Where the military might of the United States has failed, the subtlety of Russian diplomacy has succeeded. Refusing to comment on the crimes of one party or the other, Moscow is slowly managing pacify the region. Lindsey Graham’s Blank Check. Why a Defense Agreement with Israel Would be a Disaster for Americans Two world wars began because of unconditional pledges made by one country to come to assistance of another. On July 5, 1914, Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany pledged his country’s complete support for whatever response Austria-Hungary would choose to make against Serbia after the June 28th assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria by a Serbian nationalist during an official visit to Sarajevo, Bosnia. This fatal error went down in history as Germany’s carte blanche or “blank check,” assurance to Austria that led directly to WW I. Iran unveils new long-range missile defence system as President Rouhani warns 'talks with the US are useless' Iranian Version of Russia's S-300 Missile Shield Unveiled Bavar 373 was unveiled in a ceremony participated by Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and Defense Minister Brigadier General Amir Hatami. "Bavar 373 is the most important indigenized missile defense system whose design and manufacturing started a few years ago and can engage multiple targets in high altitudes," General Hatami said, addressing the ceremony. Strategic analysis on the construction of new energy corridor China–Pakistan–Iran–Turkey This paper explores the current situation of cross-border energy pipelines of China, Pakistan, Iran and Turkey. Then it analysis strategic objectives of the four countries. It is proposed to build China-Pakistan-Iran-Turkey energy corridor between China, Pakistan, Iran and Turkey, which is of great significance to realize the energy strategic objectives of the countries. China to build military base near Chabahar? BEIJING: US President Donald Trump’s recent outburst on Pakistan will further boost economic and defence ties between Beijing and Islamabad, including China acquiring a Pakistani military base close to Iran’s Chabahar port, an official media report said on Friday. Trump’s January 1 Twitter attack against Pakistan where he accused it of providing safe havens to terrorists appears to be helping boost already close ties between Pakistan and China, a report in the state-run Global Times said. It attributed Islamabad’s decision to allow Chinese currency in bilateral trade and financing transactions as China has stepped up its investments in the $50 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor. What’s Russia Up to in the Iranian Port of Chabahar? The North-South Transport Corridor (NSTC) There have been wild reports over the past few weeks about Russia’s activities in the Iranian port of Chabahar, with some sources even alleging that Moscow plans to open up a naval base there. An interesting sequence of events has recently taken place that makes many wonder what Russia’s up to in the Iranian port of Chabahar. It’s widely known that Russia, Azerbaijan, Iran, and India are cooperating on the North-South Transport Corridor (NSTC) project to integrate each of their economies more closely together, with Chabahar being this initiative’s terminal port in connecting India to the other three and also Central Asia. https://oilprice.com/Latest-Energy-News/World-News/Iran-Aims-To-Start-... https://oilprice.com/Latest-Energy-News/World-News/Chinese-Constructio... Iran ready to escort Adrian Darya-1 oil tanker in the Gulf - navy commander Iran is ready to dispatch its naval fleet to escort its Adrian Darya-1 oil tanker, which is currently in Gibraltar, Iran’s navy commander said on Sunday. “The era of hit and run is over ... if top authorities ask the navy, we are ready to escort out tanker Adrian,” Rear Admiral Hossein Khanzadi was quoted as saying by Mehr news agency. Trump’s Anti-Iran Warrant Time and again, hard evidence shows the US is a nation run by hawkish right-wing extremists, dismissive of the rule of law and democratic values they abhor and don’t tolerate. Operating exclusively by their own rules, they maintain that UN Charter principles and other international law applies to other nations, not imperial USA. All nations the US doesn’t control are on its target list for regime change, part of its longstanding plot to rule the world unchallenged, control its resources, and create ruler-serf societies everywhere — enforced by Pentagon-run NATO, operating as a global police force. Since its 1979 revolution, ending a generation of US-installed fascist dictatorship, Iran has been a key target to transform back to US client state status — by brute force it that’s what it takes. The Saudis Learn the Term “Asymmetric Response” The Saudis just learned that some moments in history show their significance as they unfold. Iran shooting down a U.S. Global Hawk stealth drone and President Trump refusing his war-hawk cabinet in retaliating militarily is one of them. I said then and still maintain that this was a turning point in the history of the world. Any retaliation by the U.S. would be catastrophic for the world economy. It would unleash a regional conflict on multiple fronts which would not be any kind of controlled theater… … That for all the might of the U.S. military and financial empire, its weaknesses are deep enough that even a relatively weak military and economy like Iran’s can stop it all dead cold because of basic things like geography, logistics and simple human resolve. Images show Iran satellite launch looms despite US criticism Read the comments. It would appear that many Americans are friendly towards Iran. DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran appears to be preparing another satellite launch after twice failing this year to put one in orbit, despite U.S. accusations that the Islamic Republic's program helps it develop ballistic missiles. Satellite images of the Imam Khomeini Space Center in Iran's Semnan province this month show increased activity at the site, as heightened tensions persist between Washington and Tehran over its collapsing nuclear deal with world powers. China Prepares Its “Nuclear Option” In Trade War As the trade war with the U.S. continues to escalate, China has re-engaged with Iran on three key projects and is weighing the use of what both Washington and Beijing term the ‘nuclear option’, a senior oil and gas industry source who works closely with Iran’s Petroleum Ministry told OilPrice.com last week. For the first of these projects - Phase 11 of the supergiant South Pars non-associated gas field (SP11) - last week saw a statement from the chief executive officer of the Pars Oil and Gas Company (POGC) that talks had resumed with Chinese developers to advance the project. Originally the subject of an extensive contract signed by France’s Total before it pulled out due to re-imposed U.S. sanctions on Iran, talks had been well-advanced with the China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) to take up the slack on development. Ready for US face-off, China ‘re-engages’ Iran on projects China has “re-engaged” Iran on three key energy projects which the world’s biggest oil buyer is adamant to carry on with their implementation despite US sanctions, a report says. The international energy website OilPrice.com quoted a senior source working closely with Iran’s Ministry of Petroleum as saying that Phase 11 of the supergiant South Pars gas field, Yadavaran oil field and the Jask oil export terminal are the three projects which the Chinese want to continue. Head of the Pars Oil and Gas Company (POGC) Mohammad Meshkinfam said last week talks had resumed with Chinese developers to advance Phase 11. Seized Iranian tanker Grace 1 to be released despite US plea A seized oil tanker at the center of a standoff between Britain and Iran is free to set sail, despite eleventh-hour efforts by the United States to halt the move to release it. The Supreme Court in the British territory of Gibraltar approved the release of the Grace 1, after authorities said they no longer wished to detain it. Gibraltar's Chief Minister said he had accepted a pledge from Iran that, were the tanker to be released, its cargo would not be taken to its suspected original destination of Syria, which would have been in contravention of EU sanctions against Riyadh. US Aircraft Carrier Military Claims ‘Ready To Attack’ Iran If Ordered US officials, on duty on the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier and installed at an American naval base in Bahrain, interviewed Sky News. US military officials said the mission was to prevent Iran from attacking US targets, but added that they were also ready to launch offensive attacks if ordered. “A large part of deterrence is the readiness that backs that deterrence up. We are ready to defend the US and the US interests if called upon… My job is to be here, to be ready, to deter and to defend if required”, Rear Admiral Michael Boyle, commander of Carrier Strike Group 12, said. China Prepares Its "Nuclear Option" In Trade War Authored by Simon Watkins via OilPrice.com, Having said that, and aware of the leverage that it had with Iran as one of the very few countries still willing to engage in developing its fields in the midst of increasingly vigorously-imposed sanctions, China has sought deal sweeteners from Iran, and has been given them. In order for it to reactivate its development of SP11, China will get a 17.25 percent discount for nine years on the value of all gas it recovers. One thing of which an intelligent person cannot accuse either China or Iran about, is not having a very long term, win/win economic plan for both countries. But looking at the reality that 1 September, is just a little more than two weeks away, one has to wonder if the US government, will find itself capable of responding intelligently, or is that huge "crash and recession" the financial pundits have been trumpeting for so long, going to be the case? Is the US government contemplating a two-front war with China and Iran, for which they would have to engage very quickly, before thinking people realized why this was happening?!? And what "reason" will they give an ever-more conscious and evolved public, about why this is happening, and why now?!? The short answer is, they cannot, even with the biggest false flag someone could ever conjure. IRANIAN REVOLUTIONARY GUARDS’ NAVY AND ASYMMETRIC NAVAL WARFARE The Islamic Republic of Iran Navy, is dubbed by the country’s leadership a strategic force, and employs a conventional doctrine focusing on forward presence and naval diplomacy. Its mission areas include the Caspian Sea, the Gulf of Oman and out-of-area operations. The Iranian Navy has a relatively low number of warship and is not intended to counter modern fleets, like those of the US or the UK. At the same time, the Iranian Navy is capable enough to deal with threats from the country’s regional competitors that also have limited capabilities in terms of the conventional naval power. The second Iranian naval force is the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy (IRGCN) – it is established on an asymmetric doctrine, entirely focused on ensuring national security in the Persian Gulf. The IRGCN’s doctrine sees naval powers of Western countries as its main potential adversaries. Pompeo to UN: ‘Time is running out’ to kick Iran while it’s down US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has warned allies that time is running out to squash Iran while it’s weakened by an arms embargo, urging them to halt Tehran’s “destabilizing behavior” before it regains the ability to fight back. Tweeting a countdown clock purporting to show the “time remaining before the UN arms embargo on Iran expires and Qasim Soleimani’s travel ban ends,” Pompeo urged “allies and partners” to step up their pressure on the bogeyman du jour before the embargo expires and the playing field levels somewhat. Here's your rifle... The NYT’s Pro-War Arguments Against War With Iran The New York Times has published five editorials since the beginning of May that are ostensibly critical of a possible military war between the United States and Iran. As anti-war arguments, however, they are woefully lacking—vilifying Iran without subjecting the US to comparable scrutiny, and hiding US aggression towards Iran. The editorials regurgitate the same anti-Iran demonology pro-war voices offer to try to justify an attack on the country. In one case (5/4/19), readers are told that there is no doubt that the Revolutionary Guards is a malign actor. Founded in 1979, it was the revolution’s protector. In time, the corps became a tool of violence and military adventurism as Iran expanded its regional influence in Iraq, Lebanon, Yemen and Syria. Booker dodges question about Netanyahu’s racism, says he went to Senate to defend Israel In a response to a recent question inquiring whether or not Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is racist, New Jersey Senator and presidential hopeful Cory Booker said he entered the Senate to stand up for the state of Israel. Booker was asked about Netanyahu at the Iowa State Fair on August 10 by Jewish Insider’s Ben Jacobs. Booker didn’t answer the question directly and seemingly objected to its premise. His response mainly focused on how he believes the Trump administration has endangered Israel. Booker told Jacobs: Forgive me, but could Booker possibly be more pig-ignorant about what Trump has already done for Israel?!? I am thinking, upon reading this, that the short answer is, HELL, NO!! Everything both Netanyahu and Sheldon Adelson wanted, has been delivered; Trump has declared Israel's capital Jerusalem, and completely buckled on any possible, reasonable deal of getting nationhood for Palestine. Would Booker and his senate colleagues want to declare war against Iran?!? A war for which the US government may well have to conscript, as we don't have the troop strength; the weaponry; the money, or the manufacturing to insure that such a campaign be successful, at any level? Booker may be anxious, as this next Israeli election in September, may well be held under under the cloud of suspicious actions by both Netanyahu and his wife; what the Israeli wants, right now, is a full-blown invasion of Iran, as both a distraction, and putting the country into a favorable state of Netanyahu having actually "done something" here; but that may be more difficult than Booker could ever imagine, even on those days when he is able to think reasonably lucidly. And there is, again, of course, that 2,000 lb gorilla in the living room, draped, napping, over the Bosendorfer piano; and this is the potential for the military presence of Russia, whose high level diplomat made the statement toward the US that "if Iran is attacked, it will not be alone." If Iran is attacked, it will not be alone The article, from the Moscow Times, was in a statement by a very high -ranking Russian Official, Iran “won’t be alone” if the United States decides to launch a military strike on the Islamic republic, a senior Russian diplomat said on Wednesday. People in his position do not even FART, without the permission of President Putin, so if he made that statement, he was being an echo chamber for his boss, regarding any possible attack against Iran. U.S. President Donald Trump targeted Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and other top Iranian officials with sanctions on Monday. The dramatic step to increase pressure on Iran follows Tehran’s downing of an unmanned American drone last week, which Russia said had violated Iranian airspace. On Tuesday, Trump threatened to obliterate parts of Iran if it attacked "anything American," but later left the door open for talks. John Bolton to Lobby for Harsher UK Stance on Iran, Huawei During Visit to London The US has been carrying out a "maximum pressure" sanctions campaign against Iran and cracking down on Chinese tech giant Huawei for some time, but these polices found little support in the previous UK Cabinet. US National Security Adviser John Bolton will try to convince the new Cabinet of Prime Minister Boris Johnson to align its foreign policies more with the American "maximum pressure" campaign against Iran and to discard its plans to use Huawei equipment in developing its 5G networks during his upcoming visit to the UK, Reuters reported, citing an anonymous source within the US administration. FBI Starts Going After US Citizens Who Attend Iran-linked Conference The US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is going after American citizens who have already attended or plan to attend the New Horizon Conference (NHC) held by an Iranian media expert to discuss major global issues. A Virginia-based ex-Pentagon official said FBI agents were knocking at his door at 6:30 am in May, cited by Medium.com. Maloof had travelled to Mashhad in northeast Iran to attend last year's NHC and was one of the guests invited to the next conference which is to be held in the Lebanese capital of Beirut in September. The agents, however, warned him of consequences if he decides to attend. Official: Iran to Build New Sensing Satellite by Yearend Head of Iran's Space Research Center Hossein Samimi announced that the country's experts have ended work on the home-made 'Nahid 1' telecommunication satellite, adding that a new sensing satellite named 'Pars 1' will be manufactured by the end of this Iranian year (March 19). 'Military strikes next' War fears as official reveals US and Israel could soon blitz Iran ISRAEL and US are heading towards an outbreak of war with Iran, according to a leading US official, amid escalating tensions in the Persian Gulf. Iran’s navy chief warns any Israeli presence in Gulf could ‘spark war’ Remark follows reports Israel taking part in US-led mission to secure Western vessels in Strait of Hormuz, where Iran has seized several tankers Criminal Embargoes: Venezuela and Iran in the Crosshairs of Murderers Inc – Who Is Next? Imagine just for a moment, the World would stand up in unison, sick and tired of the aggressive killer arrogance of the United States and her vassals – and their joint war-force called NATO – and this World, our World, what’s left of it when you deduct Washington and its Brussels allies, would at once block every shipment of everything destined for the ports of the United States of America; every sea port, airport and road port. Hermetically. Nothing would enter. Nothing, no food, no medicine, no electronics, no cars – no nothing. And nothing could leave. No exports, no petrol, no grains, no meat, no pharmaceuticals and foremost, no weapons. Nothing. And now, take your mind a step further – and imagine the same – exactly the same, a total and full blockage of Israel – nothing would enter, no food, no fuel, no medication, no machinery and especially no weapons – and nothing would leave; a full and total blockage. Finger On The Trigger: China's Iran Oil Weapon Two reports out this week worth paying attention to which could greatly impact oil prices at a crucial moment in which leaders in Tehran are desperately urging China to purchase more Iranian crude: First, Reuters notes China continued importing Iranian oil in July for the second month since a US sanctions waiver ended, though at greatly diminished levels compared to the year prior, citing numbers from three data firms: According to the firms, which track tanker movements, between 4.4 million and 11 million barrels of Iranian crude were discharged into China last month, or 142,000 to 360,000 barrels per day (bpd). The upper end of that range would mean July imports still added up to close to half of their year-earlier level despite sanctions. Lindsey Graham Says Israel Will Attack Iran, And The U.S. Will Follow Iran ‘reserves right’ to confront Israel if it joins US patrols in Strait of Hormuz As Israel is set to embark on the US-led naval mission close to Iranian waters, the Islamic Republic can feel free to counter this “dangerous move,” the country’s Foreign Ministry said. Tehran “reserves the right to counter this threat and defend its territory,” ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi was quoted as saying by local media. The “illegitimate” Israeli regime and its ally, the US, are responsible for “all the consequences of this dangerous move,” he stated. US: IRAN SHIPS POSE AS US WARHIPS TO JAM OIL TANKERS’ GPS SOURCE: OILPRICE.COM The U.S. Maritime Administration has issued a fresh warning regarding commercial shipping in the Persian Gulf and the key oil chokepoint the Strait of Hormuz, saying that vessels in the area may encounter GPS interference and “spoofed bridge-to-bridge communications from unknown entities falsely claiming to be U.S. or coalition warships.” “Vessels operating in the Persian Gulf, Strait of Hormuz, and Gulf of Oman may also encounter GPS interference, bridge-to-bridge communications spoofing, and/or other communications jamming with little to no warning,” the latest advisory reads. In at least two of the incidents in the Middle East in the past months, vessels reported GPS interference, according to the U.S. Maritime Administration. I seriously doubt like heck. that the Iranian government would have called for such careless, irresponsible actions from their Navy. So because this is being preached as though it were "gospel", I cannot take these warnings seriously, as they appear, perhaps, to be part of a "false flag" operation by the US and the West, to get one of their ships in real trouble, and claim that the Iranians did it. BEX ALERT - Iran is reportedly jamming ship GPS navigation systems to get them to wander into Iranian waters Ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz and the Persian Gulf have reported unusual GPS interference, among other problems, and the US believes Iran is to blame. This Iranian War Vet Has Some Advice for Trump: Don’t Play Checkers with the Grandmasters of Chess In a recent Tweet, you claimed that “Iranians never won a war, but never lost a negotiation.” As a world citizen and a veteran of the 1980-1988 Iran-Iraq war, I have firsthand experience with the bitterness of war, and I have a few suggestions and responses for you. First, I would advise you against using the words win and winning to describe war, especially from a US perspective. American history is filled with bitter experiences of losing wars. Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria, and even the engagement in Yemen—none of these horrifying interventions has ever reached their goals. Scott Adams: CNN Totally Owns Tucker Carlson, Fixing Iran and Urban Blight CNN’s slight-of-hand, dirty tricks and narrative creation process Brian Stelter’s contribution to the process Who wrote and who uploaded the El Paso shooter’s manifesto? My offer to DEPROGRAM a white supremacist…if one exists ADL information on gun deaths is NOT what you might think Danny Trejo’s inspirational comments after helping save a baby Bill Pulte’s blight cleanup and Pontiac’s soaring real estate prices Hey Iran…just give us a list, we might want all the same things Russia, Turkey, Iran: Adversaries Of The West's NATO Alliance Germany's point-blank refusal to support Washington's proposal for a maritime protection force in the Arabian Gulf to protect shipping from attacks by Iran is yet another example of Berlin's diplomatic and economic sabotage of the Western alliance. Following the recent upsurge in Iranian aggression in the all-important Strait of Hormuz, the Gulf shipping artery through which flows one-fifth of the world's energy needs, Washington has sought international backing for Operation Sentinel, its naval operation to protect shipping in the region. This search follows a series of Iranian attacks, including the shooting down of a US Navy drone operating in international waters in the Strait of Hormuz, as well as a number of attacks against merchant shipping, such as last month's seizure of the British-registered oil tanker Stena Impero. Israel joins US-led anti-Iran coalition in Strait of Hormuz? Israel has reportedly volunteered intelligence and assistance in “other unspecified fields” to the US-led coalition against Iran after bonding with the Emirates over a shared opposition to Tehran’s influence in the Persian Gulf. Israel and the United Arab Emirates have reached “substantial agreements” regarding the “Iranian threat,” foreign minister Yisrael Katz told a closed session of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee on Tuesday, according to Ynet News. Katz also said he has instructed the ministry to include Israel in the US-led “policing” mission, adding that participating in the initiative will improve its relationship with the Gulf Arab states. The Declining Empire Of Chaos Is Going Nuts Over Iran The transition in recent years from a unipolar to a multipolar world order has created international tensions that seem to threaten to escalate into clashes between regional and global powers. Attack on Iran would be an attack on Russia Ten days ago, via a document officially approved by the United Nations, the Russian Foreign Ministry advanced a new concept of collective security for the Persian Gulf. Moscow stresses that “practical work on launching the process of creating a security system in the Persian Gulf” should start with “bilateral and multilateral consultations between interested parties, including countries both within the region and outside of it,” as well as organizations such as the UN Security Council, League of Arab States, Organization of Islamic Cooperation and Gulf Cooperation Council. The next step should be an international conference on security and cooperation in the Persian Gulf, followed by the establishment of a dedicated organization – certainly not something resembling the incompetent Arab League. Iran’s Foreign Minister Zarif Drives Trump to Insanity Basically, Pompeo’s grouse narrows down to this: Zarif is a disciplined dutiful, loyal Iranian public servant who abided by the Iranian system of government founded in the concept of vel?yat-e faq?h (‘guardianship of the Islamic jurist’.) Does that become a sin? Any foreign minister has his job cut out for him — even Pompeo himself. Pompeo has no pretensions that he is holding the job entirely at the pleasure and discretion of his supreme leader President Trump. Trump, in fact, is an unforgiving stickler for loyalty. Ask James Mattis or Rex Tillerson. Trump Regime Aiming to Blockade Iran and Venezuela? International law is clear. Blockades are undeclared acts of war. No nation may legally use this tactic against another state unilaterally or with coalition partners. UN Charter provisions are binding international law. Article 39 authorizes the Security Council alone to “determine the existence of any threat to the peace, breach of the peace, or act of aggression and shall make recommendations, or decide what measures shall be taken in accordance with Articles 41 and 42, to maintain or restore international peace and security.” US’ ‘Declining Influence’ Under Trump Precludes Anti-Iran Naval Coalition in Persian Gulf Germany’s refusal to join the US-led naval coalition to escort ships through the Strait of Hormuz underscores how the Land of the Free is losing its influence on foreign nations, Mohammad Marandi, an expert on American studies and postcolonial literature who teaches at the University of Tehran, told Sputnik. “I think it’s a sign of the declining influence of the US,” Marandi told Sputnik Radio’s Loud & Clear on Monday. “Britain, of course, is not an important naval power. It doesn’t have anything that the Iranians would be concerned about, but I think that under [US President Donald] Trump, the US has lost a huge amount of influence.” The Royal Navy has been decimated, but Iran's insolence shows why Britain must still rule the waves Our best-known patriotic song is based on the idea that “Britannia rules the waves”. Not the world; the waves. Until quite recently, it was axiomatic that Britain’s greatness was sea-borne. The Army mattered greatly, but only sometimes. The Royal Navy mattered all the time. Since the 1990s, attitudes have changed, and now we are paying for it. Then, we had 45 destroyers and frigates; today we have 19. As seven former First Sea Lords pointed out in a letter in yesterday’s Sunday Telegraph, Iran has been able to capture and detain the British-flagged Stena Impero because there simply wasn’t a British frigate available to prevent it. UK Foreign Secretary Raab Vows to ‘Build a Stronger Alliance’ Against Russia, Iran After Brexit Earlier, Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab, who entered office last month after Cabinet reshuffle initiated by incoming Prime Minister Boris Johnson, confirmed that the UK will be ready to leave the EU with or without a deal on 31 October. The UK’s new Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab has announced London’s plans to “fire up economic relationships with non-European partners” and create a new alliance to confront Iran and Russia after his country’s withdrawal from the EU. “That means working with them now to ensure a smooth transition of our trading arrangements after Brexit and means quickly moving to wide-ranging trade deals that boost business, lower prices for consumers and respect our high standards,” Raab told a London news conference on Monday ahead of his working visit to North America. Iran’s Rouhani says if US wants talks, ‘it must lift sanctions’ President Hassan Rouhani has reiterated that if Washington wants to open negotiations with Tehran, it must lift all sanctions against Iran “before everything else.” Rouhani made the statement during a meeting with Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif in Tehran on Tuesday, according to state TV. The president also reiterated that America’s sanctions on Iran are an act of “economic terrorism.” Iranian Media Releases Video Allegedly Showing IRGC Capturing Foreign Oil Tanker According to IRGC, the foreign vessel was seized in the vicinity of the Persian Gulf island of Farsi on 31 July, which makes it the third tanker seizure by the Iranian Revolutionary Guards over past July. The Iranian media outlet Press-TV released footage that allegedly shows the IRGC forces halt and take into custody the foreign oil tanker smuggling fuel. MYSTERY AIRSTRIKES ON IRAQI CAMP WERE ISRAELI STEALTH JETS IN "ANTI-IRAN" ESCALATION But now Israeli and regional media, citing western diplomats, have confirmed it was a nearly unprecedented Israeli operation on Iraqi soil — representing a major escalation and expansion of Israel's anti-Iran operations. Israel reportedly launched a total of two separate air strike operations on the camp using its US-supplied F-35 stealth fighter jets. Iranian Researchers 3-D Print Artificial Bone Researchers at Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences in Tehran unveiled on Saturday their recent achievements in producing artificial bones and 3D printing for repairing damaged organs of human body. Freshman Representatives Heading to Israel on AIPAC Sponsored Trip n Monday, House Majority Leader Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-MD) will be bringing a large delegation of freshman Democratic members of Congress to Israel. The Trip is sponsored by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC). A Republican group is scheduled to arrive in Israel on Friday. These trips to Israel are organized in August of every off-election year for new members of Congress. Hoyer will be joined by chairman of the House Democratic Caucus Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY). The presence of these party leaders shows the importance the trip has to party leadership. It is part of the effort to squash some of the questioning of the US-Israel relationship that has been growing within the party. "...the questioning of the US-Israel relationship that has been growing within the party." must continue, and continue in earnest. And the questions which must be asked of these Freshman Congressional Members are the following: Why does the US continue to supply money and arms to Israel, even though that is illegal, courtesy of the Symington Amendment and the Glenn Act?!? And if these freshman demos have never read this, now might be an instructive time to share this legislation with it. Symington Amendment, Glenn Act Lawsuit Claims Aid to Nuclear Israel Illegal Under Symington Glenn Amendments Unlike Iran, why has Israel not become a signatory to the NNPT (nuclear non-proliferation Treaty),and agreed to allow its nuclear facilities, which Iran has done?!? Why is there no conversation about the horrific way Israel treats Palestinians? No let up for Palestinians getting arrested and tortured by Israel 95% of detained Palestinian Children were tortured. Palestinian man dies after 30 days in solitary confinement Torture in Israeli Prisons: 200 Methods Used against Palestinian Prisoners And to add injury to insult, last November, the Israeli High Court has ruled the following last November: Israeli High Court Rules to Allow, and Expand the Use of Torture against Palestinians Held in Israeli Custody And THIS government of Israel, is touted by Israeli and US politicians, as "the only democracy in the Middle East?!? When in the name of Heaven, did Israeli "Democracy" get conflated with "Torture"?!? Can someone out there please explain this to me?!? I must be more than a little thick in my brain, not to be able to put those two activities together. And the ultimate question must be asked here; do true democracies actually torture confessions out of people?!? And the short, civilised answer has to be, HELL, NO!! So, Israel, sorry to have to explain this to you, but true democracies do not torture. you are going to have to choose one of the other, but cannot, in a 24/7 satellite/cable world, define yourself as both; the optics on this are utterly... schizophrenic. Iran seizes Iraqi oil tanker in the Gulf for smuggling fuel Iran said Sunday it has seized an Iraqi oil tanker in the Persian Gulf for allegedly smuggling fuel, according to the official IRNA news agency. In a statement, the elite Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) said the vessel was captured near the Farsi Island. The tanker was carrying 700,000 liters of “smuggled fuel” and was taken to the Bushehr port, the IRGC statement said. It remains unclear the nationality of the seized vessel. Seven crewmen of different nationalities were detained. “The seizure of the oil tanker was in coordination with Iran’s judiciary authorities and based on their order,” Fars quoted the Guards commander Ramezan Zirahi as he as saying. Defense Chief Sees ‘Rising’ Support for US Fleet in Strait of Hormuz Speaking to reporters over the weekend, Defense Secretary Mark Esper claimed that he believes there is “rising support” for the US-led naval fleet in the Strait of Hormuz The US has been pushing that plan for over a month, on the idea that the US would get access to a large fleet to confront Iran, and would only have to contribute about 10-20% of the fleet themselves. So far they’ve gotten no commitments to join the fleet. Despite Esper’s optimism, the US still has no commitments to join the fleet, though he suggested that some countries might sign up soon, citing 30 nations attending a meeting last week in Florida to talk about it. Australia seems like a likely candidate, though why Australia would join the US fleet and not the British alternative is unclear. Even then, most nations have flat out rejected the scheme, and Australia’s willingness to consider it at all is still something. Forgive me for having to ask the obvious, but has Defense Secretary Mark Esper gone completely barking-dog mad, to make a statement like this?!? France, Germany, and Spain have given a resounding "NO" against this, as reported as follows: European nations give a resounding "NO", to Esper's suggestion of joining a US coalition "U.S. Lobbies Oil Buyers and Producers to Secure Gulf Against Iranian Threat India, U.K. boost ship escorts while France and Spain refuse to join U.S. coalition". Australian parliament is "thinking about it", but so far, that is the best Esper has been able to conjure. How Can Russia Undermine US Plans for Iran? Russia hasn’t ruled out the possibility of joining Instex, while participants are considering including oil in this European mechanism for trade with Iran. Sputnik has discussed the future of Instex with Nazanin Armanian, an Iranian political scientist and author based in Spain. World opposes US sanctions against Iranian Foreign Minister World countries and the United Nations have censured the administration of US President Donald Trump over imposing sanctions on Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying slammed Washington's decision at a press briefing in Beijing on Thursday. “We have taken note of the statement of the US side and the reaction of Mr. Zarif himself. The position of the Chinese side on this issue is very clear. China opposes unilateral US actions ... We think it is not facilitating the solution of the problem,” Hua said. Israel drives US foreign policy on Iran: American writer "Israel drives US foreign policy" on Iran, says American writer and sociopolitical analyst Walt Peretto in response to the imposition of sanctions on Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif by the administration of President Donald Trump. The US Departments of State and Treasury announced the imposition of sanctions on Wednesday against Zarif stating he “acted or purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran.” In June, Trump announced new sanctions against Iran targeting Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and top commanders of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC). Houthi Attacks in South Yemen Kill at Least 51, Saudis Blame Iran Attacks by the Shi’ite Houthi movement against pro-Saudi and pro-UAE targets in southern Yemen have killed at least 51 people, most of them military forces loyal to the UAE, and a high-ranking UAE official. The largest incident was a missile fired by the Houthis, which hit a military parade in the southern capital of Aden. The casualties included a number of military commanders, and parading fighters. Despite drone and missile attacks being launched by the Houthis, and the Houthis being very clear about that fact, Saudi Arabia wasn’t going to miss a chance to use anything bad happening to blame Iran. What are the Saudis going to do, blame their own Butcher of Yemen, Prince Mohammed bin Salman, and the US government and military for these deaths?!? The Saudi government may well feel that they are getting very close to some actionable traction on their mantra, "Something needs to be done to Iran to teach it a Lesson!!" That being said, however, I would very much like the "Adults in the Room", in Riyadh, Tel Aviv, and DC, to consider the following statement, made late June of this year by a top Russian official: Iran ‘Won’t Be Alone’ If U.S. Attacks, Russian Official Says "“Iran will withstand this type of fight and Iran is not alone,” Zamir Kabulov, the Foreign Ministry’s special envoy for Asian countries including Iran, said at a Russian-Iranian policy forum in Moscow." I would gently, and politely, suggest that the rest of the world take Russia at its word; Russian government officials hardly fart, without Putin's permission, so when a policy commitment like this is stated, Putin means it. And who, please, was the ignoble, brainless miscreant of a leader, who thought that a military parade in a country that has been occupied, but not completely controlled, was a "swell idea"?!? Since I don't believe in capital punishment (largely, because of how badly the chain of evidence is handled in the US, leading to unjust convictions), were I high up in the Saudi and/or UAE governments, I would have this guy shoveling camel excrement, for the rest of his miserable life!! Britain tells Iran: there will be no tanker swap Britain on Thursday ruled out exchanging an Iranian tanker detained by Gibraltar for a British-flagged tanker seized by Iran in the Gulf. “We are not going to barter: if people or nations have detained UK-flagged illegally then the rule of law and rule of international law must be upheld,” Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said while on a trip to Bangkok. “We are not going to barter a ship that was detained legally with a ship that was detained illegally: that’s not the way that Iran will come in from the cold,” he said. “So I am afraid some kind of barter or haggle or linkage is not on the table.” US poised to renew anti-Iran nuclear sanctions waivers in blow to hawks: Report Israeli police have summoned a Palestinian resident of the occupied East Jerusalem al-Quds neighborhood of al-Isawiyah on allegations that his young son had thrown stones at Israeli military forces – marking the second such incident in recent days. Firas Obaid received a warrant on Tuesday asked him to come to an Israeli police station for interrogation, after his six-year-old son Qais was accused of throwing stones at Israeli officers patrolling Isawiyah. The Palestinian father showed up at the police station on Wednesday morning, and was allowed to leave after questioning. Tensions Just Went Through The Roof With Iran After Sanctioning Their Foreign Minister - Russia Predicts War Iran accused the United States on Thursday of “childish behavior” driven by fear after Washington imposed sanctions on its foreign minister, escalating tensions between two foes at loggerheads over Gulf shipping and Iran’s nuclear program. Fears of a Middle East war with global repercussions have risen since the United States ditched world powers’ 2015 nuclear deal with Iran last year and revived sanctions on Tehran. The Islamic Republic has retaliated by resuming uranium enrichment seen in the West seen as a potential conduit to developing atomic bombs. Iran denies any such intent. As Tensions Flare Between US & Iran, More Oil Tankers Are 'Going Dark' In The Strait Of Hormuz Given the rising tension in the Strait of Hormuz, and the mysterious spate of seemingly random attacks on tankers that some have blamed on Iran, it's no surprise that more captains transporting shipments of crude and LNG through one of the busiest corridors for the global energy trade feel the need to keep a low profile, according to Bloomberg. Which is apparently why more ships are turning off their transponders - "going dark", in industry jargon - a technique that is typically used by smugglers and those hoping to avoid American sanctions. It will only be a matter of time before the US interdicts one of these ships, and claims that it was carrying Iranian oil, and that they went dark to evade the sanctions. I would like those preciously few "adults in the bowels of DC", to be very careful about what the US does, in such a circumstance, given that Russia has promised that should Iran be attacked, Russia will come to its aid. The article went on to state: "“Iran will withstand this type of fight and Iran is not alone,” Zamir Kabulov, the Foreign Ministry’s special envoy for Asian countries including Iran, said at a Russian-Iranian policy forum in Moscow. When asked if Russia was ready to provide material support to Iran if the U.S. attacks it, Kabulov said that “specific actions are a question for the Russian president.” Folks, the US government is playing with fire, if they have swallowed their own moonshine Koolade, about the superiority of US weapons over those of Russia or China; the capabilities of US weapons is still, unfortunately, very much lagging behind those of their Russian and Chinese counterparts. The more President Trump presses his sanctions, the more unpredictable the responses from Iran may become. There are two "toys" not currently in this President's toy arsenal, and those "toys" are "caution" and "restraint." I would like to hope that someone in this administration is willing mention them to the President. In Major Shift, Israel Twice Struck Iranian Targets in Iraq 'Using F-35' Citing Western diplomats, Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper reports two strikes this month northeast of Baghdad mark an expansion of Israeli attacks against Iranian targets Germany won't take part in US Strait of Hormuz initiative - FM Germany will refuse to take part in a US-led maritime mission in the Strait of Hormuz, Foreign Minister Heiko Maas announced. Maas said that there “cannot be a military solution” to the current crisis in the Persian Gulf. Speaking in Warsaw, Poland, on Wednesday, Maas said that Germany will turn down Washington’s request, which was revealed by the US Embassy in Berlin on Tuesday. The joint US, British, and French operation is aimed at protecting sea traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, and combatting so-called “Iranian aggression.” The mission was conceived following Iran’s seizure of the British-flagged Stena Impero oil tanker earlier this month, itself widely considered a tit-for-tat response to Britain’s seizure of an Iranian tanker off the coast of Gibraltar several weeks earlier. Will Shake Up at IAEA Impact Iran? By: ActivistPost By Tony Cartalucci International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) chief Yukiya Amano’s passing has stirred up suspicion and further tensions amid US-Iranian tensions. Amano was 72 years old and as of mid-July 2019 had already begun preparing to step down due to poor health. However, in the wake of his death and because of his perceived opposition to US efforts to undermine the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) or “Iran Deal” – suspicions began circulating that the US or Israel – or both – may have played a role in his death... Iran, Russia Planning Joint Naval Drill In Contested Gulf Waters Russia and Iran are planning a joint naval exercise scheduled within the next year, commander of Iran's Navy Rear Admiral Hossein Khanzadi announced Monday, according to state media. Semi-official Fars has reported it will take place by March 2020 in the Indian Ocean, and will be staged as far north as the strategic and increasingly tense Strait of Hormuz. “A coordination meeting will be held between the two sides in this regard,” he said while on a three day visit to Russia. “When we speak of the Indian Ocean, perhaps the most important part of which is the northern region where it’s linked to the Sea of Oman, the Strait of Hormuz and also the Persian Gulf,” Khanzadi said from Saint Petersburg. Bitcoin Mania Reaches Iran As US Sanctions Tighten Noose On Economy The Iranian Parliament Commission on Economy has recently approved cryptocurrency mining in the country amid US sanctions. Governor of the Central Bank of Iran (CBI), Abdolnaser Hemmati said that "a mechanism to mine digital coins were approved by the government's economic commission and will later be put to the discussion at a Cabinet meeting." The Bitcoin craze has circulated around Iranian media, landing on front pages of newspapers and has been featured on television news shows across the country. Even some of the country's top ayatollahs have been publicly discussing cryptocurrencies, according to the Associated Press. Zarif: We will not compromise on territorial integrity with anybody Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif says the foreign ministry will not compromise on the country’s territorial integrity with anybody, including with regard to Iran's territorial waters. Zarif made the remarks while addressing an open session of the Iranian parliament (Majlis) on Monday with regard to the Caspian Sea legal regime and Iran's share of the seabed and its resources. “When it comes to Iran's territorial integrity and waters, we will stand on ceremony with nobody and will not negotiate with any party about honors Iran has gained during the past 40 years …. The administration is committed to this issue and the Majlis has the final say on it,” Iran's top diplomat told lawmakers. Pompeo has ‘ulterior motives’ in expressing desire to travel to Iran: Analyst It is clear that US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has “ulterior motives” in expressing his desire to travel to Iran and be interviewed by Iranian news media, according to American political analyst Keith Preston. Pompeo’s malign intent toward Iran US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is an Iranophobic war-mongering extremist, a serial liar “diplomat” in name only, a notion he abhors — demanding the world community subservience to US interests, preemptive wars his favored strategy. Virtually all his remarks about Iran are bald-faced Big Lies. So was saying the Trump regime’s Middle East mission is “creat(ing) stability” — ignoring endless US regional wars of aggression, falsely blaming Iran for things it had nothing to do with. Longstanding bipartisan US policy calls for transforming the Islamic Republic into a vassal state, along with gaining control over its vast oil and gas reserves. Don't believe American lies about Iran The United States under President Donald Trump has been waging an all-out economic and diplomatic war against Iran. In a recent video posted by the US State Department on social media, White House special envoy on Iran Brian Hook talked about US sanctions, trying to dismiss the fact that the unilateral measures have targeted ordinary Iranians. We did some fact checking on those remarks. US Formally Asks Germany, France, UK to Take Part in Strait of Hormuz Mission to Counter Iran Earlier, both German and British officials said they did not support the US's "maximum pressure" strategy against Tehran, instead welcoming an operation proposed by London for a European-led security effort to "protect" commercial vessels operating in the Persian Gulf and near the Strait of Hormuz. The United States has officially requested Germany, France and the UK to join its military mission in the Gulf to 'combat Iranian aggression,' the US Embassy in Berlin has indicated. "We have formally asked Germany to help with securing the Strait of Hormuz and fighting Iranian aggression, along with France and the UK," a spokeswoman from the Embassy told the German Press Agency on Tuesday. Ben Swann ON: Why Iran Legalized Cryptocurrency Iran Tensions Just Went Through The Roof As British Make Final Push Over Captured Ship, Crew Featured Britain told Iran on Monday that if it wants to “come out of the dark” it must follow international rules and release a British-flagged oil tanker seized by its forces in the Gulf. Netanyahu's Iran Dilemma: Getting Trump to Act Without Putting Israel on the Front Line Amid intensive efforts to form a new government and maneuvers meant to extricate Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from the indictments piling up against him, the existing government in Israel is dealing with another important issue – developments in the Gulf. Netanyahu boasts ‘100s of anti-Iran ops’ in Syria as Russia reminds to love thy neighbor’s security Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has bragged that the Jewish state has conducted hundreds of operations in Syria in the name of national security, prompting Russia urge him to respect other nations’ sovereignty as well. Netanyahu made it clear that Israel will stop at nothing to protect itself against any perceived threats, as he boasted about Tel Aviv’s successful raids against alleged Iranian targets in the neighboring Syria. “Israel has acted hundreds of times to prevent Iran from entrenching itself militarily in Syria,” he said, speaking ahead of a trilateral meeting between the Russian, American and Israeli national security advisers, who met in Jerusalem on Tuesday to discuss rising tensions in the Middle East and other urgent matters. gralton James Webb Space Telescope: Technical Challenges Have Caused Schedule Strain and May Increase Costs World First: Genetically Engineered Moth Is Released Into an Open Field Amazon engineer calls for Ring to be 'shut down immediately' over privacy concerns	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line423
__label__cc	0.646083	0.353917	Unity School Unity guides for all skill levels Pong Tutorial Navigation with the Nav Mesh Part 5: Areas and Paths Navigation with the Nav Mesh Part 4: Patrolling and Chasing Navigation with the Nav Mesh Part 3: Going Off Mesh Navigation with the Nav Mesh Part 2: Obstacles and Targets Navigation with the Nav Mesh Part 1: Setup and Basic Navigation Sisco Ye on Move Player to Click/Touch Position Damien on Move Player to Click/Touch Position Raaz on Drag-and-Drop Resolution Magic Asset Beginner Pong Tutorial The Making of Game of Clowns April 17, 2016 - Uncategorized I’ve just released my Unity game, Game of Clowns on iOS (it’s been on other platforms for some time already), and I thought it would be helpful to explain how I made it. Game of Clowns is a physics puzzle game in the tradition of Amazing Alex and The Incredible Machine. It’s my second game, but my first made in Unity (my first game, Puzzle Detective is available for Windows Phone, WinRT, and Windows 10, and was built in Visual Studio). I was totally new to Unity and C# when I embarked on making this game. A Naïve Effort Assessment After playing around in Unity I discovered the Asset Store, and found that I could buy a pre-built game template. I figured I could replace the graphics and audio, build my own levels, and – ABRACADABRA! – have a complete game. To cut a long story short the game took more than 6 months of every spare minute I had (making games is not my day job), and far more work than I anticipated. I learned a lot while making the game, and I’m now sharing what I learned in this article. Designing the Game Game of Clowns isn’t a particularly original game (it was built using an Asset Store template, after all). My main motivation was to build something like Amazing Alex because it wasn’t available my Windows tablet. I also figured that a physics puzzle game was manageable, but also more challenging to make than Puzzle Detective. With a genre chosen, my next decision was to pick a theme that suited it. I ended up with two ideas: A Flintstones-like caveman theme A circus with flying, bouncing clowns. I decided on the circus theme because it could be colourful and funny, but most importantly it could feature clowns being shot out of cannons. Scope Creep Two factors led to the game’s scope increasing hugely. Firstly, I found that the template I was using had a few issues (the makers of the asset, as well as users on the asset’s forum thread, were very helpful in resolving them), which required me to increase my Unity and C# knowledge sharply. Secondly, the more I worked on the game the more my ideas flowed. I wanted to add new physics objects (which I would have to build myself with my still limited Unity skills), and improve existing features. The amount of work needed was creeping up. I realised that the game would take a lot longer to finish than I had first thought. Any estimate of effort required is probably short by a LOT. A template is a starting point for your own ideas, not a ready-made game. I developed an organisation technique when creating my previous apps and game. Every task I’ve identified – whether it’s as small as fixing a typo or as big as adding a huge feature – goes into either my current working checklist or put aside for future work. Keeping a good balance of ‘quick wins’ and more substantial work in my current checklist helps keep momentum. If I only have a few minutes to work, I can check off one or two quick wins; if I’m in the mood for digging into the code I can work on a large feature; if I’m feeling like Sherlock Holmes I can investigate an elusive bug. Using this checklist method, I found I could stay motivated even as the scope got bigger and bigger, because there was always a task waiting for whatever mood I was in or how much time I had. When I complete a checklist I mark that ‘version’ complete and create a new checklist from outstanding tasks. Productivity directly correlates with organisation. Once I had momentum I decided to buy some art. Due to the game’s design I didn’t need any animation or a lot of art, which suited my limited (non-existent) budget. I found a great artist (via Reddit) who was able to draw what was in my head perfectly. This clown with a hose is my favourite piece: Here’s how I sourced all the art in my game: Commissioned art. Licenced art packs. UI pack from the Unity Asset Store. Art from the game template. Public domain sprites. I spent a few hundred dollars on art, and I’m very happy with the outcome on that budget. The art that was drawn specifically for me is perfect, and I’m pretty happy with what I achieved with the public domain and licenced art too. Commissioning Art When commissioning art I sent the artist some sample images showing the style I wanted, along with a few notes. When I needed a clown driving a tiny car I sent these images to the artist: And here is what she created: Fantastic art, and exactly what I had in mind. To stretch the usefulness of some of the other art, I created different coloured variations using a simple image editor. The game template asset came with a small red ball sprite, which I used as the basis for some different coloured balls. This simple trick makes the game livelier at no extra cost. Art is worth every penny you spend on it, and it’s great to find an artist who can draw in exactly the style you want. When your budget is small you can find ways to stretch it. Try re-colouring art for variation, search for public domain images, and look into licencing packs of art that suit your game style. Building up the Engine I estimate that by the time the game was finished I had rewritten more than half of the code that came with the purchased asset in order to accommodate my game’s needs, enhance features, and fix bugs. I must make it clear that I didn’t rewrite chunks of the asset code because it was deficient. I wanted to expand it to allow for new features and to better fit my evolving ideas for the game. There were a few minor bugs, but the asset creators always helped fix them. There is a pretty big thread on the Unity forum where myself and several other users shared ideas and code for improving the asset too. I also learned a lot about Unity from the code provided in the asset. Here are a few of the features I ended up adding to the game: Cannons that shoot clowns. Trap doors that can be opened by pressing a button. A clown with a hose that pushes objects that enter its stream. Moving platforms (horizontal and vertical). Multiple goals to complete a level. Custom touch input controls to make manipulating objects more intuitive and reliable. Unity itself presented some challenges. Some of the 2D collision functions didn’t work reliably, which caused unpredictable bugs. I ended up adding workarounds and hacks that required me to learn lots more about Unity. Purchased assets can save you a huge amount of time, but they work best when you use them as a starting point to build on. When I started adding audio and music the game really started to come alive. I knew I wanted the classic clown theme ‘Entrance of the Gladiators’, and I found a reasonably priced version to licence. Then I found a few licenced and public domain tracks that had a circus feel, and set the music to rotate randomly between the tracks. I spent about US$30 on music. I wish I could have afforded a custom theme song for my game, but the game’s theme luckily lends itself to the well-known, well-used ‘Entrance of the Gladiators’ theme. This game trailer includes the famous clown music: All of the audio is public domain, but there isn’t much. Audio is one area I wish I’d spent more effort on, but by the time I was filling in the sounds I was trying to limit the effort needed to reach the finish line. Sound and music are as important as graphics, but unless you’re a sound or music person that’s not necessarily intuitive. George Lucas says that sound is 50% of a movie, and I think that holds true for games too. You can get pretty good sound and music on a budget, but as with graphics you get the most value from something customised to your game. Levels, Levels, Levels Game of Clowns has 88 levels (some of those were added in updates after the initial release). That’s quite a lot of levels. The amount of work that went into designing, building, and testing the levels was probably 100 times more effort than I anticipated (I’m not exaggerating). Every level was carefully designed, sometimes on scraps of paper, sometimes in my head as I rushed to the computer before the idea evaporated. So Much…Fun Designing physics puzzle levels is fun. There is something tangible about objects behaving realistically. Watching a clown shoot out of a cannon, bounce on a trampoline, collect a star, then fall into a barrel of water with a splash…it’s so much fun. I thought I’d never tire of making levels, and this would be the easy, fun part of making the game… So Much…Work Designing game levels is a lot of work. The nature of a physics puzzle game threw up challenges I didn’t anticipate. Any change to the game’s underlying physics object behaviour necessitated re-testing every level. The difficulty curve was very hard to get right – it’s actually very difficult to determine how difficult a puzzle is when you’ve made it yourself! This meant that I was constantly shifting levels around between the different level sets in the game. Because I had planned some aspects of the game poorly (it was my first Unity project after all), moving levels around was a lot more work than it should have been, which added to the tedium of creating so many levels. One shortcut I found (and wished I’d found earlier) was to ‘cheat’ in my levels. Sometimes I could get a level to work better by tweaking the physical properties of objects slightly. For example, if the level requires the player bounce a clown off a trampoline to get to a shelf I might tweak that specific trampoline to be a little bouncier than normal. I used this technique sparingly, and only where I felt it helped make the player’s intuitive understanding of physics work as expected. I could have saved myself a lot of time if I had built a level editor and implemented a way for levels to be loaded and saved to XML. In the game each level is a Unity scene. I didn’t know at the time that that approach would not scale well. I did eventually build a prototype level editor, and in my tests I could get a big improvement in my game package size and performance by storing the levels as XML, but re-working and re-testing every level into the new format would not be worth the effort. Puzzle Blind Spot At one point I sent an alpha version of the game to a friend to playtest levels. One of the new levels was quite complex, requiring several carefully placed objects in just the right places in order to solve the puzzle and collect all three stars. It was designed to be one of the game’s hardest challenges. My friend solved it in a ridiculously simple way I didn’t anticipate. I was focused so much on the level I had designed that I was blind to the very obvious simple solution. You can Never Test Too Much I developed a habit of playing through every single level as often as possible. On the train home from work I would play as many levels as I could, noting down any problems or glitches, then I’d fix those problems as soon as I got home. I would do this almost every day. I played through each level more than a hundred times, some levels probably 200 or more. The playtesting got extremely tedious towards the end, but it was invaluable. But by the time the game was finished I was absolutely sick of playing the levels! You should have as many people as possible test your game. Different points of view shed light on different things, often things you as the developer can’t see. Non-gamers will show you if your game is intuitive. Kids will show you if your game is simple and fun. Good gamers will find creative ways to solve problems. Any time or effort saving you can find in creating levels is worth implementing. The effort required to build a simple level editor and/or serializer will repay you several times over in saved time and energy. Designing levels is a huge creative drain. Spread the load as much as possible. Look for inspiration everywhere. It’s not the ‘fun’ part of developing a game, it’s just as much work as any other aspect. Eventually I had to decide that I was going to finish and publish the game. I decided on a ‘feature freeze’ and set about polishing the game as much as possible. I played through the game over and over again, noting any issue – no matter how small – on an ever-growing list of must-do fixes. Here’s a small sample of my issues list as I headed down the home stretch. On the left are general issues, and on the right are tweaks to the levels: Since I’m not beholden to a publisher or any set schedule I could take the attitude of releasing the game when it was good and ready. However, I did choose to limit myself to just polish and bug fixes at this stage or I knew I would never finish. Here’s one of my favourite bug notes: The funny thing about that bug is that it bothered me for a long time…and that was simply due to my lack of Unity experience. It was quite a simple fix in the end. I chose Windows Phone and Windows 8/RT as my launch platforms because they were the platforms I was most familiar with. I figured I could port to Android (and possibly iOS) later. I didn’t have any financial expectations for the game, so the platforms didn’t matter to me at all, really. I finally finished the game and pushed a very small number of issues into my plans for version 1.1, which I would get to work on as soon as version 1.0 was submitted. Lessons learned: You need to draw the line somewhere in order to finish a project. Don’t be scared to release something that is not 100% finished, but make sure it’s 95% there and nicely polished. Test constantly. Note down any issue no matter how small, then fix it. Some issues don’t present themselves immediately. There is an example in the list above of a sound effect that is annoying – but it’s only annoying when you hear it several times, which only happens when you playtest the game properly. Don’t be afraid to push a feature or bug fix into a future update. You can’t fix everything immediately. A bug that only happens in very specific circumstances will not affect many people, and you can fix it with a clearer head if you just release the game and then get to work on a small update to fix the bug. Because I had no actual budget I did very little marketing. I did spend a small amount of money on some banner ads, and I promoted the game on a few websites and forums. I don’t think my marketing had any real effect on downloads or sales. I know that advertising is crucial if you want to make your game successful. It’s practically impossible for a game to get noticed among the glut of products being released into app stores every day, and you’re competing with the big game studios. If I had a real budget I would probably choose to spend 50% of it on marketing if I felt I had a game that could be popular, but ifor my hobby game I had to choose to put it out there and cross my fingers. The game was originally called Clowntraptions, and was renamed sometime between the initial release and the Android release a few months later. I felt the pun was a bit forced and obscure, and I thought maybe Game of Clowns could trade on the popularity of Game of Thrones. There is no success in the app world without marketing (unless lightning strikes). People need to know your game exists; they need to want it; you need to reach a critical mass of recognition. That comes from marketing. I released Game of Clowns almost 2 years ago on Windows platforms. The intention was always to release an Android version, and then an iOS version if I could figure out how (I don’t own or use any Apple devices, so there’s a big barrier there). I published both a free (limited to about 30 levels) and a paid version to Android a few months after the initial launch, again with no marketing. I have sold very few copies on Android, though I have almost reached 20,000 free downloads, which is cool, I suppose. Ratings are generally 4 or 5 stars, which is great. Porting to Android (and later iOS) was very easy. There is only one script in the final code that has any differences for the different platforms. I got some help accessing a Mac via remote desktop, and set about publishing the iOS version. The tools were new to me, and using remote desktop was tedious, but I got it sorted out and published. iOS Publishing A major reason it took so long to port to iOS was the cost of a developer licence (AU$150 per year compared to a nominal one-off fee on Android and Windows). I don’t know if I’ll sell enough copies on iOS to cover the developer licence, but at least I have iOS publishing experience and my iOS-using friends can now play the game. I get far more downloads and sales on Windows Phone than Android. This is probably due to the difficulty of being noticed in the much larger Android store. iOS is a trickier platform to publish to, and costs a lot more. Time will tell if iOS users buys more copies than Android and/or Windows users. The main lessons I learned while making Game of Clowns were: Game development is hard work, and there are no shortcuts. Only through experience can you really understand how much work goes into any aspect of game development. The best art and music comes from talented people who have the required skills, but with some clever tricks you can stretch a small budget. What I Spent Here’s a quick list of costs I incurred making this game. I’m very happy with the end product considering the budgetary constraints I had. Art: ~US$400, mostly on commissioned art Music: ~US$30 for licenced music Software: US$55 for original game template Marketing: ~US$150 on some banner ad impressions. I haven’t made back the ~US$600 I spent creating the game, but I’ve definitely got more than US$600 worth of lessons learned. Get the Game If you want to check out Game of Clowns, you can get it for the platform of choice from the following links: Android (free version with limited levels) Android (paid full version) Windows Store (phone/PC Windows 8+, works great with mouse or touch) iOS (iPhone and iPad) Game of Clowns website and desktop PC version 3 thoughts on “The Making of Game of Clowns” Dmitry June 21, 2016 at 8:42 pm Thanks for the nice writeup! I am at the very beginning of the path that you have traveled, but lots of things sound familiar. Our game is not released yet and is much simpler (just 10 levels! at least that’s what we plan to release at first) but the challenges are the same. Some questions: Do you have ads in the free Android version? If so how much do they earn? How many testers aside from yourself you had before the release? Damien June 21, 2016 at 8:54 pm No, I don’t have ads in my game, though I probably will next time. My free and trial versions have limited levels, with all the levels in the paid version. I had about half a dozen testers while making the game. Every tester found different issues, so the more testing you have the better! Good luck with your game! Dmitry June 21, 2016 at 10:26 pm Thanks! You’re right that the learning aspect is invaluable… but making some money would be nice too. On the other hand I’m disgusted by the level of greed some game authors demonstrate (ads during play, and some even try to sell me different backgrounds for their puzzle!), so we plan to be modest, only showing ads between levels. And then we plan to only sell a complete unlock (unlimited lives, play any level at any time) as an in-app purchase instead of “packs” of 100 coins or lives that most games seem to be selling. We’ll see how it goes. © 2020 Unity School — Powered by WordPress Theme by ThemeIsle	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line433
__label__cc	0.66525	0.33475	The William Henry Smith School BECOMING THE BEST YOU CAN BE Policies, Privacy and School Improvement Plan Bespoke Education Support and Tuition Provision Careers/Work Experience Book of Condolence Modern Britain Janice Hirst It is with great sadness we announce that our colleague and friend Janice Hirst passed away on Thursday 9th January. Janice worked at the school for over 15 years in a pivotal position and her work impacted significantly upon the lives of many children and their families. Her family have requested that donations in lieu of flowers be made to Overgate Hospice. If anyone would like to donate, please either leave with reception staff or post to the school. We have opened a book of condolences on our website for anyone wishing to write a message, and these will be passed on to the family. http://whsschool.org.uk/about/book-of-condolence/. Our sincere condolences at this sad time are with her family. Welcome to William Henry Smith School Website. We work with children and young people aged 5-19 across a broad spectrum of social, emotional and mental health challenges and use our knowledge, experience and expertise to help them ‘become the best they can be’. Common diagnoses and learner profiles amongst our students include ADHD, PDA, FASD, Autism and Attachment Disorder. We are proud to have received an Ofsted judgement of ‘Outstanding’ in all areas across the school (March 2018) and have been Ofsted Social Care Outstanding for 14 consecutive years. We primarily offer Day and Residential Education/Care over four nights a week from our school in Brighouse, West Yorkshire, although we can also accommodate flexible Extended Day placements and bespoke learning pathways in our specialist environment. We provide a 24 hour, integrated curriculum with sensory strategies, communication interventions, exceptional therapeutic services and family outreach. Improving Quality of Life underpins all our work. Our Key Principles “We promote a positive sense of self, high aspirations and endless opportunities to achieve outstanding outcomes. We plant the foundations for health, happiness and growth by building strength, confidence and resilience, a like for learning and a tool box to help manage life’s challenges. We teach right from wrong, a positive mind-set and the belief and value of a ‘can do’ approach. We aim for our children to become respectful citizens who have the ability to form healthy relationships and contribute to society, through social and moral purpose and economic responsibility. All our young people are offered bespoke transition to adulthood, College or University.” Sue Ackroyd PRINCIPAL International Centre of Excellence The school has received numerous awards this academic year, including winning the Examiner Award for SEN school of the year and was also commended in both the ‘Shine a Light Awards’ and the ‘Education Business Awards’. One of our students won Gold at the ‘Engage Schools Awards’ for outstanding personal achievement. The school functions as a mutually beneficial community, where staff and students experience everyday life alongside each other (we raise thousands of pounds each year for our chosen charities). We are passionate and committed to sharing our practice and providing school to school support. Further publications, conference appearances, teaching commitments and research related to ACE’s (Adverse Childhood Experiences) and trauma are current projects. Beyond our doorstep, the school has a presence as a national and international centre of excellence within the SEN sector. We regularly present at conferences and universities in the fields of Education, Mental Health and our Psychotherapy team is considered as leading the field in working with complex and developmental trauma in the UK. We are heavily involved with national memberships such as Engage, Sebda and NASS and have been active in setting up and hosting the NASS Teaching and Learning peer review group across the North. We make a valuable contribution, including consultancy, specialist training and support to schools requiring improvement and, advice to other social care provisions locally, regionally and nationally. We hope you find our website informative and engaging. If you have any questions about our website or School, then please call us on 01484 710 123, or visit our contact us page for full details. We invite parents and carers of students to provide us with feedback by completing our WHSS Parents Questionnaire. We also value feedback and appreciate compliments from professionals and visitors via our online feedback form Parents and carers can also give their views of our school to Ofsted by completing their Parent View Questionnaire. Just click on the link below and follow the instructions. You can also see what other parents/carers think about our school. https://parentview.ofsted.gov.uk Tweets by WHSSchool Cancer Research Charity Square Chapel Drama Workshops Bespoke Education Support Team NASS Annual Conference Parent/Carer workshop WHS History Boothroyd Lane HD6 3JW Email: general@whsschool.org.uk © 2019 All rights reserved Site By Unicorn Web Solutions Registered charity no. 529132	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line435
__label__cc	0.649836	0.350164	Browse galleries of user-submitted screenshots, and art to use in your modding projects! We also host occasional art contests, too! ECWolf Resources Browse a selection of starter kits for new ECWolf projects, and DECORATE templates for features to add to your games. All submitted by other users in the community! A wide variety of songs ready to be added to your game project. Music ranges from original pieces, to converted midis of popular songs and conversions of music from other games. Many modders and game developers have released the source code of their engines for others to learn and build their own games from (That could be you)!	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0128.json.gz/line437

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