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I like new ballets because they're totally new. As you get older, new experiences are harder and harder to come by, so it's pretty great to have a new experience.
Robert Caro's quotes
Ballet is sort of a mystery to me. And I don't want to unravel that mystery.
The moment the curtain rose on that first ballet, I knew something wonderful and new had come into my life. I can still see the first scene. The ballet was Divertimento No. 15.
My predictions are notably inaccurate.
I was trying to learn about Lyndon Johnson when he was young and creating his first political machine in the Texas hill country. I moved there for three years. You had to learn that world.
The Senate is an unknowing world.
Robert Moses wasn't elected to anything. We're taught that in a democracy power comes from being elected. He had more power than anyone, and he held it for 48 years.
I never wanted to do biography just to tell the life of a famous man. I always wanted to use the life of a man to examine political power, because democracy shapes our lives.
At the ballet, you really feel like you're in the presence of something outside the rest of your life. Higher than the rest of your life.
Everyone believed the Senate could not really be led. It used to take so long to rise up through seniority.
The New York City Ballet is obviously speaking to a whole new generation and bringing it the same wonder and beauty that it brought previous generations.
Sometimes during a ballet I'll look around and see all these rows of intent faces, concentrating on this beautiful thing up on the stage.
I never went to a ballet until I was 45 years old. I don't know why.
You come in off the street, through the doors of the theater. You sit down. The lights go down and the curtain goes up. And you're in another world.
Lyndon Johnson, as majority leader of the United States Senate, he made the Senate work.
I deliberately made an effort not to become an expert on the ballet.
As you get older, you sometimes feel that it's harder and harder to get something new and wonderful to come into your life.
I really wanted there to be something in my life that I enjoy just for the beauty of it.
I sometimes feel that if your book sells more than 20 years, then there's something in it that you can say, gee, I did something that endures, that's timeless.
The ballet embodies the notes of music. And sometimes you almost feel like you can see the notes dance up there on the stage.
Everything seems to be going faster and faster. It's really harder to create something that endures. The New York City Ballet has succeeded in doing that.
Everyone believed the Senate could not really be led. It used to take so long to rise up through seniority. In two years Lyndon Johnson is assistant leader of his party. In four years he is the leader of his party.
I am trying to make clear through my writing something which I believe: that biography- history in general- can be literature in the deepest and highest sense of that term.
I don't think of my books as being biographies. I never had any interest in doing a book just to write the life of a great man. I had zero interest in that. My interest is in power. How power works.
Long Island is shaped the way it is largely because of Robert Moses. Long Island is a perfect example of how political power shapes people's lives every day.
The right of a minority is so important in a democracy.
There used to be this feeling under Eisenhower and Kennedy and Roosevelt and Truman that government was a solution. Trust in the presidency fell precipitously under Johnson - real lows. And it's never come back. It's a trend that, if you're liberal, is really discouraging.
We're taught Lord Acton's axiom: all power corrupts, absolute power corrupts absolutely. I believed that when I started these books, but I don't believe it's always true any more. Power doesn't always corrupt. Power can cleanse. What I believe is always true about power is that power always reveals.
You can use a biography to examine political power, but only if you pick the right guy.
At the ballet you really feel like youre in the presence of something outside the rest of your life. Higher than the rest of your life.
You can use a biography to examine political power but only if you pick the right guy.
Someday a political genius will come along and make the Senate work.
You learn from a conglomeration of the incredible past - whatever experience gotten in any way whatsoever.
I've danced one time in my life. It was the most mortifying experience I ever had.
The experience of life consists of the experience which the spirit has of itself in matter and as matter, in mind and as mind, in emotion, as emotion, etc.
My best film composing experience was with Elia Kazan.
Education is a private matter between the person and the world of knowledge and experience, and has little to do with school or college.
Lillian Smith
A novel should be an experience and convey an emotional truth rather than arguments.
Joyce Cary
By experience we find out a short way by a long wandering.
The experience of democracy is like the experience of life itself-always changing, infinite in its variety, sometimes turbulent and all the more valuable for having been tested by adversity.
Learning teacheth more in one year than experience in twenty.
Well, the hardest thing to do, as we know from our own experience on 9/11 is protect everything all the time.
The most important training, though, is to experience life as a writer, questioning everything, inventing multiple explanations for everything. If you do that, all the other things will come; if you don't, there's no hope for you.
When I reached adulthood, even now, I could afford to belong to a country club. But I could never belong to a private club because of my experience as a child, because it would isolate me from the whole of humanity.
No one I know of has ever had this experience-where you had to sit and wait and wait for a DNA test to come back just so you can write the last page of the book.
If you live long enough, you'll experience everything.
Actually I'd had a certain amount of experience in Europe in the inter-war period, as a banker, and I was also a member of the Board of Directors of the International Chamber of Commerce.
W. Averell Harriman
In the case of my book, I don't think it's really the coming-out gay novel that everyone really needed, even though it was received as such. The boy is too creepy, he betrays his teacher, the only adult man with whom he's enjoyed a sexual experience, etc.
Edmund White
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“N3XTCON”: How My Passion for Startups Was Incubated at USC
Shao-Hua (Nick) Wu, far left, with fellow researchers in Michelle Povinelli’s (fourth from left) research group.
By Shao-Hua Wu
Like many engineers, what drew me to the field was the opportunity to make a difference in the world. From the moment I began my life at USC in 2012 as a MS student, I was excited to get started down this path. With my friends and family 7000 miles away in Taiwan, I put all of my effort into tirelessly studying and conducting research. By 2013, I had started to do research with Prof. Michelle Povinelli.
Prof. Povinelli has always been a remarkable mentor and teacher to me. She is inspiring as a scientist, innovating as a pioneer, and guiding and supportive as a mentor. Now, as a PhD student in her nanophotonics lab, I get to work with her every day on exciting projects. In fact, I’ve been working on four different projects, each of which resulted in a first author publication. Prof. Povinelli gives me a huge amount of flexibility in how I conduct my research, gives me time to collaborate with other PhD students, and even trusts me enough to let me lead undergraduate researchers. Not only have I gained deep knowledge in electrical engineering, but I’ve learnd a lot about teamwork and leadership.
The EE department encourages and often sponsors us to present our own research at conferences. Attending conferences allows us to meet interesting people from different fields and expand our horizons.
“King of Pirates” – Shao-Hua’s first startup venture. The first board game in Taiwan to teach kids how to code.
These lessons on leadership proved especially helpful when it comes to my second passion – entrepreneurship. Our department provides great opportunities for students to learn about entrepreneurship through workshops, activities, and projects. To me, the entrepreneurial spirit consists of three steps: identify a problem/need, develop a solution, and test the solution with customers. With so much support and inspiration from my department and advisor, I started my first off-school startup project in 2015 with friends in Taiwan. Based on our own experiences, we wanted to work on improving coding education for children. We successfully pledged 150k USD and delivered the first educational board game in Taiwan, Papacode – King of Pirates, designed for children to teach them how to code.
I soon realized that academic research and entrepreneurship require a lot of the same skills – they are both about identifying problems and providing new solutions. I started to explore different events and meet great people and leaders at USC and in Los Angeles. Among those leaders is William Wang, the founder & CEO of VIZIO and Board of Councilors member for the USC Viterbi School of Engineering. He’s also a fellow USC EE family member, having graduated from this very department in 1986. His inspirational stories about how he failed, struggled, and kept trying were invaluable lessons to a young entrepreneur like me.
Even with all the support I’ve received, I still felt nervous when I took steps to explore the startup world in a very different field: Community Building.
In 2017 I co-founded n3xt con, a non-profit (501(c)(3) under review). After my own experience in getting involved with entrepreneurship, I wanted to create an organization that would make that first step easier for others too. Our mission is to help people along the path to forging their own future and making a difference in the world. We’re trying to build a supportive community for young professionals and students to meet, gain confidence, share ideas, and connect with industry leaders.
Shao-Hua (far right) with William Wang (third from right) founder of VIZIO and USC Electrical Engineering alum.
One of our biggest events is happening this Sunday April 2nd at the Pasadena Convention Center. We’ve secured more than 40 speakers including the VP of Interactive Media at NBCUniversal, the VP of Research and Insight at BuzzFeed, and a Distinguished Strategist at Cisco. We also have startup founders and venture capitalists coming to share their advice and insight. It will be a great opportunity for people from different fields (everything from VR and big data, to filmmaking and comics) to network. The best part is, USC students can get in for a fraction of the price by using the code N3XTUSC to register!
I always knew I wanted to be an engineer and help change the world. But it wasn’t until I got to USC, and was presented with such a wonderful support system, that I was able to realize my passion for entrepreneurship. I hope to do even more in the future to make this a reality for other engineers, and I hope to see you all at our event this weekend!
Shao-Hua (Nick) Wu is a PhD student in the Ming Hsieh Department of Electrical Engineering, where he studies biophotonics and nanophotonics for optical manipulation and radiative cooling. He also loves to meet people and discuss new ideas with them. Learn more about him and his work.
Stay connected to read more of our community blogs in the future.
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236.91 minutes to hours
minutes to hours
236.91 minutes equals 3.9485 hours
You can also convert 236.91 minutes to hours and minutes.
Amount in minutes:
Convert to hours
Multiply the amount of minutes by the conversion factor to get the result in hours:
236.91 min × 0.0166667 = 3.9485 hr
How to convert 236.91 minutes to hours?
The conversion factor from minutes to hours is 0.0166667, which means that 1 minutes is equal to 0.0166667 hours:
1 min = 0.0166667 hr
To convert 236.91 minutes into hours we have to multiply 236.91 by the conversion factor in order to get the amount from minutes to hours. We can also form a proportion to calculate the result:
1 min → 0.0166667 hr
236.91 min → T(hr)
Solve the above proportion to obtain the time T in hours:
T(hr) = 236.91 min × 0.0166667 hr
T(hr) = 3.9485 hr
236.91 min → 3.9485 hr
We conclude that 236.91 minutes is equivalent to 3.9485 hours:
236.91 minutes = 3.9485 hours
For practical purposes we can round our final result to an approximate numerical value. In this case two hundred thirty-six point nine one minutes is approximately three point nine four nine hours:
236.91 minutes ≅ 3.949 hours
For quick reference purposes, below is the minutes to hours conversion table:
minutes (min)
hours (hr)
237.91 minutes 3.965175 hours
The units involved in this conversion are minutes and hours. This is how they are defined:
The minute is a unit of time or of angle. As a unit of time, the minute (symbol: min) is equal to 1⁄60 (the first sexagesimal fraction) of an hour, or 60 seconds. In the UTC time standard, a minute on rare occasions has 61 seconds, a consequence of leap seconds (there is a provision to insert a negative leap second, which would result in a 59-second minute, but this has never happened in more than 40 years under this system). As a unit of angle, the minute of arc is equal to 1⁄60 of a degree, or 60 seconds (of arc). Although not an SI unit for either time or angle, the minute is accepted for use with SI units for both. The SI symbols for minute or minutes are min for time measurement, and the prime symbol after a number, e.g. 5′, for angle measurement. The prime is also sometimes used informally to denote minutes of time. In contrast to the hour, the minute (and the second) does not have a clear historical background. What is traceable only is that it started being recorded in the Middle Ages due to the ability of construction of "precision" timepieces (mechanical and water clocks). However, no consistent records of the origin for the division as 1⁄60 part of the hour (and the second 1⁄60 of the minute) have ever been found, despite many speculations.
An hour (symbol: h; also abbreviated hr.) is a unit of time conventionally reckoned as 1⁄24 of a day and scientifically reckoned as 3,599–3,601 seconds, depending on conditions. The seasonal, temporal, or unequal hour was established in the ancient Near East as 1⁄12 of the night or daytime. Such hours varied by season, latitude, and weather. It was subsequently divided into 60 minutes, each of 60 seconds. Its East Asian equivalent was the shi, which was 1⁄12 of the apparent solar day; a similar system was eventually developed in Europe which measured its equal or equinoctial hour as 1⁄24 of such days measured from noon to noon. The minor variations of this unit were eventually smoothed by making it 1⁄24 of the mean solar day, based on the measure of the sun's transit along the celestial equator rather than along the ecliptic. This was finally abandoned due to the minor slowing caused by the Earth's tidal deceleration by the Moon. In the modern metric system, hours are an accepted unit of time equal to 3,600 seconds but an hour of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) may incorporate a positive or negative leap second, making it last 3,599 or 3,601 seconds, in order to keep it within 0.9 seconds of universal time, which is based on measurements of the mean solar day at 0° longitude.
211.4 minutes to hours
52.11 minutes to hours
2.27 minutes to hours
62.1 minutes to hours
165 minutes to hours
©2021 minuteshours.com
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New CAMH Curator Rebecca Matalon Brings Big Ideas to Houston
Mimi Faucett Trahan | January 30, 2019 | People
New CAMH curator Rebecca Matalon brings her diverse experience and big ideas to Houston.
Rebecca Matalon was destined for a career in the arts. Not only by way of her upbringing in New York City, where she was surrounded by some of the finest museums in the country, but also because of her family. Her mother was an art director and both of her maternal grandparents were creatives.
Matalon briefly studied photography at Bard College; however, during her time there, she was less interested in making photographs and more interested in group discussions and “crit.” “I realized I was perhaps better at analyzing than making my own work,” she says. And after a particularly inspiring art history class, Matalon swapped her concentration to art history.
Fast-forward to today and Matalon is a veteran art curator, having spent the last five-plus years at MOCA in Los Angeles—first as a curatorial assistant, then associate and, finally, as assistant curator. And this month, the 33-year-old will move to Houston to start her new gig as curator at the Contemporary Arts Museum, Houston.
During her time in L.A., Matalon collaborated with artists like Mickalene Thomas and Zoe Leonard, among others, and organized such prolific exhibits as 2015’s Tongues Untied, which looked at works made during the HIV/AIDS crisis. In addition, she was a curator at JOAN, a not-for-profit exhibition space she co-founded, dedicated to presenting the work of under-recognized artists. “I’m looking forward to new conversations and a new city,” she says. “And to being a part of an institution that’s smaller in scale but much more experimental and that pushes boundaries.”
Matalon says she was drawn to CAMH’s rich history of supporting experimental arts, artists of color and women, from the hiring of its first professional director in 1955, a woman, Jermayne MacAgy, to the museum’s annual event, Another Great Night in November, where the new curator was first introduced. Of her plans in the new role, stayed tuned, Matalon says: “I certainly have a few ideas up my sleeve.” Lucky us.
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The Krickets Fly Free with “Redbird,” Out Today
The Krickets are back and better than ever. Produced by Sam Ashworth, The Krickets’ full length, sophomore album Redbird dropped October 26th. We simply cannot get enough of this album! Every track is filled with sweet sounds and chilling harmonies.
The female Americana group from the gulf coast delivers nothing but warm folk and country sounds. Comprised of Katrina Kolb (bass), Melissa Bowman Weigle (banjo), Emily Stuckey Sellers (guitar, mandolin, percussion), and Lauren Spring (guitar, banjo, mandolin, fiddle), The Krickets are a sisterhood of singer-songwriters. This “swamp-folk” album reveals stories of love, hope and struggle told with an unapologetic feminine strength.
“Lay Them Down” is a track that we absolutely love. The song expresses the hardships that come with life and how overwhelming it can be to deal with it all. Everyone’s daily struggles ultimately connect us as no one is truly alone in their journey of life. Overall, the song’s theme is about hope, encouragement, and the strength to go on. This song is special in ways beyond the meaning – it was co-written by all four members of the group. Through the lyrics, the listener is able to gain the perspectives of the members.
Another track we love is “May We Find.” On the surface, the song is an absolute masterpiece. It is beautiful throughout, and the harmonies absolutely grab the attention of the listener. The track is all about the importance of finding your way home, whether that be a place or a person. Through the ups and downs of life, home keeps you grounded. Home, to the Krickets, seems to mean truth, peace, and most importantly, love. Lauren explains, “The song begins and ends in a three part harmony a capella that meant to still the listener. It’s a message of hope and love and closes the album with our wish/blessing to the listener.” This track is the perfect ending track on the album.
From start to finish, Redbird is absolutely stunning. We simply cannot get enough of The Krickets and we are so excited to see what’s to come from them!
Listen to Redbird here:
https://soundcloud.com/thekrickets
Take a peek at their site:
https://www.thekrickets.com/home
Find The Krickets on Social Media
https://twitter.com/thekrickets
https://www.facebook.com/thefloridacrickets
https://www.instagram.com/thekrickets/
← Stunning Acoustic Pop/Rock From Marvin Dee Band’s New Single ‘ Bolt Everything Down’
Video Voyeur: 3Qs with Keith Cooper →
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History of vascular access
Roberto Biffi
Istituto Europeo di Oncologia
Milestones in the history of the development of vascular access and the subsequent advances in practical clinical applications are here described. The original achievements are presented and discussed. Fundamental steps to achieve a safe and effective IV access and management are pointed out.
Totally Implantable Venous Access Devices: Management in Mid- and Long-Term Clinical Setting
Springer-Verlag Italia s.r.l.
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-88-470-2373-4
Supportive care in cancer
Total parenteral nutrition
Totally implantable central venous access device
Tunneled central venous catheters
10.1007/978-88-470-2373-4
Fingerprint Dive into the research topics of 'History of vascular access'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.
History Medicine & Life Sciences
Blood Vessels Medicine & Life Sciences
Biffi, R. (2012). History of vascular access. In Totally Implantable Venous Access Devices: Management in Mid- and Long-Term Clinical Setting (pp. 3-9). Springer-Verlag Italia s.r.l.. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-88-470-2373-4
History of vascular access. / Biffi, Roberto.
Totally Implantable Venous Access Devices: Management in Mid- and Long-Term Clinical Setting. Springer-Verlag Italia s.r.l., 2012. p. 3-9.
Biffi, R 2012, History of vascular access. in Totally Implantable Venous Access Devices: Management in Mid- and Long-Term Clinical Setting. Springer-Verlag Italia s.r.l., pp. 3-9. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-88-470-2373-4
Biffi R. History of vascular access. In Totally Implantable Venous Access Devices: Management in Mid- and Long-Term Clinical Setting. Springer-Verlag Italia s.r.l. 2012. p. 3-9 https://doi.org/10.1007/978-88-470-2373-4
Biffi, Roberto. / History of vascular access. Totally Implantable Venous Access Devices: Management in Mid- and Long-Term Clinical Setting. Springer-Verlag Italia s.r.l., 2012. pp. 3-9
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Home › David Bowles
Inquiry-Based Learning and Museum Education
Instructor: David Bowles
Introduction to Museum Education
David Bowles is an informal learning specialist with a record of effective team leadership, a passion for empowering museum visitors, and a knack for generating high-impact and inclusive experiences.
In his current role as Gallery Educator at the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles, he and his team conduct scholarly research in preparation for leading gallery conversations, lectures, tours, courses, and innovative educational programs for current and emerging audiences. David helps supervise all aspects of docent teaching in the galleries, supporting rigorous training modules for new docent trainees and contributing to ongoing continuing education through regular observations, guidance and mentorship.
Prior to this, he led K-12 School Programs at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Rubin Museum of Art in New York City. He has presented at major conferences such as AAM, NAEA, and NYCMER, and has served as an IMLS peer reviewer for the Museums for America Grant Program, as well as a board member for NYCMER and NAEA, which publishes the Journal of Museum Education, the only American journal devoted to the theory and practice of museum education. David has an M.S.Ed from Bank Street College and a B.A. with Honours from McGill University.
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The Music Court
Write for the Music Court.
Tag Archives: Richard Thompson
Time (Specifically 1969) Has Told Me
Danny Thompson
Have you ever played the game six degrees of separation before? The idea behind the game is that all people are connected within six steps of each other. For example, perhaps the guy you met on the train yesterday frequently eats at a bagel place where your brother’s best friend works the counter. It’s a small world after all, right? Well, it’s an even smaller world with music – you’d be surprised to find how many musicians have recorded in the same studio with other musicians. A quick check of an album’s liner notes may shock you. Thus is the case of today’s post – let’s head back in time to 1969 and find Nick Drake recording his debut album Five Leaves Left at Sound Techniques in London.
Drake, who signed to Island records at 20 and released three studio albums before turning inwards and committing suicide at 26, was a tortured folk genius whose creative guitar tunings, chord progressions, and lyric bent conventions and significantly impacted those lucky enough to work with him during his unfortunately short career. His music is haunting, much the probable consequence of severe depression, and although bucolic and tranquil for the modern listener, the music is tinged with a lugubrious solitude. Five Years Left, recorded when Drake was around 20 and released in July of 1969, finds its way on several top 500 album lists and for good reason; it is a masterful collection of Drake’s talent … and the talent of others. Take a listen to “Time Has Told Me.”
Right? There is nothing quite like it – hence the draw of Nick Drake. Did you notice the twangy electric guitar and swooning bass? That is where our game of musical degrees begins. Let’s start with the electric guitar.
Recorded at around the same time of Drake’s album and released in December of 1969, Liege & Lief, one of the most influential British folk albums ever released, featured the guitar stylings of Richard Thompson – “Farewell, Farewell,” one of my favorites on the album, is Thompson’s arrangement. Why bring up guitarist Richard Thompson? He played electric guitar on “Time Has Told Me.” He was also a founding member of Fairport Convention, who, in 1969, released three albums – the third being Liege & Lief. Impacted by American folk acts like Bob Dylan, Fairport Convention revived older British folk songs, and added a modern tint to the classics. The band, of course, is most known for the dulcet vocal of Sandy Denny, who, like Nick Drake, also suffered from depression and died young. Thompson’s guitar, though, cannot be overstated – his impact on the scene was invaluable.
Often when people consider late 60s British folk , they think of Fairport Convention and Pentangle, a band that explored more of the Folk Baroque scene, implementing Jazz influences into their folk tunes. Formed in 1967, Pentangle also featured a powerful female vocalist – Jacqui McShee (who still performs with the band) and a bassist named Danny Thompson (no relation to Richard) who also played bass on, you guessed it, “Time Has Told Me” by Nick Drake. Only a few months after Drake’s debut release, Pentangle released its third studio album (it had released two in 1968 – these bands were quite prodigious) Basket of Light, and on it was the traditional piece “Once I Had A Sweetheart” that was creatively arranged by the talented quintet. The music is tinged with a progressive sentiment – a true precursor to some progressive acts that sprouted after the British folk movement petered out in the early 1970s.
So there you have it – Nick Drake records his seminal debut album in 1968/1969 and from perhaps its most famous track we find two British folk giants whose careers have both spanned more than 50 years – time certainly has told us much.
Tags: British Folk, Danny Thompson, Fairport Convention, Folk, Music, Nick Drake, Pentangle, Richard Thompson
Categories Musical Interludes (Melodic thoughts from the Jester), The Evolution of Song
Author Matthew Coleman
Categories Select Category 60s (and some 70s) Band of The Week Album Reviews Album Previews Archives A Different Drummer Best Guitar Riffs Bestowing the Crown Introduction to The Music Court Journey to the Center of the Mind Musical Lexicon Same Artist, Different Place Six Degrees of Your iPod Stage Light Left Surprising Facts About Popular Songs SWOD The 60s Psychedelic Experiment – What is 60’s Psychedelic music? Things to Never Do Top 25 Guitarists of All Time Visual Music Artist Profiles Artists of Interest New Band Palace Concerts Concert Previews Concert Reviews Court Polls Great Moments in Music Cover History In the Jester’s Ear Lyric of the Day Music News Music Trivia Musical Interludes (Melodic thoughts from the Jester) Obscure Classic Rock Song of The Day The Top 10 Songs of 2010 The Top 10 Songs of 2011 The Top 10 Songs of 2013 The Top 10 Songs of 2015 The Top 10 Songs of 2016 Top 10 Songs and Albums of 2014 The Evolution of Song The Spirit in the Sky – One Hit Wonders! The Underrated Album
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Creating a 3D Model with Motion Analysis of Taqi al-Din’s Six-Cylinder Pump
by Joseph Vera Published on: 9th June 2009
Engineering - Joseph Vera - Pumps - Taqi al-Din -
Among the original machines described in the corpus of Islamic technology, the six-cylinder "monobloc" piston pump designed by Taqi al-Din Ibn Ma'ruf in the late 16th century holds a special place. Working as a suction pump, this complex machine included components that are often associated with modern technology, such as a camshaft, a cylinder block, pistons, and non-return valves. In this article, Joseph Vera, an expert in re-engineering ancient inventions, describes how he created a SolidWorks CAD model of this remarkable pump, that he completed with a motion simulation. The conclusion he drew after creating the model and the simulation is that the engineers of the Islamic tradition, represented by Taqi al-Din, had a very solid grasp of kinematics, dynamics and fluid mechanics. He notes also that Taqi al-Din's "monobloc" pump is a remarkable example of a machine using renewable energy, a topic that is currently of utmost importance.
Joseph Vera, P.Eng.*
2. Design Intent of the Pump and Cylinder Block Design Considerations
3. Engineering Calculations: Sizing The Piston Weights and Calculating the Flow Rate
4. How The Pump Worked: Converting Rotary to Reciprocating Motion
5. Motion Analysis and Simulation of the Water in the Cylinder Block and the River
6. Generating a Photorealistic Rendering
One day, while browsing at a local library, a fascinating book caught my eye. The book was Islamic Technology: An illustrated history by Ahmad Y. al-Hassan and Donald R. Hill, which explores the engineering achievements of the Islamic Golden Age, a topic that sadly had previously been neglected. One particular achievement mentioned in this book drew my attention: Taqi al-Din’s six-cylinder “monobloc” piston pump. Although this pump was designed in the 16th century it included components that are often associated with modern technology, such as: a camshaft, a cylinder block, pistons, non-return valves, and further to this it worked as a suction pump. However, it is important to note that this machine was created approximately two centuries before the dawn of the Industrial Revolution.
For quite some time the subject of Industrial Archaeology, more specifically re-engineering ancient inventions, has been one of my main interests, and it occurred to me that creating a SolidWorks CAD model of this remarkable pump and to complete it with a motion simulation would help broaden our understanding of engineering during the Islamic Golden Age. After creating the model and the simulation, it is my belief that the engineers of this era had a very solid grasp of kinematics, dynamics and fluid mechanics. This paper describes how the “monobloc” pump was modeled and the steps required for creating a successful motion simulation. Below is a rendered image of this ingenious invention (fig. 1).
Figure 1: Taqi al-Din’s “monobloc” pump, SolidWorks model rendered in PhotoView 360. © Joseph Vera.
The dimensional and design information we used came from two excellent sources: the book Islamic Technology – An illustrated history by Ahmad Y. al-Hassan and Donald R. Hill, and the article by Salim T S Al-Hassani and Mohammed A. Al-Lawati The Six-Cylinder Water Pump of Taqi al-Din: Its Mathematics, Operation and Virtual Design, published online on the academic web portal of FSTC www.MuslimHeritage.com. In cases where there was no detailed design information we chose dimensions that made the model strong enough to withstand the loads, and also we ensured that the model was manufacturable using technology that was available in the 16th century.
The design intent of this pump is to elevate a certain quantity of water to a specified height using the energy from a nearby river. The water is pumped via suction pipes into delivery pipes and finally into an elevated collective pipe. These pipes are connected together and make up one component, which is known as the cylinder block. We started by modeling the cylinder block, since it is a key component in the design of the entire pump. In fact, the dimensions of the cylinder block will then determine the dimensions and the layout of the pistons, the levers, the pivots, the camshaft and the waterwheel. One of the challenges we faced in modeling the cylinder block was to ensure that the pipes are connected in such a way that there were no interferences or areas with small thicknesses that would make fabrication impossible. To achieve this, we added small clearances so that the pipes had enough spacing between them. Naturally, this is relatively simple to do with SolidWorks. However, Taqi al-Din and the engineers of the Islamic Golden age obviously did not use CAD software, which means that they must have had a great understanding of geometry and tolerances to create the cylinder block. Below is a drawing of the cylinder block showing some of the clearances (fig.2).
Figure 2: Sample clearances in the cylinder block. © Joseph Vera.
One of the most important calculations in this project was to check the volume of water in the cylinder block at full capacity (i.e. when the cylinder block is filled with water right up to the top). This volume of water is critical since the weight of the pistons doing the pushing has to be greater than the weight of the water that is being pushed above the water level of the pistons, in order for the pump to function properly. SolidWorks, like most CAD packages, can calculate the volume of components. With the help of SolidWorks, we obtained the volume of the water in the cylinder block by subtracting the volume of the hollowed cylinder block from the volume of a solid version of the cylinder block (see the figure 3 below). We then multiplied the volume of the water by the density of water to obtain the weight. To determine the required weight of the pistons we analyzed a maximum load scenario, which occurs when the cylinder block is full of water and four pistons are pushing the water. We took into account four pistons, because there is a brief moment during the operation of the pump when there are four pistons that are pushing while two pistons are doing the suction. In brief, we ensured that the total weight of four pistons was greater than the weight of the water being pushed when the cylinder block is at full capacity. The expression “the water being pushed” is defined as the water inside of the cylinder block that is above the water level of the pistons. It is interesting to note that Taqi al-Din made the pistons heavier by adding lead weights to them, which actually is a remarkable engineering solution. The lead weights that we modeled were 115 mm in diameter in order to meet this requirement.
Figure 3: Water volume calculation. © Joseph Vera.
Another important calculation is the flow rate of the pump. First of all, we measured the stroke length of a piston in SolidWorks, which was approximately 120 mm. Then we measured the circular area of a piston, which is 5027 mm2. We multiplied the length by the area to obtain the volume of water being displaced per stroke, which is 603240 mm3. In one camshaft revolution there are 6 strokes; therefore, there are 6 × 603240 mm3 = 3619440 mm3 or approximately 3.62 liters of water displaced per revolution. The flow rate depends on the angular velocity of the camshaft. If we assume that it rotates at 10 rpm (which is realistic for a river flowing at 500 mm/s), the flow rate then becomes 36.2 liters/minute.
It is important to note that a linear reciprocating motion (i.e. linear back and forth motion) is required for the pistons to pump the water. How is this reciprocating motion obtained? For starters, a nearby river is used as the source of energy. This energy is captured via a scoop waterwheel which results in a rotary motion. So the challenge that Taqi al-Din faced was to convert this rotary motion to reciprocating motion. This was achieved by connecting a camshaft to the waterwheel. The cams were then equally spaced and lined up with the levers and the pistons. Also, the camshaft was hexagonally shaped and a cam was placed in each of the flat faces of the hexagon in such a way that each cam made contact with a lever at different instances in time. Each cam pushed one end of a lever down, causing the lever to pivot and pull a piston upwards, thereby suctioning the water. Then gravity caused the piston to move downwards and thereby push the water into the main collective pipe. Non-return valves ensured that the water always moved upwards. However, an important question remains: how did Taqi al-Din ensure that the pistons reciprocated linearly? The levers move up and down in an arc path; however, the pistons need to move up and down in a linear path. Although we have no detailed drawings in Taqi al-Din’s manuscript, it is quite possible that a pin in the piston rod was connected to a slot in the lever. This mechanism would have converted the arc motion into a linear motion. Note that Taqi al-Din had used pins inside of slots in other pump designs. Below is a drawing generated from SolidWorks showing a possible design for this mechanism with the pin inside of the slot (fig. 4).
Figure 4: Slot mechanism converting arc to linear motion. © Joseph Vera.
SolidWorks is able to do motion analysis of solids and also do fluid flow analysis; however, it cannot not do both of them at the same time. More specifically, it cannot simulate water pushing a waterwheel, or water being suctioned by a moving piston. To overcome this limitation, we simulated the water pushing the waterwheel by adding a virtual motor in SolidWorks Simulation that rotated the waterwheel at 10 rpm, which -as stated before- is a realistic angular velocity for a river that moves at 500 mm/s. On the other hand, simulating the water in the cylinder block proved to be a challenge, until we realized that the water acted as a spring in the sense that it had a reaction force that was linear to its displacement. Further to this, the water in the cylinder block also acted as a damper that slows down the fall of the pistons. We added virtual springs with damping in SolidWorks to each piston in order to simulate the effect caused by the water in the cylinder block. Below is an image of one of these springs and a link to an animation of this motion simulation (fig.5).
Figure 5: Water simulated as a virtual spring. Click here to see the animation. © Joseph Vera.
SolidWorks has an add-on that allows one to create photorealistic renderings. In fact when one adds a material in SolidWorks, not only is the appropriate density assigned to the component, but also the texture of the material appears graphically. For the wood in the waterwheel and cylinder block we chose polished pine, since it has a texture that appears to be wet. This makes the pump appear like it has been used and looks more realistic. For the background we chose a dusty setting that resembled the desert, since this pump was likely used in either desert or arid regions. Below is the final rendered image (fig. 6).
Taqi al-Din and the engineers of the Islamic Golden Age designed several complex and innovative machines. Creating a model and a simulation of the “monobloc” pump gave us an appreciation of the technical challenges that Taqi al-Din must have overcome to complete this design. This appreciation leads me to believe that the engineers of this era had a very strong grasp of kinematics, dynamics and fluid mechanics in order to make these machines workable. It is also very noteworthy that this “monobloc” pump of the 16th century is a remarkable example of a machine that used renewable energy, a topic that is currently of utmost importance.
Figure 6: Photorealistic rendering of the “monobloc” pump. © Joseph Vera.
Ahmad Y. al-Hassan and Donald R. Hill, Islamic Technology – An Illustrated History. Islamic Technology. An Illustrated History. Paris/Cambridge: UNESCO/ Cambridge University Press, 1986, pp. 49-52.
Salim T S Al-Hassani and Mohammed A. Al-Lawati The Six-Cylinder Water Pump of Taqi al-Din: Its Mathematics, Operation and Virtual Design, (published 21 July 2008).
Salim al-Hassani, The Machines of Al-Jazari and Taqi al-Din (published 30 December 2004).
FSTC: Al-Jazari: 800 Years After: A special folder published 1 February 2008 containing several articles.
FSTC: Taqi al-Din Ibn Ma’ruf: A Special Section published 15 July 2008.
*Professional Engineer registered in the Province of Ontario, Canada
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The Six-Cylinder Water Pump of Taqi al-Din: Its Mathematics, Operation and Virtual Design
Taqi al-Din ibn Ma‘ruf and the Science of Optics: The Nature of Light and the Mechanism of Vision by Hüseyin Gazi Topdemir
by Hüseyin Gazi Topdemir
Taqi al-Din ibn Ma‘ruf and the Science of Optics: The Nature of Light and the Mechanism of Vision
The Astronomical Clock of Taqi Al-Din: Virtual Reconstruction
The Self Changing Fountain of Banu Musa bin Shakir
Al-Jazari: 800 Years After
by FSTC
800 Years Later: In Memory of Al-Jazari, A Genius Mechanical Engineer
The Mechanics of Banu Musa in the Light of Modern System and Control Engineering
Astronomical Instruments of Tycho Brahe and Taqi al-Din
The Machines of Al-Jazari and Taqi Al-Din
by Joseph Vera
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Henry Cavill Reveals Why He’s Most Excited to See ‘Zack Snyder’s Justice League’
If at first you don’t succeed, recut the movie and try again. 2017’s infamous superhero crossover Justice League is getting a cape-lift and a 2021 release, recut by the film’s original director Zack Snyder. The Man of Steel and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice director had to depart from the project due to a family tragedy, so Avengers director Joss Whedon stepped in to finish things up in post. The resulting film is a mish-mash of styles and creative visions, receiving all around poor reviews and box office revenue. Now, Snyder will be releasing a revised cut on HBO Max, in an attempt to set things right.
In Variety’s latest Actors on Actors interview, Patrick Stewart spoke with Superman actor Henry Cavill about his Justice League experience. When asked about his opinions on the new “Snyder Cut,” Cavill replied that he didn’t know much more than we did, except that it’s going to be “Zack’s final vision” for the movie. Cavill continued, “I’m just really happy that Zack got to realize his vision. I think it’s important for a filmmaker and a storyteller to have their intended vision released and shown to the world, and I’m looking forward to seeing it myself. It’s been quite the ordeal.”
Cavill agreed that Justice League suffered from a “mix of visions,” and believes that watching the Snyder cut will be a “very enjoyable” experience. We can't wait to see it for ourselves.
Gallery — Actors Who Have Appeared In Marvel and DC Films:
Source: Henry Cavill Reveals Why He’s Most Excited to See ‘Zack Snyder’s Justice League’
Filed Under: HBO Max, Henry Cavill, Justice League, Zack Snyder
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(Redirected from Leonardo Electronic Almanac)
Leonardo, The International Society for the Arts, Sciences and Technology (ISAST), is a nonprofit organization that serves the global network of distinguished scholars, artists, scientists, researchers and thinkers through programs focused on interdisciplinary work, creative output and innovation. The aims of the organization include the documentation of personal and innovative technologies developed by artists, similar to the way in which findings of scientists are documented in journal publications.
The Leonardo Journal is a peer-reviewed academic journal, published by the MIT Press, covering the application of contemporary science and technology to the arts, and generally considered as the highest authority publication in its field. It was founded by artist and scientist Frank Malina in Paris in 1966 and began international print publication in 1968.
Leonardo/OLATS, Observatory for the Arts and Techno-Sciences, is the European sister organization to Leonardo/ISAST and operates Leonardo's French site.
The Leonardo Electronic Almanac is an international art, science and technology peer reviewed e-journal.
http://www.leonardo.info/
http://www.mitpressjournals.org/loi/leon (List of Issues)
http://www.mitpressjournals.org/toc/leon/0/ja (Just Accepted Articles)
http://olats.org/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonardo_Journal
http://leoalmanac.org
Retrieved from "https://monoskop.org/index.php?title=Leonardo&oldid=100559"
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Montclair Foundation Grant Allows Expanded Free Programming for Military Veterans at Yogi Berra Museum
By Baristanet Staff – December 10, 2018
The Montclair Foundation has made a $5,000 grant in support of the Yogi Berra Museum’s 2018 Veterans’ Outreach initiatives. The funding will allow the Museum to continue to extend admission to all exhibits and programs to active and former military service people free of charge, as well as to expand existing programming to veterans groups through the Museum’s close ties to partner organizations that work directly with that community.
“The Montclair Foundation is truly impressed by The Yogi Berra Museum & Learning Center’s continuing efforts to support our veterans with free admission to the Museum and its programs. Additionally, the Veteran’s Resource Fair in its second year reflects the Museum’s commitment to our veterans in a larger and meaningful way,” says Deborah Hirsch, the Montclair Foundation’s Grant Committee Chair.
Just Jersey horizontal
Before Yogi ever donned pinstripes as a New York Yankee, Lawrence Peter Berra was a Seaman Second Class in the U.S. Navy. In the last year, the Museum has launched a targeted outreach program to military veterans in order to better leverage this remarkable piece of Yogi’s biography, his military service, both as a vehicle for sustaining the values his service embodied, and as a means to address needs among the community’s current population of military veterans.
A centerpiece of the Museum’s veterans’ initiative is the Yogi Berra Museum Veterans Resources Fair, a free, all-day event geared towards bringing together veterans’ organizations and community resources for the collective benefit of local veterans and their families. This year’s event, held on November 3, included the presentation of the New Jersey Distinguished Service Medal (DSM) to Gerard Sorell, World War II veteran. A member of the “Greatest Generation” like Yogi, the Austrian-born Sorell fled the Nazis, eventually landing in New York City and serving in the U.S. Army to fight the Germans. Yogi Berra received the DSM posthumously at a ceremony in the Museum in February of this year.
“This generous grant from the Montclair Foundation will allow us to amplify our outreach to the veterans community in new and meaningful ways,” says Eve Schaenen, the Museum’s Executive Director. “Yogi was extremely proud of his service to his country. The Museum that bears his name is the perfect location for programs and workshops that address the needs of men and women who also served.”
Original Post on the Baristanet website
Montclair Ambulance Unit The Montclair Foundation Awards $42,000 in Grants to Montclair Nonprofits
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McGill Redmen: U.S. scholar says name reinforces white settler society
"These names are about reminding folks that they're the victors — this is their property," says author and professor Richard King.
Christopher Curtis • Montreal Gazette
The McGill Redmen in action in an undated photo. The university removed Indigenous imagery from its sports teams in the early 1990s. Montreal Gazette
Why do non-Indigenous sports teams steal the names and symbols of North America’s first peoples?
McGill University’s continued use of “Redmen” for its teams has many on campusgrappling with that question. The name is considered an anti-Indigenous slur and has spurned protests and a campaign to rename the team.
When it emerged in the 1920s, the name Redmen was intended to describe the school’s signature colour but many still find it offensive and point to McGill’s use of racist tropes over the years.
At various points, women’s teams were called the Squaws, men’s teams were nicknamed the Indians and frequently used tomahawks or headdresses in their logos.
One expert says it is less about honouring Indigenous culture than reinforcing the view that white society has conquered First Nations.
“It’s the image of this historic Indian that white society defeated and bested and took his image as a trophy,” said Washington State University professor Richard King. “It reinforces a vision of white settler society.”
King wrote the book Team Spirits: The Native American Mascot Controversy, and he’ll be speaking at McGill Thursday.
“These names are about reminding folks that they’re the victors — this is their property,” he told the Montreal Gazette. “I wouldn’t say necessarily that the Redmen do so in an elaborate way, but it doesn’t need to be elaborate for it to be hurtful.
“McGill’s not the only place where there is this slippage from Redmen to ‘Indians.’ There were teams in the U.S. that were named after the colour of uniforms but over time that notion of being ‘the red men’ begins to attract these stereotypes.”
McGill removed the Indigenous imagery from its sports teams after protests in the early 1990s.
The most recent controversy over McGill’s name re-emerged in September when Tomas Jirousek, a varsity rower from the Kainai First Nation in Alberta, brought it up during a town hall meeting at the university.
He had spoken to other Indigenous students and they shared their discomfort with the term Redmen. But when he brought it up at the meeting, he was confronted by other athletes who fiercely defended the name.
King, who spent years following similar debates in U.S. college sports, says this is fairly typical of the way these conversations go.
“You’ll have boosters, administration or other students push back and try to contain the critique,” he said. “They’ll tell an Indigenous student he doesn’t understand the issue, that it isn’t meant as racism … or that there are more important issues for First Nations to deal with.”
On the other hand, King argues, there seems to be more of a willingness in Montreal to hear students like Jirousek out. Last week, Jirousek organized a protest against the team name and it was — despite a downpour and cold weather — attended by a number of non-Indigenous students.
Last year, McGill’s provost commissioned a working group to enact the recommendations from the federal Truth and Reconciliation Commission and make the campus more accessible to Indigenous students.
One of the working group’s recommendations was to change the team’s name given its connotations.
The university has argued that because the intent of the name was originally benign and because the Indigenous iconography has been removed, it decided to keep the name.
Professor Fabrice Labeau, the student life and learning deputy provost, says the university is reconsidering that decision.
“It might be about a different relationship that Canadian society has with Indigenous people — which it probably is given the moment of reconciliation that Canada is in,” said King. “Even if (reconciliation) is imperfect, I don’t think you would see this kind of empathy in the U.S.”
Though contemporary examples with teams like the Washington Redskins in the U.S. or the Edmonton Eskimos in Canada show some fans’ resistance to change, King says there are precedents in major college sports.
In the 1970s, Native American students at Stanford University successfully petitioned the college to get rid of its stereotypical “Indian” mascot. On the tails of that victory, students at Syracuse University managed to have the “Big Chief Bill Orange” mascot retired in 1978.
Both sports programs remain among the most popular in the United States.
Most recently, in Major League Baseball, the Cleveland Indians erased depictions of “Chief Wahoo” from their merchandise after the 2018 season. However, many still consider the team’s name offensive.
In the end, King says, there is more to the conversation than names alone.
“The name’s important — you want that to go away — but they’re pushing for something much deeper,” he said.
“They’re saying, ‘We want control over how people see us and what our image is in public culture, over our lives.'”
ccurtis@postmedia.com
twitter.com/titocurtis
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127 W Richardson Ave.
Jon Rooks
By montreux | February 21, 2019
Events > 2019 > March > Jon Rooks
Created by montreux
Took place on March 6, 2019 from 7:00 pm to 10:00 pm
[map id="1"]
Local musician Jon Rooks can’t recall his first performance but knows that performing has been a constant part of his life.
“It feels like I’ve been the family performer from even my earliest memories at the dinner table,” Rooks said.
The musician hails from Williston, has lived in Columbia and Washington, D.C., and recently moved back to the area.
“I’ve done a couple small tours around the U.S., mainly playing small shows and supplementing the cost of the tour by doing street shows,” he said.
Rooks was deemed the Best Local Solo Artist for the Free Times’ “Best of Columbia” section in 2011.
“Light and easy like a summer breeze, Jon Rooks’ alternative acoustic pop is hard not to like. And, with his expert use of looping pedals, he’s a veritable one-man band, layering beats, riffs and vocals for a bigger sound,” the article stated.
Rooks plays the guitar, piano and harmonica and has dabbled with the ukulele, banjo and violin, according to his biography.
“My first instrument was actually the drums,” he said. “I picked up the guitar in high school and later the harmonica. In college I spent a lot of time in the piano rooms and picked that up as well.”
The artist has original pieces and is mainly influenced by rhythm and blues and older soul music. He also performs jazz and Latin music.
“I use this background to incorporate different grooves to the pop tunes I do most of the time at my gigs,” he said.
His “Alive in the Living Room” CD was released a couple years ago. It costs $9, plus shipping and handling, and can be purchased through his website.
“‘Alive in the Living Room’ was a self-produced project that I did mainly with a loop-station and a little bit of over-dubbing in my living room, so hence the name,” he said.
Rooks is planning to begin recording again soon and performs regularly during the week.
“Light and easy like a summer breeze, Jon Rooks’ alternative acoustic pop is hard not to like. And, with his expert use of looping pedals, he’s a veritable one-man band, layering beats, riffs and vocals for a bigger sound.” – Free Times Columbia
Open Daily: 11am - 2am
P: 843-261-1200 / F: 843-261-1202
127 W Richards Ave., Summerville, SC
21Matt Jordan January 21, 2021
28Joal Rush January 28, 2021
« ‹ Jan 2021 › »
© 2021 Montreux Bar and Grill. All Rights Reserved.
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Britain’s Johnson Asks Lawmakers to Back a Tougher Lockdown
November 28, 2020 General
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is asking lawmakers to support new, tiered restrictions to keep the nation’s hospitals from becoming overwhelmed before a vaccine for the coronavirus can be approved and distributed.
The new measures would put 99% of the country under the two highest restriction levels when the current rules end Tuesday. The new restrictions would last about a month.
An increasing number of members of Johnson’s own Conservative Party are opposed. And on Saturday, London police broke up anti-lockdown, anti-vaccine protests, arresting more than 150 people in the process.
The government hopes that a vaccine, the first doses of which could be in British hospitals by December 7, and mass testing could end the need for restrictions. Britain has suffered the worst COVID-19 outbreak in Europe, with more than 57,000 virus-related deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University.
Parliament is to vote on Johnson’s new restrictions Tuesday.
South Korea has been one of the world’s success stories in combating the coronavirus, but a recent surge in cases has forced the country to ban year-end parties, as well as singing and wind instrument music lessons. South Korea is also closing saunas, steam rooms and some cafes.
In the U.S., President-elect Joe Biden added three members to his COVID-19 advisory board.
Biden added Jane Hopkins, Jill Jim and David Michaels to “strengthen the board’s work and help ensure that our COVID-19 planning will address inequities in health outcomes and the workforce,” he said.
Hopkins is a registered nurse specializing in mental health and also serves on Washington state’s COVID-19 task force.
Jim is a member of the Navajo Nation and the executive director of its Department of Health. She has focused on preventing chronic diseases and addressing health care and health disparities among American Indians/Alaska Natives.
Michaels is an epidemiologist and professor of environmental and occupational health at the Milken Institute School of Public Health, George Washington University.
Beginning Monday, California’s Los Angeles County, the nation’s most populous, will be under a three-week, stay-at-home order.
The county had said previously that it would issue the restrictive order when new COVID-19 cases reached an average of 4,500 per day over a five-day period.
On Friday, the five-day average was 4,751.
The order prohibits gatherings, public or private, of people who do not live in the same household.
Stores deemed essential will be allowed to remain open, operating at 50% capacity. Other retail stores will remain open but will be able to operate at just 20% capacity during the holiday shopping season.
There are more than 62 million global coronavirus cases, according to Johns Hopkins. The U.S. has more than 13 million COVID-19 infections — more cases than any other country, followed by India with more than 9 million cases and Brazil with 6 million.
Almost 1.5 million people around the world have died from the virus. The U.S. again tops the list with more that 266,000 deaths, followed by Brazil with more than 172,000 deaths and India with nearly 137,000, according to Hopkins.
Source: Voice of America
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Parler Social Network Sues Amazon After Ban
Social media platform Parler has sued Amazon in response to being removed from Amazon Web Read More »
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Mozambique: Nyusi Inaugurates Beira Green Park
Mozambique: Mozambican Public Debt Is Now 12.37 Billion Dollars
Mozambique: Gorongosa National Park to Spend 15 Million USD On Building New Schools
Mozambique: Inflation Remained Low in September
Mozambique: Academy Must Train ‘Competent Soldiers’, Says Minister
Mozambique: Pre-University Classes Resume On Thursday
© Copyright 2020. All Rights Reserved. Mozambique Tribune
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Insurers Forfeit Their Protections Under Civil Code Section 2860 (Cumis Statute) When They Fail to Meet Their Duty to Defend Obligations
If you want to read an important case on Cumis counsel and the consequences to insurers who fail to fulfill their obligations relating thereto, we have one for you. J.R. Marketing LLC v. The Hartford Cas. Insurance Co., __ Cal.App.4th __ (May 17, 2013). This case has a lot to offer: Cumis counsel, attorneys’ fees, Buss allocations, duty to defend, and insurance bad faith issues. In this case, the California Court of Appeal for the First District handed down a very important decision that is highly beneficial to insureds and their independent counsel (i.e., Cumis counsel). Significantly, the court expanded upon the limitations on the ability of insurers to impose upon their insureds’ choice of defense counsel when they do not properly defend their insureds, most likely committing insurance bad faith. Specifically, the Court found that insurers who wrongfully refuse to defend their insureds are barred from maintaining suits against their insureds’ independent counsel for reimbursement of fees and costs charged by such counsel and are barred from relying on the protections afforded insurers under Civil Code section 2860.
J. R. Marketing involved an insurer who issued two commercial general liability policies to two insureds under which the insurer promised to defend and indemnify the named insured for certain business-related damages alleged against them. When several claims were brought against the insureds in California, also in non-California Courts, the insureds and several non-insureds, tendered the defense of the lawsuit to the insurer also requesting that it indemnify them under the two policies. The insurer initially denied its duty to defend under the policies, but after the insureds filed a lawsuit against their insurer, the insurer agreed to defend under a reservation of rights, but declined to pay for attorneys’ fees prior to its agreement to defend and refused to provide and pay for independent counsel pursuant to San Diego Fed. Credit Union v. Cumis Ins. Society Inc. 162 Cal.App.3d 358 (1984). However, the insurer then filed a cross-complaint seeking reimbursement of the fees and costs it had paid to Cumis counsel contending that they were unreasonable or unnecessary. The trial court later granted a motion for summary adjudication and ordered the insurer to pay all outstanding fee invoices sent by Cumis counsel within fifteen days. The insureds and non-insureds submitted bills for a whopping $15 million (you read that correctly!). The insurer paid them.
In reviewing the trial court’s order sustaining the insured’s demurrer to the insurer’s cross-complaint for reimbursement and other causes of action, the Court of Appeal focused on the issue of whether the insurer had a “quasi-contractual right rooted in common law to maintain a direct suit against” the insured’s Cumis counsel. First, the Court stated that although Civil Code section 2860 provides an insurer with certain protections, such as setting a limit of the rate of fees an insurer is obligated to pay to Cumis counsel, an insurer forfeits such protection when it fails to meet its duty to defend. As such, the Court held, because the insurer in J.R. Marketing failed to defend and accept tender of defense of the insureds, it forfeited “its right to rely on the statutory protection of section 2860 and to otherwise control the defense.”
Next, the Court addressed the key issue in this case; whether the insurer has also forfeited its right to seek reimbursement from the insured’s Cumis counsel by failing to meet its duty to defend. The Court of Appeals concluded that the insurer had. Initially, the Court acknowledged that under Buss v. Superior Court, 16 Cal.435 (1997), the insurer may well have a right to reimbursement for unreasonable or unnecessary fees. But, crucially, the Court found that the insurer cannot seek reimbursement from an insured’s Cumis counsel. The Court based its conclusion on an examination of the policies behind the enactment of Civil Code section 2860. The Court found that under California law, by refusing to defend, the insurer lost all right to control the defense, including the right to manage the financial decisions “such as the rate paid to independent counselor or the cost effectiveness of any defense tactic. Finally, because established California law deprived the insurer of the right to manage the defense, the Court explained that it:
[N]ow takes the law one slight step further by holding [the insurer] likewise barred from later maintaining a direct suit against independent counsel for reimbursement of fees and costs charged by such counsel for crafting and mounting the insureds’ defense where [the insurer] considers those fees unreasonable or unnecessary.
Although the Court clarified that the holding is limited to the facts of the case and that an insurer may still be able to claim that independent counsel engaged in fraudulent billing practices, the “slight step further” taken by the Court actually substantially limits the power wielded by insurers who breach their duty to defend insured. More importantly, the case enhances the ability of independent counsel retained by insureds to vigorously prosecute their clients’ cases without fear of a possible action for reimbursement by insurers. This case sends a strong message: insurers who reserve their rights and refuse to fund the defense of Cumis counsel take a big chance that they will be stuck paying those fees without any real ability to challenge them.
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Intel is making 28W Ice Lake chips exclusive to Apple’s MacBook Pro
Laptop manufacturers haven’t used Intel’s 8th generation 28 W CPUs in their designs, so Intel appears to have decided that Apple is the only company that will be able to use the newer 28 W, 10th-gen Ice Lake parts. The same is true for its 10 W, Ice Lake Y CPUs.
Widespread reports indicate that Apple has been working on ARM-based CPUs for its Macs for years now, presumably to reduce its dependence on Intel chips that don’t seem to get a lot faster with every new generation.
However, that doesn’t mean its relationship with Intel is suffering, and in fact it looks like it might be getting stronger. As spotted by the folks over at Notebookcheck, some chips from Intel’s 10th-gen Ice Lake lineup have been marked as exclusive for Apple products.
Take the Core i7-1068G7, which is supposed to be the most powerful part in the whole lineup. Recently, Intel quietly removed the chip from their online database and added the Core i7-1068NG7. To further complicate things, the silicon giant did the same thing with the Core i5-1038G7, which has been superseded by the i5-1038NG7.
Apparently, the ‘N’ in the name designates these as Apple exclusive chips that will only go inside the company’s new 13-inch MacBook Pro that comes with an improved keyboard and was launched earlier this month. The parts are rated for a TDP of 28 W, while the rest of the Ice Lake-U chips that go inside most laptops are rated for a TDP of 15 W and configurable for up to 25 W.
The same applies to the latest MacBook Air, which is powered by a 10 W Core i7-1060NG7 and Core i5-1030NG7, while other laptops will feature 9 W parts from the Ice Lake Y lineup. What Apple gets with the ‘N’ versions of the chips is a smaller package size, higher base frequency, and 50 percent more execution units on the integrated Iris Plus Graphics.
A more powerful, 5G-capable iPad Pro could launch in 2020
Origin announces two 17-inch laptops with 10th-gen Intel chips & RTX Super graphics
Sony: PS4 sales pass 110 million but are slowing, PS5 won’t be delayed
Ampere anticipation heats up as Nvidia shows off “world’s largest graphics card”
A remastered version of Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 & 2 arrives this September
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Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s Past Abortion Comments Raise Questions About Her View of Eugenics
By Tom Joyce | September 21, 2020, 23:43 EDT
Printed from: https://newbostonpost.com/2020/09/21/ruth-bader-ginsburgs-past-abortion-comments-raise-questions-about-her-view-of-eugenics/
Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was a staunch defender of legal abortion, arguing that it’s a woman’s right. But did she also believe in eugenics?
Ginsburg, 87, died from pancreatic cancer complications on Friday, causing many on the left to worry about the power balance of the Supreme Court and the future of Roe v. Wade, which legalized abortion nationwide in 1973. About 61 million abortions have taken place in the United States since then.
If President Donald Trump manages to install Ginsburg’s replacement, then there will be six judges on the court appointed by Republicans, and three appointed by Democrats — and possibly a majority in favor of overturning Roe v. Wade.
As one of the most liberal justices on the court, Ginsburg frequently got asked about her abortion views in interviews during her tenure on the Supreme Court. She gave a few reasons for supporting it — outside of the U.S. Constitution.
For example, Ginsburg suggested controlling certain populations was a reason to support taxpayer-funded abortions, in a 2009 interview with New York Times Magazine. The Hyde Amendment bans federal dollars from being spent on abortions.
The exact question Ginsburg fielded was, “Are you talking about the distances women have to travel, because in parts of the country, abortion is essentially unavailable because there are so few doctors and clinics that do the procedure? And also, the lack of Medicaid for abortions for poor women?”
Ginsburg responded by referring to Harris v. McRae, a 1980 U.S. Supreme Court decision that upheld the Hyde Amendment, which forbids using Medicaid funds for abortions. According to the interviewer, Ginsburg said:
Yes, the ruling about that surprised me. Frankly, I had thought that at the time Roe was decided, there was concern about population growth and particularly growth in populations that we don’t want to have too many of. So that Roe was going to be then set up for Medicaid funding for abortion. Which some people felt would risk coercing women into having abortions when they didn’t really want them. But when the court decided McRae, the case came out the other way. And then I realized that my perception of it had been altogether wrong.
One study suggests that the Hyde Amendment may prevent about 50,000 abortions a year.
One might wonder what Ginsburg meant when she said “growth in populations that we don’t want to have too many of.”
The Family Research Council did. In response to Ginsburg’s comments, the conservative organization reportedly asked in its email newsletter, “Who might those populations be, Justice Ginsburg? The poor? Minorities? Persons with disabilities? Residents of Appalachia?”
Five years later in an interview with Elle, Ginsburg may have answered that question. She noted that part of her stance on abortion was that if Roe v Wade were overturned and abortion were left to the states, rich women could travel out of state and have them while poor women would not be able to get them.
So then the interviewer from Elle asked, “When people realize that poor women are being disproportionately affected, that’s when everyone will wake up? That seems very optimistic to me.”
Here’s what Ginsburg had to say about that.
Yes, I think so. They’re not conscious of it now. I mean, you have to think pretty deeply. A girl will think, Well, I’m okay, I don’t have any problem. But it makes no sense as a national policy to promote birth only among poor people …”
For reference, Merriam-Webster dictionary defines eugenics as, “the practice or advocacy of controlled selective breeding of human populations (as by sterilization) to improve the population’s genetic composition.”
The pro-abortion Guttmacher Institute states that 75 percent of women who get abortions in the United States are poor. They’re also disproportionately non-white. Although whites are the majority in the United States, white people only get 39 percent of abortions in the country; 61 percent of abortion recipients are non-white. The Guttmacher Institute says that 28 percent are black, 25 percent are Hispanic, 6 percent are Asian/Pacific Islander, and 3 percent belong to other races.
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Spartan Newsroom (https://news.jrn.msu.edu/2019/10/great-lakes-states-among-those-fighting-air-rules-change/)
Autos & Manufacturing
Great Lakes states among those fighting air rules change
By TASIA BASS | October 18, 2019
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By TASIA BASS
LANSING — Michigan is among six Great Lake states that have joined California in an environmental legal battle with the Trump Administration for revoking that state’s power to set auto emission standards.
The administration oversteps its authority with environmental rollbacks, California Attorney General Xavier Becerra said in a recent press release. The administration “fails to respect states’ authority to protect public health and welfare.”
In fact, 23 states have joined California’s lawsuit against the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration for rescinding that states’ right to set emission standards more stringent than federal requirements.
In the Great Lakes region, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Illinois, New York, Pennsylvania and Michigan are among them, even though only Pennsylvania and New York have adopted California’s standard. Thirteen states and the District of Columbia have adopted California’s stricter standards, according to Maryland’s Department of the Environment.
In the official complaint, the states say they are joining the suit to protect their rights as a state and their citizens’ well-being
“It’s the single strongest standard in the transportation sector,” said Tim Minotas, the legislative and political organizer for Michigan’s chapter of the Sierra Club. “It is a step forward in the right direction.”
Although Michigan has yet to adopt the standard, by joining the suit it is fighting another Trump environmental rollback, Minotas said.
The lawsuit is one of several that Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel has brought against the administration’s environmental policies. She is also challenging the administration’s Affordable Clean Energy rule and Endangered Species Act rollbacks.
The administration’s auto emissions order would have a huge environmental impact, Minotas said.
It would allow cars to release more carbon emissions — greenhouse gases that trap heat which in turn increases the frequency and intensity of severe weather while affecting which wildlife and plants survive.
Mike Shriberg, the regional executive director of the National Wildlife Federation’s Great Lakes Regional Center, also supports Michigan’s challenge.
The California emission standard is part of the fight against climate change, he said. It is on par with emission guidelines many other countries have and the United States is behind
“The Trump Administration’s rollback of California’s standards and states’ rights is not only an assault on clean air and clean water, but it’s also an attack on Michigan’s economy,” Shriberg said. “California is setting a standard for fuel economy that helps move our auto companies into the future.”
The Michigan-based auto industry seems to agree. In July, several automakers including Ford, Honda, BMW and Volkswagen agreed to California’s emission standard. In March 2018, Ford Motor Co. executives said they were committed to investing $11 billion toward clean vehicles.
BMW, Honda and Fiat Chrysler say they have all made strides to make cleaner cars.
“We have been clear throughout the federal rule-making process that the current standards need to be adjusted to reflect changing conditions in the marketplace,” said Eric Mayne, media relations manager of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles.
With the states and the automobile industry agreeing to California’s emissions standard, what is the benefit of rolling back the standard that could help fight climate change?
Trump tweeted that the revocation would allow for cheaper and safer cars. He said that his new emission standard will be similar to California’s, stricter and will create more jobs.
“This will lead to more production because of this pricing and safety advantage, and also due to the fact that older, highly polluting cars, will be replaced by new, extremely environmentally friendly cars,”Trump said in his tweet.
Not everyone agrees that Trump’s plan will help decrease CO2 emissions. According to Energy Innovation Policy and Technology LLC, it could cost consumers $160 billion.
Shriberg said that the California emission standard is necessary to help hold off the effects of climate change.
“This future is arriving rapidly due to the impacts of oil and climate change, and the growing response from around the world,” Shriberg said. “We cannot allow the regressive policies of the Trump Administration to send our environment and industry backwards.”
Tasia Bass is a reporter for Great Lakes Echo
CNS Budget 10/18/19
To: CNS Editors
From: David Poulson and Sheila Schimpf
http://news.jrn.msu.edu/capitalnewsservice/
For technical problems, contact CNS technical manager Tony Cepak at (517) 803-6841; cepak@msu.edu. For other matters, contact Dave Poulson at (517) 432-5417 or (517) 899-1640; poulson@msu.edu.
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Home Thoughts Opinions Retired Col Martha McSally is Nobody’s Victim Running for Congress
Retired Col Martha McSally is Nobody’s Victim Running for Congress
Dwight L. Schwab Jr.
Wed April 23, 2014
Democrats have been pushing a desperate campaign strategy, in which they falsely say there is a “war on women” by Republicans. Retired Col. Martha McSally, standing at the next election as a Republican against Democrat Rep. Ron Barber, is nobody’s victim.
On Monday, The Wall Street Journal wrote about McSally’s successful challenge to the Democrats’ “war” strategy.
Air Force Col. McSally, 48, now retired is the United States’ first female fighter pilot to fly in combat. The 48-year-old is “a woman warrior,” by her own definition. It will be interesting to see how DNC strategists edge around their weak “war on women” tactic in this Arizona race. It is difficult to see how they could possibly describe her as a “victim.”
McSally is a feisty woman. She already challenged Barber in 2012, losing by less than one percent of the vote. At that time, she said, “I’ve been fighting for women’s rights and women’s equality my whole life.” She told people in her electorate what a real war on women is like.
“You want to know about a war on women? Walk in my shoes down the streets of Kabul. Walk in my shoes down the streets of Riyadh, where women have to be covered up, where they’re stoned, where they’re honor-killed if they’ve been raped, where they can’t drive and they can’t travel without the permission of a male relative. That’s a war on women.” – Ret. Col. Martha McSally
Democrat Ron Barber, former Arizona Rep. Gabrielle Giffords’ district director, won a special election to finish Giffords’ term after she was shot in January, 2012.
Republicans within the district and state are enthusiastic about their candidate’s bold speeches and campaign comments that defy the stereotype Democrats have placed on GOP women. She represents one of its best chances to rebut the Democrats’ characterization of the Republican Party as anti-woman casting them as anti-abortion and against pay equity.
Acting as a warrior, McSally sued the Department of Defense, challenging the military policy that required US servicewomen stationed in Saudi Arabia to wear the body-covering abaya when traveling off base. That was 2001, and she won the suit.
The Post reported that Congress approved the legislation for that military policy, and they allocated taxpayer money to buy the body-covering clothing. Ten years later, Martha McSally criticized the military for ordering women soldiers to wear head scarves in Afghanistan.
The Arizona Star reported that in the campaign finance stakes, McSally raised $441,105 against Barber’s $422,799, in the first quarter of 2014. That addition brings McSally’s total to more than $1.2 million since she announced her second challenge to Barber.
The National Republican Congressional Committee is pleased with the result. Committee spokesman, Daniel Scarpinato, said McSally’s contributions in the first quarter was “the highest in the country for a Republican challenger.”
McSally represents a nightmare challenge for Democratic strategists, who have no positive record to stand on, and have sought to demonize Republicans with their phony stance. This will be a race to watch in the lead up to this year’s midterm elections.
Dwight L. Schwab Jr. is a moderate conservative who looks at all sides of a story, then speaks his mind. He has written more than 3500 national political and foreign affairs columns. His BS in journalism from the University of Oregon, with minors in political science and American history stands him in good stead for his writing.
Dwight has 30-years in the publishing industry, including ABC/Cap Cities and International Thomson. His first book, “Redistribution of Common Sense – Selective Commentaries on the Obama Administration 2009-2014,” was published in July, 2014. “The Game Changer – America’s Most Stunning Presidential Election in History,” was published in April 2017.
Dwight is a native of Portland, Oregon, and now a resident of the San Francisco Bay Area.
Request Notification of Dwight’s Stories
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Tag Archives: Beijing
China and Russia are Waging War on America
In a typically cynical article, “GOP presidential candidates have a new country to bash: the People’s Republic of China,” Politico complains about “China-bashing” by various Republican candidates. The story by Nahal Toosi carries the headline, “The Republicans’ Red Scare,” but only mentions one time that China is a “communist-led state.”
Politico uses the term “red scare” to suggest that the problem is being greatly exaggerated.
If there is any doubt about the “red” in Red China, consider the Chinese Constitution, which declares, “The People’s Republic of China is a socialist state under the people’s democratic dictatorship led by the working class and based on the alliance of workers and peasants. The socialist system is the basic system of the People’s Republic of China. Sabotage of the socialist system by any organization or individual is prohibited.”
Mao Zedong, considered by many the greatest mass murderer in history, ispictured on the Chinese currency.
After Politico went to press with its defense of Beijing, the Los Angeles Timesreported that “Foreign spy services, especially in China and Russia, are aggressively aggregating and cross-indexing hacked U.S. computer databases—including security clearance applications, airline records and medical insurance forms—to identify U.S. intelligence officers and agents, U.S. officials said.” The Times added, “At least one clandestine network of American engineers and scientists who provide technical assistance to U.S. undercover operatives and agents overseas has been compromised as a result, according to two U.S. officials.”
Politico reported that criticism of China “might lead Chinese leaders to cozy up to another world power instead, like Russia (another favorite GOP boogeyman), the former ambassador said.”
This former ambassador is Jon Huntsman, the “moderate” Republican who served as Obama’s Ambassador to China. He ran for president in 2012, dropped out, and threw his “support” behind Mitt Romney, who lost a race he should have won.
Later in the article, Politico refers to China’s “alleged” cyberattacks.
“U.S. officials have not publicly blamed Beijing for the theft of the OPM and the Anthem files, but privately say both hacks were traced to the Chinese government,” reported the Los Angeles Times. “The officials say China’s state security officials tapped criminal hackers to steal the files, and then gave them to private Chinese software companies to help analyze and link the information together. That kept the government’s direct fingerprints off the heist and the data aggregation that followed. In a similar fashion, officials say, Russia’s powerful Federal Security Service, or FSB, has close connections to programmers and criminal hacking rings in Russia and has used them in a relentless series of cyberattacks.”
Why is there such a determination by a well-read publication like Politico to play down threats from China and Russia? This article is a case study in Republican-bashing. Politico is trying to warn Republicans running for president not to follow Donald Trump’s lead in focusing on how foreign countries are taking advantage of the United States.
The article by Nahal Toosi says that “…while scapegoating Beijing and its questionable economic policies may seem like an appealing campaign tactic, China specialists—including many in the GOP—warn that Republicans run the risk of looking ignorant about U.S.-Chinese ties.”
The ignorance comes from those in politics and the media who play down the nature of the communist regime.
The author goes on to warn against “bullying” or “isolating” the world’s “most populous country.”
“To be fair,” she writes, “China gives White House hopefuls lots of material for a tough-guy routine. Beijing’s aggressive moves in the South China Sea, its suspected role in cyberattacks on the U.S. and its dismal human rights record are just a few areas already seized upon by Republicans (and some Democrats) for criticism. China’s currency policies have long frustrated the United States in particular, and its increased military spending has led to wariness around the world.”
Notice how “alleged” cyberattacks have become “suspected.”
But in order to “be fair” to Republicans, she grudgingly admits some “questionable” Chinese policies that give the GOP candidates enough material to appear “tough.”
This is a despicable whitewash of a communist regime that is clearly waging war on the U.S.
“Potential enemies of the United States have claimed that they have the ability to crash our markets and our former head of NSA acknowledged that they do have that capability,” notes Kevin Freeman, author of Secret Weapon: How Economic Terrorism Brought Down the U.S. Stock Market and Why It can Happen Again.He notes that the Dow Jones Industrial Average crashed by more than 1,000 points at the open on August 24 “after China accused us of crashing their market.” He says that China has published a book, Unrestricted Warfare, calling a stock market crash a “new-era weapon.”
Instead of holding the Obama Administration accountable for safeguarding our national security information, Politico attacks Republicans for being too critical of China.
Later in the article, Politico quotes some comments about why we have to take the time to understand that the rulers in Beijing will realize this is just campaign rhetoric. “Top U.S.-watchers in Beijing are pretty savvy,” says Melanie Hart, identified as “director for China policy at the left-leaning Center for American Progress.” It turns out she “worked on Qualcomm’s China business development team, where she provided technology market and regulatory analysis to guide Qualcomm operations in Greater China. She has worked as a China advisor for The Scowcroft Group, Albright Stonebridge Group, and the University of California Institute on Global Conflict and Cooperation.”
In other words, part of her career has been devoted to facilitating U.S. investment in China. She went to China in June to work on U.S.-China cooperation on “climate change” matters. She has a vested interest in making the communists look non-threatening.
Meanwhile, last January, a Russian spy ring was uncovered in New York City whose purpose in part was to “collect economic intelligence” and recruit New York City residents as intelligence sources. One of the targets of the economic intelligence gathering, a Justice Department press release said, was the New York Stock Exchange. The actual complaint filed against the Russians went into more detail, as they are shown discussing how to obtain information about the “destabilization” of U.S. financial markets.
So despite the wisdom conveyed by Jon Huntsman about forcing China into the arms of Russia, it looks like Russia and China are already working very well together.
Nevertheless, the first state visit by President Xi Jinping of China to the United States will take place in September.
Look for another Politico article about GOP “obstructionists” getting in the way of our blossoming relationship with the butchers of Beijing.
Posted in Financial, Military, Politics, Survival, Terrorism | Tagged 2016 Election, AIM, Albright Stonebridge Group, Barack Obama, Beijing, Business, Center for American Progress, China, Cliff Kincaid, Communists, Cyberattacks, Donald Trump, Economics, FSB, GOP, Hackers, Intelligence, Jon Huntsman, Justice Department, Kevin Freeman, Los Angeles Times, Media, Military, Mitt Romney, Nahal Toosi, NSA, Obstructionists, Politico, President Xi Jinping, Qualcomm, Republicans, Russia, Sanctions, South China Sea, Spies, Stock Market, Terrorism, The Scowcroft Group, United States, University of California Institute on Global Conflict and Cooperation, War |
The Media vs. Trump’s Patriotic Appeal
Donald Trump may be the most politically incorrect candidate on the Republican side. He openly mocks the news media and addresses the problem of illegal immigration. But even more importantly, he attacks the trade policies that benefit our enemies and adversaries. By doing so, he challenges what radio talk show host Jeffrey T. Kuhner calls the bipartisan “ruling establishment,” whose dominance “is based on the complicity of the mainstream media.”
With regard to the media, Trump’s attack on NBC after the network cut ties with him demonstrates his understanding of what appeals to the conservatives who vote in the Republican Party.
“If NBC is so weak and so foolish to not understand the serious illegal immigration problem in the United States, coupled with the horrendous and unfair trade deals we are making with Mexico, then their contract-violating closure of Miss Universe/Miss USA will be determined in court,” he said. “Furthermore, they will stand behind lying Brian Williams, but won’t stand behind people that tell it like it is, as unpleasant as that may be.”
Williams is the serial liar who, despite being exposed for numerous fraudulent claims about his own career, has been kept on the payroll of NBC News.
The response to Trump, who is rising in the polls, demonstrates that conservatives like a candidate who exposes the liberals in the media as the hypocrites they are.
But it’s not just standing up to the media—or his criticism of criminals coming into the country through Mexico—that has made him into a hero. As analyst Nevin Gussack notes, “Trump’s economics and aspects of his national security strategy challenge the Washington Consensus of globalism, free trade, and other internationalist policies.” This may be the sleeper issue of the 2016 presidential campaign.
Gussack is the author of the book, Sowing the Seeds of Our Destruction: Useful Idiots on the ‘Right,’ which contends that trade policies under both Democrats and Republicans have served the interests of countries hostile to the United States, most especially China.
In his voluminous writings on the topic, Gussack is particularly critical of current and former Republican governors, some of them running for president, noting that they have “colluded to hasten Red Chinese economic colonization of the United States under the guise of foreign investment.” He faults them for traveling “hat in hand” to the Chinese “to negotiate for the outright takeover of U.S.-owned assets.”
He cites the case of 25 wealthy Communist Chinese investors visiting Orlando, Florida for a “US-China Investment Week” in 2012 that was attended by Florida Governor Rick Scott, then-Texas Governor Rick Perry, and Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker.
In 2010, Gussack notes, Governor Rick Perry helped the Chinese telecommunications firm Huawei Technologies open a headquarters in Plano, Texas. A 2012 report from the House Intelligence Committee called Huawei a threat to U.S. national security interests because of its connections to the Chinese government, including the People’s Liberation Army.
Accuracy in Media disclosed in a 2014 investigative report that the firm had been linked to the murder of an American citizen, Dr. Shane Truman Todd, who had been working on a project in Singapore involving Huawei.
Governor Walker opened something called the Wisconsin Center China in Madison, Wisconsin, to facilitate trade with the communist regime. At the time, Walker said, “This trade center strengthens our relationship with China and provides Wisconsin businesses the resources and assistance to pursue export opportunities in this growing market. Through the years, Wisconsin has built a strong trade relationship with China, and the opening of the Wisconsin Center China will help Wisconsin businesses continue to strengthen our trade relationships and grow export opportunities.”
Walker embarked on a trade mission to Red China in 2013, Gussack points out, where he met Communist Party officials and Chinese President/General Secretary Xi Jinping. The Communists then hosted a reception for Governor Walker and his delegation, which was made up of 300 Wisconsin businessmen and officials.
“Tragically,” Gussack goes on, “it appeared that Governor Walker and a majority of state Republicans sought to liberalize foreign ownership laws over Wisconsin land. Specifically, Governor Walker sought to overturn the law that prohibited the foreign ownership of more than 640 acres of land in Wisconsin.” Republican State Senator Dale Schultz acknowledged that repeal “would allow the Chinese government to buy a big chunk of land in northwest Wisconsin if it wanted to.”
However, outrage over the provision caused Walker to drop it from a budget plan.
In 2011, former Florida Governor Jeb Bush visited the Chinese province of Hainan, where he talked about stronger economic ties, and in January 2012 met with the former Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping, now the President of China. Xi Jinping said the Bush family had made great contributions to promoting relations between China and the United States, “which the two nations and the two peoples will not forget.”
Gussack comments, “Naturally, Bush was following in his father’s and brother’s footsteps in the promotion of the economic and political interests of a communist enemy of the United States. The Bush family was another case of a family rooted in transnational capital which promoted Beijing’s interests, rather than solely the advancement of American national interests.”
In a piece entitled, “Is the U.S. Being Colonized By Red China?,” Tom Deweese, president of the American Policy Center, wrote that “The genius of the Chinese system is that they are using its growing industrial might to create wealth the Soviets could never have dreamed of possessing. China is using its vast wealth (trillions of dollars) compiled from the glut of Chinese goods sold in American stores, to buy its power. It’s buying American debt and wielding heavy influence on the American economy.”
DeWeese argued that through the so-called Immigrant Investor Regional Centers of the U.S. Citizen and Immigration Service, countries like China are investing in American communities with federal help. “While the program is open to immigrants from around world, the main interest appears to be from Communist China,” he said, adding that “the waning American economy and a U.S. government that no longer sees communism as a threat, makes us vulnerable to a power that knows exactly what it seeks.”
Trump has challenged this kind of pandering to Beijing and other foreign interests, leading radio talk show host Jeffrey T. Kuhner to comment that Trump “is a Teddy Roosevelt-style nationalist, who seeks to break the stranglehold of Big Business, Big Media and Big Government. Moreover, his vast wealth means that he cannot be bought and paid for.”
Kuhner added, “Economic nationalism has been a cardinal principle of conservatism dating back to our Founding Fathers. George Washington, Alexander Hamilton and John Adams—all supported protective tariffs and a trade policy that guaranteed America’s economic independence.”
While his comments on criminal aliens have garnered the attention, Trump’s criticism of the trade practices of foreign countries may be what ultimately sets him apart from the other Republican contenders. It could be his path to the Republican nomination and victory in 2016.
Posted in Illegal Immigration, Politics | Tagged 1986 National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act, 2016 Election, AIM, Alexander Hamilton, American Policy Center, BarbWire, Beijing, Brian Williams, China, Claremont School of Theology, Cliff Kincaid, Communists, Dale Schultz, Donald Trump, Dr. Shane Truman Todd, Florida, George Washingotn, House Intelligence Committee, Huawei Technologies, Illegal Immigration, Immigrant Investor Regional Centers, Jeb Bush, Jeffrey T. Kuhner, John Adams, Madison, Media, Mexico, National Security, NBC, Orlando, People's Liberation Army, Politics, Republicans, Rick Perry, Rick Scott, Russia, Scott Walker, Teddy Roosevelt, Texas, Tom Deweese, Trade, Xi Jinping |
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Sonoma: AJ Allmendinger earns first Sprint Cup pole since 2012
By Jerry BonkowskiJun 27, 2015, 3:53 PM EDT
Jeff Gordon must have known something when on Friday he said he considered AJ Allmendinger to be the man to beat in Sunday’s Toyota/SaveMart 350 at Sonoma Raceway.
Allmendinger, who won last summer’s road course race at Watkins Glen International, will lead Sunday’s race on the opposite coast of the country, earning the pole during Saturday’s qualifying session.
It was Allmendinger’s first Sprint Cup pole since April 2012 (Kansas) and his first career pole on a road course.
Allmendinger is still looking for his first win of 2015, which would likely put him in the Chase for the Sprint Cup. He knows that Sunday could be his best chance to date to do just that, if not potentially for the season.
“It’s a good day, now we have to focus on tomorrow,” Allmendinger told Fox Sports 1.
Allmendinger topped the field with a run of 96.310 mph, followed by Kurt Busch (96.095), Matt Kenseth (96.001), Kyle Larson (95.932), Jeff Gordon (95.905), Clint Bowyer (95.884), Tony Stewart (95.663), Casey Mears (95.563), David Ragan (95.497), Brad Keselowski (95.298), Kyle Busch (95.293) and Martin Truex Jr. (95.177).
Defending race winner Carl Edwards failed to make it out of the first of two rounds of qualifying.
Only one driver failed to make the 43-car field: Brendan Gaughan.
Sunday’s race begins at 3 pm ET/Noon PT.
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Novator 9M729: The Russian Missile that Broke INF Treaty's Back?
December 7, 2017 Topic: Security Region: Europe Blog Brand: The Buzz Tags: RussiaMilitaryTechnologyWorld9M729NovatorINF Treaty
What you need to know.
by Dave Majumdar
The United States has revealed which Russian cruise missile Washington believes is in violation of the landmark 1987 Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces (INF) treaty.
Speaking at the Wilson Center on November 29, National Security Council official Christopher Ford revealed that the weapon is in fact the Novator 9M729—which carries the NATO designation of SSC-8. The land-based cruise missile is thought to have a range that falls between 500km and 5,500km, and is therefore illegal under the terms of the treaty, which turns 30 year old today (December 7). Many analysts like Jeff Lewis have long suspected that the INF-busting weapon in question is the 9M729, but until Ford confirmed their suspicions, there was no official word from the United States government.
The only thing scholars and analysts had to go on was a cryptic paragraph in the U.S. State Department’s April 2017 Adherence to and Compliance with Arms Control, Nonproliferation, and Disarmament Agreements and Commitments report. There were no other details available.
“The United States has determined that in 2016, the Russian Federation (Russia) continued to be in violation of its obligations under the INF Treaty not to possess, produce, or flight-test a ground-launched cruise missile (GLCM) with a range capability of 500 kilometers to 5,500 kilometers, or to possess or produce launchers of such missiles,” the report states.
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While the White House has chosen to reveal the designation of the 9M729, it has revealed almost nothing else about the Russian weapon or its capabilities. Pavel Podvig, director of the Russian Nuclear Forces Project, suspects that there are two possibilities.
“Given that the United States seems to be very confident in its conclusion about the range capability of the 9M729 missile, we should assume that it has good information about it,” Podvig wrote. “Who knows, maybe U.S. intelligence has detailed blueprints of the missile and all its technical characteristics. Maybe the documentation shows that extending the range of the 9M728 Iskander-M is just a matter of filling the fuel tank full.”
Another, more likely possibility in Podvig’s view, is that the 9M729 is closely related to the Russian Navy’s Kalibr-NK land-attack cruise missile.
“The 9M729 missile is almost identical to a missile that was tested at the INF range, probably to the sea-launched Kalibr,” Podvig wrote. “As I understand, the United States observed a test of a missile from a compliant launcher (that would be an SLCM test) followed by a test (of presumably the same or a very similar missile) from a non-compliant one.”
If Podvig is correct, then the Russians might have enough grounds for plausible deniability. “Russia can still insist that these missiles were sufficiently different and that it is therefore in full compliance,” Podvig wrote. “But proving that would be quite difficult, especially if 9M729 is indeed capable of exceeding the 500 km threshold of the INF Treaty.”
If the United States somehow coaxes the Russian back into compliance with the INF Treaty, there is likely another problem for Moscow. “The United States appears to believe that the 9M729 missile uses the same Iskander-M launcher,” Podvig wrote. “If 9M729 was tested from an Iskander launcher even once, all these launchers will have to be eliminated. And that seems to be the case.”
It seems unlikely that the Russians will go back into compliance with the treaty. For the Russians, the INF treaty might simply have outlived its usefulness given some of the other threats Moscow faces in the East.
Dave Majumdar is the defense editor for the National Interest. You can follow him on Twitter: @davemajumdar.
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Naviond Leaders
Joff Grohne
Steven Brody
Naviond Advisors
Janet Fogarty
Don Cottle
Janet Fogarty has observed and understands the dynamics and emotions of business leaders’ experiences running the gamut from the working stages of starting an enterprise, to growing and expanding their businesses and finally to the challenges of a profitable and timely exit.
Janet has been part of an elite group of Master Facilitators and best practice coaches for almost 20 years. She works with leaders to enable them to gain clarity of purpose, deep confidence and the courage to act when dealing with their paths in life.
One of her many clients noted:
“Janet has a remarkable ability to cut through the clutter and address the core issues. Her insights are spot-on, she has a deep experience base to draw from, and she is a pleasure to work with.”
As a former CEO and entrepreneur herself, she has not only learned what it takes to stay one step ahead in an increasingly complex world of business but also has understood the importance of being a mentor and guide to all of those with whom she interacts.
Janet’s foundation was built at Regis University in Colorado where she graduated cum laude with an Interdivisional BA in Psychology, Spanish, History and Business. She spent a life-enhancing year abroad in Italy focusing not just on classical studies but on experiential life and worldviews, and continued her education in MBA studies until her immersion into the real life of business.
As President of one of the top travel companies in the nation in the 1990’s, she was recognized as one of the “Top Women-Owned Businesses in Colorado”.
Janet’s life continued to expand and flourish when she was selected to join Vistage, the world’s leading CEO organization. As the Chair of several CEO and C-level Executive private advisory boards, she creates the environment where members grow, and increase their effectiveness and enhance their lives.
Today, with over 10,000 hours as trusted advisor and group facilitator, Janet has witnessed and understands the challenges of business leaders of running their companies as well as living their personal lives with meaning.
Janet is a Global Citizen with Midwestern values and a Rocky Mountain zest for life.
She has a passion for building community, fostering deep conversation and shining a light on reality while inspiring optimism.
Naviond Advisor
Email: janet@naviond.com
Navigating life after business and beyond™
© 2021 Naviond International Inc.
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Home » NBC-2 | WBBH » Hurricane Dorian kills 5 people in Bahamas, Prime Minister says
Hurricane Dorian kills 5 people in Bahamas, Prime Minister says
9:53 AM EDT, Mon September 02, 2019
Hurricane Dorian has killed five people in the Abaco Islands, Bahamian Prime Minister Hubert Minnis said Monday.
“We are in the midst of a historic tragedy in parts of our northern Bahamas,” Minnis said at a news conference.
He did not provide more detail about the people killed in the storm. A woman in the Abaco Islands earlier told a local news outlet that her 8-year-old grandson drowned in the rising waters.
Dorian made landfall as a Category 5 hurricane on Grand Bahama Island on Sunday night, pulverizing houses and leaving countless residents homeless.
Now a Category 4, Dorian is still crawling over the islands. Forecasters expect it will move “dangerously close” to Florida later tonight, and millions of Americans are under mandatory evacuation orders.
The storm wiped out power to Nassau and the rest of New Providence, the country’s most populous island, Bahamas Power and Light said. “There’s damages everywhere around my area,” Marsh Habour resident Vernal Cooper said. “Cars and houses destroyed. This is what’s left of Marsh Harbour.”
“The initial reports from Abaco is that the devastation is unprecedented and extensive” Minnis said. “Many homes, businesses and other buildings have been completely or partially destroyed.”
Dorian was still an “extremely dangerous” storm with sustained winds of 145 mph on Monday, the National Hurricane Center said in its latest advisory.
And it is moving across the Bahamas at only 1 mph — slower than walking pace. That means it will pound the same decimated places over and over again.
“You can’t even wrap your head around the devastation that’s going to be coming out of the Bahamas in the coming days,” CNN meteorologist Jennifer Gray said.
Storm expected to get “dangerously close” to Florida tonight
Dorian will keep lashing Grand Bahama Island though Monday night, forecasters said. Moving this slowly, it could dump a total of 24 to 30 inches of rain on northwestern parts of the Bahamas.
“It’s just an absolutely devastating, life-threatening situation,” said Ken Graham, director of the National Hurricane Center in Miami.
Then it’s expected to draw nearer to the southeastern US coast.
“The hurricane will then move dangerously close to the Florida east coast late tonight through Wednesday evening and then move dangerously close to the Georgia and South Carolina coasts on Wednesday night and Thursday,” the National Hurricane Center said.
TRACK THE STORM
“The very dangerous core of Dorian is expected to stay roughly 50 miles off the Florida coast, which will bring hurricane force winds, surge and heavy rain,” CNN meteorologist Dave Hennen said.
An 8-year-old boy is reported dead
In the Abaco Islands, “the devastation is unprecedented,” Minnis said.
“We have reports of casualties. We have reports of bodies being seen. We cannot confirm those reports until we go out and see for ourselves,” Bahamian Foreign Affairs Minister Darren Henfield said.
Part of the reason it’s so difficult to grasp the number of casualties is because conditions are still dire. “It’s not safe to go outdoors,” Henfield said. “Power lines are down. Lamp posts are down. Trees are across the street. It is very dangerous to be outdoors.”
Ingrid McIntosh told Eyewitness News she believes her 8-year-old grandson drowned in the rising waters. Her 31-year-old daughter found the boy’s body, she told the local news outlet. She says her granddaughter is also missing.
“I just saw my grandson about two days ago,” McIntosh told Eyewitness News. “He told me he loved me. He was going back to Abaco, he turned around and said, ‘Grandma, I love you.'”
‘My house sounds like the ocean’
John Forbes, a resident of Grand Bahama, recorded video of the waters rising in his home. “Tragic flooding, we are stranded!” he wrote on Twitter. He later wrote that he was about to evacuate.
Vickareio Adderely’s home in Marsh Harbour is filled with water. One of the rooms is now “gone,” and a hole in the roof keeps getting bigger.
“My house sounds like the ocean,” Adderely said. “There are three houses adjacent to mine that also lost their roof.”
Kevin Tomlinson planned to ride out the storm in his home. But as Dorian’s strength became clear, he fled to an evacuation center in Freeport.
Tomlinson has no idea what will be left of his neighborhood when he goes home. “We haven’t really gotten the full brunt of it yet,” he said. “One thing I dread is the aftermath of this entire thing.”
How Dorian could pummel the US
After Dorian leaves the Bahamas, it threatens to turn its destructive force on the US Southeast. But it’s still unclear if or where the storm will make landfall.
Landfall happens when the center of the hurricane reaches land. Forecast models now show Dorian skirting along Florida’s coast Tuesday and then next to Georgia late Tuesday and Wednesday.
But just because the center of the storm might not hit land doesn’t mean it won’t be destructive. Hurricane-force winds topping 74 mph extend 45 miles out from the storm’s center.
The hurricane center said “life-threatening storm surges and dangerous hurricane-force winds are expected along portions of the Florida east coast through mid-week.”
The governors of Florida, Georgia and South Carolina ordered mandatory evacuations for some coastal residents.
At least 13 Florida counties were under evacuation orders Monday,
For those not under mandatory evacuations, the agency urged residents to “plan for adequate supplies in case you lose power & water for several days.”
More than 900 flights have been canceled going in and out of Florida airports, according to data from Flightaware.com.
The Orlando Melbourne International Airport and Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport suspended commercial flights and closed terminals at noon Monday.
Even places as far north as North Carolina are potential targets for a US landfall, forecasters said.
In Wilmington, North Carolina, Christina Dowe said she bought a new home in November after her home was nearly destroyed by Hurricane Florence.
“We’ve just been trying to get perishables, getting water, getting flashlights. Just trying to get the necessities, things that we need, so we can be better prepared than we were last year,” she said
Dowe said she’s just hoping “everything works out better than it did last year.”
The-CNN-Wire
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Home » NBC-2 | WBBH » This is what it’s like working at the smallest post office in America
This is what it’s like working at the smallest post office in America
5:38 AM EST, Thu March 05, 2020
OCHOPEE, Fla. – Nestled off Tamiami Trail in unincorporated Collier County lies the smallest post office in the country.
The Ochopee Post Office, located at 38000 Tamiami Trail E, accommodates one customer at a time. (Photo by Taylor Crehan)
The building stands at roughly 8 feet deep and 7 feet wide and was once an irrigation pipe storage shed that belonged to the J. T. Gaunt Company tomato farm.
The area’s original post office burned down in 1953. Soon after, the postmaster started storing and sorting mail inside the small shed, which is thought to be about 80 years old.
Postmaster Sidney H. Brown stands in front of the country’s smallest post office in an undated photo from the 1960s. (State Library & Archives of Florida)
Sixty-seven years later, the Ochopee Post Office is still in operation and is run by one person— Donald Walters.
Walters has worked at the nation’s smallest post office, located in the middle of the Big Cypress National Preserve, for three years.
Tourists are greeted by this sign next to the nation’s smallest post office in Ochopee, an unincorporated community in Collier County. (Photo by Taylor Crehan)
“You work in a national park and it’s beautiful,” Walters said. “You can’t beat how gorgeous it is.”
Walters sees about half a dozen locals every day. He estimates about 500 to 600 people live in Ochopee, mostly members of the Seminole and Miccosukee tribes.
Two young boys stand next to a woman in front of the Ochopee post office. This photo appeared on a postcard marked Aug. 14, 1979. (State Library & Archives of Florida)
The building may be tucked away from the hustle and bustle of Alligator Alley, but a typical day working there is anything but boring, according to Walters.
Around 9 a.m. the mail carrier comes and takes letters, cards and packages from the side of the building since “there’s too much to bring in because the building is only 56 square feet,” according to Walters.
The carrier goes on a 135-mile journey roundtrip six days a week to deliver mail.
The locals come to the post office to pick things up in the morning. After that, buses start showing up around 11 a.m.
“I see a couple [of] hundred people a day,” Walters said.
Tourists from all over the world flock to 38000 Tamiami Trail E, eager to buy postcards and stamps from the smallest post office in America.
A plaque detailing the post office’s history stands next to the building. (Photo by Taylor Crehan)
“People come and they talk and they’re always excited to be here,” Walters said.
In fact, his favorite part of his job is interacting with the visitors.
“They want to know about the place and they come to me looking for those answers,” Walters said. “It kind of makes me feel good that I’m here representing the Post Office and the federal government.”
Not all of Walters’ guests are human, however.
“There are lots of critters here,” Walters said. “You learn how to pick up a snake. It’s crazy.”
While most of the interactions Walters has with tourists are positive, he said sometimes people make assumptions about his job.
“Some people say things like they think I should be shut down,” Walters said. “They think because I’m a small post office I don’t do any business.”
Photos and postcards from around the world line the walls of America’s smallest post office, located in rural Collier County. (Photo by Taylor Crehan)
Others, Walters said, assume he just sits “in the middle of nowhere soaking up tax dollars.”
“That’s not the case. The post office doesn’t take any taxpayer money, it’s self-funded,” he said.
While he enjoys seeing smiling faces from Asia, Europe and Africa every day, Walters sometimes wishes more people from Naples stopped by.
“It seems like people from further away know more about it than people that live right next door,” he said.
MORE SECRETS OF SOUTHWEST FLORIDA: Celibacy, immortality and the evolving history of Koreshan State Park
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Have You Heard My Fish?
November 9, 2020 | Dave Shaw
Scientists are working together to track 104 fish and sea turtle species in coastal waters.
Fish Move. Movement is essential for survival. Animals move to escape predators, to reproduce, to find food, and to explore potential new areas to colonize. How much fish move varies by species, from darters that never travel more than half a mile in their lifetime to salmon that migrate over 6,000 miles every year to spawn.
Chris Kalinowsky and son tag a tripletail with an electronic tag.
Why are scientists so interested in movement? Understanding movement is key for managing fish populations, protecting areas of special importance, and predicting how populations will respond to changes like global warming or the installation of a dam.
But tracking aquatic animals is challenging. The technology is expensive, the ocean is vast, and fish completely ignore geographical and political boundaries. Therefore, collaborative groups like the FACT Network, which brings scientists together and helps them share data, are pushing the boundaries of what we know about animal movements.
The FACT Network is a collaboration of scientists who use electronic tags to study the movements of fish and sea turtles from Virginia to Florida and out into the Bahamas and U.S. Caribbean. Collectively, researchers in the FACT Network have tracked, or are tracking, over 6,500 fish and sea turtles, representing 104 different species.
How does acoustic telemetry work? To track animals in the near-coastal ocean, acoustic telemetry uses two pieces of equipment: a tag deployed on or in an animal and a submerged listening device (a receiver). When a tagged animal swims within range of a receiver (usually less than half a mile), the receiver “hears” the tag and records the unique ID, date, and time.
Researchers later retrieve the receiver from the water and download the information. Most receivers are attached to the seafloor and don’t move. Some researchers have started using mobile receivers that are attached to something that moves, such as an underwater drone.
These receivers can detect tags from any study, which means as long as researchers are willing to talk to each other and share information, a tagged animal can be tracked ANYWHERE there are receivers.
The FACT Network has helped uncover previously unknown movements, like the annual migration of tripletail from Georgia to Florida. The network also has helped to better describe known fish movements, such as how close white sharks come to the coast and the extent of mixing between stocks of cobia.
Telemetry data gathered as part of the FACT Network has been used to inform such management decisions as designating new protected areas for sand tiger and lemon sharks, estimating survivability to allow the opening of the common snook fishery, extending a no-take reserve in the Florida Keys, and setting minimum flow levels in the Suwanee River.
The FACT Network uses an online data-sharing system that is compatible with other networks in the U.S. Mid-Atlantic, Canada, South Africa, and South America. That means if a tagged animal travels to anywhere within these networks, the scientist who tagged the fish will know.
The number of questions based on animal movements are growing due to advances in collaboration, data sharing, and technology, and answers to those questions will be critical for the effective management of aquatic resources in a changing ocean. The FACT Network is poised to facilitate the large-scale collaborations that will tackle these questions.
Young, J.M., Bowers, M.E., Reyier, E.A., Morley, D., Ault, E.R., Pye, J.D., Gallagher, R.M., and Ellis, R.D. 2020. The FACT Network: Philosophy, evolution, and management of a collaborative coastal tracking network. Marine and Coastal Fisheries: Dynamics, Management, and Ecosystem Science [online serial]. DOI: 10.1002/mcf2.10100.
Summary compiled by Joy Young, data manager for the FACT Network and an assistant research scientist at Florida Fish and Wildlife Research Institute. Originally from San Diego, Joy brought her love of good guacamole and fish across the country, working and/or studying in Tennessee, Pennsylvania and the Bahamas before settling on the east coast of Florida. Her work has two main themes: 1. The migration patterns of fishes and their impact on fisheries management and 2. Fostering collaboration and data exchange between researchers using acoustic telemetry. She believes the strength of the FACT Network is from its members, and she is proud to have worked with amazing scientists throughout the southeast U.S., Bahamas, and U.S. Caribbean that have shown a commitment to collaboration for the betterment of science.
The FACT Network has been successful in large part due to supportive partnerships with SECOORA, the ATN, OTN, and FWC. Visit www.SECOORA.org/FACT and our social media: Instagram (FACT_Network), Twitter (@FACT_Network), and Facebook (@FACTNetwork).
Lead photo: Cobia train, courtesy of David Elwood/CC BY-ND 2.0
The text from Hook, Line & Science is available to reprint and republish at no cost with this attribution: Hook, Line & Science, courtesy of Scott Baker and Sara Mirabilio, North Carolina Sea Grant.
« Do Anglers Fish in Areas Closed to Fishing?
What Causes Boaters to Wear Life Jackets? »
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B.F. Skinner Paper
B.F. Skinner was one of the important figures in the field of behaviorism. Initially, Burrhus Frederic (B.F.) Skinner majored in literature at Hamilton College in New York. He went to New York City in the late 1920s to become a writer, but he was not successful. "I had nothing important to say," (Vargas, 2006) he later explained. So, he decided to go back to school, and went to Harvard to study psychology, since he had always enjoyed observing animal and human behavior. For the most part, the psychology department there was immersed in introspective psychology, and Skinner found himself more and more a behaviorist. Behaviorist B.F. Skinner added many contributions to the field of psychol ...view middle of the document...
He had always been a tinkerer, and loved building Rube Goldberg contraptions as a child; he put that skill to use by designing boxes to automatically reward behavior, such as depressing a lever, pushing a button, and so on. His devices were such an improvement on the existing equipment; they have come to be known as Skinner boxes. He came up with the term operant behavior when he noticed that the rats would press the bar based on the following stimulus, and not the preceding stimulus like Watson thought. Skinner then came up with operant conditioning, which states that behavior can be controlled by manipulating punishments and rewards in the environment. (Pervin, Cervone, and John, 2005) He innovated his own philosophy of science called Radical Behaviorism. He founded his own school of experimental research psychology the Experimental Analysis of Behavior. Skinner's analysis of human behavior culminated in his work Verbal Behavior, which has recently seen enormous increase in interest experimentally and in applied settings. He discovered and advanced the rate of response as a dependent variable in psychological research. Skinner also invented the cumulative recorder to measure rate of responding as part of his highly influential work on schedules of reinforcement (Encyclopedia Britannica, 2007).Influences on PersonalityB.F. Skinner was extremely influential on the psychology of personality. Mischel, Shoda, and Smith (2004) found the following:-Analysis of the stimulus conditions controlling behavior replaces inferences about internal conflicts and underlying motives in Skinner's conceptualization.-Discrimination in learning is fundamental in the socialization process. When behavior yields similar consequences under many conditions, generalization occurs, and the individual may display similar behavior patterns across diverse settings.-Behavior may be shaped by reinforcing successively closer approximations to a particular desired behavior.-While continuous reward or reinforcement for behavior may result in faster learning, irregular or intermittent reinforcement often produces more stable behavior that persists even when reinforcement is withdrawn. Many potentially maladaptive behaviors are rewarded irregularly and may therefore become very resistant to change.-Irrational behavior may be created by accidental/ noncausal pairings of behavior and response.-The influence of punishment is complex and depends on many conditions, such as its timing (p. 243).Skinner's perspectives and these contributions and influences to the field of psychology of personality were influenced by some occurrences in his life.Influential Events and Accomplishments in Skinner's LifeIn 1936, Skinner wed Yvonne Blue. The two moved to Minneapolis, and he acquired his first teaching job at the University of Minnesota. Two years later the couple gave birth to their eldest daughter Julie. That same year Skinner published a book, The Behavior of Organisms. This book initia...
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Share this Story: Daycare squeeze: The way the city allocates funds is changing — and that has some worried
Daycare squeeze: The way the city allocates funds is changing — and that has some worried
Joanne Laucius
Oct 20, 2015 • June 2, 2020 • 5 minute read
James, center, plays at Cindy Couinard's licensed home daycare she's been operating for over 20 years Friday September 25, 2015. (Darren Brown/Ottawa Citizen) Photo by Darren Brown /Ottawa Citizen
Daycare subsidies administered by the city will be changing over the next five years — and that has some Ottawa centres worried they will be teetering on the edge of closing.
The total amount of the subsidies will remain the same, but the way it is distributed will change fundamentally starting next year. Instead of subsidized “spaces” being attached to daycare centres, the new “floating” subsidies will follow children, so parents can choose a licensed location closer to home or work.
Daycare squeeze: The way the city allocates funds is changing — and that has some worried Back to video
The floating subsidies mean more choice for low-income families, says Coun. Mark Taylor. “It made no sense to live, for example, in the west end, work in Kanata but have to travel downtown and back twice a day to a daycare because that’s where the subsidy was.”
At the same time, wage subsidies for daycare workers is being reallocated to help ease the disparity in the amount agencies receive. Currently there is a huge range in the subsidies for daycare wages — from nothing to $5,300 per space
There is general agreement that the changes will help make the system more fair. But there could be consequences for daycare operators as money migrates with users. Based on the initial analysis conducted by the city, about half of agencies and programs will see an increase in funding , while half will get less.
“There has been some trepidation,” says Coun. Diane Deans, the chair of the city’s community and protective services committee.
For agencies facing a reduction, it will be a cut of less than 10 per cent — but that might be enough to push some over the edge, says Alex Cullen, president of the board of directors of the non-profit River Parkway Children’s Centre and the River Heights Children’s Centre.
The two centres, which have total operating expenses of about $1.6 million a year, will lose almost about $107,00 a year in funding over four years starting in 2016. Cullen and the other members of the board had anticipated a cut in the $20,000 to $30,000 range. The actual cut represents the difference between survival and folding, he says.
“We all support the principle of dealing with inequities, but this creates an intolerable strain,” he says. “That’s a heck of a hit. We operate by the skin of our teeth.”
Wages and benefits for the two centres accounts for about $1,150,000 — over 72 per cent of the costs — while the mortgage for one centre and the rent for the other account for about $214,000. That leaves $228,912, which covers other items such as food, housekeeping, insurance, repairs and maintenance and program supplies. The funding cut would eat up almost half of this, says Cullen. As a licensed daycare, the centres’ staff-child ratio is fixed by legislation, as are standards for program elements such as food.
“There’s not much room to manoeuvre here,” he says.
Aaron Burry, the city’s general manger of community and social services, says the changes were necessary. In neighbourhoods where demographics were changing quickly, for example, it made no sense to tie subsidies to spaces in daycare centres. Meanwhile, there were few subsidized spaces in suburban neighbourhoods.
“It was pretty evident that childcare wasn’t sustainable under the existing structure,” says Burry. “If we didn’t implement what we did, there would be some daycares closing.”
The city of Ottawa is the only city in the province that allocates funding according to spaces. Now it’s catching up with the rest of the province, says Kim Hiscott, executive director of the Andrew Fleck Centre, a non-profit which has eight licensed sites and 500 licensed home childcare spaces. Under the old system, Andrew Fleck was a little underfunded, and there might be a net gain for the organization under the new formula.
“We don’t know how it’s going to play out,” says Hiscott.
Hiscott says savings are possible. For example, three smaller centres have amalgamated under Andrew Fleck, which has created efficiencies in insurance and auditing costs for all three.
“Our programs will be fine,” says Hiscott. “It’s not like we’ll be flush. We have to be careful. But we’re quite viable.”
What will happen next? There were already some casualties when full-day kindergarten started ramping up in the city. At least two daycare centres, Tupper Tots and St. Elias, have closed in the last year.
The city is using $7.75 million from its childcare reserves over the next five years to soften the impact of the redistribution of funds.
“The city didn’t have to do that,” says Deans. “We’ve really eased the burden of transition. They have five years to come up with a new business plan and lobby the province (for more funding). We feel we’ve given them the time they need to be successful.”
Th city is also offering centres access to a consultant for advice on how to pare costs. Cullen says that’s good but doing things like sharing bulk food purchases isn’t going to make that much difference.
For River Parkway and River Heights, the only significant options are cutting wages or passing on costs to parents by raising fees, he says. Neither option is palatable. Child care workers are underpaid and parents already pay about $1,250 per month for a toddler and $960 for a preschooler, he says.
If costs increase, some parents will choose to moved to the unlicensed system, predicts Cullen.
“We will lose licensed childcare. Surely that’s not the goal.”
Daycare in Ottawa by the numbers:
30,000: Total number of licensed spaces in Ottawa
6,300: Number of subsidized spaces
8,000: Increase in the number of licensed spaces in Ottawa between 2010 and 2014
9,000: Approximate number of non-subsidized children waiting for an Ottawa daycare spot as of March
3,000: Approximate number waiting for subsidized care.
$1 million: How much it costs to provide 100 subsidized spaces for a year
180: Number of licensed daycare providers in Ottawa
123: How many currently get wage subsidy funds
$0 to $5,300: How much, per space, Ottawa agencies receive in government funding. The city’s new funding formula will result in a more equitable redistribution of existing provincial funds
52: Percentage of Ottawa agencies and programs that will see an increase in funding
48: Percentage that will see a reduction
74: Percentage of francophone programs that will see an increase
9: Number of licensed child care providers will receive government funding for the first time
36: Percentage of Ontario families who opt for childcare at a daycare centre, according to Statistics Canada
$112.1 million: Ottawa’s total 2015 child care budget
$98.8 million: Amount that is covered by provincial funding
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crescentstarstd
About crescentstarstd
Internationally acclaimed roots rock musicia
Brent Bennett has been working professionally as a musician for over 25 years, playing in bands in Indiana and California. He has a huge archive of self-composed original music as well as a large repertoire of cover music he has accumulated over the years. He has many sides to his writing, often writing everything from rock to blues and country
Brent performed with bands in California, playing his original music and opening for such artists as John Waite and Echo & the Bunnymen, before returning to Indiana, where he began teaching guitar at GuitarWorks in Greenwood. He now works at Frank's Guitars in Franklin, where he gives instruction on various instruments such as guitar, drums, bass guitar and mandolin
Since returning to his home in Indiana, he has been involved with the Roadapple band and Gypsy Runner in the early to mid-80s, performing at the Vogue in Broad Ripple on a few occasions as well as at Deer Creek (now Verizon Wireless Music Center)
In 1992, he formed Stones Crossing with Rob York, where he played lead guitar and fronted the band with his own brand of left-handed guitar playing
His involvement with Ballast resulted in the band's self-titled album released in 2000, on which he wrote all the songs as well as providing lead vocals and guitar
During his down time with Stones Crossing, Brent has spent time with Sindacato, playing bass guitar and helping the band's leader, Frank Dean, with the writing chores. He now plays lead guitar in DropKick Ned
"Crossing the Country" is a country rock-flavored CD with Brent's longtime partner Rob York. It was recorded in the fall of 2005 at Crescent Star Recording Studios, Brent's own facility. Rob helped out with the writing duties and added his own brand of acoustic guitar to the work. Brent played all of the remaining tracks as well as handling the vocals. His sophomore solo effort, "Under My Own Power," was released in July 2006. "The Movers Are in Town," with The Movers, was released June 30, 2007. "It Must Be the Blues," a solo CD of blues covers, was released in May 2008. "A Ghost in Indiana" was released in September 2009, and "Brent-Strumentals: Relax," an all-instrumental CD, was released digitally that same year
Brent Bennett is a Raven West Guitars endorsed artist.
Follow crescentstarstd on
www.BrentBennettMusi...
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Books by Gilles Nullens
Gilles Nullens
arawaks beagle black hawk war casa grande ruins national monument cathars doomsday book freemasons gila river gila river basin grand lodges grattan massacre hohokam intelligent design masonic native american tribes navajos old testament susquehannocks william the conqueror yucatán peninsula
2.7 Transmutation of species
2.7 Transmutation of the species
Transmutation of species was a term used by Jean Baptiste Lamarck in 1809 for his theory that described the altering of one species into another. It was one of the names commonly used for evolutionary ideas in the 19th century before Charles Darwin published “On The Origin of Species” (1859). Other names used in this period include the development hypothesis and the theory of regular gradation. Transformation is another word used quite as often as transmutation in this context. These early 19th century evolutionary ideas played an important role in the history of evolutionary thought.
The proto-evolutionary thinkers of the 18th and early 19th century had to invent terms to label their ideas, and the terminology did not settle down until some time after the publication of the “Origin of Species”. The word evolution was quite a late-comer: it can be seen in Herbert Spencer‘s Social Statics of 1851, and there is at least one earlier example, but it was not in general use until about 1865-70.
2.7.1 Historical development
Diagram from the 1844 book “Vestiges of the Natural History of Creation” by Robert Chambers shows a model of development where fish (F), reptiles (R), and birds (B) represent branches from a path leading to mammals (M).
Jean-Baptiste Lamarck proposed in “Philosophie Zoologique” (1809) a theory of the transmutation of species. Lamarck did not believe that all living things shared a common ancestor, rather he believed that simple forms of life were created continuously by spontaneous generation. He also believed that an innate life force, which he sometimes described as a nervous fluid, drove species to become more complex over time, advancing up a linear ladder of complexity that was related to the great chain of being. Lamarck also recognized that species were adapted to their environment. He explained this observation by saying that the same nervous fluid driving increasing complexity, also caused the organs of an animal (or a plant) to change based on the use or disuse of that organ, just as muscles are affected by exercise. He argued that these changes would be inherited by the next generation and produce slow adaptation to the environment. It was this secondary mechanism of adaptation through the inheritance of acquired characteristics that became closely associated with his name and would influence discussions of evolution into the 20th century.
A radical British school of comparative anatomy that included the surgeon Robert Knox and the anatomist Robert Grant was closely in touch with Lamarck’s school of French Transformationism, which contained scientists such as Étienne Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire. Grant developed Lamarck’s and Erasmus Darwin‘s ideas of transmutation and evolutionism, investigating homology to prove common descent. As a young student Charles Darwin joined Grant in investigations of the life cycle of marine animals. He also studied geology under Professor Robert Jameson whose journal published an anonymous paper in 1826 praising “Mr. Lamarck” for explaining how the higher animals had “evolved” from the “simplest worms” –this was the first use of the word “evolved” in a modern sense. Jameson’s course closed with lectures on the “Origin of the Species of Animals”.
The computing pioneer Charles Babbage published his unofficial “Ninth Bridgewater Treatise” in 1837, putting forward the thesis that God had the omnipotence and foresight to create as a divine legislator, making laws (or programs) which then produced species at the appropriate times, rather than continually interfering with ad hoc miracles each time a new species was required. In 1844 the Scottish publisher Robert Chambers anonymously published an influential, and extremely controversial book of popular science entitled “Vestiges of the Natural History of Creation”. This book proposed an evolutionary scenario for the origins of the solar system and life on earth. It claimed that the fossil record showed a progressive ascent of animals with current animals being branches off a main line that leads progressively to humanity. It implied that the transmutations lead to the unfolding of a preordained plan that had been woven into the laws that governed the universe. In this sense it was less completely materialistic than the ideas of radicals like Robert Grant, but its implication that humans were just the last step in the ascent of animal life incensed many conservative thinkers. Both conservatives like Adam Sedgwick, and radical materialists like Thomas Henry Huxley, who disliked Chambers’ implications of preordained progress, were able to find scientific inaccuracies in the book that they could disparage. Darwin himself openly deplored the author’s “poverty of intellect”, and dismissed it as a “literary curiosity.” However, the high profile of the public debate over Vestiges, with its depiction of evolution as a progressive process, and its popular success, would greatly influence the perception of Darwin’s theory a decade later.
2.7.2 Opposition to transmutation
Ideas about the transmutation of species were strongly associated with the radical materialism of the enlightenment and were greeted with hostility by more conservative thinkers. Cuvier attacked the ideas of Lamarck and Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, agreeing with Aristotle that species were immutable. Cuvier believed that the individual parts of an animal were too closely correlated with one another to allow for one part of the anatomy to change in isolation from the others, and argued that the fossil record showed patterns of catastrophic extinctions followed by re-population, rather than gradual change over time. He also noted that drawings of animals and animal mummies from Egypt, which were thousands of years old, showed no signs of change when compared with modern animals. The strength of Cuvier’s arguments and his reputation as a leading scientist helped keep transmutational ideas out of the scientific mainstream for decades.
In Britain, where the philosophy of natural theology remained influential, William Paley wrote the book “Natural Theology” with its famous watchmaker analogy, at least in part as a response to the transmutational ideas of Erasmus Darwin. Geologists influenced by natural theology, such as Buckland and Sedgwick, made a regular practice of attacking the evolutionary ideas of Lamarck and Grant, and Sedgwick wrote a famously harsh review of “The Vestiges of the Natural History of Creation”. Although the geologist Charles Lyell opposed scriptural geology he also believed in the immutability of species, and in his “Principles of Geology” (1830–1833), criticized and dismissed Lamarck’s theories of development. Instead, he advocated a form of progressive creation, in which each species had its “centre of creation” and was designed for this particular habitat, but would go extinct when this habitat changed.
Another source of opposition to transmutation was a school of naturalists who were influenced by the German philosophers and naturalists associated with idealism, such as Goethe, Hegel and Lorenz Oken. Idealists such as Louis Agassiz and Richard Owen believed that each species was fixed and unchangeable because it represented an idea in the mind of the creator. They believed that relationships between species could be discerned from developmental patterns in embryology, as well as in the fossil record: but that these relationships represented an underlying pattern of divine thought, with progressive creation leading to increasing complexity and culminating in humanity. Owen developed the idea of “archetypes” in the Divine mind that would produce a sequence of species related by anatomical homologies, such as vertebrate limbs. Owen was concerned by the political implications of the ideas of transmutationists like Robert Grant, and he led a public campaign by conservatives that successfully marginalized Grant in the scientific community. In his famous 1841 paper, which coined the term dinosaur for the giant reptiles discovered by Buckland and Gideon Mantell, Owen argued that these reptiles contradicted the transmutational ideas of Lamarck because they were more sophisticated than the reptiles of the modern world. Darwin would make good use of the homologies analyzed by Owen in his own theory, but the harsh treatment of Grant, along with the controversy surrounding Vestiges, would be factors in his decision to ensure that his theory was fully supported by facts and arguments before publishing his ideas.
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Jerry Lewis Roasted Again; An Abbot Amongst Friars!
By Nicholas Boston • 06/19/06 12:00am
Jerry Lewis, 80 years old, was soaked with sweat. He sat at the center of a banquet table at the New York Hilton’s Mercury Ballroom last Friday, May 9. It was the Friars Club’s annual roast, and Mr. Lewis—this year’s man on the spit—was also there to accept his appointment as the new abbot of the 102-year-old comedy club.
Seventy-two members and invited guests of the Friars Club lined the dais. Mr. Lewis was seated immediately to the left of the podium, Robert De Niro and Martin Scorsese alongside him.
This was not Mr. Lewis’ first time being roasted, said Stewie Stone. He had also been roasted in 1955, when the only woman on the dais was Marilyn Monroe.
“And in 1986, we roasted you again with, again, Frank Sinatra, Jack Benny”—well, Mr. Benny died in 1974—“Buddy Hackett. And today, we roast you with [Richard] Belzer and Gilbert Gottfried,” Mr. Stone told Mr. Lewis. “You realize five generations of comedians have called you an asshole.” There was another Jerry Lewis Roast in 1971.
“What a hero he is in France,” said Norm Crosby. “Then again, those are the people who invented cocksucking.”
The abbot position has been vacant since Alan King passed away two years ago, exactly, to the day of the roast. That position has also been held by Frank Sinatra, Ed Sullivan and George M. Cohan (twice)—names belonging to the masters of the genre, of which few remain. This knowledge was foremost in the minds of many.
“Most of Jerry’s contemporaries are no longer here,” said Friars Club dean Freddie Roman.
His “iconic status and his age—he’s 80,” might have had a calming effect on the insult-hurling affair, said roaster Richard Klein from his seat on the dais later on. “I have to try to be funny and maybe a little irreverent, you know, but not disrespectful.
“I already sense that it’s tamer than most roasts,” he said. “You know, they get very scatological.”
But was it respect for Mr. Lewis’ reputation, or fear of it, that led some presenters to pull their punches? How do you top a legend, a man who laid the stones for the path so many of those present barely dare to tread.
“I enjoyed this roast because this is legendary—Jerry has been here 80 years long,” said Don King, who was last year’s honoree at a cutthroat gathering that saw roasters jettisoning any semblance of reserve and bringing up some of the muckiest details of Mr. King’s personal and professional background. “You can’t say there’s a line that can’t be crossed. It’s supposed to be impromptu and it’s supposed to be cutting up, and they are born and bred in comedy,” he said. His necktie was in a flashy stars-and-stripes design, with the Statue of Liberty planted in the center. “So, you know, coming in—they’ve got a license to kill you.”
Gilbert Gottfried didn’t even mention Mr. Lewis from the podium. “I don’t really know him,” he said later. “I just met him like maybe twice before, for about less than a minute. I just always enjoyed dick jokes a lot. I just go up, do it as disgusting as possible, and I’m off.”
For his turn, Mr. Klein chose to mock Mr. Lewis by performing a screeching, off-key rendition of him singing Handel’s Messiah. Paul Shaffer also serenaded the guest of honor, with a song strewn with expletives and descriptions of sex acts and defecation.
During Mr. Shaffer’s closing monologue, Mr. Lewis rose from his seat and began to walk off the stage. The Letterman sidekick ran after him and directed him back to his seat.
Mr. Lewis laughed frequently throughout the proceedings. He also flexed his jaw frequently, in an expression that looked a bit like a yawn, but wasn’t.
Richard Belzer served as roast master. “Jerry Lewis, Jerry fucking Lewis,” he said. “One day, he calls me up on the phone and tells me how much he enjoys my work. Me—little Richie Belzer. Turns out Jerry was a huge Munch fan”—Mr. Belzer’s most current on-screen persona is Detective John Munch—“and had been one for as far back as 1948, when one night he went down on every woman in the Copacabana. Three hundred and eighty-one women. And that was considered a lot of pussy in those days.
“Jerry recently played my uncle on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit,” he said.
“Now he’s been fucking my aunt for eight weeks. And when my Aunt Martha came out of that coma …. ” The creepiness of Mr. Belzer’s appearance made the joke’s suggestion of near-necrophilia that much more comically distasteful.
The comics sometimes found it easier to go for each other. “I’m not going to make fun of Sandra Bernhard,” said comic Lisa Lampanelli. “She’s the only person on this dais who can get chicks.
“Sandra’s very proud to be a lesbeen. You know how I know? Before the show, she made me smell her finger.
“But enough about Sandra,” said Ms. Lampanelli. “We’re here tonight to roast the great Jerry Lewis. Over the past few weeks, I’ve heard a lot of talk about people saying they wish Dean was here to see this. Quite honestly, I would settle for Jerry to be alive to see this. Seriously, Jerry is old. His ball bag hangs so low, he has to hold it when he takes a shit.”
“How can one person be so annoying in so many movies? Seriously, Nathan Lane, you would know—how?
“You may not know this,” she said of Mr. Lane, who was seated to her right, “but he actually was up for a part in Brokeback Mountain, but the producers were afraid he’d make the film seem too gay.
“Nathan Lane has been opened more times on Broadway than Neil Simon plays.”
Mr. Lane looked back at her with a twisted mouth.
“But you look fantastic, Nathan,” she said to him. And then to the crowd: “Up until recently, he had a goatee. He shaved it because it kept irritating Matthew Broderick’s balls.”
Deana Martin, the daughter and feminized namesake of Mr. Lewis’ comedic partner of yesteryear, took the microphone.
“When I was born,” she said, “he and my father, Dean Martin, were the biggest comedy team in history, and I remember that they would go on tour together. Jerry came by the house one day to pick up Dad on his way to the airport, and I said, ‘Uncle Jerry, why is Dad leaving me to go to Las Vegas with you?’, and he took my little hand in his and he said, ‘Because he likes me better.’”
Ms. Martin made no jabs about Mr. Lewis’ weight, age, career, sex life. After the ceremony, she said, “He’s such a good friend, I could have said anything, but I don’t choose to.”
At the end, Mr. Lewis took to the microphone. “I have absolutely no recall in the last 75 professional-forming years that I have remembered such morale-building,” he said.
“Today I am not taking anything for granted. I knew what today represented. It represented part and parcel of what has made a whole lifetime in this business an exceptional one.”
Mr. Lewis never erased, he said, the mental picture he had of himself as “a Jew kid from Newark who’s trying desperately to graduate grammar school wearing his cousin’s white tux that he wore the graduation before. Now,” he said, “I’m sitting next to Robert De Niro, for God’s sakes.”
Filed Under: Home, Lifestyle
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emotions / friends / school
April 24, 2017 KairodnesLeave a comment
(Photo Credit: Auntbeulahblog.files.wordpress.com )
Looking back five years, I still remember when I first stepped on campus at Ojai Valley School as an 8th grader. Fear of the uncertain filled my heart; I didn’t know what to expect and what challenges I would have to overcome at my new school. I gave my parents one last hug right before my dorm parent called me back into the dorms, and in that moment I knew I wouldn’t see my parents for at least three months, the longest I had been away from my parents at that time.
As scary as being a boarding student was, I have overcome it and made it to the very end, which is being a senior at Ojai Valley School. I still can hardly believe that it has been four years since I graduated middle school, and five years since I decided to leave home in Shanghai to come to school in the United States. There were a lot of things that I wanted to do during my high school years, and I have done many of them and feel accomplished because of it. Checking each thing off in my mind is a relief. I’m that much closer to my goal.
Looking forward, graduation is almost here. I have been through four proms, at least eight camping trips, played on a lacrosse team, was a stagehand for three plays, survived English 11, and lived with six different roommates. There are countless other memories, including having seen a lot of my former classmates/teammates graduate high school. I’m wondering what it will feel like to finally check off the last thing on my “To Do” list in high school — to sit on the stage listening to Mr. Cooper address us for the last time, and for his last time, because as we graduate he is retiring. It’s the end of an era for both of us, and the beginning of something new.
Blogging, life, school
College (and Life!) Bound
Trump’s First 100 Days
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Falcon fledgings mark reopening of Madrone Wall Park
Sam Stites
Predatory birds nest for third year on Clackamas County-owned basalt cliff in the Damascus area.
Clackamas County announced last week that Madrone Wall Park is once again open to the public following the successful fledging of three peregrine falcons.
This marks the third year in a row that the predatory birds have returned to the cliff face located within the park to nest. Following confirmation of a falcon nest, each year the county has closed the park to the public to allow the birds to rear their young in this habitat without interference.
"Peregrine falcons are doing a lot better than they have in the past, and part of that is due to management plans put into place like this," said Tom Riggs, interim parks and forest manager for Clackamas County. "The needs that they have for the rock need to be compatible with our recreational uses, and during the time of year when human activity is most likely to scare them away is when we keep the park closed so they can do their thing."
Fledging is the stage in a bird's life between hatching and becoming fully capable of flight. It's the first time the falcons leave the nest, and they're unlikely to ever return. According to Keith Daellenbach of the Madrone Wall Preservation Committee, peregrine falcons were once endangered, but were delisted several years ago. They remain protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918, which prevents humans from disrupting the nesting of migratory birds like falcons.
Daellenbach said that while the closure of the park means climbers have to stay away from a beloved park feature that includes more than 100 climbing routes on a beautiful rock wall several hundred yards long, the local climbing community understands the need to give the nesting peregrine falcons space.
"This is something climbers are familiar with all over North America, especially here in the West," Daellenbach said. "Temporary closures of many sites take place all over the western U.S., like Smith Rock in central Oregon, Beacon Rock in the Columbia Gorge, Yosemite National Park in California."
According to Daellenbach, three years ago the preservation committee worked with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Clackamas County parks to initiate a monitoring program to keep an eye on the falcons that were nesting at Madrone Wall. They pulled from sources such as Cornell University Center for Ornithology and others monitoring programs at sites like Beacon Rock to use the best available science in protecting these birds. While monitoring is taking place, only sanctioned monitoring activities take place in the park and all hiking and climbing is prohibited.
Although the falcon chicks won't return to the nest, Daellenbach said, they do remain in the area for some time until they've fully developed their ability to fly.
"This park is an absolutely amazing sort of treasure. It's just beautiful," Daellenbach said. "It's an all-natural cliff face where people can go rock climbing, hiking or just enjoy being outside. It's also easy to social distance while rock climbing if other people are also at the crag."
According to Riggs, the preservation committee and involvement of volunteers like Daellenbach have been instrumental in helping make Madrone Wall Park a beautiful asset to Clackamas County parks.
"It's a really important partnership, and it helps us be able to manage the resource while they sort of manage the user side of things," Riggs said.
Due to COVID-19 related staffing limitations, Madrone Wall Park summer hours have been reduced and will be open daily from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Madrone Wall — located at 19485 S.E. Highway 224, Damascus — is one of the premier multiseason rock climbing sites in the metropolitan area. A $6 day-use parking fee or annual parking pass is required for use of the parking lot.
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Obama’s Victory: An African Perspective
By Themba Mzingwane*
Even though I live far away inSouth Africa, I am as excited as any American after the President Obama’s re-election. I am relieved that, despite the downtrodden economy and biting attacks from the Romney campaign, Americans still felt the incumbent was the right man to lead them forward. By choosing to re-elect Obama, Americans showed that they recognize the effective work he did in pulling their country out of a serious recession and ending the war inIraq, amongst other accomplishments. Republicans did all they could to downplay these achievements but voters saw beyond partisan politics.
Obama’s victory re-ignites my hopes for many reasons. Principally among them is that I hope he will use his last four years to make a significant mark on the African continent. He remains a strong symbol of inspiration to me, and to so many other ordinary youth on the continent. I am sure that he recognizes he still has a lot of work to do here.
Like many other Africans, I had unrealistic expectations when Obama first became president in 2008. Somehow, we thought that because of his Kenyan background, he would be able to quickly solve our problems. We forgot the many complexities at the core of many of those problems that have hindered efforts of many presidents before Obama to make any significant progress. But I am still hopeful for the future.
In spite of our previous expectations, there is still a feeling in this part of the world that an Obama-ledAmericais well-positioned and equipped to help our countries embrace democracy and encourage Africans to fulfill their potential for greatness. After all,America’s leader is half-African. It is clear that American can, and must, do more to assist people here in finding solutions to the many problems that have ravaged our continent for decades.
Because Africans have generally lost hope in our leaders’ ability to solve the persistent problems of hunger, disease, illiteracy and general lack of development, we often look to theUnited States, as the leader of the free world, to offer a helping hand to challenge our leaders to start working for the prosperity of their people. It is a sad indictment on our leaders that we find ourselves looking for salvation from leaders of distant countries. But there are concrete steps that Obama can take to help the African people.
So what are my realistic expectations after Obama’s re-election?
I hope that theU.S.works to expand and continuously offer full support to the many human rights advocates inAfricafighting against vicious governments in an attempt to advance many freedoms still being denied to their fellow citizens. Like Obama alluded to in his victory speech, many people in Africa are still fighting for the right to voice their opinions on the type of future they want to have- freedom of speech and assembly are still under attack. Obama can play a leadership role in supporting spreading democratic practices inAfrica. This starts with working to ensure a free and fair election in his father’s native home ofKenyathis upcoming March.
I hope that the U.S.does more to continue President Bush’s good work in curbing the HIV/AIDS epidemic. Funding for programs like the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) have actually decreased under President Obama. He should restore them to previous levels — the program has made a huge difference on the continent.
I hope thatU.S.does more to empower people on the continent by helping to fund countless effective educational projects that suffer from lacking of funding. It is a well-known fact that education is the key to stopping the vicious cycle of poverty. While theU.S.often funds larger government programs, it is the small projects, which deal directly with communities, which need support. By re-prioritizing and focusing development efforts, U.S. can encourage and help these “self help” programs in Africa by offering support, be it through providing expertise or otherwise. This is more effective than simply pumping money into African governments.
Finally, as a Zimbabwean driven out of my own country because of internal conditions, I hope that President Obama takes decisive steps to help us rebuild our country. We need him to help further the peace process. This may include softeningAmerica’s stance on the Zimbabwean leaders, including against despotic President Robert Mugabe and his Zanu PF party. Zimbabwean leaders crave recognition, and theU.S.can lead the West by reopening communication lines to the regime. Sanctions have only succeeded in hurting and isolating the already poverty-stricken masses while the top politicians continue to live in luxury. Elections have failed, and will continue to be a farce if they continue to be conducted under a climate of intimidation, fear and violence.
New strategies are needed to help endZimbabwe’s decade long decline. President Obama must demonstrate sympathy to our plight by doing whatever is possible to find a solution to one of the most destructive and silent wars ever experienced inAfrica.
Here’s to hoping that the newly re-elected president makesAfricaone of his top priorities in his second term. His support here is still big and his African background is an inspiration to the youth. It fills them with hope and promise — and reminds all of us on the continent that we can achieve great things, regardless of circumstances.
*http://www.huffingtonpost.com/themba-mzingwane/obama-africa-policy_b_2092468.html
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Africa Gets a New Checkup
For Older Leaders, Keeping Medical Conditions a State Secret Turns Tougher
[caption id="attachment_8774" align="alignleft" width="300"] Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe, center, and his wife, Grace, celebrated his 90th birthday in February. European Pressphoto Agency[/caption] Angolan President José Eduardo dos Santos traveled to Spain late last year to treat a toothache. Or maybe it was prostate cancer. In November, Maka Angola, a website run by investigative journalist Rafael Marques de Morais, reported that the 71-year-old president had collapsed in Luanda because of complications related to an enlarged prostate. Mr. Marques, who said he got the news from sources within the presidency, said Mr. dos Santos spent 30 days under observation at a Barcelona clinic, causing him to miss Angola’s Nov. 11 Independence Day for the first time in office. Mr. dos Santos’s son-in-law, Sindika Dokolo, who often acts as the family spokesman, countered that the president had merely gone to see a dentist in Spain, according to a November interview he gave to Sol, a Lisbon-based weekly newspaper. The Angolan government didn’t respond to requests for comment. Mr. Marques, who stands by his story, said such secrecy is typical of an Angolan leader who has held power for nearly 35 years, second-longest among Africa’s heads of state. But it is hardly in keeping with democratic trends on the continent of more open and accountable governments, he said “Angolans who voted him into power have a right to know where he is and why he is not in the country,” he wrote on Maka Angola. Ailing African leaders have long jetted out of their countries, and sometimes died overseas, without people back home knowing how sick they really were Yet keeping a president’s health a state secret is tougher these days—thanks to enterprising local journalists, pervasive social media and aggressive political opponents. Questions about the health of African presidents reflect a fundamental tension on the continent. A younger population—Africa’s average age is about 19—expects its aging leaders to be as open about their lives as they themselves typically are. “The older generation may not mind being kept in the dark. The younger generation doesn’t understand that all,” said Paul-Simon Handy, director of research at the Institute for Security Studies in Pretoria. “They live in the information era—where everything should be known and shared.” Trouble is, bad information is also shared. In January, reports surfaced that Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe had collapsed, one of countless times he was said to be dying or already dead. His spokesman, George Charamba, said Mr. Mugabe was on regularly scheduled leave in Singapore having his eyes examined and he returned again in February for a cataract procedure. The Zimbabwean president was back home in time to celebrate his 90th birthday. “It’s actually one of the easier parts of my job,” said Mr. Charamba, referring to how he regularly denies the president is dying of prostate cancer. “The first thing to do is to indicate where the president is. Then we wait to produce the president.” Until a few years ago, African presidents could largely control the trickle of information through state media. In 1990, Ivory Coast’s then 85-year-old leader Félix Houphouët-Boigny won a seventh term, despite being virtually absent on the campaign trail. Instead, state media ran archival footage of him. Three years after his landslide re-election, Mr. Houphouët-Boigny died of prostate cancer. Nowadays, mobile phones and bare-knuckle politics make it more difficult to disappear from public view. After January’s African Union summit in Ethiopia, Zambian President Michael Sata fanned speculation about his health when said he was going on vacation but didn’t say where. An opposition leader, Hakainde Hichilema, speculated Mr. Sata was in India for medical reasons and urged Zambians to pray for him. President Sata then surfaced in London, where his office fired off a furious statement calling Mr. Hichilema “a frightened little man” who “wants to disguise his leadership failures through reckless, alarming and abdominal utterances over the president’s health.” Mr. Sata then cut short his holiday and returned to Zambia. His spokesman didn’t respond to phone calls and emails seeking comment. Mr. Hichilema’s spokesman said Zambian taxpayers “are at liberty to find out matters regarding their president, including health and holiday matters.” African governments rarely shed much light on furtive visits to foreign doctors. In 2010, Nigerian President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua died after spending months at a Saudi Arabian hospital, during which time aides dodged questions about the 58-year old leader. In 2012, Malawi’s government flatly denied social-media reports that President Bingu wa Mutharika had died of a heart attack. Some officials said he had been flown to South Africa for further treatment. Two days later, they confirmed he had died of a heart attack. Algeria’s president, Abdelaziz Bouteflika, recently said he would seek a fourth term in office. The 77-year-old leader spent more than two months in a Paris hospital last year after suffering a stroke. The Maka Angola website noted some truth in Mr. dos Santos seeing a dentist in Spain. Between June and August, the Angolan president spent more than 40 days outside the country related to tooth implants that led to facial swelling, it reported. Following the trip to Spain, Mr. dos Santos has kept a low profile. In December, he skipped memorials in South Africa for former President Nelson Mandela. The president was pictured at a charity gala in Angola where pop diva Mariah Carey performed. But then in January, he didn’t show at the AU summit, de rigueur for hobnobbing among diplomats and the continent’s heads of state. Mr. Marques is no longer buying talk of the toothache. “If our country is doing as well as he always says it is,” the journalist ventured, “you would think he’d be able to find a decent dentist in Angola.” *Source WSJ]]>
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Congo troops guarding British firm 'killed peaceful protesters'
Two fishermen reportedly beaten to death after criticising Soco International’s activities in Virunga National Park in Democratic Republic of Congo
By Martin Fletcher*
[caption id="attachment_11789" align="alignleft" width="620"] Fishermen of Kavanyongi on the Northern shores of Lake Edward, inside Virunga National Park. Photo: Getty Images[/caption] Soldiers guarding a British company that is searching for oil in Africa’s oldest national park are believed to have killed two opponents of the controversial project, The Telegraph has discovered.
The fishermen were both beaten to death after apparently criticising Soco International’s activities in Virunga National Park, a Unesco World Heritage Site in the Democratic Republic of Congo, villagers told a journalist who visited the remote fishing community of Nyakakoma where Soco has been based since 2011. Their claims, recorded in today’s Telegraph magazine, were later corroborated by an investigator from Human Rights Watch. Ida Sawyer, HRW’s senior Congo researcher, said: “Many other fishermen, activists and park rangers have been badly beaten, threatened and intimidated after opposing (Soco’s) work in the park. It is shocking and completely unacceptable that park residents risk being killed when they peacefully express their views.”
The park authorities have launched a formal investigation.
Roger Cagle, Soco’s deputy chief executive, denied any responsibility for the Congolese soldiers’ actions. “They’re not associated with Soco. They’re assigned to us. We can’t tell the army to go and kiss off,” he said during an interview in Soco’s Mayfair headquarters.
Soco won a licence to explore for oil in Virunga in 2006. That licence was ratified by presidential decree in 2010. But Emmanuel de Merode, Virunga’s Belgian-born director, an array of environmental and human rights NGOs, Unesco and even the British government have challenged the legality of Soco’s operations. They contend that oil drilling would threaten not only a highly-protected environment but the fragile peace of a former war zone and conservation efforts throughout the DRC. At least five big shareholders have raised concerns with Soco or sold their investments.
Cagle called the allegations against his company “malicious lies” and insisted that Soco forbade any form of illegal activity by its employees or contractors. He said the company had done its best to investigate the charges, but those making them offered no proof or specifics.
Soco recently completed its seismic tests and is withdrawing from Virunga. In June it announced that would not return to drill without an agreement between the DRC government and Unesco.
*Source telegraph
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Angels, Demons, and Savages: Pollock, Ossorio, Dubuffet
About The Publication
Klaus Ottman, Dorothy Kosinski, Terrie Sultan
First published in 2013 by Yale University Press in association with The Philips Collection and the Parrish Art Museum
The artistic relationships among Jackson Pollock (1912–1956), Alfonso Ossorio (1916–1990), and Jean Dubuffet (1901–1985) strongly influenced the development of postwar art. Ossorio, the central figure in the trio, was an early champion of Pollock and the close friend of Dubuffet, whose radically anticultural Art Brut collection was prominently displayed at Ossorio’s Hamptons estate. Dubuffet’s admiration for Ossorio is evident in his 1951 essay on the artist, published here for the first time in English.
Angels, Demons, and Savages reveals previously unrecognized technical and thematic affinities in the artists’ work, from Dubuffet’s “raw,” unconventional style to Ossorio’s use of Christian iconography and grotesque elements to Pollock’s emphasis on medium and gestural force. Complete with two original essays and a conservation study, this groundbreaking catalogue shows how the three artists shaped the aesthetic on both sides of the Atlantic through their exchange of ideas and techniques.
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Pasadena Workplace Discrimination Lawyer
Have you ever been fired, demoted or treated differently than your colleagues because of your race, sexual orientation, pregnancy status or religious beliefs?
If so, you’ve been the victim of workplace discrimination.
Fortunately, the state of California has a robust set of laws that protect workers and help ensure that they are compensated when treated unfairly.
Workplace Discrimination in California: The Facts
Workplace discrimination can take many forms. Consider the following examples:
A company adopts a policy that disproportionately affects people in protected classes (sex, race, religious beliefs, medical conditions, sexual orientation etc.).
A company allows a hostile work environment where employees are harassed.
A company won’t hire, promote or interview people in certain protected classes.
A company fails to accommodate the disabilities or religious practices of workers.
All of these are common examples of workplace discrimination — a problem that impacts thousands of Californians each year
Those affected by workplace discrimination are protected by both federal and state law. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 and California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) both have a variety of statutes written to protect the rights of workers.
Successfully pursuing a discrimination claim under these laws, however, isn’t always straightforward. For example, FEHA does not apply to all employers (only those with more than five employees).
Because the workplace discrimation law can be quite complex, it’s typically a good idea to have an experienced legal advocate on your side.
Finding a Los Angeles Workplace Discrimination Attorney to Fight for You
At L&B Law Group, we have spent decades fighting for the rights of victims of workplace discrimination. Contact us immediately for a free consultation.
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BBD(EXHIBIT) - BOARD MEMBERS: TRAINING AND ORIENTATION
Framework for School Board Development
Preamble: The Board is the educational policy-making body for the District. To effectively meet the challenges of public education, the Board and the Superintendent must function together as a leadership team. Each leadership team must annually assess its development needs as a corporate body and individually to gain an understanding of the vision, structure, accountability, advocacy, and unity needed to provide educational programs and services that ensure the equity and excellence in performance of all students. The Framework for School Board Development has been approved by the State Board of Education to provide the critical areas of development for all public school boards.
Vision — The Board ensures creation of a shared vision that promotes enhanced student achievement.
The Board keeps the District focus on the educational welfare of all children.
The Board adopts a shared vision based on community beliefs to guide local education.
The Board ensures that the vision supports the state's mission, objectives, and goals for education established by law and/or rule.
The Board ensures that the District's vision expresses the present and future needs of the children and community.
The Board uses the vision to assess the importance of individual issues that come before the Board and demonstrates its commitment to the vision by using the vision to guide all Board deliberations, decisions, and actions.
Individual Board members should not have individual agendas separate and apart from the shared vision.
Structure — The Board provides guidance and direction for accomplishing the vision.
The Board recognizes the respective roles of the legislature, the State Board of Education, the Texas Education Agency, and the local Board in the governance of the District.
The Board fulfills the statutory duties of the local Board and upholds all laws, rules, ethical procedures, and court orders pertaining to schools and school employees.
The Board focuses its actions on policy making, planning, and evaluation, and restricts its involvement in management to the responsibility of oversight.
The Board adopts a planning and decision-making process consistent with state law and/or rule that uses participation, information, research, and evaluation to help achieve the District's vision.
The Board ensures that the District's planning and decision-making process enables all segments of the community, parents, and professional staff to contribute meaningfully to achieving the District's vision.
The Board develops and adopts policies that provide guidance for accomplishing the District's vision, mission, and goals.
The Board adopts a budget that incorporates sound business and fiscal practices and provides resources to achieve the District's vision, mission, and goals.
The Board adopts goals, approves student performance objectives, and establishes policies that provide a well-balanced curriculum resulting in improved student learning.
The Board approves goals, policies, and programs that ensure a safe and disciplined environment conducive to learning.
The Board oversees the management of the District by employing the Superintendent and evaluating the Superintendent's performance in providing education leadership, managing daily operations, and performing all duties assigned by law and/or rule and in support of the District's vision.
The Board adopts policies and standards for hiring, assigning, appraising, terminating, and compensating District personnel in compliance with state laws and rules.
Accountability — The Board measures and communicates how well the vision is being accomplished.
The Board ensures progress toward achievement of District goals through a systematic, timely, and comprehensive review of reports prepared by or at the direction of the Superintendent.
The Board monitors the effectiveness and efficiency of instructional programs by reviewing reports prepared by or at the direction of the Superintendent and directs the Superintendent to make modifications that promote maximum achievement for all students.
The Board ensures that appropriate assessments are used to measure achievement of all students.
The Board reports District progress to parents and community in compliance with state laws and regulations.
The Board reviews District policies for effective support of the District's vision, mission, and goals.
The Board reviews the efficiency and effectiveness of District operations and use of resources in supporting the District's vision, mission, and goals.
The Board evaluates the Superintendent's performance annually in compliance with state laws and regulations.
The Board annually evaluates its own performance in fulfilling the Board's duties and responsibilities, and the Board's ability to work with the Superintendent as a team.
Advocacy — The Board promotes the vision.
The Board demonstrates its commitment to the shared vision, mission, and goals by clearly communicating them to the Superintendent, the staff, and community.
The Board ensures an effective two-way communication system between the District and its students, parents, employees, media, and the community.
The Board builds partnerships with community, business, and governmental leaders to influence and expand educational opportunities and meet the needs of students.
The Board supports children by establishing partnerships between the District, parents, business leaders, and other community members as an integral part of the District's educational program.
The Board leads in recognizing the achievements of students, staff, and others in education.
The Board promotes school board service as a meaningful way to make long-term contributions to the local community and society.
The Board provides input and feedback to the legislature, State Board of Education, and the Texas Education Agency regarding proposed changes to ensure maximum effectiveness and benefit to the schoolchildren in the District.
Unity — The Board works with the Superintendent to lead the District toward the vision.
The Board ensures that its members understand and respect the need to function as a team in governing and overseeing the management of the District.
The Board develops skills in teamwork, problem solving, and decision making.
The Board establishes and follows local policies, procedures, and ethical standards governing the conduct and operations of the Board.
The Board understands and adheres to laws and local policies regarding the Board's responsibility to set policy and the Superintendent's responsibility to manage the District and to direct employees in District and campus matters.
The Board recognizes the leadership role of the Board President and adheres to law and local policies regarding the duties and responsibilities of the Board President and other officers.
The Board adopts and adheres to established policies and procedures for receiving and addressing ideas and concerns from students, parents, employees, and the community.
The Board makes decisions as a whole only at properly called meetings and recognizes that individual members have no authority to take individual action in policy or District and campus administrative matters.
The Board supports decisions of the majority after honoring the right of individual members to express opposing viewpoints and vote their convictions.
Adopted by the State Board of Education, January 1996, as authorized by 19 TAC 61.1; revised July 2012.
Hunt ISD
BBD(EXHIBIT)-P
DATE ISSUED: 1/31/2013
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The Personal MBA
Master the Art of Business
by Josh Kaufman, #1 bestselling business author
A world-class business education in a single volume. Learn the universal principles behind every successful business, then use these ideas to make more money, get more done, and have more fun in your life and work.
Print Kindle Audio Get the audio free
What Is An 'Externality'?
Externalities are side effects of a primary process that affects parties beyond the primary beneficiaries or decision makers.
Many negative Externalities can be avoided or mitigated by anticipating potential Second-Order Effects and working to prevent unintended consequences.
Josh Kaufman Explains 'Externalities'
Between 1868 and 1969, the Cuyahoga River—a large tributary of Lake Erie that runs through the city of Cleveland, Ohio, in the United States—caught fire on at least thirteen separate occasions. The largest of the fires, which occurred in 1952, caused over $1 million of property damage—more than $10 million in today’s dollars.
The root cause wasn’t a mystery: pollution from petrochemicals, sewage, and manufacturing by-products was so severe that a forty-mile stretch of the river—from Cleveland to Akron—was unable to support fish or other aquatic life. The river was an inexpensive and convenient place to dump garbage, so many factories took the path of least resistance, building pipelines that carried industrial waste into the river in an effort to save money. The river died (and caught on fire) as a result.
The technical term for these events is Externality: a side effect of a primary process that affects parties beyond the primary beneficiaries or decision makers. Manufacturing in and around Cleveland was the primary process, and factory owners and employees were the primary beneficiaries: the pollution of the Cuyahoga and the effects of that pollution on other people and creatures were Externalities. The companies responsible for the pollution shifted the cost of waste disposal from their businesses to society at large.
Today, the Cuyahoga River is in much better shape. Improving the situation required significant intervention: laws, policies, and regulations that prevented and punished dumping, lawsuits and fines targeted at violators, and funds for cleaning and restoration efforts. Once the Externality was identified and understood, it was possible to coordinate societal efforts to fix the issue and prevent it from happening again.
Pollution isn’t the only type of negative Externality. Here’s a common example: many businesses collect Personally Identifiable Information (often abbreviated “PII”) as part of their Marketing, Sales, and customer-support efforts. This data is useful for Qualification, Segmentation, and outreach, so firms go to great lengths to collect as much information as possible. There is, however, an important Externality to consider: if unauthorized users (like hackers) gain access to this personal information, it can be used for all sorts of nefarious purposes, many of which can create financial and legal issues for the businesses’ prospects and customers.
Securing this data is important, but it doesn’t contribute to the businesses’ bottom line, so there’s little direct incentive to worry about it. In the event of a data breach, the businesses’ prospects and customers pay the price. That makes PII both an asset and a liability: companies that collect this sort of data have a responsibility to keep it secure and ensure their systems are protected from unauthorized access.
Many negative Externalities can be avoided or mitigated by anticipating potential Second-Order Effects and working to prevent unintended consequences. As a general rule: if you anticipate or identify negative side effects that occur (or may occur) as a result of your actions, it’s your responsibility to prevent or mitigate those effects as much as possible.
Some Externalities are positive. Consider communications technology like the internet or telephone network: each additional user of the system makes the network as a whole more valuable, creating a “network effect” that benefits every user of the system. Societal policies like widespread literacy and public-health practices (like handwashing and vaccination) have similar benefits: everyone benefits when there are lower barriers to communication and reduced exposure to infectious disease.
Externalities are sometimes difficult to predict in advance, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try. The benefits and detriments of your actions are real, and it’s in everyone’s best interest to take full advantage of unexpected opportunities and prevent unnecessary issues.
"Our planet is a lonely speck in the great enveloping cosmic dark. In our obscurity, in all this vastness, there is no hint that help will come from elsewhere to save us from ourselves . . . To me, it underscores our responsibility to deal more kindly with one another, and to preserve and cherish the pale blue dot, the only home we’ve ever known."
Carl Sagan, physicist and author of Pale Blue Dot: A Vision of the Human Future in Space
From Chapter 9:
Understanding Systems
Share this concept:
https://personalmba.com/externality/
About Josh Kaufman
Josh Kaufman is an acclaimed business, learning, and skill acquisition expert. He is the author of two international bestsellers: The Personal MBA and The First 20 Hours. Josh's research and writing have helped millions of people worldwide learn the fundamentals of modern business.
More about Josh Kaufman →
Worldly Wisdom Ventures LLC
© 2005 - 2021, Worldly Wisdom Ventures LLC. All rights reserved.
The Personal MBA: Master The Art of Business is published by Portfolio, an imprint of Penguin/Random House. All excerpts from the book are published under agreement with the publisher. This material may not be reproduced, displayed, modified, or distributed in any way without the express prior written permission of Worldly Wisdom Ventures LLC.
"The Personal MBA" is a trademark of Worldly Wisdom Ventures LLC.
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Movies Dungeons & Dragons Official Movie Trailer, Release Date, Cast & All Updates
Dungeons & Dragons Official Movie Trailer, Release Date, Cast & All Updates
Published By Shradha Nijhawan
Dungeons and Dragons is going to be a fantasy film with its adaptation of a role-playing game with the same name. The first premier in the Dungeons and Dragons film series was in 2000. After the first movie, there are two other parts of Dungeons and Dragons Wrath of the Dragon God in 2005 and the book of Vile Darkness in 2012.
Now the makers are pursuing the fourth movie in the series with the original name Dungeons and Dragons. Paramount will follow the film along with the publishers of the game, Wizards of the coast. Here is everything you want to know.
What is Going to be the Plot of Dungeons and Dragons?
News about a semifinal script for the movie was doing rounds. Paramount Pictures have hired Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley as the directors for the new Dungeons and Dragons movie. It was back in 2019 that the film got an official announcement.
There is no official update on a storyline that the movie will follow, but there are some speculations. These speculations are solely based on the role-playing game that the film is taking its inspiration from.
Everything about the popular RPG game of Dungeons and Dragons The setting of the game is during the Satanic panic of the eighties. The players are in the role of dungeon Masters who get the power to create their narrative and the world. It is a top table game that allows players to participate in the game’s story actively. The video game is full of adventure and thrill where the player is also a primary character of the story.
What is Going to be the Release Date for the New Dungeons and Dragons Movie?
In 2017 Paramount pictures give out the new Dungeons and Dragons movie announcement to have a release date it of July 2021. But the makers did not want to rush and disappoint everyone full of excitement for the new film.
The coronavirus pandemic was also posing as a problem to the production of the movie. A film like dungeons and dragons needs a fair amount of post-production work. So now, the movie’s release date is facing another shift to 2022. But there are no confirmations that the movie will undoubtedly release then.
Who are the Actors Part of the Cast for Dungeons and Dragons movie?
There is no sign of a star cast for the Dungeons and Dragons movie. Paramount is completely keeping shut about the actors who are going to be working on the project. However, there is a list of actors doing rounds from anonymous sources that can most likely be a part of the film.
From everything going on, it is understood that Paramount is giving the project importance and seriousness. They are doing everything they can not face failure in the new Dungeons and Dragons movie.
As fans, everyone will have to wait a little more until there are any reliable film updates. A trailer release will be useful during these times, but there is no surety as to which stage the film is producing.
Shradha Nijhawan
Shradha Nijhawan is a content writer with Pop culture Times. She started as an intern and continued to be a part-time writer with the company. Previously, Shradha has worked with Webstrummer Infolab delivering articles with client requirements. She graduated with a majors degree in Political Science, economics, and sociology from Mount Carmel College, Bangalore, and is now pursuing an MBA from Christ University, Bangalore. An avid reader and a sucker for information define her well. Her interests lie in religion, cultures, languages, fashion, and travel.
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Return to press releases
Animal feed company fined after serious injury to employee
15th September 2020 29th September 2020
An animal feed processing company has been fined following an incident where part of an employee’s arm was severed by a moving conveyor.
Chesterfield Justice Centre heard how, on 09 December 2018, the employee had opened the inspection hatch on a closed conveyor in order to clear a blockage at the site in Killamarsh, Derbyshire. The conveyor started unexpectedly, severing the employee’s right arm below the elbow.
An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that the company did not have a documented safe system of work for clearing these blockages which occurred on a recurrent basis on this conveyor as well as others at the site. This meant there was no reference, no training material or procedure that could be monitored, as a result different practices developed over time.
The company did not appear to be aware that blockages were cleared in this unsafe manner. Had a suitable and sufficient risk assessment been completed, the company should have identified that there was a risk to employees created by intervention in the machine when blockage clearance was required and developed appropriate instruction, training and information related to the task.
Hi Peak Feeds Limited of Sheffield Road, Killamarsh, Derbyshire pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2 (1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974. It was fined £140,000 and ordered to pay costs of £2,591.30.
Speaking after the hearing HSE inspector Lindsay Bentley said: “This incident could so easily have been avoided through the implementation of a safe system of work involving effective plant isolation and adherence to safe working practices.”
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is Britain’s national regulator for workplace health and safety. We prevent work-related death, injury and ill health through regulatory actions that range from influencing behaviours across whole industry sectors through to targeted interventions on individual businesses. These activities are supported by globally recognised scientific expertise. www.hse.gov.uk
More about the legislation referred to in this case can be found at: www.legislation.gov.uk/
HSE news releases are available at http://press.hse.gov.uk
Press release, Prosecution health, health and safety, HSE, injuries, prosecution
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492 F. 2d 919 - Walston v. County School Board of Nansemond County Virginia United States
492 F2d 919 Walston v. County School Board of Nansemond County Virginia United States
7 Fair Empl.Prac.Cas. 616, 7 Empl. Prac. Dec. P 9153
Syvalius WALSTON, Jr. et al., Plaintiffs-Appellants,
COUNTY SCHOOL BOARD OF NANSEMOND COUNTY, VIRGINIA, et al.,
Defendants-Appellees.
UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff-Appellant,
NANSEMOND COUNTY SCHOOL BOARD et al., Defendants-Appellees.
United States Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit.
Argued Nov. 6, 1973.
Decided Feb. 19, 1974.
S. W. Tucker, Henry L. Marsh, III, and James W. Benton, Jr., Richmond, Va., James A. Overton, Portsmouth, Va., and Jack Greenberg and Norman J. Chachkin, New York City, for appellants, No. 73-1492.
J. Stanley Pottinger, Asst. Atty. Gen., Brian P. Gettings, U.S. Atty., Brian K. Landsberg, Thomas M. Keeling, Daniel L. Bell, II, Dept. of Justice, Washington, D.C., for appellant, No. 73-1493.
Frederick T. Gray, Chesterfield, Va., and Joshua Pretlow, Jr., Suffolk, Va., for appellees.
Stephen J. Pollak, Richard M. Sharp; and David Rubin, Washington, D.C., for amicus curiae, National Education Ass'n.
Before CLARK, Associate Justice,* BOREMAN, Senior Circuit Judge, and BUTZNER, Circuit Judge.
CLARK, Associate Justice:I.
These consolidated cases are here on appeal from an order of the District Court denying injunctive relief, reinstatement and back pay to certain black teachers formerly employed by the County School Board of Nansemond County, Virginia. 351 F.Supp. 196 (1972). No. 73-1493 was originally filed on May 27, 1970 by the United States because of its dissatisfaction with the degree of desegregation in the Nansemond County School District under a freedom-of-choice plan. The action sought the total desegregation of the schools and faculties in the district controlled by the Board. Subsequently a desegregation plan submitted by the Board was ordered implemented by the Court for the school year 1970-71. The United States filed a motion in the case on June 1, 1971, for supplemental relief, alleging that the Board's plan had failed to disestablish the dual school system which had existed for many years in the district. It was further alleged that the Board had instituted a qualification and selection plan for the hiring and the retention of faculty members which had, in fact, substantially reduced its black teaching staff and that the Board had refused to demonstrate that its actions were not racially discriminatory. No. 73-1492 was filed against the Board on August 20, 1971, by thirteen black teachers as individuals and on behalf of the class represented by them. They alleged that the Board had racially discriminated against them and other black faculty members in violation of the Due Process and Equal Protection Clauses of the 14th Amendment by its application of certain testing criteria to them which resulted in the termination of their employment.
Prior to the 1970-71 school year the Board had required each applicant to have a baccalaureate degree, a Virginia teacher's certificate endorsed for the grade or subject to be taught and three letters of recommendation. The controversy here centers on a new requirement of the Board adopted January 13, 1970 that teachers take the National Teacher Examinations (NTE) and present a minimum score of 500 on the Weighted Common section of the examination. Teachers in non-academic areas were exempted, such as physical and driver education and certain trade and industrial courses. Currently employed teachers were permitted to continue in their positions without taking the NTE; however if a school transfer was effectuated, the teacher could be placed on a three-month provisional contract until such time as there was an opportunity to give the examination. The NTE is given several times a year by the Educational Testing Service of Princeton, New Jersey. It consists of a Weighted Common section and a Teaching Area section. The former offers a general appraisal of the teacher's basic professional preparation and general academic attainments upon graduation from college and before entering the teaching profession. The latter is a test of the individual's command of a specific academic subject. The Educational Testing Service does not recommend that the test be used as the sole criterion for employment; however the Board did so use it here, making it the sine qua non of employment.
The Board's action required that the test be taken by all teachers who came to the School District in the 1970-71 school year and all subsequent applicants. However, as implemented, only those teachers completing their first year of teaching with the School District were required to submit an NTE weighted common test score of 500 or better. The remainder were grandfathered in.1
Prior to the inauguration of the NTE, the faculty in the School District was 59 percent black, but after it was implemented, the percentage dropped to 52 percent by 1972. At the end of the 1970-71 school year twenty-five teachers were not offered new contracts and of those, twenty-one were black. Fifteen of these black teachers were terminated solely on the basis of their NTE scores.2 Twelve of them had from two to twelve years of teaching experience while three had only one year. However, all fifteen had been recommended for retention by their respective principals, several with above average or better overall ratings. In 1970-71, 127 in-service teachers were required to take the NTE test, twenty-one were black and 106 white. Seventy percent of the blacks failed, while only two percent of the whites did so. Only two white teachers were not re-employed as a result of an unsatisfactory score on the NTE. During this same year, the Board employed nineteen white and nine black teachers, none of whom had a college degree nor took the NTE test. In 1970-71, thirty-two white and seven black new teachers were employed who held 'collegiate certificates', a lower level certificate than the 'collegiate professional' certificate (awarded to teachers who had completed an education training program) held by the dismissed black teachers. The District Court noted that teaching outside a teacher's area of certification was an additional ground for dismissal; yet it appears that the Board employed thirty-six white and thirty-two black teachers for the 1970-71 school year to teach academic subjects outside of those for which they were certified. For the 1971-72 school year, the number of black teachers was further reduced by thirty-one, while the number of whites increased by twenty-seven; eighty-two new white teachers were employed but only fifteen new black ones.
The statistics on employment of new teachers was thirty eight percent black in 1970-71, while it was only fourteen percent in 1971-72. Significantly, we note that of the appellants whose employment was terminated for insufficient NTE scores, some had been teaching for over a decade and none had been teaching less than one year. For example, Celestine Whitehead had taught in Nansemond County from 1966-68 when she resigned to join her soldier husband stationed in Europe. Upon returning and during the 1970-71 school year she received the Teacher of the Year Award from the Chuckatuck Ruritan Club. She was terminated that year because of a deficient NTE score, although her principal rated her outstanding or above average in all evaluation categories and recommended the renewal of her contract. Another teacher, Josephine Gatling, was employed to teach physical education and driver education, subjects that were exempted from the NTE test under the announced policy guidelines of the Board. Nevertheless, she was required to take the test and upon her failure to make a score of 500 she was terminated at the end of the 1970-71 school year. On the other hand, other teachers in brick masonry, auto mechanics and electronics were exempted. Another teacher, Thelma Corprew, had taught three years, the last year in Nansemond County. She was terminated in 1971 because of her NTE score. She took the NTE test again, making 505, but was told the faculty had no vacancies; yet three white teachers were employed to teach in the same grade after she had been refused.
The trial court found that 'there was no racial motivation involved in any decision of the school board' but held that this 'lack of intentional discrimination' was not dispositive of the case although it acknowledged that two situations involving de facto discrimination in violation of individual rights were presented by the facts. The first was that the adoption of the NTE requirement resulted in the severance of more blacks than whites and secondly, that a 'larger number of blacks were demoted or refused re-employment based upon the subjective evaluation form and the recommendation of the principal.' The question, the Court posed, was whether the employment standards utilized by the Board were justifiable under the Equal Protection Clause. Citing Western Addition Community Organization v. Alioto, D.C., 330 F.Supp. 536 (1971), the Court reasoned that if there was 'a reasonably necessary connection between the qualities tested . . . and the actual requirements of the job to be performed,' (at 539) 'it would seem to make no difference whether the classification being attacked' was 'on the basis of race . . . The test need only reasonably measure those abilities which are essential to the job to be performed.' 351 F.Supp. at 203. The Court then applied this 'reasonable measure' criterion and decided that, although the NTE had no 'predictive validity', it did have 'content validity-- that is to say, the knowledge and abilities tested are those used in the job contemplated.' It then found that the evidence, 'including that from the plaintiffs' own experts, would seem to indicate that the test validly measures skills essential to the teaching profession.' Finally, the Court adopted, absent any clearly conflicting evidence to the contrary, the views of one of the expert witnesses, Dr. Deneen, who 'commented that many school districts abused teacher rights with an indiscriminate use of the NTE, having made no effort to justify its actions. Nansemond County on the other hand has what he considers to be faults but with good explanations for the use they have made of NTE.' Id. at 205. After thus approving the School Board's NTE policy, the Court discussed some of the individual teachers released, including those in which the principals had not recommended their retention and found justification for termination present in all cases save one who was terminated by the unification process of the School District. Her demotion was ordered by the Board without any comparison of her qualifications with others in the School District performing similar duties. She was given relief 'if the government has standing to seek relief in her behalf.3 For the reasons hereafter set out, we reverse the judgment and direct that the teachers terminated solely upon the basis of NTE scores be reinstated with full back pay; that the cases of the teachers terminated 'for cause' be re-examined at a hearing to be held by the District Court at the earliest practicable date to consider the validity of such dismissals and the appropriateness of reinstatement; that appropriate injunctive relief be issued and that damages, if appropriate, be awarded.
The issue as framed by the District Court is whether the Board's employment standards are 'justifiable . . . in light of the equal protection clause . . .'. It found that: 'there was no racial motivation involved in any decision of the school board, other than the avowed purpose of keeping the black to white ratio constant.' In our view this finding and the court's analysis overlook the rule of this Circuit in Chambers v. Hendersonville City Board of Education, 4 Cir., 364 F.2d 189 (1966), and which was recently approved and endorsed in Keyes v. School District No. 1,413 U.S. 189, 93 S.Ct. 2686, 37 L.Ed.2d 548 (1973). There it was held that when the ranks of black teachers in a school district with a long history of discrimination have been decimated disproportionately, an inference of discrimination is raised which shifts to the school board the burden of justifying its conduct by clear and convincing evidence. As Mr. Justice Brennan said in Keyes, supra, 'In discharging that burden, it is not enough, of course, that the school authorities rely upon some allegedly logical, racially neutral explanations for their actions. Their burden is to adduce proof sufficient to support a finding that segregative intent was not among the factors that motivated their actions.' 413 U.S. at 210, 93 S.Ct. at 2698. The Board argues that no inference of discriminatory motive was raised 'because there were valid reasons for the use of the test.' We find the reasons articulated insupportable. The District Court did hold that for the NTE to pass muster, it was necessary that there be a 'reasonably necessary connection between the qualities tested . . . and the actual requirements of the job to be performed.' But we find this to be error. The Supreme Court in Griggs v. Duke Power Co., 401 U.S. 424, 91 S.Ct. 849, 28 L.Ed.2d 158 (1971) held that the test must 'bear a demonstrable relationship to successful performance of the jobs for which it was used.' 401 U.S. at 431, 91 S.Ct. at 853. This standard is much more rigorous in its burden than the standard actually utilized by the District Court here. Using this less stringent standard the Court concluded that the NTE test had 'content validity' and could therefore be used in the teacher evaluation and selection process. We find no clear evidence to support that conclusion. The test itself was not introduced into evidence. Nor were there any comparative analyses or studies conclusively demonstrating that the knowledge necessary for the teaching positions bore any relation to the questions on the examinations.4 In this connection, the District Court itself found that 'the evidence clearly establishes that no study has shown any correlation between any score and an ultimately effective in-service teacher.' 351 F.Supp. at 203. If this be true, the NTE cut-off score of 500 is patently arbitrary and discriminatory. Superintendent Wood testified that he knew that black teachers were less likely to score as high as white teachers. Further, the reason for its adoption appears to be arbitrary based on the fact that Nansemond School District was getting the cast-off teachers of other school districts that required the 500 score cut off on the NTE. Mr. Wood testified that it was adopted because the Board 'found that we were getting many teachers coming in from Chesapeake, Portsmouth, Norfolk, Virginia Beach' and 'many of the teachers we were getting were unable to become certified in North Carolina'; and 'we found that all of these school divisions required a minimum of 500 on the National Teachers Examination . . . So that presented a problem . . . So taking all of this into account we felt that our teachers coming into Nansemond County should at least bring a minimal amount of general knowledge into theclassroom.' And the Board adopted the NTE 500 cut-off score to accomplish this. Moreover the Board compounded the problem of disparate racial impact by making the NTE 500 cut-off score the sole criterion for job selection, although the Educational Testing Service itself, the District Court found, 'could not condone blanket use of a minimum cut off score.' In addition, the Board arbitrarily and erratically administered the NTE, requiring some 'exempted' teachers to take the test and not requiring that others similarly situated do so.5 Finally, the District Court found, the Educational Testing Service 'has said that the test was least valid when applied to experienced teachers'. Yet the Board nevertheless required many teachers regardless of their experience (which exceeded ten years in some instances) to take the test and then refused them employment or re-employment if they failed to make a score of 500 or better. On top of all this, the Board employed twenty eight teachers in the school year 1970-71 and twenty four in the year 1971-72 without requiring either a college degree, which was the old requirement, or requiring them to take the NTE, which was the new one. Obviously, the District Court's finding that the action of the Board was not discriminatory is clearly erroneous and we so hold. As Judge Dyer said in Baker v. Columbus Municipal Separate School District, 462 F.2d 1112 (5th Cir. 1972) when the NTE 'produces a racial distortion it is subject to strict scrutiny . . . In order to withstand an equal protection attack it must be justified by an overriding purpose independent of its racial effects.' At 1114. We find no such overriding purpose here. While a school board's desire to improve the caliber of its faculty is a laudable one, the policies and procedures employed must be clearly and fairly related to this goal. The totality of the record, on the contrary, indicates a strong undercurrent of discrimination that has effectively decimated the ranks of black teachers whose credentials are equally, if not more, impressive than many of those hired by the Board.
We need not discuss at length whether the NTE has 'content validity'. The District Court noted in Footnote 8, 351 F.Supp. at 204, content validity alone may be acceptable where a well developed test, consisting of suitable samples of essential knowledge, skills or behaviors composing the jobs in question, are posed in the examination. 29 CFR 1607.5(a). However, we do not find the necessary prerequisites for such a finding by the District Court since no such samples, job analyses or validation studies were provided or conducted. Nor did any expert testify that the questions posed tested the existence of the knowledge essential to performance in the teaching positions. More critical is the District Court's express finding that the NTE had no 'predictive validity'. The burden of showing 'a manifest relationship' between the test and the job is upon the Board. Griggs v. Duke Power Co., supra, 401 U.S. at 432, 91 S.Ct. 849, 28 L.Ed.2d 158. In that case the Chief Justice pointed out the inadequacy of 'broad and general testing devices.' Id., 401 U.S. at 433, 91 S.Ct. 849, 28 L.Ed.2d 158. As concretely put by the Chief Justice, 'any tests used must measure the person for the job and not the person in the abstract.' Id., 401 U.S. at 436, 91 S.Ct. at 856. Here the tests measure the person in the abstract. While a copy of the National Teacher Examinations is not in the record, we have taken the liberty of reproducing in an Appendix some of the questions which appeared in the amicus curiae brief of National Education Association. If these questions are a fair example of the remainder of the examination, any connection between the examination and effective teaching is purely coincidental. The NTE, as used by the Board, does not purport to measure the teacher's actual knowledge of the subject matter assigned to be taught or his performance in the classroom, but places primary emphasis on general education and professional education.
In construing Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Supreme Court in Griggs, supra, stated unequivocally that: 'If an employment practice which operates to exclude Negroes cannot be shown to be related to job performance, the practice is prohibited.' 401 U.S. at 431, 91 S.Ct. at 853. Here the School Board conducted no 'meaningful study' of the relationship between the test and 'job performance ability.' Id. Since, as previously stated, the District Court expressly found that the NTE had no 'predictive validity' and since the statistics in the record confirm that Negroes have been excluded, we are led to the inescapable conclusion that the Board's use of the NTE was improper.
The blanket grouping of employees for testing in a single examination has been condemned by this Court in Moody v. Albemarle Paper Company, 474 F.2d 134, 139 (4th Cir. 1973). If the jobs are substantially different, it is reasonable to conclude that the relationship between jobs and the tests related thereto must vary as among various jobs. In the Nansemond schools some teachers might teach reading and writing to seven-year olds; others chemistry or foreign language to sixteen-year olds; still others may have classes in science, English, mathematics etc. Some of these subjects do not require much 'general knowledge' for one to be an expert in teaching them. A job analysis for one teaching position (and the appropriate test for it) would not necessarily be suitable for another. Of course, specific subject area testing is covered by another section of the examination called the Teaching Area Examination. Yet the Board did not require subject area testing. Had it done so, we surmise that experienced teachers might have scored more satisfactorily. In any event, it was unfair, we find, to give only the Weighted Common examination to experienced teachers who have long since finished their college careers. This requirement is contrary to the specific recommendation of the Education Testing Service. See Footnote 4, supra. General knowledge may be fleeting, and the Educational Testing Service designed the test, given by the Board, for new teachers who are finishing or who have just completed their college education. As the guidelines of the Educational Testing Service say: 'Test scores contribute little or nothing to the evaluation of an in-service teacher.' Hence the Board by requiring appellant teachers to take the NTE violated the direct recommendation of the Educational Testing Service itself.
Again, we must find fault with the NTE used by the Board for predictive purposes. The Board used a cut off test score of 500 as a prediction of the effective teaching capacity of its teachers. Indeed, Superintendent Wood testified that was why the Board adopted it; yet, the 'Prospectus' of the ETS states that the NTE is 'not intended as a measure of classroom teaching performance.'
We recognize that school boards should and do have wide discretion in the performance of the important duties assigned to them. Theirs is the most vital function in a free society-- the education of youth. The level of their accomplishment will determine whether a free society will long exist; for educated minds are the guardian genius of democracy. The well-springs of education must therefore be maintained pure and strong. At the same time the principle of equal employment opportunity is the law of the land (42 U.S.C. 2000e-2) and it must never be dishonored. To maintain the high purposes of education, we must encourage and protect those who devote their lives to this worthy endeavor. To this end school boards must make certain that teachers are not the victims of abitrary, discriminatory action, both in their entry to and continuance in the profession. It, therefore, is the affirmative duty of every school board to eradicate 'root and branch' every vestige of segregation and discrimination in their respective school systems. Green v. County School Board, 391 U.S. 430, 438, 88 S.Ct. 1689, 20 L.Ed.2d 716 (1968). This may be a difficult task but it must be done. Such challenges are not new to Americans. If we falter in meeting them, we reflect our inadequacy for greatness.
What we hold today is not to say that the NTE cannot be utilized under any circumstances as one possible type of 'objective criteria' under the rule in Chambers, supra. However, it cannot be used as a tool of discrimination; it cannot be used without proper validation studies and job analyses under the rule in Moody, supra. Nor can it be administered capriciously in derogation of the guidelines promulgated by the ETS so as to have a racially disparate impact. It may well be that when properly and fairly applied in appropriate situations, the NTE could qualify as having the 'demonstrable relationship', as required by Griggs, supra, so essential to ensure equal employment opportunity.
We hold that the NTE, as applied here, was discriminatory and that the teachers terminated because of their failure to make a 500 score on the test must be reinstated with back pay and their damages, if any, settled. The facts surrounding the dismissal of certain teachers 'for cause' must be re-examined by the District Court with a view to making certain that their dismissal was not linked to discriminatory action with the burden of proof on the School Board; and if it was, then appropriate relief should be afforded them. Injunctive relief must be granted in such terms as will insure that further discrimination in the employment and retention of teachers in the School District will not recur. Finally, the District Court, in the exercise of its sound discretion, may grant such other and further relief as it deems necessary and appropriate. The judgment is reversed and the cause remanded for further proceedings in keeping with this opinion.
The professional education section of the test asks questions such as:6
'8. One curriculum pattern involves introducing significant concepts during the first year of school and continuing their development at increasing levels of complexity in the following years. This type of curriculum plan for concept development is called the (A) spiral approach (B) open-ended approach (C) concrete to abstract approach (D) contrasting dimensions approach (E) deductive approach
'9. Which of the following statements best describes the nature of mental growth in the child? (A) Mental development begins at birth and parallels physical growth in rate and length in years. (B) Mental growth begins at birth and ends at death. (C) Mental growth in the normal child is progressive but somewhat uneven. (D) The length and extent of mental growth cannot be altered after birth. (E) Mental growth necessarily parallels social and emotional development.'
The test of written English expression, for example, asks which, if any, of the following is in error:
'When it snows on/A the flat, open plains, it/B piles up into/C huge drifts that make/D roads impassable. No error/E and which of the following constitutes the best answer: 'The chemical formula was so complex, and no one was able to remember it. (A) so complex, and (B) very complex, therefore (C) so complex that (D) too complex that (E) of a degree of complexity so great that'
The remaining 50 percent of the examination calls for information such as the family living next door is not a 'social group' (Question 164); Ramsey Lewis is not a trumpet player (Question 188); St. Basil's Cathedral is an example of the Byzantine influence on architecture (Question 198); a Minotaur is half-man, half-bull (Question 208); the subject matter of an oratorio is typically religious (Question 215); Althea, Julia, Lucasta, and Corinna were ladies who inspired the poetic ardors of the Cavalier poets (Question 218); carbon dioxide is an excellent material for putting out fires because it is heavier than air and does not support combustion (Question 230); the incidence per capita of trichinosis is greater in the United States than in Asia because consumption of pork is low in Asia (Question 240); not all planets in the solar system have moons (Question 243); stars of the first magnitude are necessarily similar in brightness (Question 244); a circle circumscribed by a square, the area of which is 36, has as its own area (Question 262); for all integers x and nonzero integers y, the new symbol, when defined as, means that the following must be true. (Question 265).
Supreme Court of the United States (retired) sitting by designation
Two black teachers, Mrs. Queen Malone and Mrs. Evelyn Jones, who began teaching in the District in 1969, were not extended the grandfather right. They were on leave during pregnancy, Mrs. Jones returning at the beginning of the 1970-71 term; Mrs. Malone tendered a doctor's certificate that she was able to return at the same time; however the Board required a waiting period of three months after the child's birth which did not expire until December of 1970, at which time she returned. Both were required to take the NTE and both were terminated for failing to submit a 500 or better score. Mrs. Malone had been teaching 3 1/2 years, Mrs. Jones 2 1/2, each with the District
Five of the twenty one black teachers were terminated because they were not recommended by their respective principals. One teacher, Eula Baker, had been teaching for 29 years, 8 months, of which 12 years was under contract with the Board. She needs only 4 months' additional service for full retirement. At the Board hearing, neither of her principals appeared, the Board took no vote on her reinstatement, still she was terminated. Mr. Brown, Mrs. Baker's principal, initially recommended Mrs. Baker for re-appointment but changed his recommendation after being pressured by the Assistant Superintendent. Syvalius Walston, Jr. was terminated after nine years with Nansemond. His evaluation sheet is marked 'below average' in the area of 'professional dedication'. His principal, Mr. Fulton, originally recommended his reappointment but withdrew it after being pressured by the Superintendent at a principals' meeting. The Board held a hearing but Mr. Fulton never appeared, and the Board took no vote on reappointment
The teacher, Beulah Watts, an assistant principal, was demoted to a classroom teacher. Since the District Judge's decision here, her claim has apparently been settled and is no longer involved here
The Prospectus for School and College Officials states: 'The National Teacher Examinations are designed to provide objective standardized measures of the academic achievement of college seniors completing four-year programs of teacher education. The examinations assess cognitive knowledge and understanding in the three areas of academic preservice preparation for teaching included in practically all teacher-education curricula, specifically, (1) general education, (2) professional education, and (3) subjectfield specialization. (The test as to No. 3 was required by the Board) . . . The examinations do not measure manual skills which are essential elements in . . . art, industrial arts, music and physical education . . . Nor do the tests claim to assess such elements as teaching aptitude, interests, attitudes, and personal-social characteristics. Moreover, the NTE are not intended as a measure of classroom performance; those desiring to test teachers in service will not find the National Teacher Examinations a substitute for direct observation of their on-the-job accomplishments.'
The Guidelines for Using the National Teacher Examinations state: 'The NTE are used in many teacher training colleges . . . can give colleges information that will assist them in reviewing their curriculums, admission . . . policies.' 'The NTE scores can provide information useful for counseling prospective teachers . . . The learning examined by the NTE represents a sample of teacher preparation programs . . . Several states require that applicants for teacher certification shall have taken the NTE . . . A specific NTE score for certification purposes should be required only for beginning teachers . . . When a teacher has a record of classroom performance, he should be judged on the basis of that performance; test scores contribute little or nothing to the evaluation of an in-service teacher . . . In selecting teachers, the weighting of selection criteria is preferable to setting specific minimum score requirements . . . a district should systematically observe applicants' scores over a period of time before it decides on minimum requirements . . . The NTE scores should not be used in decisions concerning the retention of experienced teachers.'
As stated, infra, Josephine Gatling, a teacher of courses exempted from the scope of the NTE by the ETS, was nevertheless required to take the NTE; and upon her failure to submit a satisfactory score, her employment was terminated
The questions presented hereafter are taken from the copy of the NTE Common Examinations found on pages 640 through 675 of the appendix in United States v. Chesterfield County School District, 484 F.2d 70 (4th Cir. 1973)
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Positivism & Logical Positivism
Achinstein, Peter. (1969). The legacy of logical positivism: Studies in the philosophy of science. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press.
Ayer, A.J. (Ed.). (1959). Logical positivism. Glencoe, IL: Free Press.
Comte, Auguste. (1975). Auguste Comte and positivism: The essential writings. (Gertrud Lenzer, Ed.). Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Giddens, Anthony. (1979). Positivism and its critics. In Tom Bottomore & Robert Nisbet (Eds.). A history of sociological analysis (pp. 237-285). London: Heinemann.
Howe, K. R. (2009). Positivist dogmas, rhetoric, and the education science question. Educational Researcher, 38(6), 428-440.
Kincheloe, J., & Tobin, K. (2009). The much exaggerated death of positivism. Cultural Studies of Science Education, 4(3), 513-528. doi: 10.1007/s11422-009-9178-5
McGuiness, B. (2011). Friedrich Waismann—Causality and logical positivism. Dordrecht & New York: Springer.
Morris, C. (1937). Logical positivism, pragmatism and scientific empiricism. Paris: Hermann.
Phillips, Denis C. (1987). Philosophy, science, and social inquiry. Oxford: Pergamon Press.
Phillips, Denis C. & Burbules, Nicholas C. (2000). Postpositivism and educational research. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield.
Richenback, Hans. (2006). Experience and prediction: An analysis of the foundations and the structure of knowledge. Notre Dame, IN: University of Notre Dame Press.
Turner, Jonathan. (1987). The demise of positivism. In Randall Collins (Eds.), Sociological theory. San Francisco, Jossey-Bass.
Turner, Jonathan. (1992). The promise of positivism. In Steven Seidman & David G. Wagner, (Eds.), Postmodernism and social theory: The debate over general theory (pp. 156-178). Cambridge, MA: Blackwell.
Von Mises, Richard. (1956). Positivism: A study in human understanding. New York: George Braziller.
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Commendable sales achieved, in the absence of major new project launches for the month of March.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 15 April 2020 – Developers sold a total of 660 units of Private New Homes (Excluding ECs) for the month of March. A 32% month-on-month (m-o-m) drop as compared to the 976 units sold in the previous month.
Chief Executive Officer of PropNex Realty, Mr Ismail Gafoor mentioned that, “Even though in the absence of major new project launches, sales for the month of March were commendable. Notably, the top 3 non-EC projects were Jadescape, Treasure At Tampines and Parc Esta. Each development moved more than 60 units each.”
Mr.Ismail further stated that, “Despite the current Covid-19 pandemic, rightly priced projects that were previously launched have been a pull-factor in attracting buyers and investors. A trend that we expect to continue in the aftermath of circuit breaker measures.”
The top 5 best-selling new launches for the month of March were Ola, Jadescape, Treasure At Tampines, Parc Esta And Parc Canberra. OLA was the best-selling development, with a total of 169 units sold at a median price of $$1,139 psf. While, the second best-selling project was Jadescape, which sold a total of 75 units at a median price of $$1,719 psf.
Moving forward, Mr.Ismail highlighted that, “For the month of April, we can anticipate a decrease in sales. With the bulk of sales coming from Kopar at Newton, which was launched before the circuit breaker measures kicked in. With the evolving Covid-19 pandemic, we are expecting the volume of new project launches in 2020 to be lower in comparison to 2019. A projected range of 7,000 to 8,000 private new home sales this year.”
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Rabbi David J. Radinsky
Rabbi Emeritus of Brith Sholom Beth Israel Congregation, Charleston, SC
Rabbi David J. Radinsky, retired from Brith Sholom Beth Israel Congregation, in Charleston, South Carolina on July 31, 2004. From 1970-2004 he was the senior rabbi of this illustrious congregation, the oldest continuous Orthodox Ashkenazic congregation in the United States. He currently serves as its Rabbi Emeritus.
Rabbi Radinsky is well known for being a scholar of Jewish law and Jewish and world history. The Charleston Post and Courier described Rabbi Radinsky as a “Pillar of Faith” who "has led a faith of ancient laws into a world of modern challenges." He is known for being a man of service, a man with a very keen intellect, a good sense of humor, a strong standard of personal ethics and respect and tolerance for his fellow man.
Rabbi Radinsky was born on October 9, 1940 in Seattle, Washington. He studied at Yeshiva University where he obtained his B.A. in History and Hebrew in 1963, an M.A. in Semitic Studies from the Bernard Revel Graduate School and Rabbinic Ordination from the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary in 1966. In 1961-1962 he studied at Machon Gold, Hebrew Teachers Institute, in Jerusalem, Israel. At Yeshiva College, he was a member of Pi Gamma Mu, National History Honor Society and was editor in chief of Hamevaser.
Upon receiving his Semicha in 1966, Rabbi Radinsky became a chaplain in the United States Army where he served in Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri and at Camp Red Cloud, Korea. He was in Korea during the historic Pueblo Crisis and received an Army Commendation Award for his service to the soldiers. Following his two year tour of active duty as a chaplain, Rabbi Radinsky assumed the position of Assistant Rabbi to Rabbi Emanuel Feldman at Congregation Beth Jacob in Atlanta, Georgia.
When Rabbi Radinsky accepted the position of senior rabbi in Charleston, South Carolina in 1970, he was also the principal of the Charleston Hebrew Institute, now known as the Addlestone Hebrew Academy. In 1973 at Rabbi Radinsky’s suggestion, the synagogue hired a full-time principal. Rabbi Radinsky continued teaching at the school and served as Rabbinic Dean until his retirement.
Rabbi Radinsky has played a vital role in the Charleston Jewish and greater community. He served on the boards of the Charleston Jewish Federation, Addlestone Hebrew Academy, Community Relations Committee, Crisis Ministry, and Charleston Community Hebrew School. He was a founding member of and served on the Professional Advisory Committee of the Chaplain Pastoral Program at Bon Secours-Roper Hospital, Charleston, South Carolina until his retirement. He served as the Jewish Campus Minister at The Citadel and was the Jewish Chaplain at the VA Hospital in Charleston.
He taught classes daily at the synagogue and at Addlestone Hebrew Academy. He was an instructor of Jewish studies at the Yaschick/Arnold Jewish Studies Program at the College of Charleston. He translated from Hebrew to English Rabbi Tzvi Hirsch Levin’s rabbinic manual written in 1852. Rabbi Levin was the founder of the minyan which led to the establishment of Brith Sholom Beth Israel Congregation. In 2003-2004 Rabbi Radinsky was a major consultant to Jeffey Gurock, the author of the book Orthodoxy In Charleston, Brith Sholom Beth Israel & American Jewish History. Rabbi Radinsky has translated into English Rabbi Yehoshua Bachrach’s commentary of the Book of Jonah Ben Amitati and Eliyahu.
Rabbi Radinsky is a member of the Rabbinical Council of America and has served on its executive board. He has been honored by Israel Bonds, ORT, Hadassah, Brith Sholom Beth Israel Synagogue, Medical University of South Carolina, the Hillel Society at The Citadel, and the City of Charleston, Proclamation Day in honor of Rabbi David J. Radinsky. The Orthodox Union honored him with the Rabbinical Centennial Award. Yeshiva University has honored him with the Rabbinic Leadership Award of the Wexner Kollel Elyon, as Distinguised Rabbinic Alumnus, and Aluf Hatorah.
Rabbi Radinsky relocated in August, 2004 to Memphis, Tennessee where his oldest daughter Tova Cooper and her family reside. He teaches Jewish History, Oral Law and the Weekly Torah Portion at the Margolin Hebrew Academy/ Feinstone Yeshiva of the South.
Rabbi Radinsky is a member of Baron Hirsch Congregation and is an active member of the community. He is married to Barbara Cooper Radinsky, a licensed marital and family therapist. They are proud parents and grandparents.
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via Orlando Police Department
When it comes to judging whether a situation is abusive or not, it never hurts to go with your gut. And for Flavaine Carvalho, a waitress in Orlando, Florida, following her gut saved a little boy.
Carvalho is a waitress at Mrs. Potato restaurant, and on New Year’s Day, she noticed something strange when a family entered the place. When the family ordered food, everyone else got something to eat except for the 11-year-old boy. He was given nothing.
Carvalho asked first if something was wrong with the food, to which the boy’s stepfather, Timothy Wilson II, replied in stating that the boy was going to eat dinner later at home. But then, Carvalho noticed bruises running up the boy’s face and arms and how skinny he was. She told FOX 35, “I could see he had a big scratch between his eyebrows. A couple of minutes later, I saw a bruise on the side of his eye. So I felt there was something really wrong. I could not see the boy going away without any help.”
Orlando Waitress Saves Boy From Abusive Parents
Thinking quickly, Carvalho wrote a massive note that read, “Do you need help?” and in front of the boy, but behind the parents so that they could not see it. When the boy finally saw her, he nodded, leading Carvalho to call the police. She told the dispatcher, ” “I’m super concerned and I don’t know what to do, can you give me some advice? The boy is with bruises and he’s not eating.”
When police from the Orlando Police Department arrived, the boy was able to tell them that his stepfather has been abusing him. According to the Orlando Sentinel, the boy initially said that the bruises on his face were from falling out of bed and that the ones on his arms were from wrestling with his stepfather. But Detective Erin Lawler said that after Orlando police took him to Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children, the extent of his injuries became clear: bruises covered the side of his face, his eyelid and earlobes were swollen, and the bruises on his arm were so sensitive, it hurt to roll up his sleeves. He was also found 20 pounds underweight.
According to Lawler, the boy had said that he would be tied from his ankles and neck and held upside down from a door in his home and that Wilson would beat him with a wooden broom, a back scratcher, and closed fists. The boy also had been tied to a large moving dolly. Along with Kristen Swann, the child’s mother, the parents would withhold food and make him excessively exercise as punishment.
Although the boy claims the abuse began around Christmas, his injuries say that it had been longer. Wilson was arrested on charges of child abuse and neglect, and Swann was arrested and charged on counts of child neglect since she knew about the abuse but never sought out medical help. Thankfully, the young boy’s 4-year-old sister showed no signs of being abused, and they were removed by the Florida Department of Children and Families.
Thankfully, Carvalho followed her instincts to help the young boy. If you suspect or know anyone that is suffering from any type of abuse, it’s important that you contact your local authorities immediately.
Watch: Single Dad Officially Adopts 13-Year-Old Who Was Abandoned at Hospital
About the author: Lauren Pineda, Staff Writer
Lauren Pineda is a writer with a background in music journalism and pop culture. Her best writing comes from her passion for storytelling and connecting her audience. She lives and breathes any live music show or art event and enjoys listening to peoples’ stories.
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Al Lawson & Charlie Crist
Compare the voting records of Al Lawson and Charlie Crist in 2017-18.
Al Lawson
Represented Florida's 5th Congressional District. This was his 1st term in the House.
Represented Florida's 13th Congressional District. This was his 1st term in the House.
Al Lawson and Charlie Crist are from the same party and agreed on 94 percent of votes in the 115th Congress (2017-18).
Dec. 12, 2018 — Providing for consideration of the conference report to accompany H.R. 2, the Agriculture and Nutrition Act of 2018, and for other purposes
Sept. 26, 2018 — Providing for consideration for the conference report to accompany H.R. 6157, making appropriations for the Department of Defense for FY ending September 30, 2019; and H.Res. 1071, recognizing allowing illegal immigrants the right to vote devalues the franchise and diminishes the voting power of U.S. citizens
Sept. 7, 2018 — Community Safety and Security Act
Sept. 6, 2018 — Providing for consideration of the bill (H.R. 6691) to amend title 18, United States Code, to clarify the definition of “crime of violence”, and for other purposes, and providing for consideration of motions to suspend the rules
June 28, 2018 — Foster of Illinois Amendment No. 24
June 28, 2018 — Clark of Massachusetts Amendment No. 15
June 15, 2018 — Thornberry of Texas Part A Amendment No. 4
May 22, 2018 — Trickett Wendler, Frank Mongiello, Jordan McLinn, and Matthew Bellina Right to Try Act
Jan. 30, 2018 — Providing for consideration of the Senate amendments to H.R. 695, the Child Protection Improvements Act of 2017
Nov. 2, 2017 — Protecting Seniors Access to Medicare Act
Nov. 2, 2017 — Providing for consideration of the bill H.R. 849, Protecting Seniors Access to Medicare Act.
Sept. 27, 2017 — Providing for consideration of H.R. 3823, Disaster Tax Relief and Airport and Airway Extension Act of 2017; and providing for consideration of motions to suspend the rules
July 27, 2017 — Making appropriations for the Department of Defense for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2018, and for other purposes
July 26, 2017 — Garamendi of California Amendment No. 52
July 19, 2017 — Tsongas of Massachusetts Part B Amendment No. 2
July 13, 2017 — Aguilar of California Part B Amendment No. 10
June 29, 2017 — Kate’s Law
June 22, 2017 — Providing for consideration of the bill (H.R. 2842) to provide for the conduct of demonstration projects to test the effectiveness of subsidized employment for TANF recipients, and providing for consideration of motions to suspend the rules.
May 24, 2017 — Reducing Regulatory Burdens Act
May 3, 2017 — Providing for consideration of the Senate amendments to the bill (H.R. 244) to encourage effective, voluntary investments to recruit, employ, and retain men and women who have served in the United States military with annual Federal awards to employers recognizing such efforts, and for other purposes
April 26, 2017 — Providing for consideration of the bill (H.R. 1695) to amend title 17, United States Code, to provide additional responsibilities for the Register of Copyrights, and for other purposes
March 21, 2017 — Providing for consideration of the bill (H.R. 372) to restore the application of the Federal antitrust laws to the business of health insurance to protect competition and consumers.
March 8, 2017 — Providing for consideration of the bill (H.R. 1301) making appropriations for the Department of Defense for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2017, and for other purposes
March 2, 2017 — Regulatory Integrity Act
Jan. 10, 2017 — Clay of Missouri Part B Amendment No. 2
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Blackwell Red Cross Hospital
11 November 2020 7 January 2021 / Danielle Burton / Leave a comment
During the First World War, the Blackwell Colliery Company played a large role in helping the war effort, both at home and on the front. A quarter of men employed by the company, 1128 men, went off to fight in tunnelling corps, while others who didn’t fight contributed funds for the war effort. Around 116 of those who fought were killed, meaning the village of Blackwell and its connected collieries would have known loss. Despite this, the company were determined to boost community spirit by providing Christmas entertainment during and after the war. These shows were held at the Brigade Hall for widows and orphans of the war.
Perhaps one of the most important parts of the colliery company’s role was providing a Red Cross Hospital, which operated in the Boys’ Brigade Hall in Blackwell. The idea was first proposed to the military in September 1914. The colliery company and its employees raised funds for the equipment needed and throughout the war, to make sure the space was offered as a free hospital. It opened in June 1915 with 10 beds. They were also allowed to be part of the Christmas audience.
List of Patients treated at Blackwell Red Cross Hospital, ‘Lest We Forget’: The Blackwell Colliery Company Ltd War Souvenir booklet, N42/6/8
With the hospital and a soldiers’ camp on the cricket ground set up in Blackwell, it meant that soldiers, especially injured ones, would have been a common sight. A volunteer corps was also created from locals who were unable to fight, so they would have also taken part in the defence of the village if required.
The hospital itself was seen as a successful venture. It would have been run by nurses from the Voluntary Aid Detachment, a joint effort run by the Red Cross and St John’s Ambulance to provide field nursing, first aid, cooking and hygiene practices at hospitals either in the UK or in the Commonwealth. Before its closure in 1917, it had treated 133 patients with wounds and disabilities of differing severities. Someone who often visited to show her support for the hospital was the Duchess of Devonshire. Her visit is pictured below.
Photograph of the visit of the Duchess of Devonshire (1917), ‘Lest We Forget’: The Blackwell Colliery Company Ltd War Souvenir booklet, N42/6/8
‘Lest We Forget’: The Blackwell Colliery Company Ltd War Souvenir booklet, N42/6/8
Forces War Records, British Red Cross in WW1, https://www.forces-war-records.co.uk/collections/89/british-red-cross-in-ww1#:~:text=At%20the%20outbreak%20of%20the,hardship%20and%20traditional%20hospital%20discipline.
Mining the Seams is a Wellcome Trust funded project aiming to catalogue coal mining documents, originally held by the National Coal Board, so they can eventually be viewed by the public. Alongside the Warwickshire County Record Office, the project aims to focus on the welfare and health services provided to miners.
Survival Of Archives; Archives Of Survival
27 March 2020 27 March 2020 / Mark Smith / 3 Comments
In a previous job, I glimpsed the Laycock military papers, among them documents created by Capt. Evelyn Waugh somewhere in the Mediterranean during the Second World War. There was no time to pore over them, as I was just processing a copy order – but it struck me that their survival (complete with scorch marks and water damage) was miraculous, and that so was their creation. In the melee of conflict, there was Waugh armed with a typewriter, setting down the information that others would need.
Whether it’s a literal battle or the current battle against coronavirus, there’s nothing like crisis for putting pressure on those charged with setting down information. A crisis also reveals starkly how important a resource information is, and how much we rely on its being accurate and available.
One criterion that defines an archive is authenticity. A document in an archive collection was created for reasons that had everything to do with the situation at the time and nothing much to do with us. We are not the intended audience. The primary reader is the writer’s contemporary – a busy person who needs evidence of what has been done and what remains to be done; what has been agreed and what is still up in the air. Succeeding generations may be able to peer over the shoulder of their ancestors, like a rail passenger reading their neighbour’s paper, but this is a happy accident.
It’s an accident so happy, in fact, that we need to make it happen. At Derbyshire Record Office, we try to make it happen by committing ourselves to a management policy which says: “We will respond positively to opportunities for expanding the scope of our collections, to make them more representative of the diverse range of human activity in our county’s history”. There’s quite a range of human activity just now, even in the midst of forced inactivity.
An acquisition strategy is not a new idea. Just look at this 1918 advertisement printed on a ration book in the Ogden Family papers.
Please note: it’s 1918 and this is on a ration book – the appeal to preserve evidence of the Great War had started, even as war still raged.
Information grows in importance during a crisis, and so does community – even a socially distanced one. Again, this is nothing new. Another episode in Archives I Have Glimpsed While Doing Copying Orders: papers reflecting the efforts of Women’s Institutes to find billets for evacuees during Operation Pied Piper, because there was no government presence large enough or connected enough to do it.
Novels will be written by people quarantined by this outbreak, some of them good. There will be poems and sculptures and great works of art. Whether good, bad or indifferent, these will be part of an archive of human survival, and we will have to find ways to preserve it. Will there be an archive of the spontaneously-generated COVID-19 community support groups, whose members bring essential supplies to people with a duty to self-isolate? How will we preserve the activities of a neighbourhood interacting over social media? Two key words for a future post: Digital Preservation.
The evidence we leave behind will be the product of people acting under pressure in a rush, like Waugh at his typewriter. But it won’t be structured in the same way as a military archive, or a company archive, or a local authority archive. And we can’t save it all. Some history, perhaps the overwhelming majority of it, will slip through our fingers.
This will be ameliorated by forward-thinking people setting out to document today for the readers of tomorrow – not a happy accident of authenticity, but an act of conscious creation, authentic in its own way. Two examples:
Earlier this month our Local Studies Librarian, Lisa, gave a talk delving into Derbyshire’s past by peering over the shoulder of long-departed residents and visitors, and into their personal diaries. Last week we were contacted by a member of the audience who has been inspired by diaries kept during the war to record her own experience of the current coronavirus situation. Mass Observation, as it is known, was first developed in 1937 and ran until the 1950s and it was restarted in 1981 – the Archive is held at The Keep at the University of Sussex. If you would like to take part in Mass Observation and contribute to the archive, whether in relation to coronavirus or in the future, find out how to Become a Mass Observer online.
An idea that began in Arizona but is going global – a web resource called Journal Of A Plague Year: An Archive of COVID-19. The title, as you spotted, is a nod to Daniel Defoe. Here we find stories, photographs, video files, sound files and, yes, Facebook and Snapchat memes, all selected to help preserve a collective memory. Take, just as a for instance, the snapshot of a New Orleans pizzeria which has hurriedly altered its business model so that boxed food may be passed through an improvised service hatch. At the time of writing, there are 323 items in the archive, which can be browsed, searched, or picked from a map. And the map tells me there are no UK contributions yet. How long until that changes, I wonder? Yes, you may take that as a challenge.
Wishing you all good health.
Historical recipes – both good and bad
8 July 2019 5 July 2019 / Sarah Chubb / Leave a comment
I was interviewed by Andy Twigge for BBC Radio Derby today and we discussed a few recipes from our many historical recipe books. I made a couple of things for him to try: one was the gluten-free rice cake which I’ve blogged about before, and the other was Jumbles from Mary Swanwick’s 1740s recipe.
The one I didn’t make, but rather tickled me, was from a seventeenth century book. It’s from the archive of the Gell family of Hopton Hall and like all such home recipe books, it contains a mix of medicinal and cookery recipes. I would strongly recommend that you don’t try this one at home.
Reference no: D258/32/15/1
Here’s my transcription with modernised spelling and punctuation:
Mrs Evelyn’s excellent powder for Convulsion Fits
Take a dozen young moles, flay them, draw them and quarter them, lay them abroad in a dish and dry them in an oven until they will powder. Take elecampane root, cleanse, slit and dry them in an oven to powder. Take red peony roots and Jews ears [a kind of mushroom], powdered after the same manner. Take also a little of the of a healthy woman when it is burnt to powder. Beat them severally and take of each powder a like quantity by weight. Mix them well together and keep them close tied up for use.
Take of it 3 mornings before and after the full and change, in a spoonful of black cherry water as much as will lie on a shilling, fasting, and drink 2 or 3 spoonful of black cherry water after it.
The black cherry water definitely sounds like the best bit! I’m not entirely sure about ‘the full and change’ but I think that is referring to the moon, the full moon often being seen as the culprit for fits of insanity. As for what you should be powdering from a healthy woman, if you have any suggestions, let us know in the comments.
You can hear snippets of my conversation with Andy Twigge by listening to his lunchtime radio programme every day this week at around 2.15pm – or catch up with it on the BBC Radio iPlayer. I’ll post the Jumbles recipe later this week, for those that would like to give it a try. I promise that it’s much more palatable than the recipe above!
Treasure 48: Erasmus Darwin’s prescription notebooks
23 February 2017 / Mark Smith / 3 Comments
These notebooks are a series of medical practice records, covering the 1740s to 1780s. Each entry deals with an individual patient, recording symptoms and treatment. It’s clear that there is more than one style of handwriting in the books, but we believe the later entries to be the work of Erasmus Darwin (1731-1802) who moved to Derby in 1783.
They are nominated by our Assistant Conservator, Clare, who repaired them over the course of a year – all 1316 pages! Clare says: “It was an extremely satisfying project to do even if there were occasions when I was still repairing them in my sleep…”
Here’s what was prescribed for Thomas Bamford of Ticknall, who was suffering from cramps:
Two drachms of Gammoniacum To ss. pint of penny royal water. Two spoonfulls occasionally repeated. January the 15th. When the pains return to loose some blood, and then take at one dose a Quarter of a Pint of common Sallad oil, after an hour or two if the pain continues. Take one Pill, and repeat it every hour till the pain ceases or till he has taken four.
At the intervals of his pain he should take one of the 2nd Box Pills every nights.
Small beer posset drink made by mixing equal parts of beer and milk warm, then taking off the Curd and 15 Drops of Laudanum in it every night. Jan[uary] 27th Six powders Rhubarb 15 grs. Ginger. 19. Infusion. z ii Marshmallow root boild to one
Treasure 41: “Several Surgical Treatises” by Richard Wiseman (d.1676)
30 December 2016 3 April 2020 / Mark Smith / Leave a comment
This treasure dates from 1676, the year of its author’s death. You might imagine that a book on early modern surgery would be a bit gruesome. You would be right.
It is nominated by Local Studies Librarian, Sue Peach:
“Gaze in fascinated horror at an account of medicine before the era of antibiotics and anaesthetics. No known local connection, but it gives us a glimpse of how Derbyshire folk would have been bled, purged and clystered in the seventeenth century”.
Read more about Richard Wiseman and his work on the History of Surgery website. His entry on the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography is also very good.
Adverts for medicines
8 July 2016 / Mark Smith / Leave a comment
This post is from Abi, who has been here all this week on a work experience placement. Thanks Abi!
As part of my history GCSE course is studying Medicine Through Time, on my work experience it was interesting to have a look through old newspapers to see the type of treatments that were used in the past couple of hundred years. It was amazing to see how the types of treatments people used varied over this period of time; A supposed cure for blindness was definitely an interesting one to find.
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Isekai Anime: Explaining the Genre's History, and How It's Changed
Rachael Lefler
Rachael is a passionate long-time anime fan, who enjoys writing about the storytelling aspect of anime, manga, and light novels.
From the anime "Trapped in Another World With My Smartphone".
If you're keeping up with current anime, you'll notice a few things all the worst anime of every season have. These include:
being based on a light novel
having excessive 'fan service', usually meaning improbably jiggly boobs, and
being either isekai or harem genre, if not both.
While the isekai and harem genres can be good, they often strictly adhere to a formula so writers can crank out a story quickly that will appeal to a male otaku audience, without much effort.
Isekai means 'a strange world' in Japanese. The genre gets that name from the many light novels that use this word in the title. It's usually translated as 'another world' in English. So it's a sub-genre of fantasy in which a protagonist, or group of characters, end up in a fantasy world from the real world. It doesn't have to be a physical world; this genre can also include venturing into a realistic virtual world, like Digimon, Sword Art Online, and .hack//sign.They are usually teleported to this other world involuntarily and suddenly, and usually want to find a way to get back home.
Often, they have to do something in the other world, usually saving it. This might also mean saving the real world as well, or stopping the bad guys in the other world from wreaking havoc in our world. Fantasy is about the interplay between the real and the unreal, the ordinary and the extraordinary. It explores what people will do in the face of strange things that are hard to understand. Like learning a video game, the isekai protagonist has to learn the ways of a very foreign world, navigating its politics and culture while overcoming villains.
Children's Lit Fantasy - Inspiration for Isekai?
In children's lit, it's the story's premise will often be an ordinary child leaving the real world behind to have an adventure in some kind of fantasy world. I recently watched the Disney live-action Nutcracker-derived story The Nutcracker and the Four Realms, and it hit me that this kind of story is extremely prevalent in children's literature. The Nutcracker, Alice in Wonderland, The Phantom Tollbooth, The Wizard of Oz, The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe, to name a few.
Harry Potter is an interesting case. Hogwarts, and he wizarding world it's a part of, resembles a fantasy world. It has its own rules the protagonist must learn, the protagonist has to defeat a bad guy to save it, and the novels take a lot of delight in exploring the strange peculiarities of this world; the wonky currency system, leaping chocolate frogs, and a sport most Muggle PTAs would probably ban. But Harry Potter is technically urban fantasy, because it adds magic to the real world, rather than having it exist entirely somewhere else. But it shares elements with this other-world type of fantasy.
The child protagonist of such stories usually must defeat a bad guy, but a lot of the narrative's time is spent just experiencing the other world. Readers are taken in with the strangeness, uniqueness, and charm of this fantasy world. Much like an isekai anime, these stories are designed so that the protagonist is a stand-in for the audience. They are meant to be someone the typical viewer/reader can imagine themselves as. The closest thing anime has to this are Studio Ghibli's Spirited Away and maybe Howl's Moving Castle. But most popular anime in the West are aimed at teens and adults, rather than children.
There's not a lot of Western fantasy literature with character from the real world traveling to a fantasy world and back, for adults. Most Western fantasy literature aimed at adults takes place entirely within a fantasy world. I'm not sure why isekai in western literature is a setting trope nearly exclusive to children's lit. Maybe it's because writing a story that way is an easier way to make a story about a different world make sense to someone from this one. It simplifies the process of exposition — your main character is as new to this second world as the audience is. So you get exposition as the main character gets plot-relevant things explained to them. Giving writers a handy tool for exposition makes the genre a good starting point for inexperienced writers, who tend to work on light novels in Japan.
In Western children's literature, the ease of weaving exposition into the story can make it easier for children to understand. And a sense of wonder and awe when feeling like one is transported to a fantasy world is usually considered a childish feeling.
In fantasy, the protagonist is commonly a political outsider of some kind too. It creates narrative tension that they're up against the political establishment of their world. Since they're an underdog without wealth, fame, or power, we feel more sympathy for them. For example, Bilbo and Frodo Baggins in The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings are not powerful in their worlds. As they progress in their journey, politics, and much about the world outside the Shire, must be taught to them. Therefore, they serve as good audience surrogate characters and a good reason for exposition.
But again, I'm not sure why most Western literature aimed at adults takes place entirely within a fantasy world. Or sometimes it takes place entirely within the real world, with fantasy elements added to it. But it rarely has the child-lit isekai setup, where the protagonist must journey from our world into an unknown fantasy world.
The First Isekai Anime Had Female Protagonists
Early isekai anime usually had female protagonists. Perhaps they were building from aforementioned Western stories like Alice in Wonderland. Examples include 90s - early 00s favorites like Inuyasha, Fushigi Yuugi, and Vision of Escaflowne. In these stories, girls had a psychic connection to another place or time. Their intuitive powers, and relationship by bloodline or reincarnation to the fantasy world, made them the chosen one. They were like child fantasy epics, but often involved, since we're talking about teenage girls here, the added element of romance. Usually this meant meeting an asinine jerk 'bad boy' who would, through the course of the plot, soften and show his tender side. Male tsunderes, basically. There would sometimes be a love triangle, of course, and a struggle to save the fantasy world from various villains and sub-villains.
When Did Isekai Stop Being About and For Girls?
'Isekai no Seikishi Monogatari' or, 'Tenchi Muyo! War on Geminar', a 2010 spinoff of the classic harem anime 'Tenchi Muyo!' may also have been a key early source of inspiration for this 2010s genre shift.
I'm not sure why this happened, but those female-led isekai anime just stopped coming. For a while in the mid to late 00s, the genre appeared dead. Then in the 2010s, we saw new waves of a different kind of isekai, with male protagonists. These tended to use the other world as a place of sexual wish fulfillment and heroic fantasies for the male audience. Often this would overlap with the harem genre. This was a welcome change in the harem genre at first, because the school harem genre had become old hat. It is nice that the isekai genre takes us to a setting that isn't just another high school in Tokyo. And it's interesting and fun to explore another world that might have very different cultural taboos, or fewer inhibitions about certain things.
The main reason for this shift was the massive success of Sword Art Online. This anime was about characters trapped in a VR game. But it quickly became a romantic harem anime, in addition to being about fighting bad guys and developing a strategy to get through the game. Before Sword Art Online, there had been some anime about video games, .hack//sign and Log Horizon being the most well-known examples. But the success of those was limited and niche, but Sword Art Online achieved massive success. Suddenly, the writers of light novels and creators of anime series had a winning formula to copy.
This isn't the only time a massively successful hit will draw imitations, many of which lack quality. Often, they look like an incoherent jumble of lazily pasted together elements the writers believed would make a hit. Harry Potter, Naruto, Twilight, and so on also got a lot of wannabe imitators, some better than others.
The interesting thing is that Sword Art Online has 'imitators' that are better than it, or that are very different from it while having a similar premise. It's like how the works of Tolkien launched the entire fantasy genre, with each later fantasy novel or series acting as a response to Tolkien in some way.
Sword Art Online was also part of a bigger trend — the rise of massive multiplayer online gaming, and online gaming communities. In the 2010s, because technology getting better, and more affordable, we saw the rise of online game communities. They existed before, but around 2010 to 2015, they exploded in a way no one had seen before. Gaming had shifted gradually from a solo activity to a largely social, online activity. YouTube became flooded with gaming channels. Twitch streaming became so popular as to help provide the most well-liked gamers with a full-time income. Independent game development and modification have also taken off as major internet communities.
This trend causes questions to arise about the nature of reality. Many young people spend so much time, and get so emotionally invested in, virtual worlds. SAO and other anime like it are popular because they explore the question of what could happen if nerdy gamer otaku type fans became literally, rather than figuratively, consumed by the fantasy worlds they're so passionate about.
Current Isekai - How The Genre Changed and What It Is Now
From "No Game No Life".
The imitators and followers of SAO largely took the concept in a more overtly sexual direction. The fantasy is not just being a cool, badass "chosen one" but, frequently we see more recent isekai anime falling into this trend of having a loner, otaku, NEET, and/or hikkikomori protagonist, who is not only a hero in the other world, but a chick magnet. Thus you get the isekai harem genre. It's similar to the Western childhood fantasy concept, but with an added element of sexual conquest.
I'd like to take a moment to point out that in the actual past, all people were shorter and uglier, skin diseases were much more common, and women didn't shave their legs and armpits. Bathing in Europe died with the Roman Empire, and the scarcity of clean water meant that people and their clothes smelled, and people went potty pretty much anywhere. Women had some pretty ghastly fashion ideas, like wearing lead-based cosmetics that slowly killed them, the use of arsenic to make pretty green-dyed dresses, and the ingestion of the belladonna poison from a toxic flower to make one's pupils larger. But fantasy is fantasy, so that means having a world where the dark realities of past centuries' beauty, fashion, and cosmetics is ignored, replaced with a world where all women effortlessly look like dolls, even in worlds with a very primitive level of technology.
There's nothing wrong with having a character look unrealistically attractive. And there's nothing wrong with an anime being about wish fulfilment. All successful anime has an element of wish fulfilment in it. That's a major reason for its appeal.
But, isekai has become something critics like myself are just tired of at this point. That's because it became a formula hacks could use to create a really low-effort anime or light novel. You just have your loser otaku protagonist, put him in a world with some demons to fight and some babes who want his uh, sword, boom, you've got a hit.
What I like to see are isekai that avoid being overly formulaic by doing one or more of the following:
Explore how the fantasy world interacts with and affects the real world.
Have a protagonist who grows, develops, and learns something meaningful from his or her experience in another world.
Have a romance that feels genuine.
Have people in the other world who seem like real people who exist for their own reasons, not just to marvel at how great the protagonist is.
Have the protagonist genuinely struggle and be challenged. Many of these have infuriating self-insert Mary Sue or Gary Stu protagonists.
Have more going on in the fantasy world than just what the protagonist is doing. This makes the world feel more real, and not just like a holodeck world where everything is made just for the protagonist.
Have a compelling and/or psychologically complex villain. A lot of these shows suffer from boring villains, whose motivation is not fully explored or revealed.
What Are Some Good Examples of Isekai Anime?
So what isekai anime are doing that right now?
If you go to the past, the aforementioned trio of Inuyasha, Escaflowne, and Fushigi Yuugi are nice for someone who wants a female protagonist, also good for their interesting world exploration and magic.
How (Not) to Summon a Demon Lord is widely praised as one of the better isekai harem anime.
My personal favorite isekai anime, and the one that actually caused me to give it a chance as a genre, is Re:Zero. This anime has a protagonist who starts out weak, but through immense struggles, he learns and grows a lot through the course of the series. Side characters seem like real people, who exist for their own reasons, not just to serve the plot or praise the protagonist. If you're sick of Gary Stus, and want to see a protagonist who actually struggles and is actually put into real danger, I recommend Re:Zero.
Drifters is interesting to me as well. The characters taken from our world are historical ruthless badasses. They use their tactical and other battle-related knowledge from our world to help oppressed elves cast off their shackles and rebel against their masters. There is fanservice, but it's no harem, and the focus is on warfare, not sex or romance. It also focuses more on factions and groups than on a single protagonist. Which is nice because it's realistic - wars aren't fought by one person and it takes more than one person to completely revolutionize a society. And it means if you find the protagonist boring, you're not stuck with just him for very long, as the focus shifts to different characters fairly regularly.
For video game lovers, either those who loved or hated SAO ,but want more like it, I'd recommend the .hack franchise, Log Horizon, and the Digimon anime. Though the latter is aimed at children, and the original American dub's humor got a little cringey, it's an often-overlooked but quality show, with a lot of quality heartfelt interactions between characters and some really special tear-jerking moments.
I also feel that Accel World, from the same creator as SAO, is a stronger anime, because I emotionally connected more with the main characters.
Overall, the trend seems to be using the basic established formula of the genre and playing with it in new ways. For example, Overlord is what happens when the protagonist is a demon king, who would be a bad guy in a different story. There are bad isekai that come out a lot, but there are also ones that explore the tropes of the genre in interesting ways.
Further Reading: Some Good Recommendation Lists for the Isekai Genre
Top 10 Isekai Anime
If you like my work, consider also checking out that of Cheeky Kid, another anime blogger on HubPages/ReelRundown!
Top 10 Isekai Anime List [Best Recommendations]
Let's jump through this portal into the worlds of the Top 10 Isekai Anime!
How many isekai anime have you watched? Which ones are your favorites?
Some of my favorite isekai anime include Re:Zero, No Game, No Life, Overlord, Konosuba, and Log Horizon.
Please let me know yours!
And please share this on social media if you liked it.
© 2018 Rachael Lefler
Admit It: You Enjoy the Wish Fulfillment in Isekai Anime
By Rachael Lefler
By Cheeky Kid
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Cazena Raises $20M Series B For Its Enterprise Big Data-As-A-Service Platform
Cazena, a new platform that wants to make it easier for enterprises to process their data, today announced that it has raised a $20 million Series B round led by Formation 8. Other participants include Andreessen Horowitz and North Bridge Venture Partners, who both also participated in the company’s $8 million series A round last October. Read More
Written by Frederic Lardinois in: Cazena,Cloud,Enterprise,Formation 8,Fundings & Exits,IBM,netezza,north bridge venture partners,Zend Developer |
Former Netezza Team Reunites And Lands $8M To Solve Today’s Big Data Problem
In 2000, some companies had big data problems before the concept we know today even existed. Back in those days, these organizations used a concept called the data warehouse to deal with large amounts of data, and a company called Netezza formed to build an appliance to simplify data warehousing. The company was sold in 2010 to IBM for a cool $1.7B, but they have decided to get the band… Read More
Written by Ron Miller in: Big Data,Cazena,Enterprise,funding,netezza,TC,Zend Developer |
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SIVANANDA COLLEGE OF PHARMACY
Learn Practice Evolve Succeed
Sivananda College of Pharmacy, Brahmapur is a premier professional institution.
It all started with a vision to bridge the gap in making students industry ready. At Sivananda College of Pharmacy, we create professionals by experts, ready to start their career in pharmaceutical industry with the latest technology and be passionate about it.
Sivananda College of Pharmacy was setup in 2005 by the vision and will of Dr. Laxmi Kanta Padhi and his wife Mrs. Premalata Padhi who established the Swamy Sivananda Educational Trust to foster excellence in the field of Pharmacy. The college started with intake capacity of 60 seats per annum. The trust acquired the approval of Pharmacy Council of India & Govt. of Odisha. It is affiliated to Odisha State Board of Pharmacy, which is the examination conducting body. This college is situated in the educational hub of Engineering School area, in Brahmapur.
The building where the college is established was built by reputed Sri Durlabha Chandra Choudhury, father of the founder trustee Smt. Premalata Padhi. Sri D.C. Choudhury was a renowned academician from Brahmapur who has been the principal of the B.Ed college in Odisha. Brahmapur has been a major city in Odisha, which is also known as the “Silk City”. The college is 3 km from the city bus stand, 4 km from the Railway station, 1 km from MKCG Medical College & Hospital, 100 mtr from Govt. Engineering School. Brahmapur is well connected through buses and trains with rest of the country. The nearest airports are Bhubaneswar (165 km) and Visakhapatnam (250 km).
Our mission is to foster excellence in education, career orientation and create self-employment. Our students are equipped with the best of technical knowledge, skills, scientific temperament & professional ethics.
We like to teach and learn.
scp.brahmapur@gmail.com
8618888605, 8197705380, 0680-2296059
Near Engineering School Square,
L. B. Sastri Marg, Panda Colony,
Brahmapur - 760010, Odisha
Copyright © 2004-2021 Sivananda College of Pharmacy, Brahmapur, Odisha
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Esalen Institute & ITP-International
Co-Founder Esalen Institute and ITP-International, Keynote Speaker
itp-international.org/
Michael Murphy is co-founder of Integral Transformative Practice, co-founder and Chairman of the Board of Esalen Institute and author of four novels: Golf in the Kingdom, The Kingdom of Shivas Irons, Jacob Atabet and An End to Ordinary History.His nonfiction works, in addition to The Life We Are Given, include In the Zone, an anthology of extraordinary sports experience, co-authored with Rhea White and The Future of the Body: Explorations Into the Further Evolution of Human Nature. Golf in the Kingdom, still a bestseller 32 years after it was published, has spawned the Shivas Irons Society, a nonprofit organization with members in the 50 states and in 20 countries as well.Murphy was born in Salinas, California, graduated from Stanford University and lived for a year at the Sri Aurobindo Ashram in Pondicherry, India. In 1980, he helped initiate Esalen’s Soviet-American Exchange Program, which was a premiere diplomacy vehicle for citizen-to-citizen relations. In 1990, Boris Yeltsin’s first visit to the U.S. was initiated by the Institute. Shortly after this visit, Yeltsin catalyzed the end of communism in Russia. Esalen is also a groundbreaking research site. Preparatory work for The Future of the Body began in 1977 with the building of an archive of more than 10,000 studies of exceptional human functioning. The archive is now located at the University of California in Santa Barbara.During his long involvement in the human potential movement, Murphy and his work have been profiled in The New Yorker and featured in many magazines and journals worldwide.
"EXPANDING THE ZONE" Keynote Address by Michael Murphy Guzman Hall
WHAT NEXT? THE FUTURE OF INTEGRAL COACHING, TRAINING, AND PHILOSOPHY Moderator: Scott Ford Guzman Hall
RECEPTION AND BOOK SIGNING Guzman Hall
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Visitors from Vienna Do More Than Just Waltz
10/03/2014 10/03/2014 by Stan
United Kingdom Kodály, Rachmaninov, Beethoven: Barry Douglas (piano), Vienna Tonkünstler Orchestra, Andrés Orozco-Estrada (conductor), Usher Hall, Edinburgh, 9.3.2014 (SRT)
Kodály: Dances of Galánta
Rachmaninov: Piano Concerto No. 1
Beethoven: Symphony No. 6 “Pastoral”
In a city so flush with great musicians as is Vienna, it’s easy to ignore an orchestra like the Tonkünstler and I admit that, never having come across them before, I came to this concert (given as part of the Usher Hall’s centenary celebrations) with no real sense of expectation. In the event, though, I was very impressed with what I heard.
The Dances of Galánta was a good choice of opener, because it showcased a lot of what they’re good at, such as the bell-like clarity of those opening calls and the precision of the spidery string line that accompanies them. The wind section also sparkled delightfully and the clarinet solo was wonderfully characterful, reminding me of Metternich’s remark that Vienna was at the frontier of the Orient. Importantly, you were never allowed to forget that these are dances: there was a lovely swagger to the string tone, in particular, especially the lower strings that had extraordinary fullness and depth.
This, in particular, made for a very special performance of Beethoven’s Pastoral symphony. The underpinning of the cellos and the basses was stronger than I think I’ve ever heard it in this symphony, almost like a growl at times, and it grounded this work in the very earth that it is meant to depict. Above this the upper strings created a beautiful impression of the countryside in the first movement, and there was a jolly swagger in Orozco-Estrada’s pacing of the peasant dance. The storm also carried real power to it, but was carefully judged so as to provide excitement without being overwhelming. The finale, however, was the finest thing of all: the main theme was presented with initial clarity that grew into something so radiant as to be almost hymn-like (helped by the marvellous brightness of the overall sound) and the final, hushed coda on the strings sounded like a prayer, and rightly so.
That oriental flair was on display, again, in Rachmaninov’s exotic eastern melodies, which were played beautifully with lots of western polish. Barry Douglas’ playing was extremely impressive, too, especially in his first-movement cadenza, which he turned into something poetic and architectural rather than a mere vehicle for display. He also presented the main melody of the slow movement with disarming simplicity, and when the rich Vienna strings took it up, it turned into one of the classic Romantic moments. Our visitors finished with a postcard from home – a polka by Strauss – that was played with all the native wit and sparkle you’d expect from a Viennese band.
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Politics/Law/Government
One (hu)man, one vote
By winterSmith on August 20, 2007 • ( 14 Comments )
Imagine you’re a State Department official charged with helping formulate our country’s policy toward a new government in Africa. As you review the files, you note something odd. Their Constitution grants everyone over the age of 18 the right to vote in national elections – which is good – but it also establishes guidelines for how much those votes count. In the South of the country each resident’s vote counts once. In the West, each vote counts twice. In the East votes are scored at 1.5 per voter. And in the North, each vote counts three times.
The Constitution offers some justification for the disproportionality of the system, although the rationale strikes you as arcane at best. When you talk to your counterpart in that country it’s explained that Northern votes count three times as much as Southern votes to assure fairness.
Of course, we aren’t talking about a nation in Africa at all – we’re talking about the United States, which every four years elects a President using an Electoral College system that’s remarkably similar to what’s described above.
There’s been some movement on Electoral College reform in recent years, and I suspect we’re going to hear a lot more about it in the coming months as California takes up the issue. In 2004 Colorado voters soundly rejected a “proportional” distribution measure that would have split the state’s electoral votes according to the popular vote. A candidate who finished second with 45% of the popular vote would, under this system, be awarded 45% of the state’s electoral votes. (Multiple reform options are discussed here.)
Some people seem to like these reform measures and some seem outraged by them, and how people feel is often a function of what party they support and where the live. Republicans are strongly in favor of the move in California, where the winner-take-all system routinely hands a whopping 55 electoral votes to the Democratic nominee. It’s worth noting, perhaps, that the reformers’ allies have not to date proposed similar measures in places like Texas.
Like a lot of people, I feel the inherent wrongness of the system – in most states, it really doesn’t matter whether you show up or not, which results in an odd phenomenon whereby a committed activist in a state like Washington might spend zero energy on the electoral process in his or her own state, but devote quite a bit of energy to the goings-on in Ohio. But the various electoral college reforms seem to have one basic flaw in common – they’re asking the wrong question.
If the problem is that the system needs to more closely reflect the popular will across the country, then why not do this the easy way and abolish the Electoral College? I know the history and rationale behind the EC, and for the sake of argument will stipulate that once upon a time it served a useful purpose. Now, though, it has evolved into a system that generates significant inequities in the process. It quite literally is a system that results in some votes counting 3.5 times as much as others.
From my perspective, that simply isn’t fair.
Let me offer some facts that strike me as interesting. I’m probably not telling the informed reader anything new, but still, the figures are compelling. Using the results of the 2004 election I developed an informal statistic that we’ll call the Proportional Voter Value, or PVV. I started by dividing the total number of popular votes by the number of electoral votes. On a nationwide basis over 121,000,000 votes were cast for President and from that we elected 538 electors. This means that each electoral vote represented roughly 225,800 American voters.
I then extracted a percentage by dividing one by the popular number. All the decimal places were adjusted, leaving a raw number that reflects the relative weight of a voter’s impact on the electoral count. The average national PVV is 44, and if you live in a state like California your vote’s relationship to the state’s electoral total is extremely close to the national average. If your state’s ratio of popular votes to electoral votes is lower, your PPV is higher, which means you have a proportionally greater impact on the final outcome than somebody from a state where the popular:electoral ratio is higher. As a general rule, the highest PVVs occur in states with lower population totals.
So let’s look at some PVV numbers.
STATE PVV
WY 123
VT 96
ND 96
NM 66
OK 48
NY 42
CO 40
IL 40
OH 36
In the middle you can see the US average, and around it a cluster of states where the voter weight closely approximates the national norm, including large, populous states like New York and California and growing Sun Belt states like Georgia and my native North Carolina.
Toward the bottom we have states where the voter’s proportional impact on the Presidential election is notably devalued, with Minnesota and the recent battlegrounds of Florida and Ohio getting the worst of things.
At the top of the chart we see several states where a resident’s vote carries a lot more weight. In North Dakota, Vermont, Alaska and Wyoming a voter’s proportional impact is significantly greater than it is elsewhere in the country. This is by design, of course – the framers wanted to assure that smaller states had mechanisms with which to defend their interests, and as noted above, there is a historical perspective from which this perhaps makes sense.
But as I review these figures, I can’t help being conscious of the fact that it’s not the 18th Century anymore and it’s considerably harder, in our present day and age, to make the case that one person’s vote ought to be worth less than another’s.
As a resident of Colorado, my vote is worth 10% less than the national average.
If I moved about 90 miles north, the impact of my vote would more than triple.
Imagine if I lived in Clarksburg, Mass. My PVV is 41, slightly below the national average. But if I move two miles to Stamford, Vermont, my PVV jumps to 96. That means it would count 2.34 times as much as it did a couple miles down the road.
And if I live in Minnesota and am completely fed up, I can move to Wyoming – a stunningly beautiful state where my vote is now worth more than 3.5 times what it was before.
Feel free to check my math, but you get the idea. And sure, if I live in flyover country (I do, by the way), I might like the fact that I’ve got a hedge against being overrun by socio-political juggernauts on the coasts – it’s good to matter.
But does the badly tilted winner-take-all really make sense in 2007? More to the point, does it seem fair? Can we really make the argument that democracy is best served when the vote of a bookkeeper in Sheridan counts more than three times as much as that of a waitress in Sarasota? Or that a woman jogging along the Vermont/Massachusetts border should routinely pass people along the way whose votes count more than twice as much as hers?
Yes – we need electoral reform. And no, I don’t think this is the only thing about our badly hutzed system that needs attention.
But we’re an advanced, highly sophisticated, and ever more mobile society where locale simply doesn’t mean what it did when the system was established. Instead of replacing one complicated and flawed system with another, what if we take a look at the radical concept that all votes for our nation’s leader should count the same?
Categories: Politics/Law/Government
Tagged as: Constitution, Electoral College
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We know that part of the reason for this dis-proportionality has to do with the Founders’ idea that the Electoral College should reflect the representation of the House and Senate. The idea to tie the EC representation to Congressional representation seems not thought through, however. There is no balance between two sets (houses?) of members in the EC as there is in Congress.
So what we end up with is the disproportionate representation – which makes no damned sense. Direct election would seem a logical way to settle this. It certainly would have helped in 2000….
Brian Angliss says:
Using the mobility of the population as an argument against the EC is an interesting approach. In today’s hyper-connected world, we can work for multiple employers in several states physically, work for employers in any number of other states (or even other countries) via telecommuting, live in another state, shop out of even more states, and pay taxes of one kind or another in all of them. Given this state of affairs, it seems almost archaic to tie our voting to our state of residence.
Using a single locale in order to reduce fraud makes sense still – enabling us to vote everywhere we work/pay taxes/shop would be insane – but given that someone living in Wyoming has more electoral power than someone in Minnesota even if they both telecommute to work and pay income taxes in California, it doesn’t seem remotely fair.
This idea is worthy of a great deal more thought.
DomPierre says:
Abolish the Electoral College and implement Instant Runoff Voting.
And while we’re at it, let’s vote to reduce the size of Congress, the Senate, and the military.
Why reduce the size of the House and Senate (I’ll assume you mistyped when you conflated Congress with the House of Representatives)? What’s your rationale? (I don’t agree or disagree at this point – it’s a totally new idea to me, so I’m curious.)
Joseph Conrad says:
Ah yes. You idealist! There will never be ANY electoral reform until the REPUBLICANS are the MAJORITY party. Until then, any effects at such will run into Republican filibuster! As for a ‘Majority Vote Wins’ model, forget it. Why? The REPUBLICANS will NEVER permit such as long as they are the Minority Party.
The WEALTHY 1%-ers and ‘Conservatives’ of America use the Electoral College System to ensure they maintain absolute, ongoing control of the US political and economic systems. It’s quite simple.
Russ Wellen says:
This clear, concise look at electoral college reform — abolishment, rather — deserves to be widely read.
Re: “what if we take a look at the radical concept that all votes for our nation
nokomisjeff says:
#1. Jim. I remember the hoopla in Florida 2000. I’ve read tallies where after several recounts, even with chads, that Bush won by around 128 votes. Ever since that happened I have always stressed to my kid that every vote counts, and that my extended family(who all voted for Bush) had roughly 8% of the election.
#6 Joseph. It’s not only the 1%-ers and conservatives who use the Electoral College. Think back to Roosevelt, JFK and Johnson….they played the Electoral College like Pablo Casals played the cello.
Y’all have got to stop blaming everything that goes wrong on conservatives. Just because we aren’t as smart, well read, and intellectual as liberals, doesn’t mean we’re evil.
And let me jump in here to note that I don’t see this as a GOP/Dem thing at all. If you look at my analysis you’ll see some “red states” on both ends of the scale (WYO way overweighted, Florida and Ohio, which both went GOP in the last couple elections, way underweighted), and if we’d done what I think we ought to do Bush would have beaten Kerry in 2004.
I just see it as a basic fairness issue. My vote shouldn’t count more than yours because of where I live. Although I do think you should get a little something extra for surviving a PhD program… 🙂
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How about if votes counted according to an individual’s weight?
Elaine.
Even though I’m a conservative, I primarily get my sources from the liberal media. In fact, my friends on the left frequently borrow copies of the “Utne Reader” and other material when they can’t get hold of them.
I can fairly say, that in most circles(I’m the token conservative in my group), my liberal friends think that they’re just a little better, more intellectual, smarter, and more socially conscious than their conservative brothers. They’re also more righteous and open-minded….as long as you agree with them. This just an observation I’ve made over the last 40 years.
You said, “I always remember that the majority of parents tend to be conservative (wisely so when raising small souls). ”
I’m glad you realize that conservatism is better.
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Lullaby Pit
Amethyst Arsenic
From Pizza to Politics
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Home > Theses and Dissertations > 937
A Tangled Hope: America, China, and Human Rights at the End of the Cold War, 1976-2000
Jared Michael Phillips, University of Arkansas, FayettevilleFollow
Doctor of Philosophy in History (PhD)
Randall B. Woods
Alessandro Brogi
Liang Cai
Social sciences, Jimmy Carter, Christian pragmatism, Cold War, Human rights, Normalization, Sino-American relations
A Tangled Hope: America, China, and Human Rights at the End of the Cold War, 1976-2000, discusses the evolution of both the international and American understanding of human rights. Beginning with a discussion of the philosophical and cultural frameworks concerning "rights" that developed in Europe and the Americas throughout the 18th and 19th centuries, this work moves into the post-World War II climate that shaped Jimmy Carter and his unique understanding of human rights and America's role in the Cold War world. In particular, I argue that the existing narrative concerning Carter's foreign policy is lacking in a nuanced understanding of his beliefs and experiences and how he subsequently brought them to bear on his development and application of a moral foreign policy.
Jimmy Carter established a system of ethically rigid, yet pragmatically applied, human rights structures in diplomacy, allowing constructive engagement across the world, and especially with China. Contrary to existing scholarship, I argue that Carter developed a policy of moral pragmatism that allowed for flexible implementation of his human rights agenda across varied fronts. In the case of normalization between Beijing and Washington, I challenge the existing narrative on Carter's application of his human rights policies to Sino-American relations. While Betty Glad, Warren Cohen, Michael Hunt, and others have argued that human rights played little to no role in Sino-American relations during the 1970s, newly declassified documentation shows human rights were discussed at every step and ultimately were placed within Carter's understanding of the Cold War and Christian Pragmatism.
Phillips, J. M. (2013). A Tangled Hope: America, China, and Human Rights at the End of the Cold War, 1976-2000. Theses and Dissertations Retrieved from https://scholarworks.uark.edu/etd/937
Asian History Commons, International Relations Commons, United States History Commons
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Archbishop Celebrates Mass for Fr. Arturo Albano's 45th Anniversary of Ordination
Saturday, June 22, 2019, 5:30 PM
Location: St. Mary's Cathedral, 1111 Gough Street @Geary, San Francisco 94109
1111 Gough Street @Geary, San Francisco
Fr. Arturo L. Albano, pastor of the parish and rector of St. Mary's Cathedral since July 2015, celebrates the 45th anniversary of his ordination to the priesthood. Principal celebrant of the Mass will be Archbishop Salvatore J. Cordileone. Following Mass there will be a reception in the events center below the Cathedral, to which all are welcome.
The liturgy begins at 5:30 and will be livestreamed here.
Fr. Albano was ordained June 20, 1974, in the Philippines, and came to the United States in 1979. He has served as a parochial vicar at several parishes in the Archdiocese of San Francisco, including St. Cecilia in San Francisco; St. Luke in Foster City; Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Daly City; Holy Angels in Colma, and Mater Dolorosa in South San Francisco. He served as pastor of St. Timothy parish in San Mateo, and then as pastor of Mission Dolores Basilica from 2007 until 2015.
For much more on Fr. Albano, read the Catholic San Francisco newspaper article from February 13, 2015, announcing his assignment as pastor of St. Mary's Cathedral parish.
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The Right Entity Choice: Should You Convert from a C to an S Corporation?
The best choice of entity can affect your business in several ways, including the amount of your tax bill. In some cases, businesses decide to switch from one entity type to another. Although S corporations can provide substantial tax benefits over C corporations in some circumstances, there are potentially costly tax issues that you should assess before making the decision to convert from a C corporation to an S corporation.
Here are four issues to consider:
1. LIFO Inventories – C corporations that use last-in, first-out (LIFO) inventories must pay tax on the benefits they derived by using LIFO if they convert to S corporations. The tax can be spread over four years. This cost must be weighed against the potential tax gains from converting to S status.
2. Built-In Gains Tax – Although S corporations generally aren’t subject to tax, those that were formerly C corporations are taxed on built-in gains (such as appreciated property) that the C corporation has when the S election becomes effective, if those gains are recognized within five years after the conversion. This is generally unfavorable, although there are situations where the S election still can produce a better tax result despite the built-in gains tax.
3. Passive Income – S corporations that were formerly C corporations are subject to a special tax. It kicks in if their passive investment income (including dividends, interest, rents, royalties, and stock sale gains) exceeds 25% of their gross receipts, and the S corporation has accumulated earnings and profits carried over from its C corporation years. If that tax is owed for three consecutive years, the corporation’s election to be an S corporation terminates. You can avoid the tax by distributing the accumulated earnings and profits, which would be taxable to shareholders. Or you might want to avoid the tax by limiting the amount of passive income.
4. Unused Losses – If your C corporation has unused net operating losses, they can’t be used to offset its income as an S corporation and can’t be passed through to shareholders. If the losses can’t be carried back to an earlier C corporation year, it will be necessary to weigh the cost of giving up the losses against the tax savings expected to be generated by the switch to S status.
When a business switches from C to S status, these are only some of the factors to consider. For example, shareholder-employees of S corporations can’t get all of the tax-free fringe benefits that are available with a C corporation. And there may be issues for shareholders who have outstanding loans from their qualified plans. These factors have to be taken into account in order to understand the implications of converting from C to S status.
If you’re interested in an entity conversion, please contact us. We can explain what your options are, how they’ll affect your tax bill, and some possible strategies you can use to minimize taxes.
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Dissenter FeaturedLatest NewsThe Dissenter
Chicago’s Attack On The Homeless: After Tent City Evictions, People Are In Hiding
15 Nov 2017 Kevin Gosztola
Chicago’s Attack On The Homeless: After Tent City Evictions, People Are In Hiding Kevin Gosztola 2017-11-15
As temperatures drop and the winter months near, the city of Chicago remains committed to ensuring homeless individuals are unable to erect “Tent Cities” in the Uptown area of the city near Lake Shore Drive. Authorities also contend the city has no obligation to offer alternative housing for homeless individuals.
The Chicago Police Department is prohibiting any “protest tent encampments” in Uptown and anyone who attempts to setup tents will be subject to arrest, as of September 19.
Such treatment of homeless people is typical of Alderman James Cappleman, whose ward includes Uptown. In his career as a politician, Cappleman has fought to ban low-rent cubicle hotels, introduced an ordinance to criminalize those at bus stops that are not waiting for buses, and ordered a Salvation Army food truck to stop providing food to homeless people. Cappleman also has overseen the loss of over 1,000 single-room occupancy units of affordable housing in the ward.
The actions of city officials have led to a federal lawsuit submitted to the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. On behalf of Uptown Tent City Organizers (UTCO) and one of its members, Andy Thayer, the Uptown People’s Law Center alleges the city of Chicago has violated their First, Fourth, Fifth, Eighth, and Fourteenth Amendment rights by “denying” the group “any venue to establish their protest encampment, arresting and threatening to arrest those that do so, and threatening to seize plaintiffs.”
“People are in hiding literally because the city has, subsequent to the evictions, tossed out people’s tents and tossed out people’s tarps and done it in a patently illegal fashion,” Thayer told Shadowproof. “Parks Department workers about a week or so ago came upon a place [in Lincoln Park] where people were staying. It was during park open hours and yet they confiscated people’s stuff and threw it into the trash, threw it into a garbage truck.”
Thayer said people are hiding on private property. They are hiding on public ways. At 35th and Federal on the south side, where people were at the viaducts, the police threatened them with arrest. A similar incident happened at the Chicago River by Fullerton Avenue.
Uptown’s homeless population accounts for nearly ten percent of the homeless population in Chicago. In total, there are about 82,000 homeless in the city, according to the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless. There are not enough shelters. It is a “very dire situation,” Thayer added.
A Visible Presence To Protest The Lack Of Affordable Housing
As Thayer described, encampments offer homeless people “collective security” and community. They make it possible for people who work to leave without fearing their property will be stolen. A major complaint with shelters, particularly the Pacific Garden Mission, is that staff will steal people’s possessions.
The Uptown Tent City Organizers describe themselves as a group whose members “reside on the street and other non-permanent locations, primarily using personally owned tents for shelter and supportive housed community members.” They work to bring “homeless individuals out of the shadows and into open public space.”
There was a need for an organizing group after the city initiated a plan to reconstruct the Wilson Avenue viaduct near Lake Shore Drive, where homeless people lived for years.
Stewart School Campus Park. Photo by Kevin Gosztola.
As the court filing summarizes [PDF], Thayer requested a public assembly permit on March 7, after a permit for Morning Side Construction was set to expire for Stewart Mall. They believed they might be able to move homeless people to this area, which is an elementary school that shut down some years ago. It also would offer homeless people a “highly visible location in order to protest the lack of affordable housing in the city of Chicago.”
There was a previous attempt to setup a tent city at this location that was stopped by authorities. From July to September of last year, about twenty to thirty homeless people put up tents and lived at Stewart Mall. They were across from many businesses and had the ability to draw attention to the “lack of services available for people experiencing homelessness.” But on September 26, Morningside Construction, with the support of police, evicted the encampment, even though there was no construction in progress.
The city denied Thayer’s request for a public assembly permit on March 15 and cited “safety” concerns without any specifics. At this point, it became clear after speaking to a representative with the Chicago Law Department that Morningside Construction had an illegal permit and could not put up fencing and “no trespassing” signs. Stewart Mall was supposedly reopened and a public assembly permit request was withdrawn. However, two hours later, fences were back up at Stewart Mall to keep homeless people out.
Later in August, a motion for an injunction to prevent the city from evicting homeless people from the viaducts at Wilson and Lawrence Avenues was filed. A hearing took place, but the city prevailed with their claim that it had no “intention to arrest homeless individuals or unlawfully dispose of their property.” Days later, on September 17, the police threatened arrests and removed anyone in the area nearby the Wilson Avenue viaduct.
According to Thayer, even though homeless people moved west of the viaduct and out of the area that was covered by a reconstruction permit, the city argued it covered where they moved. Then, the argument shifted to this is a “safety hazard.” People moved overnight to an area on a public way south of Wilson Avenue near Marine Drive (which runs parallel to Lake Shore Drive). The city invoked an ordinance that supposedly said one cannot store property on the public way, which Thayer said was never cited before.
“The city decided they were going to interpret that ordinance to ban homeless people from camping anywhere in the city on public property. So we advised people to move at least temporarily to Metropolitan Water Reclamation District property that was next to that,” Thayer recalled. A former police officer who now works for the department came out and notified the encampment they would be evicted.
Homeless residents relocated to a vacant lot just north of the ward. The city claimed they found an agent for the owner of the property. The organizers did not believe that someone had complained. They believed the city had hunted down the property owner and cajoled them to object.
Thayer said, “We had one of our people intentionally get arrested there to see what we can find out, who this alleged complaining witness is or whether he or she contacted the city or vice versa.”
“If People Die Due To This”
Attacks against homeless residents by the city escalated when the city chose to use the lakefront to host a Mumford and Sons concert in the spring of 2015. Homeless people were pushed out of the area under the pretense that they could not be there to bother concertgoers.
Thayer recalled many homeless residents did not have tents. Those were provided by UTCO so there could be a visible symbol of the city’s failure to take care of those in need of housing.
The city fought against the presence of homeless people, even going so far as to cite an ordinance that supposedly states a person cannot park a vehicle, a large group of people, or a carriage on a viaduct or bridge. The problem is people were not on top of the viaduct or bridge so the city was manipulating the intent of the ordinance to criminalize homeless people.
UTCO recorded an encounter with police and publicized it. This allowed the tent cities to exist with far less harassment for a short while until the city opted to repair the viaduct, which will have “defensive architecture” to obstruct people from staying there during the day or overnight.
Unfortunately for homeless residents, the city of Chicago has a bit of legal precedent to bolster their war on the working poor. When Occupy Chicago tried to stay overnight in Grant Park, there was a mass arrest and then a lawsuit filed to challenge the park hours ordinance used to prohibit residents from being in public parks overnight. The city lost in trial court but won on appeal.
“If people die due to this, I put that right at the doorstep of James Cappleman and [Mayor] Rahm Emanuel. Full stop,” Thayer concluded. “They’re responsible. They’re controlling the situation. They’re driving the agenda.”
Tags:Alderman James CapplemanChicagoChicago PolicehomelessProtest EncampmentRahm EmanuelTent Cities
Kevin Gosztola
Kevin Gosztola is managing editor of Shadowproof. He also produces and co-hosts the weekly podcast, "Unauthorized Disclosure."
Philadelphia Protest Encampment Ends As City Agrees To Plan For Unhoused People
Philadelphia Threatens Protest Encampment With Eviction But Still Has No Plan For Unhoused Residents
Black Man Tortured And Wrongly Imprisoned For 26 Years Sues Chicago Police Who Were Associates Of Jon Burge
‘It’s A Definitive Shift’: Chicago Teachers Union Strike A Major Victory For Public Education
Viaduct. Photo by Kevin Gosztola.
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MOD Sandbox Workshop: Discoverability of On-Demand Services in Trip-Planning Apps
By Prashanth GururajaJune 27, 2018July 2nd, 2018Events, MOD Sandbox, Transit
The MOD Sandbox Innovation & Knowledge Accelerator workshop kicked off on March 12, 2018 with a panel session on efforts to expand the discovery of the growing number of on-demand services in trip-planning apps to enable a Mobility as a Service (MaaS) future. The discussion was moderated by Charlotte Frei of DemandTrans, who introduced the topic by describing how data around trip discovery and transactions must tie into customer needs of MaaS.
Aaron Antrim, from transit consulting company Trillium Solutions, was first to speak and discussed the Open Trip Platform app and data specifications for the Vermont Sandbox project. The goal of the project is to make MOD more discoverable as it integrates additional modes, including flexible services through GTFS-flex, and allows the possibility to “trip chain” from one system or city to another. These type of system-wide integration methods are particularly important considering rural communities often have flexible transportation providers and currently don’t have the virtual means to plan a trip using an app that involves transferring from one transit provider to another.
The work in Vermont offers an opportunity to create a set of data standards and open source software and platform–with the goal that other transit agencies may be able to adopt its use in the future. An important consideration in the flow of the app development is that the data standards must first occur through a set of data specifications that when grouped together can work to become a standard interface.
Krista Huhtala-Jenks, from Finland’s Ministry of Transport and Communications, described Finland’s proactive approach to create policy to encourage a wide range of services and require data sharing and interoperability. Their philosophy centers on the user, which Finland views as the key to business development and providing a range of transportation options. Finland recognizes that even with good data, a lot of the time, you are working against user travel behavior and habits. By providing a set of supportive regulations and policies that levels the playing field between service providers and modes, they are helping to create a competitive set of transportation solutions–but more importantly no one mode has an inherent advantage over the other.
In the first phase of the rules, known as the Transport Code, market access was deregulated for road transport providers, with basic requirements for API use and interoperability. In the second phase, mobility providers are required to make their ticketing and payment APIs open for third-party service providers and interoperable with public payment systems. Also, they are required to provide various “essential data” to the customer (e.g. pricing) and to the government for analysis and research purposes (e.g. aggregated supply and demand).
A system like this can encourage integration across modes and systems, an important component of MaaS, as providers are required to open their data. The end goal of the transport code is to make services more efficient and agile, by first viewing the customer as the king. Sharing data through an open API and streamlining the regulation process to promote competition are key components to making this happen.
Bibiana McHugh, from TriMet, the regional transit agency in the Portland, Oregon area then described TriMet’s work on its OpenTripPlanner (OTP) as part of its MaaS initiative. The original OTP was released as an open source product in 2009 and the FTA Sandbox grant has given TriMet the capacity to expand the number of modes included, integrate a payment plan, and improve backend features. The TriMet OTP uses an open source platform – such as Geocode earth, Open Streets map, USGS slope data, as well as accessing other API data sources. These data are then viewed as instruments to pave the way for MaaS through a standard API.
Jake Sion, from Transit App, gave a brief overview of his company’s real-time trip-planning application, and how the company promotes the MaaS movement in its 140-city operation. Transit app advocates for the “Free the API” concept for a complete open data structure while making efforts to foster data sharing even with many resources closed off to the public–citing lack of data availability from dockless bikeshare companies that are privately operated. However, the need for data sharing could be critical to the success of MaaS, such as it is in Finland, to allow more detailed access to payment and ticket integration. If cities want this data to be available, they could potentially choose to require providers to open their data as a condition to receive an operating permit.
The Q&A dived into the challenges of data sharing with similar responses across the panelists. Jake Sion noted completion, lack of time, and expense of developing a framework for sharing data as primary challenges. Krista Huhtala-Jenks noted, that in Finland, they try to bring stakeholders together on a technical and contractual side. Decentralizing data operations and sharing has the added benefit of making shared mobility neutral across modes–and when that happens, the competitive barriers between operators are less of a consideration. Other noted remarks by the panelists include technical issues (such as the case for flexible route service) and an importance to improving completion and accessibility to the public.
The panel closed with a question that dealt with the different levels of sophistication of the public. It was important to identify equity issues and address them. This should always be at the center for transit agencies as they are obligated to provide the most accessible service possible to users. Another panelist simply stated: if you build it they will come–in reference to an integrated app and the private sector’s willingness to participate. Krista then followed with the European counterpoint and noted that the private sector has a lot of clout if they work together on a central project. She further noted that proper regulation and policy framework must be in place to help make change. Also emphasized was the importance of transit agencies recognizing that data can vary in terms of sensitivity, and the necessary protocols must be in place to protect more sensitive data.
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Latvia: value of exported goods down in August 2019
Latvia: value of exported goods…
In August the foreign trade turnover of Latvia amounted to EUR 2.37 billion, which at current prices was 9.5% less than in August 2018, of which the exports value of goods was 2.1% lower, and imports value of goods – 15.1% lower.
In August Latvia exported goods in the amount of EUR 1.1 billion, but imported in the amount of EUR 1.28 billion. Compared to August 2018, foreign trade balance has improved as exports in total foreign trade amount increased from 42.7% to 46.3%, according to data compiled by the Central Statistical Bureau of Latvia.
Over the first eight months of this year, the foreign trade turnover of Latvia at current prices reached EUR 18.65 billion – EUR 131.3 million or 0.7% more than in the corresponding period of 2018. The exports value constituted EUR 8.32 billion (an increase of EUR 31.7 million or 0.4%), whereas the imports value – EUR 10.33 billion (an upturn of EUR 99.6 million or 1%).
Calendar and seasonally adjusted data showed that, compared to August 2018, in August 2019 the exports value at current prices went down by 0.5% and the imports value – by 13.2%, whereas, compared to the previous month, the exports value went up by 1.7%, but the imports value – reduced by 2.8%.
Main changes in exports in August 2019, compared to August 2018, included the following: exports of vegetable products up by EUR 63.7 million or 2.1-fold; exports of products of the chemical and allied industries up by EUR 19.2 million or 27.7%; exports of machinery and mechanical appliances; electrical equipment down by EUR 43.9 million or 20.1%; exports of wood and articles of wood down by EUR 31.6 million or 15%; exports of vehicles and associated transport equipment down by EUR 17.1 million or 24.1%.
Main changes in imports in August 2019, compared to August 2018, included the following: imports of textiles and textile articles up by EUR 7.7 million or 15.8%; imports of mineral products down by EUR 112.6 million or 41.8%; imports of vehicles, aircraft, vessels and associated transport equipment down by EUR 70.3 million or 41.9%; imports of machinery and mechanical appliances; electrical equipment down by EUR 43.2 million or 15.4%; imports of basic metals and articles of basic metals down by EUR 15.5 million or 13.7%.
In August the main export partners of Latvia in trade with EU countries were Lithuania (18% of total exports), Estonia (11.2%), Germany (7.6%) and Sweden (6.6%), whereas the main import partners were Lithuania (20.3% of total imports), Germany (10.4%), Poland (9.3%) and Estonia (8.4%). Russia was the main partner in trade with third countries; its share in total Latvian exports in August accounted for 10.2%, whereas in imports – for 7.9%.
In August 2019, compared to August 2018, share of the European Union countries in Latvian foreign trade grew by 0.5% in the total exports value and by 9.6% in the imports value. Rise in share of CIS countries comprised 1.5% in exports and a drop of 4.1% in imports.
In August foreign trade balance of Latvia was positive with 114 partner countries, as exports value of goods exceeded imports value of goods. It was negative in trade with 44 countries.
The rise in the exports of cereals in August 2019, as compared to August 2018, was facilitated by an increase in the exports of wheat and meslin by EUR 52.9 million or 4.1-fold. But exports of machinery and mechanical appliances reduced as exports of turbojets, turbopropellers and other gas turbines dropped by EUR 51.1 million.
Rise of imports of iron and steel in August 2019, as compared to August 2018, was mostly affected by the increase in imports of articles of iron and steel for railways and tramways of EUR 2.4 million or 10.7%. In its turn, reduction of imports of mineral fuels, mineral oils and products of their distillation was mostly influenced by decrease of imports of natural gas in the gaseous state by EUR 73.8 million or 66.1%. (BNN/Business World Magazine)
Category: LatviaBy admin 2019-10-14 Leave a comment
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Here’s the image that greets users logging in to Flickr today:
I don’t know if it’s worth reading too much into this, but none of the four cameras hanging around our intrepid photographer neck in the stock photo Flickr chooses to represent their business are actually capable of easily uploading photos to a website.
This photographic nostalgia is common — iPhone apps like Hipstamatic and Instagram are frequently used to wash out images, or mimic antiquated sepia or Polaroid photography. Sometimes — like in a recent Foreign Policy photo series chronicling the war in Afghanistan through Hipstamatic — these effects are used to create images of incredible power and haunting beauty, but more often they’re used as a lazy gimmick that parodies the great images of the last century. This trend is inconsequential, but it is interesting. Modern digital cameras are light years more capable than their analog predecessors, producing images of unparalleled clarity and detail. The irony of passing modern images through programs explicitly designed to make them look darker, grainier, and in general shittier can’t be lost of most people.
Though of course, the heaviest users of these apps are my generation, people young enough to have never experienced analog photography. Absence make the heart grow fonder.
John Singer Sargent, "Spanish Dancer", 1879-82
The due-process-free assassination of US citizens is now a reality.
The un-Bush.
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How Much For A Kalashnikov?
Yesterday I had an interesting conversation with a UCSD history professor who had recently traveled to Lebanon. While there he met a Syrian friend, who urged him not to travel to Syria for fear of “armed gangs” roaming the streets. The professor I spoke with was puzzled: did his Syrian friend mean to say that the overwhelmingly non-violent anti-government protesters who have been demonstrating against the brutal Syrian regime were armed and violent? Yes, his friend replied, explaining that anyone in Syria could buy an AK-47 for $2,500. Laying aside the interesting question of why the professor’s Syrian friend chose to relate the Assad regime’s anti-protester propaganda, how reliable is this price? Can you get an AK-47 in Syria for $2,500, a price many times an average worker’s monthly salary?
Via Wikimedia.
First off, why the AK? The AK-47 and its myriad variants are overwhelmingly the predominant human weapon of the last half century. First invented in the Soviet Union in the late 1940s, the AK was designed to be easy to manufacture inexpensively, exceedingly simple to operate, and virtually indestructible. The design Soviet weapons designer Mikhail Kalashnikov eventually settled upon fit these requirements perfectly. Manufactured from stamped steel and with few parts, the AK line’s effectiveness and reliability became legendary — there are many stories about the AK’s ability to fire when packed with mud or sand, an effectiveness that was an obvious contrast to the notorious unreliability of American Vietnam-era M16s. Throughout the Cold War the Soviets widely exported the inexpensive AK to client states at extremely low cost, distributing staggering numbers of individual weapons throughout the world: 100 million AK variants are estimated to have been produced, compared to 8 million of the comparable American M16. The huge numbers of AKs produced and the widespread availability of its 7.62 x 39mm ammunition, combined with its easy of use, have made it extremely popular in armed conflicts, and AKs are featured on the flags of both Mozambique and Hezbollah.
Interestingly, the $2,500 price reported by my professor’s Syrian friend is actually abnormally high. AK-47s are typically much cheaper simply because so many have been produced that even the high demand doesn’t overwhelm the supply. Over 100 million AK variants have been produced. However, only one tenth of this number were legally produced in Soviet arms factories or under license — the rest are unlicensed locally produced copies. The wide proliferation of locally produced AK variants have dramatically lowered their retail prices. For example, in small rural Kenyan town in 1986 an AK could be purchased for 15 cows. By 2005 the price had fallen to four cows. Today’s prices for AK variants vary widely by location. Figures are taken from Killicoat, 2007 and given in 2005 US dollars:
Asia: $631
Africa and Middle East: $ 267
Eastern Europe and former Soviet States: $574
Americas: $442
Western Europe: $ 990
Hmmm. That would put our $2,500 well over the 1986-2005 average, especially for the Middle East. However, on second though this disparity does make sense. World prices have been increasing, averaging $534 in 2005 from a low of $448 in 1990 (though the sample size for 1990 is much smaller and potentially problematic). Additionally, the Syrian police state has done a much better job than its often anarchic neighbors at restricting small arms imports. This supply bottleneck would imply a higher Syrian retail price much closer to the Western European, rather then Middle East, average. Additionally, AK prices vary considerably by variant. A short-barreled version, once favored by Soviet special forces and made famous by frequent appearance in videos by Osama bin Laden, regularly costs twice as much as more common long-barrel variants. If my professor’s Syrian friend is referencing the price for a short-barreled variant the figure he gave is actually low.
Similarly, it’s well documented that when people are nervous about the future small arms prices rise dramatically. For example, in Lebanon in 2005 an AK-47 cost roughly $300. By the start of the Israel- Hizbollah War in the summer of 2006 the price had risen to over $900. Today the Lebanon price is even higher: as of May an AK in good condition cost $1,600, according to reporting by Time. A short-barreled special forces variant costs up to $3,750. Time also notes that the majority of small arms sold today in Lebanon are shipped to Syria to fill demand there. It’s likely that these weapons are resold for even higher prices once they’re smuggled into Syria. This makes the $2,500 figure credible or even low, even though it’s far above the world retail price. Though the vast majority of Syrian democratic protesters are unarmed (and non-violence is a stated goal of the movement) at least some Syrians are willing to pay a large sum for firearms.
High Income Women and Dating Norms
Taylor Marvin
Via Matt Yglesias, Kay Steiger has a great chart from the Chronicle of Higher Education illustrating that women received more than half of all US doctoral degrees in 2009:
Of course, increasing educational attainment by women is a very positive thing. However, it is a major social shift, and one that could have a large impact on cultural norms in our society.
Workers’ incomes are strongly related to their educational attainment. While recipients of professional degrees — most notably MDs and JDs — typically out-earn recipients of doctoral degrees, most PhDs earn a relatively high salary:
This bodes well for the future earnings of women earning doctoral degrees. What’s especially interesting about the increasing level of female educational attainment is that it has the potential to erase the future earnings gap between men and women at high income levels. Today women still make less than men, regardless of educational attainment. For example, in 2000 a female PhD could expect to earn less than a male with a Master’s degree:
Though this income gap is shrinking, it still exists. But if women continue to receive a larger and larger share of advanced degrees it’s likely that women’s higher average educational attainment will cancel out the gender income disparity at high income levels in the later careers of today’s college students. This is very interesting. There’s a strong likelihood that in a large portion of my generation’s heterosexual marriages women will out earn their husbands, at least at the high end of the income scale.
I’m especially curious what effect this income dynamic will have on dating norms. Most conventional American dating practices are tailored for a society where the typical woman has a much lower income than the average man. Despite its inherent patriarchy these practices arose for a practical reason: most contemporary American social norms developed in the immediate postwar era, when women did have a low income compared to most men. Many common heterosexual dating norms still reflect this: in most first-date situations men are expected to pay for dinner, a practice based on the expectation that the women have less income available to spend. This practice is also a signaling device: in the large majority of 20th century American marriages men out earned their wives, and the expectation that men pay for dinner is intended to demonstrate that the male is financially secure , making him a suitable husband. Engagement rings are an even clearer example of this logic: male sexual capital in our society is still largely dependent on income, and the tradition that a man spend three months salary on an engagement ring is a practice explicitly designed to allow for male income signaling to potential mates. Engagement rings also function as a commitment device — on some level women demand engagement rings in an effort to increase the likelihood of a proposal leading to marriage, because if a male has to invest a significant amount of money into proposing, he’s less likely to break the contract. Of course, it’s important to note that just because patriarchal dating practices arose for functional reasons doesn’t make them right.
Dating at the extreme end of the gender income gap. "Flirtation", by Frédéric Soulacroix.
However, in a world where a large percentage of high income women-out earn their spouses these practices will be increasingly archaic. What’s the point of an expectation that a high-earning man buys a female date dinner if there’s a good chance she makes more than him? This may just be male solidarity talking, but it’s hard to argue that this practice fits any definition of fairness. Similarly the traditional requirement of engagement rings, and by extension traditions that place the burden of proposing on men, is hard to justify in relationships where the female is the higher earner. As woman educational attainment continues to increase, we can expect these practices to become less common.
However, there are reasons to doubt this prediction. First, traditions can be extremely durable despite social change. For example, dating practices for college students at my age level could be expected to parallel the norms of a equal income society. While a gender income gap exists today, it doesn’t begin to appear until mid-way through professional careers — the average college male is not expected to earn more than his female counterparts. However, despite this gender income equality in college students the expectation that the male buys dinner early in a dating relationship is still prevalent, at least at some level. It’s possible that this norm exists based on the expectation that a male’s lifetime earnings will be higher than a female’s, but this strains believability — it’s much more likely that traditions are just very durable, even when they don’t make any practical sense. Secondly, while we can expect our generation’s gender income gap to shrink across society, this convergence will be much stronger at high income levels. Because humans typically marry at similar educational levels, while we can expect many high income heterosexual females to out-earn their husbands, this trend will less prevalent for lower earning heterosexual couples. This means that social dating norms based on an equal or higher female income gender dynamic will be more prevalent in high income social groups than their lower income counterparts. However, because social norms are typically highly influenced by media representations — which disproportionately portray high income lifestyles — we could expect high income dating norms to ‘trickle down’ to the rest of the population.
This explanation also ignores the influence of biological, rather than social, determinants on dating norms. Most of human heterosexual dating practices are based around the expectation that women are more sexually selective than men (though not necessarily that they have less actual sex). The requirement that men, not women, propose is the definitive example of this bias, as is the common (and deplorable) practice of stigmatizing promiscuous females while celebrating male promiscuity. Though this can be read as fundamentally unfair, there’s a well documented biological impetus for this dynamic: because reproduction (and by extension, sexual partnerships in general) have typically much higher energy costs in female animals than males, on a poorly biological level females have a real incentive to be much more sexually selective than males. This incentive is reversed in species where males invest higher costs into reproduction than females, like some species of seahorses and birds where the males exclusively raise offspring. We can expect human dating norms (which are, again, fundamentally expressions of reproductive behavior) that are influenced by biological determinants to be much more durable than those primarily due to fundamentally transient gender income imbalances.
What do you think? Can we expect social dating norms to become more egalitarian in the future?
Blue into the black. Acacia trees, Nambia. Image by Wikimedia user Ikiwaner.
The best links of the week:
A Hipstamatic tour through Rio’s favelas.
The invention of money.
The alternative US Army professional reading list.
R2Paternalism.
Spencer Ackerman’s on a roll uncovering counterproductive Islamophobia in the FBI.
Related sentance of the week: “The line starts at 3 B.C., implying that baby Jesus was at the extreme of violence” (h/t: Ezra Klein).
Unfortunately “sixth generation fighter concept” is really just code for “someone in our office knows Photoshop.”
France’s burqa ban: women are ‘effectively under house arrest’ (h/t: Andrew Sullivan).
Another mildly disturbing look at the modeling industry: “A distinct ‘editorial’ look is one that sits ‘on the border between beautiful and ugly.'”
Dispatch – Prince of Spades.
Cheney and Presidential Power
Jonathan Bernstein has a very good piece up arguing that Dick Cheney not only was an incompetent vice president, but blowback against the executive branch overreach he orchestrated has actually reduced Presidential power:
“Dick C heney is a good example of all of this exactly because his prior reputation would never have led people to guess that he’d make such a habit of botching things. And yet, botch things he did, over and over. Not because he didn’t understand policy, but because he — and by extension, George W. Bush — refused to accept the limitations on the presidency imposed by the Constitutional system of institutions. And as Cheney shows and as Goldsmith says, the consequences are predictable: poor policy execution, followed by a loss of presidential power.”
I agree with a lot of this. Despite Cheney’s extensive experience going into the Bush administration he wasn’t able to accomplish a lot of what he wanted, and Bernsteins’ look at the structural reasons for Bush administration incompetence is convincing. However, I’m just not convinced by the assumption that executive power has actually been reduced since 2008. It’s true that the Bush administration was on the receiving end of a lot of public outcry over its often flagrant disregard for restrictions on presidential power. But this never translated into actual effective legislative opposition for these policies. Warrantless NSA wiretapping and torture were all unpopular at one point or another, but this doesn’t change the fact that there’s a pervasive lack of congressional (and by extension electoral) interest in national security and civil liberties issues.
I think its more accurate look at a relative reduction in presidential power in post-2008 as due to the Obama administration’s choices rather than a structural reduction in presidential power; our perceptions of executive power are diminished by the Obama administration’s abandonment of select examples of highly visible executive branch excesses rather than any kind of permanent change. Yes, the Obama administration has exercised less presidential power than their predecessors. But this has been a choice — nothing’s forced them to roll back executive authority, and the Obama administration has continued to exercise presidential power that’s still extremely high by historical standards — the kill order on US citizen Anwar al-Awlaki, for example, and the recent expansion of the US secret war in East Africa. All of these decisions have been largely uncontroversial — there just isn’t a mechanism in American electoral politics to punish most executive branch oversteps. As long as most voters perceive arguably unconstitutional executive programs as targeting only a minority of Americans they won’t demand change. For programs that target foreigners this electoral pressure drops to almost nothing.
Ultimately there’s no reason to suppose the small reduction in executive power under Obama will be permanent. The Obama administration has elected to continue most of its predecessor’s growth of executive authority, likely ensuring that more presidential power, not less, the future normal. This logic is especially evident in the Obama administration’s response to Bush-era torture. By declining completely to censure the Bush administration’s culture of torture Obama has likely ensure that illegal torture of terror suspects will continue under the next Republican administration, an extension of executive power Romney’s explicitly stated he supports (to his credit, Ron Paul’s on the record rejecting torture in all circumstances). Berstein’s right that that Vice President Cheney’s oversteps were bad for public perceptions executive power, but in reality voters don’t really care. In America the executive branch gets to do what it wants.
Healthcare Inflation by the Numbers
Sarah Kliff has a link to a striking new graphic illustrating the extent of health care inflation in the last 65 years:
Pretty shocking, right? However, this isn’t an entirely fair comparison. Milk available in 1945 is fundamentally the same product as what’s sold today. Healthcare quality, however, has dramatically improved in the same period — for example, cancer survivorship has significantly risen in this period. Healthcare cost inflation is a major challenge to US government long-term fiscal sustainability, but it’s also important to remember that these cost increases have bought significant outcome gains.
Troy Davis and American Exceptionalism
Minutes before he was scheduled to be executed, the execution of Troy Davis was delayed to allow time for the US Supreme Court to respond to a request by Davis’ lawyers to stay the execution. The Supreme Court has denied this request, and Troy Davis was executed just after 11:00 pm tonight.
Rev. Raphael Warnock, who was present with Davis’ friends and relatives through the delay, was relieved by the short-lived delay but offered a devestating indictment of the US justice system:
“Certainly we’re glad that Troy Davis is still alive, but we are still witnessing, in my estimation, a civil right violation and a human rights violation in the worst way unfold before our very eyes. This is Troy Davis’ fourth execution date. I’m glad that he’s alive, but that in and of itself is cruel and unusual punishment. America can do much better than this.”
The death penalty becomes morally indefensible once the justice system begins executing innocent people. Proponents of the death penalty dismiss this possibility as a fantasy — earlier this month Rick Perry, who’s presided over 234 executions as governor of Texas, remarked that he’s “never struggled” with the possibility that Texas has executed an innocent man “at all.” Unfortunately, this is ridiculous: Governor Perry has almost certainly presided over the execution of an innocent man, and a pervasive racial bias in death penalty sentencing makes claims that the US justice system is unbiased patently ridiculous. Executions that are delayed literally at the last minute based on pervasive doubts about the condemned’s guilt is indicative of a system that fundamentally does not work.
Unfortunately, the US enthusiasm for executions is far from the international democratic norm. In 2010 23 countries carried out documented judicial executions:
China (2,000+)
Iran (252+)
North Korea (60+)
Yemen (53+)
United States (46+)
Saudi Arabia (27+)
Libya (18+)
Syria (17+)
Bangladesh (9+)
Somalia (8+)
Sudan (6+)
Vietnam (1+)
Iraq (1+)
Singapore (1+)
Malaysia (1+)
Of course, there are enormous issues with this list: the US reports all of its executions, while it’s silly to pretend that North Korea does. However, that doesn’t obscure the fundamental truth here: few democracies still execute their own citizens. Other than the United States, there’s only three other fully democratic governments on this list: Japan, Taiwan and Botswana. The United States should not be proud to share a distinction with some of the most oppressive dictatorships on the planet. Americans like to think of their country as exceptional. Unfortunately, in this case we are.
Note: Updated for clarity.
New Girl and TV’s Depictions of Asian Americans
Fox's "New Girl".
Last week I watched the premier of the new Fox series, New Girl. The show, which follows a 20-something girl moving in with three singly guys, was mildly entertaining (Jessica Grose’s description of Zooey Deschanel as “terminally adorable” is pretty spot on).
What I found interesting about the show is that the pilot included a minor, presumably one-time character portrayed by an Asian American actor. Despite making up 5% of the US population, Asian American actors are fairly rare on TV. What was especially interesting about New Girl’s use of an Asian American actor is that his ethnicity wasn’t touched on at all — I doubt that the script specified that the character was even of Asian descent. This is notable. Unlike African American or Hispanic characters, when TV shows feature Asian American actors their ethnicity usually plays an integral part in the way their character is presented. Modern Family is a good example of this. Despite being notably progressive in its depiction of gay couples, one of the few Asian American characters depicted in the show — a doctor played by Suzy Nakamura — is defined by her Asian heritage: the character’s role in the show is as an Asian other the predominantly white leading characters can react to, rather than a fully realized personality. Here she is talking about her mother’s high expectations and her refusal to be defined by them:
This isn’t wholly problematic. In this scene Modern Family recognizes that stereotypes can be harmful, while also acknowledging that in some individuals they’re also true. However, the real problem here is that Modern Family has room for an Asian American character only when she’s defined by her Asianness. Of course there are exceptions to this portrayal — American-born Korean Canadian actor Grace Park’s work on Battlestar Galactica and Hawaii Five-O is a good example — but it is prevalent.
Grace Park in Sci-Fi channel's Battlestar Galactica. You should watch Battlestar Galactica.
New Girl is different. In the pilot, the Asian American character is portrayed [mild spoiler alert] as a complete douchebag. The central plot arch of the pilot is Zooey Deschanel’s depression over recently breaking up with her cheating boyfriend and her new male roommates’ efforts to cheer her up by taking her out to meet someone new. Deschanel’s initially hesitant — her character Jessica is portrayed as dorky and uncomfortable dating (though it strains credibility to believe that anyone that looks like Zooey Deschanel wouldn’t have men fighting over her). Despite her initial humorous failures, she’s soon approached by Peter, an attractive Asian man portrayed by actor and model Jack Yang, who arranges to meet her the next day. This is a turning point in the episode — Jessica begins to emerge from her depression and is breathlessly excited for her date. However, Peter doesn’t show, dismissing Jessica as too clingy and explaining to Jessica’s new roommates that he “just wanted to hook up”. Her roommates rush to find Jessica waiting forlornly in the restaurant, an act of caring devotion to their new roommate that cements their friendship.
On many levels, this portrayal of an Asian American is encouraging. Yes, Peter’s a douchebag. But the show’s open about this, and his Asian heritage plays no part in the fact that he’s an asshole. Unlike Dr. Minura in Modern Family, Peter’s place in the narrative structure of New Girl exists in his personality, not his ethnicity. Of course, there are lots of Asian guys who are good looking douchebags, and it’s encouraging that television writers are starting to portray Asian American characters as real people with personalities outside of their ethnicity. Additionally, Peter isn’t alone in being an asshole: one of Jessica’s male roommates is depicted as drifting dangerously close to a douchebag stereotype, a joke New Girl’s writers rely on through the episode.
Actor Jack Yang. Image via IMDb.
On there other hand, there are still some potentially problematic issues here. To what extend does Peter’s character exist as part of and perpetuate a form of the model minority myth? The fact that he’s a player notwithstanding, Jack Yang’s character is still depicted a reassuringly model member of aspirational society: he’s good looking, and upper middle class (though admittedly all of the show’s characters are), conventionally well dressed, and hangs out with white people. Again, I’m not saying that this isn’t realistic — there are lots of Asian American guys who do all of these things, and there’s nothing wrong with that. But despite the fact that New Girl depicts Peter as an asshole, in many ways he’s still fits into the popular American stereotype of Asian Americans.
New Girl’s depiction of Peter’s relationship with a white girl is similarly mixed. On the one hand, New Girl has absolutely no problem with an attractive Asian man attracting the white and equally hot Jessica, and Peter’s depiction as suave and exceedingly comfortable around attractive women is a refutation of a common stereotype of nerdy and socially awkward Asian men. However, to a predominantly white audience Peter is arguably less threatening because he’s a promiscuous player — he’ll go after white girls for sex but not for permanent partnerships, which is in many ways more threatening to insular white society.
But then again, how much does this matter? The show’s depiction of Peter is realistic — there are Asian guys who are douchebags, and if the script calls for an asshole, there’s no reason why he shouldn’t be Asian. Right? I’m genuinely curious: what do you think?
More on Netflix
Netflix is splitting itself into two companies. The streaming business will remain Netflix, while the mail DVD business will be spun off into a new company, the unfortunately named Qwikster. This move seems to be driven by the rising costs of operating the distribution network required for shipping DVDs, and Netflix’s relative unsuccessful attempt to secure content for streaming at a low enough price to attract consumers. Netflix first attempted to dramatically raise its prices; when it became obvious that it was about to begin hemorrhaging subscribers, they split the company in two.
It isn’t surprising that Netflix has run into this wall: content providers have always been wary of the entire concept of unlimited access to media. This is understandable. Media companies have always wanted a distribution model that forces consumers to pay for content every specific time they consume it — after all, they want to make money. On Demand is the closest they’re going to get to this best of all possible business models, but despite heavy marketing by the cable companies this entire model has never really taken off, mostly because consumers understand that it’s very expensive for what they actually get.
DVD sales are the next best thing. Unfortunately for the media companies DVDs, especially of TV shows, aren’t a great purchase for consumers. I really like the show Community. Because it’s on a network channel, I get to watch episodes of the show when they first air for free (or at least I don’t pay money for it — I pay by viewing ads). If I can’t catch the show when it airs, I can wait and watch it on Hulu or NBC’s video site, again for free. However, if I want to watch an episode again — barring Netflix or pirating — I have buy the DVD box set. However, this is hard to justify from a cost perspective. When it’s free to watch an episode the first time its hard to pay $30 for the ability to watch them again, especially when most consumers will go through and rewatch a show less than a half dozen time a year. Of course, I will buy the DVD set of shows I particularly like or admire — like Game of Thrones — even though the number of times I’m likely to rewatch it doesn’t justify the expense. In a sense this is almost of form of charity: buying a show at least partially to reward the efforts of creators I admire rather than just my desire to rewatch the show. This makes DVD sales a potentially unreliable business model for supporting media companies.
That leaves streaming. But any streaming service — whether it’s Netflix or another competitor — has to compete for at least part of its customer base with pirating, whose only real cost is inconvenience. That competition places a firm ceiling on how much streaming services can charge and retain a comprehensive market. This caught Netflix in a bind: pressure from content providers forced them to raise their price above this ceiling, and subscriptions began to plummet.
That’s part of why Redbox has such a potentially durable business model — unlike Netflix, Redbox is a complement, rather than a substitute, for pirating content. After convenience, presentation is pirating’s greatest weakness: for most people, illegally downloaded movies can’t be displayed on a TV. This isn’t a problem for movies you want to watch by yourself, but it is for social movie watching. This dovetails nicely into Redbox’s content library: the greatest criticism of Redbox is that it’s restricted library is almost entirely comprised of recent hits — mostly action movies, horror, and comedy — which are exactly the kind of movies people are most likely to want to watch with friends. Netflix was always celebrated for offering access to a long tail of foreign or classic films that weren’t avaliable elsewhere, but in many way this was a poor strategy. In addition to having small audiences, these are movies that most people watch alone or with a partner. It’s convenience meant that most people would prefer to watch these types of films in the comforting familiarity of Netflix, but there isn’t a huge marginal cost of pirating these types of films. This particularly hurts because limited audience films are the cornerstone of Netflix’s streaming library, because they’re so much cheaper to license. The only way the newly independent Netflix streaming business is going to match its previous success is if it dramatically improves its streaming library, but the loss of Starz and the continued reluctance of the content providers to buy into the unlimited streaming business makes this unlikely. Again, this bodes poorly for the future of the company and media streaming in general.
Update: Farhad Manjoo has a hilarious observation: “In a sign of how hastily Netflix arrived at this idea, it seems to have forgotten to search for @qwikster on Twitter. That handle is owned by a person whose avatar is an image of Elmo smoking a joint.”
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Health students march in London to defend NHS bursaries
by Tomáš Tengely-Evans
Published Sat 9 Jan 2016
On the march in London (Pic: Socialist Worker)
Around 5,000 student nurses, midwives and other health students marched through central London today, Saturday. Chants of, "Doctors and nurses, unite and fight" and, "Jeremy Hunt has got to go" rang out.
Demonstrators are fighting Tory plans to axe bursaries for student nurses, midwives, occupational therapists and others.
Lizzie and Oliver came from Exeter. "There's no way I could afford to do nursing without the bursary," said Lizzie. "I've got two kids and can't give up everything."
Oliver added, "After three years you'd come out with £51,000 in debt and have to start paying it back on a salary of £21,000," he said.
"That's just crazy."
Many people hoping to join the NHS are mature students such as Emily, a student midwife from London.
"I'm 34 years old with a young child," she explained. "It's a privilege to be a midwife, but it is also exhausting.
"You're working for essentially nothing - after I've paid for childcare there's basically nothing left."
Sami, a student mental health nurse, added, "I've had to take a bar job because I can't afford not to work.
"My bursary doesn't even cover my rent - as soon as it comes in it's gone."
Tory health secretary Jeremy Hunt claims that scrapping bursaries will fund 10,000 training places. But the NHS is in the grip of a staffing crisis because of budget cuts and privatisation.
Poverty pay and rocketing workloads are pushing health workers out of the NHS. Bursary cuts will make this worse.
Louise from Surrey said, "I wouldn't be a nurse today if it weren't for the bursary." Oliver added, "The changes would definitely mean only some people could do it."
The Tories want to smash workers' pay, terms and conditions and union organisation to soften the NHS up for privatisation.
Louise said, "It's not even back door privatisation anymore - it's front door privatisation."
But this also deepens the political crisis facing Hunt and means there's a possibility for a united fight to defend the NHS.
Junior doctors in the British Medical Association (BMA) are set to walk out for 24 hours on Tuesday.
They're fighting Hunt's plans to impose new contracts that would rip up terms and conditions and put patient safety at risk.
Amy, a junior doctor, joined the demo. "I'm here because this is an attack on everyone," she said. "The whole thing is an attack on the NHS."
The demo assembled at St Thomas' Hospital in south London then marched to Downing Street.
Labour's shadow health secretary HeIdi Alexander read out a text from Jeremy Corbyn pledging his support. She said, "The Labour Party is on your side."
Danielle, one of the organisers, told the rally, "They're dismantling the NHS piece by piece - we all need to unite."
Other speakers included Unite leader Len McCluskey, Royal College of Nursing head Janet Davies, Gail Adams from the Unison union and Green Party London mayoral candidate Sian Berry.
Jenny Leow, an occupational therapy student, called on students to support the junior doctors. "It's fantastic that the junior doctors are out - they could stop the Tories in their tracks," she said.
"We need to escalate our campaign. When the junior doctors have a full strike on 10 February we should walk out for half a day."
Sat 9 Jan 2016, 19:39 GMT
Back junior doctors' strikes to defend NHS
NHS students' fightback over bursaries can fuel united struggle against Tories
Junior docs strike blow against the Tories' plan to wreck the NHS
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About The Climate Post
About the Nicholas Institute
Comment and Reprint Policies
Lawmakers Debate Carbon Tax; Studies Offer Look at Economic Impacts
On July 19, 2018, in Uncategorized, by timprofeta
The Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions at Duke University
Editor’s Note: TODAY is the last issue of The Climate Post. Sign up now to receive future mailings like this one to understand developments that could shape the energy and climate landscape. Our mailings deliver timely, in-depth, and fact-based analysis, through thought pieces and research publications, to improve environmental policy making. They also alert subscribers to events that aim to shed light on critical climate and energy issues breaking or on the horizon.
As lawmakers plan to vote on an anti-carbon tax resolution from House Majority Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.) and Rep. David McKinley (R-W.Va.), another Republican is expected to roll out carbon tax legislation as early as next week.
According to a draft copy obtained by ClimateWire, Carlos Curbelo (R-Fla.) is preparing to introduce legislation that would eliminate the federal gas tax and impose a $23-per-ton tax on carbon emissions from energy industry operations. Some portion of the proposed tax, Bloomberg BNA reports, could be dedicated to increasing incentives for carbon capture and storage and clean technology and to assistance for low-income families affected by an uptick in energy costs related to putting a price on carbon.
“It really attempts to capture the political energy of the moment,” said Curbelo, who would not go into details about the pending legislation. “We know that infrastructure investment is highly popular in our country. It’s probably the only issue that [President] Trump and [Democratic nominee Hillary] Clinton agreed on in 2016.”
Tuesday, in a meeting of the House Rules Committee, the pending Curbelo bill came up during a debate over the Scalise and McKinley anti-carbon-tax resolution, which the committee passed in a 7-3 vote along party lines. A vote on that resolution by the House could come as early as Thursday.
A special issue in the journal Energy Economics highlights carbon tax modeling studies conducted through the Stanford Energy Modeling Forum Project. The issue includes an overview of the results co-authored by Brian Murray of the Duke University Energy Initiative and a faculty affiliate at the Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions and an article on carbon tax implications for market trends and generation costs by my Nicholas Institute colleague Martin Ross. Comparison of the modeling studies’ results revealed similar conclusions: that a carbon tax is effective at reducing carbon pollution, although the structure of the tax and rate at which it rises are important, and that a revenue-neutral carbon tax would have a modest impact on gross domestic product. Even the most ambitious carbon tax was found to be consistent with long-term positive economic growth.
China, EU Renew Commitments to Meet Paris Climate Commitments
China and the European Union (EU) on Monday reaffirmed their commitment to the Paris Agreement to limit global warming, issuing a joint statement in which they also vow to work together in that pursuit. Amid fear that U.S. withdrawal from the agreement could undermine global cooperation on climate change, the statement issued at the 20th EU-China summit in Beijing said the climate accord is proof that “multilateralism can succeed in building fair and effective solutions to the most critical global problems of our time.”
The statement included plans to push for an agreement on a rulebook for the Paris Agreement after negotiations stalled this year; to release long-term, low-carbon development strategies by 2020; and to increase each side’s efforts before 2020; and to exchange knowledge on clean energy.
Notably, the joint statement extends cooperation on emissions trading schemes. China’s carbon market, which launched late last year, will, when fully implemented, be the largest in the world, covering an estimated 4 billion metric tons of emissions.
China, which has already met its 2020 target for carbon intensity, and the EU, which has met its 2020 emissions reduction target, also renewed their commitment to create a mechanism to transfer $100 billion a year from richer to poorer nations to assist them with climate change adaptation.
California Beats 2020 Emissions Target; Work Left on Transportation
The California Air Resources Board (CARB) released data revealing a decrease of approximately 2.7 percent in the state’s greenhouse gas emissions in 2016—a decrease that dropped the state’s emissions below 1990 levels four years earlier than the state’s 2020 target date specified in Assembly Bill 32.
The emissions reductions owe to a mix of state-level measures that include a mandate that a certain fraction of electricity come from renewable resources, regulation of vehicle emissions, and a carbon pricing and trading program shared with Quebec.
There was an exception to the downward emissions trajectory. The state’s transportation emissions continue to rise. Right now, the Trump administration has plans to ease the corporate average fuel economy, or CAFE standards. California has vowed to stick to its own, stricter standards authorized under the Clean Air Act, but if miles-per-gallon targets for the state are rolled back, California’s transportation emissions could rise further.
For months, the state has been in conversations with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) about its vehicle emissions rules, which several other states (most recently, Colorado) follow. Earlier this week, the newly nominated EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler met with top California officials about the matter. Although CARB Chair Mary Nichols called the meeting “pleasant,” she said “in terms of if there is a difference between Wheeler and Pruitt on these issues, I have yet to see any. It’s not better or worse; it’s the same.”
The Climate Post offers a rundown of the week in climate and energy news. It is produced each Thursday by Duke University’s Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions.
Tagged with: carbon dioxide • carbon tax • china • clean air act • clean energy • climate • climate change • duke university • energy • environment • epa • EU • greenhouse gas emissions • Trump
Draft Rule to Replace Clean Power Plan Moves Ahead
Editor’s Note: The last issue of The Climate Post will circulate on July 19. Sign up to receive future mailings like this one to understand developments that could shape the energy and climate landscape. Our mailings deliver timely, in-depth, and fact-based analysis, through thought pieces and research publications, to improve environmental policy making. They also alert subscribers to events that aim to shed light on critical climate and energy issues breaking or on the horizon.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said on Monday that it sent a proposed rule to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from power plants to the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review, a standard step before a proposal’s public release and comment.
The proposed rule would replace the Clean Power Plan, which was finalized in 2015 to regulate emissions from existing fossil fuel-fired power plants by setting state-by-state reduction targets. Although not yet publicly released, early reports indicate the new rule will adopt a narrower assessment of the means available to reduce greenhouse gases and therefore will implement less aggressive emissions reduction targets.
In October 2017, the Trump administration issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that called for the Clean Power Plan to be repealed. In December 2017, EPA put out a notice asking the public to submit ideas for a replacement to the rule, which most agree the agency is obligated to produce. The Clean Air Act instructs the EPA to set “standards of performance for any existing source for any air pollutant,” and requires these standards to reflect “the degree of emission limitation achievable through the application of the best system of emission reduction.”
Since April 2017, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit has extended a temporary stay of the Clean Power Plan five times as the Trump administration contemplates a replacement.
The Monday nomination of Brett Kavanaugh to fill the seat of retiring Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy could influence how litigation over this rule plays out. Kennedy was often the deciding vote in environmental cases brought before the court, including the landmark Massachusetts v. EPA climate change lawsuit in 2007 that laid the legal groundwork for federal action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions under the Clean Air Act. Kavanaugh voiced some skepticism that the EPA has the authority to limit greenhouse gases when his court heard oral arguments on the Clean Power Plan in 2016.
“Global warming isn’t a blank check” for the president to regulate carbon emissions,” he said during oral arguments. “I understand the frustration with Congress,” Kavanaugh added. But he said the rule, rather than Congress, was “fundamentally transforming an industry.”
Pruitt Resigns from the EPA
Scott Pruitt has resigned as administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Andrew Wheeler, who was confirmed by the Senate as the deputy administrator of the EPA in April, will now serve as the agency’s acting administrator. Wheeler, largely identified by the press as a coal industry lobbyist, began his career as an EPA employee and then oversaw the agency for years as chief of staff of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee for Chairman James Inhofe.
Pruitt left the EPA facing more than a dozen inquiries into his spending and self-dealing practices and amid debate over his revisitation of six pollution policies during his 17 months. He cited in his resignation letter that these “unrelenting attacks” had taken a toll.
“It is extremely difficult for me to cease serving you in this role first because I count it a blessing to be serving you in any capacity, but also, because of the transformative work that is occurring,” Pruitt wrote.
What’s next is uncertain, but Wheeler has suggested that the EPA likely won’t change its priorities after Pruitt.
“If the environmentalists think [Trump is] going to make promises and we’re going to do the opposite, then there’s not a lot of common ground to work on,” said Wheeler. “I’m going to continue to move forward with those” priorities Pruitt laid out on behalf of Trump.
The Washington Post reported that although policy priorities are expected to remain the same, what may change is the way the EPA talks about deregulatory work.
Culturally, Wheeler also may bring change. In his opening speech with EPA employees, Wheeler reassured agency staff, saying “[t]o the employees, I want you to know that I will start with the presumption that you are performing our work as well as it can be done. My instinct will be to defend your work, and I will seek the facts from you before drawing conclusions.”
Study Finds Coal Bailout Proposal Could Increase Premature Deaths, Carbon Dioxide Emissions
A working paper released by the independent think tank Resources for the Future finds that if President Donald Trump’s proposed bailout of coal-fired power plants goes into effect in 2019 and 2020 it could lead to the pollution-related deaths of 353 to 815 Americans. The paper indicates that each year the policy could cause 1 death for each 2 to 4.5 of the estimated total 790 coal-mine jobs estimated to be supported by the bailout.
According to the authors, delayed retirement of coal that have announced they will close by the end of 2020 could cause these deaths due to their additional sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide emissions. The paper’s modeling simulations show that over the two-year period the policy would increase carbon dioxide emissions by 22 million tons, or about the amount emitted by 4.3 million cars in a year. Applying the policy to nuclear generators would prevent only 24 to 53 premature deaths and 9 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions over the period.
The authors call these mortality estimates “conservative” in part because the number of plants prevented from retiring could be larger than the number modeled.
The assessment, which assumes that the Trump administration’s possible action would delay closure of some 3 percent of U.S. coal-fired generation capacity and 1 percent of U.S. nuclear capacity, is one of the first examinations of the evolving plan to prop up coal and nuclear power plants that are struggling to compete with power plants using cheap natural gas and renewable electricity.
That proposed bailout, outlined in a memo in May, would use a Cold War-era law to keep aging coal and nuclear plants from shuttering. On June 1, Trump ordered U.S. Department of Energy Secretary Rick Perry to take immediate action to keep those plants open.
The Climate Post offers a rundown of the week in climate and energy news. It is produced each Thursday by Duke University’s Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions
Tagged with: clean air act • Clean Power Plan • climate change • coal • energy • environment • epa • Trump
Study Says China’s Emissions May Have Already Peaked
On July 5, 2018, in Uncategorized, by timprofeta
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As part of the Paris Agreement—a global treaty that aims to limit global warming to well below 2 degrees Celsius above preindustrial levels and to pursue efforts to limit that increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius—China pledged to peak its carbon dioxide emissions by 2030. A new study in the journal Nature Geoscience suggests China’s emissions peaked in 2013 and have declined in each year from 2014 to 2016.
“The decline of Chinese emissions is structural and is likely to be sustained if the growing industrial and energy system transitions continue,” said Dabo Guan, a University of East Anglia climate change economics professor and lead author. “China has increasingly assumed a leadership role in climate-change mitigation.”
The study suggests that slowing economic growth and a decline in the share of coal used for energy has aided in the rapid decrease in China’s rising emissions. These changes in industrial activities and coal use, along with efficiency increases, have roots in the changing structure of China’s economy and in long-term government policies, in particular, creation of China’s nationwide emissions trading scheme.
The policy context and initial program design of that scheme is reviewed by my colleague, Billy Pizer, a faculty fellow at Duke University’s Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions, in an article in the journal AEA Papers and Proceedings. It highlights important concerns, discusses possible modifications, and suggests topics for further research.
FERC Rejects PJM Capacity Market Proposals
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), in a 3–2 decision, rejected two proposals filed by PJM as well as a proposal filed by a group of generators operating in PJM’s footprint about how the wholesale electric capacity market should handle state subsidies for power generation. FERC did, however, find that the PJM’s existing capacity market rules are unjust and unreasonable and outlined a framework for a new rule.
PJM, which oversees the grid in parts of the Mid-Atlantic and Midwest, operates a capacity market that allows utilities and other electricity suppliers to procure power to meet predicted demand three years into the future in order to ensure grid reliability. The grid operator and some power producers have argued that subsidized generators are entering into PJM’s capacity market at prices below their actual generation costs, lowering overall market prices and potentially forcing some competitors to shutter their operations.
The order rejects both of PJM’s proposals because FERC found that “they have not been shown to be just and reasonable, and not unduly discriminatory or preferential.” But FERC was “unable to determine, based on the record of either proceeding, the just and reasonable rate to replace the rate in PJM’s Tariff.”
FERC then proposed a framework for a replacement rule—resource offers that are deemed subsidized would be subject to an expanded Minimum Offer Price Rule (MOPR) with few or no exceptions, so as not to artificially lower capacity prices. On the other hand, PJM would have to expand the ability for utilities to purchase less from PJM’s capacity market so they wouldn’t be forced to buy capacity to comply with state policies and then procure a duplicate amount of capacity from PJM’s market.
In PJM’s April filing to FERC, PJM asked FERC to decide between two proposals to deal with the issue of how to address potential pricing impacts of state energy programs in its capacity market and to identify which aspects of the proposals need to be revised. Generators subsequently filed a complaint at FERC, alleging that the PJM capacity rules violate the Federal Power Act and proposing their own solution. But in FERC’s order, filed late on June 29, FERC rejected PJM’s two-part capacity repricing scheme and revisions to the MOPR that aimed to bump up capacity offers into the market from new and existing resources receiving state assistance, subject to certain proposed exemptions. It also rejected the generators’ proposal for a MOPR for a “limited set of existing resources.”
PJM, its stakeholders, and other commenters now have to answer FERC’s questions about how to flesh out FERC’s proposed replacement rule framework. Initial comments are due within 60 days and reply comments are due within 90 days of the publication date of the FERC order in the Federal Register.
Study Zeroes in on Hard-to-Decarbonize Sources
About a quarter of global carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuels and industrial sources come from hard-to-cut sources, according to a study published in the journal Science.
The authors focused on long-distance shipping and transportation, on cement and steel production, and on provision of a reliable electricity supply, that is, the need, given the variable nature of renewables, for climate-neutral ways to increase output when needed. The demand for these services and products is projected to increase over this century, the study said, allowing absolute emissions from them to grow to equal the current level of global emissions.
“If we want to get to a net zero energy system this century, we really need to be scaling up alternatives now,” said lead author Steven J. Davis of the University of California.
What are those alternatives? Some analyzed by the study are the synthesis of energy-dense hydrogen or ammonia-based fuels for aviation and shipping, new furnace technologies for concrete and steel manufacture, and tools to capture and store hydrocarbon emissions. But deploying these technologies will be costly, say the authors, who also point to another obstacle: the inertia of existing systems and policies.
Tagged with: carbon • carbon dioxide • climate • climate change • energy • environment • Paris Agreement • PJM
Court Delays Clean Power Plan Again
On June 28, 2018, in Uncategorized, by timprofeta
Editor’s Note: For nearly a decade, the Nicholas Institute has enjoyed sharing the critical climate and energy stories of the week with our readers. However, July 19 will be the last issue of The Climate Post. For us, this weekly post has been a way to help us fulfill one of our missions: to help the public understand topics that could shape the energy and climate landscape. We will continue to pursue that mission through the many products we create to improve environmental policymaking through in-depth and objective, fact-based analysis.
On Tuesday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit issued an order placing litigation on the Clean Power Plan in abeyance for another 60 days. The court also rejected a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) request for indefinite suspension of the litigation and ordered the EPA to provide status updates every 30 days.
The Clean Power Plan, which was finalized in 2015, seeks to regulate emissions from existing fossil fuel-fired power plants. This is the fifth time since April 2017 that the court has issued a temporary stay of the plan—as the Trump administration eyes rolling back or replacing the rule.
Following the order, judges have come forward to say they would no longer vote to keep litigation on the Clean Power Plan on hold.
In the order, the judges—Wilkins, Tatel and Millett—express their reluctance to abide further delays. Judge Tatel, joined by Millett, wrote:
“ … I have reluctantly voted to continue holding this case in abeyance for now. Although I might well join my colleagues in disapproving any future abeyance requests, I write separately only to reiterate what I said nearly a year ago: that the untenable status quo derives in large part from petitioners’ and EPA’s treatment of the Supreme Court’s order staying implementation of the Clean Power Plan pending judicial resolution of petitioners’ legal challenges as indefinite license for the EPA to delay compliance with its obligation under the Clean Air Act to regulate greenhouse gases.”
Study: Methane Leaks from U.S. Oil and Gas Industry Higher Than Thought
A newly released study in the journal Science indicates that, the United States oil and gas industry emits fugitive emissions of methane at a rate of 13 million metric tons per year. The study suggests that methane, a powerful driver of global warming and the main ingredient in natural gas, is 60 percent higher each year than estimated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
“This paper shows that the emissions of methane from the oil and gas industry are a lot higher than what is currently estimated by the Environmental Protection Agency,” said Ramón Alvarez, a study author from the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF). According to EDF, the researchers found that 2.3 percent of total production per year is leaked into the air. EPA estimates a 1.4 percent leak rate.
“The fact is that the magnitude of emissions are so large that it has a material impact on the climate impact of natural gas as a fossil fuel,” he said.
The authors suggest that the discrepancy owes to the way that the U.S. oil and gas industry measures and monitors methane emissions—at known intervals and at specific parts of equipment—without verification of the leak volume at a given facility as a whole. This methodology means that the industry does not count surprise leakage events, which the authors find are relatively common.
According to the study, methane leaks from natural gas facilities have nearly doubled the climate impact of natural gas. The authors suggest that the 13 million metric tons of methane emitted each year by U.S. oil and gas operations is equal to the climate impact of carbon dioxide emissions from all U.S. coal-fired power plants operating in 2015.
The study, which used infrared cameras and involved more than 400 well sites, suggests that methane leaks from operator errors and equipment failures, unless controlled, might lessen the effectiveness of switching to gas from coal as a climate strategy.
Ontario Plans Exit from Carbon Market
Doug Ford, Ontario’s incoming premier, plans to deliver on his campaign promise to scrap Ontario’s cap-and-trade scheme and leave the North American carbon trading program. Ford announced that he intends to block participants in California and Quebec from trading allowances with Ontario entities after he takes office June 29.
The withdrawal from the joint market would leave Ontario out of the next carbon allowance auction, scheduled for Aug. 14. The news has left California, which began holding joint auctions with Ontario and Quebec in February, exploring its options.
“Pulling them out in a formal way is actually going to take a regulatory change,” the head of California’s cap-and-trade program, Rajinder Sahota, said at a California Air Resources Board workshop. Ontario’s involvement in the program expanded the size of the market by about a quarter.
California said it may take steps in its current carbon market rulemaking package to address Ontario’s planned withdrawal.
Tagged with: california • carbon market • Clean Power Plan • climate change • epa • gas • Methane • oil • Ontario
Trump Cites Energy Security in Executive Order Rescinding Portions of National Ocean Policy
On Tuesday, President Donald Trump revoked much of the National Ocean Policy put in place in 2010 after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. The president cited a need to improve energy security.
“Ocean industries employ millions of Americans and support a strong national economy,” Trump wrote in the new executive order. “Domestic energy production from Federal waters strengthens the Nation’s security and reduces reliance on imported energy … This order maintains and enhances these and other benefits to the Nation through improved public access to marine data and information, efficient interagency coordination on ocean-related matters, and engagement with marine industries, the science and technology community, and other ocean stakeholders.”
The order supports drilling and other industrial uses of the oceans and Great Lakes, in contrast to the 2010 National Ocean Policy, which focused largely on conservation and climate change.
Trump’s list of seven ocean policy priorities includes calling for federal agencies to coordinate on providing “economic, security, and environmental benefits for present and future generations of Americans.” Other listed priorities mention the need to “facilitate the economic growth of coastal communities and promote ocean industries,” “advance ocean science and technology,” and “enhance America’s energy security.”
Antarctic Ice Melting Speeds Up
The most comprehensive study to date of Antarctica’s ice sheets has found sharply accelerating ice loss. The assessment published in the journal Nature, funded by NASA and the European Space Agency and performed by a consortium of academic institutes and government agencies around the world, indicates that the rate of loss of Antarctic ice has tripled in the last five years compared to the last two decades.
Whereas Antarctica was losing ice at a rate of 73 billion metric tons per year a decade ago, it is now losing 219 billion metric tons per year, a rate scientists say could contribute six inches of sea-level rise by 2100.
The scientists involved in the study arrived at their finding by combining data from 24 satellite surveys, which resulted in the creation of a new dataset that could improve future projections of sea-level rise by allowing the ice sheet modeling community to test whether their models can reproduce present-day change.
“Thanks to the satellites our space agencies have launched, we can now track [polar ice sheet] ice losses and global sea level contribution with confidence,” said Andrew Shepherd of the University of Leeds, who co-led the study.
The rapid, recent changes were driven almost exclusively by warm ocean waters that are destabilizing the West Antarctic ice sheet’s largest glaciers from below.
Notably, the researchers concluded that increases in the mass of the East Antarctic ice sheet were not nearly sufficient to make up for the rapid decreases in West Antarctica and the Antarctic Peninsula.
Another study published last week in the journal Nature, this one by a team of scientists funded by the National Science Foundation, found that large parts of the East Antarctic ice sheet did not significantly melt millions of years ago, when atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations were similar to today’s levels. However, the authors cautioned that could change as these concentrations continue to rise above 400 parts per million. They averaged 410 parts per million in April—the highest recorded monthly average.
Draft Report Says World Off Track to Meet 1.5 C Goal
A leaked draft report suggests that human-induced warming would exceed 1.5 degrees Celsius by about 2040 if emissions continue at their present rate, but that countries could keep warming below that level if they made “rapid and far-reaching” changes.
The Paris Agreement, adopted in 2015, set a goal of limiting warming to “well below” a rise of 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial times while pursuing efforts to keep warming below 1.5 degrees Celsius. The final government draft of Global Warming of 1.5ºC, an Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) special report, obtained by Reuters and dated June 4, indicates that government pledges are too weak to meet the 1.5 degrees Celsius goal.
The draft report is set for publication in October, after revisions and approval by governments. In a statement, the IPCC said it will not comment on the contents of draft reports, because the work is ongoing.
Tagged with: barack obama • energy • greenhouse gas emissions • ipcc • national ocean policy • oil • Paris Agreement • Trump
California Regulators Request Meeting as Vehicle Emissions Proposal Moves Forward
On June 7, 2018, in Uncategorized, by joshwilson
Editor’s Note: The Climate Post will not circulate next week (June 14). It will return on Thursday, June 21.
Members of the California Air Resources Board (CARB) want to meet with Trump administration officials to discuss the federal government’s specific plans to ease the corporate average fuel economy, or CAFE standards.
“CARB has participated in a number of high-level meetings with the White House and federal agencies, but we have not been given any specific proposals to respond to, and so remain concerned that the agencies are departing from the evidence and the law, as well as failing to honor our historic partnership,” wrote Steve Cliff, CARB’s deputy executive officer in a letter printed by ClimateWire. “This matter is of vital importance to public health and the environment, and it is essential that we have an opportunity to meet with OIRA [Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs].”
California has vowed to stick to its own, stricter standards authorized under the Clean Air Act despite plans by the Trump administration to weaken fuel economy and tailpipe emissions standards. On May 1, seventeen states and the District of Columbia filed a lawsuit in the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals over the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s revisiting of Obama-era vehicle emissions and fuel economy standards last month.
Although it is reported that the new EPA proposal will outline a series of alternatives to the existing standards, the preferred option seems to be a freeze of fuel economy targets at 2020 levels through 2026. EPA and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration submitted their proposal to the Office of Management and Budget recently. It will undergo review before it is published for public comment.
Closing the Global Energy Financing Gap
The path taken to bring reliable electricity to the more than 2 billion people in the world lacking it has major ramifications for development, global power dynamics and climate change. Government-sponsored development finance institutions are key for delivering energy financing to emerging markets—contributing roughly a third of all investment directly—and playing a critical role in reducing investment risks and mobilizing private capital into the clean energy space.
The U.S. government’s little-known development finance institution, the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), remains underutilized and lacks core financial tools and capabilities. Legislation to establish a new fully-equipped institution to promote investment in developing countries continues to move closer to passage in Congress. A new policy brief by my colleagues at the Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions and the Energy Access Project at Duke University outlines the energy financing gaps in emerging markets and analyzes how the new tools and authorities proposed under Better Utilization of Investments Leading to Development Act (BUILD Act) legislation may equip the new U.S. development finance institution to respond to those financing needs.
The stakes are high, as China has made overseas infrastructure investment a centerpiece of its foreign policy. OPIC’s entire investment portfolio across all sectors is currently less than the $25 billion that Chinese policy banks invested in foreign energy projects in 2017 alone. With domestic coal demand on the decline in China, these same government banks are investing an average of $5 billion per year in new overseas coal facilities.
The policy brief finds that a modernized U.S. development finance institution would increase U.S. global influence, open clean energy investment opportunities for U.S. companies in high-growth emerging markets, and provide a more transparent and market-oriented alternative to Chinese government infrastructure financing.
Trump Administration Eyes Coal Bailout
President Donald Trump ordered U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Rick Perry “to prepare immediate steps” to stop the closing of coal and nuclear plants, according to a White House statement.
“Unfortunately, impending retirements of fuel-secure power facilities are leading to a rapid depletion of a critical part of our nation’s energy mix, and impacting the resilience of our power grid,” said White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders.
A leaked plan, published by E&E News, calls for the creation of a “strategic electric generation reserve” to promote national defense and maximize domestic energy supplies. It also requests the direct purchases of electricity or capacity from a list of specific coal and nuclear plants over a period of 24 months.
The leaked memo invokes DOE’s emergency powers under section 202(c) of the Federal Power Act, as well as an obscure provision in the Defense Production Act of 1950, enabling the Department to require the performance of private contracts “in preference to other contracts” in order to “promote the national defense.”
Study Examines EVs’ Electricity Grid Role
On May 31, 2018, in Uncategorized, by timprofeta
If California uses electric vehicles (EVs) as mobile power storage, it could eliminate the need to build costly stationary grid storage for energy from renewable sources, according to a new study by the researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in the journal Environmental Research Letters. The researchers suggest that the California Energy Storage Mandate (AB 2514)—which requires procurement of 1.3 gigawatts of energy storage by 2020—can be accomplished through the state’s Zero Emission Vehicle Program as long as controlled charging (one-way power flow) is also widely deployed.
“The capital investment for stationary storage can instead be redirected to further accelerate the deployment of clean vehicles and vehicle-grid integration, and could even be used to pay EV owners when their vehicles are grid-connected with controlled charging,” write the authors. “In this manner, not only are clean vehicles an enabler for a clean electricity grid at substantially lower capital investment, but the avoided costs of supporting renewables with stationary storage can be used to further accelerate the deployment of clean vehicles.”
The research shows that electric vehicles could help California grid operators adapt to the state’s rapid adoption of solar power, which is contributing to a problem known as the “duck curve”—a deep decrease in demand during midday hours, followed by a steep increase just as solar power fades away. The idea is that electric vehicles could help mitigate daytime overproduction and evening energy surges by charging into the grid at predetermined times and destinations throughout the day, when and where demand is low.
The researchers also looked at scenarios in which electric vehicles not only have controlled charging but also send back some of their energy into the grid through “vehicle-to-grid.” They estimated an offset of as much as $15.4 billion in stationary storage investment if just 30 percent of workplace chargers and 60 percent of home chargers allowed EVs to provide power to the grid.
Trump Repeals Rule to Cut Down on Transportation Emissions
The Federal Highway Administration on Wednesday published a notice in the Federal Register repealing a rule promulgated by the Obama administration that would have required states receiving federal dollars to account for and report greenhouse gas emissions created by cars traveling on their roads.
The rule, which temporarily went into effect last fall, required that state transportation departments and metropolitan planning organizations calculate how much and how many cars traveled their roads in order to establish greenhouse gas emissions targets, calculate their progress toward them, and report that progress to the Federal Highway Administration.
“While the GHG [greenhouse gas emissions] measure did not require States to reduce CO2 emissions, a State could feel pressured to change its mix of projects to reduce CO2 emissions,” the Federal Highway Administration wrote.
Study Examines Economic Benefits of Limiting Warming
Limiting global temperature rise to the Paris Agreement’s 2 degrees Celsius warming goal could save the world economy trillions of dollars, according to a new study in the journal Nature. The study, the first to examine how global economic output would be affected under different amounts of warming, concludes that meeting the 1.5 Celsius Paris Agreement goal—the more ambitious of the agreement’s two warming goals—would avoid $30 trillion in damages from heat waves, droughts and floods—a figure far greater than the cost of cutting emissions.
The study suggests that the global economy could generate an additional $20 trillion in gross domestic product compared to one in which temperatures rise by 2 degrees Celsius.
“By the end of the century the world would be about three percent wealthier,” said lead author Marshall Burke of Stanford’s School of Earth, Energy & Environmental Sciences, referencing the 1.5 degrees Celsius target relative to 2 degrees Celsius.
The study analyzed how gross domestic product over the last 50 years correlated with temperature changes and combined those findings with climate model projections of future temperatures to calculate how overall economic output may change under different warming scenarios.
“It is clear from our analysis that achieving the more ambitious Paris goal is highly likely to benefit most countries—and the global economy overall—by avoiding more severe economic damages,” said Noah Diffenbaugh of Stanford University.
Those countries benefiting from a warming limit of 1.5 degrees Celsius represent 90 percent of global population and include almost all the world’s poorest countries as well as the three biggest economies: the United States, China and Japan.
A study published in Nature Climate Change in March put the cost of meeting the 1.5 degrees Celsius goal at three times that of holding temperature rise to 2 degrees Celsius. The costs of the more stringent goal hit heavily in the near term, when deep cuts in transportation and buildings sector emissions would be required. The study did not, however, weigh those upfront costs against the greater economic costs associated with a temperature rise of 2 degrees Celsius.
Tagged with: climate change • energy • EV • greenhouse gas emissions • Paris Agreement • Trump
Trump Introduces New Executive Order; Discards Obama Order on Climate
President Donald Trump replaced a 2015 executive order that directed federal agencies to reduce their energy use and greenhouse gas emissions, instead asking agencies to set their own goals for efficiency.
The original executive order, signed by former President Barack Obama in 2015, aimed to reduce the federal government’s greenhouse gas emissions 40 percent in a decade. To do so, it asked agencies to reduce buildings’ energy use by 2.5 percent per year, shrink water use and use clean energy for 25 percent of their energy needs.
The new Trump executive order directs federal agencies to follow the laws related to energy use enacted by Congress “in a manner that increases efficiency, optimizes performance, eliminates unnecessary use of resources, and protects the environment. In implementing this policy, each agency shall prioritize actions that reduce waste, cut costs, enhance the resilience of Federal infrastructure and operations, and enable more effective accomplishment of its mission.”
Although the new order requires agencies to track their efforts in lowering energy use, it does not require them to set goals to limit greenhouse gases.
Report Paints Picture of Sea-Level Rise Risks to National Park Service Sites
A new report from the National Park Service (NPS) projects the risk of climate change-related sea-level rise and storm surge for each of 118 NPS sites situated on or near U.S. coasts. Using datasets from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the authors illustrate the potential for permanent coastal inundation and flooding under multiple greenhouse gas emissions scenarios. Their research resulted in a collection of storm surge maps for each studied site.
According to those maps, the parks that will be hardest hit are along the southeast coastline. At risk for the highest sea-level rise is the NPS’s National Capital Region (Washington, D.C., area). At particular risk from storm surge are parks in North Carolina’s Outer Banks, within the Southeast Region.
“Human activities continue to release carbon dioxide (CO2) into the atmosphere, causing the Earth’s atmosphere to warm,” the report indicates. “Further warming of the atmosphere will cause sea levels to continue to rise, which will affect how we protect and manage our national parks.”
The authors highlight significant differences in how coastal areas in the vicinity of NPS sites will experience sea-level change—driven by factors such as variable ocean currents, coastal topography, and the influence of localized land elevation changes. Given those differences, the authors point to the need for site-specific information about local conditions that might influence sea-level rise and storm surge effects.
The final report makes multiple references to the role of humans in climate change. It became the subject of concern for science advocates and some in Congress after drafts obtained earlier this year by Reveal, the publication of The Center for Investigative Reporting, indicated that park service officials had removed those references.
China, NGOs Assess Paris Agreement Progress
China, the world’s largest emitter of greenhouse gas emissions, could meet its pledge to cap carbon emissions ahead of its 2030 schedule, according to China’s chief negotiator on the Paris Agreement in late 2015. Xie Zhenhua said China has already met several objectives it promised to fulfill by 2020, including cutting its carbon intensity by 40 percent to 45 percent three years early.
The Paris Agreement aims to limit global warming to well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels and to pursue efforts to limit that increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius. The deadline for completing the Paris Agreement’s “rule book” is the November climate summit in Katowice, Poland. The agreement itself goes live in 2020.
Ahead of the 24th session of the Conference of the Parties, a number of organizations and NGOs have assessed progress toward the Paris Agreement’s goals. NGO Mission 2020, in a new report, focuses on how to attain the 1.5 degree goal. It outlines six milestones it suggests are critical to enable global peaking of emissions by 2020, including cities and states implementing policies and regulations to fully decarbonize buildings and infrastructure by 2050 and investment in climate action that surpasses $1 trillion U.S. dollars per year.
Tagged with: barack obama • china • climate • environment • Paris Agreement • sea level rise • Trump
Trump Directs Administration to Work with California on Fuel Standards
President Donald Trump on Friday tasked Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Scott Pruitt to negotiate fuel economy standards with California officials.
Their orders are to “work with the industry and with the state of California on developing a single national standard so that domestic automakers do not have to comply with two different regulatory regimes,” said Helen Ferre, a White House spokesperson.
It is not at all clear, however, that California is interested in finding a compromise. California has vowed to stick to its own, stricter standards authorized under the Clean Air Act despite plans by the Trump administration to push back on fuel economy and tailpipe emissions standards. On May 1, seventeen states and the District of Columbia filed a lawsuit in the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals over the EPA’s revisiting Obama-era vehicle emissions and fuel economy standards last month.
The Friday announcement came as automakers met with Trump to discuss a draft proposal developed by the EPA and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration that The Hill reports would freeze fuel efficiency requirements at 2020 levels for five years. It’s a proposal with which the Trump administration may move forward, according to Reuters.
Study Points to Possible Policies to Preserve Nuclear Plants
Early nuclear plant closures in the United States will mean the loss of zero-carbon electricity, but a new report from the Center for Climate and Energy Solutions (C2ES) suggests state and federal policy options that could preserve existing nuclear power generation. The report finds that when they retire, nuclear reactors, which supply more than half of the country’s zero-emissions power, are being replaced by more carbon-intensive natural gas.
The report points to some operational and technological developments that might put nuclear plants on a firmer footing. First, electrification of other sectors of the economy could increase energy demand, easing pressure on larger and older energy plants like nuclear reactors. Second, midday nuclear power, which may not be needed when solar is available, could be stored as hydrogen and then used as fuel or feedstock. And third, nuclear plants that are paired with renewables could ramp up and down, following demand.
With federal policy to drive nuclear development in the near term unlikely, the report concludes that any long-term decarbonization strategy for the United States would entail policy support for both advanced nuclear and renewables.
“The nut we really want to crack is how renewables and nuclear can work together for each other’s mutual benefit,” tweeted report author Doug Vine, a C2ES senior energy fellow. “We need to have 80% reductions by 2050. We’re not going to get there if renewables and nuclear are fighting each other.”
To preserve the emissions benefits of nuclear energy, the report includes in its policy solutions
state-level policies such as expansion of state electricity portfolio standards to allow nuclear and renewables to work together on a level playing field to one another’s benefit as well as zero-emission credits, already being implemented in some states, to support distressed facilities. Other solutions offered by the report are license renewals by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission that would allow reactors to operate for 80 years; a “meaningful” price on carbon implemented in power markets; and increased pursuit by government agencies, cities and businesses of power purchase agreements, which give both buyers and sellers some certainty over a specified time period, for nuclear power.
DOE Plan Lays out Steps to Protect Grid from Cyber Threats
A new U.S. Department of Energy plan lays out steps to do more to protect the country’s energy systems and diminish energy interruptions due to the increasing scale, frequency and sophistication of cyber attacks.
“Energy cybersecurity is a national priority that demands the next wave of advanced technologies to create more secure and resilient systems needed for America’s future prosperity, vitality, and energy independence,” said Secretary of Energy Rick Perry. “The need to strengthen efforts to protect our critical energy infrastructure is why I am standing up the Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response (CESER). Through CESER and programs like CEDS, the Department can best pursue innovative cybersecurity solutions to the cyber threats facing our Nation.”
The five-year plan focuses on strengthening preparedness, coordinating responses, and developing the next generation of resilient energy systems in line with the creation of a cybersecurity office—announced earlier this year—to help carry out activities to protect the grid from attack.
The plan calls for research and development into equipment and technologies that would “make future systems and components cybersecurity-award and able to automatically prevent, detect, mitigate, and survive a cyber incident.”
Tagged with: california • energy • environment • epa • fuel efficiency • greenhouse gas emissions • nuclear • Trump
Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide Concentration Sets New Record
For the first time in recorded history, Earth has sustained an atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide in excess of 410 parts per million—a symbolic red line in the methodical upward march of greenhouse gas concentrations. The April Keeling Curve measurements at the Mauna Loa Observatory are 30 percent higher than the first Keeling Curve measurements, 315 parts per million, at the observatory in 1958, and 46 percent higher than concentrations recorded during the Industrial Revolution in 1880. They are the highest in the 800,000 years for which scientists have good data, thanks to paleoclimate records like tree rings and ice cores.
Ralph Keeling, director of the CO2 Program at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, which monitors the readings and calculates the one-month averages, said the rate of carbon dioxide concentration in the atmosphere has been increasing faster in the last decade than in the 2000s.
“It’s another milestone in the upward increase in CO2 over time,” said Keeling, who is also the son of Charles David Keeling, creator of the Keeling Curve. “It’s up closer to some targets we don’t really want to get to, like getting over 450 or 500 ppm. That’s pretty much dangerous territory.”
Last year the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s climate department reported that atmospheric carbon dioxide levels in 2016 were at levels not seen on Earth for millions of years, when temperatures were 3.6 to 5.4 degrees Fahrenheit warmer, and sea level was 50 to 80 feet higher than today.
Powelson Reflects on PJM Fuel Security Announcement, Defense Production Act
What are the primary drivers of change in the PJM Interconnection, which operates the electric grid for a 13-state region? Technology and people. That was the message from air and energy regulators from states in the PJM electricity market at an event co-sponsored by the Great Plains Institute and Duke University’s Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions.
The event, keynoted by Robert Powelson of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), focused on change and the tensions revealed as different actors drive these changes or respond to their effects. Powelson reflected on PJM’s late April announcement that it will conduct a study to understand “fuel-supply risks in an environment trending towards greater reliance on natural gas.” PJM said it will conduct a three-phase analysis over several months to determine whether it can withstand a cyberattack on a natural gas delivery system or a prolonged cold snap.
Powelson cautioned that people should not read into PJM’s announcement that PJM may pay coal and nuclear generators to be backstops in the event of fuel delivery interruptions. “I think what PJM is saying is ‘we’re going to look at it and we’re going to do it in a market-based approach.’ There might be other technologies out there that have the same [fuel security] characteristics. It could be an oxidized fuel cell. It could be storage. It’s going to be a level playing field discussion. … It’s going to be done in a fuel-neutral, technology-neutral way.”
He called PJM’s capacity market proposal before FERC “a jump ball” aimed at neutralizing the effects of some state subsidies intended to prop up nuclear. PJM wants FERC to direct operators to update market compensation for power plants to reflect resilience attributes.
Powelson also touched on the U.S. Department of Energy plan to look into whether it can keep some struggling coal and nuclear plants operating by invoking the Defense Production Act—a 1950 law giving the president a broad range of power to require businesses to prioritize contracts for materials deemed vital to national security.
Invoking the act, Powelson said, “would lead to the unwinding of competitive markets in this country.”
Climate Talks Stall, U.N. Schedules Extra Sessions
As the latest round of Paris Agreement talks wind down May 10, delegates are marking their calendars for extra sessions to accomplish what they could not in Bonn, Germany, over the last two weeks: finalize the text of a rulebook for the agreement that aims to limit global warming to well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels and to pursue efforts to limit that increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius. On Monday, Executive Secretary of U.N. Climate Change Patricia Espinosa said producing a rulebook was impossible at the current conference.
“A single negotiating text. No,” said Espinosa. “That would really not be possible. It will all come together when it comes to the level of the COP [Conference of the Parties], of the conference in December.”
Given insufficient progress in Bonn, U.N. officials announced on Tuesday that they were adding a week-long session in Bangkok in September in order to meet the deadline for a rulebook at the main summit in Katowice, Poland, in December. Without that document, negotiators would have no basis for those talks.
Several issues stalled the Bonn negotiations. Most developed countries want to know how much climate funding they are committing to developing countries, which contributed the least to climate change but suffer its worst effects. They also want to understand how that funding will be adjusted to support countries’ progressive emissions reductions every five years. There is also pushback from developed countries on funding for climate impacts to which developing countries can no longer adapt.
At the Talanoa Dialogue, an international storytelling side event aimed at increasing global ambition to reduce climate change, State Department climate negotiator Kim Carnahan described President Donald Trump’s vision of a “balanced” global energy landscape and said the administration’s “position on the Paris Agreement remains unchanged,” a reference to Trump’s decision to withdraw the United States from the Paris Agreement. She maintained that the United States would ensure the viability of its nuclear power sector, currently its largest single source of no-carbon energy. Carnahan also noted the power sector carbon reductions that have accompanied increased natural gas production from hydraulic fracturing.
Tagged with: barack obama • climate • climate change • energy • environment • greenhouse gas emissions • Paris Agreement • PJM • Trump • United Nations
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Talks and Appearances
A Response to Christina Hoff Sommers
May 13, 2015 in Students
Late last year, after a minor Twitter brouhaha, I put up a blogpost criticizing author Christina Hoff Sommers’ views on the prevalence of rape in America. Today Sommers responded to that post with a four-pronged rebuttal, prompting a round of demands from her followers that I reply.
I’m happy to do so.
Sommers takes issue with my position on four issues — her role in the culture wars of the 1990s, the validity of a 2011 CDC study on rape, her analysis of the 2010 National Crime Victimization Study, and her position regarding rape in the contemporary United States. Let’s take each one in turn.
1. The Culture Wars
In my original post I said that anyone who was “around for the so-called Culture Wars of the mid-1990s” would likely remember Sommers, whose book Who Stole Feminism? “was a centerpiece of right-wing attacks on mainstream feminist theory and organizing at the time.”
Sommers describes this as a “faulty or fabricated” account, saying that she is a Democrat, that Nadine Strossen and Erica Jong wrote her fan mail, and that she, not her critics, represents “mainstream” feminism.
But Sommers is rebutting arguments I didn’t make. I didn’t say that Who Stole Feminism? was a right-wing or an anti-feminist work (although many prominent feminists have). I said that it was a centerpiece of right-wing attacks on mainstream feminism. Which it was.
Right-wingers and anti-feminists absolutely loved Who Stole Feminism? It was glowingly reviewed in practically every prominent conservative publication you can name and endlessly cited by feminism’s critics in print, online, and in face-to-face debates.
You couldn’t poke your head over a feminist parapet in 1995 without having Sommers’ book hurled at your head, is the point. Whether Sommers intended it to play that role in national debates around feminism or not, that’s a role it played.
2. The 2011 CDC Rape Study
In the video to which I was responding in my blogpost, Sommers characterized the CDC study’s questions in this way:
“No-one interviewed was asked if they had been raped or sexually assaulted. Instead of such straightforward questions, the CDC determined whether the responses indicated sexual violation. Now, 61.5% of the women the CDC projected as rape victims in 2010 experienced what the CDC called “alcohol and drug facilitated penetration.” Now, what does that mean? I mean, if a woman was unconscious or incapacitated, then every civilized person would call it rape. But what about sex while inebriated? Few people would say that intoxicated sex alone constitutes rape. Indeed, a non-trivial percentage of all customary sexual intimacy, including marital sex, probably falls under that definition.
There’s a lot going on here, so before we get to my prior critique of this passage and Sommers’ rebuttal, let’s unpack it a bit.
Sommers criticizes the CDC for not asking respondents if they had been raped or sexually assaulted, calling that a “straightforward” question. But the question is anything but straightforward. State laws vary widely in their definitions of rape and sexual assault, as does colloquial usage. To find out whether a person has been subjected to a particular kind of sexual assault, it’s necessary to ask them specific questions.
And what specific questions did the CDC use to, as Sommers put it, “determine whether the responses indicated sexual violation”? The primary one was this: Whether anyone had “used physical force or threats of physical harm to make [the respondent] have” oral, anal, or vaginal sex.
That’s not a vague question. It’s not an ambiguous question. It’s a simple, clear, narrow framing of the issue. And by that definition, using respondents’ answers to that question, the CDC estimates that nearly fifteen million American women have experienced rape in their lifetimes.
The second question the CDC used in that survey was the one Sommers characterized as asking about “alcohol and drug facilitated penetration,” suggesting that it was a catch-all term for any “sex while inebriated.” But let’s look at what that question, in the context in which it was asked, actually says:
“Sometimes sex happens when a person is unable to consent to it or stop it from happening because they were drunk, high, drugged, or passed out from alcohol, drugs, or medications. This can include times when they voluntarily consumed alcohol or drugs or they were given drugs or alcohol without their knowledge or consent. Please remember that even if someone uses alcohol or drugs, what happens to them is not their fault.
“When you were drunk, high, drugged, or passed out and unable to consent, how many people have ever…had vaginal sex with you? Made you perform anal sex? Made you receive anal sex? Made you perform oral sex? Made you receive oral sex?
That’s a lot of verbiage, to be sure, but it repeatedly and explicitly frames the issue under discussion as one of non-consensual activity, specifying at the top that it’s referring to circumstances in which an individual is “unable to consent to … or stop” sexual acts and then later asking about times when “you were … unable to consent.” In the questions about oral and anal sex (though not vaginal) the questioner returns yet again to the question of consent, asking whether someone had “made you” perform or acquiesce to those acts.
Go back and read Sommers’ gloss on this question again, and see whether it strikes you as a fair and accurate summary.
It didn’t strike me as one, so I said this in my post:
She suggests that the CDC counts consensual “sex while inebriated” as rape — indefensible, if true — but she does so by selectively and tendentiously quoting from the questionnaire. In fact, that section of the questionnaire — read to all respondents, but never mentioned by Sommers — states specifically that the questions within it concern sexual contact that “happens when a person is unable to consent to it or stop it from happening because they were drunk, high, drugged, or passed out from alcohol, drugs, or medications.”
Sommers knows this, but she deliberately excludes it from her writing and speaking on the topic in order to facilitate her misrepresentation of the CDC report.
In today’s rebuttal, Sommers accuses me of selective quotation since I left out the third and fourth sentences from the question. But in her video she quoted none of the language at issue, and in a 2014 Time magazine piece she quoted only the two I left out, omitting the initial statement that the questions to follow concern non-consensual sex specifically.
Do I think the CDC’s question was worded as well as it could have been? No. Do I think it left open the possibility of misinterpretation? Yes. But whatever its flaws, the question began with an explicit, unequivocal declaration that the question concerned non-consensual sex. If Sommers has publicly acknowledged that fact before today, I’m unaware of it. (And yes, I just spent a good fifteen minutes Googling.)
One more item on the CDC study before I move on.
In the video, Sommers declared that “61.5% of the women the CDC projected as rape victims in 2010” had responded in the affirmative to the question about drug and alcohol facilitated assault. It would be easy to assume from this phrasing that only the remaining 38.5% of those categorized as having been raped were so identified as a result of saying that they had experienced sexual assault as a result of “physical force or threats of physical harm.”
As it turns out, however, many of the women in the study had experienced multiple forms of sexual assault, and only 41% of the study’s reported assaults were in response to the drug-and-alcohol question. If Sommers had a good reason for using the potentially misleading 61.5% figure instead of the far more straightforward 41% number, I haven’t heard it.
I raised this issue in my original post, by the way, but Sommers didn’t address it in her reply.
3. The 2011 NCVS
In my blogpost I contended that Sommers was exaggerating the differences between the CDC’s rape rate and that obtained by the Department of Justice’s more conservative National Crime Victimization Survey by comparing completed rape numbers from the NCVS with completed-plus-attempted rape numbers from the CDC. In her response today, Sommers says I was “wrong.”
This one is easy: I was wrong.
Here’s how it happened. The NCVS report Sommers cited gave an estimate of 188,000 rapes in the United States in 2010, the figure Sommers relied on. But another report on the same data — this one analyzing only rapes committed against women — found that 143,000 women experienced completed rape that year, while another 89,000 experienced attempted rape. Since the NCVS report did not state explicitly that the 188,000 figure included attempted rape, I concluded that the discrepancy between the 188,000 number and the 143,000 number was a result of the exclusion of men from the second sample, and that the 188,000 figure applied only to completed rapes.
But like I say, I was wrong.
It turns out that the DOJ changed the way that it tabulates rape statistics in 2011. By counting incidents of rape rather than victims of rape, the new formula produces higher numbers. And while the the survey Sommers cited in her video used the old formula, the one I found — analyzing statistics from the same study conducted in the same year — used the new one. My interpretation of the data was plausible, but incorrect. I apologize for the error, and I’ll be correcting the original post.
4. Sommers’ Views on Rape
In the tweet that started this whole exchange, I said that Sommers had fallen further “down the rape denialist well” than I’d previously realized. That phrase — rape denialist — was one that incensed her supporters on Twitter, and explaining it was one of the things I set out to do in my post.
In today’s Facebook post Sommers said that “contesting statistics about rape is not the same as trivializing the crime or being a ‘denialist.'”
I agree with this. In fact, I agree with it so much that I said essentially the same thing myself in a response to a comment on my blogpost more than five months ago:
“The problem that I have with Sommers, ultimately, isn’t that she believes that there are fewer rapes happening in this country than I do. There’s a lot of ambiguity in the statistics, and reasonable people can disagree about which ones should be taken the most seriously.”
So if it’s not our disagreements on which statistics are most reliable that led me to use that term, what was it?
Well, it’s a few things. Partly it’s her misrepresentation of the data, which I addressed in part above and may say more about in another post. But more than that it’s her rhetoric.
According to the NCVS, which Sommers has described as the “gold standard” of sexual assault statistics, three hundred thousand rapes were committed in the United States in the most recent year for which we have information. According to the CDC, something like twenty million American women are survivors of rape or attempted rape — and that remains true even if you, like Sommers, discount their alcohol and drug statistics as unreliable.
In the face of all this, Sommers has described the rape crisis in America as “manufactured.” She has compared it to the Satanic ritual abuse hoaxes of the 1980s. She has declared that there is a “false accusation culture on campus,” and she has approvingly signal-boosted supporters who compared rape accusations to the Salem witch hunts.
This is not the language of statistics. This is not the language of reasoned debate over the precise magnitude of a serious social problem. This is the language of denial.
StudentActivism.net is the work of Angus Johnston, a historian and advocate of American student organizing.
To contact Angus, click here. For more about him, check out AngusJohnston.com.
This thread feels right to me, and clarifies the nature of the present threat. twitter.com/Teri_Kanefield… 28 minutes ago
Angus Johnston on Free Fight Fascism Stickers
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Dr Fumanchu
Bro you get R E K T . Leave while you can.
Pablo García-Campo
(Sorry bad english)
Some questions for anyone who are passing by the comments
-how can we stop false rape accusations? do you think it’s an important issue (even if the numbers are obviously below real rape cases, you know, in our culture a rapist -or someone suspect of being one- is punished harshly by society, gets killed socially)
-should we punish false rape accusations with harder sanctions? (i propose the same jail time as a rapist to stop it when is proven that the supposed “victim” was intentionally lying)
-Do you agree that the intention behind Hoff Sommers rethoric is to improve rape statistic and analysis, to improve prevention and meassure efectively the effectiveness of anti rape campaigns? or do you think she has obscure intentions?
i see her as someone trying to clean the bad image of current feminism and at the same time fighting for men and women’s rights but seriously, without the often misandrist view of the current movement (yeah, i know some feminist say that misandry doesn´t exist and ridiculous and sexist claims like that are what’s killing current feminism -also mainstream feminists like Jessica Valenti are making the job easy for antisexist critics-).
bluestarz
Facts and feminism do not go well together.
Mike Smitts
She referred to the campus rape crisis –
in which even the authors of the 1 in 5 (for college this time, not for the general population) don’t really stand by their claims, and Sen. Gillibrand quietly withdrew that statistic from her website –
in which Emma Sulkowicz’s mattress project is currently in the process of being considered as harassment despite unquestioning media approval, in which Rolling Stone’s A Rape On Campus story (that YOU and countless others decried critics of, using the same sniveling weasel language you see here, even as their completely reasonable criticisms helped the story became undone) is now resulting in two separate lawsuits for the frat and the dean that it defamed in the pursuit of social justice narrative, in which Jameis Winston’s rape accusation is similarly falling apart, the three biggest stories of last year about this issue –
in which Harvard lawyers are joining with civil rights minded individuals and feminists like Emily Yoffe to call out a kangaroo court system in which judicial boards designed to handle plagiarism charges are put in charge of adjudicating what should be a police matter under demand of the federal government, propping up a system that used to not work in one direction so it can not work in the opposite direction –
in which “leftist campus radical” now apparently involves excluding anyone from campus who you find disagreeable, trigger warnings to get rid of problematic material, the censorship of statues and films and plays and performers and art, much of which is done in response to the same “cultural” concerns that led to the calls of a rape crisis in the first place –
as a moral panic. Because the preponderance of evidence says that it is.
versimilitude
Not only did he get rekt, Angus apparently can’t tell the difference between hyperbole and how real people talk.
diomavro
The fact that you label leftistis who dislike the neo feminist narrative right-wingers is ridiculous. In fact, not a single person I’ve met in the last 4-5 years who is leftist would agree with the feminist “patriarchy” narrative.
Just FYI by the standards we use today I would have been sexually assaulted over a dozen times. Sometimes your partner wakes you up in the middle of the night and you aren’t in the mood or are sleepy but they get their way anyway. We can’t even be a little selfless without the other person being characterized as a monster.
This stuff is completely incoherent. Violence or implied violence(if you don’t go through with it you confident that they will become use superior force to get it out of you anyway) are the only coherent ways to define rape. The rest is nonsense and incompatible with free speech.
Other comment was copied wrong from clipboard use this one:
This stuff is completely incoherent. Violence or implied violence(if you don’t go through with it you are confident they will make use of superior force to get it anyway) are the only coherent ways to define rape. The rest is nonsense and incompatible with free speech.
Angus Johnston
I didn’t label anyone a right-winger. I said that right-wingers — self-described right wingers — loved Sommers’ book. They did. You could look it up.
As for the rest of it, I’ve never characterized consensual sex as rape. Never have, never would. If you’re happy to go along with sex with your partner when you’re not particularly in the mood, then go for it. Have fun. Freely chosen agreement is consent, whatever its motivation.
But when you say that “violence or implied violence” is the only “coherent” standard for defining rape, you’re saying that no doesn’t mean no. You’re saying that if someone tells you to stop and you don’t want to stop you don’t have to stop unless they’re afraid you’ll physically overpower them.
And you’re wrong about that. You’re wrong morally, and you’re wrong legally. When someone says stop, you stop. Anything else makes you a rapist.
Puggleby
When you said you had an apology here I expected to see an apology for the claims you were making against C. H. Sommers. Instead I see a simple apology for not doing your research before posting claims.
What I also see here is an arrogant person who is not actually sorry for anything.
“around for the so-called Culture Wars of the mid-1990s” would likely remember Sommers, whose book Who Stole Feminism? “was a centerpiece of right-wing attacks on mainstream feminist theory and organizing at the time.”
Your quote here, whether you intended it to be or not, is an implied accusation. Or at least it appears that way to anyone who reads it. CH Sommers has no control over how her book is used and quoted. Just as you have no control over how someone censors out sections of your writing when posting quotes. To fault her for that is nonsensical. And no, that may not be your intention, but it certainly seems to be.
” I didn’t say that Who Stole Feminism? was a right-wing or an anti-feminist work (although many prominent feminists have).”
I’d also like to point out here that you don’t apologize for the misleading statement. Nor do you say that Who Stole Feminism? isn’t a right-wing or anti-feminist work. You merely deny an accusation by stating you did not particularly say things in that way. And in fact you add in the little tidbit that it has been accused of being so. That little bit really does not help your argument for innocence here.
Your argument about the wording on the rape questionnaire is questionable. In Sommer’s argument she addresses your points by explaining her issues with the questionnaire. Your argument largely seems to address your points by explaining your issues with Sommers. You admit that the questionnaire is open to misinterpretation but then state that, “the question began with an explicit, unequivocal declaration that the question concerned non-consensual sex.” So this question was not open to misinterpretation by your own statement.
“As it turns out, however, many of the women in the study had experienced multiple forms of sexual assault, and only 41% of the study’s reported assaults were in response to the drug-and-alcohol question.”
I would like to know by what means you validate these numbers? Are you using the very questionnaire that Sommers is questioning the accuracy of? And what definition are you using here for sexual assault?
No need to use quotes around the word wrong. You were wrong. It’s not hypothetical. You didn’t check your facts.
The last section again does not help your argument. Rather than showing your desire to have an accurate answer it shows your desire to defame Sommers for, by your own admission, having a problem with her personally. For perceived, whether accurate or not, “misinterpretations” of the data.
She does back up many of her arguments with facts, statistics, and sources, as can be seen in the article that you wrote this in response to. Faulting her for a simple comparison and saying that it isn’t the “language of statistics” is trivial.
“The language of denial…”
Ultimately your article seems like a childish rebuttal and trying to make sense of the point you were attempting to make gave me a headache. You focus too much on attacking Sommers and not enough on validating your viewpoints.
Shiu, I haven’t used the word “epidemic,” so I’m not sure where you’re getting it from. But yeah, if I agreed with Sommers’ minimizing rhetoric, I guess I’d also agree she wasn’t a denialist.
Puggleby, let me take one more swing at the right-wing question, since it’s raised so many hackles.
I have no particular opinion about Sommers’ politics. As I said in my initial post, I haven’t followed her career at all in the last two decades, and I didn’t know much about her then. Is she a right-winger? Is she an anti-feminist? I don’t know the answer to the first question, and I don’t think any answer I’d give to the second would mean very much.
But yes, when I said that her book was beloved by right-wingers and anti-feminists I was making a value judgment. Of course I was. I’m not claiming to be “innocent.” I’m merely clarifying what I said and what I intended.
As for the rest, here goes:
The initial clause of the intoxication question in the CDC study is an unequivocal statement that what’s being asked about is non-consensual activity. Subsequent clauses muddy those waters a bit, but any fair description of the question must acknowledge that it is framed as a question about sexual assault. As far as I know, Sommers never publicly acknowledged it before today.
The 41% figure comes from the CDC study, as does Sommers’ 61.5%. The first is the percent of total reported incidents that involved intoxication, the second is the percent of respondents who answered one or more questions in the affirmative answered the intoxication question that way.
I put quotes around the word wrong because I was quoting Sommers. And then I validated her assesment by using the word twice more, myself, without quotes.
On the last stuff, you don’t find my arguments persuasive. Others do. I don’t know that there’s much more to say, other than that I was rebutting Sommers in this piece because it was a rebuttal to Sommers’ attacks on me. I’ve written pretty extensively elsewhere about my own views on this stuff, and those writings aren’t hard to find if you’re interested.
Sommers was defending her stance from comments you made against her. She was not “attacking” you. This is further evidenced by the fact that she does not attempt to attack your person, as you do to her, but defends her initial points with cross references to other sources which she also sites in her response to your claims. She uses these sources to defend her points, not to attack you.
Also, again, you are making claims against Sommers person based on how you’ve personally seen others interpret her work. There is nothing statistical about that. By your own admission you do not know much about her but are making personal judgments.
Also when defending the validity of a study it’s good to use cross references that support that your viewpoints or opinions. Sommers did this while you did not. That’s statistics. This borders more on opinion.
I don’t believe I am interested in more of your work. What I’ve seen here is a major turn off. You argue the technicalities of wording (and personal interpretation at that) and fail to make a strong point or argument. You did not defend your points with facts, references, or statistics. You also did not do much in defending the validity of the CDC study (which is where cross references would have com in handy) but assume that the reader will believe in it’s validity as much as you do.
A Response to Christina Hoff Sommers | iheariseeilearn
[…] A Response to Christina Hoff Sommers. […]
PixelMamba
A bit off topic, but in a response to an earlier comment, you wrote:
>>>”But when you say that “violence or implied violence” is the only “coherent” standard for defining rape, you’re saying that no doesn’t mean no. You’re saying that if someone tells you to stop and you don’t want to stop you don’t have to stop unless they’re afraid you’ll physically overpower them.
And you’re wrong about that. You’re wrong morally, and you’re wrong legally. When someone says stop, you stop. Anything else makes you a rapist.”<<<
I am pretty sure what he meant was forced sex and sex under duress. I think forced sex, or conditions under duress, defines rape pretty well.
Forced applies when it's against their will, consists of an inability to interpret the situation in an informed manner (i.e. mentally impaired, too young) or is without their knowledge (i.e. unconscious, drugged, mentally compromised).
Duress applies pretty much anytime consent is given under threat, fear of retribution or reprisal, or ultimatum.
It's important to remember consent is body language as well as verbal. That's crucial when say, reading body language so you know when "stop" is a pillow word or serious.
Pixel, he said that in the absence of violence or the threat of violence — actual physical violence — there’s no such thing as rape. He said that sex acquiesced to out of fear of retribution or reprisal or ultimatum does not count as rape unless the specific fear is the fear that “if you don’t go through with it…they will make use of superior force to get it anyway.”
That’s what he said. Anything else is “nonsense.” That’s what he said.
It’s repellent. But it’s what he said.
He did not say “physical” violence if you want to nitpick at words. That’s something you implied. He also did not say “sex acquiesced to out of fear of retribution or reprisal or ultimatum does not count as rape unless the specific fear is the fear that…” In fact all he said was, “Violence or implied violence(if you don’t go through with it you are confident they will make use of superior force to get it anyway) are the only coherent ways to define rape.” Violence can be emotional as well as physical.
Also the word coherent is in here as well; “logical or consistent.” Which can be agreed with without being “repellant” as rape has always been considered violent.
This is something that may be up to interpretation and also an opinion that may have more depth to it, had you actually attempted to discuss with the author and asked more of his opinion before labeling him repellent and going on a “that’s what he said,” rant while putting your personal interpretations in his mouth.
I’m in agreement with Pixel, “I am pretty sure what he meant was forced sex and sex under duress. I think forced sex, or conditions under duress, defines rape pretty well.”
Your problem with understanding others seems to come from the lack of consideration for the fact that perhaps they are not using words in the exact same way you are. Also it’s a bit funny that you complain about Sommers twisting your words while you do it yourself to, rather than discuss, create an attacker out of someone with an opposing viewpoint.
If I’d thought what diomavro said was ambiguous, Puggleby, I would have asked for clarification. I didn’t, and don’t.
You’re right that he didn’t say physical violence specifically, just violence. But as you yourself noted, he followed that up with a reference to fear that your assailant “will make use of superior force” to have sex with you against your will.
What can “make use of superior force” mean in this context other than physically overpowering someone? Maybe you have an alternate explanation, but I don’t. In my reading, diomavro clearly stated that rape is only rape if you force someone to have sex or they acquiesce due to fear that you’ll exert such force.
I’m not twisting his words, I’m reading them. If I’m reading them wrong, okay. Show me how. Because I don’t see it.
You’re right that I wasn’t trying to convince him to change his mind. I was pointing out that his definition of rape is inconsistent with the law and noting that I find it reprehensible.
If you want my definition of rape — if you want to know the perspective I’m coming from when I call diomavro’s position repellent — here it is, in two parts:
First, if you have sex with someone who is unable to freely and meaningfully consent — because of age, incapacity, unconsciousness, or any other reason — it’s rape.
Second, if someone doesn’t want to have sex with you, and you know or should know that this is the case, and you have sex with them anyway, it’s rape.
The first of these two principles is pretty self-explanatory, but let me say a little bit more about the second.
My view is that if someone hasn’t consented to have sex with you, you have a moral obligation to respect that. It doesn’t matter why they don’t want to have sex with you, and it doesn’t matter how you get around their lack of consent. If they’re not consenting, and you have sex with them, you’re raping them.
There are other questions to be answered in fleshing this definition out, of course — how we define consent, how we establish whether consent exists, what it means to say that someone “should know” that they don’t have consent — and I’d be happy to discuss them if you like. But this, in a nutshell, is where I’m coming from.
Marcel Weiher
1. The “right wingers loved her book” context
If you didn’t mean anything by it, why did you include this? Of course you meant it, as “smear by association”. Of course, this says nothing about the book, and everything about you, as you apparently find it sufficiently damning if “the wrong kinds of people” like something. And if “the right kind of people” don’t like it.
In other times, this might have been called “bipartisanship” or “reaching across the aisle”. Or, this may be too radical, the book should stand on its own merits, and not be evaluated by whether the right or wrong people like it.
2. Facts and Figures
Glad you came out and admitted that you were wrong. That takes courage, and I applaud you for it.
3. The CDC study’s problematic wording
You admit that the wording is “less than ideal”. It is less than that. Particularly, the following:
“When you were drunk, high, drugged, or passed out and unable to consent, how many people have ever…had vaginal sex with you?”
The problem is that it isn’t clear how the “and unable” binds. Does it bind “(drunk, high, drugged or passed out) AND unable to consent”. Or does it bind “drunk, high, drugged or (passed out AND unable to consent)”.
Another issue is that it counts being drunk and unable to consent as rape, even if that state applied to both parties equally. You assert that these problems do not matter, even though at the same time this particular survey with these particular problems yields vastly different numbers, numbers that are inconsistent with just about everything else known about the subject.
For example, the simple fact that in this survey, men are “raped” at the same rate as women (if you include “forced to penetrate”), strongly suggests that the participants of the survey did read the instructions simply as “did you have sex while drunk or high”.
You write “something like twenty million American women are survivors of rape or attempted rape”. No, according to the CDC, the same number of men are survivors of rape or attempted rape. Either you take the CDC numbers or you don’t, no cherry picking.
4. The “Crisis”
In the end though, we come back to language, something you dismissed in the comments to your earlier piece, despite the fact that it is THE crucial issue, once you have to admit (as you did), that her numbers are correct.
‘In the face of all this, Sommers has described the rape crisis in America as “manufactured.” ‘
The thing is: there is no “crisis”. Yes, rape is a Bad Thing™. Really bad. No one in their right mind disagrees with that.
However, as I pointed out before, a “crisis” is something quite different, that goes beyond “Bad Thing” There is a crucial elements of the situation worsening, a complex system potentially going out of control completely and, if the right action is not taken, turning into complete catastrophe.
If you are unclear about the difference, here are a couple of examples: the Cuban Missile Crisis was a crisis. The cold war was not. The financial crisis of 2008 was a crisis, the long erosion of the middle class by right wing politicians starting with Reagan was not.
Adding “crisis” does not make one thing worse than the other (for example, IMHO the long term erosion of the middle class by Reagen-esque politics is far worse than the financial crisis). Conversely removing “crisis” from something does not make it better, or belittle the problem. They are just different things.
None of these elements apply to the “rape crisis”: the situation has actually been getting consistently and significantly better for the last 30 years, there is no “crisis moment” that is detectable, there is no large system (all of society) that is at risk of descending into chaos if the appropriate remedial action is not taken now. There is no urgency about this particular point in time, the urgency is equally applicable to 10 years ago or 20 years ago (more so in fact, because the situation was worse then).
I think Mrs. Sommers credits the people she criticizes with knowing the difference between a genuine “crisis” and the situation right now, and when you assume that, you come to the conclusion that the mischaracterization of the situation as a crisis is intentional, hence “manufactured”. There is a lot of evidence for this point of view, but I tend to go with the old adage “never attribute to malice what you can attribute to stupidity”.
Marcel, my impression is that most of the points you raise have been hashed out before, and that even where they haven’t, we’re unlikely to reach common ground. Some of this stuff we just disagree on, and some of it we interpret so differently as to make it impossible for us to have a productive conversation. If anyone wants me to respond to one or two of your arguments I’d be happy to do that, but I’m not going to try to rebut them all.
I will, though, say one thing. You write that “there is no urgency about this particular point in time” with regard to rape in America, that because there was more rape a few decades ago, there’s definitionally no crisis now. (I hope I’ve done your position justice with that summary — I’ve tried to keep my thumb off the scale.)
My response? I agree that there was far more rape in America a few decades ago, and that rape was far more accepted by society. Rape rates have, to the best of our ability to measure, dropped a lot since the mid-20th century. The numbers are dramatic, and the story they tell is incredibly welcome. So yes, I do believe that long-term trends are in the right direction. I’ve written about this before, in detail, on more than one occasion.
So why do I still call rape in America a crisis? Because although the numbers are better, they’re still horrific. Use the CDC’s numbers, use the DOJ’s numbers, use whatever numbers you want — they all tell me that rape is still shockingly prevalent. They all tell me that there’s still a huge amount of work to be done.
Rape rates are dropping. They’re dropping fast. But they’re dropping precisely because we’ve begun to address rape as a crisis.
Now, yeah, we can quibble about nomenclature. And yeah, if anyone were to come to me to say that we’re facing a *worsening* rape crisis in America, I’d tell them they were wrong. (And I have.) But if you want to tell me there’s no rape crisis in this country you have to say one of two things: Either there was a crisis and it’s over, or it was never a crisis at all.
And neither of those assessments makes much sense to me.
One other thing, Marcel. You say that nobody in their right mind disagrees that rape is really bad and really serious. And yet every time I post about rape, I get commenters coming to my blog to tell me that acts that the law clearly categorizes as rape aren’t really rape at all. Every time.
So forgive me if I’m not as sanguine as you are that everybody’s on the anti-rape team.
You are quite ridiculous.
The word force does not automatically apply to the physical properties. Superior force means in greater size (physical) or power (which can have a variety of other meanings.) As I have already pointed out you can emotionally twist someone and exert superior force in such a manner. That’s one simple example.
You admit that your opinion is personal bias. Yes, you are reading his words, but you are also applying your personal understanding and interpretation to them. This is why you probably should have asked him a few questions before casting labels.
I am not arguing what constitutes as consent. That was not my concern. My concern was that you are adding a meaning that you implied to someone else’s post and attacked them as a result.
I said nowhere that you should try to convince him. If I had said that it would have implied that I thought he was wrong. But, as I understand and believe his meaning to be personally, I don’t. What I meant is that you should try to better understand someone’s viewpoint before casting a label on them and trying to smear their name.
Nobody in their “right mind” would disagree that rape is bad or serious.
Commenters are coming to your blog because you posted a link on Sommers’ response to your initial allegations. That was an invitation if you didn’t know. You even advertised that it included an apology. You should have expected some opposing viewpoints.
Now you’re trying to turn around and cry “attack” when you initiated both Sommers’ response and the comments that have been brought to your blog.
Puggleby, I don’t see where I’ve complained about anyone coming here to comment, but I think we’re at an impasse here. We each find the other’s interpretation of diamavro’s statement unconvincing. Let’s leave it at that.
[new comments snipped]
Marcel, Pugglesby, at this point you’re both just recycling arguments you’ve already made while ignoring my responses to them. I’ve given you a platform to do that for long enough. We’re done.
I’m sorry, but I don’t see how those were recycled arguments.
I didn’t ignore any of your responses. I even said I agreed with you on dropping the initial discussion.
Basically what I see here is someone blocking and attempting to demonize those that are breaking up his narrative rather than actually having discussions. Apparently you were asked questions you were uncomfortable answering.
And sure go ahead and snip this comment too since it’s direct and bound to make you feel uncomfortable.
somePasserby
Okay, so
1) how do we define a rape “crisis” ?
2) Did the questionaire in question indeed contain passage that amounts to, fullquote “if they had ever had sex because someone pressured them by “telling you lies,” “making promises about the future they knew were untrue,” or “showing they were unhappy.” All affirmative answers were counted as “sexual violence.” ?
No 1 is a straightfoward, practical question for assessing and managing “crisises”.
No 2… if it is true, it disqualifies the entire questionaire, IMO.
Pugglesby, I’m neither blocking nor trying to demonize you. I’m noting that the current conversation is degenerating into repetition and invective, and drawing it to a close. I’m trying to do that politely. Sorry if you don’t like it.
Passerby, I’m done being cross-examined about the phrase “rape crisis.” Accept or reject my position, it’s up to you. Hundreds of thousands of rapes every year, the overwhelming majority of them unpunished. That’s a crisis to me.
As for the second issue, I think the issue of how we understand sexual violence is an important and complex one, and I’m glad the CDC is trying to gather data on sexual acts that fall outside the realm of legal prohibition.
And yes, I do think that lying to someone with the specific aim of getting them to have sex with you is sexually predatory. I think that trying to wear someone down after they’ve told you they don’t want sex — “pressur[ing] you by wearing you down by repeatedly asking for sex, or showing they were unhappy,” in the words of the study — is vile behavior too.
And while those behaviors are grouped under the general heading of “other sexual violence” in the study, and while yes, I agree with you that that’s a poor phrasing, the specific category they’re placed within is “sexual coercion,” which I see as both accurate and descriptive.
If you pressure someone to have sex with them by lying, that’s coercive behavior. If you try to wear them down in the face of them telling you they don’t want sex, or try to guilt them into it by telling them how sad their rejection makes you feel, that’s coercive behavior.
As I’ve said more than once, I think the CDC study is flawed. It’s a first attempt to do something really important and radically new. I’d be shocked if it wasn’t flawed.
One more thing about the legal definition of rape, since it seems to be in question.
Under New York State law, a person is guilty of rape or sexual assault in the third degree — a felony — if they engaged in a sexual act after
“the victim clearly expressed that he or she did not consent to engage in
such act, and a reasonable person in the actor’s situation would have
understood such person’s words and acts as an expression of lack of
consent to such act under all the circumstances.”
So if you try something with someone, and they say no, and a reasonable person would understand that they meant it, and you go ahead anyway — even for a moment — you’re guilty of rape or sexual assault under New York law.
Doesn’t matter whether you were hoping to change their mind by trying again, doesn’t matter why they said no, doesn’t matter if they stop resisting and let you go ahead.
If they say no, and they mean it, and you do it anyway, you’re committing a felony.
So basically, being honest about one’s feelings in a relationship is by definition coercion if those feelings are not happy.
That’s nice to know.
Lying is, of course, vile behavior, but it is almost by definition non-violent behavior, and trying to drag it alongside sexual violence creates confusion at best, contaminates the study at worst.
Classifying lies as coercion also seems rather questionable (lies are, duh, deception – not coercion).
Also, do my high heels count as lying (they make me look taller than I am, thus communicating false information)?
It’s easy to mock the language of the CDC study, particularly when you strip fragments of questions from context. As I’ve said repeatedly, it’s a flawed study. But I’m not sure what words like “disqualifies” and “contaminates” mean in this context.
If a question on a survey seems poorly worded to me, I’ll take that into account when assessing the validity of the responses to that question. If I disagree with the survey creators’ interpretation of their results, I’ll interpret it as I please. If I have criticisms of their methodology, I’ll raise them, and hope they’re corrected in the future. All of that is pretty standard in dealing with this kind of data.
So yeah, I take the CDC study with a grain of salt. Some of its results seem strong, some seem wobbly, and some are downright confounding. But the project is a worthy one, and some of its findings strike me as useful contributions to our understanding of sexual assault — a vital topic where we lack reliable data.
But none of this is anything I haven’t said before.
Open Thread and Link Farm, Buildings In The Middle Of The Street Edition | Alas, a Blog
[…] A Response to Christina Hoff Sommers | (Speaking of Angus Johnston.) […]
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#ItsBiggerThanKSU and Students’ Rights on Campus »
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Condé Nast Enters Into Agreement To Acquire Leading Social Data And Marketing Platform CitizenNet
Acquisition Will Extend Condé Nast’s Data Platform with Industry-Leading Audience Targeting and Campaign Optimization Capabilities Across Social Platforms
Condé Nast today announced that the company has entered into an agreement to acquire CitizenNet, a leading social data and marketing platform. The acquisition will deepen Condé Nast’s data science talent and expertise and will be incorporated into Condé Nast’s proprietary data product “Condé Nast Spire,” to expand the audience targeting and data capabilities of Condé Nast beyond the company’s owned and operated properties to social platforms where the company’s iconic brands have more than 174 million social followers.
“With continued investment in both our internal talent and brands, and our acquisitions of Pitchfork and Backchannel, Condé Nast has driven record audience and digital revenue growth,” said Fred Santarpia, chief digital officer of Condé Nast. “Our relentless commitment to investing in quality expands beyond editorial to engineering and data, and is also represented by our recent acquisition of Poetica, and now, CitizenNet. This is just the beginning of our investment phase, and we will continue to identify, acquire, and cultivate brands and companies that match our commitment to excellence as we respond to the rapid changes in the media and technology sector.”
Condé Nast Spire combines online behavioral data with online and offline purchase data to provide the ability to optimize campaigns in real time and at a highly personalized level. This capability will now be extended by integrating the large social data sets and patented algorithms of CitizenNet, to deliver an industry-leading reach and performance data product. The company’s advertising and marketing partners will now be able to reach their desired audiences, at scale, across all platforms.
“The combination of Condé Nast’s deep first party data and CitizenNet’s unique capability to target and optimize content and campaigns across our owned and operated properties and vast social followings, will create an industry-first platform for our advertising partners,” said Karthic Bala, head of data strategy for Condé Nast. “The enhanced Condé Nast data platform will be a one-stop solution to close the loop on performance, and measure the effectiveness of campaigns across multiple channels and platforms.”
CitizenNet, a social data and marketing platform, which utilizes machine learning and artificial intelligence to put the right content, offer or advertisement in front of the right person at the right time is based in Los Angeles, CA and has a team of 42 employees led by CEO Dan Benyamin, a serial entrepreneur who has been building data platforms for more than 15 years. The CitizenNet team will remain based in Los Angeles and continue to service its current clients.
“Condé Nast not only has some of the most iconic brands in the world, but also incredible data capabilities, and I’m looking forward to digging in with the team and unlocking the potential,” said Benyamin. “We’ve only begun to scratch the surface of what Machine Learning and AI can do, and it’s exciting to think about the possibilities of being a part of a global media company like Condé Nast.”
Inertia Advisors served as exclusive financial advisor to CitizenNet on the transaction. Inertia Advisors is a boutique investment bank providing M&A and growth capital advisory services for technology companies and is a division of KEMA Partners LLC, a SEC Registered Broker-Dealer.
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Jobs Numbers Improve, Even As Unemployment Rate Edges Up
By John Zappe September 3, 2010 July 23, 2015
The unemployment rate rose for the first time in four months in August, while private sector employers added 67,000 jobs. Overall, the U.S. economy lost 54,000 non-farm jobs during the month, almost all of it attributable to the continuing layoff of temporary census workers.
The numbers released by the U.S. Labor Department this morning continue a pattern seen for months. The unemployment rate has moved in a range from 9.7 percent in January to the 9.5 percent it has been at since June. The private sector, meanwhile, has been steadily, if slowly adding jobs. Government, is cutting workers.
So while the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics report is essentially more of the same, Wall Street is reacting positively. Stocks opened strong with the Dow zooming 100 points in the early trading. Investors appear to be looking at the half-full side of the glass.
Economists were expecting a gloomier report. Estimates varied, as they do each month, depending on what analysts and economists are surveyed; however, the job loss was anticipated to be north of 100,000.
One particularly positive sign is that the private sector number was about twice what was forecast. Following Thursday’s report of fewer new claims for unemployment benefits, the second consecutive drop after weeks of gains, the improvement is at least that, an improvement.
Additionally, the BLS revised the June and July numbers downward. They now show the economy lost 175,000 jobs rather than 221,000 in June (due almost entirely to the census layoffs) and 54,000 in July, instead of the previously reported 131,000.
Private sector numbers also improved. Rather than the 71,000 initially reported for July, 107,000 jobs were added. And in June, the private sector added 61,000 jobs, versus the initial 31,000.
One reason for August’s increase in the unemployment rate is the increase in people looking for work. The participation rate rose one-tenth of a percent to 64.7 percent. In August 2009 it was 65.4 percent. Workers who had quit looking for a job, and are therefore not counted as being in the labor force, are returning. The rate of increase is slow, but edging up.
Translating the percentages into numbers, the BLS said there were 14.86 million unemployed people in August. In July the number was 14.59 million. Unemployment numbers, however, tell only part of the story. In addition to those out of work, another 8.9 million in August — an increase of 331,000 over July — were working part-time because they had no other option. Another 2.4 million workers are considered marginally attached to the work force. They didn’t look for work during the four weeks preceding the BLS survey period, but they wanted a job and had job hunted during the previous 12 months.
Add up those numbers and they show the depth and breadth of the recession.
News & TrendsEconomic
4 Comments on “Jobs Numbers Improve, Even As Unemployment Rate Edges Up”
Jehnavi pat says:
Average hourly wages of workers rose 5 cents, or 0.3 percent, to $ 18.46 compared to the previous month. hourly earnings were 3.9 percent above January 2008. Economists surveyed by Bloomberg had forecast a 0.2 percent gain in December and 3.6 percent for the period of 12 months.
http://www.financeandmarkets.net/employment-market-in-dire-straits.html
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Monster Settles Stock Backdating Case for $2.5 million
By John Zappe May 18, 2009 August 7, 2015
Just days after its former Chief Operating Officer was convicted of stock fraud, Monster Worldwide has agreed to pay $2.5 million to settle charges brought against the company by the Securities and Exchange Commission.
The SEC accused the company this morning of filing false statements about the granting of millions of stock options and failing to properly account for their issuance. In the complaint filed in the District Court for Southern District of New York, the SEC alleges “Monster filed false and materially misleading statements concerning the true grant date and exercise price of stock options in its annual, quarterly and current reports, proxy statements and registration statements.”
The complaint was accompanied by a notice of the proposed settlement, which, in addition to the penalty, says Monster must also “consent to the entry of an order permanently enjoining it from violating the antifraud, reporting, recordkeeping and internal controls provisions of the federal securities laws.”
The SEC and the U.S. Attorney’s Office have been investigating Monster and its backdating of stock options granted to senior executives and others in order to make them more valuable. Last week, former Monster COO James Treacy was convicted by a federal jury in New York City of one count of securities fraud, and one count of conspiracy to commit securities fraud, file false statements with the SEC, make false statements to auditors, and falsify books and records. He faces up to 25 years on the conviction.
In settling the case Monster is neither admitting nor denying wrongdoing. However, in the press release issued by the SEC, New York Acting Regional Director unambiguously said, “Monster misled investors by failing to report hundreds of millions of dollars of expenses. Backdating stock options made the company look like it had more money than it really did.”
The SEC said it took into account that Monster cooperated with investigators and that the company’s management has changed since the investigation began in 2006.
Four of Monster’s former executives were accused in connection with the backdating investigation. They are the late CEO Andrew McKelvey, General Counsel Myron Olesnyckyj, Controller Anthony Bonica, and Treacy. McKelvey, terminally ill with cancer at the time the charges were filed, was allowed a special deal in which he admitted his guilty, but not prosecuted. Olesnyskyj became a government witness in the case and pleaded guilty to a single charge. The SEC case against Bonica has not been resolved.
Monster’s brief statement on the settlement includes a comment from CEO Sal Iannuzzi who says: “This is an important step in closing an unfortunate chapter in the company’s history and putting the issue firmly behind us. Our current executive team has spent the last two years refocusing Monster on its customers and shareholders, retooling the day-to-day management, and overhauling governance in an effort to adhere to the highest standards.”
Job BoardsFinancialNews & Trends
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Company Affirmation of Readiness (CAR) towards COVID-19
By admin News March 23, 2020
In the present situation of pandemic COVID -19 or Coronavirus, the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA), Govt. of India has also taken a major step towards prevention of spreading of this virus among the employees working in the companies or Limited Liability Partnerships (LLPs) registered with MCA in India.
Accordingly, in the wake of preventing spread of Covid-19, the Ministry has deployed a Self-Declaratory Web Form on its website viz. CAR (Company Affirmation of Readiness towards COVID-19), which is to be filed voluntarily by all the Companies/LLPs registered with MCA. It is a kind of self-declaration by the Companies/LLPs specifying that these Companies/LLPs are aware of the threat of COVID-19 and taking all the precautionary measures suggested by the Government to prevent spread of this virus among their employees and also introducing Work From Home Policy for safeguarding their employees.
The key features of this form are:
Simple Web based Form with few fields to be filled in.
There is no fee to be paid for filing this form.
There are no deadlines to file this form as it is purely voluntary;
To be filed by all the Companies or LLPs registered with MCA whether these are Indian or Foreign.
No SRN will be generated after filing and an acknowledgement will be sent over the mail.
You can get to know more about this by clicking on the given link http://www.mca.gov.in/Ministry/pdf/Car_22032020.pdf.
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Students ‘Survive the Night’
Donnella Collison
Students bundle up on the cold 6 a.m. hour of Nov. 15, after surviving the night on the Oviatt Lawn. Photo Credit: Bodhi Severns / Contributing Photographer
CSUN students slept Saturday night on CSUN’s lawns in an effort to “Survive the Night” and experience life as a homeless person as part of Homeless Awareness Month.
The students, provided with cardboard boxes, spent the night experiencing soup kitchens, homeless shelter simulations and unforgiving weather conditions as part of the event held by CSUN’s newly revived Unified We Serve volunteer program.
According to Justin Weiss, the coordinator for the volunteer program, Saturday night’s event was an effort to create more empathy for the situation many homeless people face.
“We are trying to create a paradigm shift where students don’t think of people in poverty are there because they are lazy, uneducated or don’t want to work, but because of a set of circumstances,” Weiss said.
Through simulations of the various challenges the homeless, especially the mentally and physically ill, face in finding food, shelter and employment, Weiss said they want students to gain a first-hand experience of the struggles the homeless face.
Eboni Blanche, a senior public health major and a volunteer at Saturday’s event, said the aim of the sleepover was to use the student’s personal experience to enact change.
“In order to truly make a difference, you have to experience it. You can’t approach this with an outsiders view. Many times people try to have an “‘I think this is what needs to be done’ mentality’ but it is not always what is needed,” Blanche said.
The event also included speeches and testimonies from people who experienced homelessness. One of the speakers, Phillip Watson, a man who described himself as chronically homeless, said he would often find himself without shelter at various points in his life but that he was fortunate enough to have family members who cared for him.
Watson said, “students will understand more the conditions homeless face” because of Saturday night’s event and that he also learned about some of the attitudes of others towards the homeless.
He said that the students’ experience on Saturday night was the first step in helping the homeless.
“It’s like a journey of a thousand miles that starts with one step,” Watson said. “I’m impressed with the sacrifice students are making. It means so much to see students doing this.”
Watson said he does not believe he will ever be homeless again but said that he would advise students to “avoid debt like the plague” as he believes debt and war are huge causes of homelessness.
One student who survived the night, Carroll Brown, a senior graphic design major, said he had a sense of accomplishment in the morning.
“It was extremely cold but what kept me going was that I was experiencing something that people experience everyday,” he said.
Freshman student Akbar Kajtibi said he experienced how tough being homelessness is for those in the community.
“It’s not fun,” he said. “I am ready to go home to my blankets and a roof. I cannot imagine being homeless. It’s almost unreal. I would never want to end up like this.”
Volunteer Tima Alqubandi said she hopes people’s attitudes towards the homeless were changed.
“Here we are complaining and moaning,” Alqubandi said. “What about places where it’s colder. How do they survive, get money? We were fed tonight, and given boxes. People go for days without eating and any shelter.
She said she hopes that after Saturday’s event more people will decide to volunteer.
“I feel like everyone here are good people but now they will be more confident enough to talk to a homeless person and try to help them,” she said.
Weiss said that currently the volunteer program is looking for more students to join to help create more programs like “Survive the Night.”
Blanche said that in the end, she believes their goals were accomplished.
“I feel that students got it. We cleared up some stigmas about being homeless. I hope students take what they learned and continue to break the stereotypes and spread the knowledge they gained,” she said.
Donnella Collison, Author
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COVID-19 Update: Southern California ICUs reach full capacity
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VNR Lab - Beyond the Voluntary National Reviews: mobilizing support and building national partnerships
VNR Lab
The meeting of the High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF) in 2020 will be held from Tuesday, 7 July, to Thursday, 16 July 2020, under the auspices of the Economic and Social Council. The theme will be "Accelerated action and transformative pathways: realizing the decade of action and delivery for sustainable development".
As part of its follow-up and review mechanisms, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development encourages member States to conduct regular and inclusive Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs) of progress at the national and sub-national levels. The VNRs facilitate the sharing of experiences, strengthening policies and institutions of governments, mobilizing multi-stakeholder support and partnerships for the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), with a view to accelerating the implementation of the 2030 Agenda. In 2020, 51 countries will be conducting their VNRs at HLPF.
The VNR Labs provide an informal platform to share best practices and to reflect on the experience thus far with the VNRs, focusing on cross-cutting themes and country experiences.
It is widely recognized that the successful implementation of the 2030 Agenda requires a transformation in our societies that can only be achieved through engaging and leveraging the unique roles and resources of all sectors and stakeholders of society.
The VNR Lab on "Beyond the VNRs: mobilizing support and building national partnerships" will explore and showcase practices on how countries can systematically catalyze national multi-stakeholder partnerships for mobilizing and sharing knowledge, expertise, technologies and financial resources to support implementation of the SDGs, including through their VNR process. The Lab will also explore how countries can help creating an enabling environment that may encourage and foster collaboration across stakeholders.
Mr. Siddharth Chatterjee, UN Resident Coordinator, Kenya
Kick-off presentation
2030 Agenda Partnership Accelerator - An enabling ecosystem for systematically building national partnerships (Dr. Darian Stibbe, Executive Director, The Partnering Initiative)
Mr. Julius Korir, PS, State Department of Youth Affairs, Government of Kenya
Ms. Francella Strickland, Assistant Chief Executive Officer, Ministry of Foreign Affairs & Trade, Government of Samoa
Mr. Alen John, SDG Officer, NITI Aayog, Government of India
Ms. Riina Pursiainen, Partnership Adviser, Prime Minister’s Office, Government of Finland
Guiding questions
What can governments do to ensure an enabling environment for mobilizing support and fostering national partnerships? What examples are there of policy / legislation that actively supports partnerships for sustainable development?
What are some examples of national partnerships for SDG collaboration? What are the challenges, and what are the key success factors?
What does it take to run effective national partnership platforms which convene societal sectors around SDG priorities, and catalyze implementation of innovative initiatives?
What can donors do to better support effective national partnerships?
Participation and format
The format of the event will be moderated panel discussion. As a participant, you will have the possibility to pose questions to the panelists through the virtual chat window.
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Tarryn Li-Min Chun
Tarryn Chun is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Film, Television, and Theatre at the University of Notre Dame, where she also holds a concurrent appointment in the department of East Asian Languages and Cultures and is a Faculty Fellow at the Liu Institute for Asia and Asian Studies. Prior to joining the faculty at Notre Dame, she was a postdoctoral fellow in the Lieberthal-Rogel Center for Chinese Studies at the University of Michigan and she has taught at Harvard University, Boston University, and Emerson College. Her research focuses on modern and contemporary Chinese theatre, and she teaches courses in Asian theatre, global theatre history, intercultural performance, adaptation, and intersections among theatre and other arts/media. Her work has appeared in TDR: The Drama Review, Asian Theatre Journal, Wenxue (Literature), Xiju yishu (Theatre Arts) and the edited volumes Staging China: New Theatres for the Twenty-First Century (Palgrave Macmillan, 2015) and A New Literary History of Modern China (Harvard University Press, 2017). Currently, she is completing a book manuscript entitled Revolutionary Stagecraft: Theatre, Technology, and Media in Modern China, which examines the relationship between technological modernization and artistic innovation in 20th-21st century Chinese theatre. Previous research projects have focused on the reception and reinvention of traditional Chinese literature and drama – both canonical classics and folktales – in the modern era. Other current research interests include Sinophone theater; theatrical and intermedial adaptation; intersections of theater, film, and literature; and Cold War-era cultural exchange.
Tarryn also serves as Vice-President of the Association for Asian Performance and is a member of the board of trustees of the Princeton Triangle Club, a collegiate musical theatre organization.
Academia.edu page
Harvard EALC
World Sinophone Drama Competition
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TVA Apalachia Dam and Reservoir
Natural Area, Lake, River, or Waterfall
No ADA accessibility available at Apalachia Dam and Reservoir
Apalachia Reservoir is a small, deep, cool-water reservoir set in the mountains in Cherokee County, North Carolina. While the dam is in North Carolina, an 8.3-mile underground pipe carries water from the reservoir to the powerhouse located 12 miles downstream across the state line in Tennessee. The dam was primarily built to generate hydropower during World War II. Today, not only does it generate electricity, the reservoir also provides a beautiful site for fishing, canoeing, hiking and primitive camping.
For more information about TVA dams, visit www.tva.gov.
The Tennessee Valley Authority is a corporate agency of the United States that provides electricity for business customers and local power distributors serving more than 9 million people in parts of seven southeastern states. For more information about TVA and its mission of service to the Tennessee Valley, click here.
From Chattanooga: Take I-75 N to exit 20 (US-74/64 by-pass) at Cleveland; go east, following US-74/64. Turn left on TN-68 to right on Appalachia Dam Rd.
Pets welcome but must be kept on a leash no longer than 6-feet. TVA is a partner of Leave No Trace and requests that visitors follow Leave No Trace practices, including picking up after your pet.
Adjacent to the Nantahala National Forest, the reservoir has very little private shoreline development and no commercial recreation facilities. Because of its remote location, relatively few anglers use the reservoir, although there is a significant amount of rafting and fishing downstream. Sport fish include smallmouth bass, spotted bass, largemouth bass, redbreast sunfish and white bass.
Seasons Accessible
Visitor centers, trails, boat ramps, and canoe access points operated by TVA are provided to the public with no fee.
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The Role of Emerging Technologies in Women's Health and Sustainable Development
Sat, 02/16/2019 - 12:04 By Manager System…
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Sustainable development requires the empowerment of women. UNWomen's "Women's Empowerment Principles are: Equality Means Business. Empowering women to participate fully in economic life across all sectors is essential to build stronger economies, achieve internationally agreed goals for development and sustainability, and improve the quality of life for women, men, families and communities" Women’s empowerment is incomplete without access to health services in every life-stage. The emergence of new technologies, open source software and open technologies makes it possible for developing countries to aspire to reach higher levels of health empowerment for women in a shorter time with minimal new budget. Today’s economic situation doesn’t have to determine current and future health empowerment of women.
The World Government Summit's paper provides insights needed for policy interventions, aided by technology, to ensure women’s health empowerment and social justice. World Government Summit propose a technology model that considers the community and the individual aspects of women’s health empowerment. According to the paper, the following issues present significant barriers to women’s health empowerment:
Lack of appropriate infrastructure and investments, restricting women’s health choices
Social norms and institutions that prevent or impede choice for women, whether with their consent or through coercion
Policy context that is unable to provide an integrated approach towards women’s health empowerment.
The challenges at hand, and how technology can help
>500k Women die every year in pregnancy and childbirth
99% live in the developing world
50% Adults living with HIV/AIDS worldwide are women
An integrated approach using emerging technologies like AI, IoT and blockchain can help scale the current health infrastructure and harness the power of ecosystems to address critical gaps, while enabling real-time data-driven decisions that help women take control of their health.
Original article appeared on the World Government Summit website at https://www.worldgovernmentsummit.org/observer/reports/list/the-role-of-emerging-technologies-in-women's-health-and-sustainable-development
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The Suffolk County DA’s Attack On Public Defenders Was Misguided
During a Boston radio show where Rachael Rollins accused defenders of harming Black and Brown communities, the DA demonstrated that she misunderstands the role that prosecutors play in the criminal legal system: caging those very people.
On Feb. 25, Suffolk County District Attorney Rachael Rollins updates an investigation into a Feb. 7 police shooting at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston.
Premal Dharia, Jullian Harris-Calvin May 22, 2020
This piece is a commentary, part of The Appeal’s collection of opinion and analysis.
There is an important boundary in our criminal legal system between those who usher people into the system and those who seek to free them from it.
In an April 30 interview with Boston radio station WGBH, Rachael Rollins, the elected district attorney of Suffolk County, Massachusetts, appeared to lose sight of that boundary when she criticized public defenders. When she discussed the case of a caller who said his lawyer failed to return his call, she described public defenders as “overwhelmingly privileged staff that aren’t calling back poor, Black, and brown people because they’re saying they’re overworked and busy” and lamented that “it’s my people who are losing no matter what. I’m not going to sit silently on this.” Rollins also took the extraordinary—and ethically questionable—step of urging people to call the DA’s office for updates on their cases.
Rollins seems to fundamentally misunderstand her role. Like all prosecutors, Rollins is a law enforcement officer, regardless of how progressive she claims to be. This truth remains regardless of the reforms she proposes or the reduction in the number of people she charges. Public defenders, by definition, advocate with and for those very people. These two roles exist on opposite sides of the adversarial process. Rollins should know that prosecutors—not public defenders—decide to charge and entangle her “people” in the web of the criminal legal system. Indeed, advocates for criminal legal reform and academics alike have argued that a prosecutor’s job inherently trades on the bodies of her “people.” While there can be collaboration between public defenders and prosecutors, only one of these roles is defined by advocacy for the human beings harmed by our criminal legal system.
Rollins chose to work in a system fraught with racial disparity. Massachusetts imprisons significantly more Black and Brown residents than white residents. And while Rollins is a Black woman, she has acknowledged the need for more racial diversity in the Suffolk County district attorney’s office, noting during her campaign that she wants to increase the diversity in the office by “probably 6,082 percent, because there are no women and people of color in upper leadership.”
Rollins’s comments about public defenders were also tone deaf in this moment of national crisis, as COVID-19 is rapidly spreading through jails and prisons and her office continues to seek incarceration for people awaiting trial. Conversely, public defenders are working tirelessly to advocate for and protect their clients from the carceral apparatus that delivers death to both incarcerated people and correctional staff. From the moment the pandemic hit, public defenders around the country jumped into action because the criminal legal system—the system that Rollins’s office forces them into—deprives people of the autonomy to make healthy and safe decisions, such as to socially distance or isolate. Public defenders work around the clock, often going into jails and courthouses despite the risks to their health and well-being. They are even performing services that jails and prisons have failed to deliver in this deadly moment, like bringing soap to clients.
Her attacks against public defenders reflect a critical lack of insight into the role of those on the other side of the courtroom. Public defenders choose to represent poor people ensnared in this system, despite other, more profitable career paths at corporate law firms or private practices. They frequently do so despite crushing educational debt. And defender offices around the country do this work despite rampant underfunding and understaffing. Low salaries for defenders in Massachusetts have caused high turnover and attempts at unionization.
Long before the advent of the progressive prosecutor, public defenders were on the front lines of the criminal legal system. Public defenders do this work because of—and despite—the efforts of prosecutors and law enforcement to arrest, charge, and incarcerate their clients. They often do so out of a commitment to the very communities Rollins described as her own—poor, Black, and Brown—and a drive to eke out some semblance of justice in a system that regularly fails to provide it. Public defenders are the advocates pushing against that system and helping people make sense of their lives. And while we, as women of color and former public defenders, recognize that the legal profession is in dire need of more Black and Brown attorneys, Rollins’s statements were starkly lacking in self-awareness.
Rollins was elected in late 2018 on a progressive platform. Many in Suffolk County—indeed, around the country—believed in her and the promises she made. But Rollins—and any prosecutor who seeks reform—must understand that meaningful change in the system cannot be accomplished without public defenders. Public defenders are closest to the people directly impacted by the system, and they are central to any real change.
On May 6, Rollins wrote a letter to the Massachusetts Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers and the Committee for Public Counsel Services acknowledging that her remarks about the WGBH caller were not “directed at, or intended for, the overwhelming majority of court-appointed lawyers who work tirelessly for their clients.”
Rollins did not, however, disavow her statements about public defenders, which were both derisive and dangerous. She should retract them, in recognition of the public defenders in Massachusetts and beyond, who uphold the constitutional right to counsel and represent the people she chooses to prosecute.
Premal Dharia is the founder and director of the Defender Impact Initiative, which works with public defenders and other advocates around the country toward transformative change in our criminal legal system; she was a public defender for nearly 15 years. Jullian Harris-Calvin is senior counsel for The Justice Collaborative and a former public defender.
Prosecutors Boston Massachusetts Prosecutors public defenders Public Defense Rachael Rollins Suffolk County
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Home Cold War Era Photos show Santa Claus marshalling an SR-71 Blackbird Mach 3 Spy Plane
Cold War EraMilitary Aviation
Photos show Santa Claus marshalling an SR-71 Blackbird Mach 3 Spy Plane
by Dario Leone Dec 25 2018
written by Dario Leone Dec 25 2018
This was the only time that Santa Claus marshalled in an SR-71
Taken by former SR-71 Crew Chief Tsgt. David Burns, the odd photos in this post show Santa Claus marshalling in an SR-71 Blackbird Mach 3 spy plane. Burns was a Blackbird Crew Chief at Beale Air Force Base (AFB), Ca and Det One, Kadena Air Base (AB), Okinawa.
According to www.sr71.us, the pictures come from his personal collection. Probably this was the only time that Santa Claus marshalled in an SR-71.
The SR-71, unofficially known as the “Blackbird,” was a long-range, advanced, strategic reconnaissance aircraft developed from the Lockheed A-12 and YF-12A aircraft. The first flight of an SR-71 took place on Dec. 22, 1964, and the first SR-71 to enter service was delivered to the 4200th (later 9th) Strategic Reconnaissance Wing at Beale AFB, Calif., in January 1966.
This print is available in multiple sizes from AircraftProfilePrints.com – CLICK HERE TO GET YOURS. SR-71A Blackbird 61-7972 “Skunkworks”
Throughout its nearly 24-year career, the SR-71 remained the world’s fastest and highest-flying operational aircraft.
Actually its incredible speed enabled it to gather intelligence in a matter of a few seconds while streaking across unfriendly skies. From 80,000 feet, it could survey 100,000 square miles of Earth’s surface per hour. And in the off chance an enemy tried to shoot it down with a missile, all the Blackbird had to do was speed up and outrun it.
Thanks to its astonishing flight characteristics, the aircraft has set numerous speed and altitude records during its career, like those established on Jul. 28, 1976 by an SR-71 that set two world records for its class – an absolute speed record of 2,193.167 mph and an absolute altitude record of 85,068.997 feet.
The U.S. Air Force retired its fleet of SR-71s on Jan. 26, 1990, because of a decreasing defense budget and high costs of operation.
This model is available in multiple sizes from AirModels – CLICK HERE TO GET YOURS.
Photo credit: Tsgt. David Burns / U.S. Air Force via www.sr71.us
Beale Air Force BaseKadena Air BaseLockheed SR-71 BlackbirdSR-71U.S. Air Force
Japan would like to sell its Cold War Era F-15s back to U.S. so that Washington can sell them to S.E. Asia
The B-25 ‘Bridge Busters’ and the GLIP bombing technique
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Wednesday, 13 January 2021 | Communications & Cyber Security
Remi Eriksen, group president and CEO.
DNV GL’s present name has been in place since the 2013 merger between DNV (Det Norske Veritas) and GL (Germanischer Lloyd). The name simplification is a natural consequence of a successfully completed merger and of having operated as a fully integrated company for several years now.
Remi Eriksen, group president and CEO, said: “We merged two leading companies with complementary strengths and market positions, and combining the two names was the right solution in 2013. However, it was not a name that rolled off the tongue, and many customers already refer to the company as DNV.
“Our brand is used by many of our customers to build trust towards their stakeholders, and a simpler name will be an even stronger trust mark for our customers in the future, but still carries with it all our strengths and proud 157-year-old legacy with a purpose to safeguard life, property and the environment.”
The 2020s has been called the decade of transformation or the “exponential decade”, where the pace of the energy transition will be set and where food, health and transport systems will change immensely and digital technologies underpinning industry 4.0 will mature from experimentation into large-scale application. Most importantly, this is the decade where humanity will succeed or fail to deliver on the Sustainable Development Goals.
As companies take on the complexities of digitalisation and decarbonisation, they need trust and assurance. Assurance is not only a service, but also the fundamental value created as a result of the services delivered by DNV. DNV’s ambition is to shape the future of assurance with more digitalised services and by leading the assurance of digitalisation in the form of assuring data, digital twins and digitised processes.
“Our strategy not only positions us for significant growth in a world increasingly in need of a trusted voice, but also positions us to shape the future of assurance,” said Mr Eriksen. “DNV will offer the best, most efficient and digitalised ways of delivering services - be it classification, certification, verification, inspection, advisory, or digital solutions.”
Germanischer Lloyd
DNV
Marlink Group to acquire ITC Global
Marlink Group, backed by Apax Partners (France), has signed a definitive agreement to acquire 100 per cent of ITC Global from Panasonic.
tpgroup’s autonomous navigation system completes sea trials
tpgroup’s patent pending autonomous navigation system, Northstar, has completed its sea trials programme, demonstrating that it can safely navigate unmanned vessels in real-time and in a real-life environment - without human intervention.
DCSA publishes standards for electronic Bill of Lading
The Digital Container Shipping Association (DCSA) has published data and process standards for the submission of shipping instructions and issuance of the bill of lading (B/L).
Innovez One to digitise Singapore’s last mile delivery of launch operations
Innovez One, a provider of port management software for ports and towage operators, is embarking on a collaboration to automate and digitise Singapore’s last-mile delivery of launch operations at its Marina South Pier (MCP) and West Coast Pier (WCP).
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Real Reflective Practice
The Perks of Being a Doctor
Leave a Comment / Uncategorized / By disillusionmed
When you grow up in a medical family, you notice how useful it is to know a doctor. Our friends come to my father constantly with their problems; whether it’s for advice, reading a scan or even organising a scan, knowing a brilliant Radiologist like my dad is an exceptional advantage.
My uncle is my dentist. I still feel a bit guilty when we go to his house for dinner and eat dessert in front of him.
Down the road are a married couple. She’s our family’s GP and he’s a paediatrician (and formerly my boss) at the hospital, but they’re old family friends as well. If ever I need advice, both their mobile numbers are on my phone. I don’t feel guilty about his because it means I won’t take up valuable patient slots at the practice. I guess it helps that I’m a doctor myself and tend to know what’s wrong with me already, but it’s just so practical to not have to make an appointment when I know that all I need is a quick chat. That appointment can be left for someone who really needs it.
I remember when I accidentally dropped my brother down the stairs when he was a baby (yes, it was an accident, although my brother now teases me mercilessly about how I did it on purpose, and declares that any mental deficit he suffers from is my fault). After my dad arranged head scan for him, and a paediatrician friend checked him over, they confirmed he was absolutely fine, so I now tell my brother that all his failings are his alone!
It’s not just family and friends. The cleaning lady, the postman, the handy man and even the gardener have all asked for assistance and advice, and my dad has always been very giving of his time to those in need. Cynics call it nepotism, and the GMC has very strict rules about how far you can go as a doctor to treat those you know personally, but I really think society has become so obsessed with this concept of impartiality that they’ve forgotten that it’s human nature to use what you know to help those around you.
Which brings me to what happened last night: over the last week or so, my fiancé has been complaining of a ‘spot’ on the back of his hand. It did just look like a regular spot, but it was hurting him a lot. As the days went by, the area became redder, more swollen and more painful. I treated it with all the over-the-counter things I could think of, but nothing seemed to be working. Last night, when he came home from work, it looked worse than it ever had before, and I was certain it was cellulitis. There was possibly also an abscess, and he needed antibiotics. My fiancé, however, has only just started a new job, and was irritated at the thought of having to take time off work so early. Making an appointment at his GP practice was always difficult, and he had no desire to wait around in a hospital for treatment.
I was at my wits end trying to figure out what to do. My home town was too far away to ask my GP or family for help. If I was still practising, I could so easily solve this problem! Even though you’re not allowed to prescribe for family members, it would have been simple enough to take him along to the hospital and get one of my colleagues to see him. Hell, I could have even lanced the damn abscess myself! As it was, I couldn’t even put a dressing on for him. When I was a doctor, I had access to all this stuff.
I really felt that I was failing him. And yet, I chose this. It’s not my job any more.
Luckily we had a hand from a consultant friend who told my fiancé it was serious and needed immediate treatment. I’m so thankful she called, because I would never have been able to convince him to go to A&E otherwise!
11.30pm. Along we went to Whipps Cross. Funnily enough, we were in and out within an hour. I guess that, with the strike going on, people were staying away from A&E. We were seen by a lovely nurse who made us both laugh. She dressed and cleaned the hand, and gave us the antibiotics and painkillers he needed.
While we were in the waiting room, my fiancé asked me why I was upset. I told him how I felt; that I missed being a clinician. I was so frustrated that I knew exactly what to do and yet couldn’t make it happen. I felt like crying. Medicine was such a huge part of my identity, I didn’t know how to be without it – I didn’t feel like anything without it. I know this sounds melodramatic, but I was tired and frazzled, and seeing my fellow doctors strike earlier had stirred up a lot of emotions.
“Medicine’s not who you are, it’s just something you did for a bit,” my fiancé told me kindly, “You’re more than just a doctor, you know.”
I told him about a doctor I’d met that morning on the picket line of Guys and St Thomas’ hospital. I interviewed him for this blog and he told me about how he used to have anxiety attacks every time he came near the hospital. He pushed through it, however, and is now a paediatric trainee.
I remember that feeling. I remember feeling sick with fear before every shift. I remember having to coax myself out of bed in the morning, just to get up the courage to go to work. I remember the amount of wine I needed to get myself through a run of nightshifts. It wasn’t a healthy place to be, but I felt I had given up too early. Should I have just carried on, hoping one day it would finally be ok? Should I have, as some friends suggested, restarted my antidepressants, just so I could get through my training?
“What are you talking about?” said my fiancé, “You did something you hated for 8 years and now you think you didn’t give it enough of a chance? I never got to see you when you were a doctor. You were constantly tired, and always ill. We never knew where you were going to be from one year to the next, and we couldn’t plan anything in advance because you never knew your rota. You were grumpy and miserable, and you just weren’t you. It’s different, now you’ve stopped; I actually get to spend time with you.”
It was the first time my fiancé had ever told me honestly what it was really like for him when I was working. It dawned on me that maybe my inability to treat his cellulitis didn’t fail him as much as my former lifestyle had.
We walked out of Whipps Cross together, after a free appointment, with two boxes of free medication in our hands. The NHS really is amazing. I definitely took what I did as a doctor for granted – it was my job, after all – but it was incredible, and that’s why it’s so hard to walk away. But looking at the striking doctors from a distance, I can see things in a way that I couldn’t before: even after everything the NHS puts them through, doctors still continue to fight for it, and when you put it like that, their struggle is more poignant than ever.
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The Birds Of Prey Didn’t Do Their Homework
[Danny Elfman Theme Plays Interrupted By Record Scratch]
Let me just get a few things out of the way first: Batgirl and the Birds of Prey #11 re-canonized quite a bit of the Pre-New52 Birds of Prey era as accurately as they possibly could. That is a good thing, and it was neat to see Deathstroke in his old costume, along with some other integral snippets to this particular book’s history. That is a positive, and I will never deny that it is a positive. Noah Kuttler, the Calculator, because of course it is, was completely in character and, despite the deeply problematic circumstances this issue brought into the narrative that elicited his return, kind of fun to watch in all his cheesy super-villain glory. Sort of.
I wanted to address those things so I could move on to the meat of why what the Bensons did in this issue, and retroactively their entire run, is just so many levels of not okay. To be blunt, this is an infantilizing and grossly misrepresentative look at not only mental illness, but a fundamental lack of understanding of how one even goes about treating it. Which is, unfortunately, not exactly surprising considering how The 100, the CW show they both write for, has a rather abysmal track record on that front. Which goes the same for most other fronts, really.
I addressed Gus’s pills months ago in my review of Batgirl and the Birds of Prey #6, zeroing in on his pupil dilation, and dug even deeper into what I thought (as well as what the art itself was communicating) the Watsonian explanation the Bensons were going for in the comments section:
“…Amphetamines are stimulants for brain activity. Typically used by those with ADD, but people like to get those pills illegally because it lets neurotypical individuals focus 100%. The vast majority of engineering and pre-med students I knew in college took them regularly, and most weren’t diagnosed. Being as obsessive as Gus appears to be, and as hyper as he is, Amphetamines seems a logical conclusion. That stuff can SERIOUSLY mess you up and exacerbate the symptoms already present. Most likely, the meds have nothing to do with his double-agent stuff. Though overdosing can lead to poor impulse control and lapses in judgement, not to mention extreme tunnel vision. TL;DR it’s not the pills, but the dosage may be messing him up to the point where he is more susceptible to [forced loyalty], believing it to be a good choice rather than a bad one if the right person were to use the right words. Also, whoever is on the other end of the console may be FORCING him to up his dosage to make him…more erratic. I know a lot of people who rely on these kinds of alarm reminders for dear life, because they’d forget entirely without them. That amount of trust can be manipulated.”
The subject popped up periodically as the series went on, and as I went over last month regarding the disappointing performance of the book’s second arc, I gave the Bensons the benefit of the doubt, attributing the rather massive dip in quality and nuance to that of a mistake that every creator makes once in awhile. After all, eight issues of fantastic storytelling is not a fluke. That’s a proven pattern.
However, now I’m not so convinced, especially taking into consideration that “classic X-Men” aborted arc introduced at the beginning of Birds of Prey #8. So, let’s try and break down exactly how not okay the case of Gus Yale truly is.
“That’s Not How The Force Bipolar Disorder Works!”
What? They sneak Star Wars quotes and references in everywhere!
Anyway, after re-reading the Bensons entire year-long run of Batgirl and the Birds of Prey to make sure I was remembering things correctly, I can safely say that there is no single point in which Gus Yale exhibits behavior of someone with Bipolar Disorder. There is simply no evidence to suggest that there is Type I, Type II, Cyclothymic, or any other variation of Bipolar Disorder. And yes, there are different forms of Bipolar, so it’s rather disconcerting that neither Gus nor the Birds of Prey actually mention this at all.
The Doylist reasoning is, most likely, that the Bensons didn’t consult with anyone who has Bipolar Disorder—especially since they describe it as a disability, of which it is explicitly not—or did any thorough research of any kind. And if they did do those things, then I’m at a loss for how this even happened.
Gus’s behavior has been that of a creepy, obsessed and hyperactive stalker since the day we met him. His mood swings were bursts of irritation, not episodes (which can last for days, even weeks) of mania or depression. It is is not “sad” or “happy”. In fact, everything he did in this context was a rather honest example of over/under medicated ADD, as that can lead to, as I stated above, not-so-great behavior. Also mood swings, believe it or not. Instead of that route, though, we get this:
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Where do I even begin? I guess word balloon by word balloon is as good a way as any. First of all, that’s not how mental healthcare in the U.S. works. That’s a needlessly complicated version of it. Remember how Gus is just rolling in cash? As in, he has enough money to launder correctly to buy entire properties, pay off an entire mortgage, and do a ton of other stuff without getting the IRS up his butt? Good, so, here’s the thing with cash: you can pay doctors in cash. It’s expensive, but you can. That’s why people have insurance. Most people don’t have that kind of money lying around to pay for medical services out of pocket, but I know of many, many psychiatrists who either don’t, or can’t, take insurance for one reason or another. So their patients pay them via cash or check.
Even if Gus couldn’t pay by cash, he has to have a checking account to be able to buy entire buildings, renovate them, help his mom with her mortgage, and donate to at least some of those charities. Even if he did it through Paypal or Venmo, you still need a bank account! And if you have that, there’s no reason not to have a checking account with that kind of money. Basically, Gus could have gone to a doctor on his own, after the Calculator told him he’s not just “acting up”, gotten diagnosed, and started taking medication that works for him on his own dollar.
Except, it doesn’t stop there. No, as it turns out, the Calculator runs a super-hippy-dippy-chill business with hundreds of employees that he insures. Read it again; Gus explicitly goes out of his way to say that these employees have insurance. And since Gus was working for him, presumably full-time (why would it not be?) that means he also had insurance. Now, it wouldn’t have paid for the “best psychiatrist in Gotham City”, but nobody realistically needs that. Any psychiatrist worth their salt can identify Bipolar Disorder. Except they wouldn’t have, because Gus doesn’t have that.
So this whole “black market” (Helena, he could have removed the label) thing only makes sense in one possible way: the Calculator paid a doctor to misdiagnose Gus so that he could mentally destroy him with the wrong kind of drug under the guise of helping him. And you know what? That would be an awesome and horrifying super-villain plot that would make perfect sense for the Calculator…
Just one problem with that, though: it’s not what happened.
The Calculator, hence the name, would not be insane enough to hire a young man, full-time, to work under his wing in his company that he was also shoving bad drugs into in the hopes that he’d break him…because he gave him assignments with real actual money on the line, millions of it, and kept doing it. This would also totally undermine the “sympathetic villain” angle the Bensons are going for, and more or less failing at, with the Calculator. Oh, and one more reason why this couldn’t be the case: Gus says the drugs are working. If he was Bipolar, and given the wrong drugs (say, Adderall), he would be seriously messed up and not really capable of any rational thought. It’d be a nightmare for him and everyone around him.
“It’s Not A Lie, If You Believe It.”
Right, now that we’ve covered the logistical impossibilities of this situation, let’s get to the rest of the rather infantilizing dialog regarding Gus’s predicament. It’s meant for us to see Gus in a new light, that he is the victim and can’t be blamed for his actions because…Bipolar. Yeah, no that’s not a “get out of jail card free” card. Even if you took the insanity plea, which you really do not want to do voluntarily, you’re not absolved of any wrongdoing. That’s not how society works, nor should it.
You’re right, Gus. You don’t deserve their kindness. You made bad decisions. You hurt people. You betrayed people. You got people killed. All of that is on you, not your Bipolar Disorder. Which, again, is not a disability. At all. It is no way equitable to Babs being in a wheelchair.
I understand the attempted sentiment of “just because it’s in your head, it’s not any less real”, but this is not the way to go about it. This is not how to communicate what bipolar disorder is, what the struggles are, and what those suffering from it have to deal with on a daily basis. Comparing it to being paraplegic, because it’s something you can see, just doesn’t work in this case because Babs wasn’t coerced into doing bad stuff by a supervillain because of that.
In fact, she did the opposite! This issue goes out of the way to show readers that every time the Calculator got too close to her, she quite literally beat the piss out of him!
So where does that leave us? Well, in a rather curious spot. See, there’s another character, one of our all-time favorites here at the Fandomentals, that also suffers from mental illness. If you guessed Kate Kane you’re—okay, you’re not wrong, but we’re not talking about PTSD at the moment.
No, right now we’re talking about anxiety and Jessica Cruz: the Greatest Green Lantern Of Them All. Honestly, I can’t convey just how effective and perfect Green Lanterns #15 is at showing how anxiety affects someone’s everyday life, and the way many are able to cope with it, better than the book itself, let alone Ian’s review of said issue. So I’ll quote him, or, rather, screencap him:
Jessica is chosen as a Green Lantern for her ability to overcome great fear. She is, as far as we know, not medicated for her anxiety, which is perfectly fine. Some choose to go that route, while others do not. It all depends on the person. With Jessica, we’re able to get a sense of the absolutely absurd amount of willpower it takes for her to, as she says above, get out of bed. And that carries over into the rest of the day, moment to moment.
But she lives her life, and does not blame her failures on her mental illness. She blames her failures on herself, and her struggle to live with her anxiety. That is the absolute key here. Where Gus whines and more or less proclaims “woe is me”, Jessica does not. The social feedback is also telling of each writer’s…commitment to accuracy and respect towards the neurodivergent.
Sam Humphries, the recently married (Mazel Tov!) author of Green Lanterns used Simon Baz’s (Jessica’s buddy cop-style partner) frustration with Jessica’s inconsistent behavior—at one point he’s confused since he thought she’d gotten better, which is not how anxiety works—as an extremely effective manifestation of what many neurotypical individuals think and feel about those they know with anxiety. It’s difficult for them to understand, since to “calm down” is not actually a thing. Nor is “stop thinking about it”. But, in the end, Simon realizes that he doesn’t need to perfectly understand why Jessica feels the way she does, or even why: he figures out that the best thing he can do is to accept her feelings as truth and do his best to support her like the awesome friend he is…which in his case meant coming over in his pyjamas and making her pancakes. Didn’t cure her anxiety, nothing ever will, but it shows he truly cares and has 100% has her back.
On the other side of the table, Julie and Shawna Benson basically just encouraged people to treat those with mental illness with the leniency of a child that is acting inappropriately and only needs a big hug to set them back on the right track. It’s not his fault he got those people murdered, or that he’s lying to them, or that he didn’t think to question how exactly the Calculator would frame him for his own crimes with literally zero idea of who this guy even was or what he was capable of. He’s just trying to do the right thing except he’s really not.
Before Babs and the Birds of Prey came along…he was still selling intel to the highest bidder. But, even more than that, there’s no indication that Gus’s Bipolar Disorder is even going to be a consistent part of his character going forward because it’s not that in the slightest. Which means that since he’s been forgiven, it won’t directly affect his behavior one way or the other aside from a brief mention or two once in awhile. Because absolving Gus for all the horrible things he did also heals his Bipolar Disorder, which is really just not a great thing to communicate, intentional or otherwise.
In Which The Birds of Prey Pass The Idiot Ball
Okay, wow. One, Dinah, you don’t have a secret identity. Two, if he truly cared about his family he’d have gone to the cops. Three, nobody even bothered to double-check to see if he’s telling the truth about his family being held hostage. Four, just because Helena offers a counterpoint based on a supervillain’s testimony, the kind of people she hunted when she was the head of a super-spy organization, doesn’t mean everyone should instantly invert their opinions. Five, Babs has been saying “you can’t be trusted” to so many people she ends up being forced to trust that it’s becoming more about her acting super naive than it is the specific circumstances. Six, it’s the Calculator this is trademark him. If nobody can trace it back to him, then he traced it back to himself, either putting his own family in jeopardy because the math made sense or faking the whole thing.
Also Catwoman and Poison Ivy guest-star in the next issue of Batgirl and the Birds of Prey. Sorta like how Nightwing and Green Arrow guest starred in the last arc, which was not what I would describe as effective. So, look, I apologize, but I think I’m done with this book. I’ll read #12, but unless there’s a miraculous turnaround this is most likely the last review of Batgirl and the Birds of Prey that you’ll see from me. Because, honestly, the implication here, about what Gus’s imagination is like?
Is this supposed to be Sesame Street? Glove and Boots? Showing us how childish and out of touch with reality Gus is to further push the idea that his “disability” prohibits him from rational, mature and responsible thought? Trying to get us to believe that he is, indeed, “crazy”? I don’t know. I don’t like any of those answers, and honestly…I’m just done. The Bensons had a phenomenal eight-issue run on Birds of Prey, but…I guess it was a fluke. Against all logic, what other explanation is there?
Look, maybe another creative team can swoop in and put the series back on track. Until then, I can’t recommend this book. Somewhere around 40% of Roge Antonio’s panels don’t have backgrounds aside from color gradients. Maybe that’s a scripting problem, maybe that’s just the style, but ultimately there isn’t enough energy or wit in the writing to pick up the slack anymore.
And y’know what the kicker here, is? Even with this script, I’d have still given this a decent score if they’d kept Claire Roe on as the artist. They had a great thing going there for a while. It’s a shame it just…fell apart.
BATGIRL AND THE BIRDS OF PREY #11
Writers: Julie and Shawna Benson
Pencils/Inks: Roge Antonio
Colors: Allen Passalaqua
Letterer: Josh Reed
Images courtesy of DC Comics
Griffin is an Entertainment Writer operating out of the Chicago area. He likes puzzles, deconstructing other puzzles, and talk show branded ice cream flavors.
In this article:Barbara Gordon, batgirl, birds of prey, black canary, helena bertinelli, mental illness, representation matters
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Too much? ‘Friday Night Tykes’ tween Texas football molds boys to men
The compelling show and its spin-off return with a unique look at American youth football
Up Next From Culture
Esquire Network via Facebook
By Aaron Dodson @aardodson
Four years ago, on the first day of shooting for a then-new Esquire Network series about youth football, executive producer Matt Maranz witnessed something unlike anything he’d ever seen. “It’s 105 degrees in August,” Maranz recalled, “and kids were out there for the first day of practice. They’re hitting, and they’re passing out, and throwing up, and crying.”
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But this was far from an unfamiliar sight for the fans of the survival-of-the-fittest kids’ football ecosystem that is South Texas. This was and is the hard-nosed, blood, sweat and tears culture of Texas football, through which boys are molded into men. And, boy, do they start molding men early. “These were 8- and 9-year-old kids at the time,” said Maranz. “No one thought this was unusual. No one thought this was abnormal. Everyone just thought this is the way things should be done.” The critically acclaimed Friday Night Tykes returns for its fourth season on Tuesday.
The docuseries follows teams within the Texas Youth Football Association (TYFA). After hearing rumblings from friends about the intensity of the league, Maranz and his team went down to Texas to see for themselves. “We figured if we were ever going to tell a story about youth sports, you might as well go to the league that calls itself the most competitive youth football league in America.”
From H.G. Bissinger’s 1990 book Friday Night Lights: A Town, a Team, and a Dream, which inspired a 2004 film and mid-2000s television series both called Friday Night Lights, as well as the 1999 film Varsity Blues, Texas football has been chronicled for more than two decades, but most often through the lens of high school football teams. Friday Night Tykes focuses on a younger group of athletes, but with similar kinds of captivating coming-of-age stories. It’s still gritty Texas football — but these are children, and it’s very unfiltered.
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“I know my style is aggressive. I know a lot of times people don’t agree with my choice of words,” said Clayton Guillory, defensive coordinator of the San Antonio Outlaws, the centerpiece team of Friday Night Tykes. “Even sometimes I look at the show and say, ‘Maybe I shouldn’t have said that.’ But when you get caught in the moment, you just go with what you feel.” In season three, the dominant Outlaws left TYFA to join the Snoop Youth Football League, founded by Snoop Dogg in 2005, to compete on the national stage.
It’s still gritty Texas football — but these are children, and it’s very unfiltered.
It was also in season three that the cameras caught what Guillory considers to be his most memorable “man, I’m an a–h—” moment since he and his son, Esteban, joined the show three years ago. Guillory — a former Division II wide receiver at Angelo State University who tried out for multiple NFL teams and made the training camp roster of the San Diego Chargers before tearing his rotator cuff — was teaching one Outlaws defensive player how to perfect his three-point stance. When Guillory was taught the form, his youth football coach compared getting into the stance to sitting on the toilet. As he taught his pupil on the show using the same logic, Guillory noticed the young player was holding his breath each time he got low. So, two questions came to the coach’s mind.
Do you hold your breath when you take a s—! If you don’t hold your breath when you take a s—, why are you holding your breath right now!
“Some of these coaches have faced a lot of criticism from the media and viewers of the show,” said Maranz. “But these aren’t monsters. It’s not like they wake up in the morning and go, ‘Man, I can’t wait to go to practice so I can screw up some kid.’ Their motors are pure and their motors are really as any other parent’s. They want what’s best for the kids. How they define what’s best for the kids is different, and that’s what kind of makes it interesting.”
Even more interesting is the underlying backdrop of Friday Night Tykes’ fourth season, which was filmed in 2016 during one of the most intriguing and important years in the history of football in America. San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick decided to kneel during the national anthem before games. The Beaumont Bulls, a youth football team in eastern Texas, joined Kaepernick in his stand for social justice by also kneeling during the national anthem before a September game. A month later, their league canceled the rest of the team’s season.
“Even sometimes I look at the show and say, ‘Maybe I shouldn’t have said that.’ ”
Guillory remembers Outlaws head coach Fred Davis speaking with players Xion Lagrant, JuJu Thomas and Myzel Miller about Kaepernick’s protest during the team’s run to the national championship. The topic also came up with Esteban, reminding Guillory that his responsibility as a coach is not restricted to pushing his kids as hard as can be on the football field.
“I’m not trying to help create football players, I’m trying to help create young men,” said Guillory. “I’m trying to help create young men that are going to be great citizens. They’re going to be contributors to society.”
Social justice is also a major component of Friday Night Tykes: Steel Country, a spin-off series set in Pennsylvania, which returns on Jan. 31 at 10 p.m. EST for its second season on the Esquire Network. If Friday Night Tykes provides a different look at Texas football, Steel Country provides a different look at youth football in general. Income inequality, drugs, crime, unemployment, the plight of working families and the outsourcing of jobs are some of the topics tackled on the complex Steel Country, which was filmed this season in a swing state at the climax of the 2016 presidential election.
“The Texas show is really about extreme behavior and parenting, and it’s asking like, how hard we should be pushing our kids,” said Maranz. “The show in Pennsylvania is more of a snapshot of postindustrial America. It’s more about towns and communities that have seen better days and are kind of struggling for survival and relevance during some very uncertain and difficult times.”
Whether in Texas or Pennsylvania, there’s one thing in common between each Friday Night Tykes series. “It’s about sports,” said Maranz, “but it’s not about sports at all.”
Aaron Dodson is a sports and culture writer at The Undefeated. He primarily writes on sneakers/apparel and hosts the platform’s “Sneaker Box” video series. During Michael Jordan’s two seasons playing for the Washington Wizards in the early 2000s, the “Flint” Air Jordan 9s sparked his passion for kicks.
This Story Tagged: Television Football Friday Night Tykes
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Need to think differently
Leeds Building Society is the UK’s 5th largest building society with over 700,000 members. Through careful management, the Society weathered the recession well and has been able to retain both very strong capital ratios and high levels of profitability. With levels of trust in the sector remaining very low, the Society developed a new 10 year vision to be Britain’s most successful building society and we were brought in to develop its brand to help support these ambitions. A core requirement of the strategy was to appeal to new, younger members whilst not alienating the older, existing members.
Helping people get on with life
Following extensive research, a new brand proposition was developed to help drive all aspects of how the Society operates. This was embedded through a UK-wide colleague engagement programme, via a series of interactive workshops and supported by a multi-channel internal communications campaign. A modern visual identity was introduced which reflect the core activities. This has been applied throughout the Society, including branch frontages, staff uniforms and sales campaigns. With a new approach to UX and customer journeys, a new site structure and new imagery, we have also designed and built a new website with our friends at What Creative.
Head of Marketing and E-Commerce Nikki Marsh has overseen the transformation in the brand.
“This is a huge step forward for the Society, as we strive to achieve our vision of being Britain’s most successful building society. The Thompson/What team has led us expertly through the complex process of looking at ourselves, re-articulating what our brand stands for and bringing that to life in a modern and effective way that makes sense to existing customers and potential new ones.”
The new website has been met with great success, recently being ‘Highly Commended’ in What Mortgage’s 2014 Best Lender Website awards, as judged by a panel of nearly 20,000 readers – evidence of a site truly designed with users in mind.
Leeds and Partners
Walker Morris
What Creative
Springwood Gardens
Leeds, LS8 2QB
info@thompsonbrandpartners.com
© 2021 Thompson Brand Partners.
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Traveling Politico
Empire of Liberty
Hikes & Outdoors
Empire of Liberty: Ali-Napoleon and the Armee d’Orient
Posted on February 7, 2018 February 25, 2018 by Brett Sebastian
“The peoples we will be living alongside are Muslims; their first article of faith is “There is no other god but God, and Mahomet is his prophet”. Do not contradict them; treat them as you treated the Jews, the Italians; respect their muftis and their imams, as you respected their rabbis and bishops. Have the same tolerance for the ceremonies prescribed by the Quran, for their mosques, as you had for the convents, for the synagogues, for the religion of Moses and that of Jesus Christ. The Roman legions used to protect all religions. You will here find different customs to those of Europe, you must get accustomed to them. The people among whom we are going treat women differently to us; but in every country whoever violates one is a monster. Pillaging only enriches a small number of men; it dishonours us, it destroys our resources; it makes enemies of the people who it is in our interest to have as our friends. The first city we will encounter was built by Alexander [the Great]. We shall find at every step great remains worthy of exciting French emulation.”
~Napoleon Bonaparte to his soldiers on the day the Armee d’Orient landed at Alexandria
Excerpt from Konijeti Beevti’s “Years of Revolution: Boston to Bhārata”, Vij Publishing House, 1962 (translation by Earl Henderson).
While these diplomatic formalities occurred, Napoléon campaigned across the Nile River delta culminating in the Battle of the Pyramids where his forces defeated 21,000 Egyptian Mamluks just nine miles for the Pyramids of Giza. French troops occupied Cairo that very evening.
By the beginning of August, the Royal Navy understood the extent of the deception. Jervis repeatedly wrote to London about the need for more ships but with operations in the Caribbean, the Indian Basin and the defense of the home islands, the Royal Navy found itself stretched thin. Now, Jervis wrote the dispatch he feared most and sent it on to London. Not only had the French fleet escaped but they took an army with them, led by one of France’s most able commanders and the key to Britain’s wealth stood in the balance.
Immediately, Jervis cobbled together a response squadron under the command of Rear Admiral Sir John Orde with instructions to investigate the situation in Egypt. Rumor had spread to Ajaccio from the waters around Tunis, Malta and lastly the Nile Delta of a large war fleet. While Jervis was not certain the target was Egypt, the consistent sightings and trajectory of the French fleet all but indicated Napoleon’s destination. Unless the Armee d’Orient intended to launch the Tenth Crusade, the Nile must surely be their target.
Meanwhile, Nelson laid siege to Malta as part of Jervis’ larger response. The dug-in French troops would hold out admirably until June 1799.
Orde proceeded to Naples where he definitively learned that the French had gone to Egypt and word had trickled back that landings had occurred earlier in July in Alexandria. Orde sent a dispatch to Barcelona in hopes of linking up with the Spanish Mediterranean fleet and set off to Syracuse where he hoped to meet with the Spanish. At Syracuse, however, Orde received bad intelligence that the French fleet was much smaller than it actually was. That bad intelligence also indicated that the French fleet would leave the Egyptian coast for the Anatolian coast any day now. Rumor had it the fleet was of little use to Napoléon while he campaigned along the Nile River and the French admiral wanted to force an encounter with an Ottoman fleet to bring the Sultan (the nominal head of Egypt) to the negotiating table. Fearing he had no time to lose, Ogre left a message for the Spanish and departed for Alexandria.
This proved to be Ogre’s fatal error.
Ogre arrived near Alexandria on the evening of September 6. His ships spent several hours trying to spot the French fleet and feared they had missed them. In reality, Alexandria’s harbor was too shallow for the French ships of the line so the French admiral had moved his fleet’s anchorage to Aboukir Bay about 20 miles east of Alexandria. He had positioned his fleet in such a manner that an Ottoman fleet coming from the east would find themselves in the direct center of their broadsides. Instead, Ogre stumbled upon the French in the middle of the night and believed he had the numerical advantage. Ogre possessed 11 ships-of-the-line, a fourth rate and a sloop. He believed the French fleet was comprised of nine ships-of-the-line. In reality, the French fleet was comprised of 13 ships-of-the-line, five frigates and several smaller support craft. Believing he had the advantage and had caught the French sleeping, Ogre sent his ships in a line, opting for speed rather than tactics, and fell right into the trap the fleet had set for the Ottomans. The French were hardly asleep and the Battle of the Nile was a decisive French victory. The entire Royal Navy squadron was sunk, crippled or captured while the French lost two ships-of-the-line, a frigate and suffered severe (but repairable) damage to three other ships. To this day, the victory is one of the chief accomplishments in French naval history.
From Felicia Dorothea Hemans’ “Casabianca”, New Monthly Magazine, 1826. [1]
An admiral stood on the burning deck
Whence all but he had fled;
The flame that lit the battle’s wreck
Shone round him o’er the dead.
Yet beautiful and bright he stood,
As born to rule the storm;
A creature of tragic blood,
A proud, though foolish form.
The flames rolled on–he would not go
The shame he felt so great;
His men, faint in death below,
Their voices no longer heard.
He cried aloud–I have failed all
A cursed life I live’
Once proud and full of vigor
The humbled man now wept.
The victory emboldened Napoléon who was consolidating his gains in Cairo. Increasingly the general acted as absolute ruler of Egypt. In attempts to quiet nationalist uprisings, Napoléon marketed himself as a liberator and praised precepts of Islam and the friendship between the Muslim world and France. Bonaparte himself led the military parades celebrating the birthday of Mohammed and Egyptian leaders gifted him the title “Ali-Bonaparte”. Napoléon worked dutifully to bring European principals to Cairo. He established literary and scientific journals, museums, a zoo, municipal administrations, a library, gardens and even a chemistry laboratory. The scientists and scholars that had accompanied him set to work and developed an entirely new scholarly field: Egyptology. The occupation force published a French-Arabic dictionary and created a reworked calendar to align Arabic, Coptic and Republican dates. Despite his efforts, the Egyptian people never truly trusted the motives of the invaders and many worked tirelessly to bloody and drive out the infidels.
On September 26, word of the French victory at the Battle of the Nile reached Syracuse where the Spanish fleet was assembling. A day later, it reached a horrified Nelson who was still blockading Malta. Hurried dispatches sped towards Madrid, Admiral Jervis and London. Fearing French domination of the Mediterranean, the King of Naples sent six ships to Syracuse to join the Spanish fleet. On October 3, Spanish Admiral José de Córdoba y Ramos set off for Alexandria with a fleet of 11 Spanish ships-of-the-line, one Neapolitan ship-of-the-line, four Spanish frigates, four Neapolitan frigates and five smaller sloops and support ships [2].
On October 17 the Spanish-Neapolitan fleet scattered the damaged French fleet. They sunk three French ships, captured four more, and the rest scurried back towards Corfu and Toulon. This was all at the cost of two Spanish ships-of-the-line and a Neapolitan frigate. The Second Battle of the Nile was a rousing coalition victory, made Spain the ruler of the Mediterranean and stranded Napoléon in Egypt.
On October 22 a massive revolt rocked Cairo and was put down so brutally that no further rebellions occurred for the duration of the French occupation. The next day Napoléon received word of the defeat of his supporting fleet.
Excerpt from Charles Mullié’s, “Biographie des célébrités militaires des armées de terre et de mer de 1789 à 1850”, 1852. [3]
“This disastrous event did not disconcert [Bonaparte] at all – ever impenetrable, he did not allow any emotion to appear that he had not tested in his mind. Having calmly read the despatch which informed him that he and his army were now prisoners in Egypt, he said “We no longer have a navy. Well! We’ll have to stay here, or leave as great men just as the ancients did”. The army then showed itself happy at this short energetic response, but the native Egyptians, exhausted in the efforts to expel the French, found new life in the Spanish victory. As Cairo recovered from the revolt, many Egyptians busied themselves to find means to throw off the hateful yoke the foreigners were trying to impose on them by force and to hunt them from their country.”
For the remainder of 1798, Napoléon distracted himself and his troops by exploring the Sinai. He crossed the Red Sea, rebuilt fortifications at Suez, searched for biblical locations and found the sand blown remains of the ancient Canal of the Pharaohs. Despite the loss of the French fleet and mounting losses in Egypt, Napoléon still hoped he could pacify the Nile and use it as a jumping off point for campaigns into Cyrenaica, Tripolitania, the Levant, Mesopotamia and perhaps even India.
In Constantinople, the Ottoman Sultan (who had been watching the situation in Egypt with great interest) took the destruction of the French fleet as the opportunity to involve himself. Selim III sent one army by land, through Syria, towards Cairo while another would mass on the island of Rhodes, cross the Mediterranean and land near Aboukir Bay. Napoléon learned of these movements while in the Sinai in January of 1799. Acting quickly he mobilized his forces and ventured north, out of Egypt and into Syria to meet the Ottoman army head on. He hoped to defeat the imminent threat coming by land before turning around and defeating the amphibious force coming from Rhodes. Napoléon entered Gaza in late February and then captured Jaffa in early March. The brutal subjugation of Jaffa remains one of the more controversial and darker chapters in Napoléon’s legacy.
Excerpt from Louis Antoine Fauvelet de Bourrienne’s “Memoirs of Napoleon Bonaparte”, Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1891. [4]
“The siege of Jaffa, a paltry town, dignified as the ancient Joppa, commenced on the 4th, and terminated, by assault and pillage, on the 6th of March. The carnage was horrible. Bonaparte sent his aides-de-camp Beauharnois and Croiser to appease, as far as possible, the fury of the soldiery; to examine what passed, and report. They learned that a numerous detachment of the garrison had retired into a strong position, where large buildings, or caravanserai surrounded a court year. This court they entered, displaying scars which marked their rank. The Albanians and Arnauts, composing nearly the entire of these refugees, cried out from the windows, that they wished to surrender, on condition of their lives being spared; if not, threatening to fire upon the officers, and to defend themselves to the last extremity. The young men conceived they ought, and had power, to accede to the demand, in opposition to the sentence of death pronounced against the garrison of every place taken by assault. I was walking with General Bonaparte before his tent, when these prisoners in two columns amounting to about four thousand, were marched into the camp. When he beheld the mass of men arrive, and before seeing the aides-de-camp, he turned to me with an expression of consternation,
“What would they have me to do with these? Have I provisions to feed them? Ships to transport them, either to Egypt or France? How the devil could they play me this trick?
The two aides-de-camp, on their arrival and explanations, received the strongest reprimands; to their defence, that they were alone amid numerous enemies, and that he had recommended them to appear the slaughter,
“Yes,” replied the General in the sternest tone, “without doubt, the slaughter of women, children, old men, the peaceable inhabitants; but not armed soldiers. You ought to have braved death, and not brought these to me: what would you have me do with them?”
But the evil was done – four thousand men were there – their fate must be determined. The prisoners, each with his hands bound behind him by cords, were made to sit down grouped together, before the tents. A gloomy rage was depicted in every lineament: they received a little biscuit and some bread, deducted from the already scanty stores of the army. A council was held in the General’s tent, which, after long deliberation, broke up without coming to any resolution. The day following arrived, in the evening, the reports of the generals of division; these were filled with complaints on the insufficiency of provisions, and the discontent of the soldiers, who murmured because of their rations being devoured by enemies withdrawn from their just vengeance. All these reports were alarming, especially those of General Bon: they even induced fear of a revolt.
On the 10th of March, the order, “that they should be shot,” was issued and executed. There was no separation of the Egyptians, as has been said – there were no Egyptian prisoners.
Many of these miserable beings, composing the smaller column, which amounting to about fifteen hundred, was drawn up on the beach, at some distance from the main body, while the butchery was going on, escaped, by swimming to some reefs out of gun-shot. Perceiving this, our men laid down their muskets on the sand, and employing the signs of reconciliation and of amity, which they had learned in Egypt, invited the return of their victims. They did return; by, coming within reach, found death and perished amid the waters. I limited myself to those details of this horrible necessity, of which I was an eye-witness. The atrocious scene makes me yet shudder when I think of it, as when it passed before me: much rather would I forget, if possible, than describe. All that can be imagined of fearful, in this day of blood, would fall short of the reality.
Napoléon’s force reached Acre on March 18 and began a siege of the stubborn fortress. Inside were the bulk of the remaining Ottoman army forces that had been pushing towards Egypt. For sixty days, French troops battled entrenched Ottomans but could not achieve the breach needed for victory. However, the Ottoman navy could not keep up the resupply necessary to keep Acre in their hands and appeals to the nearby Spanish fleet for assistance fell on deaf ears [5]. A breach occurred on May 11 and the French tricolor waved over the city on May 12. The hard fought victory at Acre would forever be one of Napoléon’s favorite legacies.
Napoléon now had a major question before him. The defeat of the Ottoman land army had always been the goal of the Syria campaign but his victory opened all of Syria for invasion. He could be in Tyre in three days and Damascus within a week. However, his forces had taken significant losses, no fleet had yet arrived from France to challenge the Spanish (and provide escape) and to make matters worse several hundred plague victims now burdened his camp. The Ottoman Navy coming from Rhodes was also an imminent factor in Egypt. Napoléon reasoned that any further campaigns north would surely net glory but would likely lead to defeat at the hands of a far larger Turkish army somewhere in Anatolia. A push east could surely get him to Baghdad or Basra but his forces would run out of steam in Persia or the Indus River, similar to Alexander. His best bet was to regroup in Egypt and hope for a French relief fleet. Napoléon announced to his loyal troops in mid-May:
“After feeding the war for three months in the heart of Syria with a handful of men, taking forty guns, fifty flags, 10,000 prisoners, razing the fortifications of Gaza, Kaïffa, Jaffa, Acre, we shall return to Egypt.”
Napoléon’s forces were barely able to get the rest and resupply they needed in Cairo before they had to march north. The Ottoman Navy was landing a force near Alexandria. On July 25 the French outmaneuvered the landing Ottoman force and defeated them soundly at the Battle of Aboukir (the third battle to take place near this location on land and sea). Napoléon triumphantly marched into Cairo. The zenith of his campaign also marked its end. After two years in Egypt and Syria, his army had been ravaged by the climate, disease, insurrection and numerous battles. Reinforcements never arrived nor did a relief fleet. Napoléon had won his battles but he was now effectively stuck. The Syria Campaign had shown he had a definite limit to his army’s range north and east. Any campaign south would eventually strand his forces in the middle of nowhere while exposing them to further disease. A push west towards Benghazi or Tripoli was not possible without naval support. Having done all he could do, and hearing that the Directorie was on the verge of collapse, Napoléon decided to return to France. Without arousing suspicion, Napoléon quietly left Cairo with his best aides, many of the scholars who had accompanied him and his best generals. Napoleon’s small flotilla made it back to France without incident having slipped the Spanish watch off Egypt and with most of the Royal Navy focused on Malta.
Napoleon left about 10,000 troops in Egypt under the command of General Jean-Baptiste Kléber. While the next phase in Napoléon’s personal saga was about to begin, the Armee d’Orient’s story was only just beginning in its own right.
———— Author’s Notes ———–
[1]: This is a slightly edited version from our timeline’s version of Casabianca.
[2]: José de Córdoba y Ramos is the same Spanish naval commander who lost the Battle of Cape St. Vincent in our timeline. Because that battle never occurred in this one, he is not disgraced and is still in command.
[3]: This excerpt from Mullie is actually an our-timeline source. I’m repurposing it for use in this timeline (with the single edit of changing “English” to “Spanish”) since it still works perfectly, but want to give credit where it is due.
[4]: This excerpt from Bourrienne is also an our-timeline source. I’ve made no edits and am using a large excerpt to show, from an eye-witness account, the massacre of prisoners at Jaffa, the situation of Napoleon and his army and the brutality of the executions.
[5]: In our timeline, the British actively helped the Ottomans in the siege of Acre. The very Catholic Spanish, who now rule the waves in this timeline, never had a great relationship with the Ottomans so they are content to let Napoleon and the Sultan bloody each other.
Adkins, Roy & Lesley. The War for All the Oceans. Abacus, 2006.
Amini, Iradj. Napoleon and Persia: Franco-Persian Relations Under the First Empire. Mage, 1999.
Bonaparte, Napoleon;. C.A. Fischer. Collection Générale et Complète de lettres, discours, proclimations de Napoléon le Grand. Leipzig: H. Graff, 1808
Clowes, William L. The Royal Navy, A History from the Earliest Times to 1900. Vol. IV. Chatham Publishing, 1997.
Cole, Juan. Napoleon’s Egypt; Invading the Middle East. Palgrave Macmillan, 2007.
Gardiner, Robert. Nelson Against Napoleon. Caxton Editions, 2001.
Hemans, Felicia. The Poetical Works of Felicia Dorothea Hemans. Oxford University Press, 1914.
Maffeo, Steven E. Most Secret and Confidential: Intelligence in the Age of Nelson. Chatham Publishing, 2000.
Mullié, Charles. Biographie des célébrités militaires des armées de terre et de mer de 1789 à 1850/Bonaparte. Poignavant, 1851.
Rose, J. Holland. Napoleon and Sea Power. Cambridge Historical Journal. Vol. I, 1924.
Vovsi, Eman. “The Power and Question of Faith: Murad Bey’s Pros and Cons during the French Invasion of Egypt, 1798-1801.” The Napoleon Series. Accessed January 26, 2018. http://www.napoleon-series.org/military/battles/Egypt/c_MouradBey.html.
Warner, Oliver. The Battle of the Nile. B. T. Batsford, 1960.
Next Chapter: A Damned Game of Chess
Posted in Empire of LibertyTagged alexandria, Alternate History, battle of the nile, britain, cairo, counter factual, egypt, Empire of Liberty, france, jaffa, john jervis, john orde, José de Córdoba y Ramos, napoleon, nelson, ottoman empire, selim iii, spain, syria
Empire of Liberty: The War of the Second Coalition
Identity… Politics? Media? Sports?
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Posted by: BinBin , May 4, 2020
Photo Credit: Twin River Casino Hotel | Twin River Rewards Club
Becoming A Gambling Industry Leader
Before 2012, Twin River Casino was relatively unknown to most of the country. But, that year, Twin River Casino received approval for table games in the slots-only casino. Twin River Worldwide Holdings has continued to expand since. Here is how they have done it.
Starting from the humble beginnings as a horse/greyhound race track, to today’s country-wide presence in 13 states. Here’s the latest on the story – Twin River Worldwide Holdings Becoming A Gambling Industry Leader, with guest commentary by Dr. David Schwartz.
Property map for Twin River Worldwide Holdings
Huge Acquisition – Three Properties
Twin River Worldwide Holdings shares, owner of Twin River Hotel and Casino, soared last week. It had just announced agreements to acquire three casinos for a total of $180 million.
A growing company in the casino industry, from the smallest state in the country, was making a move. In April, TRWH announced it is buying Bally’s Atlantic City Hotel & Casino from Caesars Entertainment for $25 million. It also is buying Eldorado Shreveport Resort and Casino and the Mont Bleu Resort Casino & Spa in Lake Tahoe from Eldorado Resorts for a combined $155 million.
The three properties combined contain 3,318 slots, 2,092 hotel rooms and 176 tables. In addition, Eldorado Shreveport Resort and Casino adds 6,000 square feet of convention space. It all adds to an expanding, diversified portfolio of casinos around the country.
Twin River Worldwide Holdings Properties Before Purchase
The move expands Twin River Worldwide Holdings’ footprint into three additional states. The company already owns and operates eight properties.
Since Massachusetts approved casino gaming in 2013, two of the proposed casinos would have a direct influence on Twin River Casino. Taking advantage of Eldorado’s fire sale of certain Caesars Entertainment properties would boost the sagging revenue from it Rhode Island Properties.
Soo Kim, chairman of the company’s board of directors, saying “This is a great deal for Twin River, and diversifies our business across eight states. It reaffirms our commitment to employees, customers and the communities in which we operate that Twin River will be stronger than ever.”
Details of the Purchase Deal
The agreement with Eldorado Resorts, Inc. (“Eldorado”) allowed Twin River Worldwide Holdings to acquire Eldorado Shreveport Resort and Casino in Shreveport, Louisiana and the Mont Bleu Resort Casino & Spa in Lake Tahoe, Nevada for an aggregate purchase price of $155 million.
Separately, the Company also entered into an agreement with Caesars Entertainment Corporation and Vici Properties Inc. to acquire Bally’s Atlantic City Hotel & Casino for $25 million in cash. The Bally’s deal is a milestone for TRWH, and is the most intriguing.
Purchasing Bally’s Atlantic City
Bally’s is a casino and entertainment facility located in the heart of the Atlantic City casino district. New Jersey regulators investigated any case for “undue economic concentration,” or owning too much of the market. Caesars currently owns three of Atlantic City’s nine casinos, and Eldorado owns a fourth.
Daniel Heneghan, a gambling analyst and former longtime spokesman for the commission said “It will significantly reduce the level of economic concentration and that will make it a lot easier for the (New Jersey) Casino Control Commission to approve it. [Also] the fact that it is being sold to a new player for the market here will help increase competition.”
Opened in 1979, Bally’s is one of the oldest casinos in New Jersey. The property has over 1,200 hotel rooms and 127,000 square feet of gambling space.
Dr. David Schwartz remarked in his recent post: Twin River Worldwide Stepping It Up,
“Since its 1979 opening, Bally’s has seen ups and downs. For many years one of the city’s top revenue-producing casinos, in recent years Bally’s has moved to the bottom of the Caesars portfolio. A new owner and focus might bring the resort back to its former prominence.”
A Historical Overview
Bally’s Atlantic City
The Glamorous Past, Building Onward, and Thriving not Surviving
But Wait, There’s More – Bally’s Acquisition
An interesting footnote to this acquisition is that Caesars Entertainment is retaining the two most profitable parts of Bally’s:
The Book, a sports betting facility and entertainment center that the company spent $8.4 million on just last summer
the Wild Wild West, an area adjacent to the sports book. Those facilities will now become part of Caesars casino, which is next door to Bally’s on the Boardwalk.
Intentions of any type of coordination with Twin River’s Rewards Club, or its legal sports betting operation, were not included. The Twin River Sports Book and mobile betting is run by the Rhode Island Lottery and powered by William Hill.
William Hill which runs sports books in nine states, is also at Ocean Resort Casino and Tropicana Resort Casino, on the boardwalk. Caesars’ Wild Wild West will continue to be run by Caesars nationwide sports book. Rhode Island was the first New England state, and still the only state, to offer legal sports betting.
Twin River Worldwide Holdings – Under the Radar
Twin River is the second New England casino to reach beyond to bigger gambling areas. The Atlantic City Boardwalk will now have the presence of two New England Casinos. Mohegan Sun manages Resorts. But, how did this company emerge from obscurity in the northeast to a bigger player in the country?
First of all who is TRWH? Twin River Worldwide Holdings, Inc. operates as a holding company. The Company, through its subsidiaries, owns and manages hotels that offers amenities such as casinos, retail outlets, sports bars, pubs, dining, food court, and accommodations. Twin River Worldwide Holdings serves customers only in the United States. in 2020, Twin River Worldwide Holdings is Becoming A Gambling Industry Leader
The original Twin River Hotel & Casino is nearly as big as the MGM Grand’s casino floor in Las Vegas, with more than 162,000 square feet of gaming space, 4,000 slot machines and 111 table games, as well as a race and sportsbook.
Related Post – Twin River Hotel & Casino by the Numbers
Looking Back – The Beginnings
Before Twin River Hotel and Casino, it was Lincoln Downs. In 1989, then Lincoln Greyhound Park was mired in a downward spiral of the Greyhound Racing industry.
The inevitable owners of Twin River Casino bought the dog track after the state approved pari-mutual and VLT machine gaming. After a $220-million expansion, Lincoln Park was renamed Twin River in 2007. In the following eight years after 2012, Twin River Worldwide Holdings expansion increased quickly:
2014 – Bought the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Biloxi in Biloxi, Mississippi.
March 2019 – Completed a reverse merger with Dover Downs Gaming & Entertainment, the parent company of Dover Downs Hotel & Casino. The transaction made Twin River a public company traded on the New York Stock Exchange.
2015 – Purchased Rhode Island’s only other casino, the Newport Grand, for $22 million, and announced plans to move its operations to a new facility to be built in Tiverton. The Newport Grand closed in 2018, and its replacement, the $140-million Tiverton Casino Hotel, opened days later
July 2019 – Agreed to buy two casinos in Missouri and Mississippi (Isle of Capri Casino Kansas City and Lady Luck Casino Vicksburg) from Eldorado Resorts for $230 million.
January 2020 – Twin River purchased three casinos in Black Hawk, Colorado (the Golden Gates, Golden Gulch, and Mardi Gras) from Affinity Gaming for $51 million.
Twin River Worldwide Stepping It Up
Dr. David Schwartz is an author at Comped Travel, as well as author of many fabulous gambling books, such as “Roll the Bones” and “Grandissimo.” In his article about Twin River’s new purchases he agrees that “The move boosts the Providence-based company’s holdings and gives it a presence in three major casino markets.”
George Papanier, Twin River Worldwide Holdings President and CEO, was quoted in Dr. Dave’s article as saying, “…each of the properties has tremendous upside….the fact [is] that these properties each brought something unique to our portfolio. These were opportunities that were presented to us at different times in 2019.”
What will the new properties have to look forward to? Papanier says “If you look at the other properties in our portfolio, we have a proven history of transforming locations for the better. We are confident that players will see the same type of improvements at these properties, as well.”
The final word by Dr. Schwartz.
“Players at all three new Twin River casinos, then, have many reasons to give these properties another look. Likely not the last acquisitions of an industry going through unprecedented changes, they nevertheless will change the competitive landscape in their respective markets.”
I couldn’t have said it better.
Tags: Bally's, Bally's AC, Bally's AC sold, Bally's Atlantic City sold, Ballys Atlantic City, Eldorado Shreveport Resort and Casino, Mont Bleu Resort, Mont Bleu Resort Casino Spa Lake Tahoe, Twin River, Twin River Acquisition, Twin River Casino, Twin River Worldwide Holdings
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February 1, 2013 February 1, 2019 travsd
Victor Herbert, Babes in Toyland
Today is the birthday of the great Irish-German-Austrian-American stage composer Victor Herbert (1859-1924). (He was born in Ireland, raised in Germany and Austria, then moved to the U.S. as a young man.
Herbert was a crucial figure in the evolution of modern musical comedies out of the European style operas and operettas that came before them. Between 1896 and his death, he composed the music for dozens of stage shows. His best known today include Babes in Toyland (1904), Little Nemo (1909, based on the Winsor McCay comic strip) and Naughty Marietta (1911). The 1907 show Mlle Modiste has been on my radar lately because it featured an obscure chorus boy named Mack Sennett. In the teens and afterwards he also wrote music for several revues, including numerous editions of the Ziegfeld Follies. He remained sufficiently popular after his death for the Marx Brothers to make jokes about in the late 20s and early 30s. Several of his shows were revived in the decades after his death.
He is interred at Woodlawn Cemetery; I visited the site in 2015:
Coincidentally, it’s also the birthday of Gene Sheldon (for my full bio on that quirky entertainer go here). Here’s Sheldon in the 1960 3-D Disney remake of Babes in Toyland (he’s the mute in the Langdonesque dented hat):
Babes in Toyland
Gene Sheldon
musicalcomedy
Victor Herbert
Previous John Ford Intersects with Vaudeville
Next Langston Hughes, Po’ Boy Blues
Theater Review: Cristina Fontanelli's 13th Annual Christmas in Italy - Magnifissance says:
[…] composers like Verdi, Puccini and Rossini, ending on “The Italian Street Song” from Victor Herbert’s Naughty Marietta. We could have listened to her heavenly singing voice all night, but she […]
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Chernoh Wurie
Raleigh Building, Room 2009F Phone: (804) 827-0493 Email: cmwurie@vcu.edu
Police recruitment and requirements
Perceptions of police officers
Immigration and policing
Crime scene identification, processing and analysis
Cultural diversity and inclusion in policing
B.S., Criminal Justice, Radford University
M.A., Public Administration and Public Safety, Walden University
Ph.D., Public Policy and Administration, Walden University
Introduction to Policing, Principles of Criminal Investigations, Violent Crime Scenes Investigations, Race, Crime, and Justice and Criminalistics
Basic requirements of becoming a police officer, positive and negative perceptions of police officers, immigration and policing, and minorities in policing, diversity and inclusion in policing and leadership in policing.
Dr. Wurie’s area of concentration strongly focuses on policing because he was a sworn police officer for more than 10 years with the Prince William County Police Department. During his police tenure, he was a patrol officer, crisis intervention team member, police mentor, crime scene technician and police planner. He also completed various applicable police training courses such as crisis intervention training, criminal investigations training, basic police crime scene photography, police planners training and crime scene technician. In addition to his police experience, Wurie completed his doctoral degree in 2012, which primarily focused on the impact of the immigration policy 287(g) and its impact on Salvadoran families residing in Prince William County. He also has coauthored other publications and has written and published one book, “Impact: A Compilation of Positive Police Encounters.” Wurie is currently working on another police-related manuscript detailing the basic steps and preparedness of becoming/facing the obstacles during police officer selection process. His educational and professional experiences contribute greatly to his teaching and service endeavors at the L. Douglas Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs at Virginia Commonwealth University.
Wurie, C. M. (2012). Exploring the lives of Salvadoran families after the implementation of Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 Section 287(g) (Doctoral Dissertation). Retrieved from ProQuest (ID# 12491).
Wurie, C. M. (2013). Impact: A compilation of positive police encounters. Indiana: AuthorHouse.
Intro to Policing: Perceptions versus reality. Wurie, C.M. (2019), CA: Cognella Pub Inc.
https://store.cognella.com/82280-1a-001
Co-Author (Chapter 3) “Breakthrough Mentoring in the 21st Century: A Compilation of Life Altering Experiences,” by Walter McCollum Ph.D.
Co-Author (Chapter 6) “Black Men Changing the Narrative through Education”
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After a year at Glasgow Drama school learning stage management , Gerry joined the theatre. While working in London’s West End the actor, Sir Alec Guiness, encouraged him to join the film industry where he has spent his career working as an Assistant Director engaged on such productions as diverse as Star Wars, 8 James Bond films, Troy, Tomb Raider, and Game of Thrones, and currently in the cinema “A Street Cat Named Bob”
Landscape photography came about, while on a round the world shoot to make TV commercials for Singapore Airlines the producers asked Gerry to shoot landscapes to bolster the videos
Gerry has always been interested in social and street photography immersing himself with the homeless, Inuit (Canada), gypsies,(Ireland), cowboys (Australia), refugees, oil workers (Azerbaijan) Tibetans (Ladakh, Zanskar)
After travelling in over 60 countries Gerry is now working on a project called “Homefront’ to photograph the people of Britain.
Inuit of Rankin Inlet, Nunavut, Canada
Click on any of the images and view in a slideshow.
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Tag Archives: South Sudan
Two Years a Country: Celebrating Independence Day in South Sudan
Posted by Faith McDonnell in News
Archbishop Daniel Deng Bul, Bishop Paride Taban, Faith J. H. McDonnell, freedom, National Prayer for Reconciliation, reconciliation, Referendum on Secession, South Sudan, South Sudan Independence, South Sudan Oyee
– Southern Sudanese from the United States Diaspora vote for freedom, January 2011. (Photo credit: Faith J. H. McDonnell)
By Faith J. H. McDonnell (@Cuchulain09)
It is the eve of Independence Day in the Republic of South Sudan. Tomorrow, July 9, will mark the nation’s second birthday. To prepare for this solemn and joyful occasion, the Most Reverend Daniel Deng Bul, Archbishop of Sudan and South Sudan (Episcopal Church of Sudan) has called the whole country to prayer. All over South Sudan there will be city and community-wide prayer services, including in Juba Stadium in South Sudan’s capital city.
The archbishop is chairman of the committee, with Catholic Bishop Emeritus Paride Taban as Vice-chairman. The Committee for National Reconciliation includes a number of other Christian and Muslim religious leaders, a representative of each state, and members of civil society representing women and youth.
Prayer concerns include:
Justice that leads to peace for all the people of Sudan
An end to violence
The transformation of hearts
The safety of Reverend Idris, Joshua Idris Nalos, Pastor Trainee David Gayin, and all who have been detained
Jonglei state and other places that have known inter-tribal violence
Good leadership and governance for the young nation
In January of 2011, Southern Sudanese from every people group came together to participate in the Referendum on Secession from the nation of Sudan. The photos included with this blog post are of some of the many Southern Sudanese living in America that participated in the referendum in Alexandria, VA in the Washington, DC area. Voting took place from January 9-15, 2011, and the results were announced on February 7. It was an overwhelming 98.83% in favor of separation from Sudan. On July 9, 2011, the two countries separated officially, and the nation we now call the Republic of South Sudan was born.
South Sudan’s national anthem, written by the students and teachers of Juba University just in time for South Sudan’s Independence, included the prayer that is on the hearts of most of the people of South Sudan today:
We praise and glorify You
For Your grace on South Sudan,
Land of great abundance
Uphold us united in peace and harmony.
(From “South Sudan Oyee!” National Hymn of South Sudan)
National Day of Prayer for South Sudan: Prayer in the Churches
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Archbishop Daniel Deng Bul, Faith J. H. McDonnell, forgiveness, healing, National Prayer for Reconciliation, South Sudan, South Sudan Independence
South Sudanese Christians celebrate South Sudan’s freedom.
(Photo credit: Urban Christian News)
Christians have a special responsibility to work for reconciliation and healing. As Christians, we are called to be reconcilers — reconciling others to themselves, each other, and to God. “All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation.” (2 Corinthians 5: 18)
Today the Christians of South Sudan have been called to pray for healing, forgiveness, and reconciliation amongst all of the people of the new nation. As the Christians have prayed in their churches, across South Sudan, from every tribe, language, and denomination, please remember to pray for them today.
Here are some of the Bible verses that the Most Rev. Daniel Deng Bul, the Archbishop of Sudan and South Sudan (Episcopal Church of Sudan) has asked the Christians to focus on:
Behold how good it is for brethren to dwell together in unity (Psalm 133:1)
If we walk in the light, as God is in the light, we can have fellowship with one another (1 John 1:7)
I will restore the crushed spirit of the humble and revive the courage of those with repentant hearts (Isaiah 57:14-15)
And of course, there is the great promise from 2 Chronicles 7: 14: If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.
By their faithfulness to God during persecution and oppression by Khartoum, the Christians of South Sudan have greatly honored the Lord. And as God said in 1 Samuel 2: 30, Those who honor me I will honor. God has honored the faithfulness of South Sudanese Christians by bringing forth a new nation. Now they, and we who care about the Body of Christ in South Sudan, have faith that God will also heal their land’s wounds of strife and division and bring about reconciliation.
Values that Promote Reconciliation II: Prayer for South Sudan, Day 5
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Faith J. H. McDonnell, forgiveness, healing, Independence Day, National Day of Prayer, reconciliation, South Sudan, South Sudan Independence
Healing, forgiveness, and reconciliation bring joy and peace
(Photo Credit: Flame International)
Today, prayer for national forgiveness, healing, and reconciliation is taking place in the mosques of South Sudan. It would also seem to be a good time to be thankful for South Sudan’s religious freedom. With all the faults and errors that South Sudan is experiencing in its infancy as a nation (and about which some global observers are eager to highlight), it takes tremendous grace not to reciprocate for the oppression and religious persecution that South Sudanese experienced when under the thumb of Omar al Bashir. But that has never been the intention of either South Sudan’s “Moses” Dr. John Garang, nor of his successor, President Salva Kiir.
South Sudan embraces religious freedom for all, but there are still old wounds from the past that need healing, injuries that need forgiveness. South Sudan’s Committee for National Healing, Peace, and Reconciliation, led by the Most Rev. Daniel Deng Bul, Archbishop of Sudan and South Sudan (Episcopal Church of Sudan) highlights the importance of forgiveness, healing, atonement, and sovereignty for the health of the nation.
Forgiveness – “is the cornerstone to healing relationships between individuals and communities,” says the Committee’s working paper “The Way Forward.” The definition goes on to say that forgiveness is a “volitional act of giving up anger and resentment and extending pardon to an offending party.” A very important characteristic of forgiveness, often ignored or not comprehended in any secular concept, is that “forgiveness cannot be earned and is not deserved by the offending party.”When it takes place, “forgiveness sets an individual, community or nation free from the burden of anger, pain, hatred, resentment and the desire for revenge.” Forgiveness has the power to change lives. It “transforms societies by releasing them from the wounds of the past.”
Healing – Once there has been forgiveness, healing can begin. “Healing wounded communities and nation is a spiritual and socio-political process that addresses painful historical memories with an eye toward acknowledgement, grieving, repentance, justice and forgiveness,” according to “The Way Forward.” Healing the wounds of history, it continues, comes when we acknowledge the suffering and injustice of the past.
Atonement – “The Way Forward” defines atonement as turning from alienation from God, self, and others and finding peace with God that leads to personal transformation. “Atonement means that, ultimately reconciliation is the process of finding peace with God,” the paper continues.
Sovereignty – Acknowledging the sovereignty of God makes national unity possible, the paper explains, because God is the supreme authority over peoples, communities, and nations.
Psalm 33:12 says “Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord.” If the people of South Sudan heed the exhortations and advice of the Committe for National Reconciliation and desire to be a nation whose God is the Lord, they will be blessed. With spiritual leaders such as Archbishop Deng, and the encouragement of others from around the world, these values can be built into the DNA of South Sudan.
Values That Promote Reconciliation: Prayer for South Sudan, Day 4
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and Reconciliation, Archbishop Daniel Deng Bul, Faith J. H. McDonnell, forgiveness, inclusivity, Independence Day, National Day of Prayer for Healing, peacebuilding, pluralism, reconciliation, Social Justice, South Sudan, South Sudan Independence
Working for peace, forgiveness, healing, and reconciliation in South Sudan (Photo credit: Catholic Relief Services)
It is the morning of July 4 in Virginia as I write, America’s Independence Day. But in South Sudan the fourth day of the National Prayer for Reconciliation is coming to a close. South Sudan will celebrate its own independence on Tuesday, July 9. The National Prayer for Reconciliation is an effort to ensure that the baby nation grows well and strong and prosperous.
In the working paper of the Committee for National Healing, Peace, and Reconciliation, the Most Rev. Daniel Deng Bul, the Archbishop of Sudan and South Sudan (Episcopal Church of Sudan) outlines the values that will guide the way to reconciliation of the various people groups in South Sudan. The core values that foster healing, peace, and reconciliation are pluralism, inclusivity, peacemaking, social justice, forgiveness, healing, atonement, and sovereignty. Here is a closer look at the first four, and during Day 5 the last four will be explored:
Pluralism – the working paper explains that “pluralism means that we seek unity in the midst of diversity.” South Sudan has learned the value of pluralism the hard way, by being under the oppression of the Islamist regime in Sudan which respects neither religious, ethnic, nor racial diversity. “Ethnic and cultural diversity should be seen as a gift from God: to be a blessing, to be part of the richness of human experience, and to be celebrated,” explains the working paper. It warns, however, that “we must be honest in saying that diversity has its limits, which must be defined by every society in terms of the range of tolerable deviation from the norm.”
Inclusivity – with wisdom derived from a Biblical understanding of justice and compassion, the Archbishop’s working paper explains, “Compassionate inclusion means that we seek to overcome hostility by the practice of unconditional love toward others, including one’s enemies.” It adds that “compassionate inclusion requires a willingness on our part to confront our own hostility toward “the other.””
Peacemaking – The paper says that “communities and nations are made-up of weak, fallible, broken human beings, who have an inherent tendency toward conflict.” This is part of our human nature and therefore it is assumed that conflict is “an ever-present reality.” Rather than ask how to avoid conflict, we should ask how to resolve conflict without violence.
Social Justice – The working paper defines faith-based social justice as seeking “the common good through transformation of the soul of a community.” It continues to explain that social justice is inherently tied to issues of privilege, land, and economics. “Faith-based social justice means that there is a moral grain to the universe established by God which governs human relationships and structures,” the paper says.
Please pray that as the many people groups of South Sudan wrestle with this critical issue of nation-wide healing and reconciliation that they will embrace these values and make South Sudan a shining example of reconciliation to the whole world.
The Roots of Conflict and the Context of Reconciliation in South Sudan: Day 3
≈ Comments Off on The Roots of Conflict and the Context of Reconciliation in South Sudan: Day 3
Archbishop Daniel Deng Bul, Faith J. H. McDonnell, forgiveness, National Day of Prayer, President Salva Kiir, reconciliation, South Sudan
Rwandan Genocide survivor Celestin Musekura speaks to South Sudan military and police chaplains about forgiveness. (Photo credit: Micah Mandate, Trevecca Nazarene University)
Throughout the years of war waged by Sudan’s National Islamic Front regime against the people of South Sudan, Nuba Mountains, and Blue Nile, certain catch phrases were frequently heard — particularly by the media and by humanitarian aid groups. “Human rights violations by both sides” and “South on South violence” were among the phrases used not merely to portray the war scene accurately and with no bias, but also at times to depict the two sides as morally equivalent.
In the working paper by South Sudan’s Committee on National Reconciliation, the Most Rev. Daniel Deng Bul, Sudan’s Anglican Archbishop (Episcopal Church of Sudan) writes with dismay about how not long after the great celebration of South Sudan’s independence, outbreaks of violence took place. “Before we could finish celebration, we hit the headlines again,” he recollects. “But all for the wrong reasons! Hundreds were reported killed, many wounded, children and women abducted and much property, including health centres and schools damaged.”
Deng informs that the current violence taking place in South Sudan “can trace its roots to the decades of war.” He explains that not only was South Sudan attacked directly by the Islamist regime in Khartoum, but the war was pursued in the South by Southerners and between Southerners. “The enemies of South Sudan used divide and rule tactics, setting tribe against tribe, brother against brother, and sister against sister,” says Deng. He refers to the “tragic split” in the liberation movement in 1991 that pitted Southern resistance movements against each other, and declares, “The time has now come to rediscover our nationalism, putting aside these artificially created divisions.”
“We cannot have fellowship without forgiveness, reconciliation and healing,” Deng states. He says that the people of South Sudan need to “exercise mercy towards each other.” There is a precedent for this kind of reconciliation. In 1999, in Wunlit, the New Sudan Council of Churches facilitated a “People to People Peace Process” conference between Dinka and Nuer people groups. The reconciliation that took place after this conference led to the reunification of the SPLA. “Now is the time to stand together as a nation, as we have done before when the need is great,” Deng declares.
South Sudan President Salva Kiir Mayardit has also spoken to the people of South Sudan to say that “the time for war is over and never again should the brothers and sisters of South Sudan go to war against each other.” In a speech to the National Legislative Assembly in April 2013, Kiir said, “We must work to heal the wounds created during our long struggle for independence and equality. We must work together to build a nation worthy of the sacrifice of our many martyrs and innocent victims.”
Archbishop Deng says that “forgiveness is painful but it is the bitter pill we need.” The Church can help people to understand that in granting forgiveness, they do not have to deny that wrong has been done. Often people are afraid to forgive because they believe that it somehow diminishes the pain that they or their people have endured. But the Church can teach that true forgiveness is modeled by Christ, in His undeniably agonizing crucifixion who prayed, Father, forgive them for they know not what they do.”
Deng also explains that the people of South Sudan “have to swallow our pride for the sake of the survival of our young nation.” He says that “the pride of tribe, of clan, of class, of creed, of political party, and of personal ambition must not obscure the focus on the future of our nation.” Pride can often stand in the way of receiving forgiveness, too. It is actually quite a humbling experience to be forgiven, because we have to be willing to admit that we have done something offensive or injurious, something wrong. In fact, in today’s modern Western culture, offering forgiveness is often perceived as a self-righteous, morally-passé action and is often resented!
It would seem that the exhortation of Archbishop Deng to the people of South Sudan is good advice for all of us.
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Graduate Programs ›
MTS ›
The MTS Degree and its Requirements
Six Areas of Concentration
All students apply to and are admitted to one of the six areas of concentration offered by the MTS program. While developing competence in the area of concentration, students also receive exposure to the full range of theological studies, ensuring that their theological work has both breadth and depth. The six areas of concentration are as follows: Biblical Studies, History of Christianity, Liturgical Studies, Moral Theology, Systematic Theology, and World Religions World Church.
Credit Hours/Course Requirements:
The MTS is a 48 credit hour degree. Of these 48 credit hours, 15 must be taken in the area of concentration, which constitutes the student’s MTS major. Another 15 credit hours must be taken outside the area of concentration, with 3 credit hours required for each of the other five areas within the MTS program. The remaining 18 credit hours are “area requirements,” which are determined by each area within the MTS program.
Requirements for the Six Areas of Concentration:
The concentration in Biblical Studies requires 15 credit hours in Biblical Studies, 3 credit hours in History of Christianity, 3 credit hours in Liturgical Studies, 3 credit hours in Moral Theology, 3 credit hours in Systematic Theology, and 3 credit hours in World Religions World Church. Students concentrating in Biblical Studies are also required to take 12 credits (four semesters) in ancient languages and to know both Hebrew and Greek. They must have at least an intermediate knowledge (four semesters) of one of these languages and at least an elementary knowledge (two semesters) of the other. Students who enter the MTS program without a good knowledge of ancient languages will need to devote their electives (6 credit hours) to language study.
The concentration in History of Christianity requires 15 credit hours in History of Christianity, 6 credit hours in ancient languages, 3 credit hours in Biblical Studies, 3 credit hours in Liturgical Studies, 3 credit hours in Moral Theology, 3 credit hours in Systematic Theology, and 3 credit hours in World Religions World Church. The remaining 12 credit hours are electives and may include courses outside the Department of Theology, provided that students have the prior approval of the area advisor for the History of Christianity concentration and the MTS director.
The concentration in Liturgical Studies requires 15 credit hours in Liturgical Studies, 6 credit hours in ancient languages (typically Greek or Latin), 3 credit hours in Biblical Studies, 3 credit hours in History of Christianity, 3 credit hours in Moral Theology, 3 credit hours in Systematic Theology, and 3 credit hours in World Religions World Church. The remaining 12 credit hours are electives and may include courses outside the Department of Theology, provided that students have the prior approval of the area advisor for the Liturgical Studies concentration and the MTS director.
Moral Theology
The concentration in Moral Theology requires 15 credit hours in Moral Theology, 3 credit hours in Biblical Studies, 3 credit hours in History of Christianity, 3 credit hours in Liturgical Studies, 3 credit hours in Systematic Theology, and 3 credit hours in World Religions World Church. The remaining 18 credit hours are electives; of these electives, no more than three courses (9 credit hours) may be taken outside the Department of Theology. One Theology elective (3 credit hours) may be devoted to an ancient language. Students who take three courses in another area of the MTS program may designate that area as a minor area of concentration.
The concentration in Systematic Theology requires 15 credit hours in Systematic Theology, 3 credit hours in Biblical Studies, 3 credit hours in History of Christianity, 3 credit hours in Liturgical Studies, 3 credit hours in Moral Theology, and 3 credit hours in World Religions World Church. The remaining 18 credit hours are electives and may include courses outside the Department of Theology, provided that students have the prior approval of the area advisor for the Systematic Theology concentration and the MTS director.
World Religions World Church
The concentration in World Religions World Church requires 15 credit hours in World Religions World Church, 6 credit hours in Biblical Studies, 6 credit hours in History of Christianity, 6 credit hours of a foreign language, 3 credit hours in Liturgical Studies, 3 credit hours in Moral Theology, and 3 credit hours in Systematic Theology. The remaining 6 credit hours are electives. Students must demonstrate intermediate proficiency in a language of the culture being studied (e.g., Arabic, Mandarin, Sanskrit, Swahili, Spanish, etc.) either by completing an intermediate level course or passing an intermediate translation exam.
Modern Language Requirement:
Inasmuch as the MTS is a degree that requires research, all MTS students need to demonstrate facility in reading at least one modern language relevant to theological research. Therefore, in addition to earning the necessary number of credits, all MTS students must pass a Graduate Reading exam in either German or French in order to graduate. Students who already know one of these languages upon admission to the program should take the Graduate Reading exam in that language in their first semester and acquire a second language during their time in the program, in order to pass an exam in that language as well.
The University offers intensive, tuition-free language courses in German and French every summer, with exams given at the end of the course. Students who wish to acquire a language other than French or German during their time in the MTS program may petition their MTS area advisor and the MTS director for a substitution, based on their future research interests.
Oral Exam Requirement:
Toward the end of the final semester of coursework, all MTS students must pass an oral exam with a board of three faculty members. The exam measures students’ competency in their area of concentration and their ability to think theologically, creatively, and synthetically. The topics of the exam are based on materials the students themselves submit: a list of four to five questions that reveal the direction of their theological inquiry, a statement of intent for applications to PhD programs (or for other professional pursuits), and two papers from the student’s coursework. One of these is a major research paper written in the student’s area of concentration, developing more fully the kinds of questions the student is especially interested in pursuing. The other paper is to be in an area outside the student’s concentration and should exhibit how she or he brings other disciplines of theology to bear on her/his major area of concentration.
MTS Colloquium
All MTS students are required to register each semester for the non-credit MTS Colloquium, which meets several times during the semester and contributes to the community atmosphere of the program. Some colloquia are designed as information sessions, and others are devoted to particular topics, such as applying for doctoral programs. Most colloquia, however, involve student presentations, with a student from one area presenting a paper, a student from another area responding to the paper, and a student from a third area presiding. Students thereby develop the ability to deliver professional talks on their original research and learn how the areas of theology are integrated.
Graduate Minor in Peace Studies
Graduate students pursuing a terminal master’s or doctoral degree at the University of Notre Dame have the opportunity to complete a Graduate Minor in Peace Studies. The graduate minor gives students access to classes taught by core faculty members at the Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies, who are among the premier scholars in the field. For doctoral students, combining concentrated coursework in peace studies with their primary discipline can enhance their scholarship and expand their professional options.
MDiv
Admissions & Financial Support
MA in Theology
MA in Early Christian Studies
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You're the Worst's Chris Geere on Messy Co-Habitation, Bigger Sunday Funday
By Vlada Gelman / September 9 2015, 6:00 AM PDT
Courtesy of FXX
You’re the Worst‘s commitment-adverse main couple, Jimmy and Gretchen, are doing the unthinkable in Season 2 (premiering Wednesday at 10:30/9:30c on FXX)— getting serious about their relationship!
“Season 1 was always them against each other,” star Chris Geere noes. But now that the pair is living together, “It’s them against the world. So they’re kind of like Batman and Robin, but snarky. They struggle an awful lot, but it’s just been great.”
Here, the actor previews Jimmy and Gretchen’s “compromise” as part of a darker storyline ahead, possible engagement talk and his Brit-inspired Sunday Funday Halloween getup.
TVLINE | [Series creator] Steven Falk told me there’s a darker event midway through Season 2 that changes things a bit for Jimmy and Gretchen.
I like to call it the fifth character. There’s something that happens, not a person but a thing, that comes into play. The series from then on becomes about how they, individually and as a foursome, deal with this thing. It forces them to compromise quite a lot and have to work out whether this is what they want to do in terms of the relationship, which of course they do. How they get there is so beautifully done and so real, I think people are going to super support us in how we dealt with it. Because it’s a darker thing, and there’s a fine line, really, approaching a subject like what it is without being too negative about it all and still keeping it light and funny. The awkwardness that comes about because of this situation makes it hilarious.
TVLINE | How is co-habitation going for Gretchen and Jimmy?
[Laughs] Not very well. They pick, consciously and constantly, not wanting to grow up, so moving in together is, “Oh, just something that’s happened, but we should carry on partying as much as we did do before.” And then they hit a point where they say, “We have to stop or we’re going to die,” [Laughs] which I think is really funny. Then it’s about the transition of the space and who’s stuff is going where and what space is whose. Jimmy’s really struggling with the fact that it’s his house and now he has these two freeloaders, which he constantly calls them, staying there.
TVLINE | But Edgar does some light housework. What about Gretchen?
She does nothing. Can you imagine Gretchen cleaning up after herself? No. It just gets messier and messier. And then as Edgar becomes more interested in other aspects of his life, he kind of gives up on the house, as well. So at one point, I think it’s Episode 8, we come home and the house is a wreck, like teenagers have been there. They are lovable teenagers.
TVLINE | To be fair, as I think Gretchen says in the premiere, Jimmy gets to wake up next to all of that. So there’s that.
Yes. Exactly. [Laughs] He lets her live there, and she’ll give him whatever he wants sexually. Done!
TVLINE | It was surprising the way they kind of glossed over the fact that Gretchen thought he was going to propose and thus accepted his proposal. Does that come up again?
It’s referred to a couple of times. But yeah, we had to move on from it and not dwell too much because a natural progression for [Seasons] 3, 4, 5, if we’re lucky enough to ever get there, would be an engagement, maybe, again. So to make a callback to it then might make more sense. I can’t wait to see what the next milestones will be.
TVLINE | Are there any big ones in Season 2 that they hit?
Not with us, but with another one of the four. Lindsay has a few things happen to her that she was not expecting, and it’s all of us having to deal with that.
TVLINE | Does Lindsay now being single affect Gretchen and Jimmy’s relationship? She’s like the little devil on Gretchen’s shoulder.
She is. But Jimmy has little devils, as well. And if he hasn’t, he goes and finds one. So everyone’s got a little devil. Then poor old Edgar has all of us on his shoulders the whole time. Lindsay has a new job sending d–k pics to a gay porn site for money. It’s a classic You’re the Worst character job, isn’t it?
TVLINE | What’s in store for Sunday Funday, Part 2?
It’s Halloween. Edgar was in charge last year, someone else is in charge this year. To shoot it, production-wise, was like doing a small movie. If the fans loved it last year, they will love it this year because it’s, like, 26 minutes, yet we had 18 locations. There’s a lot of background, there’s a lot of makeup and costumes, and it’s so fun. And there are a lot of montage sequences, which we’ve learned to love or loathe. I’ve realized I’m terrible at montages. [Laughs]
TVLINE | Without giving it away, can you tease your Halloween costume in the episode?
[Laughs] It’s a British character that no one is very fond of — apart from Jimmy himself.
TAGS: Chris Geere, FXX, You're the Worst
GET MORE: Interviews, Premieres, Previews
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antebellum histoire vraie
The first major studio in decades, Lionsgate is a global content platform whose films, television series, digital products and linear and over-the-top platforms reach next generation audiences around the world. The film received mixed reviews from critics, who felt it did not live up to the premise's full potential. Refinement . Was this review helpful to you? In March 2019, it was announced Janelle Monáe had joined the cast of the film, with Gerard Bush and Christopher Renz directing from a screenplay they wrote. Since then it has been referred to simply as pre- and post-war. Others hoped to improve society through education reform and increased literacy. Browse 7,000 essays by respected historians, info on 4,000 historic sites, travel advice, and more. This FAQ is empty. Finalement, Antebellum semble inachevé à cause de son manque d'émotion et d'empathie. These historic Southern plantations are worth a visit on your next trip below the Mason-Dixon line. "[16] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 45 out of 100, based on 36 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews. You can spend your days on a self-guided tour enjoying Antebellum architecture, touring historic house museums, browsing through antique shops, dining on southern delicacies, and relaxing in authentic and distinctive bed and breakfasts and inns. The spirit of reform also motivated organizations working toward social change. We provide links to old-house related goods and services, and a wealth of knowledge and links. See more. Free Soil Party. It has no real perspective on the past and thus fails to make any real impact on the present. Directed by Gerard Bush, Christopher Renz. A group of friends think they find an easy score at an empty house with a safe full of cash. Antebellum, 2020 American horror film; Bellum (disambiguation) This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title Antebellum. You must be a registered user to use the IMDb rating plugin. STUDY. ...Casandra Sobczak Period 7 Antebellum is a Latin term that means "before the war. When a job goes dangerously wrong she is forced to fight for her own survival. 1848- The US received land to the Pacific Ocean for $15 mil. ð During the antebellum period before the Civil War in America, African Americans were seen merely as property. Si vous avez vu le film et que vous souhaitez connaitre lâexplication de la fin, lisez la suite !Réalisé par Gerard Bush et Christopher Renz, le film dépeint le sort dâun esclave piégé dans une plantation de coton à lâépoque des droits civiques. US History/ Antebellum America. Hollywood Studios Weigh Risks of PVOD", "Janelle Monáe Is Electrifying in Antebellum", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Antebellum_(film)&oldid=991423608, Films postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 30 November 2020, at 00:14. "[20] Writing for The Hollywood Reporter, Jourdain Searles said the film was "more interested in making a point than digging deep" and "In the end, Antebellum is undone by a lack of empathy and emotion. ð The portrait in the history museum shows life in the Antebellum South. Antebellum "[17], Peter Debruge from Variety called it "A mind blowing thriller". Want to share IMDb's rating on your own site? Max Price. Southern and Northern America during Antebellum Introduction Antebellum period is the history immediately before the civil war âbefore (ante) war (bellum) meaning the entire period of U.S civil war history that goes from 1750-1789. (2020). SqFt. Pre Civil War, Antebellum homes for Sale.Homes built before 1860. Antebellum History Books Showing 1-50 of 54 Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl (Paperback) by. Réelles identités etc. 7 results returned Save Search. Based on an incredible true story of one man's fight for survival and freedom. Examples of antebellum in the following topics: Plantation Masters and Mistresses. A refugee couple makes a harrowing escape from war-torn South Sudan, but then they struggle to adjust to their new life in an English town that has an evil lurking beneath the surface. This movie was somewhat good, but definitely not a horror film, and it didn't come together well. Julia asks Eden to plan an escape while Eden urges her to keep her head down. Antebellum Restaurant is a fine dining establishment located on the outskirts of Atlanta. 131 Lots 1 2 ⦠In May 2019, Marque Richardson joined the cast of the film. Although England had already begun rapid industrialization in the eighteenth century, the United States experienced its Industrial Revolution in the antebellum period. Elizabeth then pursues on horseback and reveals that she handpicked every slave on the plantation except for Veronica, whom she kidnapped at her father's insistence. The features we associate with antebellum architecture were introduced to the American South by Anglo-Americans, outliers who moved into the area after the 1803 Louisiana Purchase and during a wave of immigration from Europe. Merrimack Corp . Learn how Gabourey Sidibe's performance in Antebellum ratchets up the dread as the movie enters its harrowing final act in our interview with Gabourey and her co-star, Lily Cowles. Elizabeth's husband Jasper knocks Veronica out revealing that Veronica and "Eden" are the same person. Antebellum Time and Place . A group of new slaves are brought to the plantation. I was looking for a good thriller/horror movie and was very disappointed. Denton and his comrades intended to use the park to recreate an environment to bring back the slavery days using African victims. [15], On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 28% based on 160 reviews, with an average rating of 4.68/10. Come experience Antebellum where gracious service, flavorful dishes and a quaint atmosphere meet. [8], Antebellum was released through video on demand in the United States on September 18, 2020, while still playing in theaters in select countries. Before and after the war. View production, box office, & company info, Rated R for disturbing violent content, language, and sexual references, ‘Let Him Go’ Thrives as Early PVOD Release While ‘New Mutants’ Still Strong, Africa Rising Intl. A daughter, mother and grandmother are haunted by a manifestation of dementia that consumes their family's home. [9] This includes a theatrical release in Australia on October 1, 2020. New Search. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. The word "bellum" is Latin for war and it has variations in the modern words bellicose and belligerent - warlike. Antebellum definition, before or existing before a war, especially the American Civil War; prewar: the antebellum plantations of Georgia. In the pre-Civil War United States, Solomon Northup, a free black man from upstate New York, is abducted and sold into slavery.Facing cruelty personified by a malevolent slave owner, as well as unexpected kindnesses, Solomon struggles not only to stay alive, but to retain his dignity. Ava is a deadly assassin who works for a black ops organization, traveling the globe specializing in high profile hits. Antebellum est actuellement au cinéma ! Slavery was an accepted part of antebellum plantation life. : Sa maison d'avant-guerre devient le temple du rite écossais dans le centre-ville de Pensacola. [7], Principal photography began in May 2019. Antebellum Guest House, New Orleans: See 85 traveler reviews, 74 candid photos, and great deals for Antebellum Guest House, ranked #38 of 141 B&Bs / inns in New Orleans and rated 5 of 5 at Tripadvisor. Antebellum is a 2020 American horror film written and directed by Gerard Bush and Christopher Renz in their feature directorial debuts. Successful author Veronica Henley finds herself trapped in a horrifying reality and must uncover the mind-bending mystery before it's too late. A family struggles for survival in the face of a cataclysmic natural disaster. Mexican War. 28 of 53 people found this review helpful. Zachary Taylor (Whig) wins. Veronica discovers that Julia has committed suicide by hanging herself in the rafters. Outside of Poe, the most influential writing produced by the antebellum South was the work of a group of humorists who had no literary pretensions and therefore were free of the prevailing influences of the literary marketplace. When he is alone, Eli kills Daniel with a hatchet and retrieves the cellphone. Ray Mansfield and Sean McKittrick serve as producers on the film under their QC Entertainment banner, and Lionsgate are distributors. A homeschooled teenager begins to suspect her mother is keeping a dark secret from her. It refers to the period in U.S. history when slavery was freely practiced as well as advocated, even by those who did not own slaves. Before she can call for helpâshe is interrupted by an intoxicated Daniel and his friend who find the phone but are not suspicious, believing it dropped out of the general's bag. Min Price. After a failed escape attempt, a black man named Eli watches as his wife is murdered and her body placed in the crematorium. Intending to go back home early in the morning, Veronica leaves dinner in what she believes is her Uber ride but is actually a car driven by Elizabeth. American History lives here at American Heritage Magazine, trusted since 1949. In the end, Veronica flees the pursuing soldiers into the chaos of a battle, revealing that the so-called plantation is actually part of a Civil War reenactment park owned by the general who was Senator Blake Denton. In a Louisiana slave plantation run by Confederate soldiers, slaves are treated harshly and not allowed to speak without permission. Prime Video has you covered this holiday season with movies for the family. Modify Search. A former banker, his actress wife, and their spirited daughter book a vacation at an isolated modern home in the Welsh countryside where nothing is quite as it seems. Successful author Veronica Henley (Janelle Monáe) finds herself trapped in a horrifying reality that forces her to confront the past, present and future - before it's too late. The park is later razed to the ground. City. The antebellum period in America was a time of conflict as the nation was being divided by the issue of slavery. The antebellum period was also marked by increased public activism. While the term "planter" has no universally accepted definition, historians of the antebellum South have generally defined it in the strictest definition as a person owning property and 20 or more slaves, as noted by Peter Kolchin in his 1993 survey of American slavery. Results per page. After a confrontation with an unstable man at an intersection, a woman becomes the target of his rage. In her own cabin, after being raped by the general, Eden hears a ringing cell phone. That evening, during a dinner where Julia and Eden are forced to wait on soldiers in the army, a shy Confederate soldier named Daniel is attracted to Julia and arranges her cabin later. Sort By. I'm completely lost on where to find this information. After losing his wife and his memory in a car accident, a single father undergoes an agonizing experimental treatment that causes him to question who he really is. [2] In its second weekend the film topped the Amazon Prime Video, FandangoNow and Spectrum film charts, while finishing second at Google Play and sixth at Apple TV, and remained in the top three across most platforms in its third weekend. As the phone can only be unlocked with facial recognition, Veronica goes back to the cabin to find the general and is surprised to find he is awake; the general attacks both of them, and Eli is subsequently killed trying to protect Veronica. During the Second Great Awakening (from 1800 to the 1830s), Christian morality found energetic expression in religious revivals, mass meetings where people sought salvation. While in Louisiana on her promotional tour, she meets her friends and agrees to go to dinner with them. The Antebellum Trail is a 100 mile trek through seven historic communities that escaped Shermanâs burning march through Georgia. In the meantime Elizabeth sneaks into her hotel room and steals her lipstick. 1848- opposed any expansion of slavery into the lands acquired in the treaty. Add the first question. Industry in Antebellum America . In the modern era a cell phone ringing awakens Eden, who is actually Veronica Henley, a renowned sociologist. ð Temperance organizations hoped to eliminate social ills caused by alcohol consumption. She is preparing to take a trip to speak at a seminar and promote her book, which is particularly hard for her because she has to leave her loving husband, Nick, and her daughter, Kennedi. "Antebellum culture in America reflected the growing sectional crisis and was the time period before the American Civil War, which began in 1861.The revivalism that spread across the country during the antebellum era also gave rise to numerous social reform movements, which challenged Americans to ⦠Antebellum was released in the United States through Premium video on demand on September 18, 2020, and theatrically in several other countries. PLAY. [5] In April 2019, Eric Lange, Jena Malone, Jack Huston, Kiersey Clemons, Tongayi Chirisa, Gabourey Sidibe, Robert Aramayo and Lily Cowles joined the cast of the film. Learn more. antebellum.2020.french.hdrip.xvid antebellum. Here are some of our picks to get you in the spirit. Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. 9 Grand Antebellum Homes Rich in History and Stunning Southern Design. Theaters & Heads To PVOD", "Antebellum - to Cinemas October 1 - Roadshow", "Janelle Monae's Horror Film 'Antebellum' Sets August Release Date", "Lionsgate Takes Janelle Monáe Horror Movie 'Antebellum' Off Calendar Temporarily", "Skipping Theaters? The Antebellum South (also known as the antebellum era or plantation era) was a period in the history of the Southern United States from the late 18th century until the start of the American Civil War in 1861. Those who attempt to escape are killed and their bodies burned in a crematorium. When Julia tries to play on his kindness and asks him to help her he beats her for speaking to him without permission, causing her to miscarry. [19] David Ehrlich of IndieWire gave the film a "C+" and wrote, "An artful and provocative movie about the enduring horror of America's original sin, Antebellum can't follow through on its own concept. Max Days Listed. Election of 1848. Lady Antebellum Biography Country music group Lady Antebellum were formed by Charles Kelley , Dave Haywood and Hillary Scott in 2006. Intending to hide the general in the crematorium, she is interrupted by Jasper. OldHouses.com is a resource for old house lovers. Antebellum definition is - existing before a war; especially : existing before the American Civil War. Five young mutants, just discovering their abilities while held in a secret facility against their will, fight to escape their past sins and save themselves. Successful author Veronica Henley finds herself trapped in a horrifying reality and must uncover the mind-bending mystery before it's too late. Charles was the one who initiated the band. The Antebellum era marks the significant background prior to the Civil War of the 1860s. antebellum definition: 1. relating to the time before a war, especially the American Civil War: 2. relating to the timeâ¦. But when the owners, an elderly couple, come home early, the tables are suddenly turned. Historyplex gives a brief timeline and summary of this important era. Keep track of everything you watch; tell your friends. : In the antebellum period, the Cult of True Womanhood was prevalent among upper and middle-class white women. A woman who had been assisting them is later brutally beaten and branded until she submits to being called Eden. The website's critical consensus reads: "Antebellum fails to connect its images with any meaning, making for a largely unpleasant experience lacking any substantial scares. IndieWire estimated that if about 500,000 homes rented the film, it would result in $8 million for the studio. With Janelle Monáe, Eric Lange, Jena Malone, Jack Huston. Antebellum Period, Art The Antebellum period is generally spoken of as the years arranging from the acquisition of the Constitution, all the way to the American Civil War. "[21], American film written and directed by Gerard Bush and Christopher Renz, "Antebellum (2020) - Financial Information", "Janelle Monáe To Star In Lionsgate Pic From Filmmakers Gerard Bush + Christopher Renz", "Eric Lange, Jena Malone, Jack Huston, More Join Janelle Monáe In Lionsgate Race Relations Pic From 'Get Out' & 'BlacKkKlansman' Outfit QC Entertainment", "Marque Richardson Joins Janelle Monáe In Lionsgate Film From 'Get Out' Producers", "Janelle Monáe Horror Movie 'Antebellum' Skips U.S. Découvrez lâexplication de la fin de Antebellum ! How to use antebellum in a sentence. [10] The film was originally scheduled to be released on April 24, 2020, but was delayed to August 21, 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, before being pulled off the release schedule temporarily in July 2020. She has a bizarre online meeting with Elizabeth which leaves her uncomfortable but she dismisses her feelings and cuts the meeting short. I have to write a short essay on the role of agriculture int he development of the nation during the Antebellum Era, including factors which impacted agriculture, farmers, and farming and how agriculture continued to help the nation grow. Once told they'd save the universe during a time-traveling adventure, 2 would-be rockers from San Dimas, California find themselves as middle-aged dads still trying to crank out a hit song and fulfill their destiny. Visionary filmmakers Gerard Bush + Christopher Renz (Bush + Renz) - best known for their pioneering advertising work engaged in the fight for social justice - write, produce and direct their first feature film, teaming with QC Entertainment, producer of the Academy Award winning films GET OUT and BLACKkKLANSMAN, Zev Foreman, Lezlie Wills, and Lionsgate for the terrifying new thriller ANTEBELLUM. "Southern" architecture had been characterized by whoever lived on the land â the Spanish, the French, Creole, Native Americans â but ⦠It can also be referred to as that period when the slaves were freed. When they stop to offer the friend a ride, their good intentions soon result in terrible consequences. Film Festival Gives a Lift to Local Storytellers With Community Focus, ‘The New Mutants’ and ‘Unhinged’ Dominate VOD Charts at $5.99, New and Upcoming VOD, DVD, and Blu-ray Releases, September Picks: The Movies and TV You Can't Miss, ESPN College Football: Auburn Tigers vs. Georgia Bulldogs. Nom du torrent Poids Seed Leech Seule la vie... FRENCH HDRiP 2018 [11][12], In its debut weekend, Antebellum was the number one most rented title across film and television on Amazon Prime Video, and number one rented film on FandangoNow and Apple TV, and third on Google Play. Antebellum is a 2020 American horror film written and directed by Gerard Bush and Christopher Renz in their feature directorial debuts. [6] Enraged she tells Eli that they must once again try to escape. The following evening, after being raped by the general, she once again sneaks out of her cabin and steals the general's phone. Status. Mothers found strange men calling on their daughters, men who came without letters of introduction and whose antecedents were unknown. In this case, the Civil War. Veronica lures him and another guard into the crematorium and sets fire to it, leaving the three men to burn to death as she steals the general's horse and rides off. Among them is a pregnant woman whom the daughter of the plantation owner, Elizabeth, names Julia and places in the care of Eden. The film stars Janelle Monáe, Eric Lange, Jena Malone, Jack Huston, Kiersey Clemons, and Gabourey Sidibe, and follows a modern-day African-American woman who finds herself in a Southern slave plantation and must escape. The technological advances and religious and social movements of the Antebellum Period had a profound effect on the course of American history, including westward expansion to the Pacific, a population shift from farms to industrial centers, sectional divisions that ended in civil war, the abolition of slavery and the growth of feminist and temperance movements. The film stars Janelle Monáe, Eric Lange, Jena Malone, Jack Huston, Kiersey Clemons, and Gabourey Sidibe, and follows a modern-day African-American woman who finds herself in a Southern slave plantation and must escape. Use the HTML below. From Die Hard to The Muppet Christmas Carol, these festive movies and holiday TV episodes are guaranteed to boost your holiday spirit. Title: [13][14] In October 2020, The Hollywood Reporter said the film was the sixth-most popular PVOD title amid the COVID-19 pandemic. In the United States of America, of the period prior to the American Civil War, especially in reference to the culture of the southern states. His antebellum home became the Scottish Rite Temple in downtown Pensacola. [18] Stephanie Zacharek of Time wrote "Even if we didn't live in a country where a shockingly large fraction of people think Confederate monuments are A-O.K., Gerard Bush and Christopher Renz's Antebellum would resonate like the boom of a Union Army cannon". She manages to stab the general with his own bayonet and unlocks the phone, using GPS to send her location to her husband. Veronica finally escapes as the police arrive to liberate her and the other captives. Veronica knocks Elizabeth off her horse and puts a rope around her neck, dragging her until she hits a base statue of Robert E. Lee, thereby breaking her neck. Search Results. âThe ever-present war in the background lent a pleasant informality to social relations, an informality which older people viewed with alarm. A father and daughter are on their way to dance camp when they spot the girl's best friend on the side of the road.
Coiffure D'évêque Mots Fléchés, Proviseur Lycée De La Mer Gujan-mestras, Quand Partir à La Réunion, Brahma Perdrix Bleu, Le Contraire De Irrégulier, Job Dubai Francophone, Meilleur équipe Fut 21, Ecole De Biologie, île La Plus Touristique Du Monde, Petit Pays Mulema Mp3,
antebellum histoire vraie 2020
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Презентація на тему «Cardiff Castle»
Lytovchenko A.M.
Cardiff Castle is a medieval castle and Victorian Gothic revival mansion located in the city centre of Cardiff, Wales. The original motte and bailey castle was built in the late 11th century by Norman invaders on top of a 3rd-century Roman fort. The castle was commissioned by either William the Conqueror or by Robert Fitzhamon, and formed the heart of the medieval town of Cardiff and the Marcher Lord territory of Glamorgan. In the 12th century the castle began to be rebuilt in stone, probably by Robert of Gloucester, with a shell keep and substantial defensive walls being erected. Further work was conducted by Richard de Clare in the second half of the 13th century. Cardiff Castle was repeatedly involved in the conflicts between the Anglo-Normans and the Welsh, being attacked several times in the 12th century, and stormed in 1404 during the revolt of Owain Glyndŵr.
In the early 20th century the fourth Marquess inherited the castle and construction work continued into the 1920s. The Bute lands and commercial interests around Cardiff were sold off or nationalised during the period until, by the time of the Second World War, little was left except the castle. During the war, extensive air raid shelters were built in the castle walls, able to hold up to 1,800 people. When the Marquess died in 1947, the castle was given to the city of Cardiff. Today the castle is run as a tourist attraction, with the grounds housing the "Firing Line" regimental museum and interpretation centre. The castle has also served as a venue for events, including musical performances and festivals.
Belfast Castle
Belfast Castle is set on the slopes of Cavehill Country Park, Belfast, Northern Ireland in a prominent position 400 feet (120 m) above sea level. Its location provides unobstructed views of the city of Belfast and Belfast Lough.
The original Belfast Castle, built in the late 12th century by the Normans, was located in the town itself, flanked by the modern day High Street, Castle Place and Donegall Place in what is now Belfast city centre. This was the home of Sir Arthur Chichester, baron of Belfast, but was burned down in 1708, leaving only street names to mark the site. Rather than rebuild on the original site, the Chichesters decided to build a new residence in the city's suburbs, today's Belfast Castle emerging as a result. The building that stands today was built from 1811–70 by the 3rd Marquess of Donegall. It was designed in the Scottish baronial style by Charles Lanyon and his son, of the architectural firm Lanyon, Lynn and Lanyon. After Donegall's death and the family's financial demise, the 8th Earl of Shaftesbury completed the house.
The castle boasts an antiques shop, a restaurant and visitors centre and it is a popular venue for conferences, private dining and wedding receptions.
Thank you for your attention
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Chris Fehr
Sales Director – Eastern Region
Chris Fehr brings over 20 years of experience in the forest products industry to the U-C Coatings team. He joined the company in 2017 as the Midwest Sales Representative and was promoted to Sales Director – Eastern Region in 2019.
Prior to joining the company, Chris worked as a procurement forester, lumber trader and sales director for a number of hardwood lumber companies such as Northwest Hardwoods, Baillie Lumber, Kiever-Willard Lumber, Ron Jones Hardwood Sales and Clear Lake Lumber.
Chris graduated cum laude from the State University of New York College of Environmental Science & Forestry at Syracuse University with a Bachelor of Science in Natural Resources Management.
Product Resources & Information
Click here for more product literature, technical data, safety data sheets and product videos.
Find a retailer near you that carries our best-in-class wood protection products.
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It’s the film that critics are hailing as Woody Allan’s return to form. Vicky Cristina Barcelona has become one of the most talked about movies of the year. A sizzling, erotically charged, relentlessly hilarious and touching romantic comedy that won Penelope Cruz (Volver, Vanilla Sky) a Best Performance By An Actress In A Supporting Role Oscar ® for her dazzling portrayal of the volatile Maria. Also starring Scarlett Johansen (Lost In Translation), Javier Bardem (No Country For Old Men) and Rebecca Hall (Frost/Nixon). Our story begins in the picturesque surroundings of Barcelona where two American girls are about to find out that they have a lot more in common than they first anticipated. Vicky is a practical, studious and engaged. Cristina on the other hand is reckless, adventurous and recovering from a failed relationship. Both of them are about to have their worlds turned upside down by an infamous, bohemian artist called Juan and his psychotic ex-wife.
Scarlett Johansen
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Patent / Trademark Search
Superoxide dismutase mimic
Fridovich , et al. June 29, 1
uspto.report
Patent 07/032,475
Darr; Douglas J.
Fridovich; Irwin
Patent Grant 5223538
U.S. patent number 5,223,538 [Application Number 07/032,475] was granted by the patent office on 1993-06-29 for superoxide dismutase mimic. This patent grant is currently assigned to Duke University. Invention is credited to Douglas J. Darr, Irwin Fridovich.
United States Patent 5,223,538
Fridovich , et al. June 29, 1993
**Please see images for: ( Certificate of Correction ) **
The invention relates to a water-soluble complex formed between a chelating agent and manganese and pharmaceutical compositions thereof. The complex is a low molecular weight mimic of superoxide dismutase. The invention further relates to a method of using the complex comprising treating plant and animal cells with an amount of the complex sufficient to reduce or prevent superoxide radical-induced toxicity.
Fridovich; Irwin (Durham, NC), Darr; Douglas J. (Timberlake, NC)
Duke University (Durham, NC)
Family ID:
Appl. No.:
Current U.S. Class: 514/616; 424/94.4; 424/DIG.6; 435/189
Current CPC Class: A01N 37/30 (20130101); A61P 9/10 (20180101); A01N 3/00 (20130101); A61P 29/00 (20180101); A01N 59/16 (20130101); A61P 9/00 (20180101); A01N 1/0226 (20130101); C07F 13/005 (20130101); A01N 25/32 (20130101); A01N 25/32 (20130101); A01N 37/30 (20130101); A01N 43/40 (20130101); A01N 59/16 (20130101); A01N 59/16 (20130101); A01N 37/30 (20130101); A01N 43/40 (20130101); A01N 37/30 (20130101); A01N 43/40 (20130101); Y10S 424/06 (20130101)
Current International Class: A01N 3/00 (20060101); A01N 1/02 (20060101); C07F 13/00 (20060101); A61K 031/16 (); A61K 037/50 (); C12N 009/02 ()
Field of Search: ;435/189 ;424/94.4,DIG.6 ;514/616,516 ;564/153
References Cited [Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
4172072 October 1979 Ashmead
4216143 August 1980 Ashmead
4346174 August 1982 Yasuda
4530963 July 1985 Devoe et al.
4758422 July 1988 Quay
Plowman, J. E. et al. (1984) J. Inorg. Biochem. 20(3), 183. .
Rabinowitch, H. D., et al. (1987) Free Radical Biology & Medicine 3, 125-131. .
Archibald et al; Archives of Biochemistry and Biophysics, vol. 215, No. 2, May, 1982; pp. 589-596. .
Archibald et al; Archives of Biochemistry and Biophysics, vol. 214, No. 2, Apr. 1, 1982; pp. 452-463. .
Archibald; Copyright 1983 by Elsevier Science Publishing Co., Inc., Gerald Cohen and Robert A. Greenwald, Editors, "Oxy Radicals & Their Scavenger Systems", vol. 1, Molecular Aspects, pp. 207-217. .
Chemical Abstracts; vol. 68, No. 15, Apr. 8, 1968-67581n. .
Chemical Abstracts: vol. 99, No. 20, Nov. 14, 1983-164612w. .
Chemical Abstracts, vol. 96, No. 23, Jun. 7, 1982-195506g. .
Chemical Abstracts, vol. 95, No. 9, Aug. 31, 1981-76615m. .
Epp et al; 1986 Elsevier Science Publishers B. V. (Biomedical Division) Superoxide and Superoxide Dimutase in Chemistry, Biology and Medicine; G. Rotilio, editor pp. 76-78. .
Yamaguchi et al; FEBS 3451, vol. 197, No. 1,2; mar. 1986, pp. 249-252. .
Koppenol et al; Archives of Biochemistry and Biophysics, vol. 251, No. 2, Dec., 1986, pp. 594-599. .
P. Simon; The Lancet, Aug. 27, 1983; pp. 512-513; Desferrioxamine, Ocular Toxicity and Trace Metals. .
Fridovich, "Natural and Synthetic Defenses Against Oxygen Radicals", Environs, Dec. 1986, pp. 2-3..
Primary Examiner: Patterson, Jr.; Charles L.
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Cushman, Darby & Cushman
1. A method of protecting cells from the toxicity of superoxide radicals comprising treating said cells with an amount of a water-soluble complex formed between a chelating agent and manganese sufficient to reduce or prevent superoxide radical-induced toxicity, wherein said chelating agent is a hydroxamate-type siderophore, or analog or derivative thereof capable of forming said complex.
2. A method according to claim 1 wherein said cells are mammalian cells.
3. A method according to claim 1 wherein said cells are plant cells.
4. A method according to claim 1 wherein said chelating agent is desferrioxamine or analog or derivative thereof capable of forming said complex.
5. A method according to claim 1 wherein said manganese has an effective valence of four.
6. A method according to claim 1 wherein said superoxide-radicals are the result of reperfusion injuries.
7. A method according to claim 1 wherein said superoxide-radicals are the result of inflammatory diseases.
8. A method of inhibiting damage due to auto-oxidation of a substance with the subsequent formation of O.sub.2.sup.- comprising adding to said substance an amount of a water soluble complex formed between a chelating agent and manganese sufficient to reduce or prevent oxidation damage, wherein said chelating agent is a hydroxamate-type siderophore, or analog or derivative thereof capable of forming said complex.
1. Technical Field
The invention relates, in general, to a low molecular weight mimic of superoxide dismutase and, in particular, to a desferrioxamine-manganese complex capable of scavenging superoxide radicals.
2. Background Information
The superoxide radical (O.sub.2.sup.-) can be generated within living cells during both enzymic and non-enzymic oxidations. Because of the direct reactivity of O.sub.2.sup.-, and the reactivity of secondary free radicals that it can generate, O.sub.2.sup.- presents a threat to cellular integrity. This threat is met by a family of defensive enzymes that catalyze the conversion of O.sub.2.sup.- to H.sub.2 O.sub.2 +O.sub.2. These enzymes, superoxide dismutases (SOD), react with O.sub.2.sup.- at a rate that approaches the theoretical diffusion limit and appear to be important for aerobic life. The H.sub.2 O.sub.2 generated by SOD is disposed of either by catalytic conversion to O.sub.2 and H.sub.2 O by catalases, or by reduction to water at the expense of thiol, amine or phenolic substrates by peroxidases.
The superoxide radical has been shown to be an important causative factor in the damage resulting from: a) autoxidation; b) oxygen toxicity; c) the oxygen-dependent toxicity of numerous compounds; d) reperfusion injury; e) inflammation; and f) frostbite; and is implicated in the limited viability of transplanted organs and tissues.
The earliest work bearing on the functions of SOD dealt primarily with oxygen toxicity and with the oxygen-dependent toxicities of viologens, quinones and related redox-cycling compounds. These investigations established that O.sub.2.sup.-, made within cells, can kill the cells and that SOD provides a defense It is now known that O.sub.x.sup.- is not only an unwanted and dangerous byproduct of dioxygen metabolism, but is also produced in large quantities by certain specialized cells, seemingly to serve a specific purpose. Neutrophils, and related phagocytic leucocytes, contain a membrane-associated NADPH oxidase that is activated when the cells are stimulated and that specifically reduces dioxygen to O.sub.2.sup.31 . A defect in this enzyme weakens the microbicidal activity of these leucocytes, leading to chronic granulomatous disease.
The known association of neutrophils with the inflammatory process, and the production of O.sub.2.sup.- by activated neutrophils, suggests a role for O.sub.2.sup.- in the development, and possibly in the deleterious consequences, of inflammation. An enzymic source of O.sub.2.sup.- decreases the viscosity of synovial fluid by depolymerizing hyaluronate and SOD exerts a protective effect. Injecting an enzymic source of O.sub.2.sup.-, such as xanthine oxidase, causes a localized inflammation that can be prevented by scavengers of oxygen radicals, such as SOD.
The anti-inflammatory effect of SOD, noted in model inflammations in laboratory animals, is explained in terms of the inhibition of the production of a neutrophil chemotaxin by the reaction of O.sub.2.sup.- with a precursor present in normal human serum. SOD, when injected into the circulation, is rapidly removed by the kidneys, such that the circulation half life of i.v.-injected bovine SOD in the rat is only 7 minutes. This can be markedly increased by coupling the SOD to polyethylene glycol or ficoll, with a corresponding increase in anti-inflammatory effect.
The tissue damage that develops as a consequence of temporary ischemia has classically been attributed to the lack of ATP which develops during the hypoxia imposed during ischemia. Data support the view that this damage actually occurs during reperfusion and is an expression of increased oxygen radical production. SOD protects against this reperfusion injury.
The mechanism which best fits these data depends upon degradation of ATP to hypoxanthine and upon the conversion of xanthine dehydrogenase to xanthine oxidase, during the period of ischemia. Reperfusion then introduces dioxygen, which is reduced to O.sub.2.sup.- by the action of xanthine oxidase on the accumulated hypoxanthine. As expected from this model, allopurinol, which inactivates xanthine oxidase, also protects against reperfusion injury.
The superoxide dismutases are used as pharmacological agents. They are applied to the treatment of inflammatory diseases and are being investigated in the cases of the reperfusion injury associated with skin grafts, organ transplants, frostbite and myocardial infarction. Size, antigenicity and cost, however, mitigate against their widespread usage. Since the enzyme must be isolated from biological sources, it is in limited supply, very expensive and plagued by problems caused by contaminants.
It has long been apparent that low molecular weight mimics of SOD, capable of acting intracellularly, would be useful. Manganese(II), per se, will scavenge O.sub.2.sup.- and, in suitable buffers, will do so catalytically. However, Mn(II) binds avidly to a number of proteins and in so doing loses its activity. Cu(II) is itself a very effective catalyst of the dismutation of O.sub.2.sup.-. Since the first SOD to be discovered was a copper protein, copper-complexes have been examined for SOD activity. The problems with free Cu(II) are that it readily forms a hydroxide and that it binds strongly to many macromolecules. For these reasons Cu(II) per se is most active in acid solutions and in the absence of strongly binding ligands. Among the complexes of Cu(II), the SOD-like activity for which have been reported, are: Cu(lys)2 and Cu(gly-his).sub.2, Cu(diisopropylsalicylate).sub.2, Cu(penicillamine), Cu(histidine), Cu(dipeptides) and Cu(gly-his-lys). There are serious problems with all of these copper complexes. Many are, in fact, merely acting as metal buffers, serving to solubilize the Cu(II) and are of insufficient stability to retain activity in the presence of serum albumin. Investigations of Cu(II) complexes have thus far not resulted in the discovery of any biologically useful mimics of SOD.
It is an object of the invention to provide an inexpensive, synthetic, low molecular weight mimic of SOD.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a scavenger of superoxide radicals that is not inactivated by proteins.
It is another object of the invention to provide a method of using a low molecular weight mimic of SOD to reduce or prevent the toxicity of superoxide radical-induced toxicity.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a pharmaceutical composition containing, as an active ingredient, a stable, low molecular weight mimic of superoxide dismutase.
Further objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following detailed description thereof.
The invention relates to a low molecular weight mimic of superoxide dismutase comprising a water-soluble complex formed between a chelating agent, for example, desferrioxamine or analogs or derivatives thereof, and manganese. The mimic, designated DF-Mn when it comprises desferrioxamine and manganese, catalyzes the dismutation of O.sub.2.sup.-, and retains its activity in the presence of serum albumin and cellular extracts containing protein. It is anticipated that the mimic, and pharmaceutical compositions thereof, will be useful in the following situations: 1) treating inflammation; 2) extending the storage lifetime of organs and tissues intended for transplantation; 3) decreasing damage to the heart suffered as a consequence of infarction; 4) protecting against tissue death and necrosis following any situation entailing temporary cessation of circulation to a tissue or organ; 5) as a radioprotectant; and 6) as an antioxidant applicable to any free radical chain oxidation in which O.sub.2.sup.- serves either as initiator or chain propagator. It is also anticipated that the mimic will be useful in inhibiting autoxidation reactions, thus providing increased shelf life for food products, pharmaceuticals, and stored blood, etc.
FIG. 1 - Bleaching of chlorophyll in D.salina by paraquat.
FIG. 2 - DF-Mn protection against paraquat.
According to the present invention there is provided a low molecular mimic of SOD comprising a water-soluble complex formed between a chelating agent and manganese. Chelating agents employed are, advantageously, siderophores, advantageously, of the hydroxamate type, or analogs or derivatives thereof (for review see Neiland, J. B., Inorganic Biochemistry, Eichhorn, G., Ed., Elseiver, Amsterdam, 1973). Suitable hydroxamate-type siderophores include, but are not limited to, schizokinen, hadacidin, rhodotorulic acid, ferrichrome, aspergillic acid and, advantageously, desferrioxamine.
The manganese present in the water-soluble complex has an effective valence of four. The term "effective valence of four" is used to indicate that the manganese present in the complex is that derived either from reacting a chelating agent with a manganese(IV) salt, advantageously, MnO.sub.2, or from reacting a chelating agent with a manganese(II) salt, advantageously, MnCl.sub.2, which latter reaction is carried out, advantageously, in a neutral oxygenated aqueous solution such that autoxidation of the manganese occurs. It is also contemplated that the above-described water soluble complex comprising a chelating agent and manganese having an effective valence of four, may be derived by reacting a manganese salt, in which salt manganese has a valence of III, V, VI or VII, with a chelating agent under such conditions that the above-described water-soluble complex in which complex manganese has an effective valence of four, is formed.
In one embodiment of the present invention, the complex is that prepared by combining MnO.sub.2, advantageously, in approximately 10 percent molar excess, with desferrioxamine, or analogs or derivatives thereof, advantageously, at a concentration of approximately 50 mM, in deionized water or a suitable buffer having a pH of approximately 6 to 8. After stirring until the reaction is complete, that is, advantageously, approximately 12 hours at approximately 25.degree. C. or approximately 6-8 hours at approximately 50.degree. C., residual MnO.sub.2 is removed, advantageously, by centrifugation or filtration, leaving a green supernatant solution containing essentially pure DF-Mn.
The complex between a chelating agent and manganese, advantageously DF-Mn, mimics the catalytic activity of native SOD, that is, it is capable of catalyzing the dismutation of O.sub.2.sup.- into H.sub.2 O.sub.2 and O.sub.2, and it is capable of retaining its activity in the presence of serum albumin, total serum or whole bacterial cell extracts. One micromolar DF-Mn exhibits one unit of SOD activity in the xanthine oxidase cytochrome c assay (McCord, J. M. and Fridovich, I. (1969) J. Biol. Chem. 244: 6049-6055). DF-Mn is stable to dilution and to elevated temperatures, that is, of approximately 50.degree. C. An increase in the catalytic activity of DF-Mn, approximately four fold, is achieved by heating the complex, advantageously, at a temperature of approximately 100.degree. C. for approximately 15 minutes. The increase in catalytic activity of DF-Mn achieved by such heating is attributable to a physical change in the complex as evidenced by a change in the color of the solution, that is, the solution which is green prior to heating, becomes gold after the heating process.
The invention contemplates a method of protecting both plant and mammalian cells from the toxicity of superoxide radicals comprising treating the cells with an amount of the above-described water-soluble complex, that is, the complex formed between a chelating agent, advantageously, desferrioxamine or analogs or derivatives thereof, and manganese, sufficient to reduce or prevent superoxide radical-induced toxicity, which complex is capable of catalyzing the dismutation of superoxide radicals and which complex is capable of retaining its activity in the presence of proteins. The complex, advantageously DF-Mn, can be used to protect against the reperfusion injuries encountered during or following: a) organ transplant, b) frostbite; c) angioplasty; d) the administration of streptokinase or tissue plasminogen activator following myocardial infarction. The complex, advantageously DF-Mn, can be used to protect against inflammatory diseases or swelling encountered during or following: a) head injury; b) temporary ischemia to the brain; c) inflammatory joint diseases; and d) gouty attacks. The complex, advantageously DF-Mn, can be used to protect red blood cells in anemia and to prevent rejection of transplanted organs. The complex, advantageously DF-Mn, can be used to inhibit the formation of DNA-breaking clastogenic factor in autoimmune disease.
The complex, advantageously DF-Mn, can be used as a catalytic scavenger of superoxide radicals to provide protection against or treatments for: oxygen toxicity; the oxygen-dependent toxicities of viologens, quinones and related compounds in plants and animals; the very limited storage viability of transplanted hearts, kidneys, skin and other organs and tissues; protection against damage caused by all forms of electromagnetic radiation including visible light, ultraviolet light and ionizing radiation; slowing of the aging process; and protection against the oxygen-dependent toxicities of a variety of redox-active drugs and environmental pollutants.
The invention also contemplates a method of inhibiting damage due to autoxidation of substances resulting in the formation of O.sub.2.sup.- including food products, pharmaceuticals, stored blood, etc. The method comprises adding to food products, pharmaceuticals, stored blood and the like, an amount of the complex, advantageously, DF-Mn, sufficient to inhibit or prevent oxidation damage and thereby to inhibit or prevent the degradation associated with the autoxidation reactions.
It will be clear to one of ordinary skill in the art that the amount of the complex, advantageously DF-Mn, to be used in a particular treatment or to be associated with a particular substance can be determined by one of ordinary skill in the art by routine trials.
The invention further contemplates a pharmaceutical composition comprising, as an active ingredient, the above-described complex, that is, the water-soluble complex formed between a chelating agent, advantageously, desferrioxamine or analogs or derivatives thereof, and manganese, which complex is capable of catalyzing the dismutation of superoxide radicals and which complex is capable of retaining its activity in the presence of proteins, which complex is present in an amount sufficient to reduce or prevent superoxide radical-induced toxicity, together with a pharmaceutically acceptable solid or liquid carrier, diluent or excipient thereof. The composition may take any of the conventional forms for effective administration, e.g., pills, tablets, sterile injectable solutions and the like. When the composition is administered orally, it must be suitably coated, by any of the known techniques, so that it is protected as it passes through the acid environment of the stomach. The composition may also take any of the conventional forms for topical application, e.g, creams, lotions and the like.
The invention is illustrated by way of the following non-limiting examples:
Catalytic Activity of DF-Mn in the Presence of Protein
Using the cytochrome c reduction assay (McCord, J. M. and Fridovich, I. (1969) J. Biol. Chem. 244; 6049-6055) in the presence of increasing amounts of serum albumin, total serum or whole bacterial cell extracts, a 1 .mu.M solution of DF-Mn exhibited one unit (defined in above reference) of SOD activity.
Catalytic Activity of Rhodotorulic Acid and Manganese
A complex was formed by reacting rhodotorulic acid with MnCl.sub.2 in a ratio of 1:1 in a neutral, oxygenated aqueous solution. The pH was adjusted to 8. A 1 .mu.M solution of the complex had approximately 1 unit of SOD activity as assayed using the cytochrome c reduction assay.
Rhodotorulic acid was also reacted with MnO.sub.2. A colored complex was formed.
Protection of Mammalian Cells Against Oxygen Toxicity by DF-Mn
Chinese hamster ovary cells were exposed to paraquat (200 .mu.M), a compound known to form O.sub.2.sup.- intracellularly. After an eight-hour exposure, 50 to 70% cell death was observed. Pretreatment with 20 .mu.M DF-Mn reduced cell death by 70.+-.9% (mean.+-.SD; N=8 experiments). Desferrioxamine, manganese (chloride or dioxide), or EDTA-Mn alone at 20 .mu.M gave little or no protection. Native Cu-Zn SOD was also less effective, presumably because it could not enter the cells. Copper-DIPS gave approximately 30% protection when present at levels exhibiting 10 times the "SOD" activity of DF-Mn. The data indicate that DF-Mn can enter mammalian cells and afford protection against paraquat-mediated damage.
Protection by DF-Mn Against Damage to Mammalian Lenses by Superoxide Radicals Generated During Cyclic, Oxidation-reduction of Redox Compounds
Fresh lenses of rabbits were incubated in Krebs-Ringer medium with Hepes buffer (pH 7.4) and 5 mM glucose at 37.degree. C. for 3 hours. Malondialdehyde, a marker of lens damage, was 1.16.+-.0.12 nmole/g wet weight in control lenses. This increased 6-8 fold (p<0.001) in the presence of 1 mM paraquat, diquat, plumbagin or juglone. In such lenses, reduced glutathione (GSH) was decreased 30-55% as compared to 8.74.+-.0.12 .mu.mole/g wet weight in lenses incubated in the absence of these compounds. Under identical experimental conditions, other protein-SH of lenses were not significantly altered. AMM, a liposomal superoxide dismutase (Michelson, A. M., Puget, K , Durosan, P. (1981), Molec. Physiol. 1:85-96) or 1 mM DF-Mn significantly prevented these changes to the lens. The involvement of oxygen radicals in the toxicity of these redox compounds is evidenced by the fact that lenticular damage was potentiated in the presence of 100% O.sub.2 as gas phase and negligible in 100% N.sub.2.
Protection by DF-Mn of the Green Alga, Dunaliella Salina, from the Effects of Paraquat
Culture Conditions: Dunaliella salina was cultivated phototrophically in mineral medium (J.Phycol.18:529-537 (1982)) with modification. The medium contained 0.3 mM CaCl.sub.2 ; 2 .mu.M FeCl.sub.3 ; 20 .mu.M EDTA; 0.1 mM KH.sub.2 PO.sub.4 ; 5.0 mM KNO.sub.3 ; 5 mM MgSO.sub.4 ; 50 mM NaHCO.sub.3 ; and 1.67 M NaCl. FeCl.sub.3 and EDTA were premixed prior to being added to the medium. The pH of the medium was maintained at 6.8. Cultures were inoculated and allowed to grow for 2-3 days, aliquots were then placed on a gyrating platform for the experimental treatments. Illumination was provided by natural daylight supplemented by incandescent bulbs.
Assays: Algal cells were collected by centrifugation and chlorophyll was extracted by resuspension in N,N-dimethylformamide for 24 hours at 4.degree. C. with occasional agitation. After clarification by centrifugation, the dissolved chlorophyll was estimated from measurements of absorbance at 664 and 647 nm (Plant Physiol. 65:478-479 (1980). Plant Physiol. 69:1376-1381 (1980)). Algal cultures, intended for assay of protein and of enzymic activities, were harvested by centrifugation during log phase and were washed by gentle resuspension in 50 mM potassium phosphate, 0.1 mM EDTA, pH 7.8, followed by centrifugation. The cells were resuspended in phosphate-EDTA buffer and were lysed by being passed through a French Pressure Cell. Lysates were clarified and the resultant soluble extracts assayed for protein, and for SOD (J. Biol. Chem. 244:6049-6055 (1969)) and catalase (J. Biol. Chem. 195:133-140 (1952)) activities.
Parquat and Electrophoresis: When the effects of paraquat were being investigated, the compound was added to cultures which had been growing for 48 hours and were still in log phase, the incubation was continued for 18 hours. The cells were assayed for chlorophyll content or for protein and enzymic activities as described above. Electrophoresis was performed on 7% polyacrylamide gels and duplicate electropherograms were stained for catalase (Anal. Biochem. 140:532-537 (1984)) or for SOD activities (Anal. Biochem. 44:276-278 (1971)).
Illuminated log phase cultures of D. salina were bleached when exposed to paraquat at, or exceeding, 250 .mu.M. This progressive bleaching, shown in FIG. 1 (line 1=0.05 mM, line 2=0.10 mM, line 3=0.25 mM, line 4=0.5 mM, line 5=1.0 mM, line 6=1.5 mM), was accompanied by loss of motility observed under light microscope. DF-Mn, when present in the culture medium, protected against the bleaching effect of paraquat in a dose-dependent manner (FIG. 2). The protective effect of DF-Mn was not due to masking of incident light since at 634 nm the ratio of the absorbance of DF-Mn to that of chlorophyll was 0.1/0.731; while at 433 nm the ratio was 0.24/1.45.
The results in Table I indicate that DF-Mn exerts its protective effect very soon after being added to the medium. Since neither SOD nor catalase, added to the suspending medium, protected against the toxicity of paraquat (Tables II and III), it is apparent that scavenging of O.sub.2.sup.- or of H.sub.2 O.sub.2 in the medium is not an effective means of protection. Washing D. salina exposed to DF-Mn restores sensitivity towards paraquat, indicating that DF-Mn, having entered the cells, readily diffused out.
The protective effect of DF-MN is due to the complex itself rather than to the products of its dissociation. This is evidenced by the fact that desferrioxamine alone caused a progressive bleaching of the cultures in the absence of paraquat. Mn(II) or Mn(III)-pyrophosphate, failed to protect D. salina against the deleterious effects of paraquat. MnO.sub.2 alone is essentially insoluble in water and had no effect on the bleaching of D. salina by paraquat.
The foregoing invention has been described in some detail by way of examples for purposes of clarity and understanding. It will be obvious to those skilled in the art from a reading of the disclosure that it is contemplated that the compound and composition thereof described herein will be used to inhibit the deleterious effects of superoxide radicals both in agricultural and clinical settings. Various combinations in form and detail can be made without departing from the scope of the invention.
TABLE I ______________________________________ Effect of DF-Mn on the Bleaching of D. salina by Paraquat Chlorophyll/Dry Chlorophyll (.mu.g/ml) Weight (.mu.g/mg) Treatment chl a Total Total ______________________________________ Control 12.7 .+-. 0.6 17.1 .+-. 0.9 3.4 .+-. 0.4 Paraquat.sup.a 0.0 0.0 0.0 DF-Mn.sup.b 13 .+-. 1 17 .+-. 1.1 3.2 .+-. 0.3 DF-Mn 6.6 .+-. 0.9 9.3 .+-. 1.3 1.9 .+-. 0.3 30 min prior to paraquat DF-Mn 6.2 .+-. 0.8 9.0 .+-. 1.2 2.0 .+-. 0.3 30 min following paraquat ______________________________________ .sup.a Paraquat was added to a final concentration of 1.0 mM. .sup.b DFMn was added to a final concentration of 1.0 mM.
TABLE II ______________________________________ Effect of DF-Mn and of SOD on the Bleaching of D. salina by Paraquat Chlorophyll/Dry Chlorophyll (.mu.g/ml) Weight (.mu.g/mg) Treatment chl a Total Total ______________________________________ Control 15.6 .+-. 1.2 20.2 .+-. 1.6 3.6 .+-. 0.4 Paraquat.sup.a 0.0 0.0 0.0 DF-Mn.sup.b 16.3 .+-. 0.8 21.3 .+-. 1.0 3.6 .+-. 0.4 SOD.sup.c + paraquat 0.0 0.0 0.0 DF-Mn.sup.b + SOD 16.6 .+-. 0.4 21.8 .+-. 0.3 4.0 .+-. 0.3 DF-Mn + paraquat 7.5 .+-. 1.1 10.8 .+-. 1.3 1.8 .+-. 0.2 DF-Mn + SOD + 8.8 .+-. 1.3 12.1 .+-. 1.8 2.0 .+-. 0.3 paraquat ______________________________________ .sup.a Paraquat was added to 1.0 mM. .sup.b DFMn was added to 1.0 mM. .sup.c SOD was added to 10 .mu.g/ml.
TABLE III ______________________________________ Effect of DF-Mn and Catalase on Bleaching of D. salina by Paraquat Chlorophyll/Dry Chlorophyll (.mu.g/ml) Weight (.mu.g/mg) Treatment chl a Total Total ______________________________________ Control 17.2 .+-. 0.5 22.0 .+-. 0.6 4.0 .+-. 0.2 Paraquat.sup.a 0.0 0.0 0.0 DF-Mn.sup.b 16.0 .+-. 0.9 21.4 .+-. 0.8 3.8 .+-. 0.2 DF-Mn + paraquat 10.0 .+-. 0.2 13.6 .+-. 0.4 2.4 .+-. 0.1 Catalase.sup.c + 0.0 0.0 0.0 paraquat DF-Mn + catalase 18.1 .+-. 1.8 23.5 .+-. 2.0 4.2 .+-. 0.3 DF-Mn + 9.4 .+-. 0.9 13.0 .+-. 1.0 2.3 .+-. 0.2 catalase + paraquat ______________________________________ .sup.a Paraquat was added to 1.0 mM. .sup.b DFMn was added to 1.0 mM. .sup.c Catalase was added to 10 .mu.g/ml.
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Share this Story: B.C. Election 2017: Green party rises from obscurity to legitimate political force
B.C. Election 2017: Green party rises from obscurity to legitimate political force
Larry Pynn
Apr 28, 2017 • April 28, 2017 • 6 minute read
Rita Giesbrecht, Green party candidate for the Cariboo-Chilcotin, says locals have had enough of massive and continuing clearcuts in the region. Photo by Chris Harris /PNG
In just four years, the B.C. Greens have emerged from relative obscurity and nagging criticism as a one-issue party to become a legitimate political force with a comprehensive election platform.
They have the party’s smart, likable and hard-working leader Andrew Weaver, MLA for Oak Bay-Gordon Head to thank for that, as evidenced by his credible performance in Wednesday’s televised leaders’ debate. He scored second in an instant poll, behind the NDP’s John Horgan and just ahead of Liberal Christy Clark.
B.C. Election 2017: Green party rises from obscurity to legitimate political force Back to video
The Greens are brashly putting themselves forward as a party to govern, adopting the slogan “Change you can count on” — a virtual knockoff of Barack Obama’s “Change we can believe in”, which was used successfully during the 2008 U.S. presidential election.
Political observers suggest the Green party should set its sights on a modest increase in legislative seats.
Norman Ruff, associate professor emeritus of political science at the University of Victoria, says that the Greens have grown from a “grassroots ecological movement toward a more fully fledged political party with all its trappings of a leadership-driven organization with a broad provincial policy agenda.
“This is very much Andrew Weaver’s Green party.”
But Ruff sees little indication that B.C. is ready for a “critical re-alignment of voters toward a third alternative” despite all the “potential vulnerabilities of the governing B.C. Liberals and the public’s alarm about affordability in their everyday lives.” A widespread sense that voting won’t change things that much could make efforts to get out the vote all the more important this time around, he noted.
Ruff also predicts that if the Greens “locate and focus their energies on communities where they are demonstrably seen as local contenders,” such as southern Vancouver Island, they might add a seat or two, or even achieve official party status with four MLAs.
A Mainstreet/Postmedia poll released April 25 found that despite general voter migration to the NDP, the Greens are “just barely hanging on to a lead on Vancouver Island where they are now essentially tied.”
British Columbia Green Party Leader Andrew Weaver, front left, walks to a news conference after unveiling his new election campaign bus in Vancouver, B.C., on Thursday April 6, 2017. A provincial election will be held on May 9. Photo by DARRYL DYCK /THE CANADIAN PRESS
Weaver argues the Greens are capable of drawing from both established parties, as well as “from our key demographic: the non-voter.” He won the only Green seat in the 2013 provincial election, when the party took 8.15 per cent of the popular vote, compared with 44.13 per cent for Liberals and 39.72 per cent for the NDP.
Weaver observes that his own riding had been held by a Liberal for 17 years, a reference to his victory over former Saanich councillor and Liberal MLA Ida Chong.
“I don’t believe parties own votes. People own votes,” he said in an interview. “The lion’s share of people are just looking for someone to vote for instead of against, and that’s the opportunity we offer them.”
This election campaign, the Greens are fielding candidates in 83 of 87 electoral ridings.
Some have made the news for all the wrong reasons.
Don Barthel, the candidate in Port Moody-Coquitlam, did a lot of backpedalling after telling a friend on Facebook that he was “just a ‘paper candidate'” and “not expected to actively campaign.” The software consultant lives in Vancouver.
The Green candidate in Richmond South Centre is Greg Powell, a United Church minister from Castlegar. Weaver said in his defence that Powell “wanted to be part of our team,” but the only slots available were Richmond or Peace River North. “He’s a very credible person. He’s not a paper candidate.”
Weaver argued that Liberal leader Christy Clark lives in Vancouver but represents Kelowna, and the NDP candidate in his own riding (Bryce Casavant, a former conservation officer suspended for saving two cubs on the north island) is from Port McNeill.
B.C. Green party leader Andrew Weaver is joined by several candidates and special guest David Suzuki as they share a moment during a rally at the Victoria Conference Centre in Victoria, B.C., on Wednesday, April 12, 2017. Photo by CHAD HIPOLITO /THE CANADIAN PRESS
Clark was defeated by the NDP’s David Eby in the riding of Vancouver-Point Grey in the 2013 provincial election that her party won. Later that year, she ran successfully in a byelection in Westside-Kelowna.
Casavant, who is currently renting a condo in Victoria, argues that he turned down a request to run for the Greens because he figured the NDP was the only realistic option for defeating the Liberals.
Weaver also noted that Green candidate Jacquie Miller is running in Delta North, where “she spent her whole life,” although she currently lives in Vancouver. Chris Maxwell is a cancer researcher at B.C. Children’s Hospital in Vancouver, but is running in the NDP riding of Victoria-Swan Lake. He was born, raised, and educated in Victoria.
Weaver argues the Greens have fielded a broad-based and capable team of candidates.
“We have six PhD scientists, three CEOs of tech companies, I don’t know how many teachers … I’ve lost count. It’s quite a diverse range.” The party’s youth movement is reflected in 18-year-old beekeeper Samson Boyer, running in Columbia-Revelstoke.
Based on the 2013 provincial election results, one of the Greens’ best hopes for another seat this time is Saanich North and the Islands. (Green MP Elizabeth May was first elected in Saanich-Gulf Islands in 2011.)
The NDP’s Gary Holman scored 33.27 per cent of the vote, compared with 32.76 per cent for Liberal Stephen Roberts and 32.07 per cent for the Green’s Adam Olsen. All are running again this time around.
In 2013, the Greens also did well in Victoria-Beacon Hill — a riding that includes the B.C. legislature — when then-party leader Jane Sterk placed second with 33.82 per cent, behind NDP veteran and former leader Carole James at 48.82 per cent. (The NDP easily defeated the Greens in Victoria in the 2015 federal election.)
This time around, the Green candidate is the lower-profile Kalen Harris, a University of Victoria political science graduate and owner of the Shatterbox Coffee Bar on Pandora Ave.
Further up the island, the Greens’ Sonia Furstenau, a director of the Cowichan Valley Region District, could make it a close race in the Cowichan Valley riding, where NDP incumbent Bill Routley is not seeking re-election.
In the Interior, the Greens are putting up a brave fight in the Cariboo-Chilcotin, where the party scored barely five per cent of the vote in 2013. Excessive logging is a key political issue.
Rita Giesbrecht says she has walked the sprawling clearcuts, and witnessed the tragic decline in moose populations. She has heard from the residents, be they ranchers, trappers, or ecotourism operators, and they are all saying enough is enough.
“We’re done,” asserts Giesbrecht, a 105 Mile resident. “It has galvanized the community.”
She argues that B.C. has suffered from excessive logging in the name of the pine beetle, increased exports of raw logs, the closing of mills, and greater timber industry oversight of its own affairs — all at the expense of local communities.
“What I’ve seen happen in my lifetime out there is nothing short of criminal,” she says of Liberal policies. “They come in and do what they want. They throw us a few token jobs and then they leave with the mess to clean up.”
As for the NDP: “They’ve been missing in action on this topic for the last 20 years. There has been a thundering silence from that side of the legislature on this topic.”
Giesbrecht has a long history of community participation based on 27 years residency in the region, including in areas of tourism, sustainable agriculture and food security, anti-poverty, family social services, tourism, and the arts.
The answer is not to demonize loggers or logging. Far from it, she said. What is needed is a wholesale rethink of the way logging takes place, with a closer look at impacts on the ecosystem and greater benefits for local communities.
The Greens are on record supporting everything from increased small-scale forest tenures, including for First Nations, an investigation into stumpage rates to ensure fair market value, and encouraging value-added second-growing processing operations, and support for sustainably certified wood products.
“Currently, (Liberal) policy has to do with the health of the corporations,” Giesbrecht concludes. “The health of the forest and the social contract with the community to have the wealth stay in the community seems to not be part of the discussion at all.”
lpynn@postmedia.com
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Johnny Depp and Amber Heard will tie the knot next weekend
Johnny Depp and Heard together
The couple’s wedding will take place on Depp’s 45-acre island in the Bahamas with friends and family.
by Elise Grant (article) and Parasshuram Shalgar (video)
1 February 2015 at 15:40 1 February 2015 at 15:40
Johnny Depp and Amber Heard are all set to walk down the aisle, with their wedding reportedly set to take place next weekend. According to a report on PEOPLE, the couple will be tying the knot at Little Hall's Pond Cay, Depp's famous private island in the Bahamas.
Depp has owned Little Hall's Pond Cay for more than a decade. The 45-acre island has beaches named after his idols Marlon Brando and Hunter S. Thompson, as well as his 15-year old daughter Lily-Rose and 12-year old son, Jack. Due to limited accommodation, it is believed that only around 50 guests will be invited to the private wedding. Many friends and family will stay on a yacht for the weekend, which may be on Vajoliroja, Depp's former luxury yacht (if he can rent it back after selling it a few years ago).
Depp, 51 and Heard, 28 first met on the set of The Rum Diary in 2011. They started dating the subsequent year, after Depp broke up with his long-term girlfriend Vanessa Paradis, who is the mother of Depp's two children. It is still unclear when the couple got engaged, but sources have confirmed it happened over the holidays in December, 2013. The couple had an engagement party in March last year.
The couple had a rocky year since their engagement and had to weather breakup rumours time and time again. In November, Depp described Heard as "a wonderful girl" on the Today Show, adding that she is "very good for me". The rumours resurfaced just last month. They cast aside any doubts about the status of their relationship when they shared a very public kiss earlier this month at the 8th Annual Heaven Gala in Los Angeles.
Marriage speculation started last week when Depp was spotted wearing what seemed to be a traditional wedding ring when he was doing press for Mortdecai, his latest film. His press for that movie has just come to an end, and with production for the new Pirates of the Caribbean movie expected to start soon, next weekend is the perfect time to tie the knot with Heard. She, too, is filming a movie in London. This will be Heard's first marriage, while Depp has walked down the aisle once before. He was briefly married to Lori Allison, a makeup artist.
Elise Grant
Read more on the same topic from Elise Grant:
NASA unveils details for a mission to an asteroid in 2020 Germanwings disaster, the mystery of the failed alarm and a fault repaired in the night Yemen: the Islamic State claims an attack which killed 29 people
Blasting News recommends Interview with “Infliction” Director Jack Thomas Smith An interview with movie director Si Horrocks Star Sports live cricket streaming India vs NZ 1st T20 at Hotstar.com Video
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Hitachi Construction Machinery (Europe) NV (HCME) is a subsidiary of HCM Japan and was established in 1972 in the Netherlands. It is responsible for the manufacture, sales and marketing of Hitachi construction equipment throughout Europe. We offer the full range of genuine spares and replacement parts for Hitachi machines.
In 1986 a marketing partnership for plant machinery was agreed between Fiat and Hitachi, with the original plan to build a limited range of Hitachi crawler excavators in Fiat’s factory in Italy. In the 1990s, HCME increased production in the Netherlands, starting to produce mini excavators, which with an extension of coverage leading to a trebling of production volumes. In October 1998, Euclid and Hitachi agreed a distribution partnership. This resulted in a new part distribution centre being opened, so that HMCE could take over the exclusive distribution for dump truck parts. In March 2001, Hitachi and Fiat terminated their joint venture relationship.
In the UK HM Plant was established by Graham Hall in Somerset in 1979, to distribute construction machinery in south west England. The company was appointed a sub-dealer for various brands, including Bomag , Isuzu and Fiat. The company was also appointed a regional sub-dealer for HMCE, but within a year was appointed HMCE’s official UK distributor from 1980. After the agreement of the Fiat-Hitachi deal in 1986, the company solely focused on distribution and servicing in the UK of the partnership’s products.
In January 2000, a management buyout was led by John Jones. In 2004 HM Plant relocated to a purpose-built 7 acres (2.8 ha) site at south Tyneside to allow both easier importation from the Netherlands, and easier distribution around the UK. In April 2007, HM Plant became a wholly owned subsidiary of HMCE, and in May 2014 officially rebranded to Hitachi Construction Machinery (UK) Ltd.
Hitachi models we cover include
Midi excavators
Hitachi tracked dumpers
Please contact us with part numbers for any inquiries you may have.
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Communication challenges in the aftermath of Cyclone Pam
01 Apr 2015 Communication challenges in the aftermath of Cyclone Pam
Posted at 10:26h in Features by Staff 0 Comments
Vanuatu after Cyclone Pam. Photo: Cyber-Actu.
In the aftermath of Cyclone Pam’s devastation of the Pacific island of Vanuatu, grassroots communication groups are broadcasting news and serving as contact points for those in urgent need.
When the mass media move on following a natural disaster, there are still voices to be heard. Local communicators play a vital role in relaying stories and identifying urgent needs.
Pam was graded to a “severe tropical cyclone” when it made landfall March 13 as a category 5 storm with peak winds of 250 km (155 miles) per hour, killing at least 17 (according to the U.N.) and causing widespread destruction. Some 65,000 people were left homeless and another 166,000 people were estimated to be in urgent need of life-saving assistance, the U.N. said. Vanuatu is located between Fiji and mainland Australia.
The non-governmental organization Women Against Crime and Corruption set up a hotline “for people to call if they want to raise their concerns or if [they have] other issues after the cyclone,” wrote chair Jenny Ligo in an e-mail a week after the disaster addressed to WACC . “They need clothes, food, cooking utensils and tents … RIGHT AWAY!” she wrote.
Ligo told Radio New Zealand International on March 27 that the government was not sticking to the typical U.N. food ratio of half a kilogramme (one pound) of food per person per day. She said she saw one woman with a family of 11 only given enough to feed four.
Ligo also says people on the island of Efate were given half the rations of those on the outer islands when the need can be similar.
Another communications organization, WACC’s Global Media Monitoring Project partner Vanuatu Education Policy Advocacy Coalition (VEPAC), launched an urgent appeal for aid, saying that 80% of its 200 members had lost their homes.
“People have been devastated and need urgent help. Donated funds would be used for food shelter, clean drinking water, clothing, household items, seeds for replanting farms for food sustenance, helping re-commence education and rebuilding self-reliance. Every island of the Vanuatu group has been affected,” said VEPAC National Coordinator Anne Pakoa in a message disaster addressed to the General Secretary of WACC
As another example of communications at work in times of disaster, Pakoa also participated in a post-storm assessment of the community of Erakor Bridge. The report, dated March 21, was carried out by the eight-person Erakor Bridge Committee, which works toward the welfare of the community and participates in disaster aid.
Among the findings of the report: evacuation centers took in more than 200 people, a school was heavily damaged, health risks were running high because outdoor toilets were destroyed and all 122 households sustained some form of damage.
Pakoa’s organization, VEPAC, also heard stories of food shortages after the cyclone as relief supplies were slow to reach many communities.
“On [the island of] Ambrym, a young father collapsed of hunger and died instantly because there was not enough food. All food crops have been destroyed from the volcano and Cyclone Pam. The man had to give up his food (the few remaining yams) so that the wife and the two children could survive every day, and thinking that seafood could sustain them for another few days … And so after diving on an empty stomach to try and get some extra food, he tried to warm himself up, he then collapsed and died instantly,” wrote a person named Bev, as related by Pakoa in an e-mail to WACC in Toronto.
According to Pakoa, another woman wrote, “We are living in the same area, Bladinieres Estate, and to date no relief supplies have reached us. There are hundreds of bags of rice sitting at the Anglican Church and people close to [it] are dying of hunger after the disaster. A woman argued with the municipality staff yesterday … because she asked to get a bag of rice and was not allowed as she needed an ID … People are dying and food is sitting just meters away from them.”
The shock of the disaster has muted communications. In another message relayed by Pakoa, a medical clinic worker wrote this on March 18:
“People are not talking [in] their normal loud voices; everyone seems to be whispering. I know everyone is still in shock over the devastating destruction caused by Pam. The air is smelling [like] dead debris. You don’t even hear dogs barking. No birds singing. It is so silent. All the shops are closed except some Chinese shops. Two of them that I went to buy some foods and drinks have a portable generator inside the shop which allows them to run some electrical appliances such as a deep freezer or a cooler. There is only one out of a few fuel stations that is working but only works on generator as well and it only opens in the morning to mid -afternoon. Until today, we have not had any fresh bread nor frozen foods.
“We have not heard from our families in the islands. I can’t reach my brother in the island, nor the chiefs. One of our local women group is on Tongoa Island for work purpose and I have not heard from them. I am very worried but a small voice within me is saying they are okay. I want to believe that they are okay.
“There is no radio, no television, no electricity. Our national radio station building roof is torn apart. I am not sure when we will listen to the radio nor watch TV again. I saw a 12 ft container on the middle of the road turned almost upside down in one of our main streets of Port Vila. Roofs curled around bended trees. Most people aren’t able to charge their phones just yet therefore it is very hard for us to communicate with our friends and families especially those in the islands to see if they are okay. It is even harder for us to take pictures as most phones needed to be charged.
“If roofs are not blown off nor torn apart, at least there is water in every houses. It is terrible! A chicken farm located on Teoma was also destroyed.”
On March 30, the U.N. wrote that emergency conditions continue in Vanuatu and that continuing aid is desperately needed.
Climate Justice, Pacific, Rural Poverty Reporting
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