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What the trans pacific partner...
What The Trans Pacific Partnership Deal Means
CXI October 5th, 2015
The United States and 11 other Pacific Rim nations on Monday agreed to the largest regional trade accord in history, a potentially precedent-setting model for global commerce and worker standards that would tie together 40 percent of the world's economy, from Canada and Chile to Japan and Australia.
The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) writes the rules for global trade. These rules were made to help increase made in America exports, grow the American economy, support well-paying American jobs and strengthen the American middle class.
The Office of the United States Trade Representative said the partnership eventually would end more than 18,000 tariffs that the participating countries have placed on United States exports, including autos, machinery, information technology and consumer goods, chemicals and agricultural products ranging from avocados in California to wheat, pork and beef from the Plains states.
While many opponents object that the trade pact will kill jobs or send them overseas, the administration contends that the United States has more to gain from freer trade with the Pacific nations.
These are all the nations that are included in the deal: Australia, Canada, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Peru, United States, Vietnam, Chile, Brunei, Singapore and New Zealand.
Michael B. Froman, the United States trade representative, called the labor and environmental rules the strongest ever in a trade agreement and a model for future pacts, although some environmental groups and most unions remained implacably opposed.
For the first time in a trade agreement there are provisions to help small businesses without the resources of big corporations to deal with trade barriers and red tape.
Currency Exchange International (CXI) is a leading provider of foreign currency exchange services in North America for financial institutions, corporations and travelers. Products and services for international travelers include access to buy and sell more than 80 foreign currencies, multi-currency cash passport’s and traveler’s cheques. For financial institutions, our services include the exchange of foreign currencies, international wire transfers, purchase and sale of foreign bank drafts, international traveler’s cheques, and foreign cheque clearing through the use of CXI’s innovative CEIFX web-based FX software www.ceifx.com.
Tags: Foreign currency, Economy, Business, Markets, Currencies, Trade
Jennifer Aniston's Worst Nightmare Just Came True
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Dan Rather Net Worth
How much is Dan Rather Worth?
in Richest Celebrities
Dan Rather Net Worth:
Dan Rather net worth and salary: Dan Rather is an American journalist and the former anchor for the CBS Evening News from 1981 to 2005 who has an estimated net worth of $70 million dollars. Dan Rather was born in Wharton, Texas in 1931 and grew up in Houston, Texas, He obtained his bachelor's degree in journalism from Sam Houston State University in 1953. After college, Dan Rather worked for the Houston Chronicle, did play-by-play announcing for the University of Houston football team and In 1959, he began his television career as a reporter for KTRK-TV, the ABC affiliate in Houston. In September 1961 Rather reported live from the Galveston Seawall as Hurricane Carla threatened the Texas coastline and caught the attention of CBS news. He moved to New York City in early 1962 for a six-month trial with CBS News. During his over 50 year career, Dan Rather has reported many high profile events, including JFK's assassination, the Vietnam War and the Watergate hearings. He has also contributed to CBS's "60 Minutes". Dan Rather is currently hosting his own show, "Dan Rather Reports. Dan Rather married his wife, Jean Goebel, in 1957. The couple has a son and daughter, and keep homes in New York City and Austin, Texas.
Walter Cronkite Net Worth
Bob Schieffer Net Worth
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Height: 5 ft 9 in (1.778 m)
Profession: Journalist, Television producer, Writer, Presenter, Editor, Screenwriter, Film Producer, Actor
Anne-Marie Green Net Worth
Jeff Glor Net Worth
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Scott Pelley Net Worth
John Dickerson Net Worth
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Iraq – Kifrin
Haditha Dam; international salvage project of the archaeological sites of the Euphrates dam’s basin
Scientific director:
Antonio Invernizzi
Field directors:
Paolo Fiorina, Antonio Invernizzi, Elisabetta Valtz, Roberta Venco Ricciardi
The surveys and excavations conducted in the site of Kifrin between 1980 and 1983 are Italian contribution to the rescue project that preceded the construction of the al-Qadissiya dam and the creation of the basin on the Euphrates upstream of Haditha (Haditha Project – State Board of Antiquities and Heritage of Iraq). Five excavation campaigns brought to light the structures of a large fortified settlement (Parthian and Roman phases of the 2nd and 3rd centuries), composed of a city and a citadel in a strategic sector that was of vital importance for controlling an advanced corridor of the Roman limes on the Middle Euphrates.
Kifrin is the Becchufrein of the Durene parchment and papyrus documents from the archives of the XX Cohors Palmyrenorum that mention the deployment of soldiers and garrisons to the outpost on the river. The site is located on the east bank (the “Parthian” one) of the Euphrates, between the fortified islands of Telbis and Bijan, approximately 130 km downstream from Dura Europos. Kifrin lies on a rocky spur that dominates the cultivated shore of the river and controls the ample bend towards ‘Ana. In Roman times, the site was part of a system of outposts and fortified centres (such as ‘Ana, Ertaje, Telbis and Bijan) that were key points of Rome’s defensive system along the river. The structures’ extension and monumentality make Kifrin the largest and most important fortified settlement downstream of Dura Europos.
The specific events that led to the stronghold’s abandonment and to the end of Kifrin remain obscure. The excavations did not find visible traces of destruction, although the many restorations of the wall and a mass grave attest to the battles, including violent ones, that took place here. The absence of coins after Gordian III (only one Ardashir coin originates from outside the walls) seems to back up the hypothesis that the stronghold was possibly abandoned as early as in Severus Alexander’s time, and anyhow before the second agoge of Shapur (around 250 AD) the presence of coins minted by Gordian III may possibly pertain to a temporary reoccupation of the site or to a final attempt to maintain dominance over this part of the river.
The site is distinctly subdivided into two sectors: the city, whose southwestern part is protected by the river and whose opposite side faces the Jazira, along which runs a long line of turreted walls, and the citadel at the western end of the rocky spur dominating the bend in the river. Although their construction techniques and structures differ, the city walls and the citadel are built with the emplecton technique using local materials, stones and conglomerate (occasionally pottery fragments) mixed with gypsum mortar. The two curtains have quadrangular towers that are slightly larger and distant from one another in the city’s curtain. Three moats outside the city walls, probably dug in one of the settlement’s final phases, run parallel to the walls and then make a 90 degree turn into the area inside the city, cutting across the defences. The preliminary analysis of the construction technique and of several structural relationships between the walls seems to back up the hypothesis that the citadel was built after the city. Anyhow, inside each sector, both city and citadel, several construction phases may be identified that cannot be dated with certainty due to the scarcity of material produced by the excavations whose date can be established for sure.
The official centre of the city, investigated only in part, was composed of buildings A and B. of the two, the most monumental was building A, whose function is still debated and may be either civilian/military or religious. Outside the enclosure of building A, next to its north corner, excavations brought to light building B, which may have served a religious purpose. A third sector is the one near the northern corner of the city walls (Area D), where two main building phases were observed. An elongated building made up of lined-up rooms, believed to be a barracks by excavators, was built (perhaps when the citadel was built and when the walls were repaired or enlarged) on top of a first building, possibly characterized by a perystyle courtyard resting against the walls. This building’s close relationship to the walls supports this interpretation.
Building A was located at the end of a wide temenos that included rooms and devices built against the inner side and an aedicula at the centre of the open area. Building A was elevated above the courtyard’s level, resting on a stepped platform; its floor plan contemplated the lined-up juxtaposition of wider and narrower rooms, opening and two central grated windows. The building’s façade was decorated with semicolumns with Ionic capitals (possibly Corinthian ones too, on a second level) and both the outside and the inside probably contemplated lavish stucco decorations, which were unfortunately too fragmentary to allow an accurate reconstruction. The stucco fragments include beautiful palmette-motif and astragal borders, as well as figured motifs that may have belonged to complex scenes.
Building B is a large iwan, flanked on the north side by two lined-up rooms and on the opposite side by a large open area. Here, the remains of basins, possibly having ritual functions, and steps built against the building that provided access to the upper level or to the roof, were brought to light. Iwan B, possibly the most exquisitely Parthian building in the entire Kifrin complex, brings to mind the solutions of Assur and Hatra, centres near the fortified outpost, and the hypothesis of their serving a religious purpose would agree not only with its planimetric characteristics but also with the obvious presence of Orientals among the troops stationed at the site.
The citadel lies at the end of the rocky spur that reaches out towards the river, on land that is actually lower than the city: this could be possible evidence that it was built after the city. The main entrance to the complex was on the river’s side and was protected by towers on both sides. Fragmentary structures were found in the (southern) sector near the main entrance, but judging from the scarce remains, an iwan can be recognized here too. We have more information on the building constructed against the walls on the north opposite corner of the citadel, a residential building distinguished by a peristyle courtyard built almost against the walls, a sort of entrance atrium and other areas along the defences. Its floor plan is that of a private dwelling, and the building may have been the residence of the commander of the troops stationed in Kifrin: the stucco decorations in some of the rooms seem to support this hypothesis. Outside the citadel’s walls, next to the stronghold’s main entrance, are the so-called external baths built against the curtain, partly constructed from baked bricks and partly dug into the sloping rock. The complex, in this case, is the typical axial row-type that is often found in a military context and in proximity of fortified walls (of camps, citadels, cities).
The most well-known and significant complex is that of the so-called Internal Baths, in the citadel’s southwest sector. The building was originally a dwelling whose purpose may have changed over time when, in a second construction phase that may have dated back to Alexander Severus, a small thermal block was added to the eastern side of the central porticoed courtyard. This is similar to the small baths in city centres, and is specifically similar to the chronologically and geographically close baths of Dura Europos and to the later baths of Roman Syria (Dipsi Faraj, Brad, Serjilla).
Materials and cronology
The funerary customs attested at Kifrin are typical of the Syro-Mesopotamian area, although several types of tombs were observed. In addition to Neo-Assyrian double-jar tombs (Doppeltopf), the excavations in Kifrin have produced findings of underground chambers dug in the rock (funerary chambers dug in the rock and studied by an Iraqi mission in the nearby cemetery of Majwal were especially numerous), burials in graves and in underground chambers. The pottery, the few terracotta figurines, the stucco fragments and the Aramaic inscriptions (especially Hatrene) are all ascribable to a typically local context. The brittle ware and the products that are more easily ascribable to the Roman presence are very similar to artefacts found in other strongholds such as Dura and Ain Sinu. The structures in Kifrin are generally dated to the Severian period (3rd century AD). In this period, the Kifrin stronghold was probably militarily reinforced with the construction of the citadel and the enlargement (or rebuilding) of the walls; these structures, however, were built on top of a previous settlement whose economic, strategic and commercial importance lasted into the Parthian period (2nd century AD). The approximately 60 coins produced by the excavation date for the most part between Septimius Severus and Gordian III, although a significant number (approximately one third) date back to the 2nd century. The coins seem to simultaneously suggest the previous existence of a 2nd century settlement and the increased importance of Kifrin, especially in military and strategic terms, from the Severian period, when the border’s advancement saw the staging of a series of forts and checkpoints along the ‘Ana river corridor (which up to that time was probably run by the Palmyrenes).
INVERNIZZI A.
1983/84, "Kifrin", Archiv für Orientforschung, 29/30, 207-09.
1986a, "Kifrin and the Euphrates Limes", in Ph. Freeman and D. Kennedy (eds.) The Defence of the Roman and Byzantine East, BAR Int. Ser. 297, 357-381, Oxford.
1986b, "Kifrin-ΒΗΧΧΟΥΦΡΕΙΝ", Mesopotamia XXI, 53-84.
1986c, "Researches in Kifrin - Al Qadissiya dam project", Sumer, 42, 22-26.
LIPPOLIS C.
2002, "Kifrin: esempi di architettura tra innovazione e tradizione", Electrum (Tradition and Innovation in the Ancient World), 6, 87-98.
2007 «La fortezza romana di Kifrin», in Giornata Lincea in onore di Giorgio Gullini (Roma, 10 maggio 2006), Atti dei Convegni Lincei 234, Roma, 151-164.
PENNACCHIETTI F.
1986, "Il posto dei cipri", Mesopotamia, XXI, 86-95.
VALTZ E.
1985, "Kifrin, la fortezza del limes", in La terra tra i due fiumi. Venti anni di archeologia italiana in Medio Oriente. La Mesopotamia dei tesori, Catalogo della Mostra di Torino (1985), Centro Ricerche Archeologiche e Scavi di Torino per il Medio Oriente e l’Asia, Alessandria, 1985, 111-20, Torino.
1987, "Kifrin, a Fortress of the limes on the Euphrates", Mesopotamia, XXII, 81-89.
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Report: Bryan Price to coach in All-Star Game
C. Trent Rosecrans
crosecrans@enquirer.com
Bryan Price will be an All-Star, at least according to John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle.
Shea reported on Sunday that Price and Dodgers manager Don Mattingly will be two of the coaches for the National League team, selected by Giants manager Bruce Bochy.
The manager of the host team has been named to the All-Star staff every year since 2003. The last time the home team manager was not part of the staff was 2002, when the game was in Milwaukee. Brewers manager Davey Lopes was fired 15 games into the 2002 season, replaced by Jerry Royster.
Mattingly is a native of Evansville, Ind., and also played in the 1988 All-Star game in Cincinnati.
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21 And Over Will Be A Completely Different Movie When Shown In China
Published: Feb. 14. 2013 5:11 PM
It may surprise a few of you to learn this, but there are quite a few people that live in China. And by a few I mean one-fifth of the world's population. It's a market that Hollywood has been desperate to invade for years now, but there's a small problem: the Chinese government isn't big on American movies. But while the country did recently raise the number of foreign movies that would be permitted in theaters annually - going from 20 to 34 - they also happen to be very strict content-wise and won't let just any film gain access. But the movie industry always finds a way to adapt...
The Los Angeles Times has learned that in the making of the new R-rated comedy 21 and Over, the filmmakers and Relativity Media have made two very distinct versions of the film: while the one shown to American audiences will be filled with all kinds of college-aged debauchery, the version that will be released in China reportedly explains the importance of embracing one's roots and the dangers of the "hedonistic west." The American version tells the tale of three college-aged friends, played by Justin Chon, Miles Teller Skylar Astin, who have a wild night of debauchery, drinking and sex, but to hear co-writer Jon Lucas talk about the Chinese version you'd think that it was a completely different story. "'21 & Over, in China, is sort of a story about a boy who leaves China, gets corrupted by our wayward, Western partying ways and goes back to China a better person,”he told the newspaper.
What's interesting is that this actually isn't the first move that the project has made to get better access to Chinese audiences. Back when the movie was about to start production, the filmmakers were informed by heads at Relativity that they would be packing their bags and heading to Linyi in Shandong province to film once production wrapped at the University of Washington. The studio's head, Ryan Kavanaugh, had brokered a deal with many big Chinese companies which led to the move. It was the footage they shot while in the Asian nation that was eventually used for the second cut.
Obviously the film industry is a business and finding new markets is incredibly valuable, but doesn't this feel a bit wrong? I applauded David Fincher when he refused to censor The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo so that it could play theatrically in India, but this situation is the complete opposite and it almost sounds like the Chinese version is a propaganda film. As a movie-goer, does it bother you that a filmmaker would alter their work like this due to censorship in other countries?
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Mugabe Out… or Is He Not?
in Africa, Politics, World News
Home World News Africa
Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe has addressed the nation on live TV amid pressure to resign after 37 years in power. He shook the hands of the military leaders who put him under house arrest just days ago. He said he was aware of a “whole range of concerns,” including the economy, which is going through “a difficult patch.”
Mugabe was expected to step down after 37 years in power. He is the world’s oldest head of state. But he did not announce his resignation in the speech, instead saying “the pillars of state remained functional” amid the crisis, in which Zimbabweans rallied by the tens of thousands against him and ruling party leaders told him to step aside or face impeachment.
The army commander who took Mugabe under house arrest was helping him to turn the pages of his speech. It came hours after the ruling ZANU-PF party fired Mugabe as its leader, and said if he didn’t resign as the country’s president by noon on Monday (11pm NZT), it would start impeachment proceedings. Mugabe said issues raised by ZANU-PF have to be attended to with “great urgency”.
Mugabe, the only leader the southern African nation has known since independence from Britain in 1980, was on Sunday (Monday NZ Time) replaced as ZANU-PF leader by Emmerson Mnangagwa, the deputy he sacked this month in a move that triggered last week’s intervention by the army.
In scenes unthinkable just a week ago, the announcement of his sacking as party leader was met by cheers from the 200 delegates packed into ZANU-PF’s Harare headquarters to seal the fate of Mugabe, whose support has crumbled in the four days since the army seized power.
Mugabe’s downfall is an ignominious end to the career of the “Grand Old Man” of African politics who was once feted across the continent as an anti-colonial liberation hero.
Even in the West, he was renowned in his early years as the “Thinking Man’s Guerrilla”, an ironic nickname for a man who would later proudly declare he held a “degree in violence”.
As the economy crumbled and political opposition to his rule grew in the late 1990s, Mugabe showed his true colours, seizing thousands of white-owned farms, detaining opponents and unleashing security forces to crush dissent.
As the vote was announced, war veterans leader Chris Mutsvangwa, who has spearheaded an 18-month campaign to remove a man he openly described as a “dictator”, embraced colleagues and shouted: “The president is gone. Long live the new president.”
Mugabe’s 52-year-old wife Grace, who had harboured ambitions of succeeding her husband, was also expelled from the party, along with at least three cabinet ministers who had formed the backbone of her ‘G40’ political faction.
Speaking before the meeting, Mutsvangwa said Mugabe, who has so far resisted calls to quit, was running out of time to negotiate his departure and should leave the country while he could.
“He’s trying to bargain for a dignified exit,” he said.
If Mugabe refused to go, “We will bring back the crowds and they will do their business,” Mutsvangwa told reporters.
Mnangagwa, a former state security chief known as “The Crocodile”, is expected to head an interim post-Mugabe unity government that will focus on rebuilding ties with the outside world and stabilising an economy in freefall.
On Saturday (Sunday NZT), hundreds of thousands of people flooded the streets of Harare, singing, dancing and hugging soldiers in an outpouring of elation at Mugabe’s expected overthrow.
His stunning downfall is likely to send shockwaves across Africa, where a number of entrenched strongmen, from Uganda’s Yoweri Museveni to Democratic Republic of Congo’s Joseph Kabila, are facing mounting pressure to quit.
SUPPORT EVAPORATING
On Saturday (Sunday NZT), men, women and children ran alongside the armoured cars and troops who stepped in to target what the army called “criminals” in Mugabe’s inner circle.
Meanwhile, the man himself remained under house arrest in his lavish ‘Blue Roof’ compound, watching the support from his party, security services and people evaporate.
Speaking from a secret location in South Africa, his nephew, Patrick Zhuwao, told Reuters Mugabe and his wife were “ready to die for what is correct” rather than step down in order to legitimise what he described as a coup.
Zhuwao, who was also sanctioned by ZANU-PF, did not answer his phone on Sunday (Monday NZT).
On Harare’s streets, few seemed to care about the legal niceties as they heralded a “second liberation” and spoke of their dreams for political and economic change after two decades of deepening repression and hardship.
More than 3 million Zimbabweans – around 20 per cent of the population – have emigrated to neighbouring South Africa in search of a better life.
The huge crowds in Harare have given a quasi-democratic veneer to the army’s intervention, backing its assertion that it is merely effecting a constitutional transfer of power, rather than a plain coup, which would entail a diplomatic backlash.
Despite the euphoria, some Mugabe opponents are uneasy about the prominent role played by the military, and fear Zimbabwe might be swapping one army-backed autocrat for another, rather than allowing the people to choose their next leader.
“The real danger of the current situation is that having got their new preferred candidate into State House, the military will want to keep him or her there, no matter what the electorate wills,” former education minister David Coltart said.
The United States, a long-time Mugabe critic, said it was looking forward to a new era in Zimbabwe, while President Ian Khama of neighbouring Botswana said Mugabe had no diplomatic support in the region and should resign at once.
Besides changing its leadership, ZANU-PF said it wanted to change the constitution to reduce the power of the president, a possible sign of its desire to move towards a more pluralistic and inclusive political system.
Tags: President Robert Mugabe Steps DownRobert Mugabe ImpeachmentZimbabwe Political NewsZimbabwe President Robert MugabeZimbabwean President Robert Mugabe Resign
China to Help Resolve Rohingya Crisis: Bangladesh
Indonesia’s House of Representatives Speaker Detained
Indonesia's House of Representatives Speaker Detained
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Utilities in US Southeast Restore Power to Nearly Half of Those Hit by Irma
in Climate Change, Environment, Featured, North America, United States, World News
Home Climate Change
Utilities in the US Southeast returned power to almost half of the homes and businesses knocked out by Hurricane Irma, leaving about 4.3 million customers in the dark as of midday Wednesday (13/09), in one of the biggest restoration efforts in US history.
The total number of customers still out, representing about 9 million people in Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas, dipped from a peak of more than 7.8 million customers, or over 16 million people, on Monday.
Major utilities in Florida – including NextEra Energy Inc’s Florida Power & Light (FPL), Duke Energy Corp and Emera Inc’s Tampa Electric – have mobilized tens of thousands of workers to deal with the outages after Irma landed early Sunday and carved a destructive path up Florida, which has a population of about 20.6 million.
FPL, the state’s largest utility, said its outages dropped to around 1.9 million customers on Wednesday from a peak of more than 3.6 million on Monday.
In total, FPL said it has now restored power to more than half of its customers affected by the storm. Automated devices restored power to most of the customers who got their power back during the first day, FPL said.
Some Florida utilities, including FPL, warned customers it could take weeks to restore power in the hardest hit areas. FPL said on Tuesday it planned to restore power to eastern Florida by this weekend and to western Florida by Sept. 22.
Irma hit southwestern Florida on Sunday morning as a Category 4 storm, the second most severe on the five-step Saffir-Simpson scale. It had weakened to a tropical depression on Monday.
More than 60,000 workers from across the United States and Canada were involved in the restoration efforts, including those from the affected companies and other utilities, according to the Edison Electric Institute, an industry trade group.
Tags: FloridaHurricane IrmaUS electricity
N. Korea Slams New UN Sanctions, Warns US of ‘Greatest Pain’
Boys ‘Cried from Barred Windows’ as Islamic School Blaze Kills 23 in Malaysia
Boys 'Cried from Barred Windows' as Islamic School Blaze Kills 23 in Malaysia
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RESTRICTED ACCESS BLACKFOOT CITY HALL AND BLACKFOOT PUBLIC LIBRARY TEMPORARILY CLOSE TO PUBLIC ACCESS Read On...
Christopher Jensen
Christopher Jensen - Council Member
Department Liaison Assignment
Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP)
Streets & Sanitation Departments
Transportation Commission
Council member Jensen was born and raised in Pocatello, Idaho and graduated from Pocatello High School in1986. He spend much of his younger life visiting Blackfoot as both parents and grandparents were from the area. After serving a mission for the LDS church in the Italy Catania Mission, he came home and married his wife, Ann Marie. They moved to Blackfoot in 1993 with their daughter. His wife, Ann Marie, was born and raised in Blackfoot and graduated Blackfoot High School in 1987.
After moving to Blackfoot, it wasn't long before he was asked to be a scoutmaster for the LDS church, carrying on the family tradition started with his grandfather. While attending Idaho State University (ISU) college of Engineering, he worked at a number of local companies such as Spudnik, Mr. Mower, and Miles Heating. He graduated with a degree in Mechanical Engineering from ISU in 1999 and went to work for the Idaho National Laboratory (INL). After a few years of work, he became a professional engineer and has worked in that occupation for a variety of INL contractors and private firms ever since.
Councilman Jensen and his wife had 3 more children and have continued to raise their family in Blackfoot with two children graduating from Blackfoot and one from Bingham Academy. He and his wife recently became grandparents when his daughter, who still lives in Blackfoot, had their first granddaughter.
He has served as the Council President for many years and has work with most all of the City Departments over his time on the Council.
Email Councilman Jensen
Marc Carroll, Mayor
Bart Brown
Layne "Skip" Gardner
Jan Simpson
Blackfoot City Hall
Blackfoot, ID 83221
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It will come down to Nanih Waiya (10-2), Noxapater (10-2) and Biggersville (9-1) in the North. Biggersville and Noxapater should meet in Round 2. The winner of that game will see Nanih Waiya in the North State title game.
Nanih Waiya has looked like the best team in the classification all season.
Winner: Nanih Waiya
Defending champion West Point (11-1) is the favorite in this class. They are the top team in the Clarion Ledger Super 10 rankings and have been the top-ranked team in 5A all season. They will, however, have a tougher road to a fourth-straight championship.
Lafayette (8-3) and Grenada (7-4) lost to the Green Wave by a combined 11 points. Both of them are in the postseason, and it's possible West Point sees them both in the North state playoffs.
Picayune (11-0) and West Jones (11-0) are the best teams in the south. West Jones got the better of Picayune last season, defeating them 21-13 in the South state title game. Picayune will get the better of West Jones this time, but West Point will secure its 11th state championship.
Winner: West Point
When all the top teams in the classification are so close to equal, predicting a champion is like taking a shot in the dark. Nevertheless, here we go.
As far as talent, No. 2 Starkville (10-2) is the best team in the state and they'll be in the hunt to hoist the gold ball.
No. 5 Madison Central (9-2) looked like the best team in the state for most of the season before being derailed by back-to-back losses to Starkville and South Panola. But as long as Madison Central has Jimmy Holiday, the team is a threat.
No. 3 South Panola (11-1) is playing as well as anyone in the class, and they have a healthy Janari Dean in the backfield. Let's not forget about No. 4 Petal (10-1), No. 10 Oak Grove (8-3) and Brandon (8-4) in the South.
But South Panola is rolling right now and the only blemish on their record is a 24-20 loss to Starkville on Sept. 27. Starkville and Madison Central would have to face one another in the second round if they can beat their opponents this week.
Starkville will beat Madison Central a second time, but they won't beat South Panola. The Tigers win their first title since 2014.
Winner: South Panola
More:Here are predictions for 2A, 3A, 4A in the Mississippi high school football playoffs
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News Sports Opinion Magnolia Mississippi State Obituaries E-Edition Legals
Southern Miss to 'reevaluate' after loss to UTSA
Jason Munz
Gannett Mississippi
Shannon Dawson called it.
Two days removed from a resounding offensive fireworks display that resulted in a win over Rice and a 4-1 mark overall (2-0 in Conference USA), the team’s first-year offensive coordinator said the Golden Eagles have had difficulties coming off moments of strength.
Call it foreshadowing.
“I honestly believe we haven’t handled success great this year,” Dawson said. “Typically, when we play well, we start thinking we have things figured out.”
Those comments were made four days prior to Southern Miss’ 55-32 loss at UTSA, whose only other win this season came against FCS member Alabama State.
On Saturday, the Roadrunners were the ones that looked like league title contenders. Frank Wilson’s team hung 532 yards of total offense, averaging more than 11 yards per play, and won the turnover battle, 3-0. On special teams, UTSA averaged 33.7 yards per kickoff return compared to just 15.8 per return for the Golden Eagles.
Four times Southern Miss, which trailed by as many as 24, cut the lead to 14 points. Late in the game, Jay Hopson’s squad drove the ball inside the home team’s 10-yard line with an opportunity to shave the deficit to just 8 points. But quarterback Nick Mullens threw his eighth interception of the season, shelving any hope of a rally.
Mullens has also seen the Golden Eagles struggle with complacency at times this season.
“You never can think you’re any good,” he said after Southern Miss’ home loss to Troy. “We just really need to focus during the week. Those things will show up on Saturdays.”
Senior receiver D.J. Thompson, who caught a touchdown pass in his third straight game, believes Southern Miss’ win over UTSA last season led to a false sense of security for some.
“Regardless of who we beat last year, we can’t just go into their facility and assume they’re going to lay down and hand us touchdowns,” he said. “That not gonna happen. I think that’s our biggest thing mentally. We kind of expected to win just because of the simple fact we won last year. And that’s stupid.
“I feel like we messed ourselves up on that part.”
Thompson called loss to UTSA a reality check as he and his teammates try to quickly turn their attention toward LSU. The Golden Eagles will make the trip to Tiger Stadium at 6:30 p.m. Saturday in a game that will be televised by the SEC Network.
“We’ve got to reevaluate ourselves,” he said. “It seems like once we think we’re rolling, you know, somebody comes and hits us in the mouth and lets us know, ‘Hey, y’all can be better.’ I think we’re going to keep getting better.”
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Johansen lifts Blue Jackets past Panthers
Paul Gereffi
SUNRISE, Fla. – The Columbus Blue Jackets are looking forward to their second playoff appearance in franchise history.
Ryan Johansen scored the tiebreaking goal in the third period as the Blue Jackets beat the Florida Panthers for the eighth consecutive time, 3-2 on Saturday night. Mark Letestu and Cam Atkinson also scored for Columbus and Sergei Bobrovsky made 33 saves.
The Blue Jackets clinched the first wild-card spot and will face the Pittsburgh Penguins in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs.
“Just excited for the opportunity to play in the playoffs. That’s something you have to earn and our players went and earned it this year,” Columbus coach Todd Richards’ said. “We’ve got the opportunity to play one of the premier teams in the league, a team that has talented players, they know how to win, they’re well-coached, and we get to go in their building.”
Columbus’ previous playoff appearance was in 2009 when it was swept in four games by Detroit.
Philadelphia’s 4-3 overtime win against Pittsburgh earlier in the day clinched third place in the Metropolitan Division for the Flyers and forced Columbus to the wild-card spot.
The Blue Jackets went 0-5 against the Penguins this season, losing all five in regulation.
“Half the guys wanted to play Pittsburgh. I think we owe them more than anything,” Atkinson said.
Johansen’s 33rd goal of the season, a one-timer from the left circle after taking a pass from James Wisniewski, got past Luongo at 5:58 of the third period to put Columbus ahead.
“When you get passes like that, you really just have to hit the net,” Johansen said. “All the credit to Wis’ great vision hitting me down low there. Give them (Florida) credit, they played really hard tonight. I’m proud of the guys sticking with it and finally got two points.”
The Blue Jackets played eight games in the past 12 days, the final three on the road.
“The relief is that we got through the game healthy,” Richards said. “It was tough stretch that we just went through.When that happens, fatigue sets in and usually brains start not functioning in the right way, but we found a way to win the game.”
Jimmy Hayes and Vincent Trocheck scored for the Panthers. Roberto Luongo stopped 35 shots.
Hayes’ goal in the second gave the Panthers a 2-1 lead. Hayes grabbed a loose puck in the Columbus zone, brought it down the boards on the right side and his shot from the right circle beat Bobrovsky at 6:35.
Columbus tied it at 2 on a power-play goal by Letestu at 10:13 of the second as his wrist shot from the right circle got to the net just as Luongo’s stick was knocked loose by a Columbus player.
The Blue Jackets took a 1-0 lead just 47 seconds in when Atkinson took a pass from Brandon Dubinsky from the left circle to the right of the crease and tapped it in.
“They really took it to us the first 10 minutes, but we settled down afterward,” Luongo said. “Just came down to one break for them.”
The Panthers tied it at 1 when Trocheck scored a short-handed goal on a breakaway. His shot from the slot trickled under the Bobrovsky’s pads with about a minute left in the first. It was the Panthers’ fourth short-handed goal in their past seven games.
Florida captain Ed Jovanovski’s season ended early as he received a game misconduct for an elbow to Corey Tropp with under four minutes left in the first.
Blue Jackets D Nikita Nikitin returned to the lineup after missing six games with a lower-body injury. … Panthers C Brandon Pirri has a five-game point-scoring streak. … The Panthers were outshot 16-3 during one stretch in the first period. … Nick Bjugstad finished the season as the Panthers’ leading scorer with 38 points, an NHL record for the fewest points to lead a team. The Panthers became the first team since the 2000-01 Minnesota Wild to go an 82-game season without a 40-point scorer.
© 2021 www.chillicothegazette.com. All rights reserved.
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Luigi Chiariello
Capitoli 4 – 14
Capitoli 15 – 24
29 Settembre 2015adminHealth Library
Influenza, commonly known as “the flu”, is an infectious disease caused by the influenza virus. Symptoms can be mild to severe. The most common symptoms include: a high fever, runny nose, sore throat, muscle pains, headache, coughing, and feeling tired. These symptoms typically begin two days after exposure to the virus and most last less than a week. The cough, however, may last for more than two weeks. In children there may be nausea and vomiting but these are not common in adults. Nausea and vomiting occur more commonly in the unrelated infection gastroenteritis, which is sometimes inaccurately referred to as “stomach flu” or “24-hour flu”. Complications of influenza may include viral pneumonia, secondary bacterial pneumonia, sinus infections, and worsening of previous health problems such as asthma or heart failure.
Usually, the virus is spread through the air from coughs or sneezes.This is believed to occur mostly over relatively short distances. It can also be spread by touching surfaces contaminated by the virus and then touching the mouth or eyes. A person may be infectious to others both before and during the time they are sick. The infection may be confirmed by testing the throat, sputum, or nose for the virus.
Influenza spreads around the world in a yearly outbreak, resulting in about three to five million cases of severe illness and about 250,000 to 500,000 deaths. In the Northern and Southern parts of the world outbreaks occur mainly in winter while in areas around the equator outbreaks may occur at any time of the year. Death occurs mostly in the young, the old and those with other health problems. Larger outbreaks known as pandemics are less frequent. In the 20th century three influenza pandemics occurred: Spanish influenza in 1918, Asian influenza in 1958, and Hong Kong influenza in 1968, each resulting in more than a million deaths. The World Health Organization declared an outbreak of a new type of influenza A/H1N1 to be a pandemic in June of 2009. Influenza may also affect other animals, including pigs, horses and birds.
Frequent hand washing reduces the risk of infection because the virus is inactivated by soap. Wearing a surgical mask is also useful. Yearly vaccinations against influenza is recommended by the World Health Organization in those at high risk. The vaccine is usually effective against three or four types of influenza. It is usually well tolerated. A vaccine made for one year may be not be useful in the following year, since the virus evolves rapidly. Antiviral drugs such as the neuraminidase inhibitors oseltamivir among others have been used to treat influenza. Their benefits in those who are otherwise healthy do not appear to be greater than their risks. No benefit has been found in those with other health problems.
Presentazione Nazionale Trattati Chirurgia Cardiaca
Nuovo sito chirurgia cardiaca
di Luigi Chiariello - Professore Ordinario di Cardiochirurgia
06.44231171 - 06.4402053 - 06.4402054
seu@seu-roma.it
www.seu-roma.it
Via G.B. Morgagni, 1 – 00161 Roma
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My Confrontation with Dick Cheney today
By Cynthia Papermaster
I'm still buzzing with adrenaline after telling Dick Cheney to his face today that he's a mass murderer, torturer and war profiteer and he should be in prison. I never thought I would see him in the flesh, and was so nervous. After all these years of working to get him impeached and now prosecuted, this was like a dream come true-- to confront him face to face with his crimes. It feels so good to have done this. As my friend Joe said "You did it for everyone. Thank you."
Thanks to the expert skills of Nancy Mancias, she and I were able to get into the a private and exclusive investor conference at the aptly-named Palace Hotel in San Francisco, where Cheney was giving a keynote address to about 200 attendees. There he was, mere yards away from me, the Dick himself. I was oddly calm, and just working up the courage to speak out. First Cheney showed the audience his heart pump contraption, then he launched into a history lesson about 9/11 and how the Bush Administration had to adopt new tactics to fight terror. Nancy stood up and called Cheney out for maybe 30 seconds. I took some pictures as she was escorted out of the room. (Unfortunately, our video person was not able to get inside the event). Then Cheney started to talk about Khalid Sheikh Mohammed [who as we know was water boarded 183 times] so I stood up and loudly said, "Dick Cheney, you ordered waterboarding of KSM, a form of torture. You should be in prison for ordering American torture and inhumane treatment leading to at least 100 detainee deaths, including children. You lied to the nation about Iraq and sent thousands of troops to their deaths. You made money from the war for Halliburton and your oil industry cronies-- you're a war profiteer." Oddly, security didn't grab me immediately. The MC kept asking me to leave, and some in the audience were telling me to leave and shut up; finally a security person came over and showed me a convenient way out. I was escorted through the hotel to the elegant front entrance where a large group of people were marching, singing, and holding banners and posters saying "Arrest Cheney". There was Joe, dressed in a black and white jail outfit wearing a Cheney mask. There were young folks from Occupy SF who all wanted to hug me. World Can't Wait had a microphone and I was asked to give a report about what happened inside. Some San Francisco police were on hand, so I showed them the letter I had sent to the Chief of Police, Sheriff, and District Attorney asking them to arrest Cheney today. I told them that they had the jurisdiction and responsibility to do so, but sadly, the police declined to arrest him. Great day, great action, great pink presence.
Thanks to everyone who came out and participated, and especially to Nancy and Sanaa, who made my dream come true.
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Brakhage Center
Luncheon Series
“Imagine an eye unruled by man-made laws of perspective, an eye unprejudiced by compositional logic, an eye which does not respond to the name of everything but which must know each object encountered in life through an adventure of perception.”
Stan Brakhage – From Metaphors on Vision (1963)
The Brakhage Center is temporarily on hiatus due to the Corona Virus. Please check back at a later date.
For more information, please write to Brakhagecenterinfo@colorado.edu
The Brakhage Center, created in 2005, is named after Stan Brakhage (1933-2003), one of the most innovative and influential filmmakers of the 20th century who was also Distinguished Professor of Film Studies at CU Boulder. A prolific filmmaker, he made nearly 350 films in his 52-year-long career that include psychodramas, autobiographical films, Freudian trance films, song cycles, birth films, meditations on light, and hand-painted films. They range in duration from nine seconds to over four hours and cover every technical format from Super 8mm to 70mm IMAX.
The Center is dedicated to keeping alive Brakhage's legacy by promoting creativity, experimentation and critical inquiry into the media arts. Among its various activities, it hosts a symposium in March as well as a speaker series in fall. It works closely with Norlin Archives on campus, which houses Brakhage's papers and correspondence as well as a print of every film he made. The Center and the Archive constitute an invaluable resource for Brakhage scholars and students as well as lovers of experimental cinema.
The Stan Brakhage Center
ATLAS 311
The Brakhage Archives
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House Committee : Financial Services House Committee : Armed Services 116 (2019-2020) 109 (2005-2006) — 110 (2007-2008) 102 (1991-1992) 98 (1983-1984) Committee Consideration To President
1. H.R.5097 — 102nd Congress (1991-1992) To amend title 38, United States Code, to improve benefits in certain education and employment programs for veterans, and for other purposes. Sponsor: Rep. Montgomery, G. V. (Sonny) [D-MS-3] (Introduced 05/07/1992) Cosponsors: (3) Committees: House - Armed Services; Banking, Finance, and Urban Affairs; Education and Labor; Veterans' Affairs Latest Action: House - 09/22/1992 Mr. Moakley notified the House that Members should submit 55 copies of proposed amendments to the bill to the Committee on Rules by 5 p.m. on Friday, September 25, 1992. (All Actions) Tracker:
2. H.R.4150 — 102nd Congress (1991-1992) Economic Growth Act of 1992 Sponsor: Rep. Michel, Robert H. [R-IL-18] (Introduced 02/04/1992)(by request) Cosponsors: (10) Committees: House - Agriculture; Armed Services; Banking, Finance, and Urban Affairs; Education and Labor; Foreign Affairs; Government Operations; House Administration; Energy and Commerce; Interior and Insular Affairs; Judiciary; Merchant Marine and Fisheries; Post Office and Civil Service; Public Works and Transportation; Rules; Science, Space and Technology; Veterans' Affairs; Ways and Means Latest Action: House - 03/18/1992 Referred to the Subcommittee on Economic and Commercial Law. (All Actions) Tracker:
3. H.R.4012 — 102nd Congress (1991-1992) Homeowners Assistance Program Improvement Act Sponsor: Rep. Murtha, John P. [D-PA-12] (Introduced 11/26/1991) Cosponsors: (0) Committees: House - Armed Services; Banking, Finance, and Urban Affairs; Veterans' Affairs Latest Action: House - 12/16/1991 Referred to the Subcommittee on Housing and Community Development. (All Actions) Tracker:
4. H.R.3229 — 102nd Congress (1991-1992) U.S. Health Service Act Sponsor: Rep. Dellums, Ronald V. [D-CA-8] (Introduced 08/02/1991) Cosponsors: (1) Committees: House - Armed Services; Banking, Finance, and Urban Affairs; District of Columbia; Education and Labor; Energy and Commerce; Judiciary; Post Office and Civil Service; Veterans' Affairs; Ways and Means Latest Action: House - 04/23/1992 Referred to the Subcommittee on Administrative Law and Governmental Relations. (All Actions) Tracker:
Introduced [12]
Economics and Public Finance [1]
Financial Services Remove
Armed Services Remove
Judiciary [3]
District of Columbia [2]
Agriculture [1]
Foreign Affairs [1]
House Administration [1]
Natural Resources [1]
Oversight and Reform [1]
Rules [1]
Science, Space, and Technology [1]
Transportation and Infrastructure [1]
Michel, Robert H. [R-IL] [1]
Montgomery, G. V. (Sonny) [D-MS] [1]
Gingrich, Newt [R-GA] [2]
Archer, Bill [R-TX] [1]
Blaz, Ben G. [R-GU] [1]
Browder, Glen [D-AL] [1]
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Cyprus Property Forum for Buyers, Sellers & Investors
Online Forum for Buyers & Sellers of Property in Cyprus
https://www.cyprus-property-buyers.com/forum/
refusal to sell
https://www.cyprus-property-buyers.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=37&t=1960
Posted: 29 Dec 2018 12:49
by del-froogo
My wife and her sister (UK based) were left 2 properties in Limassol by their late mother. She appointed her solicitor as executor/administrator of her will. It is almost 8 years since her passing and finally there is someone who wants to buy one of the properties at a price which is more than acceptable to the sisters. There have been several contracts drawn up and amended by both sets of solicitors, but ultimately "our" solicitor, is now refusing to sell.
Is this accepted behaviour? Is he allowed to do this by law?
Re: refusal to sell
by Nigel Howarth
Hi del-froogo and welcome to the forum.
IMO it's unacceptable behaviour, but whether it's legal or not is another matter.
Assuming their late mother's Will left the property to her daughters, all the lawyer had to do was to obtain a grant of probate from the court and then arrange for the estate to be distributed according to the mother's final wishes. After he/she had completed that then there was no need for the lawyer to be involved i the sale of the property.
I suggest that your wife and her sister complain to the Cyprus Bar Association - 'inadequate professional services' dispense with the lawyer's services and take the business to someone else like one of the lawyers on the list provided by the British High Commission. (Louise Zambartas is one of them).
by Pantheman
del-froogo wrote: ↑29 Dec 2018 12:49 but ultimately "our" solicitor, is now refusing to sell.Is this accepted behaviour? Is he allowed to do this by law?
On what grounds is he refusing??
At the end of the day his job it to transfer the properties to you and your sister, nothing more, nothing less, why is he getting involved with the sale??
But yet you should seek a second opinion on this matter.
He is refusing to sell now on the "belief" that he can get more money for it, however after almost 8 years of no interest we now have someone, who is willing to pay an acceptable price. He also says that he needs to verify that the price is correct with the courts which we dont understand. The property is to be sold without titles because obtaining them is proving almost impossible.
As for changing solicitor we have been informed that because he is executor/administrator he will have to excuse himself which he almost certainly wont. so we believe changing solicitor will prove impossible.
The bottom line is that the sale of this property brings forward the prospect of closure for the girls, and allows them to pay the solicitor his fees, this is why the whole situation is unfathomable.
del-froogo wrote: ↑30 Dec 2018 11:34 He is refusing to sell now on the "belief" that he can get more money for it.
Someone must have instructed the lawyer to sell the property:
1. You wife's late mother instructed him/her in her Will.
2. Once the court issued a grant of probate and the lawyer transferred the property to your wife and her sister, one of them must have instructed the lawyer to sell.
You'll need to read through the Will to see what it says about the disposal of the house (if anything).
(If you would like to PM me with the name of the lawyer I may have some background information on him/her that I can share.)
Posted: 13 Jan 2020 22:49
Finally back, the previously mentioned situation is almost resolved. However, the 2nd property we are trying to sell is a large village house.
An estate agent who has had the property up for sale for almost 9 years, obviously without success, is now requesting that we give him exclusive selling rights. If we do, he will sell it for a higher price than he is currently advertising it for, and only take 5% plus vat as his fee.
Any ideas please?
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Patriots RB Burkhead confirms he's out for season with knee injury
New England Patriots running back Rex Burkhead (34) is taken off the field by cart after an injury during the second half of an NFL football game against the Houston Texans, Sunday, Nov. 22, 2020, in Houston. (AP Photo/Eric Christian Smith)
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- Patriots running back Rex Burkhead says his recent knee injury will keep him sidelined for the rest of the season.
In an Instagram post on Tuesday, Burkhead wrote that he looks forward to "coming back better than ever in 2021." The proclamation comes after he was carted off the field in the third quarter of Sunday's 27-20 loss at Houston following a knee-to-helmet collision with Texans cornerback Bradley Roby.
The rest of his Patriots teammates kneeled while Burkhead remained down on the field, in obvious pain. After stopping by the sideline medical tent, he left the field and did not return.
After the game coach Bill Belichick confirmed Burkhead suffered a knee injury, but said they would have to wait for confirmation on the severity from the medical staff. He didn't travel back with the team and stayed in Houston on Sunday night.
Burkhead, who scored the game-winning touchdown in the 2019 AFC championship game against Kansas City, was having one of the best years of his career, with a combined 466 yards and six touchdowns rushing and receiving.
His injury is the latest blow to a Patriots running back group that has already had to make several adjustments.
Damien Harris has been the Patriots top running back this season, but he missed the first three games of the season with a hand injury. Sony Michel was just activated from injured reserve last week after being sidelined since Week 3 because of a quad injury. Veteran James White also missed two games following the death of his father.
The Patriots (4-6) host the Cardinals (6-4) on Sunday.
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CPP @ Archive.org
Hospitals, Urban
Blockley Almshouse
Philadelphia General Hospital
Exterior view of Blockley.
Hunter, Robert J. (Robert John), 1882-1980
Original image: Philadelphia General Hospital Photograph Collection, Historical Medical Library of The College of Physicians of Philadelphia, box 30, photo no. 9
Philadelphia General Hospital was originally part of the Philadelphia Almshouse, which was founded in 1731 for the city’s poor, elderly and indigent. Nicknamed “Old Blockley,” because of its location in Blockley Township of West Philadelphia, the hospital was renamed Philadelphia General Hospital in 1919. The hospital eventually closed in 1977. The images in this collection have been compiled from a number of sources but appear to be predominantly from the personal photo albums of attending physicians.
Digitized by the Historical Medical Library of The College of Physicians of Philadelphia
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NoC-NC/1.0/
PGH_30_09
Hunter, Robert J. (Robert John), 1882-1980. Blockley photographs
1 photograph
Hunter, Robert J. (Robert John), 1882-1980, “Exterior view,” The College of Physicians of Philadelphia Digital Library, accessed January 17, 2021, https://www.cppdigitallibrary.org/items/show/824.
Copyright © 2020 | The College of Physicians of Philadelphia
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Looking For Alibrandi Character Analysis
Register to read the introduction… The novel ‘Looking for Alibrandi’ by Melinda Marchette is all about Josephine Alibrandi searching to achieve her ‘emancipation’ from her family and cultural heritage. In this essay, I will write about what Josie learns about her family, friends and cultural background, what she learns about herself through the year and how this helps her to achieve her ‘emancipation’.
Josie lives at home with her single Mum Christina. Christina had Josie when she was 17. Josie’s father moved to Adelaide after Christina got pregnant, so Josie had never met her father until he came back to Sydney at the beginning of her HSC year. When Josie first met Michael Andretti, Michael tells Josie he doesn’t want anything to do with her ‘I do not want to see her. I do not want to love her. I do not want a complication in my life,’ (Page 65). Josie doesn’t like him at first and they decide to stay out of each other’s lives (page 69). But after spending some time with each other, Josie decides that she wants to be friends with Michael, and she actually does want need a father in her life.
Throughout the year, Josie spends a …show more content…
Martha’s, an elite Catholic school. At her school she has three close friends but feels trapped between two cultures, neither accepted by the Australians, nor the Italians. Josie had her first deep relationship that year with Jacob Coote. Whom she admired for his individuality; he is passionate, which is what attracts Josie. Josie is also friends with John Barton, the son of a well-known politician. When John dies, Josie realizes that John died to achieve his ‘emancipation’from feelings of futility, loneliness and despair. Josie, however, has to live to achieve her ‘emancipation’. As Jacob said, “… Dreams are goals. John ran out of goals. So he died” (page
Symbolism Of Freedom In Annie John, By Jamaica Kincaid
For example, when Annie and her mother’s relationship reaches a climax of its bitterness, they both display their hatred for each other when Annie’s father is not around, however as soon as he is present, they both pretend like everything is fine. The fact that Annie feels as though she cannot talk to her father in a true and honest way, may have contributed to the slippery slope with her relationship with her mother. If Annie’s father had been there for her to discuss her frustrations and feelings, she might have not bottled up her anger causing her to rebel, hate her mother, and vie for more attention. Furthermore, the fact that Annie can see her father from the lighthouse but he cannot see her, is also a depiction of their bond. Annie is able to see her father’s true self as he makes her mother laugh, and shows pride in his artistry.…
Transformations In Luna, By Julie Anne Lewis
Regan was shy and really not sociable at school. She avoids another student in order to keep a secret about her Transgender brother. Regan supports her despite growing fears about his decision to fully transition into a female. The siblings relationship is bound by fear and cemented with love. There are numerous lovely moments where these two characters understand each other 's pain and hope in ways no other person could.Like my case I have a Younger sister that I 'm very close witno matter what ,I know my sister will help me and work with me things that need to be done.…
The Importance Of Healthy Relationships
Divorce was what my mother thought of, but felt her family and friends would disapprove since they knew she was starting to recover from her past relationship. The lecture presentation clearly started that my mother was going through an emotional divorce since my mother felt she could not go through the divorce if she did not get everyone’s approval. Some factors that contribute to emotional divorce can also include: having different religious beliefs, feeling like no one else will fall in love with them, not being able to financially support themselves if they leave, are embarrassed or feel shame towards the divorce, and/or they might want to stay in the marriage for the sake of the…
Why Is Remy's Abandonment Of Her Father
Remy’s abandonment issues originate from her father’s abandonment. Remy’s father left her mother before Remy was born and died two years later. He never took the opportunity to see Remy, let alone be a father to her. She knew her father was letting her down and had no interest to be a part of her life. Remy knows that her father choose not to be a part of her life, and that is why she says, “[Writing the song] was an ultimate out, [it only admitted] to the world that he’d only disappoint me…” (163).…
Roles Of The Family In Secret Daughter By Shilpi Somaya Gowda
Kris, advocates the he does not want to see her upset anymore due to the failed attempts for the past couple of years: “Look, there are all kinds of families,” he says. “Blood doesn 't make you family. “So you can either keep killing yourself to get pregnant with a very low probability of success, or we can either start the adoption process, and this time next year, you could be holding a baby in your arms.”(Gowda, pg ___) As a result, Somer takes Kris’s conclusion into account, to do the adoption process, but she is uncertain about how she will feel raising a child that is not her own, and wonders if she can be really called a mother. Kavita’s child Usha is now renamed as Asha and is adopted by the Merchant family to live a better life. Somer seeks help from her mom for guidance and comfort to resolve the negativism of not being able to nurture her own offspring as she hope she…
Symbolism In Soldier's Home
Despite her good intentions, this again shows that she does not understand the veterans' thoughts at all, simply because she was not exposed to the same horrors. All Krebs' parents’ want is for him to 'act like a normal person'. This again reinforces our assertion about the vast differences in the viewpoint of the 2 sects of people. Instead of actually sitting down and listening to her son's truth, Krebs mother tried to force him to adapt to her viewpoints. This can also be seen when she tries to manipulate him by saying "I'm your mother," she said.…
Importance Of Attaining Happiness In Margot And Charlie's Stories
Margot and Charlie both try really hard in achieving their happiness but fall short none the less. They both had chances to get what they wanted. But did not get it due to not going full force. Margot had a lack of want to try and achieve her happiness. For example, Margot, she did not try her best to fight off the children on page 3Margot got pushed around and pushed around till she missed out on the biggest day for the next seven years of her life.…
The Door Of Communication In Lees Family
With this culture influence of family value, the Lees fail to find effective ways to manage conflicts without the healthy communication among family members. In Lees’ family, the parenting style trends to authoritarian, so James has definite ideas how his children should behave. At the same time, children observe the unspoken norms and learn to keep their feeling inside. Especially, during the time Marilyn disappears, James has never explained to Lydia and Nathan about the reason of their mother’s disappearing. James prefers working rather than talking or playing with his children.…
The Feeling Of Love In Desiree's Baby, By Kate Chopin
His new lack of love for Desiree and their child pushes him to have his family leave. Desiree’s mother learns of this and sends for the baby and her to come be at home. Her mother wants them to be somewhere that they will be loved. Armand later learned the truth; that his own mother was of color and loved him so much that she kept it from him (Chopin). In an article by Michael J. Cummings (Desiree’s Baby: a Study Guide), his take on the misunderstanding is that Armand rejected Desiree because he believes that Desiree is of mixed backgrounds, which shows he never actually loved her to begin with.…
Summary Of The Character Of Rifles For Watie By Jeff Bussey
Jeff builds a love interest for Lucy but because his commitment to being a solider he eventually has to leave his love Lucy behind. The war changed his calm disposition by dragging him away from the girl he falls in love with. Throughout the novel Jeff's personality traits changes greatly because of the…
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NZ curators to explore Korean, Chinese art scenes | Creative New Zealand
NZ curators to explore Korean, Chinese art scenes
Three contemporary art curators are to embark on a tour of leading art galleries and museums in North Asia to build their professional networks and explore future collaborations.
The curators’ tour of South Korea and China will take place in October and is organised to coincide with the 8th Gwangju Biennal and the Busan Biennale in South Korea and the 8th Shanghai Biennial in China.
The successful candidates are Aaron Kreisler, a Dunedin Public Art Gallery curator, Stephen Cleland, a curator at the Te Tuhi Centre for the Arts in Manukau City, and Hanna Scott, an Auckland-based independent curator.
The tour is a professional opportunity facilitated by Creative New Zealand in association with the Asia New Zealand Foundation and is scheduled for 17 October to 5November this year.
Chief Executive Stephen Wainwright says an important aspect of Creative New Zealand’s work is fostering opportunities for New Zealand artists overseas.“This country's arts organisations have always enjoyed a great response from the Asian region and these curators will be great ambassadors forNew Zealand'screative dynamism.”
Asia NZ Culture Director Jennifer King says China and South Korea have a really exciting contemporary arts scenes and many NZ arts institutions lacked contacts in the region. “We hope this tour will be the start of some exciting new initiatives.”
Each of the three participants will receive a grant of up to NZ$7000 towards airfares, accommodation, per diemsand ground transport. They were selected from a highly competitive field of 12 applicants.
Aaron Kreisler has built an excellent reputation as an art academic, commentator and curator. He hopes the forthcoming trip will lead to Chinese or Korean artists being included in the Dunedin Public Art Gallery visiting artists’ programme.
Hanna Scott is an experienced curator of contemporary art and has a strong research interest in photography in contemporary art. She says her experience of working with artists from Asia has largely been with expats who are no longer residing in their countries of origin and she hopes the tour will enable her to establish new networks that lead to connections between Pacific and Chinese and Korean artists.
Stephen Cleland has worked with several prominent Asian artists living in New Zealand and he hopes the tour will help him establish working relations with arts institutions in South Korea and China as well as research Asian artists represented at the Shanghai, Busan and Gwangju Biennials.
News and blog : NZ curators to explore Korean, Chinese art scenes
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Apple unveils US$100M racial justice initiative
By Kyle Alspach on Jun 12, 2020 12:02PM
Apple chief executive Tim Cook on Thursday announced that the tech giant is committing US$100 million toward a new effort, the Racial Equity and Justice Initiative, amid widespread protests of mistreatment and systemic racism against members of the black community.
In a video posted on his Twitter account, Cook said that the "unfinished work of racial justice and equality call us all to account."
"We're at an important moment in our history, a time when progress, which has been far too slow, feels suddenly poised to move forward in a great leap," Cook said. "Each of us has a role to play in making sure we rise to the occasion. Things must change, and Apple's committed to being a force for that change."
Cook said that the Racial Equity and Justice Initiative will launch first in the US before expanding globally.
"The initiative will challenge the systemic barriers to opportunity and dignity that exists for communities of colour, and particularly for the black community, with special focus on issues of education, economic equality and criminal justice reform," he said.
The initiative will be led by Lisa Jackson, vice president for environment, policy and social initiatives at Apple, and will seek to bring a "holistic focus" to issues of racial justice and equality of opportunity.
"The effort will build on our longstanding work with historically black colleges and universities, community colleges, STEM education and underserved students and teachers, and forge new partnerships with organizations like the Equal Justice Initiative," Cook said.
The unfinished work of racial justice and equality call us all to account. Things must change, and Apple's committed to being a force for that change. Today, I'm proud to announce Apple’s Racial Equity and Justice Initiative, with a $100 million commitment. pic.twitter.com/AoYafq2xlp
— Tim Cook (@tim_cook) June 11, 2020
Additionally, in advance of Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference this month, Cook announced a new developer entrepreneurial camp for members of the black community, "with the goal of fostering and lifting up the brightest lights and best ideas in the developer family."
The announcements follow Cook's open letter last week condemning the "senseless killing" of George Floyd and saying that American society should not seek a "return to normalcy" if it means continuing racial injustice. Floyd died May 25 while in Minneapolis police custody, after a white police officer knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes.
The letter, titled “Speaking up on racism” and posted on Apple's website, said that Floyd's death has "rightly provoked" the "outrage" being expressed by protesters around the US.
“George Floyd’s death is shocking and tragic proof that we must aim far higher than a 'normal' future, and build one that lives up to the highest ideals of equality and justice,” Cook wrote.
apple hardware sales & marketing
By Kyle Alspach
Qualcomm eyes challenge to Apple, Intel with US$1.4 billion deal for chip startup
Apple targets car production by 2024 and eyes 'next level' battery technology
Apple’s next Mac chips aim to clobber Intel on performance: Report
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Arlin John Head
Avis de Décès Souvenirs
Gorsline Runciman Funeral Homes
13 mars 1944 – 15 novembre 2020
Arlin John Head was born on March 13, 1944, to Hershell and Dorothy (Benjamin) Head. He died November 15th, 2020 at his home near Dansville after a short illness.
Arlin graduated from Williamston High School in 1962. He served in the Army for 4 years. He was the owner and operator of Heads Up Stables for many years while working at GM. He worked for GM for more than 30 years, and was currently employed by NAPA Auto Parts in Williamston. He was a member of the Native American Church of the Morning Star.
Arlin loved animals, especially horses and dogs, and was known for his great sense of humor. He had a strong admiration for the Native American culture, and a deep appreciation of veterans. He enjoyed hunting deer and turkey.
He is survived by his brother Marvin (Jean) Head, nieces Marianne (David) Schramm and Kristi (Greg) Kidd, also great-nephews and a great-niece, Nathan and Kenneth Kidd, and James and Laura Schramm, and cousin Melissa Fishbeck, and many other cousins.
He is also survived by his longtime companion, Sharon Gibson, her son Garrett (Candace) and his children Aeris and Odesza.
Arlin was an organ donor. A memorial service is planned at a later date.
A memorial donation in Arlin's name can be made to: Native American Church 1117 28th St. Manistee, MI 49660 -or- Capital Area Humane Society 7095 West Grand River Avenue Lansing, MI 48906
In Memory of Arlin John Head
https://www.dignitymemorial.com/fr-ca/obituaries/williamston-mi/arlin-head-9910256
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Direction Map Travel Time LatLong Flight D Flight T HowFar Route TripCost
Trip Cost
2688MiGo 24 H 3 M Go
Seattle to Minneapolis / St Paul Airport (MSP) Terminal 1 Route
Distance Calculator Direction Finder Show Bigger Map Travel Planner Travel Time Calculator Flight Distance Calculator Flight Time Calculator How far is A from B Route Planner Trip Cost Calculator Latitude Longitude Finder
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1670 Mi - Distance from Seattle to Minneapolis / St Paul Airport (MSP) Terminal 1
Total Driving Distance Travelled is 1670 Mi
1670 MiKm
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30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143 144 145 146 147 148 149 150 151 152 153 154 155 156 157 158 159 160 161 162 163 164 165 166 167 168 169 170 171 172 173 174 175 176 177 178 179 180 181 182 183 184 185 186 187 188 189 190 191 192 193 194 195 196 197 198 199 200 201 202 203 204 205 206 207 208 209 210 211 212 213 214 215 216 217 218 219 220 221 222 223 224 225 226 227 228 229 230 231 232 233 234 235 236 237 238 239 240 241 242 243 244 245 246 247 248 249 250 251 252 253 254 255 256 257 258 259 260 261 262 263 264 265 266 267 268 269 270 kg lbs
5% Decline 4% Decline 3% Decline 3% Decline 1% Decline Level 1% Incline 2% Incline 3% Incline 4% Incline 5% Incline 6% Incline 7% Incline 8% Incline 9% Incline 10% Incline 11% Incline 12% Incline 13% Incline 14% Incline 15% Incline
160.581 kcal
VS Trees
(9350Trees)
(3492 Trees)
Day 1 : Seattle » Minneapolis / St Paul Airport (MSP) Terminal 1
1670 Mi Km (24 hrs 3 mins) 3 hrs 17 mins
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Ruth Eastham
Born and brought up in northwest England, Ruth studied first at York and then Cambridge University. She has worked in New Zealand, Australia, the UK and Italy, teaching English and creative writing to children and adults of all ages. She lives in a cliff top village near Trieste, with her two daughters.
Ruth’s debut novel, The Memory Cage, received wide critical acclaim. It was shortlisted for the Waterstones Award and nominated for the Carnegie Medal, the UKLA Book Awards and at least seven regional prizes.
Her second book, The Messenger Bird, is a gripping tale of modern day treachery set in Bletchley Park. More recently, she has published Arrowhead, a thrilling story set in Norway, and The Jaguar Trials, a South American adventure.
Agent: Caroline Walsh
Film Agent: Georgina Ruffhead
Website: www.rutheastham.com
The Warrior in the Mist
‘Their bodies flickered strangely transparent, blueish, as if they were made of flames. With a jolt, he realised that they were fading. Time was running […]
The Memory Cage
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Victoria Glendinning is a biographer and novelist. She also writes reviews and articles, and does broadcasts and talks on all kinds of subjects.
Her biographies include A Suppressed Cry: Life and Death of a Quaker Daughter; Elizabeth Bowen: Portait of a Writer; Vita: The Life of V. Sackville-West (winner of the Whitbread Prize for Biography); Edith Sitwell: A Unicorn Among Lions (winner of the Duff Cooper Prize and the James Tait Black Prize); Rebecca West; Anthony Trollope (another Whitbread Prize for Biography), Jonathan Swift and Leonard Woolf. Her most recent biography is a life of Sir Stamford Raffles, the founder of Singapore, published by Profile. Her novels include The Grown-Ups, Electricity and Flight.
Victoria’s latest novel, The Butcher’s Daughter, was published in 2018, and she is currently working on a non-fiction book about the John Lewis partnership, to be published by HarperCollins.
Victoria is a Vice-President of English PEN, a Vice-President of the Royal Society of Literature, and a Trustee of the Man Booker Foundation, and was awarded a CBE in 1998. She lives with her husband Kevin O’Sullivan in Dorset. Her enthusiasms include travel, walking and gardening, and spending time with her four sons and nine grandchildren.
Agent: Andrew Gordon
Film Agent: Nicky Lund
The Butcher’s Daughter
‘A brave girl, a powerful tale, a world on the brink of change – and how the past leaps into life!’ Fay Weldon My name is […]
Raffles and the Golden Opportunity
Leonard Woolf
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The Lion Hunter and the Lady
By Louis L’Amour
Read by Tom Weiner
Louis L’Amour Blackstone Western
No one describes the adventures of the lone cowboy better than Louis L’Amour, who portrays the human side of the Old West before the days of law and order. Here is one of Louis L’Amour’s short stories, with text restored according to the state of its initial publication. In “The Lion Hunter and the Lady,” the lion hunter is called Cat Morgan because of his reputation for being able to bag mountain lions alive to sell them to circuses and zoos. As the story opens, Cat is starring down one of the biggest mountain lions he has ever seen. Assisting him is old Long John Williams, a man who is a wizard with a rope, once Cat can lure the prey down onto the ground from a tree. They are interrupted in this work by a lynch posse. Karl Dorman, who is leading the posse, accuses Cat and Long John of having run off his horse herd. It isn’t a question of taking them in to the sheriff. Dorman intends to hang them right there.
No one describes the adventures of the lone cowboy better than Louis L’Amour, who portrays the human side of the Old West before the days of law and order. Here is one of Louis L’Amour’s short stories, with text restored according to the state of its initial publication.
In “The Lion Hunter and the Lady,” the lion hunter is called Cat Morgan because of his reputation for being able to bag mountain lions alive to sell them to circuses and zoos. As the story opens, Cat is starring down one of the biggest mountain lions he has ever seen. Assisting him is old Long John Williams, a man who is a wizard with a rope, once Cat can lure the prey down onto the ground from a tree. They are interrupted in this work by a lynch posse. Karl Dorman, who is leading the posse, accuses Cat and Long John of having run off his horse herd. It isn’t a question of taking them in to the sheriff. Dorman intends to hang them right there.
Author Bio: Louis L’Amour
Louis L’Amour (1908–1988) was an American author whose Western stories are loved the world over. Born in Jamestown, North Dakota, he was the most decorated author in the history of American letters. In 1982 he was the first American author ever to be awarded a Special National Gold Medal by the United States Congress for lifetime literary achievement, and in 1984 President Reagan awarded him the Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor in the nation. He was also a recipient of the Theodore Roosevelt Rough Rider Award.
Format: Digital Download Format: Digital Rental
Available Formats : Digital Download, Digital Rental
Category: Fiction/Westerns
Publisher: Blackstone Western Publisher: Blackstone Western
Tracks: 1 Tracks: 1
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Congress Prepares to Punt Controversies
Farm Bureau Gets Behind House Republican Effort to Make Several Tax Cuts Permanent
Support for a House Republican-backed bill, which would make several changes included in last year's tax reform package permanent is being voiced by the American Farm Bureau Federation.
The Protecting Family and Small Business Tax Cuts Act of 2018 (HR 6760) would make several aspects of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act permanent. While the 2017 legislation cut taxes for all businesses, only certain tax cuts for incorporated businesses operated as C corporations were permanent.
Most farms and ranches file their taxes as sole-proprietors, partnerships or S corporations, thus could see their taxes revert to higher levels in the future if the relevant tax cuts were allowed to sunset as provided for under the 2017 package.
Many of the tax cuts included in the original package, which not only reduced taxes for businesses but also included changes for personal income tax filers, were given a sunset date in part to allow the legislation to be enacted using the reconciliation process rather than through regular order.
Among the changes now considered in the House, which Farm Bureau supports making permanent are:
Reduced pass-through tax rates and expanded brackets;
The Section 199A new 20% business income deduction;
Unlimited bonus depreciation (expensing);
The doubled estate tax exemption ($11 million person/$22 million couple), and
The increased alternative minimum tax threshold for individuals.
Gottlieb Rolls Out Five-Year Plan to Combat Antibiotic Resistance On The Farm
FDA’s Center for Veterinary Medicine (CVM) will stay busy over the next five years while doing its part in a new agency-wide strategy developed by FDA with the goal of combating antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in both veterinary and human medical settings.
In the next three years, for instance, CVM will be making key steps to ensure that all antibiotics on the farm are being used judiciously and in accordance to the seven core principles established by the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA).
Under a new, 21-page action plan, which was developed to reflect FDA’s broader antimicrobial resistance strategy and released on Friday (Sept. 14), CVM has committed to making efforts between 2019 and 2021 to bring the remaining 5% of medically important antimicrobials approved for use in animals (including certain injectable drugs) under veterinary oversight, and also to formulating a strategy to ensure such drugs have an appropriately targeted duration for use.
“FDA has determined that about 40% of approved medically important antimicrobial drugs used in the feed and water of food-producing animals include at least one indication that doesn’t have a defined duration of use,” said FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb on Friday. “That’s why the FDA is announcing today our plans to develop and implement a strategy to address this issue.”
Washington Insider: Congress Prepares to Punt Controversies
The Hill is reporting this week that Congress is preparing to postpone fights over funding President Trump’s border wall and reauthorizing the Violence Against Women Act until after the November midterm elections.
However, the report notes that says there are still “a host of federal programs slated to expire on Sept. 30, meaning lawmakers may need to pass additional stopgap measures” if they can’t find a way forward.
One of these is whether to overhaul food stamps in the farm bill and whether to include trucking provisions in a reauthorization of the Federal Aviation Administration. And, this outlook is complicated by the fact that there are just nine legislative days before the new fiscal year begins on Oct. 1. That’s putting the squeeze on both chambers and “lawmakers are starting to point fingers across the Capitol,” The Hill says.
“I’m not getting a lot of movement from the Senate side on work requirements,” House Agriculture Committee Chairman Mike Conaway, R-Texas, told The Hill, referring to the proposed changes to the food stamp program. “We need to break the logjam.”
Still, the House adjourned on Thursday for a weeklong recess and appropriators were able to announce a spending deal to fund the Defense, Labor, Health and Human Services and Education departments in time for the fiscal 2019 year – a significant feat given recent history, The Hill opined.
Lawmakers also sent a trio of other spending bills to the President’s desk before House members left town. But the spending agreement announced Thursday includes a continuing resolution to fund the rest of the government, including the Department of Homeland Security through Dec. 7.
President Trump has been demanding money for his promised southern wall, an issue that falls under the jurisdiction of DHS. But with Democrats fiercely opposed, GOP leaders didn’t want to risk a pre-election government shutdown, so they decided to push the fight until after the midterm elections.
The CR also temporarily reauthorizes the Violence Against Women Act through Dec. 7.
The landmark legislation, which expires Sept. 30, supports federal programs and grants designed to combat domestic violence, sexual assault and stalking. It was first signed into law in 1994 and has been reauthorized ever since.
But Republicans and Democrats have been at odds over which version to bring to the floor this year. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Texas, teamed up with Democratic leaders this summer to introduce an enhanced VAWA bill, which includes new provisions to expand housing protections, provide economic security assistance for victims and strengthen judicial and law enforcement tools.
Some House Republicans, however, would prefer to pass an unaltered, six-month extension of VAWA so that they would have more time to write their own version of the bill. “A six-month extension provides Congress the opportunity to hold hearings and make improvements to VAWA without threatening critical existing programs,” Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pa., said in a statement. “I urge House Leadership to bring up this extension for a vote immediately.”
Democratic and Republican negotiators are also still working to hammer out differences between the House and Senate versions of the farm bill, which authorizes a number of key food and agriculture programs that are set to expire at the end of the month.
The House-passed version of the legislation would impose tougher work requirements on participants in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). But conferees have struggled to reach a compromise, with Democrats staunchly opposed to the food stamp changes.
Conaway swatted down the idea that a short-term farm bill may be necessary, but he also said that he wouldn’t vote for the farm bill if it doesn’t overhaul SNAP. Senate Ag Committee Ranking Member Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., said she was committed to reaching a bipartisan agreement before the end-of-the-month deadline.
“The Senate passed a bipartisan farm bill that got 86 votes – the most ever,” she tweeted after Trump singled her out. “I’m not letting politics distract me from working across the aisle to finalize a good bill that will deliver certainty for farmers and families in Michigan and across the country.”
One issue that has stalled negotiations is the desire by some senators to include provisions providing uniformity across the country when it comes to meal and rest breaks for truck drivers.
Democrats, who in the past have fought to keep similar provisions out of other bills, worry that it will deny states the ability to require paid meal and rest breaks for truckers.
“The clock is ticking... It's getting tough," Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Ore., ranking member on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, told Politico this past week. “On the other hand, maybe we could have a really short extension because [the Senate is] going to be in all October… And we get it done in November.”
So, we will see. It is almost unimaginable that during this ultra-polarized, pre-election moment many of the necessary compromises can be hammered out – especially as the administration is poised to impose still more tariffs in the ongoing trade war, a key concern for producers that certainly bears watching as the trade debate intensifies and Congress defers, Washington Insider believes.
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EverFi expands compliance education resources
Campus Prevention Network will pledge committment to student wellness
EverFi, an education technology company focused on critical skills and prevention education for K-12, higher education and adult learners, has acquired compliance education provider LawRoom.
With the addition of LawRoom, EverFi grows its customer base to 3,300 partners, including 2,000 corporations, foundations, and nonprofits and over 1,300 higher education institutions.
The acquisition includes LawRoom subsidiary CampusClarity. The combination of EverFi’s efficacy in alcohol abuse and sexual violence prevention along with CampusClarity’s flexible platform and compliance expertise will help campuses more effectively deliver and scale prevention education for students, faculty, and staff.
Together, EverFi and CampusClarity will also form the Campus Prevention Network, a nationwide coalition of over 1,300 higher education institutions that are committed to student wellness and safety. Through the Campus Prevention Network, colleges and universities will have access to award-winning online prevention training, regulatory compliance expertise, dynamic tracking and reporting, and groundbreaking prevention research based on the largest global dataset of attitudes and behaviors related to sexual assault and substance abuse.
“Whether for a student on a college campus or an employee in a corporation, innovative and proven digital education can help shape how we engage learners to prevent sexual violence and harassment,” said EverFi CEO Tom Davidson. “We now have an opportunity to welcome every campus and employer into our magnified network and truly tackle these issues at scale.”
The EverFi Campus Prevention Network will reach more than 5 million higher education students and staff across the U.S. annually, including public and private colleges and universities, community colleges, and state university systems. EverFi partners now include Boston College, Carnegie Mellon, Clemson University, Georgetown University, Harvard, MIT, the Montana University System, Princeton University, Oklahoma State University, Oregon State University, University of Michigan, Stanford University, Technical College System of Georgia, Tennessee Board of Regents System, University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill, the University of Texas System, University of Virginia, Villanova University, and Virginia Polytechnic Institute.
Among LawRoom’s corporate compliance education customers are Acxiom, Barracuda Networks, Cathay Pacific, Kimpton Hotels, Informatica, the Los Angeles Lakers, the Miami Heat, Patagonia, Samsung, SurveyMonkey, UFC Gym, and TIBCO. The combined company will not only ensure proven compliance training for enterprises, but also provide the additional cutting-edge skills that the next-generation employee needs to be successful across the globe.
Vista Point Advisors, a San Francisco based boutique investment bank, acted as the exclusive financial advisor to LawRoom.
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CALHOUN, John Caldwell, was born in Abbeville district, S. C., March 18, 1782, and died in Washington city, March 31, 1850. He was graduated at Yale in 1804, was admitted to the bar in 1807, and served as representative in congress 1811-17 (see
BANK CONTROVERSIES, III.), when he became secretary of war. He was vice-president from 1825 until 1831, when he resigned (see
NULLIFICATION) to become senator from South Carolina. He was secretary of state 1843-5 (see
ANNEXATIONS, III.), when he again became senator, dying in office. He was the particularist of particularists, the leader of that element of the democratic party which made no allowance for the country’s development or growing necessities, but insisted on construing the constitution according to the needs of 1777-89. He held that the states were sovereign, (see
STATE SOVEREIGNTY); that the constitution was merely a compact or treaty between separate, sovereign nations, to be construed entirely by the rules of international law; that such a treaty, when broken by one state, was no longer binding upon any; and that, consequently, the declaration of a state that the constitution had been violated, absolved the people of that state from any further allegiance or obedience to the United States until the wrong had been made good. (See
ALLEGIANCE, SECESSION.) It must be remembered that, to Calhoun’s mind, this theory did not militate against the existence of the Union; it only operated as a check upon the tyranny of a national majority. He was a master of logic; let his premises, that the states were originally sovereign, and that they separately, not unitedly, revolted from Great Britain (see
DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE), be granted, and it would be difficult to make any head against his arguments. He was always in advance of the other politicians of his section, and the south only came up, in 1860, abreast with the doctrine which he had taught in 1850. He died in the unhappy belief that the south had been entrapped, under the supposition that she was merely forming an alliance with a more powerful neighbor, into a corporate union in which she was to be helpless under her neighbor’s superiority in number of voters and other advantages. (See
DEMOCRATIC PARTY, III., IV.; BANK CONTROVERSIES, III.; NULLIFICATION; ANNEXATIONS, III.; COMPROMISES, V.; SLAVERY; STATE SOVEREIGNTY; TERRITORIES; SECESSION; ADMINISTRATIONS, VIII., IX., XIV.—See Jenkins’
Life of Calhoun; Parton’s
Famous Americans; Crallé’s
Works of Calhoun; A. H. Stephens’
War Between the States; Appleton’s
American Cyclopœdia, art. “Calhoun”; Thomas’
Carolina Tribute to Calhoun; 24
National Quarterly Review.
ALEXANDER JOHNSTON.
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Cassettes Cassette Andy Bassford
Andy Bassford
Harder They Strum
Cassette (Item 932913) Jump Up, — Condition: New Copy
Jump Up (label)
Reggae (CD, LP)
Reggae guitarist Andy Bassford's loving re-do/homage of the uberclassic The Harder They Come by Jimmy Cliff! Includes "You Can Get It If You Really Want", "Stop That Train", "Rivers Of Babylon", "Sweet And Dandy", "The Harder They Come", "Johnny Too Bad", "007 Shanty Town", "Pressure Drop", "Sitting In Limbo" and more. © 1996-2021, Dusty Groove, Inc.
(2019 Cassette Store Day Release.)
We realize that there are many different interpretations of the standard grades used for pre-owned vinyl record albums & CD, so we thought we'd offer you the ones that we are working with, so you have an idea what we mean when we give the grade for a non-new item on our pages.
Used Vinyl Grades
Below are stated conditions for a used vinyl records at Dusty Groove. Grading for the cover should be assumed to be near (within a "+" or "-") the grading for the vinyl. If there is significant divergence from the condition of the vinyl, or specific flaws, these will be noted in the comments section of the item. However, please be aware that since the emphasis of this site is towards the music listener, our main concern is with the vinyl of any used item we sell. Additionally, all of our records are graded visually; considering the volume of used vinyl we handle, it is impossible for us to listen to each record. If we spot any significant flaws, we make every attempt to listen through them and note how they play.
The following grading conditions apply to the vinyl component of an album or single:
Dusty Groove does not use the grades of Near Mint (or Mint, for that matter) because in our experience, we find that no records ever qualify for such a high grade. Even sealed records tend to have one or two slight faults, enough to usually qualify them for a grade of NM- or lower. We've often found that records which are clearly unplayed will have a slight amount of surface noise, especially in quieter recordings.
Near Mint - (minus)
Black vinyl that may show a slight amount of dust or dirt.
Should still be very shiny under a light, even with slight amount of dust on surface.
One or two small marks that would make an otherwise near perfect record slightly less so. These marks cannot be too deep, and should only be surface marks that won't affect play, but might detract from the looks.
May have some flaws and discoloration in the vinyl, but only those that would be intrinsic to the pressing. These should disappear when the record is tilted under the light, and will only show up when looking straight at the record. (Buddah and ABC pressings from the 70's are a good example of this.)
May have some slight marks from aging of the paper sleeve on the vinyl.
Possible minor surface noise when played.
Very Good + (plus)
Vinyl should be very clean, but can have less luster than near mint.
Should still shine under a light, but one or two marks may show up when tilted.
Can have a few small marks that may show up easily, but which do not affect play at all. Most marks of this quality will disappear when the record is tilted, and will not be felt with the back of a fingernail.
This is the kind of record that will play "near mint", but which will have some signs of use (although not major ones).
May have slight surface noise when played.
Vinyl can have some dirt, but nothing major.
May not shine under light, but should still be pretty clean, and not too dirty.
May have a number of marks (5 to 10 at most), and obvious signs of play, but never a big cluster of them, or any major mark that would be very deep. Most marks should still not click under a fingernail.
May not look near perfect, but should play fairly well, with slight surface noise, and the occasional click in part of a song, but never throughout a whole song or more.
This is clearly a copy that was played by someone a number of times, but which could also be a good "play copy" for someone new.
Very Good - (minus)
Vinyl may be dirty, and can lack a fair amount of luster.
Vinyl can have a number of marks, either in clusters or smaller amounts, but deeper.
This is the kind of record that you'd buy to play, but not because it looked that great. Still, the flaws should be mostly cosmetic, with nothing too deep that would ruin the overall record.
Examples include a record that has been kept for a while in a cover without the paper sleeve, or heavily played by a previous owner and has some marks across the surface. The record should play okay, though probably with surface noise.
Good + (plus)
Vinyl may be dirty, or have one outstanding flaw, such as a light residue, which could be difficult to clean.
May have marks on all parts, too many to qualify as Very Good-, or several deeper marks, but the record should still be ok for play without skips.
In general, this is a record that was played a fair amount, and handled without care. A typical example may be a record which has been heavily played by a DJ, and carries marks from slip cueing. Depending on the quality of the vinyl, may play with surface noise throughout.
A record that you'd buy to play, cheap, but which you wouldn't buy for collecting.
Will have marks across all parts of the playing surface, and will most likely play with surface noise throughout. May have some other significant flaws, such as residue, or a track that skips.
In most cases, a poor quality copy of a very difficult to find record.
This is a grade we rarely use, as we try not to sell records in very bad condition, though in some rare cases we will list a record in such bad shape that it does not conform to the standards above. A "Fair" record will have enough marks or significant flaws that it does not even qualify as "Good", but is a copy you might consider for playing, if you're willing to put up with noise and/or flaws. An example might be a recording with surface noise so heavy that it is equal to the volume of the music. For records listed as "Fair", we will describe the extent of the condition in the comments.
Like "Fair", we rarely list records in this condition, as they represent the extreme low end of spectrum. These records typically have multiple serious problems, and we offer them as "relics" or "objects" only — for those who want to at least have a copy of a record, even if it is not really worthy of play, perhaps for the cover alone. For these records, we will describe the extent of the condition in the comments.
Used CD Grade
We have only one grade for non-new CDs at Dusty Groove — "Used CD". This grade is somewhat all-encompassing, but we choose it because we try to offer Used CDs in the best shape possible.
When you purchase a Used CD you can expect the disc to be free of all but the lightest of surface marks, the case to be clean (we often change the cases ourselves), and the booklet to be in good shape. Used CDs may show some signs of use but if there are significant details or defects we will list them underneath the item — just like we do with LPs — so look there for notes on cutout marks, stickers, promo stamps or other details.
All of our Used CDs are guaranteed to play without skipping or flaws. If you purchase a Used CD from Dusty Groove, you have 1 week to play it to determine that it plays correctly — and if it does not, then you may return it for a full refund.
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Prime Minister opened a representative office of Enterprise Estonia in New York
On 28 October, Prime Minister Jüri Ratas and a member of the board of Enterprise Estonia Sigrid Harjo opened a representative office in New York to promote exports; it is going to be headed by James S. York, who is closely associated with Estonia. New York City's Commissioner for International Affairs Penny Abeywardena gave a welcoming speech during the opening event, the Estonian business delegation and local business contacts participated in the event as well.
According to Prime Minister Jüri Ratas, exports are the backbone of the Estonian economy. “The foreign representative offices of Enterprise Estonia are constantly doing a great deal of excellent work to increase Estonian exports. The goal of the New York office is to increase the export opportunities of Estonian entrepreneurs on the East Coast of the United States and, of course, to strengthen economic ties with the United States. Providing new opportunities for Estonian entrepreneurs is an important priority for the government.”
“I have already mediated many contacts and brought the right people together with Estonian companies, and I am aware that many transactions are almost completed. My contacts are public and the door is open,” encouraged York all companies who are interested in the US market to contact him.
The export advisers of Enterprise Estonia operate in a total of 14 markets from New York to Tokyo. Last year, over 750 companies were serviced. According to the Tax and Customs Board, export revenue of these companies increased by 61 million euros compared to 2017. This means that while Estonian export to these countries increased by 2%, the companies serviced by export advisers grew by 35%.
The representative office of Enterprise Estonia is located at the Consulate General of Estonia in New York: 305 East 47th St., Suite 6B, New York, NY 10017, USA.
Gallery of the opening event: https://flic.kr/s/aHsmJ1DPac
Norway is looking for entrepreneurs who share Scandinavian values
Nine Estonian companies to jointly participate in the world fair Medica 2019
Enterprise Estonia (EAS):
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EST. 1903 - Presenting global influential leaders from business, labour, education & government through events
Nation Builder Award
Thornbrough, Albert A.
Watch Live Webcast
The speeches are free of charge but please note that the Empire Club of Canada retains copyright. Neither the speeches themselves nor any part of their content may be used for any purpose other than personal interest or research without the explicit permission of the Empire Club of Canada.
The Inner Six and The Outer Seven trading blocs of Western Europe. The necessity for Canadian firms to deal internationally. The great attention currently on trading, particularly by the Western nations of Europe, members of the Commonwealth, and by the United States as part of the continuation of post-war adjustment of the nations of the world. New patterns and forces emerging. Factors which enter into world trading, each with some discussion: The economic recovery of Western Europe; Increasing attention by Russia and its satellites toward achieving political aims by economic means; The population explosion; The surging Nationalism of Africa; Decline in the ability of the United States to maintain adverse balance of payments. A discussion, under the following headings, of trading systems or areas in which Canada is involved: That of North America; That of the Commonwealth; That of the "Outer Seven" and the "Inner Six." Political and economic threats of the communist nations. Free trading in the free world required to promote the further prosperity of the industrial nations of the free world. Generating the ability to invest in the underdeveloped countries. The institutions of the free world on test with half of the world's people. Some comments from the viewpoint of Massey-Ferguson; as a large employer in North America, in "The Outer Seven," in "The Six" and in the Commonwealth.
The Empire Club © 2020 | All Rights Reserved
Call Us: (416) 364-2878 | E-Mail: info@empireclub.org
Empire Club - Level H | 100 Front Street West, Toronto, M5J 1E3
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Adak, Alaska...it never left me
Taken from Fred's Blog (Robert Fear) Authors Showcase:
When my friends talk about their hometown, the place where they grew up, I can’t relate. As the only child of a career military man, a “Navy brat,” I always knew our home was temporary – that within a year and a half my father would receive orders that would send him either to another military base or out to sea. I had already lived in California, Texas, North Carolina, Virginia, and Tennessee when, in 1956, my mother and I boarded an iron-gray military ship that carried us through the choppy Bering Sea to Kodiak, Alaska, where we then boarded a military plane that bore us to our new home in Adak, Alaska.
I recently Googled a few articles about Adak and was amazed at how much I remembered about the terrain there, even though I was only nine years old at the time. Adak still is an ironic combination of rare beauty and soul-sucking ugliness, like I have never seen. It is a dead volcano, part of a necklace of islands in the Bering Sea called The Aleutians, aligned with the southernmost tip of Alaska. But its terrain is nothing like what we think of when we picture Alaska. There are no majestic glaciers or pristine forests. There are no beautiful wildflower meadows in the summer, because there is no summer. The vegetation in Adak consists of a spongy prairie grass called Tundra. There are no trees, shrubs or flowers, except for the rare wildflower, because of the harshness of the weather conditions there and the fact that the ground underfoot is rock, not fertile soil.
Adak was not a good playground for a child because the weather was always cloudy and usually cold, rainy and windy. The terrible straightline wind there even had a name – the willowaw. In the winter there was snow, but it never lasted long, because the wind and the rain quickly swept it away. My few playmates and I rarely got to play outdoors because of the inclement weather. I remember we did have two days when the clouds parted during our time there, and our elated babysitter took her charges to the rocky shoreline to enjoy the sun. Those were the days before sunscreen, and we all came home with serious sunburns because we were so unaccustomed to the sun’s rays touching our paper-white skin.
Fresh food was at a premium there, so we drank powdered milk, and our fruits and vegetables came from a can. Paradoxically, though, Adak was a huntsman’s and fisherman’s dream. With wild caribou and ptarmigan and the biggest crab and shrimp I’ve ever seen, there was no end to protein-rich sustenance available. I’ll never forget the day my dad and I watched the wild salmon swim upstream to spawn, flipping in and out of the waterfalls in scores. When we climbed to the top of the same rocky hill those fish had climbed, I was shocked to see a huge, crystal-clear pool, with dozens of dead and dying salmon floating aimlessly. The bottom of the shallow pond reflected a rainbow of colors – millions of salmon eggs already deposited at the bottom. It was a beautiful, horrible, awe-inspiring picture. I recall the childish sorrow I felt for the salmon still living, as the pond was surrounded by fishermen, eager to catch an exhausted, battered salmon to bring home for dinner. All that hard work, only to be snared and gutted, sometimes still full of eggs, by a heartless stranger.
Most of the island was inhabited by Navy personnel; there were very few native Aleut children in my school. The island had been established as a U. S. Naval air station after World War II, but during the war it had been used as a base of operations by the Army, because the nearby islands of Attu and Kiska were occupied by Japan. I remember hanging my legs over a manmade cliff, gazing at the deserted WWII hangars and airstrips at the bottom of a huge excavation, when my friends and I took advantage of the rare mild days that we could play on our sleds in the tundra. In fact, our first house, before we were moved to a base duplex, was a quanset hut, a residual of the war. My dad made extra money in his spare time operating machinery that tore up the old airstrips and facilities left from the war. There were several civilians who lived there for that same purpose, drawn to the island by the excellent wages.
Ennui was a way of life in Adak. There was no television reception when I was there, and very poor-quality radio, so I spent most of my free time playing in my room, drawing, or reading. The only other entertainment when I was there was a small library, an indoor swimming pool, a movie theater with a sparse collection of movies, a cantina, officers and enlisted mens clubs where the booze ran fast and free, and house parties that usually turned into free-for-alls. It was during our dismal stint in Adak that I realized my father was a raging, verbally abusive alcoholic. (We learned decades later he had Bipolar Disorder.)
But it wasn’t the boredom that prompted civilians to leave the island in droves, and the Navy personnel to nervously count the days till they got their transfer orders. It was an act of nature. On the night of March 9, 1957, an 8.6 magnitude earthquake literally rocked our world. Even after 60 years, I remember every detail of that dreadful event with absolute clarity.
What woke me was the sound – like I was standing next to train tracks, with the train rushing by at top speed. My bed was bouncing around like a feather tossed at sea. I was screaming, but the quake’s noise was so deafening, I couldn’t hear myself. I could see my parents trying to come for me in the short hall between our bedrooms, but they were tossed from wall to wall as if they were on the undulating floor of a carnival funhouse. My father finally grabbed me, and we somehow all three made it the short distance to our living room, where a big picture window revealed the bizarre scene outside. The ground was rolling, like water washing in to shore. My first childish thought, looking at the glowing light emanating from the cracks that were opening, was that a volcano had erupted, but of course my parents knew it was a massive earthquake. My dad was in a frenzy, pacing back and forth, as best he could without falling, shouting and watching the world fall apart outside. I was certain we were going to die, but when my mother pulled me into her arms and sat down calmly on our sofa, holding me tightly in her lap, a sense of peace that I can’t describe in words bathed me in its light, and my sobs and racing heart grew quiet while we waited for the quake to end.
The end for us, though, was the just the beginning for others. The earthquake radiated away from us and made its way through the Pacific Ocean, causing damage all the way to South America. Experts said the main earthquake only lasted about five minutes, but that five minutes took years off all our lives. When our duplex neighbors knocked on our door, they had the same shell-shocked expressions we must have reflected back to them. Yet, besides some broken lamps and figurines, our homes were intact. And the story was the same throughout the base. Because of the earthquake-proof construction of the government buildings on the island, most of them remained intact. The only injury had been a sailor who was slightly injured when a small tsunami crashed into the building where he stood watch.
The following morning, the brave ventured out to see the damage to the terrain. Most of the ground looked like the bottom of a dried-up lake in the desert – tiny little spiderweb cracks everywhere. And many of the roads were impassable, with cracks in some of them big enough for a person to fall in. My dad took pictures, one of them of a buddy who climbed into one of those cracks to illustrate its magnitude. Idiot! A tiny island off the rocky beach where we sometimes walked had totally disappeared. And the aftershocks continued, some of them quite strong, until my dad got his orders, and we were sent, relieved but psychologically damaged, back to terra firma.
Knowing what I know now about mental illness, it’s clear to me that when I left Adak, Alaska, it did not leave me. The combination of the horrific earthquake, desolate terrain and harsh climate, and my father’s runaway alcoholism and erratic behavior there left an imprint on me that has lasted a lifetime of battling depression, panic attacks, and night terrors.
Researching the symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder in children, unquestionably I suffered from PTSD after we returned stateside. I was plagued for many years with unreasonable fears and ever-present anxiety, waking up frequently with a start, thinking my bed was shaking and convinced the world was coming to an end.
And though I have outgrown most of my unreasonable fears, anxiety has been my constant companion throughout my life – sometimes more obvious, sometimes less. Panic attacks and sleep terrors have revisited in cycles, with long lapses between recurring episodes when I exhibit no obvious symptoms. Would I be a different person if I had not lived in Adak, Alaska for that short span of my childhood? It’s impossible to say. No doubt I have a genetic predisposition for mental illness, but I’ll always blame Adak, Alaska for flipping the switch on my neurosis.
When we lived in Adak, the population of the island was fairly large, and at one point reached around 6,000, even sporting a McDonalds and a small college serving the island’s inhabitants. But after the base closed down in the late nineties, the population dwindled rapidly, and as of 2015 had shrunk to only 332 hearty souls. { https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adak,_Alaska} Looking at current pictures, I was dismayed at the rotting blanket of abandoned hulls of buildings left behind by the Navy. They paint a picture of an even more ghostlike desolation that makes Adak a place where nobody wants to be, most of all, me.
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Amare on Melo: Knicks have '1, 1A punch'
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Carmelo Anthony gives '1, 1A punch'
GREENBURGH, N.Y. -- Amare Stoudemire says the Knicks will be "hard to guard" with Carmelo Anthony joining him in New York.
The Knicks agreed to a trade with the Denver Nuggets for Anthony on Monday night. The deal, which also includes the Minnesota Timberwolves, became official late Tuesday following the completion of a conference call with the NBA.
Anthony signed a three-year, $65 million contract extension before the deal was completed.
Stoudemire has led the Knicks to a 28-26 record this season, but said they will be even more dangerous with Anthony bringing his 25.2 points per game to join his 26.1 average.
"Every team needs a 1, 1A punch," Stoudemire said. "And so with the ways that we both can score ... we're very versatile, so it's hard to guard us."
Stoudemire said he had "no doubt" the All-Star forwards and longtime friends could play together, and said Anthony would handle the move to New York as well as he has.
"It's what he wants. It's what I wanted, to come to New York and play on the big stage," Stoudemire said. "He has the same type of swag. This is what he wants and he can handle it. We're going to do it together."
After the deal was made official, Anthony tweeted: "Wow, just had the craziest 12 hours of my career. So much to say, but really want to thank all my fans and friends for their support!"
The Knicks haven't made the playoffs since 2004, but are in sixth place in their first season since acquiring Stoudemire from Phoenix last summer. He thinks the blockbuster deal could make them better equipped to face teams such as Boston or Miami, which already have multiple All-Stars, in the postseason.
"It's not easy and it's not going to get any easier for us now because the target is on our back," Stoudemire said. "Teams are going to be eager to play against us."
Adding Anthony shows that the Knicks are taking the right steps, Stoudemire said.
"The Knicks are back," he said.
Miami's LeBron James echoed that statement.
"I think it is great for the NBA, the Knicks are back," James said of the trade. "The other teams are trying to compete [with the Heat] and I think that is great."
As a part of the deal, the Knicks sent Wilson Chandler, Raymond Felton, Danilo Gallinari, Timofey Mozgov, a future first-round draft selection and two future second-round draft selections (originally acquired from Golden State), cash and future draft considerations. Along with Anthony, New York got Chauncey Billups, Shelden Williams, Anthony Carter and Renaldo Balkman from Denver.
The Minnesota Timberwolves got involved to help New York clear salary-cap space to accommodate its new players. The Knicks shipped Anthony Randolph, the expiring contract of Eddy Curry and cash considerations to the Wolves in exchange for Corey Brewer. Minnesota acquired a future second-round draft selection from Denver and Denver acquired Kosta Koufos from Minnesota.
The Nuggets were reluctant to take on Curry's $11.3 million salary this season for luxury-tax reasons.
The Knicks felt they had to make the move after failing last summer to land two superstars through free agency.
"We liked the way our team played this year and I looked at it and I thought we had one piece that was at the high level of the league. We always wanted two pieces at least," team president Donnie Walsh said.
The Nuggets had explored an Anthony trade since he refused to sign the three-year, $65 million contract extension they offered him last summer. They appeared on the verge of sending him to the Nets on multiple occasions. At one point in the past month, it was reported that the Lakers even kicked the tires on an Anthony trade. But the Knicks increased their offer enough to get him.
The Nets were the other leading suitor for Anthony, but it wasn't clear if Anthony would sign a deal with New Jersey. That put the Knicks back in the lead.
The Nuggets made out well, considering they could have lost Anthony for nothing in the summer. The Nets' offer, centered around rookie Derrick Favors and draft picks, would have meant a rebuilding situation. With the New York trade, the Nuggets get a solid point guard in Felton (17.1 points, 9.0 assists per game) to replace Billups, a young small forward in Chandler (16.4 ppg, 5.9 rpg) to play Anthony's position and add a 7-footer in Mozgov. Gallinari either adds 15.9 points and 4.8 rebounds per game or nets a draft pick if reports of another deal turn out to be true. Either way, the Nuggets will have acquired options in the draft while having the talent to remain relevant in the Western Conference playoff chase.
"I can't deny that when the trade went down last night, I was kind of more sad than happy," Nuggets coach George Karl said after his team's short-handed shootaround Tuesday. "I think most of that sadness was because of Chauncey -- and AC a little bit, too."
But the Knicks are thrilled to get the second star to go along with Stoudemire.
"Now we've got two guys in our stable," coach Mike D'Antoni said.
Denver kicked off the post-Melo era with a 120-107 win over Memphis on Tuesday night.
The Knicks hope Anthony can be in uniform Wednesday when they host the Milwaukee Bucks. Anthony will wear No. 7 for the Knicks since his usual No. 15 is retired by the Knicks.
D'Antoni has scheduled his team's shootaround for 4:30 p.m. ET on Wednesday and the team has scheduled a 5 p.m. news conference to introduce Anthony and the rest of the new acquisitions.
Information from ESPN.com's Marc Stein, ESPNNewYork.com's Mike Mazzeo and Ian Begley, and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Rising Temperature Raising Food Prices
August 9, 2012 reve
Over the last two months, the price of corn has been climbing. On July 19th, it exceeded $8 per bushel for the first time, taking the world into a new food price terrain.
With heat and drought still smothering the Corn Belt, we may well see more all-time highs in coming weeks as the extent of crop damage becomes clearer.
This is not the way it was supposed to be. This spring farmers planted a record 96 million acres of corn. An early spring got the crop off to a great start, leading the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to project the largest corn harvest in history.
On June 12th, the USDA projected the U.S. harvest would hit a record 376 million tons. But the drought conditions that had initially been confined to the country’s southwest began to spread and intensify. In its next monthly report on July 11th, the USDA reduced its projection to 329 million tons of corn, down by 12 percent or 47 million tons. This was a huge drop in only one month. Yet in the end the actual decline may be closer to 30 percent, or roughly 100 million tons—double the USDA estimated drop. (See data.)
Because the USDA is overestimating the harvest, it is underestimating the food price rise in the months ahead. Even as corn prices are setting all-time highs, so too are soybean prices, putting still more upward pressure on food prices.
There are several reasons for the large reduction in the harvest estimate. One is record high temperatures. Nationwide, the first half of this year was the hottest on record. Thousands of record daily temperature highs were set locally. In St. Louis, Missouri, which is in the southern part of the U.S. Corn Belt, in late June and early July there were 10 consecutive days with temperatures of 100–108 degrees.
Timing and distribution of rainfall also helped determine the corn crop’s destiny. The summer of 2012 was one of below normal rainfall in the Corn Belt, especially the central and eastern parts. The combination of high temperature and low rainfall led to the rapid spread of drought. During May and early June, the drought was concentrated in the southwestern United States. But the dryness in the Southwest kept expanding into the Midwest and the Upper Great Plains until, by the end of July, drought covered 63 percent of the country—the most extensive in half a century. (See map.)
When the thermometer rises above the norm, plants suffer. As a rule, as the temperature rises to 68 degrees Fahrenheit, photosynthesis increases. From 68 to 95 degrees it remains steady. Beyond this it declines fast. At 104 degrees, photosynthesis ceases entirely. At such elevated temperatures, plants go into thermal shock.
Intense heat also disrupts pollination. Corn is particularly vulnerable because of its complex pollination system. The tassel at the top of a corn plant releases pollen, which must fall on each strand of silk coming out of the ear of corn and travel to the kernel site, where fertilization occurs. If it is too hot, the silk will turn brown and dry out, leaving the pollen with no chance of reaching its destination.
This year’s drought has taken a crop that started out nearly as good as it gets to one where the USDA rates only 23 percent of the crop to be in “good” to “excellent” condition. The last time the crop deteriorated so badly was in 1988, when heat and drought combined to shrink the harvest by 39 percent.
What happens to the U.S. corn crop, which accounts for nearly 40 percent of the global harvest, concerns the entire world. Of the big three grains—corn, wheat, and rice—the corn harvest is now by far the largest, totaling near 900 million tons compared with less than 700 million tons for wheat and 460 million tons for rice. Wheat and rice are the world’s food staples, while corn is the feedgrain for livestock and poultry.
Although people do not eat much corn directly, a huge amount is consumed indirectly. Much of the food in the refrigerator—milk, cheese, hamburger, eggs, yogurt, and ice cream—is produced with corn. The rise in corn prices this summer will boost food prices as high-priced corn works its way through the beef, pork, poultry, and dairy production cycles.
One consequence of fast-climbing corn prices is that people will find themselves moving down the food chain. Many of the 3 billion people in the world who are currently moving up the food chain, a big chunk of them in China, may suddenly find the price of livestock and poultry products rising much faster than their incomes, forcing them to cut their meat consumption. In the months ahead, we are likely to see more people moving down the food chain than at any time in history.
When the price of one of the big three grains goes up, the prices of the other two typically follow. With wheat and rice prices now also rising, hunger will spread among the world’s poor, reducing many more people to one meal per day.
The current rise in corn prices comes at a time when grain prices are already elevated. Even before this summer, grain and soybean prices were double those of six years ago. So we are now going from high prices to even higher prices—and these will almost certainly translate into spreading food unrest.
This year’s record crop shortfall is part of an overall loss of momentum in the effort to expand food production fast enough to keep up with the record growth in demand of recent years. As a result, world carryover stocks of grain will likely fall from over 100 days of consumption 15 years ago to a precariously low 65 days of consumption for this year.
In the face of tightening world grain supplies, some exporting countries may well restrict exports, as Russia and Argentina have done in the past. This could create panic among importing countries, heightening the pressure to acquire even more land abroad on which to produce food for themselves. It is now every country for itself.
We are looking at a future of rising food prices driven by rising temperatures. Heat waves and droughts like that of 2012 in the United States are projected to become more frequent as the planet heats up. Atmospheric levels of carbon dioxide (CO2), a heat-trapping gas, have increased 20 percent since 1970 and are continuing to rise.
A report published by the U.S. National Academy of Sciences concluded that if atmospheric CO2 climbs from the current level of 391 parts per million (ppm) to above 450 ppm, the world will face irreversible rainfall reductions in several regions. The study likened the conditions that will develop to those of the U.S. Dust Bowl of the 1930s. Already the world’s drought-afflicted area has expanded from below 20 percent of total land area a half century ago to closer to 25 percent in recent years.
In generations past, when there was an extreme weather event such as a monsoon failure in India, a severe drought in Russia, or an intense heat wave in the U.S. Corn Belt, we knew that things would shortly return to normal. But today there is no “normal” to return to. The earth’s climate is now in a constant state of flux.
With temperatures rising and with droughts expanding and intensifying, it is becoming ever more difficult to ensure future food security. Climate change is now reducing crop prospects. Restoring an acceptable balance between food supply and demand now goes beyond agriculture. Future food security may depend more on new energy and population policies than on any agricultural policy we can conceive.
By Lester R. Brown, President of Earth Policy Institute and author of Full Planet, Empty Plates: The New Geopolitics of Food Scarcity, due to be published in October 2012.
foodLester R. Brown
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Jayden Stockley Joins City On Loan
Oliver Roderick
Striker joins from AFC Bournemouth until the end of the season
EXETER CITY are pleased to confirm the loan signing of striker Jayden Stockley from AFC Bournemouth.
The twenty-two-year-old spent the early part of the campaign on loan at fellow Sky Bet League 2 side Portsmouth, scoring twice in twelve matches for Paul Cook's side.
Previously having had loan spells with the likes of Accrington Stanley, Leyton Orient and Torquay United, Jayden has agreed to stay with the Grecians until the end of the season.
"I'm really looking forward to getting started here," Jayden said. "It's been great to get the loan sorted, and now that I'm signed until the end of the season, it's good to be able to focus on the football.
"It was probably about a week ago that this started to fall into place - things move very fast in these situations, and in that time I've moved down, moved my family across and sorted out a place to stay. I'm really excited to be here, and I just want to get started now.
"The manager sold the club very well to me, and the style of football that we play here. I've come up against Exeter City already this season while with Portsmouth, and they were really impressive. It's a team that I wanted to be a part of, and one that I wanted to see do very well. They beat us at Fratton Park, and the lads were really impressed with how they played.
"As a striker, I'm hoping to bring some goals and some good play to the squad. I really want to contribute to this good footballing team, and hopefully bring a physical presence as well; as someone who will link up well and bring the best out of other players."
Jayden will wear the number 33 shirt.
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Industria Indipendente
In recent years, our research has recognized drama as a dense and stratified instrument to re-establish reality through the use of language and to highlight or investigate a specific theme. Philological and philosophical research helps us rediscover the possibilities of representation, which we question each time: through the use of bodies, images and words we intend to rewrite, together with the spectator, something dissimilar to the starting point. For us, it is as if there was a return of multiple levels of gaze and it is in this chain of looks that new forms of understanding, knowledge and displacement can take place. In practice, let’s start with this desire: to put our eyes in front of other eyes for a while in order to be able to look together again.
See below all the activities involving Industria Indipendente in the frame of Fabulamundi.
Born in 1983 and 1986 Erika Z. Galli and Martina Ruggeri started up their creative partnership in 2005 by establishing Industria Indipendente, a performative, theatrical and visual arts cooperative. Their artistic research began in 2005 with some video and performance experimental works and continued with their original writing and dramatization. Since 2005 they have been realizing video and performance works in both city-centre and country locations, working together with performers of various kind of training and different ways of working, from music to fashion, from dance to fine arts. In 2009 they began their research on drama and theatre and in 2011 made their debut with Crepacuore that received numerous prizes at many national festivals. The same year they founded their own company Industria Indipendente, which is still operating in Rome. In 2014 they performed È tutta colpa delle madri at Teatro Valle and their script Supernova won the Histryo Prize for Theatre Writing. In 2015 the two made an appearance at the Trasparenze Festival in Modena with the show I ragazzi del Cavalcavia, winner of the Critics prize Dante Cappelletti. They reached the final stage of the Scenario Prize with Ho tanti affanni in petto, a work based on the Iliad. Since 2014 they have been part of the group Le ragazze del porno and since 2015 they have been part of the Fabulamundi playwriting Europe project. In February 2016 they were selected as resident artists by the Italian Cultural Institute of Paris where they wrote the text Lullaby, performed in the same year in the form of mise en espace (Theatre Ouvert, Paris) in collaboration with the project Face to Face and the Maison Antoine Vitez. Since 2015 they have been collaborating, as playwrights, with the directors Daniele Spanò and Luca Brinchi (First text: Aminta, by Torquato Tasso, 2016). They debuted with a new work Lucifer at Tramedautore Festival (Piccolo Teatro, Milano) and at Romaeuropa Festival in September-October 2017. Their texts were published from Cue Press publishing house (Rosso rosa, Ferracchiati- Galli- Ruggeri). Supernova, as a mise en èspace, was performed in French language at Théâtre Garonne (Toulouse) and at Festival Actoral (Marseille).
Characters: 2 men, 2 women –available in Italian
We are in 2056, in a world that perhaps has no boundaries. There have been traumatic events of great historical importance that led to the formation of the United States of Europe.
Over the years, young people have managed to climb to the highest points of the social pyramid, increasing productivity through the exaltation of athleticism, vigour, and speed. The majority of world states have adopted a new style of politics, re-writing constitutions and enacting numerous laws.
One notable law is enacted to solve the problems of retirement and bring dignity to the lives of senior citizens; under this law, upon reaching the age of 70, a citizen is brought to one of the thousands of Lullaby centres where they live spend the remainig years of their lives. Any belongings are passed to their children or closest heirs. There are numerous centres in every city. In every part of the world. The Lullaby centre offers residents everything they need: private rooms, great meals in the in-house restaurant, a pool, a park, and various recreational activities. It is on this occasion that the 4 characters unite with the intention of planning a conspiracy.
A conspiracy prepared to kill the President of the United States of Europe, who will be visiting the centre a few hours later. They want to try to return balance to society or perhaps, more simply, to their own lives. The unreal world they are forced to live in is an oasis of well being, a little paradise on Earth, where perhaps every young man would dream of living in the autumn of their lives.
A cage, albeit gilded, induces a lack of freedom. An obligation, like any obligation, eventually tires. It can make you restless, subversive, even revolutionary.
Characters: 6 women – available in Italian and French
A mother, five daughters, a mountain in front of their lives.
A pink mountain, a female mountain.
The heterozygous twins Antonia and Aida, and their sisters Adele, Angelica and Anita prepare themselves every year to celebrate the Spring Festival: they try to take pictures, to make themselves beautiful, to be happy again, but something has changed irreparably.
The light has gone out, everything has become darker.
The father disappeared in the heart of the mountain and the mother stopped being a mother, held a rifle to defend herself, and became deaf.
The short-circuit occurred, a tree spilt and the brilliant and powerful supernova that used to colour the lives of the young women became a black hole. And while the mountain is shocking pink dyed, everything is arranged and the girls get ready for the dances. An hour or so before the start of the evening that they have been waiting for so long. An hour of their lives.
Supernova is a family portrait that lets you imagine that, year after year, someone will be missed: lives with erased faces, wandering presences asphyxiated by a tropical climate on the mountains, ghosts that one by one will disappear without leaving any traces.
Supernova is the explosion of a star, is the light in the eyes, is the power of heaven, is the cruelty of nature.
I RAGAZZI DEL CAVALCAVIA (The Lads of the Overpass)
Five men, one family: the F. family. The F. family consists of four brothers and an uncle by marriage: ordinary lads with a job and a town on their heels, the town of T.
Shifting between dullness and self-affirmation, the F. brothers’ and uncle Tex’s lives experience both excesses and awareness in carrying out what appears to be predestined.
The story draws upon real events occurred in December 1996, when the Furlan brothers, in an attempt to escape boredom, threw a 3 kg stone from atop of the Cavallosa Overpass (in Tortona, Province of Alessandria) and hit a woman in a car driving by.
This play is set in the Nineties, the years that represent a moment of great transition and confusion. With the new century close at hand, the decade preceding it is remembered as a bunch of years with no definite identity and with dazzling colours, and yet these years constitute a black hole, a tunnel that leads into fear. It is the fear of what is next, if something will ever be there. Fear of change, of uncertainty and of the future. Four years to the year 2000, the millennium of extinction and desire, the millennium that is feared by merely being mentioned.
Love is a story of love and loneliness. A woman, a rock star, a body full of hate, a hate comparable to love.
In this concert for one voice, the star relives the rise and the fall and sticks to her only desire, her only true love: having hundreds, thousands of people ready to do just about anything to watch her cross the stage.
But nothing helps when directions are screamed at you from the outside: be inside it!, be above it!, on and on and forever.
Love was the daughter of acid before becoming the wife of a legend and the alleged murderer of her greatest love. As every other tragic hero, she is alone. Alone before the truth. As every other rock star, she screams at her loneliness, waffling in front of strangers who would rather have her take up the guitar and sing. A woman who is at the centre of the world, who struggles in the face of time passing with ever deeper wrinkles and fading memories. Love becomes history, she exists and resists herself rather than a society or a system that would have her dead – because a dead rock star is worth much more money than a living one.
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Ariel Sharon: A Complicated Career and Legacy
By Josef Olmert • Jan 16, 2014
Josef Olmert looks back at the life of one of Israel’s most important leaders.
A famous Zionist poet, Saul Tschernichovsky (1875-1943), wrote in one of his songs that “the human being is a reflection of his childhood landscape.” If there was one Israeli leader of recent time whose life story fits this observation, it was Ariel Sharon.
Sharon was the last Israeli leader whose childhood was molded in the years preceding the establishment of the state, and as such he was a product of the days of struggle for the small Jewish population in Eretz Israel.
For him, the struggle was an everyday life experience, something which he witnessed first-hand. Sharon never accepted the state and its existence and survivability as a foregone conclusion, rather as a precious treasure deposited in the hands of his generation to fight for, to preserve and to always be on the guard of.
Add the particular circumstances of his own immediate family, the poverty of early days in Mandatory Palestine, and you get the inevitable characteristic of toughness, suspicion and constant vigil.
This was also the case because the land was torn by a bloody, existential conflict between Jews and Arabs, which took place just a few years after the tremendous catastrophe of the Holocaust of European Jewry. The young Ariel Sharon knew that Jews needed to fight in order to survive, and fighting was indeed the essence of his life.
In a country like that, tragedies happen alongside victories, joy alongside sorrow, and achievements of major proportions alongside colossal mistakes and failures. There cannot be a collective clean sheet of success only and there cannot be a personal clean sheet of only successes either — and so it was the case with Ariel Sharon.
Great Achievements and Victories, Great Mistakes and Failures
Sharon, therefore, does belong to the group of great Israeli leaders — not only due to his successes but also due to his failures. Everything about him was grandiose, even though the exact circumstances of his death may be seen as if they present the opposite of all that, as the great man, known for his relentless drive, was in a coma for eight full years. As if he needed to rest after such an eventful life.
It was towards the end of the second week of the Yom Kippur War in 1973, when Sharon commanded one of the greatest ever operations of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), crossing the Suez Canal.
After intense fighting which he led in front of his soldiers, not from the rear, Sharon managed to change the entire dynamic of that conflict and create the conditions which enabled Israel to salvage itself militarily. Perhaps more importantly, it allowed Israel to recapture its self-confidence and feel proud again of an army that seemed to be so disappointing until then.
Sharon was the man of the day, the man of many days to come. Very few people remember that it was the same Sharon — who was the commander of the southern front until a few months before the surprising Arab attack — who may have been partly responsible for the lack of preparedness on the day of judgment: October 6, 1973.
With his great prestige and aura of adulation, Sharon joined Israeli politics but not with the Labor Party, which may have been a natural choice for somebody like him who grew up in a socialist environment. Instead, it was with the right-wing. Sharon was the man who united various right-wing and nationalist factions into the Likud Party.
Yet on the night of the historic Likud election victory on May 17, 1977, Sharon was not on the side of newly elected Prime Minister Menachem Begin, basking in the limelight and sharing the glory. Because Sharon, being Sharon, fell out with Begin, established his own little faction, ran separately and was barely elected.
Within days, however, the retired general rejoined Likud, accepted Begin’s leadership and waited for another day of greatness to come. And it did.
Sharon as Defense Minister
Following the tumultuous 1981 elections, Begin nominated Sharon to be his defense minister, after which he was in charge of two momentous events. One was to be his role as the destroyer of Jewish settlements in the Sinai, part of the peace treaty with Egypt. The second was to lead Israel into the controversial Lebanese War in 1982.
The former job was not supposed to be Sharon’s, ever the advocate of Jewish settlement all over Eretz Israel. However, Sharon, while being a great supporter of settlements, was also a great pragmatist.
He lacked deep ideological convictions and a lot of his actions were motivated and initiated by sheer instinct. It should be emphasized, however, that Sharon’s instincts were almost always on the hawkish side of things, always preferring the strong-arm response over the softer, diplomatic one — clearly the outcome of years of struggle and trepidations along the road.
The forcible evacuation of Jewish settlers from Sinai earned him the everlasting, suspicious and reserved feelings in the ideological, religious right-wing of Israel. But it was the Lebanon War which turned out to be a seminal event in Sharon’s complicated career.
Sharon and the Lebanon War
Sharon wanted to destroy the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) in southern Lebanon, a goal almost unanimously supported by the Israeli public in 1981-2. He had Prime Minister Begin’s full, even enthusiastic, support as well as that of then-chief of staff, General Eitan.
It was never fully explained by Sharon whether the destruction of the PLO in Lebanon was an aim in itself, or part of a greater plan to later negotiate with the weakened Palestinian population in the West Bank and possibly Jordan about establishing some kind of Palestinian entity, or whether the defeat of the PLO was supposed to pave the way for Israel’s annexation of the West Bank and Gaza.
This lack of clarity seemed to be the main characteristic of the entire war, something which led many observers to believe that Sharon may have been a great tactician, a very able and charismatic field commander, but a bad strategist.
Alongside the destruction of the PLO, Sharon wanted to create a new political regime in Lebanon, led by the “young Turks” of the Christian Maronite camp, commanded by Bashir Jumayyil. He also wanted to terminate Syrian influence over Lebanon and the physical military occupation of large parts of the country.
In sum, he wanted to swallow much more than what Israel could possibly digest. In the process, Sharon ignored the complicated Lebanese reality out of a lack of understanding and a sense of hubris, disregarded the emerging Shi’ite power of Amal and Hezbollah and, on top of all that, he did not properly understand the depth of Syria’s commitment to have a decisive say in Lebanon.
So, it was this war which so blatantly, and less complimentary, put on display the two sides of Sharon: the ability to score a success in the battlefield, while losing politically and strategically.
The initial goal, removing the PLO, was achieved, and Sharon could celebrate his great victory. However, he wanted more, much more, but his wishes were thwarted. The Lebanese situation proved untenable, unwinnable for him and for Israel.
The breaking point was the terrible massacre committed by Sharon’s allies, the Phalangists, against defenseless Palestinians in the camps of Sabra and Shatila. Sharon was right in arguing that Christians, not Jews, had killed Muslims — surely not the IDF. But this was typical of Sharon, it was tactical.
Strategically, it was a major debacle — politically and morally for Israel as well. Sharon should have known and understood better, but he didn’t.
The fact of the matter was that the chief perpetrator of the massacre, Elie Hubayka, was a Syrian agent. Hubayka was later eliminated as part of the inter-Christian feuds in Lebanon. The whole situation came to be known in Israel as the Lebanese quagmire, and Sharon was held responsible by the majority of public opinion and most damagingly to him by the Kahan Commission of Inquiry in 1983. Sharon was in political exile, in disgrace for some years, but he later returned.
He became the minister of agriculture, a position he held until 1992, but in effect, Sharon was the minister in charge of building new Jewish outposts and settlements. He was unauthorized to do so, but Sharon repeated the performance of Lebanon — a one-man operation showing disregard to procedures, government decisions, and all being enveloped with high words about the sanctity of Jewish settlements.
Sanctity? This was the same Sharon who uprooted the settlements in Sinai, the same Sharon who would do the same, just a few years later, in Gaza when he was prime minister.
Sharon’s Legacy
Here is where the judgment as to the merit and value of his actions is left to the readers and, at large, to the Israeli people. All is in the eye of the beholder, so I personally make my choice here and categorically state that uprooting the settlements in Gaza in 2005 was a tragic necessity but a necessity nevertheless.
Israel had to end its control over more than a million poor and bitter Palestinians in Gaza, even when I take into account the two mini wars between Israel and Hamas which followed this fateful decision.
The circumstances leading Sharon back to the forefront of Israeli politics are out of the scope of this particular article, but what is fact is that only one leader could do what Sharon did in 2005, and that was Sharon. Who else?
What Sharon demonstrated was an exemplary exercise of leadership, courage, accountability, and pragmatism. This was his last great act before becoming comatose for eight years.
With that in mind, I, for one, a critic of the Lebanese War, have to recognize him as one of the greatest ever leaders of Israel.
If only Israel now had somebody who could take the plunge and make the fateful decisions required about the West Bank, about Judea and Samaria.
There is no Sharon to do what maybe only he could do, and that has become his legacy, his greatest claim to fame: the ability to make such huge decisions and stand behind them.
I was never a soldier serving under Sharon, but I join so many others who salute him upon his final departure.
The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Fair Observer’s editorial policy.
Image: Copyright © Shutterstock. All Rights Reserved
CategoriesMiddle East & North Africa, Opinion, Politics TagsAmal, Ariel Sharon, Focus Article, Gaza, Hezbollah, IDF, Israel, Israeli-Palestinian Conflict, Israeli-Palestinian Peace Process, Jewish Settlements, Josef Olmert, Lebanese War, Likud, Menachem Begin, Palestine, Palestine Liberation Organization, PLO, Sinai, Yom Kippur War, Zionism
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Home Wonders Forgotten Wonders Traveling to USA NY The Statue of Liberty
Traveling to USA NY The Statue of Liberty
In honor of friendship, America probably could not have won its freedom from the British during the American Revolution without the help of the French.
The Statue of Liberty Enlightening the World is the original name which is the iconic NY monument on Liberty Island in Harbor is of a robed female figure representing liberates, the Roman goddess of freedom. It was actually a gift of friendship from the people of France to the people of the United States in honor of the Centennial of American Independence. Liberty Island is situated in Upper New York Bay at the mouth of the Hudson River and measures an area of just over 10 acres.
The pedestal construction was finished in April of 1886. The statue was built from copper sheets mounted onto a steel framework. The Statue was completed in France in July, 1884 and was shipped overseas to arrive in New York Harbor in June of 1885 on board the French frigate “Isere” which transported the Statue of Liberty from France to the United States.
In transit, the Statue was reduced to 350 individual pieces and packed in 214 crates and it took four months to put her together!
On October 28th 1886, the dedication of the Statue of Liberty has towered above the New York Harbor and took place in front of thousands of spectators. Designated as a National Monument in 1924 and restored for her centennial on July 4, 1986. She was a centennial gift ten years late. Lady Liberty weighs 450,000 pounds and stands 151 feet tall. From the tips of her crown to the broken shackles at her feet, the Statue of Liberty is an unforgettable sight to behold.
Lady Liberty truly is statuesque,In 1984, at the start of the Statue’s restoration, the United Nations designated the Statue of Liberty as a World Heritage
There are three Lady Liberties! Swan Ally Island in the Seine River in Paris and also Paris’ Luxembourg Gardens. They are all symbols of friendship, freedom and peace between the US and France.
The Statue of Liberty is one of New York’s most popular tourist attractions, has captivated travelers from every corner of the world for over one hundred years. One of the most recognizable and well-known women in the world.
Hotels in the region:
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Hong Kong’s Future
Sir David Tang gave an amusing, erudite and at times inspirational speech before a full house at the FCC on what has happened to Hong Kong, where it might go and what needs to be done.
David Tang fired both barrels at the performance of the Chief Executive CY Leung in his latest policy address as well as his overall leadership qualities. After regaling us with a visiting Martian’s view of the address, Tang called it “a silent contortion of the truth”.
“Does anyone here really believe that the government, our government, fosters harmony or shares prosperity?” he asked. “Does the government itself believe that it fosters harmony and shares prosperity? I believe these words are patronising and condescending at best, and at worst, meaningless.”
In any event, in the policy address he said there was “not a half-scintilla” on the Umbrella Movement, “perhaps the single most significant political event in Hong Kong since the riots in 1966”. Nor was there a mention on the defeat within LegCo of the introduction of universal suffrage for the election of the chief executive.
In the entire two hours spent delivering his address, Tang said, the Chief Executive “did not give the slightest hint of an amoeba of political or social dissatisfaction, yet a great deal of dissatisfaction is prevalent. It was no surprise, therefore, that even before he began his address, four members of LegCo were removed for protesting against his favourite past-time of sweeping what he regards as rotten political dust under the carpet.
“The supreme paradox for me is the opening line of his address: ‘Since taking office, the current term government has focused its efforts on promoting democracy,’ so CY Leung smugly said.
“Whoever wrote that for the first sentence for the Chief Executive, if he himself did not write it, must be a comedian; or perhaps a monkey who accidentally typed up those words on a typewriter. What it all means to me is the disingenuousness of our Chief Executive and government, and the contempt with which they hold us, the citizens of Hong Kong.”
However, Tang asked, should we have expected anything else? “After all, throughout the Umbrella Movement, our Chief Executive steadfastly refused to meet the protesters. We should remember that even Li Peng, the hardcore, hardline Chinese Premier at the time [Tiananmen in 1989] received [protest leader] Wu’er Kaishi, and what’s more, in full view on national television.
“By comparison, our Chief Executive hid behind the azaleas at Government House and pushed out that diminutive figure of Chief Secretary Carrie Lam, who fluffed around with absurd preconditions and insisted on meeting the students behind closed doors.
“You understand how parochial we seem, already.
“It all further means that our Chief Executive does not have the bottle to confront difficult issues, yet that is precisely the one quality that we should demand in our leader.
“We certainly don’t want one who totally ignored the heat of our political and social conditions and instead spent half of his speech pontificating on the woolly symbols of ‘One Belt, One Road’, which was mentioned 48 times. Quite apart from the embarrassing unctuousness towards the Chinese president, what on earth would an ordinary citizen of Hong Kong care or understand about One Belt, One Road?
“I even doubt that a single tycoon in Hong Kong could name more than two countries on the original Silk Road that was the inspiration for One Belt, One Road. Is our Chief Executive really trying to push Hong Kong trade, and our financial services, across Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Iran, Iraq… and inexorably into the heart of the terrifying Islamic State?
“Borat might have been able to get away with it, with humour – but hardly our sombre Chief Executive with any degree of seriousness.”
Wanted: a strong leader
Tang said that if he was to hold out any hope for a better Hong Kong, “I would first wish for a much stronger, and much more effective Chief Executive. I know this sounds [like] self-evident truth, but that is what we need to focus on.
“By which I mean someone who would at least appear to represent the people of Hong Kong, and not fearful of relaying to the Chinese authority those views which are considered to be discordant music to the ears in the north.
“But the most preponderant misreading on the part of the Chief Executive of Hong Kong is to second guess what the Chinese government does not want to hear. These furtive considerations do great damage to the status of the Chief Executive, because even before asking, he has turned himself into a puppet on a string, dancing obsequiously to the tunes and echoes of Zhongnanhai.
“I would even wish for a Chief Executive who was cunning enough to persuade the Chinese government to hear openly the grievances of Hong Kong, while knowing full well that they would fall on deaf ears. But at least under these open circumstances, we will obtain an airing of what those grievances are, then sooner or later people will become conscious for the need of compromise.
“And therein lies the secret of civilisation: divergent views being brought closer together openly, through peaceful, intellectual and intelligent negotiations. That, in a nutshell, is what Hong Kong is crying out for. A mediator, or a group of mediators who could bring those pan-democrats and the stiff establishment around the same table and begin the process of some kind of reconciliation.
“As a citizen of Hong Kong, born and bred below Lion Rock, I was really sad to see the anger – or should I say Tourette’s – displayed by those well-meaning legislators who were ejected from the chamber in front of an ossified face of our Chief Executive.
“These tribal confrontations exemplify deep bitterness and resentment, and precisely represent the fundamental and symptomatic illnesses of our territory.
“They are similar to the rifts between the Shiite and the Sunni, the Arabs and the Jews, and the North and South Koreans. But there is so much more hope of a lasting ceasefire in our case because we have, thankfully, at least not shed any real blood. Not yet.
“Indeed, the Chinese authority could simply transform our entire livelihood tomorrow by becoming a mediator of the two opposing sides. The two sides must meet, they must sit down opposite each other; they must start talking. They must carry a modicum of goodwill on each of their parts.
“It is only when the stinging palpitations of our political polarisations are diffused, that we can once again return to a marvellous and civilised legislature that has served Hong Kong well, before its fragmentations and the damaging of the fabric of our society before our own eyes.
“If we’re not careful and simply let the sour enemies sit inert, in stalemate across from each other on the chamber floor at LegCo, then we will be throwing away what we have managed to build, totally against the odds, a solid and burnished rock that was once considered merely as barren.
“Churchill was supposed to have said “democracy is the worst kind of government, except for those others which have been tried.” I should like to think that Hong Kong is the worst kind of place in which to live, except for those others which have been tried.
“My point here is that, given all the problems we have, with a deteriorating administration which half confesses itself to have a legislature that is becoming ungovernable and losing confidence among the majority of the population by the day, with a Chief Executive whose popularity is at a historic low, we must cling on to Hong Kong as our home, but we cannot afford to stand by our status quo.
“Our government has been growing apart from the people of Hong Kong and they must anticipate trouble. Already, there are over one million people in Hong Kong who are trapped by poverty, and they cannot be too pleased about the government. It is simply invidious that in a prosperous community such as Hong Kong, over 15% of our population should be living below the breadline.
“It is a shameful state, scandalous if you ask me. Then there was the Umbrella Movement, which clearly demonstrated the resolution of many ordinary people taking real democratic power seriously, and their dissatisfaction can only be increased by the defeat of the universal suffrage motion in LegCo.
“Then the disturbing case of Lee Po and his colleagues and those hawkers openly branded as separatists by the Liaison Office. To compound our problems, the dwindling numbers of visitors from the mainland, financial oscillations in the markets, not to mention the growing number of the aged against a falling number of our workforce, the umpteen cases of abduction in the mainland about which we hear very little, the dark appearances of triads at demonstrations, the thorough incompetence of the government in creating a proper cultural anchor in the city…
“There are many more things which need fixing, and most of them could not be achieved given the standoff between the pan-democrats representing the majority of ordinary people, and the establishment, so-called, hugging most of our somnambulant tycoons, and that elephantine Communist Party in China.
“Thank God, thank God we still have a decent judicial system and a fairly uncorrupted community and genuine freedom in Hong Kong. This holy trinity – which is what I call it – remains the pride of Hong Kong people.
“You think Shanghai, say, with her mainland judicial system and corruption, and lack of freedom, could overtake Hong Kong as China’s premier city? You would have to be utterly insane, and stupid.
“Ergo, we must hang on to this holy trinity of a decent judicial system and uncorrupted community and genuine freedom until the bitter end… or 2047 at least. In my moments of fantasy, I even think Hong Kong could play a vital role in shaping the future of China.
“Why else would 50 million mainlanders come flooding through Hong Kong every year?
“It’s because of our holy trinity. This would make the seven million of us in Hong Kong the greatest and freest de facto Chinese diaspora, which in turn could change the course of Chinese history in our lifetime.”
Other subjects that came up during the Q&A include:
Outside influence on student protesters. Maybe there was a tiny amount of support by outsiders, “but if you thought in our city full of bright, loyal young people require a conspiracy outside of Hong Kong to support a movement – that was genuinely moving – I think that is far-fetched in itself. So, in a nutshell, no.
I have to tell you there are serious and influential people I know – who don’t live in Hong Kong but own a lot of Hong Kong – who keep telling me, oh, it’s the Americans or CIA. I think that is absolute balderdash.
Should Britain support Hong Kong more. At this time there is no point blaming Britain. In fact when Britain left Hong Kong it left the territory intact and did not take one cent… and it even paid rent for its consulate building. And you couldn’t have a greater champion than the last governor, Chris Patten, in trying to install a system of government or politics that would maximise the possibility of Hong Kong people ruling Hong Kong.”
The bookseller who eventually emerged in Guangzhou after some weeks. “The fact that he left his passport behind must have meant that somebody fairly high up in authority managed to get him abducted into China. And, of course, this indeed is a very serious matter – not only about the breach of the Joint Declaration, but as a fundamental principle of the one country, two systems. It is essential that we stand fast on this one. It sets an extremely bad example.
“I have heard that the Chinese authorities have now told the civil servants who carry out these sorts of things not to come to Hong Kong any more as they are slightly edgy about the recent bad press.
“I know one or two friends who were supposed to go to China for questions but decided not to and asked to meet in Hong Kong instead. They have now been told to bring a solicitor or policemen with them to feel safe. In a way the bookseller incident has defused that wind of bad change, which I hope will carry on.”
Tang talk goes viral
Not surprisingly, given the frankness of some of the views expressed, David Tang’s FCC talk ignited a minor firestorm on social media. A recording of the presentation posted on the FCC’s YouTube channel racked up nearly 10,000 views in the first day after posting, an exceptionally high number, with over 300 ‘likes’ (versus a mere three thumbs-down).
On Twitter, as well, Hong Kong watchers and correspondents were quick to pick up and swap highlights of the event, with Tang’s comments on CY Leung’s leadership seeming to gain the most traction.
Tang’s talk even made it on to the normally relatively staid LinkedIn professional network, with an executive from Invest Hong Kong calling attention to the “full house” at the Club and Tang’s championing of Hong Kong’s “holy trinity” — an independent judiciary, lack of corruption and genuine freedoms.
The online media reaction was mixed. A Coconuts Hong Kong article on the presentation that contained a link to the full text of Tang’s speech was shared across hundreds of Facebook pages, while a debate raged in the comment section of the South China Morning Post’s story on the event.
Tang was alternately hailed as a “wise man” and “one of the few public figures in Hong Kong with any guts”, while others derided him as a “wannabe politician” and a “tabloid celebrity”. Regardless how they view Tang’s at times scathing opinions, few would disagree that the event once again highlighted the FCC as a key venue for dialogue on the city, and a regular host to some of its leading personalities.
Link to Coconuts story: hongkong.coconuts.co/2016/02/19/shanghai-tang-founder-slams-cy-leung-govt-beijing-speech-hong-kongs-future
SCMP: www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1913976/even-li-peng-met-tiananmen-protesters-says-shanghai-tang
Post Date: May 16, 2016
Back to Correspondent Online
Flip Book Version
Meet John Ma, FCC Bar Manager
With more than 30 years of bartending experience, John Ma makes you feel right at home at the FCC.
How Headline Pilsner Became the FCC’s New Signature Beer
Amid the many challenges the club faced last year, one stood out: Choosing the FCC’s new signature beer, Headline Pilsner. Richard Macauley, who was instrumental in bringing the beer to life, spills the story.
Ex-BBC journalist who conquered the closed world of jade carving in China
Former BBC reporter Andrew Shaw is proof that there is life after journalism, even if it took extreme changes for him to achieve it. Kate Whitehead tells his unusual story.
Right time, right place for Walter Kent’s clock
Long-term FCC member, the late Walter Kent, will be remembered for his punctual time-keeping now that part of his bequest to the club has been put in its rightful place, at the Ice House Street end of the Main Bar.
Obituary: ‘Tank Man’ photographer, Charlie Cole
The photojournalist who took the picture that will forever represent the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989 died in September in Bali aged 64.
Book Review – The 100 Burgundy: Exceptional Wines to Build a Dream Cellar
As a trading hub for wine, Hong Kong has seen the price and volume of Burgundy coming into Asia rocket. The region’s first Master of Wine – who’s an FCC member – has just launched a book on the subject.
Finland may have slipped in press freedom rankings, but all is not lost
Two incidents in recent years have seen Finland slip from first to fourth place in the world rankings for freedom of the press. Here FCC member Hannamiina Tanninen takes a look at this “public disgrace”.
New media award aims to bring sensitivity to reporting suicides
Mind HK is helping journalists to approach the topic of mental health in a new way. Olivia Parker reports.
‘This may cause some discomfort’: Overcoming prostate cancer
Prostate cancer is among the most common forms of cancer affecting men. Yet confusion and controversy still reign over how best to diagnose and treat the often fatal disease.
Obituary: Susumu Awanohara, the foreign correspondent with a big heart
A respected former denizen of the FCC Hong Kong and the FCC Japan, Susumu spent two decades covering Asia and its role in global affairs for the Hong Kong-based Far Eastern Economic Review.
Pictures: Hong Kong seen through the lens of Miguel Marina Rodriguez
Better known in photographic circles as Miguelitor, his candid and quirky style of street photography is “locally-grown” and has been inspired by Hong Kong’s street scenes and the people he found in them.
Pictures: North Korea – one party state machine
See Hong Kong-born photographer Vincent Yu’s award-winning pictures from North Korea.
Profile: Lynn Grebstad – the Peninsula PR woman who made Hollywood stars feel welcome in Hong Kong
In this member profile, Lynn recalls meeting, among many others, Elizabeth Taylor, Gene Hackman, and David Soul who was making a TV series called Harry’s Hong Kong.
Facebook still struggling against tide of fake news
Fake news continues to haunt social media sites. Facebook, for one, still struggles despite its well publicised steps to deal with it.
Social media trends 2018: forget Facebook, it’s all about messaging apps
With a growing number of news organisations pouring additional resources into delivering their content via the big social platforms, the likes of Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg appear to hold all the cards.
Obituary: Sir David Tang
David Tang had a long connection with the FCC: as a speaker on four occasions from the early 90s; and as a friend to a number of members.
Twitter to the rescue for American journalists detained in China
The two journalists were detained in separate incidents by Chinese police in August and managed to alert their employers — and followers — via Twitter about their predicament.
Introducing… FCC new members, Nov/Dec 2017
As you would expect there’s a healthy mix of Correspondents, Journalists and Associates – and all have interesting tales to tell – so if you see a new face at the bar, please make them feel welcome.
Journalists under attack across Asia
A round-up of the latest incidents involving media organisations around the region.
Cambodia: Years Of Turmoil
Forty years on, a new country is emerging. But this nation is born out of the tragic events of that day, which are engraved on every Cambodian’s mind.
Afghanistan: Between Hope And Fear
A selection of images from the newly released book of the same title.
Slowly, slowly up Kilimanjaro
With the news that Pizza Hut just delivered a pie to the top of Mount Kilimanjaro, setting a new record for high-altitude PR stunts, Andrew Davison recalls his experiences in scaling Africa’s highest peak. The 12-man team had some 50 guides, porters an …
Obituary: Roy Rowan, Time magazine’s last Saigon bureau chief
Roy Rowan died September 13 in Greenwich, Connecticut, aged 96. His passing was no ordinary event. He was the last of what was once a large band of legendary American journalists who covered the Chinese civil war.
PEN writers’ group reforms in Hong Kong to promote freedom of expression
Few writers may be aware of the role of Marilyn Monroe in the fight for freedom of creative expression, or indeed her connection with the opening of a new flank in that fight in Hong Kong.
Anson Chan: Hongkongers face systematic undermining of values and freedoms
Chan, who has been a regular speaker at the Club since the 90s when she was Chief Secretary before and after the handover, spoke about what to do with the troubled Legco and the importance of the Legco elections.
Hong Kong’s copyright law reform hits a wall
Hong Kong’s efforts to reform copyright law towards the US-based “fair-use” treatment of copyright versus the “fair-dealing” approach stall, writes Jonathan Hopfner.
Don’t tell the King: The increasing danger of reporting in Thailand
Foreign correspondents have always trod warily around lese majeste, though some of their publications got into strife when they inadvertently did not place a photo of the King at the top of a page, or had someone else’s photo on top of his.
AFP beachhead in North Korea
Agence France-Presse’s new bureau in Pyongyang, which opened in September, is already churning out the stories.
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22-Year-Old Poet And Author Amanda Gorman To Read At Biden Inauguration
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Jul 24, 2015, 10:01am EDT |
'Wayward Pines' Finale Earns Fox Massive Audience Trust For Future Event Series
Merrill BarrFormer Contributor
In the last few years, every broadcast network under the sun has tried to capitalize on the idea of “event series,” or as they’re actually known as in every other part of the world, the mini-series. Of course, the concept of a mini-series is nothing new, for it’s one that can be dated as far back as ABC’s Roots that aired in 1977. However, what’s changed in the modern era is a constant and intentional deception of the audience concerning what’s actually going to happen at the end of a given season… and that’s why what Fox did last night with the finale of Wayward Pines feels as shocking as it does.
Despite being marketed as “limited-series events” that would conclude their runs with the finale of their supposed only season, series including Under the Dome, Aquarius and Persons Unknown were either renewed for future seasons or concluded with finales meant to be extended but ultimately were not. Regardless of how the networks choose to spin things, all this amounts to is a simple case of falsifying the truth… and it’s not doing anyone any favors. The promise of a mini-series is being used as a way to rope viewers in that may not normally watch because they don’t want to commit to a full-length, 7-year long television series. However, utilizing this as a marketing tool instead of a story-telling one is hurting shows that do attempt to tell a closed off story not meant to extend further.
Without a doubt, the last episode of Wayward Pines is one that delivers a clear sense of finality with its closing moments. Will there be more? Who knows? Does there need to be more? Not at all, and that’s the best thing about it. Wayward Pines is a story with a clear beginning, middle and end, and had the state of the mini-series been better than it currently is, perhaps it would have become more of a zeitgeist series for Fox than it ended up being – it had everything going for it on that front. Ultimately Wayward Pines found itself being hurt by the lies that have been sold to the audience in recent years.
Now, instead of tuning in for a 10-week story that promises to conclude, television audiences are more wary than ever of the “event series” label. Today, they’ll even wait for a series like Wayward Pines to hit streaming before giving it a chance just to make sure they aren’t wasting their time watching something week-to-week that has no intention of ending. Ultimately, the only entity that can be blamed for this is the broadcast television industry itself.
When HBO airs a new mini-series, the pay cable network does so with an established brand loyalty with the audience that knows what they’re watching is, in fact, a mini-series in the truest sense of the phrase. They know the story is going to have an ending that satisfies completely by the time credits roll on the final episode. There was a time this was true for broadcast networks as well, but not any longer. However, if more networks can begin doing what Fox did this week with Wayward Pines, then maybe, just maybe there will be reason to start trusting the marketing campaigns of the big four once again.
Merrill Barr
I write about the television business. Why networks cancel your favorite shows, why sure things don’t go to series, why the Nielsen ratings still matter, if it concerns…
I write about the television business. Why networks cancel your favorite shows, why sure things don’t go to series, why the Nielsen ratings still matter, if it concerns the small screen, it concerns me too. I've studied media since college and have been covering television since 2009 for sites such as FilmSchoolRejects.com and ScreenInvasion.com. In that time I've learned it’s one of the most fascinating entertainment mediums to explore. It’s a medium that runs a million miles a minute where one week’s smash hit can be another week’s failure. It takes a trained eye to understand its complexity, and that’s what I intend to do.
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The Gods Will Battle Again in New Comic Book Movie 'The Godyssey'
Greek gods have battled it out in the heavens recently in films like Clash of the Titans, Wrath of the Titans, and Immortals, but Hollywood's obsession with melding mythology and comic books continues to grow. Variety reports that Rob Liefeld, the creator of Deadpool who has been trying to get a film version starring Ryan Reynolds off the ground for years, is developing another of his paneled properties, The Godyssey (which should not be confused with the space version of The Odyssey that WB put in motion this morning). Todd Garner (Paul Blart: Mall Cop) and Brooklyn Weaver (Out of the Furnace) will produce. Read on!
The Godyssey will follow characters like Zeus, Buddha, Ra, and Pangu as they come together in order to battle fallen gods in a huge battle for mankind. Sounds an awful lot like Alex Proyas' Paradise Lost (which Legendary pulled the plug on nearly a year ago), so we'll see if another studio is willing to take a risk on some similar material. In addition to trying to get Deadpool started, Liefeld also has an adaptation of his comic Bloodstrike in the works, so we'll have to see which of these will get underway first. Let's hope the long delay with Deadpool isn't a bad omen for Liefeld's future projects.
Find more posts: Development, Movie News
I personally wouldn't put this in the same level as Paradise Lost. This sounds more like Immortals Paradise Lost remains the one I'd rather see
rocky728 on Jan 16, 2013
I loath Rob Leifield, and the idea that ANYONE would buy anything from that craptastic excuse for an artist makes me wanna puke.
Rob on Jan 16, 2013
Zeus and Buddha fighting side by....Im in
Cody W on Jan 16, 2013
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COVID-19 Conflicts Lead To Breach Of Contract Claims Against Employers
Though sometimes overlooked given the abundance of federal and state statutory claims, employers must remember that their existing contractual obligations remain in place during the pandemic. As a review of the Fisher Phillips COVID-19 Employment Litigation Tracker demonstrates, employers must take care when imposing unilateral terminations or salary reductions against employees with written employment agreements or they could face a breach of contract lawsuit – even where the actions are a result of the financial exigencies created by COVID-19. Instead, employers should review any written employment agreements and confirm that the proposed action is permitted (or defensible) before doing so. A failure to consider existing contractual obligations could result in a claim for breach of contract.
Contract Law 101
Though regulated by the individual states, contract law is fairly uniform throughout the country. In all states, parties are free to contract in just about any way they see fit, with very limited exceptions. The tradeoff for this flexibility is that courts will generally hold a breaching party to its enforceable contract.
In the context of employment law, the majority of employment relationships are “at will” and may not be covered by any written agreement. While these relationships are contractual in nature, the employer typically retains the right to modify or terminate the agreement at any time (with exceptions for discriminatory or other unlawful conduct). If the employee agrees to the changes, they continue to report to work. If they do not, they may quit or provide a counteroffer.
Some employment relationships, however, are reduced to writing and modify the “at will” relationship. Such contracts may limit an employer’s ability to terminate the relationship through “for cause” provisions, limit an employer’s ability to alter compensation, provide guaranteed employment for a term of years, or restrict the employee from engaging in certain competitive activities post-termination. Where employers and employees agree to such arrangements, they are generally enforceable in court should either party breach. This may be true even in times of great economic instability, state or federal shutdown orders, or other unforeseen external forces.
Recent Examples
Given the economic uncertainly surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic, it is not surprising that employers have taken measures to reduce costs. This includes previously unforeseen layoffs and salary reductions. Two recent cases demonstrate the perils of doing so where employers have written agreements.
Flagg v. Hubbard Radio Seattle, LLC (King County, WA)
In Flagg, a popular drivetime radio host in Seattle was terminated “for cause,” allegedly related to inappropriate social media posts made in January 2020. Despite advising the host of the behavior in January, the radio station continued to employ him until March when the station’s advertising revenue plummeted during a mandatory state-ordered shutdown to combat COVID-19. While the employment agreement in question contained a provision permitting a “for cause” termination, plaintiff alleged that this designation was pretextual and the station was really terminating him to avoid paying his high salary in the midst of the economic downturn.
Fuente-Alba v. Cork Alliance, Inc. (Miami-Dade County, FL)
In 2015, Cork Alliance hired a Chilean husband and wife to work for their wine distribution company in Miami as Chief Operating Officer and Director of Finance and Accounting, respectively. Both signed a 5-year employment contract in which Cork Alliance agreed to cover the costs of relocating from Chile and guaranteed annual salaries. The contracts, written in Spanish, mandated that plaintiffs would receive the agreed-to compensation and benefits “a todo evento,” which plaintiffs alleged means the promised remuneration was without condition. In response to the pandemic, the husband’s salary was reduced by 50% and the wife was terminated. According to the complaint, these actions are designed to force contractual renegotiations despite the fact that wine sales have “skyrocketed” during the pandemic.
Potential Defenses
While each case is in its infancy and neither court has ruled on the substance of the plaintiffs’ complaints, employers should be familiar with a number of contract law doctrines that could provide justification for an action that would otherwise breach an employment agreement. Though the state law in this area may vary from state to state, these general principles should help employers confronting breach of contract claims:
Force Majeure Causes
A “force majeure” clause is a contract provision that relieves the parties from performing their contractual obligations when certain circumstances beyond their control arise, making performance inadvisable, commercially impracticable, illegal, or impossible. These clauses typically contain a list unforeseeable or unpredictable events that would excuse performance — declarations of war or other armed conflict, labor stoppages, natural disasters, “Acts of God,” or other external forces that make performance impossible, unwise, or impractical.
While some clauses may be detailed enough to mention pandemics expressly, there is consensus that the COVID-19 pandemic could be considered an “Act of God” that could excuse performance in certain instances. Of course, the parties must have agreed to include a force majeure clause in the agreement, and in the absence of one, courts are unlikely to infer one.
Impracticability And Impossibility Of Performance
While the parameters may differ, all states have some version of an impracticability or impossibility of performance test. According to the Restatement (Second) of Contracts, if a party’s performance of a contractual obligation is made “impracticable without his fault by the occurrence of an event the non-occurrence of which was a basic assumption on which the contract was made” a party may be relieved of performance.
Most employment contracts depend on the premise that the employer may be open for business and therefore generating revenue with which to pay employees. In those cases, a strong argument may be had that it is impossible or impractical to perform based on government regulation forcing the employer’s closure.
Another potential common law defense is “frustration of purpose” which relieves a party from a contractual obligation where their principal purpose is substantially limited without their fault by the occurrence of an event the non-occurrence of which was a basic assumption on which the contract was made. For example, an employer who entered an agreement with a group of employees to run a large-scale event in central Florida scheduled in August may have an argument that they should be relieved of their obligations under the agreement. While it is technically possible to run the event, such an event is unwise, may violate state public health regulation, and is unlikely to draw the crowds that would have been present in the absence of a pandemic.
Prevention By Governmental Regulation Or Order
A number of states likewise recognize compliance with a government regulation or order as an excuse to breach of contract. This defense is available where a supervening governmental action prohibits a performance or imposes requirements that make it impracticable. Such action must be unforeseeable. It is possible that an employer could rely on this defense where its compliance with a shut down or stay-at-home order was the reason it may have breached the contract.
Employers must be cognizant of their existing contractual agreements with employees and how the terms of such agreements may constrain otherwise prudent business decisions such as salary reductions, furloughs, or terminations. In times of economic turmoil, employment-related claims will increase. While there are many defenses available to employers, the contours of each doctrine may vary from state to state.
Any employer contemplating an action that could be in violation of an existing employment agreement is cautioned to review the agreement and the state law governing it before making any decision.
For further information about COVID-19-related litigation being filed across the country, you can visit our COVID-19 Employment Litigation Tracker. Our COVID-19 Employment Litigation and Class & Collective Actions section also has a listing of our litigation-related alerts and team members handling these types of cases.
We will continue to monitor any further developments and provide updates on these and other labor and employment issues affecting employers, so make sure you are subscribed to Fisher Phillips’ alert system to gather the most up-to-date information. For further information, contact your Fisher Phillips attorney.
This Legal Alert provides an overview of a specific developing situation. It is not intended to be, and should not be construed as, legal advice for any particular fact situation.
Joshua Nadreau
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Jackie HernandezPittsburgh, California, KC, and Minnesota
9 year Major League career
Jackie had a nine year Major League career as a shortstop with Pittsburgh, California, KC, and Minnesota. All you have to know about Jackie is, in the ninth inning of game 7 of the ’71 World Series as the shortstop for the Pirates, glided to his left behind second base, cut off a grounder up the middle at the edge of the outfield grass, planted his feet, and fired to first base and the Pirates won the World Series. One of the greatest people you will ever meet, Jackie will be on hand to work with infielders.
Learn More About Our Camp
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At first, help seemed far off, even as one of the ministry members contacted Bressette with a plea for assistance.
"In this case, I didn't know what could be done because I'm an optician, I don't fit (artificial) eyes. … You have to be very precise, and it would take several trips to get the sizing and molding right," Bressette said, adding that bringing Roger to the U.S. for treatment was not an option.
But even as Bressette hung up the phone, a crumpled card in a drawer caught his attention. On it was the name of an Orlando ocularist, someone he had never met.
"I got hairs on the back of my neck," Bressette said. "So I gave the person a call and told him what the situation was. ... A few weeks later, he called back and said (the eye) was ready. I asked how much and he said, 'No cost at all,' " Bressette said about the voice over the phone.
An artificial eye typically costs $2,500 to $3,000 a piece.
"I just went on faith. This was obviously something bigger than we were dealing with. And then for it to fit perfectly … it was a miracle," Bressette said.
Among the physicians working with Roger was Dr. Winston Price, a pediatrician from Atlanta who worked on earthquake survivors in Haiti. This time, Price and others were introduced to the small-framed boy. There, in a hotel room in the city of Masaya, the boy's life changed when he received the prothestic eye.
"He had tears of joy, recognizing that all of the teasing he had undergone would cease," Price said.
For Bressette, the experience was powerful.
"What it all says to me is that nothing is impossible," Bressette said. "Even when you think it's not possible."
Contact Gallop at 321-242-3642, Twitter.com/jdgallop or jdgallop@floridtoday.com
Through Eyes of Children accepts donations of used prescription eyeglasses, reading glasses and sunglasses throughout the year. Monetary donations provide school supplies for its after-school program.
For more information, contact T.E.C. Mission by calling the church at 321-783-4303.
Donations may be mailed to T.E.C. Mission, P.O. Box 320807, Cocoa Beach, FL 32932.
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Roseville man accused of torture in extortion case
A man was bound and tortured during an attempt to extort thousands of dollars, according to Roseville Police.
Police say it happened Friday evening at Edward Palokaj's home in Roseville. He and the victim, a man in his 50s from Kentwood, have had an "on-again, off-again" business relationship over the last few years.
Using his hands, a hammer, and nails, Roseville police say 39-year-old Edward Palokaj tortured a 52-year-old Kentwood man to get $14,000
"We've had some pretty bizarre cases in Roseville but this is right at the top," Roseveille Police Chief James Berlin.
Police say Palokaj wanted $14,000 for a down payment on a restaurant. When the victim refused to hand over the money, police say Palokaj forced the victim to the basement and bound him to a chair.
"He bound him to a chair, hands and feet, had him gagged, beat him on the head and body," Berlin said.
The suspect then allegedly hit the victim several times, and used a hammer and nails to torture him. Roseville police say the torture went on for at least three hours until Palokaj threatened the man's wife and children. Only then, the victim decided to comply.
That's when police say the man called his boss in Southfield asking for the money.
While the two were on their way to Southfield to get the money, the victim's boss had a feeling something was not right and called police. Southfield police were waiting when the two men arrived, and arrested Palokaj.
"He felt something was wrong in the tone of his voice so he called Southfield police who were there when the victim and suspect showed up," Berlin said.
In court on Monday, Palokaj called the charges as "bull".
His neighbor, Tisha Barnes sees Palokaj and his girlfriend regularly but was stunned to the core.
"That guy is sick, it doesn't even look like my neighbor," Barnes said. "It's got to be a double life. The look on that gentleman's face is sick!"
The man suffering minor injuries while Palokaj is being held on a $250,000 bond and faces up to life in prison.
Peter Spadafore talks preparation for potential Capitol protest in Lansing
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Nobel Prizes still struggle with wide gender disparity
By MARK LEWISAssociated Press
Nobel Prizes are the most prestigious awards on the planet but the aura of this year's announcements has been dulled by questions over why so few women have entered the pantheon, particularly in the sciences.
The march of Nobel announcements begins Monday with the physiology/medicine prize.
Since the first prizes were awarded in 1901, 892 individuals have received one, but just 48 of them have been women. Thirty of those women won either the literature or peace prize, highlighting the wide gender gap in the laureates for physics, chemistry and physiology/medicine. In addition, only one woman has won for the economics prize, which is not technically a Nobel but is associated with the prizes.
Some of the disparity likely can be attributed to underlying structural reasons, such as the low representation of women in high-level science. The American Institute of Physics, for example, says in 2014, only 10 percent of full physics professorships were held by women.
But critics suggest that gender bias pervades the process of nominations, which come largely from tenured professors.
"The problem is the whole nomination process, you have these tenured professors who feel like they are untouchable. They can get away with everything from sexual harassment to micro-aggressions like assuming the woman in the room will take the notes, or be leaving soon to have babies," said Anne-Marie Imafidon, the head of Stemettes, a British group that encourages girls and young women to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
"It's little wonder that these people aren't putting women forward for nominations. We need to be better at telling the stories of the women in science who are doing good things and actually getting recognition," she said.
Powerful men taking credit for the ideas and elbow grease of their female colleagues was turned on its head in 1903 when Pierre Curie made it clear he would not accept the physics prize unless his wife and fellow researcher Marie Curie was jointly honored. She was the first female winner of any Nobel prize, but only one other woman has won the physics prize since then.
More than 70 years later, Jocelyn Bell, a post-graduate student at Cambridge, was overlooked for the physics prize despite her crucial contribution to the discovery of pulsars. Her supervisor, Antony Hewish, took all of the Nobel credit.
Brian Keating, a physics professor at the University of California San Diego and author of the book "Losing the Nobel Prize: A Story of Cosmology, Ambition, and the Perils of Science's Highest Honor," says the Nobel Foundation should lift its restrictions on re-awarding for a breakthrough if an individual has been overlooked. He also says posthumous awards also should be considered and there should be no restriction on the number of individuals who can share a prize. Today the limit is three people for one prize.
"These measures would go a long way to addressing the injustice that so few of the brilliant women who have contributed so much to science through the years have been overlooked," he said.
Keating fears that simply accepting the disparity as structural will seriously harm the prestige of all the Nobel prizes.
"I think with the Hollywood #MeToo movement, it has already happened in the film prizes. It has happened with the literature prize. There is no fundamental law of nature that the Nobel science prizes will continue to be seen as the highest accolade," he said.
This year's absence of a Nobel Literature prize , which has been won by 14 women, puts an even sharper focus on the gender gap in science prizes.
The Swedish Academy, which awards the literature prize, said it would not pick a winner this year after sex abuse allegations and financial crimes scandals rocked the secretive panel, sharply dividing its 18 members, who are appointed for life. Seven members quit or distanced themselves from academy. Its permanent secretary, Anders Olsson, said the academy wanted "to commit time to recovering public confidence."
The academy plans to award both the 2018 prize and the 2019 prize next year — but even that is not guaranteed. The head of the Nobel Foundation, Lars Heikensten, has warned that if the Swedish Academy does not resolve its tarnished image another group could be chosen to select the literature prize each year.
Stung by criticism about the diversity gap between former prize winners, the Nobel Foundation has asked that the science awarding panels for 2019 ask nominators to consider their own biases in the thousands of letters they send to solicit Nobel nominations.
"I am eager to see more nominations for women so they can be considered," said Goran Hansson, secretary-general of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences and vice chairman of the Nobel Foundation. "We have written to nominators asking them to make sure they do not miss women or people of other ethnicities or nationalities in their nominations. We hope this will make a difference for 2019."
It's not the first time that Nobel officials have sought diversity. In his 1895 will, prize founder Alfred Nobel wrote: "It is my express wish that in the awarding of the prizes no consideration shall be given to national affiliations of any kind, so that the most worthy shall receive the prize, whether he be Scandinavian or not."
Even so, the prizes remained overwhelmingly white and male for most of their existence.
For the first 70 years, the peace prize skewed heavily toward Western white men, with just two of the 59 prizes awarded to individuals or institutions based outside Europe or North America. Only three of the winners in that period were female.
The 1973 peace prize shared by North Vietnam's Le Duc Tho and American Henry Kissinger widened the horizons — since then more than half the Nobel Peace prizes have gone to African or Asian individuals or institutions.
Since 2000, six women have won the peace prize.
After the medicine prize on Monday, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences will announce the Nobel in physics on Tuesday and in chemistry on Wednesday, while the Nobel Peace Prize will be awarded Friday by the Norwegian Nobel Committee. On Oct. 8, Sweden's Central Bank announces the winner of the economics prize, given in honor of Alfred Nobel.
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Hitech Industry – IP Protection
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Find out how you can ensure the security of your confidential and mission critical data.
GhangorCloud’s pioneering 4th Generation DLEP technology and solution is recognized in the industry as the ‘Best of Breed” DLEP solution – Today it is the only DLEP solution that provides seamless protection against ‘Accidental’ and ‘Malicious’ data exfiltration attacks.
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Mike Rogers
Mike is a Strategy, Corporate and Business Development expert with a 25+ year background in Banking, Digital Media and Cybersecurity. Mike is a veteran consultant to early stage companies, having formed and built two management consulting practices in Silicon Valley, after successful Executive Strategy, Corporate and Business Development roles at OpenTV, Cyberguard, Secure Computing, and Lumension Security. Mike has a BA in Economics from the University of Michigan, and an MBA in International Finance from Thunderbird.
Tim Mather
Tim Mather is a long-time Information Security practitioner, who has served in executive roles as CSO of Cadence, Advisory Director Information Protection at KPMG, VP & Chief Security Strategist at RSA Security, VP & CISO at Symantec, Security Manager at Verisign, and Manager Information Security at Apple. Tim is a Board Member of the Silicon Valley Chapter of the Cloud Security Alliance.
Tim has co-authored two books on information security: “Cloud Security and Privacy: An Enterprise Perspective on Risks & Compliance” (O’Riely) and “The Executive Guide to Information Security: Threats, Challenges and Solutions” (Addison-Wesley). Tim is a CISSP, CISA and CISM. He holds Master’s Degrees in Information Assurance form Brandeis University, National Security Studies from Georgetown University, and International Policy Studies from Monterey Institute of International Studies. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Economics from the University of California at Berkeley.
Tarique Mustafa
Founder, CEO & CTO
Tarique is the Founder, CEO and the ‘Brain’ behind GhangorCloud’s game changing technology and product. He is recognized in the industry as the leading visionary and expert in Information Security, Advanced Persistent Threat and Data Leak Prevention. Tarique’s groundbreaking innovation in Advanced Persistent Threat and ‘Malicious Data Leak Prevention’ has won international recognition – he is frequently invited as Keynote / Guest Speaker at prestigious Security Conferences and Forums.
Most recently, Tarique was the founding CEO/CTO of nexTier Networks – a Silicon Valley company that has built “Best of the Breed” award winning Data Leak Prevention solution and technology.
Tarique has more than 20 years of industry experience in technical leadership positions at Symantec, DHL-Airways IT, MCI WorldCom, EDS, Andes Networks and Nevis Networks where he built industry leading security products. Previously, Tarique founded Network Utilities (a Silicon Valley startup that built wireless infrastructure & security platform) that was acquired by Andes Networks. Tarique also served as the CTO of Andes Networks, architects of an SSL Security Appliance and acquired by Sun Microsystems in 2003. Tarique also served as Principal Architect at Nevis Networks where he was responsible for building next generation Security Monitoring and Security Event Correlation technology for IDS/IPS (Intrusion Detection/Prevention) and SSL/IPSec.
Tarique has several patents (approved and pending) with USPTO and has published many research publications in the areas of Information & Data Security, Computer & Network Security, Software Architecture, Database Technologies and Artificial Intelligence. Tarique was awarded the prestigious Rotary International Scholarship for his Doctoral Studies in Computer Science at University of Southern California (USC). Tarique also holds Master’s Degrees in Engineering and Computer Science from University of Southern California (USC), and a Bachelor’s Degree in Mechanical Engineering from NED University of Engineering & Technology.
Ellen Brigham
VP, Customer Care
Ellen brings more than 30 years of marketing experience in networking and security products to GhangorCloud. Her accomplished marketing career includes key leadership roles at Cisco, Juniper and Hewlett-Packard where she has managed multiple product marketing, product management and technical marketing organizations. She has successfully driven the adoption and market share enhancements for several cutting-edge networking and security products serving the Enterprise, Service Provider and Commercial markets. Previously, in her leadership role she was instrumental in the development and launch of top selling networking and security products for Data Centers and Enterprise networking. These products received multiple industry awards.
Ellen has extensive experience in working with distributors and channel partners. At GhangorCloud she is responsible for product marketing and product management functions.
Ellen holds a Master’s Degree from Stanford University. She serves on the Board of Directors of Stanford Professional Women’s Organization. She is also a member of IEEE Robotics and Automation Society and Women of the Channel Forum.
Chief Systems Architect
John is a 30+ years veteran of Silicon Valley high-tech industry. He started his career in key technical positions with the pioneers of the high-tech industry such as 3-Com and Juniper where he developed the core foundational components of high performance Router Kernel and OS. More recently John has been in lead technical roles in multiple security companies including ArcSight-HP, PGP-Symantec, LogLogic, Netscreen-Juniper, Nevis Networks, nexTier Networks and Accellion.
Mixing abstract and production points of view, he has been involved in Data security, Data Communications, Custom Databases, Embedded Systems, Web Services, Platform Engineering, OS Internals and File Systems, Cryptography and Complex Event Processing. John has been a contributor to the software industry’s Open Source initiatives where he has made substantial contributions to the widely recognized Gnu-based software development and debugging platforms. John was a key member of the main GDB team at Cygnus. John holds a Bachellor’s Degree in Computer Science from University of California Irvine.
John Racioppi
EVP, Business Development
John brings to GhangroCloud over 30 years of leadership experience in the security, software, and networking arenas. He has driven strategy and direction for a number of organizations, most recently serving as CEO of Enhanced Communications Delivery Systems, a SaaS company focused on multi- channel messaging as a platform service. Prior to ECDS Mr. Racioppi served as General Manager, Data Leak Prevention Group, at Trend Micro as well as AVP, Enterprise Business Unit. Mr. Racioppi helped develop Trend’s strategy in DLP and served on the team which acquired Provilla, Inc. While at Trend he led the project team focused on long-term strategy and direction. John has extensive functional experience in strategic planning, product assessment and planning, go-to-market strategies, and revenue improvement.
John has been a leader in a variety of successful startup organizations as well as large public corporations including Trend Micro, Borland, IBM, AT&T and early stage companies including Infravio, Moonlight Systems, Lutris, and DASCOM. John also has experience in the consulting arena as part of Ernst & Young’s Telecommunications and Network consulting practice. John has led the strategy and planning activities of several global software vendors as they assessed new market opportunities. John received his MBA from the University of Pittsburgh.
Bhanu Panda
Bhanu brings over two decades of leadership and success in the Silicon Valley, in areas of Networking, Security & Storage. He has held leadership positions, and was an early member, at several successful startup companies such as Array Networks, AlteonWebsystems and Auspex Systems. Bhanu has extensive experience in driving an organization’s overall strategy, building a global partner eco-system, and driving customer success.
At GhangorCloud, Bhanu holds the position of Chief Operating Officer and is a member of the Board. He is responsible for the overall business side: Strategy, Sales, Business Development, Customer Success and Operations.
Prior to GhangorCloud, Bhanu served as VP of Worldwide Sales, Business Development & Services for Array Networks. Bhanu revamped Global Sales efforts to deliver consistently superior results, leading to consecutive profitable quarters/years. Array had a successful IPO in 2009. He led the company into newer regions in APAC and established Array as a leader in its market category.
Previous to his time at Array, Bhanu was an early member and held management positions at AlteonWebsystems where he built and led the Customer Advocacy team as well as contributing significantly to BD activities. Alteon was recognized for its Customer Satisfaction and Services. Alteon had a hugely successful IPO followed by M&A with Nortel. Prior to Alteon, Panda managed the Customer Satisfaction organization at Auspex Systems, with Fortune-500 clientele.
Bhanu holds a Master’s degree in Computer Science from Jackson State University.
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Before Watching Almost Human: 5 Shows And A Movie You Must See
By Brent McKnight | 7 years ago
Fox’s futuristic police procedural Almost Human premieres this Sunday and Monday, November 17 and 18 respectively, and not only does it look like a badass new sci-fi joint, the show boasts a ton of big time creative power as well. Behind the scenes you’ll recognize names like J.J. Abrams, who is directing a little movie we like to call Star Wars: Episode VII, and J.H. Wyman, the showrunner behind Fringe. On screen, there’s Bones McCoy himself, the new incarnation of him anyway, Karl Urban, Lily Taylor from The Conjuring, and Friday Night Lights’ Minka Kelly, among others.
Before you dive head first into a brand new series, we thought you might like to spend the weekend preparing, stretching your mental facilities as it were. You don’t want to pull a hammy on game day, do you? With that in mind, here are a few series, and one movie, that may serve as a good jumping off point for Almost Human. Many of the shows are short-lived affairs, or at least lived lives where they burned the proverbial twice as bright, but only half as long. Let’s hope Almost Human doesn’t go that route, we could use some long, sustained sci-fi on our televisions.
Pages [ 1 2 3 4 ]
We Want Karl Urban But Judge Dredd’s New TV Series Is Making This Huge Mistake
Tenet Is In Theaters, Here’s How Many People Actually Saw It
What Star Trek: Lower Decks Is Getting Right And Wrong So Far
Umbrella Academy Season 2 Review: Things Get Groovy In A Solid Sophomore Season
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Happily Imperfect‽
Random burblings since 1999
Home > Life > Open day wander
Published April 2, 2006 by Gordon
Open day wander
A few historical sites had open days this weekend, so Louise and I headed off to visit Glasgow Cathedral. What a glorious building. I can’t really say much more than that (or I’d be here all day), suffice to say that there is something very powerful about buildings of that stature, maybe not religious (for me at least) but very evocative.
After that we wandered round the Necropolis as Louise missed the guided tour last year as she wasn’t well. Odd to think that the very next day we were rushing to the airport only to find out it was too late…
Anyway, needless to say I took some photos (I took a LOT of photos, these are the best of a bad bunch).
Then it was off to Babbity Bowster for some hearty food in a smoke free environment – bliss indeed – and then a little bit of shopping before our weary feet headed for home. It was a lovely day, much needed after the marathon of last week. Louise and I had were more like house guests, meeting at breakfast and occasionally late at night, so it was good to touch base and spend a day with my loving, funny, and fabulous wife. I do love her so.
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Lancelot 'Capability' Brown (1716-1783)
Lancelot ‘Capability’ Brown (1716–1783) changed the face of eighteenth century England, designing country estates and mansions, moving hills and creating lakes.
Blenheim Palace Landscape by Lancelot 'Capability' Brown (1716-1783)
Lancelot Brown was born in Northumberland and served an apprenticeship with Sir William Lorraine. A move to Buckinghamshire in 1739 led to employment by Lord Cobham at Stowe in 1741, where his job as head gardener was to last 10 years.
It was here at Stowe that gave Brown the opportunity to work with William Kent and see great works carried out there under the overall direction of Kent. Lancelot Brown was a leader in the development of the 'natural', 'English' or 'serpentine' style of gardening.
In 1751, Brown became an independent landscape gardener, although he described himself as a 'place-maker' rather than a landscape gardener, and quickly became very fashionable and in great demand.
Lancelot Brown became known as 'Capability' because of his fondness of speaking of a country estate having a great 'capability' for improvement. He rejected the very formal geometric French style of gardening, a perfect example being at Versailles, and concentrated on echoing the natural undulations of the English landscape.
Characteristics of his work included grass meadows in front of the mansion, serpentine lakes, follies, encircling carriage drives, belts and circular clumps of trees. Bridges or cascades often were used to connect the 'natural' lakes and great many formal gardens were destroyed on Brown's say-so, to be replaced with landscapes, which did lead to criticism later on.
Lancelot Capability Brown's career of 32 years saw his style hardly change with the serpentine shapes becoming his hallmark. His popularity peaked at the time of his death, but then fell into decline, reaching its lowest point in the 1880s. By 1980 however, after a gradual recovery Lancelot Brown was recognised as a genius of English garden design.
Lancelot Capability Brown's sympathetic method of working meant that of the 200 plus parks he designed a surprising number remain in good condition. Often they have adapted well to modern day use as public parks, farms, golf courses and schools. Some of the estates he designed include:-
Blenheim Palace,
Longleat in Wiltshire,
Chatsworth House,
Harewood House,
Prior Park
Stowe.
Gatton Park
It is at these parks that gardeners today can appreciate Lancelot Capability Brown's magnificent landscapes.
Sarah Topp is a garden designer based in Wiltshire. She studied garden design at Merrist Wood College, Surrey and can be contacted via her website www.toppdesigns.co.uk
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GREG MESSEL | AUTHOR
LAST OF THE SEALS
Mystery, romance and baseball in 1957 San Francisco. Sam Slater is a lifetime minor league baseball player for the San Francisco Seals. The Seals have just one more season left as San Francisco is about to become a major league city. Sam has come to the end of his baseball career and is going to join the private detective agency of his best friend.
When Sam’s partner inadvertently sees something he shouldn’t have, he is brutally murdered. Sam must go it alone and try to find out why. Along the way he is swept off of his feet by a beautiful, Elvis-obsessed TWA stewardess named Amelia Ryan. Sam and Amelia try to unravel the mystery together. On dark and foggy San Francisco nights, trouble is lurking just around the next corner.
Buy at BN.com
Buy at Kobo
© 2017 by Greg Messel. All rights reserved.
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From the tender age of eight, Grégoire Pont attended the Animation Workshop in Paris where he studied Norman McLaren’s techniques of animation dynamics.
He graduated from the Met de Penninghen school of Graphic Arts (ESAG) in 1992 and shortly thereafter directed his first animated film Le concerto du chat, with abstract drawings painted on glass or drawn directly on the film showing shapes dancing to the sounds of the instruments in an orchestral, recorded at Salle Pleyel.
Pont participated in a master class with the great animation director Richard Williams (Who Framed Roger Rabbit, The Thief and the Cobbler), allowing him to deepen his knowledge of the fluidity in animation. A great lover of classical music, Pont has always been passionate about making classical music more popular and accessible to children by means of animation.
He has developed a new performance concept called Cinesthetics: in complicity with a group of musicians, he draws and animates live, creating a unique experience where music and motion interplay.
His refreshing approach, and the wit and insight of his animations, are gaining him plaudits around the world.
Recent performances include Stravinsky’s Firebird in Helsingborg with Stefan Solyom, Ravel’s Ma mère l’oye at the London Royal Festival Hall and the Paris Philharmonie, Schönberg’s Gurrelieder in Gothenburg with Kent Nagano, Debussy’s La mer in Tokyo’s Suntory Hall with Kazushi Ono, Bartók’s Concerto for Orchestra with SWR Symphony Orchestra.
In November 2016, he premiered his first venture into the operatic repertoire, with a production at the Lyon Opera of Ravel’s L’Enfant et les sortilèges which uses projections of his animations as its sole staging.
Future performances include Holst’s The Planets in Norrköping and SaintSaens’ Le carnival des animaux with Les Siècles and François-Xavier Roth.
For three seasons, Pont worked with the French conductor François-Xavier Roth and his innovative orchestra Les Siècles on Presto! (France Television). This series of short musical excerpts introduced audiences to popular classical music works via animation and video and was seen by over three million viewers on weekly primetime television.
Pont also illustrates books for children, most notably Les Excalibrius, and has made numerous animations for TV commercials, educational animated shorts and music video clips. He has been commissioned by the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art (Denmark) to create four animation shorts such as Guillaume Connesson’s Disco Toccata by and André Dalbavie’s Flute Concerto.
http://maestroarts.com/artists/gregoire-pont
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6a1Ic3Tlta7SE3tCqhW7Ag
(c) Anouar Brissel
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Everything We Know About Ariana Grande’s New Fiancé, Dalton Gomez
Posted On : December 21, 2020 Published By : Monique Wilson
Long before he wreaked havoc across the United States and the world at large, Donald Trump inflicted his horrors on Atlantic City, New Jersey.
In that case it was a string of failed casinos financed with high-interest junk bonds that he was never going to be able to pay off. Their collapse and the tremendous ten-figure debt he took away from them in the early 1990s was, at the time, Donald Trump’s most public and embarrassing scandal.
It’s a record he has since broken on numerous occasions — losing reelection, allowing over 300,000 Americans to die of a virus that other countries successfully contained, being associated with Rudy Giuliani — but the scars of Trump’s early failure still mark Atlantic City. Where they haven’t been rebranded or demolished, his massive, shuttered buildings have stood disused and dilapidated.
For Donald Trump it may be enough to have his name scraped and scrubbed from these decrepit shells. But for the citizens of Atlantic City they stand as stark reminders of how one wealthy, arrogant man helped to topple the local economy.
The tower of the Trump Plaza Hotel has been a particular problem in recent years. In its disintegrating state it became a hazard to public safety, with chunks of its crumbling façade falling to the street below. There is a bright spot on the horizon, however.
Atlantic City’s Revenge: Blowing Up Trump’s Casino For Charity | The Beat With Ari Melber | MSNBC
This year the city has finally begun demolition on this piece of Donald Trump’s legacy, with a pyrotechnic finale scheduled for February. The opportunity to push the button imploding the hotel’s stripped-bare tower is being offered in auction, with proceeds going to the Boys’ and Girls’ Club of Atlantic City.
Atlantic City Mayor Marty Small has said that he hopes to raise “at least a million dollars,” noting that he’s “a pretty ambitious guy.” Currently the bidding stands at around $60,000, but it will remain open until January 19th — one day before Trump will be forced to relinquish the presidency to Joe Biden. A live auction among the highest bidders will follow on the 29th.
But should the privilege of erasing this blight — and publicly humiliating Donald Trump — really belong to the wealthiest person with a grudge against the soon-to-be-former president? Surely there’s someone with a more legitimate claim to that honor.
That’s what former adult film star Zoe Britton thought when she heard about the auction last Thursday. Britton tweeted the suggestion to crowd-fund a bid for her friend Stephanie Clifford — AKA Stormy Daniels — to push the button that topples Trump Plaza Hotel. Daniels enthusiastically signed onto the idea, adding the detail that the button should be modeled after a toadstool — a reference to her infamous description of the president’s genitals.
@ejeancarroll @realDonaldTrump This is hands down the best idea ever! I also want to commission the button to be shaped like a toadstool 🍄
— Stormy Daniels (@Stormy Daniels)1608415328.0
The concept has since become a reality with a GoFundMe campaign that has so far raised a little over $1,700 to award the responsibility for that symbolic implosion to Stormy Daniels. But is she really the most worthy candidate?
For anyone who has somehow remained unaware of Daniels’ history with Trump, the former adult film star had an (alleged) affair with Donald Trump in 2006. Back then he was merely the star of The Apprentice, and famous for being a rich assh**e and the basis for Biff Tannen’s arc in Back to the Future Part II, and reportedly invited Daniels to dine with him when the two met at a charity golf tournament.
What (allegedly) followed from there was a whirlwind romance involving Shark Week, a periodical spanking, a promised role on Celebrity Apprentice, and a grudging resignation to physical intimacy. But the real drama is in the aftermath.
Several years after their (alleged) affair ended, Daniels reportedly shared details of her relationship with Donald Trump with a gossip magazine. Contrary to his enthusiastic attitude toward previous tabloid affairs, Donald Trump apparently didn’t want his tryst with Daniels to be publicized. Michael Cohen, his personal lawyer at the time, intervened to squash the story — though rumors of the (alleged) affair were still published in Life & Style that October.
Not long after, Daniels reports that a man approached her in a parking lot with instructions to “leave Trump alone.” Daniels had her young daughter with her at the time, and recalls the man saying “That’s a beautiful little girl — it’d be a shame if something happened to her mom,” before leaving them. That was in 2011, but the fallout was far from over.
EXCLUSIVE – Stormy Daniels Details Sex with Donald Trump
In October of 2016 — shortly before the 2016 election, and around the time of the infamous Hollywood Access “grab ’em by the p***y” tape — Fox News reporter Diana Falzone allegedly wrote an article on the affair that the outlet chose to shelve. Secretly Michael Cohen had arranged to pay Stormy Daniels $130,000 to keep her quiet — in violation of campaign finance law.
In January of 2018, rumors of the affair surfaced anyway. In the meantime, Donald Trump had become president. Stormy Daniels initially denied them — supposedly at the behest of her then-lawyer Keith Davidson, who may or may not have colluded with Michael Cohen to bury that story as well as the (alleged) Karen McDougal affair.
When Daniels eventually acknowledged the (alleged) affair and began sharing the sordid details, she became a target of Donald Trump’s most ardent and unhinged supporters. She has received numerous death threats and was even arrested on flimsy charges by some politically-minded police in Ohio.
In short, Stormy Daniels’ life was thrown into chaos by that brief, regrettable (alleged) affair with Donald Trump. And as a result of her coming forward, the scandal occupied America’s attention for perhaps as long as any in Trump’s tenure.
The legal issues that ensued eventually motivated Michael Cohen to renounce his longtime loyalty to Trump. He even went on to be a cooperating witness against Trump, offering congressional testimony that the president was a “con man” and a “racist” who had committed illegal acts of obstruction and self-dealing while in office.
In short, Stormy Daniels contributed perhaps as much as anyone in the last four years to the efforts to expose Donald Trump as the pathetic fraud that he is. And she has suffered for it.
On one hand, that seems like a strong case for letting Daniels push that momentous and possibly-toadstool-shaped button. But if she really wanted to, she could use some portion of the reported $800,000 advance on her memoir Full Disclosure to make a more serious bid.
On top of that, aren’t their others who might be more deserving? Others who have done more to take Trump down, or who have suffered more as a result of his cruelty?
The honor could go to one of contractors Trump has put out of work, or one of the family’s he tore apart at the border. It could go to any student who was bilked by Trump University, or any resident of Atlantic City who suffered the consequences of Donald Trump’s financial recklessness.
A child crying as a border official searches her mother in TexasJohn Moore
It could go to E. Jean Caroll or any of the dozens of other women who’ve accused the president of sexual misconduct, or to Stacey Abrams, Gretchen Whitmer, or Martin Gugino. Or It could go to any of the loved ones of the 318,000 Americans who have died of COVID so far this year…
In the end, the people who deserve the honor of destroying one of Donald Trump’s monuments to his own ego may outnumber even the numerous vanity projects on which he’s plastered his name. But the best way to honor all of them is not through some symbolic bit of dramatic catharsis. It’s by erasing the corrosive legacy Donald Trump has left on our government, our discourse, and our democratic institutions.
Unfortunately, that will take a lot more than the push of a button.
Posted in: Pop
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The Queen’s Gambit Is Officially Netflix’s Most-Watched Scripted Limited Series
Netflix has given us a whole lot of original content to enjoy over the past few months, but one show has drawn more eyes than almost any other scripted series: The Queen’s Gambit. With 62 million Netflix accounts around the world watching at least two minutes of the show, the hit series centered on chess prodigy Beth Harmon (Anya Taylor-Joy) is officially Netflix’s top scripted limited series, according to a Nov. 23 release from the streaming platform.
The streamer also said the series ranked No. 1 in 63 countries and in the top 10 in 92 countries. The only other Netflix show to garner more views was Tiger King, which was watched by 64 million accounts in the first four weeks after its premiere. While a second season is unlikely, The Queen’s Gambit‘s impact is impossible to ignore. Not only have chess sales increased over 170 percent, according to Goliath Games, but Google searches for “how to play chess” have also hit a nine-year peak. If you’re one of the few people who have yet to watch the popular series, it’s not too late!
Entertainment Gambit, Limited, MostWatched, Netflixs, Officially, Queens, Scripted, Series
Lydia Livingston
Lydia is the newest member of the Genesis Brand family and has fit into the culture seamlessly. After graduating college, three years ago, Lydia made the transition to west coast life after her early years in NYC. She's an avid tennis player, animal rights activist and aspiring vegan chef.
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Barack Obama Celebrates Michelle’s 57th Birthday: “Every Moment With You Is a Blessing” January 17, 2021
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Home | Israel News
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Bernie Sanders Goes Head to Head With Al Jazeera Interviewer on Israel
Sanders rejects BDS, defends criticism of UN, but adds the U.S. should have a Mideast policy that isn't simply supplying 'endless amounts of money, of military support to Israel'
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Bernie Sanders interviewed by Al Jazeera. Not a fan of BDSCredit: Screenshot
In an appearance on Al Jazeera, Bernie Sanders defended Israel’s right to exist, rejected BDS as a tactic and assailed the United Nations for singling out the country for condemnation.
Sanders to Trump's envoy pick Friedman: Should some of U.S. aid to Israel go to Gaza?
Bernie Sanders: We need to end the 50-year-long Israeli occupation
Bernie Sanders meets with Israeli Arab leader Ayman Odeh, day after calling for end to Israeli occupation
The Vermont senator’s interview Wednesday on the Qatar-based network, known for its often hypercritical coverage of Israel, was consistent with a style that Americans came to know last year during his run for the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination: Sanders does not modify his messaging for his audience.
>> Get all updates on Israel and the Jewish World: Download our free App, and Subscribe >>
Sanders, despite his defeat in the primaries to Hillary Clinton, who went on to lose to Donald Trump, remains the standard-bearer of the American left. His robust rejection of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement is evidence that a firewall remains among elected officials on the American left against more radical expressions of Israel criticism that have gained traction overseas.
The interviewer, Dena Takruri, challenged Sanders for joining every other U.S. senator last month in signing a letter to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urging him to remedy the body’s “anti-Israel agenda.”
Takruri asked why Sanders was “effectively trying to shield [Israel] from criticism.” Sanders interrupted, “No, no, no, no, no, I don’t accept that,” saying “there are many problems with Israel” and he would continue to “be critical of a lot of what Israel does.”
“On the other hand, to see Israel attacked over and over again for human rights violations which may be true, when you have countries like Saudi Arabia or Syria, Saudi Arabia – I’m not quite sure if a woman can even drive a car today,” Sanders said.
“So I think the thrust of that letter is not to say that Israel does not have human rights issues — it does — but to say how come it’s only Israel when you have other countries where women are treated as third-class citizens, where in Egypt, I don’t know how many thousands of people now lingering in jail, so that’s the point of that, not to defend Israel but to say why only Israel, you want to talk about human rights, let’s talk about human rights,” he said.
Asked by Takruri whether he “respected” BDS as a legitimate nonviolent protest movement, Sanders said, “No, I don’t.”
"I mean, look. I respect people who do what they want to do, but I think our job as a nation is to do everything humanly possible to bring Israel and the Palestinians and the entire Middle East to the degree that we can together, but no, I’m not a supporter of that,” he said.
>> Mystery Solved: Haaretz Archive Reveals Which Kibbutz Bernie Sanders Volunteered On >>
“What must be done is that the United States of America is to have a Middle East policy which is even-handed, which does not simply supply endless amounts of money, of military support to Israel, but which treats both sides with respect and dignity and does our best to bring them to the table.”
Sanders also rejected Takruri’s assertion that the two-state solution is almost dead and said he would not embrace a one-state solution.
“I think if that happens, then that would be the end of the State of Israel and I support Israel’s right to exist,” he said. “I think if there is the political will to make it happen and if there is good faith on both sides I do think it’s possible, and I think there has not been good faith, certainly on this Israeli government and I have my doubts about parts of the Palestinian leadership as well.”
Sanders, the first Jewish candidate to win major party nominating contests, was critical of conventional pro-Israel postures during the campaign, but also defended the state.
He told MSNBC last year that anti-Semitism was a factor driving the BDS movement, yet in a debate in the New York primary – with its critical mass of Jewish voters – Sanders chided Clinton for barely mentioning Palestinians in her speech earlier the same year to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee.
During the campaign, he hired as his Jewish outreach staffer Simone Zimmerman, who founded IfNotNow, which protests mainstream U.S. Jewish silence on Israel’s occupation. Although Sanders fired Zimmerman after her vulgar postings on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu came to light, the very hiring was a signal that there was now a political home for young Jews who embraced the idea of Israel but were willing to robustly protest its government’s actions.
Sanders also named prominent Israel critics to the Democrats platform-drafting committee, yet when their Israel-critical language was rejected, he nonetheless robustly endorsed the platform because it met his other demands on economic inequality. He described himself at a meeting in New York’s Harlem neighborhood as a “strong defender of Israel” and for the first time spoke warmly about the time he spent in Israel in the 1960s on a kibbutz.
Democrats in recent years have grown increasingly critical of Israel, a result in part of the parlous relationship between Netanyahu and President Barack Obama, and the fraught tone of the debate in 2015 over the Iran nuclear agreement.
But the tense tone of the Al Jazeera interview and Sanders’ refusal to accept anti-Israel pieties commonplace among progressives suggests the resistance among Democrats to more radical expressions of Israel criticism. Democratic lawmakers, for instance, continue to join Republicans in overwhelmingly approving anti-BDS legislation on the state and federal levels.
Israel - U.S.
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Investment opportunity at purpose-built HMO in Golders Green
Prudence Ivey
Registered HMO on Golders Green Road, available through Goldschmidt & Howland for £8.5 million - Credit: Archant
A rare opportunity to invest in a purpose built HMO (house in multiple occupation) on Golders Green Road, NW11, has arisen.
A mock-up of the kitchenettes included in each unit - Credit: Archant
The development, which is being marketed by Goldschmidt & Howland, comprises 38 studio and one-bedroom units, each with a kitchenette.
Due for completion in the first two weeks of February, the building has already been approved for use as an HMO.
Richard Humphreys, a director at Goldschmidt & Howland, said: “It’s very unusual to get a unit that’s purpose built and brand new as an HMO and all the units have been built to a very high standard.
“Although buildings like this can be labour intensive as they do have to be managed, they do have good yields.
“HMOs are normally relatively inexpensive homes, so this development is filling a desperate need in the area, and really across the whole of London.”
While Golders Green is dominated by large family homes, Humphreys also points out that this stretch of the main road has a diverse range of dwellings and businesses on it, underlining the gap in the market for comparatively affordable homes like this, which are ideal for single tenants or couples.
There are 44 rooms in total covering 11,977 sq ft arranged over four floors.
Each floor has a shared kitchen and utility room where tenants can do laundry and cook more complex meals when their requirements are more elaborate than their individual kitchenettes will allow.
The remaining six rooms are set aside as office space, but could be converted to additional studios, subject to planning.
Location of the registered HMO on Golders Green Road, available through Goldschmidt & Howland for £8.5 million - Credit: Archant
Humphreys said: “For an HMO it’s high spec. There’s a card-operated front door and the units have metered heating. A lot of facilities are going to be provided for the tenants: it’s got parking in front, communal gardens and terraces.”
The block is ideally situated for busy tenants with local shops and amenities and Brent Cross shopping centre within easy reach.
It is also well placed for commuting, located between Limes Avenue and Woodstock Avenue on Golders Green Road, moments from Golders Green Underground station.
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Celebrities join mourners at David Gest’s funeral in Golders Green
Published: 3:37 PM April 29, 2016 Updated: 1:47 PM October 14, 2020
The coffin arrives for the funeral of David Gest arriving at Golders Green Crematorium in north London. - Credit: PA WIRE
Mourners have remembered music producer and TV star David Gest at a funeral service in Golders Green.
David Gest, who died last month (Picture: PA) - Credit: PA WIRE
Flowers in the shape of a musical note and the words Unforgettable, That’s What You Are adorned the coffin as stars including Kerry Katona, Kym Marsh and Darren Day gathered for his funeral.
Gest, 62, was the former husband of Liza Minnelli.
He was found dead in a five-star hotel in London on April 12.
Denise Welch, Danniella Westbrook, Gemma Collins, Lizzie Cundy, Vanessa Feltz and Dean Gaffney were also among the mourners at his funeral at the Golders Green Crematorium.
A wooden coffin with gold handles and adorned with white flowers arrived in a hearse for the ceremony.
A white floral display with a black musical note, a butterfly and the lyrics to Nat King Cole’s famous song rested alongside it.
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50-client-a-night Paddington brothel shut down after 1am police swoop
Ben Bloom
Published: 11:26 AM May 21, 2011 Updated: 1:30 PM October 14, 2020
A brothel on a residential Paddington street which housed 11 women has been shut down after being raided by police.
Officers burst into the premises in Sale Place around 1am last Thursday after reports from residents of night-time activity.
The brothel was estimated to have had up to 50 punters visiting a night.
It has been told to stop operating and will be served with a court order to close if it continues.
Hyde Park Safer Neighbourhood Team Sgt Ken Taylor led the raid team alongside trafficking and prostitution officers.
He said that the people found at the address claimed to be there for a party.
“We gathered enough evidence that the women at the address were part of the sex industry and the premises was being used as a brothel,” he said.
“Our priority is to keep the area safe for residents and the people who work here. It’s quite disruptive to have people arriving at all hours of the night.
“If it closes and they move on without us having to go to court, then that’s the best outcome.”
It is believed that clients were brought to the location by minicabs, whose drivers were given “kick backs” from brothel insiders to promote their trade.
All the women at the address said they had not been involved in trafficking.
It is the second largest brothel in the area to be raided recently. A premises housing 17 prostitutes was shut down in Harrowby Street in Marylebone in November.
Hyde Park Safer Neighbourhood Ward Panel chairman Jack Gordon said: “Brothels of this nature cause great upset and disturbance and they are a blight on the local community.
“We have no alternative in striving for the best interests of people locally to close it down because they regard it as an affront.
“It was noisy, unattractive and intimidating and the police acted quickly and efficiently. Closure will be to the benefit of the local area.”
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Hampstead Highgate Express > News > Local Council
Haringey Council set to increase council tax by 2.99% in latest budget
Harry Taylor
Published: 5:24 PM February 20, 2019 Updated: 1:59 PM October 14, 2020
Cllr Pat Berryman at a Haringey cabinet meeting in 2018. Picture: David Winskill - Credit: Archant
Haringey Council is set to raise council tax for the first time in nearly a decade.
Its core tax has been frozen since 2009, but in the face of increasing demands and cuts from government, the council’s cabinet voted to increase it by 2.99per cent.
The move will bring in an extra £3million a year for the council. It will be put before a full council meeting on Monday.
Earlier this month the council voted to take 6,000 of the borough’s low-income families out of paying council tax.
At its meeting last week, the cabinet backed paying all employees the London Living Wage, and rolling out free school meals to every primary school child.
The budget includes £1billion for housebuilding.
The budget is Haringey Council’s first since Cllr Joseph Ejiofor took over as leader after last year’s election. His finance chief Pat Berryman told the Ham&High it had been a “very large scale, complex” project.
Cllr Berryman took on the post last May, after four years on the backbenches.
“There’s a lot to learn, despite time scrutinising things like this in committees as a backbencher,” he said.
The Bounds Green councillor and former financial markets worker said the council had to be more “creative” in where to save money.
He said: “It’s a stressful position if you actually care about what happens to services. In a world where we have had eight years of austerity, the process is to find the way to reduce the budget because we’ve got less money.”
He said Haringey was also in a poorer position as it didn’t get the same business rates yield as Camden or Westminster, and the revenue support grant has also been cut.
“I am proud of what we have put into place from our manifesto,” he said. “The lifting of the Housing Revenue Cap, along with money from City Hall, has made our house building ambitions work. I’m really pleased we’ve been able to fulfil our pledge on the council tax reduction scheme as well, where 6,000 families on the lowest income will be better off.”
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OUT & ABOUT CAMERAS * THE ARTS * FOOD AND WINE LIFESTYLE COMMUNITY NORTH FORK
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Dante Mazzetti Headlining Masonic Winter Music Series
Nicole Barylski
nbarylski@hamptons.com
Dante Mazzetti has been busy at work recording his forthcoming album, which is expected to be released this spring. (Photo: www.facebook.com)
Rising East End musician Dante Mazzetti is performing during The Masonic Winter Music Series on Saturday, April 13. Taking place at the Sag Harbor Whaling & Historical Museum in Sag Harbor from 8 to 9 p.m., proceeds from the spectacular evening will support the Mason's Pierson High School Scholarship Fund and the Sag Harbor Community Food Pantry.
"I'm so honored to be a part of this benefit series again this year," Mazzetti reflected. "The proceeds go towards supporting education and feeding those who are hungry - two very important local causes."
Mazzetti's unique sound is described as "acoustic indie folk with soul." The singer songwriter is lauded for his "gritty vocals, fingerpicking guitar style, and engaging live performances." Even though it's a one man show, Mazzetti dazzles and impresses as he simultaneously plays numerous instruments, including guitar or mandolin, accompanied by bass, harmonica and percussion.
The musician starred in Levi's "What's True" commercial campaign and has opened for notable acts like Ben Folds, Guster, and America.
For Mazzetti, giving back through benefit performances is vital. In addition to The Masonic Winter Music Series, he has partnered with organizations such as the FDNY, Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, and The Surfrider Foundation.
Currently, Mazzetti has been busy working on a new album, which is expected to be released this spring. He also has plans to tour the US this summer.
Additional Masonic Winter Music Series concerts include Rose's Grove Band on May 4, Rafaela Gurtler on May 25, and Sarah Conway on June 8.
"It's not often you get to be part of an event that is more than just entertainment, but affects the quality of life for so many," he added.
The Sag Harbor Whaling & Historical Museum is located at 200 Main Street in Sag Harbor. For more information, visit www.facebook.com.
Nicole is the Editor-in-Chief of Hamptons.com where she focuses on lifestyle, nightlife, and mixology. She grew up in the Hamptons and currently resides in Water Mill. www.hamptons.com NicoleBarylski NicoleBarylski
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We pay less,and so do you.With over 1,000 stores in our buying group, we can get the lowest prices from the best flooring manufacturers — and pass the savings on to you.Visit our other locations: Hamptons Carpet One Floor & Home, 675 North Sea Road,Southampton, NY 11968
Southampton Masonry-Visiting the Southampton or the Wainscott locations is an exciting experience.
Southampton Masonry has been serving Long Island's masonry and tile needs since 1975. Delivering quality products from Manhattan to Montauk for over three decades. The company's continued success is due primarily to their number one priority: customer satisfaction, with a promise of prompt and courteous service from the professional, knowledgeable staff. Southampton Masonry has the largest inventory on the east end. As direct importers they can offer a large variety of the finest quality products at the most competitive pricing for both your interior and exterior projects.
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Southrifty Drug is a small, neighborhood pharmacy with limited shelf space, and we have to be very selective about which over-the-counter items we carry. As a result you'll find a no nonsense concentration of very effective, high quality and useful products on our shelves. In this new section, we feature a number of these products that we feel are especially worthy of your consideration.
Burner Law Group, P.C.
Burner Law Group, P.C. are full service elder law attorneys concentrating in the areas of Estate Planning, Trust and Estate Administration and Litigation, Special Needs Planning, Guardianship and Elder Law. Offices in East Setauket‚ NY, Westhampton Beach, NY, and New York, NY.
Suburban Propane in Bridgehampton, New York has been serving proudly supporting our community for 90 years.
Suburban Propane has been serving the energy needs for home owners and business in the Hampton’s for decades. We offer friendly service by local professionals you know and trust, plus the peace of mind that comes from knowing we are among the leaders in the industry for safety.
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St Albans care home residents celebrate 100th and 105th birthdays
Anne Suslak
Published: 1:59 PM January 9, 2020 Updated: 3:10 PM November 1, 2020
Eileen Cook celebrated her 105th birthday with her family and staff at Verulam House Care Home in St Albans. Picture: Verulam House - Credit: Archant
A St Albans care home has celebrated milestone birthdays for two of its residents.
Roy Cooper celebrated his 100th birthday with his family and staff at Verulam House Care Home in St Albans. Picture: Verulam House - Credit: Archant
Eileen Cook, who turned 105 on December 18, and Roy Cooper, who turned 100 on December 14, celebrated their birthdays at Verulam House care home alongside their families and staff.
Eileen has lived at Verulam House since May 2015, and was previously an infants school teacher in Harrogate before retiring in 1978.
Reflecting on her life so far, she said that she is most proud of being a good teacher and of her two sons, seven grandchildren and six great-grandchildren.
Eileen also met President Charles de Gaulle of France when he made a state visit to the UK in 1960, in recognition of her support for pilots from the Free French Air Forces living in the UK during the Second World War.
She remains passionate about France, describing her main interests as speaking French, history, the Royal Family and her own family.
Eileen's fellow resident Roy also had a role in the Second World War as a sound ranging surveyor, before going into the building industry as an estimator and surveyor. He then moved into contract management and became contracts director for a London building contractor before his retirement - working on buildings including the Royal Opera House, an extension to the Natural History Museum and the St Albans Cathedral chapter house.
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Roy bought a plot of land in St Albans and built a house which he designed himself, living there from 1957 until he moved into Verulam House in January 2017 due to ill health.
His son David said: "He was a man who could and would repair anything, and had an extensive and quality set of tools which were kept in mint condition.
"He was intensely practical and built a model railway in my bedroom when I was a child, and after I left set up an even bigger and more impressive set up his loft. He also enjoyed running miniature steam engines.
"He enjoyed reading, particularly historical accounts of World War II battles and strategy, as well as novels and factual books. He always wanted to know how things work and understand the science."
Verulam House Nursing and Residential Home is based in Verulam Road and was built in 1996, and is registered for a maximum of 50 residents.
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A Year in History: 1966 Timeline
Written by Francesca Bjorkegren
Last Updated on 19th November 2020
1966 was a year where the average house price was £3,840, and a gallon of petrol cost 5 shillings (or 26p).
This 1966 timeline lists events that you may have not known about, such as John Lennon stating the Beatles were more famous than Jesus, the introduction of a hazardous warning on cigarette packs and multiple space launches from both the USSR and US. These 1966 events will be never forgotten – especially England’s football team winning the World Cup, which still remains their only major football trophy.
If you’re interested to see how the events in this historic year were reported at the time, take a look at our collection of 1966 newspapers.
Walter Disney Dies
January 1: A 12 day strike of transit workers shuts down the NYC subway.
January 1: A military coup led by Colonel Jean-Bedel Bokassa is successful and leads to his dictatorship in Central African Republic.
January 1: All cigarette packs in the US have to carry, by law, the words “Caution, cigarette smoking may be hazardous to your health.”
January 2: In Spain, the first Jewish child is born since the 1492 expulsion.
January 8: The Rubber Soul album by The Beatles, goes number 1 and stays at the top position for 6 weeks.
January 8: Georges Pompidou is re-appointed the French Prime Minister and forms a new government.
January 8: The Who and the Kinks perform on the last ABC TV show, Shindig.
January 10: Pakistan and India both sign the Tashkent Declaration peace accord.
January 11: Due to heavy rain, 550 people die in landslides in mountains behind Rio de Janeiro.
January 12: The transit strike ends in NYC.
January 12: Lyndon B. Johnson, 36th US President, claims that the US should stay in South Vietnam until the communist aggression ends.
January 12: 3 Members of Parliament are attacked in a hotel in Rhodesia.
January 13: Robert C Weaver becomes the first black man selected for presidential cabinet.
January 14: Can’t Help Thinking About Me is the first single released by David Bowie.
January 17: Martin Luther King Jr. opens his campaign in Chicago. His campaign involved moving to a building in the slums of North Lawndale as an educational experience, as well as to show their support and empathy for the poor.
January 19: Indira Gandhi becomes India’s fourth Prime Minister.
January 24: After an Air India Boeing 707 crashes into Mont Blanc, France, 117 passengers are killed.
January 26: In Adelaide, South Australia, the Beaumont Children go missing from Glenelg Beach. They have never been found.
January 29: A snow storm hits the north east of America, killing 165 people.
36th President of the United States, Lyndon B. Johnson
February 3: Soviet Luna 9 soft lands on the Moon.
February 5: The BBC opens a relay station on Ascension Island.
February 7: Comedian Chris Rock is born in South Carolina.
February 10: Valley of the Dolls is published by Jacqueline Susann in the US. It has sold over 31 million copies to date.
February 14: The Australian currency is decimalised, and postage stamps using decimal currency are introduced.
February 14: Andrei Sinyavsky and Joey Daniel, both Russian writers, are found guilty for anti-Soviet agitation and propaganda for publishing their satirical writings in other countries.
February 27: Diane Towler and Bernard Ford, from Britain, win the Ice Dance Championships in Davos.
February 27: Richard Petty wins the 8th Daytona 500 after just 198 laps, due to rain.
February 28: In Liverpool, the Cavern Club closes. This was known as one of The Beatles’ most notorious hangouts.
March 2: 215,000 US soldiers are in Vietnam.
March 3: Rock band, Buffalo Springfield, is formed.
March 3: First President of Ghana, Kwame Nkrumah, flees to Guinea.
March 3: A tornado hits Jackson, Mississippi, killing 57 people. It hit 3 minutes after its first sighting.
March 4: John Lennon states that the Beatles “are more popular than Jesus.”
March 5: Udo Jurgens wins the 11th Eurovision Song Contest for Austria, singing ‘Merci, Cherie’.
March 6: Alan Davies, British comedian and actor, is born in Essex.
March 11: In Numata, Japan, a fire at two ski resorts kills 31 people.
March 15: Tom Jones and Barbara Streisand win at the 8th Grammy Awards.
March 16: Gemini 8 is launched with Armstrong and Scott, but it is aborted after 6.5 orbits.
March 17: A missing H-bomb is located in the Mediterranean by a US submarine.
March 23: A meeting of the Catholic and Anglican church marks the first official meeting in 400 years.
March 31: Harold Wilson, leader of the Labour party, wins the British general election.
March 31: USSR launches Luna 10.
April 2: Luna 10 becomes the first spacecraft to orbit the Moon.
April 4: Pirate Radio Scotland becomes Radio Ireland.
April 9: The Anaheim Stadium for California Angels baseball team opens.
April 11: Frank Sinatra records Strangers in the Night – it would later become number 1.
April 13: Airline Pan Am places an order of 25 Boeing 747s, costing $525,000,000.
April 18: Bill Russell becomes the coach for Boston Celtics – the first African American coach in NBA history.
April 25: In Asse, Belgium, 10 children are killed by a drunk driver.
April 27: Dmitri Shostakovich completes his second Cello Concert.
April 30: The Church of Satan is founded by Anton LaVey in San Francisco, California.
American singer and actor Frank Sinatra
May 1:Empire Pool in Wembley marks the last British concert by the Beatles.
May 1: Radio RSA in South Africa beings shortwave transmitting.
May 4: The Soviet government agrees to let Fiat build a factory in the USSR.
May 6: The Canadian Minister of Finance announces a $20 Centennial gold coin.
May 6: Myra Hindley and Ian Brady are both sentenced to life imprisonment for the Moors Murders.
May 6: Paint it Black by The Rolling Stones is released in the US.
May 8: Frank Robinson hits out the only HR of Baltimore’s Memorial Park.
May 10: -3°C is recorded as the lowest temperature in Cleveland in May.
May 13: Educational funding is denied to 12 school districts in the South of American because of violations of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
May 15: Essex vs Somerset in County Cricket marks the first day of Sunday play.
May 16: The Beach Boys release Pet Sounds.
May 25: Peru and Argentina football fans fight in Lima, killing 248 people.
May 26: Guyana declares independence from the UK.
June 1: The White House Conference on Civil Rights is attended by 2,400 people.
June 1: Joaquin Balaguer is elected the President of Dominican Republic.
June 4: Over 6 days, Hurricane Alma kills 51 people in Honduras.
June 10: Paperback Writer by The Beatles is released in the UK.
June 10: Janis Joplin’s first live concert was held in the Avalon Ballroom in San Francisco.
June 11: French and German media report the death of Roger Daltry, lead singer of The Who – he is still alive today.
June 14: 60 construction workers are injured after Dutch police beat them.
June 20: Sheila Scott completes the first round the world solo flight by a woman.
June 22: South African Bishop Alphaeus Hamilton Zulu is refused a passport by the South African government and therefore was not able to attend an international church conference.
June 26: Kanton Bazel leads the fight for female suffrage in Switzerland.
June 30: The Beatles arrive in Tokyo for a concert tour.
June 30: Deputy director of the CIA, Richard Helms is promoted to 8th director of CIA.
June 30: Mike Tyson, American boxer, is born in Brooklyn, New York.
American singer-songwriter Janis Joplin
July 1: Manuel Santana wins against Dennis Ralston to win the Wimbledon Men Singles Title.
July 1: Medicare in the US takes effect.
July 1: The first colour television transmission takes place from Toronto for Canada.
July 4: The Beatles are attacked in the Philippines are accidentally insulting First Lady Imelda Marcos.
July 4: Lyndon B. Johnson signs the Freedom of Information Act.
July 6: Malawi becomes a republic, with Dr Hastings Kamuzu Banda becoming their first president.
July 9: Jack Nicklaus becomes the 4th person in history to win all 4 Golf majors.
July 14: Lucien Aimar of France wins the 53rd Tour de France.
July 14: 8 nurses are raped and killed by Richard Speck in a Chicago dormitory.
July 16: A total of 936 people are banned from South Africa. The individuals are banned under various reasons and laws, mainly the Suppression of Communism and Riotous Assembly Acts.
July 17: Jim Ryun sets the new record for running a mile. He ran it in 3 minutes and 51 seconds.
July 19: Frank Sinatra marries Mia Farrow in Las Vegas. Farrow is 29 years Sinatra’s junior.
July 23: In Liverpool, the Cavern Club reopens.
July 25: Brian Jones performs with the Rolling Stones for the last time.
July 29: Bob Dylan is hurt in a motorbike accident in New York.
July 30: England beat West Germany 4-2 to win the FIFA World Cup, the first and only time England has won.
July 31: People in Alabama burn Beatles’ products in response to John Lennon’s anti-Jesus remark.
August 1: At the University of Texas, Charles Whitman kills 16 and wounds another 31 people.
August 5: Martin Luther King Jr is stoned during a Chicago march.
August 5: The Beatles release their Revolver album.
August 6: Salazarbrug over Tag opens – marking the opening of the longest suspension bridge in Europe.
August 8: Chris Eubank, English boxer, is born in Dulwich, London.
August 10: Lunar Orbiter is launched by NASA to the Moon to photograph its surface.
August 10: A meteor is seen in daylight from Utah to Canada. This is the only known case of a meteor entering the Earth’s atmosphere and leaving it again.
August 11: Last Beatles tour of the US begins.
August 14: American actress, Halle Berry is born in Cleveland, Ohio.
August 27: A race riot breaks out in Waukegan, Illinois.
August 29: In Candlestick Park, San Francisco is The Beatles’ last public concert.
September 2: Salma Hayek, an Mexican American actress, is born in Coatzacoalcos, Mexico.
September 5: Jerry Lewis’ first Muscular Dystrophy Labour Day raises $1 million.
September 6: Feminist and birth control pioneer, Margaret Sanger, dies at aged 86.
September 8: Star Trek premieres.
September 8: Queen Elizabeth II officially opens The Severn Bridge.
September 9: Adam Sandler is born in Brooklyn, New York.
September 11: The Rolling Stones perform on the Ed Sullivan Show.
September 21: NYC experiences 5 inches of rainfall.
September 21: Jimi Hendrix changes his name from Jimmy, to Jimi.
September 22: 413 fans show up at the Yankee Stadium for a game.
September 22: Surveyor 2 crashes on the moon.
September 29: Chevrolet introduces the Camaro, originally named the Panther.
October 1: Thomson purchases The Times.
October 5: A copy of Ben Enwonwu’s sculpture, “The Awakening” is presented to the United Nations by Nigerian government.
October 6: At Detroit’s Fermi 1 nuclear reactor, a partial meltdown occurs.
October 9: David Cameron is born in London. He would become Prime Minister in 2010.
October 10: “Good Vibrations” is released by The Beach Boys.
October 11: American actor, Luke Perry, is born in Mansfield, Ohio. He passed away due to a stroke in 2019.
October 13: 173 US aircrafts bomb North Vietnam.
October 20: Jewish writers Schmuel Yosef Agnon and Nelly Sachs are jointly awards the Nobel Prize for Literature.
October 21: In Aberfan, South Wales, 116 children and 28 adults are killed as a coal waste heap slid and engulfed a school. Queen Elizabeth II visited after 8 days, which sources say is one of her biggest regrets as monarch.
October 22: The USSR launch Luna 12 to orbit around the Moon.
October 27: South Africa is deprived of Namibia by the United Nations.
A US Marine pictured with a kitten in Vietnam, 1966
November 1: Jeremy Hunt, British politician, is born in London, England.
November 2: The Cuban Adjustment Act is enforced. This allows 123,000 Cubans to apply for permanent residence in the US.
November 2: Friends actor, David Schwimmer, is born in Queens, New York.
November 4: In Italy, the flooding of the Arno River causes countless pieces of art works to be destroyed, and kills 113 people.
November 8: Edward W. Brooke becomes the first African American to be popularly elected to the US Senate.
November 8: Gordon Ramsay is born in Johnstone, Scotland.
November 8: Ronald Reagan is elected to be the Governor of California.
November 9: John Lennon and Yoko Ono meet at an art exhibition in London.
November 12: Buzz Aldrin takes the first ‘space selfie’. The photo includes himself performing extravehicular activity during the Gemini programme.
November 15: Gemini XII returns to Earth, with Jim Lovell and Buzz Aldrin.
November 18: In the US, Roman Catholic bishops end the rule against eating meat on Fridays.
November 27: Uruguay adopts constitution.
December 1: Georg Kiesinger is elected as West German chancellor.
December 4: Nemo, a Military Working Dog, saves the life of his handler, Airman Robert A. Throneburg during the Vietnam War. He survives a gunshot wound to this nose.
December 6: In Belgium, the polio vaccination becomes obligatory.
December 8: Both the US and USSR sign a treaty to prohibit nuclear weapons in outer space.
December 8: Irish singer-songwriter, Sinead O’Connor is born.
December 10: Robert S. Mulliken is awarded the Nobel Prize for Chemistry.
December 15: Walt Disney dies of lung cancer at the age of 65.
December 18: Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas airs on CBS for the first time.
December 20: Nuclear Planning Group forms in Brussels.
December 24: Luna 13, a Soviet spacecraft, lands on the Moon.
December 28: In Everett, Massachusetts, 13 people die in a train crash.
At the age of 65, the founder of The Walt Disney Company, died of lung cancer. Walt Disney was responsible for the creation of Mickey Mouse and the introduction of the Disney Classics, with Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs as his first feature length animation. He had surgery for his cancer just a month before he passed away, and a private funeral was held the day after his death.
While Disney was cremated and interred in California, rumours circulated shortly after his death that his body had been frozen, in order to suspend him in case medical technology in the future would be able to revive him. These rumours claimed Disney’s body had been buried in this frozen state deep beneath the Pirates of the Caribbean ride in Disneyland, California. However, even Disney’s daughter has denied these rumours.
One of the major events in 1966 is the Aberfan Disaster. At 9:15am on 21st October 1966, a colliery spoil tip collapsed, crashing into a Welsh village. Due to a period of heavy rain, it led to a build up of water within the tip which caused it to suddenly slide down, killing 116 children and 28 adults. It engulfed the local junior school, which was the cause of 109 children’s deaths. The National Coal Board was responsible for the tip and therefore the blame was placed on them for the disaster, with nine employees named.
No survivors were found after 11am, after some successful retrieval of children.
The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh visited Aberfan on 29th October to pay their respects to those who had lost their lives. Sources say that the delayed response to visit Aberfan is one of the Queen’s biggest regrets as monarch.
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Hoffman, Larin and Agnetti, P.A.
Alimony and Support
Child Support and Time Sharing
Relocation of Children in Florida
Temporary Alimony in Florida
John Agnetti
Martin Hoffman
Daniel Kent
Bankruptcy Q & A
Florida Car Accident Guide
North Miami Beach Office
Fort Lauderdale Office
Islamorada Office
Home » Meet Our Attorneys
Martin Hoffman is a senior partner of Hoffman, Larin and Agnetti, P.A. Admitted in 1973, he is a graduate of St. John’s University of Law, Mr. Hoffman has taught law and is a prolific author; his legal encyclopedia is available online. He has appeared on national media and in print and his cases have been reported throughout the United States in such publications as the New York Times and others.
John B. Agnetti is a Senior Partner of Hoffman, Larin & Agnetti, P.A. Admitted in 1983, he became a Partner in 1989 at age thirty-two. Mr. Agnetti grew up in South Florida and is a graduate of Florida State University and California Western School of Law. He has obtained for his personal injury clients, a multitude of verdicts and settlements in excess of one million dollars. He has successfully litigated complex commercial matters in both State and Federal Court.
David Perkins was born in Brooklyn, N. Y. in 1953. He is a senior associate of Hoffman, Larin & Agnetti, P. A. Admitted in 1978, he is a graduate of the University of Miami School of Law. He was formerly senior litigation counsel for the Florida offices of the American International Group of Insurance Companies.
Michael Hoffman is an Partner attorney with Hoffman, Larin and Agnetti, P.A. Mr. Hoffman specializes in Bankruptcy and Civil Litigation. In 2007, he graduated from the University of Miami School of Law, cum laude, earning the distinction of Dean’s Merit Scholar. He is admitted to practice before the Courts of Florida as well as the federal courts for the Southern and Middle Districts of Florida. While at law school, he served as a judicial intern for The Honorable Laurel M. Isicoff at the Southern District of Florida Bankruptcy Court.
Daniel Kent is an associate attorney of Hoffman, Larin and Agnetti, P.A. Admitted in 1984, Mr. Kent has an extensive career in various practices areas, all of which he brings to the table in family and civil cases. He has worked as lead counsel and in litigation support. His well-rounded experience helps to benefit clients in varied situations.
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Michael Flanagan
Richard Kaiser
Employee Benefits Implications of Supreme Court’s Defense of Marriage Act Decision
On June 26, the U.S. Supreme Court in United States vs. Windsor ruled that Section 3 of the Federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) is unconstitutional in that it denies equal protection to persons of the same sex who are legally married under state law. The Court’s decision has a wide-ranging and immediate impact on employers that sponsor qualified retirement plans, group health plans, fringe benefit programs, and executive compensation arrangements.
The benefit plan implications may differ depending on whether a benefit program is subject to ERISA (the case for most retirement and health plans maintained by private employers). Benefit plans that are not subject to ERISA, such as church plans and plans maintained by governmental employers, will have separate but related concerns.
The implications of the Supreme Court’s decision in Windsor may also depend on the laws of the state in which an employee works, resides, or is married. Importantly, the Supreme Court did not rule that there is a constitutionally protected right to same-sex marriage; therefore, it appears that state laws that ban same-sex marriages remain for now. This complicates matters for employers with employees who work, reside, or were married in states on both sides of this issue.
Group Health Plans
Here are some implications of the Supreme Court’s decision for employers that sponsor major medical and other group health plans (e.g., dental and vision plans):
Employees are no longer required to pay federal tax on the value of employer-sponsored health coverage provided to a same-sex spouse. This means employers will no longer be required to impute to the employee additional W-2 compensation equal to the value of the coverage provided to a same-sex spouse. There are state tax implications as well.
An employee may now pay for the cost of qualified benefits (e.g., medical, dental, or vision benefits) provided to a same-sex spouse with pre-tax dollars through a cafeteria plan. Similarly, HRAs, health FSAs and HSAs may now pay (or reimburse) the eligible expenses incurred by same-sex spouses with pre-tax dollars.
Same-sex spouses who are covered as dependents under a group health plan that is subject to COBRA would now qualify for COBRA coverage (i.e., may now achieve the status of “qualified beneficiary”) when a qualifying event occurs, such as termination of an employee’s employment or divorce.
Same-sex spouses now enjoy special enrollment rights under HIPAA; new same-sex spouses and spouses who lose coverage may now be added to a group health plan mid-year. Before DOMA, these rights were afforded only to opposite-sex spouses.
As noted above, it may be that these rights can only be enjoyed by employees and same-sex spouses who are covered by the laws of a state, like New York, that recognizes same-sex marriages.
Can a self-insured ERISA health plan continue to define “spouse” in a manner that excludes same-sex spouses? We think the answer may well be “yes,” but the issue has yet to be settled. One thing seems fairly clear: such plans may now be at greater risk of discrimination claims.
The Supreme Court’s decision also has a number of implications for employers that sponsor qualified retirement plans. Retirement plan operations impacting spouses that may be impacted, particularly in states like New York that permit or recognize same-sex marriages, include:
Survivor Benefits. Survivor benefit rights must be granted to same-sex spouses under plans that are subject to the qualified joint and survivor annuity (QJSA) rules. Under the QJSA rules, the normal form of benefit is an annuity that pays a benefit for the participant’s lifetime and pays a 50 percen survivor benefit to the surviving spouse of his or her lifetime. In the event a participant predeceases his or her spouse prior to retirement, the surviving spouse will be entitled to receive a qualified preretirement survivor annuity (QPSA) that pays a survivor annuity in an amount generally equal to 50 percent of the annuity benefit the participant would have received on retirement.
Consent Rights. The right granted to spouses under plans to consent to participant elections, such as the designation of a non-spouse beneficiary, the waiver of a QPSA, the selection of a form of distribution other than a QJSA, or the application for a plan loan, will now extend to same-sex spouses.
QDROs. A qualified domestic relations order (QDRO) may now be used to award a portion of the benefits accrued by a retirement plan participant in the event the participant is divorced from his or her same-sex spouse.
Eligible Rollover Distributions. A same-sex spouse who is entitled to an eligible rollover distribution from a qualified retirement plan will be able to elect a direct or traditional 60-day rollover of that distribution to an IRA or other eligible retirement plan.
Hardship Withdrawals. Certain retirement plans allow for hardship withdrawals on account of a spouse’s medical, tuition, or funeral expenses. For those retirement plans, the right to apply for spouse-related expenses will extend to withdrawals by participants in same-sex marriages.
Minimum Required Distributions. Certain rules under the age 70 1/2 minimum distribution rules that are specifically applicable to spouses will now extend to same-sex spouses. For example, a same-sex spouse will now be able to defer payment of minimum required distributions until April 1 of the year immediately following the year in which the participant would have reached age 70 1/2.
Open Issues and Action Steps
The full scope of the employee benefit plan implications coming out of the Supreme Court’s decision in Windsor are not yet known. For example, might a qualified retirement plan need to retroactively grant a survivor benefit to a same-sex spouse? Whether and how the Supreme Court’s decision might need to be retroactively applied by plan sponsors is unclear. May a health plan participant or a health plan sponsor seek a refund for past payroll and income taxes paid on imputed income resulting from the coverage of a same-sex spouse? If so, how?
And there almost certainly are many other similar issues that will require guidance from regulatory agencies at the state and federal levels as employers work to modify their plans in response to Windsor. In the meantime, we suggest plan sponsors undertake the following action steps:
Employers and other plan sponsors will need to undertake an immediate review of plan documents and summary plan descriptions (SPDs) to determine the rights and obligations of same-sex spouses who are or may become entitled to plan benefits.
Identify any such provisions in the plan documents and SPDs that are inconsistent with the Supreme Court’s decision, and prepare to modify the plan’s terms and the plan’s operational procedures.
Review payroll practices and procedures, and modify income and payroll tax procedures to the extent they tax same-sex spousal benefits in a manner inconsistent with the Supreme Court’s decision.
Monitor future guidance.
The attorneys in the Hodgson Russ Employee Benefits Practice Group are well-positioned to assist employers and other plan sponsors in evaluating Windsor’s impact and will communicate new developments as they occur.
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Mysterious Guns N’ Roses Billboard Appears in London
By Guitar World Staff 30 April 2018
A mysterious billboard—featuring all five members of the Appetite for Destruction-era lineup of Guns N' Roses—has been spotted in the Camden area of London, Alternative Nation reports.
The billboard links to a site called gnr.fm, which is blank, save for a message that says "Destruction is Coming." It also provides links to the band's social media pages.
The gnr.fm URL is reportedly registered to Universal Music Group, which inevitably has led some to conclude that the publicity campaign is meant to tease a reissue of Appetite for Destruction. Others though, are speculating that the billboard is teasing a full reunion of the Appetite-era lineup of Guns N' Roses.
The band's ongoing Not in This Lifetime tour reunited Axl Rose—the hard-rock juggernaut's sole constant member through the years—with Slash, the band's long-estranged superstar guitarist, and bassist Duff McKagan. Original guitarist Izzy Stradlin and drummer Steven Adler, however, were not invited to join the tour full-time.
Adler has made occasional guest appearances onstage with the band during the tour, while Stradlin reportedly walked out on a reunion with the band after a soundcheck prior to one of the Not in This Lifetime tour stops.
Duff McKagan
Axl Rose
Izzy Stradlin
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International award for Al-Ansari & Associates law office
October 19 2020 11:12 PM
Katara Hospitality gets Safety Excellence Award
Katara to launch Arab Novel Award activities
Uber law firm award Al-Ansari and Associates
Mohamed Ahmad al-Ansari
Al-Ansari & Associates law office won the International Financial Law Review (IFLR) award as the best law office in Qatar in mergers and acquisitions (M&A).
The honour was for Al-Ansari & Associates' vital role in providing legal advice to Uber in connection with the acquisition of Careem, according to a statement on Monday.
IFLR evaluation of law offices focuses on three criteria; namely: evaluating the transactions handled by the office and its technical and financial value, legal expertise of the office concerned; quality of legal services rendered by the office; and its compliance with the international standards.
Uber's acquisition of Careem is a milestone in the development of technological based investments in the Middle East region, relying upon a unique structure which was adopted by several companies and their assets acquired in the region, the statement explained.
"Such structure included our role in co-ordination and providing the necessary advice regarding full compliance with local laws and decisions issued by regulators of the transportation sector," observed Mohamed Ahmad al-Ansari, founder of Al-Ansari & Associates Law Firm.
“It is a pleasure for Al Ansari & Associates to win the deal of the year award in the field of M&A from IFLR. This comes as a recognition to the effort of our team in furnishing the firm’s domestic and international clients with quality legal advice.
"Our firm works in accordance with the best international practices in the field of law, which has led to many international companies and international law firms vesting their trust in the firm and our team. On this occasion I congratulate all the law firms that have worked on this deal, which have also been recognised for the quality of their legal services."
Al-Ansari & Associates have competed for, and won, many international awards for their legal services, especially from 2014 to 2019. Al-Ansari & Associates were also nominated, together with a number of international law offices, for the Law Firm of the Year Award in the field of arbitration for the year 2020 in the Middle East Legal Awards which are organized by the Corporate Lawyers Association - Middle East in co-operation with LegalWeek. The winners of that award will be announced in November, the statement added.
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JeanPaul - 10 Questions Music Interview
JeanPaul is an artist from Fitchburg, Massachusetts. He began singing and performing in church at a young age and, by the age of 15 her was releasing his own music. His unique, edgy rap style blended with his blue eyed, soulful pop singing and a natural songwriting ability come together to create a fresh, fun, and exciting sound. As an artist, JeanPaul strives to innovate and captivate with each song and performance. His primary goal is to deliver authenticity and inspiration.
Was there something (an experience) or someone in your life that was the "catalyst" for you to start writing music? Tell us about it.
Music has always been an experience to me. I’ve always felt like I “feel” songs rather than “hear” them. I fell in love with the process of feeling and discovering through creative art and that’s all I’ve ever wanted to do.
Let's get this out of the way. What is the CRAZIEST thing that has ever happened to you in your music career?
Meeting Nawlage in the studio and meeting Andre Merritt.
What has been the high point of your music path?
I feel like it’s all a high point. Certain moments stand out, of course, but this is what I love to do. So therefore every moment I get to keep doing it feels like a blessing and I’m grateful in that moment.
So, how do you approach songwriting or what is your creative process like?
I feel like my creative process is wavy. I just live life and creation is a part of that. When it hits, it hits and I’m in there. When it’s slow, it’s slow and I allow myself to focus on other things. Regardless, I’m always working. My approach is stay sharp and when the stars align, capitalize.
What do you see as the biggest challenge facing Indie Artists today? Or, if you could ask the music industry to change one thing, what would it be?
Every indie artist has their own path and their own challenge. The biggest challenge facing every artist, indie or not, is themselves. We can’t really ask the industry to change anything, but what we can do is build to a point where we have influence and make the changes we would like to see. That’s the challenge and the fun of the game!
If you could share the stage with one other artist or band, who would it be and why?
Tie. Drake and J. Cole. I used to watch Drake performances over and over and imitate every word; and I’ve been to more J. Cole shows than any other artist. Both are absolute stage legends, you can feel their energy no matter what seat you have in the house. I’ve studied and learned a lot from both.
What are your rehearsals generally like? Or, how do you prepare for a live show?
Repetition, repetition, repetition. Practice makes confident and confident makes successful.
Pick one song that was your greatest challenge to write. Tell us about it!
That’s tough. I’ve written a lot of songs. I feel like every song is a challenge of its own. Sometimes the challenge is finding the right word, sometimes it’s the right melody or cadence, the right flow. So it’s hard to pick just one, but every song is a challenge that we as artists enjoy and grow through.
What's coming up in the future?
Everything. We’re going as far as God allows us to go.
Tell us where fans can access your music?
Check out my latest release “Dreams Don’t Die” on Soundcloud.
#JeanPaul
The Songs Of Songwriter Glenn Shayne
Lakotah
Jeremy Parsons - 10 Questions Music Interview
10 QUESTIONS is a division of BWH Music Group
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Should it be Ben Chappell or Kellen Lewis this week?
If Kellen Lewis is ready to go, after missing the last two and a half games with a high ankle sprain, should he be re-inserted into the starting lineup Saturday against Central Michigan or should the Hoosiers continue to go with Ben Chappell at quarterback?
It's a question that the IU staff will have to ponder this week as Lewis had full participation in Tuesday's IU football practice. And that's saying a lot. Lewis hasn't practiced for two weeks and has been a game time decision. We were told last week that technically he could have played against Northwestern in an emergency but that the staff had hoped to give him a couple of more days to rest the ankle.
I seem to hear from more and more people the last few days who are of the opinion that IU should stay with Chappell, even if Lewis is ready to go. Chappell had a solid effort in his second career start Saturday against Northwestern and led the Hoosiers to a 21-19 victory. After leading the team to its first victory in six games, do you reward him by handing him a clipboard and telling him to put on a baseball cap and signal in plays from the sidelines? It's a tough call.
My first thought would be to go with the player you think has the best chance to get IU a victory on Saturday. It's a big game for the Hoosiers. Win, and you're suddenly 4-5 and on a two-game winning streak with Wisconsin coming to town the following week. Lose, and the season is on the verge of slipping away. And so even on a gimpy ankle, I would think Kellen Lewis would be the player that gives you the best chance to get to 4-5. So I guess my take is that if Lewis is ready to go then he should start. At the same time. Lewis seems a little frail this season. He has already had a couple of injuries this year, the latest at the end of the first half against Iowa that kept him out of the last two games. If he's going to continue to have injury problems then the whole thing becomes a moot point. Eventually, Chappell will be back on the field.
And if they're both healthy do you get them both on the field at the same time, or do you scrap that experiment? I think it's an interesting gimmick but I think for the most part you need to use it sparingly.
That's my take. So what do you think?
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Downturn forces industry changes
Consolidation, cost cutting keys to survival
NEW YORK — The financial crisis and housing downturn are proving to be a catalyst for change in real estate brokerage, title insurance and lending that could accelerate if the downturn is prolonged.
For the most part, regulators and lawmakers should let the industry shake itself out rather than impose new conditions from above, a panel of experts said Thursday …
For the most part, regulators and lawmakers should let the industry shake itself out rather than impose new conditions from above, a panel of experts said Thursday at the Inman News Real Estate Connect conference in New York City.
In real estate brokerage, "There is a tremendous amount of industry consolidation right now, which is good" for companies that were prepared for the downturn, said Alex Perriello, president and chief executive officer of Realogy Franchise Group.
Realogy has been "preaching since August 2005 that you need to right-size your company," Perriello said. Now, he said, he’s got brokers calling him saying they’ve pulled $50,000, $500,000 or $1 million out of their annual budget, and are kicking themselves because they didn’t do it a year ago and now want to invest in growth.
"There will be a recovery, but you need to be standing when that happens," Perriello said, advising brokers to have a plan B and a plan C in the event that their revenue projections are off by 10 or 20 percent. If those plans are vetted with managers, the plans can be executed if the market goes south and "it’s not a knee-jerk reaction."
In the title insurance and settlement services industry, it’s all about "the four C’s: cost cutting, constricting, consolidation and change," said title insurance veteran Patrick Stone, chairman of The Stone Group.
"I think we’ve seen a lot of the first three," Stone said. "But I would argue the industry still isn’t right-sized."
With the sale of LandAmerica Financial Group’s title insurance underwriting subsidiaries to rival Fidelity National Financial Inc., a business that was an oligopoly has now become a duopoly, Stone said. The acquisition means that just two companies — Fidelity and First American — will control more than 70 percent of the title insurance business (see story).
In mortgage lending, government support for mortgage-backed securities issued by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Ginnie Mae means interest rates on conforming loans are hitting lows not seen in years. But because secondary market investors continue to shun securities that once funded jumbo, subprime and alt-A loans, rates on those mortgages remain higher and many can’t qualify for loans at all.
"It is the best of times for a select group, and pretty bad times for the rest," said Jack Guttentag, a professor of finance emeritus at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.
Unless borrowers can come up with a 20 percent down payment, have a FICO score of 760 or better, and adequate income they can document, they aren’t likely to benefit from the lower rates, he said — assuming they can get a loan at all.
"We have a kind of paradoxical situation in the marketplace today I haven’t seen in all the years I’ve been following this market," Guttentag said. "The terms available to prime borrowers have never been as good … but only for those who are eligible for them. And the set who are eligible has shrunk, because underwriting standards have tightened."
Guttentag — a nationally syndicated columnist who also dispenses advice on his Mortgage Professor Web site, said it would not be wise to limit the number of loan products available to consumers — market forces have already reined in the use of some higher-risk loan products like pay-option ARM loans, though he noted that they can be appropriate if matched to the right borrower.
As for the real estate brokerage industry, Perriello said consolidation is well under way, and if the downturn continues he expects to see "some real innovation. There is too much brick and mortar in the business."
He said Realogy’s company-owned brokerage, NRT, is working on an online transaction management system that will allow agents and their clients to participate in the process from wherever they have access to a computer and the Internet.
"The consumer can go online and see exactly where their transaction is, and the sales associate does not have to be tied to an office to see files and manage the transaction," Perriello said.
Ideas for reforming the title insurance industry put forward by Inman News readers included prohibiting bundling of settlement services with loans unless consumers savings are demonstrated, and for title insurers to offer low-cost title policies.
Stone said low-cost title insurance policies have been available to lenders doing refinancings for six or seven years, and should be made available for home purchases. He said that while the settlement services industry is consolidating and cutting costs, it still has a long way to go.
"One thing that’s bothered me is the high cost of transacting business in real estate," Stone said. "If you take a $200,000 asset in the form of home, it will cost you 6 to 10 percent of that asset to sell it" after paying your Realtor’s commission and fees to lenders and settlement services providers. That’s a significantly higher percentage than any other significant asset, Stone said.
"As economic stress continues, the consumer is going to push on that," Stone said. "They are going to resent it."
If the downturn continues for a few more years, "I believe you’ll see significant business model changes" in the title insurance industry, Stone said.
Turning it around
Perriello said consumer confidence is a big issue in pulling off a turnaround, and said Realogy has been working with the National Association of Realtors to get lawmakers to include more incentives for buyers as part of a housing stimulus package.
NAR’s proposal includes government subsidies to bring interest rates on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages down to 4.5 percent, removing the payback requirement on the new $7,500 break for first-time homebuyers and making it available for all buyers, and restoring the temporary $729,750 loan limit for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in high-cost areas that was in place for much of 2008.
After working with the Bush administration’s Treasury Department for "the last couple months to no avail," Perriello said "the good news is that the administration coming in understands that if the housing sector doesn’t recover, the overall economy will not."
Guttentag noted that mortgage rates for prime borrowers are already nearing 4.5 percent, but said, "That’s not going to do anything for (homeowners) who are underwater, or stop foreclosures." The only way to stop home-price declines is to put a "major dent" in the foreclosure rate, he said.
Guttentag advocates a loan modification program in which the government would share the burden with lenders who agree to reduce the principle on delinquent loans, when borrowers qualify to refinance into a loan with lower monthly payments.
Perriello countered that recent data from federal banking regulators shows that more than half of loans modified last year redefaulted within six months (see story).
"If there’s only so much federal funding available, I’d rather put it on the buy side to stimulate sales," Perriello said. "That not only helps the housing industry, but the overall economy."
Many of the loan modifications tracked by federal banking regulators redefaulted because they were limited in nature, Guttentag said. Instead of reducing a borrower’s principal to make payments more affordable, many consisted of "nothing more than taking the past dues, adding them to the balance, recalculating the payments, and making the borrower current" — an approach that’s likely to fail.
Guttentag said another batch of statistics is expected to be released soon, which will break down results according to the type of loan modification. He expects approaches that create affordable payments for borrowers will have a greater rate of success.
Stone said the breakdown in the process through which mortgages were securitized and sold to investors is "standing in the way of simple solutions," and that he remains "very skeptical about our ability to unravel the mess."
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Home » Articles » Leadership – a SocioPsychological Perspective
What makes a successful leader successful? is a question that appears to have vexed politicians and philosophers from the beginnings of civilisation. Certainly, the number of books and articles on leadership by ‘management gurus’ and social psychologists since the end of World War II indicates an ongoing fascination with the topic and, arguably, a vital need to understand the nature of leadership. Peter F Drucker, Stephen Covey, Warren Bennis, Howard Gardner, James MacGregor Burns, John William Gardner, John Kotter and Peter Senge are just a handful of the heavyweight names who have contributed high-profile books on the subject.
One unequivocal key factor which has emerged from the multitude of investigations into ‘leadership’ is that leadership and management are not the same thing. Drucker (1967) was perhaps the first to say this, articulating: “Management is doing things right; leadership is doing the right things.”
Covey (p101, 1989) provides an illuminating example to illustrate this point: “…envision a group of producers cutting their way through the jungle with machetes. They’re the producers, the problem-solvers. They’re cutting their way through the undergrowth, clearing it out.
The managers are behind them, sharpening their machetes, writing policy and procedure manuals, holding muscle development programmes, bringing in improved technologies and setting up working schedules and compensation programmes for machete wielders.
The leader is the one who climbs the tallest tree, surveys the entire situation and yells: ‘Wrong jungle!’”
Leadership, then, is about vision – knowing where you are going, what it is you want to achieve and being able to share that vision so that people will follow. Management is about control – how we get to where we need to go, how to maximise the efficiency of the ‘followers’.
In reality one person may occupy both roles, especially in smaller organisations, and the roles may overlap – sometimes quite considerably. The functions of the 2 roles are quite different, though – and it is important to keep that difference in mind. In reality, however, there is often a blurring of the roles.
In attempting to provide guidance on ‘leadership’, many commentators attempt to undermine the oft-repeated truism, “Leaders are born, not made”, because, if leaders can’t be made, then there’s not much point in providing guidance and training on how to make a leader!
However, the sheer proliferation of views on leadership can be seen as a measure of the complexity of the subject. The issue clearly is so much more than whether a leader is simply ‘born’ or ‘made’.
Fritz Heider’s Attribution Theory (1958) allows us to ponder whether it is the context and the time – the situational – which creates the leader? – or whether there is something dispositional – within them – which makes some people more likely to become leaders than others? Or, indeed, whether is it some combination of circumstance and capability which produces leaders?
Outstanding leaders like Mahatma Gandhi, Winston Churchill and Nelson Mandela all showed leadership qualities and indeed led from being quite young – hinting at dispositional factors. However, their leadership activities were situated in the pursuit of great ‘noble causes’ in the cases of Gandhi and Mandela and, in Churchill’s instances, in repeated military crises of ever-greater scale, complexity and desperation. Even Adolf Hitler fits the pattern of attempting to lead from a relatively early age (the ‘Munich Putsch’ in 1923) and then finding that his ideology and would-be leadership were increasingly welcomed in the situation of the economic and social chaos that kept a stranglehold on post-World War I Germany.
From this clutch of famous and infamous leaders, it would appear that leadership is indeed a meshing of dispositional potential and situational facilitation.
Unfortunately, the ‘science of leadership’ – if there can be said to be such a thing – is based on case studies such as those above and driven by the search for a common factor (or factors) to be found in each case study. (Since it seems leaders often emerge in crisis scenarios, it is all but impossible to conduct laboratory tests on large-scale samples in non-crisis scenarios with any real sense of ecological validity – ie: the results reflect ‘real life’.) The common factor – or factors – found in the case studies then become(s) the ‘magic ingredient(s)’ which differentiate successful leaders. According to the particular author/researcher.
One very worthy example of this approach is Howard Gardner’s ‘Leading Minds’ (1996) which identifies story-telling – the construction of a clear and compelling narrative – as the vital ingredient.
However, what Gardner doesn’t explain is why stories are crucial to the success of many leaders but not all. Eg: Lieutenant Colonel H Jones, who led his men to charge an important Argentinean machine gun nest in the Falklands War of 1982, is not known to have had a strong narrative. He simply led his men through action and they followed.
Nor does Gardner explain why some people will respond to a leader’s narrative but others won’t. Eg: in the highly divisive build-up to the invasion of Iraq in 2003, the Conservatives largely backed Tony Blair in the parliamentary debate on whether to go to war but 121 Labour MPs rebelled. They didn’t accept their own leader’s narrative. Nor did many in the country, with approximately one million people actively demonstrating against the proposed invasion – a minimum of 750,000 in London alone.
The contention of this article is that there is no one ‘magic ingredient’ to leadership but that the conceptual relationship between leader and followers forms and reforms through a variety of scenarios with different levels of complexity. If there is a common factor, it is that the message – Gardner’s narrative or H Jones’ demonstration of action – must fit both the scenario and the worldview(s) of the followers.
Max Weber’s Types of Authority
Power, authority and leadership are all interrelated concepts. Ichak Adizes (1999) distinguishes clearly between the formal right to make decisions – authority – and the power to implement those decisions. Successful leaders must have the right, or gain the right, to make decisions; and they also must have the power, or be able to source the power, to enforce those decisions. The enforcement of those decisions will often mean management of the ‘followers’…which may well mean a blurring of the differences between leadership and management.
Max Weber (1922) identifies 3 categorisations of authority in the context of wielding power. Weber’s categorisations do not distinguish between ‘leadership’ and ‘management, of course. Nonetheless, they are highly informative.
The first of Weber’s categorisations is ‘traditional authority’. Authority to wield power comes through ascription – you are born to have the authority or inherit it because of who you are. Traditional authority is particularly strong in tribal and/or agrarian societies where, for example, the positions of headman and the tribal elders are often given to the eldest son of the current generation of certain families. Men are assumed to have authority over women and be head of the household simply because they are men. A very specific example of traditional authority in modern, Western societies is that of monarchy. Prince Charles will inherit the British throne simply because he is the eldest son of Queen Elizabeth II. Even though he has proved something of a controversial figure, the prince’s fitness for the role will not really come into question unless he commits a manifestly-unconstitutional act or is shown to be demonstrably insane.
In terms of Heider’s Attribution Theory, the authority to wield power here is situational. However, traditional authority does not necessarily predicate successful leadership. (Just think of all the hereditary kings throughout history who have been overthrown!) Sustained successful leadership will still require certain personal (dispositional) qualities.
Weber’s second category is ‘charismatic authority’. The charismatic leader is followed and permitted to exercise power because of exceptional personal qualities that enthral people. The charismatic leader is usually a talented speaker and will fulfil Gardner’s notion of the importance of narrative with compelling stories. Nelson Mandela is a leader who unmistakably has displayed charismatic authority at times. John F Kennedy, Martin Luther King, Benito Mussolini, Winston Churchill and Adolf Hitler could all be categorised as charismatic leaders and possibly even Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan too. On a much more mundane level, some teachers clearly display charismatic authority, able to hold a class in thrall by sheer ‘force of personality’.
The authority to wield power is clearly dispositional in that the qualities of leadership come from within the person and those qualities have to win over those who will follow and obey. In that the followers have to be won over and permit the leader to lead them, charismatic leadership requires some receptive elements in the situation to function; but it is largely dispositional.
Moreover, there are memetic cultural factors at work in the public perceptions of leaders. As Alex Haslam & Steve Reicher (2016, p446) point out, “from an early age we are encouraged to see leaders, above all else, as individuals with some special quality that eludes ordinary mortals”. In other words, we are conditioned to expect our leaders to be charismatic.
The third category identified by Weber is ‘rational-legal authority’. This leader is followed and obeyed because the system – particularly a legal system – says they have authority within that system. Thus, a police officer in uniform is to be obeyed unless the instruction is clearly irrational or illegal. In this instance, the uniform serves as a badge of authority. Many teachers – especially those who lack charisma – depend on rational-legal authority to maintain order in the classroom. The judge, the tax inspector and the military commanding officer are all examples of rational-legal authority. Unlike the traditional leader, the rational-legal leader exerts power, not because of who he or she is but because of the social role they occupy. When they step out of that role, their authority disappears too.
Again, in Attribution Theory terms, rational-legal authority is situational…yet dependent on the personal qualities of the leader for sustained success. Eg: the police officer who demonstrates a little empathy with a crowd of young people being ordered to ‘move on’ is likely to be obeyed more readily than the one who just barks orders.
Of course, Weber stressed that these were ideal categorisations of authority and that, in reality, many times a leader’s authority would come from more than one source. Thus, for example, when Charles becomes King, the legal system of the UK enshrines that position for him and states that his power to authorise acts of Parliament, for example, comes from his position as King. Mandela may have demonstrated tremendous charisma but, when he became President of South Africa, he was able to exercise rational-legal authority too.
Traditional authority and rational-legal authority, in that they are primarily situational, are highly contextual. The headman of one tribe may be received with respect when visiting another tribe but it is highly unlikely he would be obeyed unless his instruction was also delivered by the headman of the receiving tribe who would be ascribed the authority to give such instructions. Similarly the police officer is unlikely to be obeyed without his or her uniform or warrant card. The teacher loses his or her rational-legal authority outside of school hours and the physical geography of the school building and grounds.
Winston Churchill, great wartime leader rejected in peace
Charismatic authority, being primarily dispositional, is less contextual, more generalisable. A ‘special person’ in one context may often be a special person in another context because they carry their special qualities within them. However, not all contexts, require a particular charismatic leader’s special qualities. Thus, for example, Winston Churchill was a great wartime leader for the UK but was soundly rejected by the British electorate in 1945 as people began to think about what kind of nurturing and caring society post-war Britain should be.
A vMEMETIC view of leadership
Weber shows us that there are different types of leadership, more or less dispositional and/or more or less situational. However, the distinctions are limited, do not differentiate between ‘leadership’ and ‘management’ and are descriptive rather than causal.
To pursue further the line of reasoning Weber offers, the hierarchical values systems model of Clare W Graves provides a very insightful tool.
Firstly, traditional leadership – the ascription to leadership because of who you are is derived from PURPLE tribalism, as is a fairly rigid demarcation of gender roles. In many instances, ‘traditional leadership’ is more traditional management. In traditional societies, there is little sense of future, with little need for vision (Talcott Parsons, 1964). As the primary motivation is to be safe, the imperative becomes protection and sustainability.
Jerry Coursen (2001) has postulated that, to fulfil the role of tribal leader successfully, something more than simply the motivation to belong to find safety (the PURPLE vMEME’s primary driver) is needed. There has to be some RED – some desire to be powerful and to dominate others. Without that injection of RED, the group of ascribed leaders are likely to be either indecisive or possibly over-consultative with others who are ascribed leadership roles. A static scenario requires little decisiveness…in which case, PURPLE’s lengthy tribal elder deliberations are not unsuitable. However, crises facilitate (situationally) the rise to dominance of an individual with RED dominant in their vMEME stack, allowing rapid, incisive and dictatorial decision-making.
Where an ascribed leader is given rational-legal authority, as in the likely case of ‘King Charles of the United Kingdom’, then we can see the workings of the BLUE vMEME which formalises and systemises with good order.
Weber’s concept of the charismatic leader obviously centres around RED – arguably with a dose of the temperamental dimension of Extraversion. The charismatic leader usually has strong self-esteem, charm and the ability to either relate a strong narrative (to refer back to Gardner) or demonstrate dynamic action (to think again of H Jones’ example).
However, RED is usually not the only vMEME making up the charismatic leader’s persona. To lead people by force of personality in a long-term sustainable manner, you must also offer them a vision. Since RED thinks only of the moment – in that sense, it really is the complete spiral manifestation of Sigmund Freud’s (1923) Id! – the vision must come from the ORANGE vMEME. ORANGE is future-focused and goal-oriented; and it will use the needs and wants of others as resources to achieve those goals.
Weber’s third type of authority, rational-legal, comes largely from the BLUE vMEME. This leader is recognised because he or she is authorised to lead by the system, the law, the organisation… who or whatever is recognised to confer that authority upon an individual. Unfortunately, BLUE tends to future-focus only to anticipate what could go wrong and to prevent it from doing so – a Move-Away-From meta-programme. Thus, pure or nodal BLUE tends to create a stagnation around fixed ideas, providing those ideas work at the time of enshrinement. Leadership thus fossilises into maintain-the-status-quo management. Rational-legal authority, to prevent stagnation, needs a glimmer of ORANGE to get it goal-oriented. As BLUE is focused on what is right, not on human cost, it can be terribly harsh in its treatment of those who transgress its rules. A little GREEN concern for humanity can help to soften the impersonal approach of rational-legal leadership.
Working primarily in Germany in the first decades of the 20th Century, when the economies of much of Northern Europe were dominated by industrialisation, Weber would have had little exposure to ORANGE compared to those living amongst the Western hyper-Capitalism of the late 20th and early 21st Centuries. So it’s no surprise his understanding of leadership (and management) is limited to the mid-lower vMEMES of the 1st Tier. ORANGE appears to remain the leading vMEME at a cultural level in the United States and much of Northern Europe, though the social democracy elements in German politics and more completely in the cultures of the Scandinavian countries hint at GREEN taking a hold on the selfplexes of a number of key leaders and thinkers.
As, at the time of writing, Europe struggles on with austerity programmes, it remains to be seen whether GREEN thinking retains the cultural and political bridgehead it has established. From the work of both Graves and Abraham Maslow (1943, 1956, 1971), it can be predicted that necessity will focus attention on lower level needs and motivations. We may already have seen this in Greece. At a whole cultural level, BLUE was weak – otherwise there wouldn’t be such great issues with tax collection – and ORANGE virtually non-existent – otherwise there would be significant pockets of enterprise and growth. The partial and sporadic collapse of public order can be attributed, to a degree at least, to austerity undermining the PURPLE/BLUE tradition of doing the right thing by going to work and doing your job. When there are no jobs to go to anymore, through no fault of their own, faith in that PURPLE/BLUE tradition will suffer and is likely to precipitate the kind of rioting seen in Athens and other parts of Greece over the past few years, as RED nihilism fills the void of disappeared faith in the system. As Susan Blackmore (1999) has shown, when old memes start to become dysfunctional, new ones rapidly take their place. Small wonder that, with Greece buckling under imposed austerity, the Greek public’s perception of what the European Union can do for it has changed massively. While we’re not yet able to assess the effects of the so-called ‘migrant crisis’ on Greece and her citizens’ views on the EU, it can be reasonably predicted that the GREEN-dominated thinking investing huge amounts of EU money into humanitarian support for the migrants washing up on Greek shores will not be well understood by the PURPLE and RED of many impoverished Greeks.
Memetic and vMEMETIC changes can also be seen in attitudes amongst German electors. Once the staunchest advocates of European integration, resentment has mushroomed at German wealth being risked to bail out a country with little or no short-to-medium term prospects of economic growth. At a cultural level, there may yet be a danger of Germany sliding into PURPLE/BLUE protectionism as the ‘European dream’ is undermined from within. Again, the effects of the migrant crisis on the German electorate are not yet fully understood. Angela Merkel’s GREEN leading a welcome to an estimated 800,ooo Syrian migrants in Summer 2015 has been seriously rebuffed by PURPLE/BLUE nationalist elements calling for Germany to house fewer migrants and other EU countries to take more. The reporting of attacks on German women by Syrian men in Cologne on New Year’s Eve – arguably over-sensationalised to create a moral panic and make what Stanley Cohen (1972) called ‘folk devils’ of Syrian refugees – appears to have greatly strengthened xenophobic parties like Alternative for Germany (AfD) (Alexandra Sims, 2016).
While the UK has little direct involvement in the current migrant crisis, immigration is perceived to be one of the biggest causes of concern among an electorate still struggling with the effects of austerity. The riots and looting in Britain in August 2011 – see the Blog: The Riots – who’s right: Cameron or Blair? – illustrate the dangers of austerity programmes leading to widespread ‘anomie’ – the Robert K Merton (1938) version, as opposed to the Émile Durkheim (1895) version. When ORANGE-driven consumerism continues to promote high-value goods as socially desirable and indicative of status but there are fewer and fewer legitimate PURPLE/BLUE routes to obtaining those goods due to austerity measures, then it is predictable that RED self-expressive and self-indulgent thinking will dominate in the minds of some and they will steal those goods by whatever means available to them.
On the back of these 2 issues – austerity and the migration crisis – where the BLUE, ORANGE and GREEN of the mainstream leaders have left them out of touch with the PURPLE and RED of so many who feel disenfranchised in their own countries, the far right have gained more traction with electorates than possibly at any time since the end of World War II.
As the leaders of the European Union and their advisors try to regain a vision for Europe, they need to factor in these sociopsychological factors. A straightforward union of nations containing Germany at one extreme, dominated culturally by BLUE and ORANGE with some GREEN, and Greece at the other, dominated by PURPLE and RED with some BLUE, was never going to be an easy match-up. (See also Alan Tonkin’s: The EU: an Organisation divided by Values for more on the fault lines in the construction of the EU.) The migrant crisis has exposed deep values divisions between Western and Eastern Europe to complicate matters: PURPLE/BLUE nationalism in the East stands opposed to taking in large numbers of ‘foreigners’. Differentiated strategies between the Union and its members and maybe even different types of membership may be required in the future, as discussed in the Blog: The REAL Reason for staying in the EU.
A Gender Bias in Leadership?
In the discussion of applying these concepts to leadership (and management), a fact that cannot be addressed satisfactorily by reference to either Weber or Graves is that of gender. Why are far more leaders male?
Of course, there have been great female leaders. In the latter part of the 20th Century Indira Gandhi (India), Margaret Thatcher (UK) and Benazir Bhutto (Pakistan) not only held the highest office of state through multiple terms but made their mark indelibly on the national mythologies of their countries. At the time of writing, Angela Merkel is continuing to helm Germany (and, to all intents and purposes, the European Union!) through some of the most troubled social and economic scenarios of recent times. In business there are increasingly women CEOs of ‘blue chip’ organisations, though few have attained the high level profile of Body Shop founder Anita Roddick.
In comparison, though, to the number of men who have held and do hold senior leadership positions in politics, business, education, the military, policing, etc, the number of women in such positions is still relatively small.
Undeniably, in history, there have been economic, social and cultural barriers to women achieving leadership positions. In the Western world and elsewhere, many of these barriers have been at least partly removed, with the result that more women have been climbing ‘leadership ladders’ – initially through lower-level management roles. However, the numbers coming through to true leadership positions are hardly commensurate with the potential opportunities available.
An explanation for this may lie in Hans J Eysenck & Sybil B G Eysenck’s (1976) controversial concept of Psychoticism which they attribute primarily to the male sex hormone testosterone. This hormone has been associated in many studies – eg: John Kalat (1998) – with assertiveness and aggression, as well as sex drive. While women do produce testosterone (from the adrenal glands), it is in nothing like the same quantities as men. So it may be that there is a biological/temperamental factor in explaining the gender differences in people achieving leadership roles. Though this is a huge generalisation and there will be countless exceptions, women, by and large, infrequently have the same degree of assertive drive to compete and win that many men have.
A jokey take on brain differences between men and women
Evolutionary psychologists such as Stephanie Shields (1975) perceive these biologically-based differences as the evolutionary processes equipping men and women for totally different roles in prehistoric times. (Men to hunt and fight; women to raise the children and look after the men.) However, this raises the question as to why women haven’t adapted to the very changed circumstances and opportunities they have experienced in the Western world since the 1960s and become more competitive. Michael W Eysenck & Cara Flanagan (2001) posit that such failures to adapt can be explained through the concept of genome lag – ie: the development of the human genome has lagged behind changes in the environment.
If the genome lag concept is valid, then presumably over time women will adapt and we can expect to see more and more women becoming competitive and challenging men for leadership positions.
As the crucial role of ORANGE in visionary leadership has been noted, it may be worthwhile here to consider Jenny Wade’s (1996) proposition that women tend to skip ORANGE in their Spiral development while men skip GREEN. Although Wade’s proposition lacks empirical evidence other than from her own small group research, theoretically it could help to explain gender differences in leadership.
Leadership and Communication
The ISO 9000 quality system standard is an interesting example of a ‘change management’ tool devised initially (as BS 5750: 1979) from BLUE thinking. It’s a rational-legal tool. Its primary aim was to ensure quality by preventing things going wrong and it only really took on something of an ORANGE improvement focus with the revised issue of ISO 9001: 2000. (In terms of Drucker’s differentiation, ISO 9000 is a management tool taking on aspects of a leadership strategies.)
Yet, nearing 30 years after the standard’s inception and several revisions – the latest is ISO 9001:2015 – quality professionals still debate how successful it really is in assuring quality and why often it doesn’t lead to an improvement in quality in an organisation when the concept is, theoretically, so sound.
If we use the sociological and psychological theories we’ve looked at in this paper, it becomes painfully obvious why ISO 9000 works in some environments and not others.
Since the days of BS 5750, ISO 9000 has been dependent on the written word. It’s also often a used as a means of increasing control via implementing change. Since PURPLE doesn’t value the written word and doesn’t like change, the people whose thinking is dominated by PURPLE thinking will simply not respond or only respond reluctantly when forced to – which is one reason why the auditing function is so crucial to the success of ISO 9000. It doesn’t just provide data for managerial decisions, it acts as a BLUE policing tool to intimidate those who don’t comply (‘transgressors’) into compliance. People whose thinking is dominated by BLUE will follow the ISO 9000 procedures because it’s the ‘right thing to do’. People whose thinking is dominated by PURPLE may follow the procedures because a tradtional/charismatic leader tells them to, acting from a mix of PURPLE and RED…but they will still only pay lip service to the written word and will need plenty of verbal instruction and/or simplified diagrams. That, or they will comply because they are intimidated by the auditing machine. (See also: The SME Spiral.)
So, when designing and implementing change programmes, leaders need to be very aware of what vMEMES they are implementing change with and what is the vMEME(S)-appropriate way of ‘selling’ the change to them.
Bennis (2003) states that leaders are only as effective as their ability to engage followers.
‘Spiral Balloon’ – copyright © 1996 NVC Inc
Spiral Dynamics co-developer Don Beck (2002a) has opined that effective leadership communicates by talking in the language and concepts of no more than half a vMEME in complexity ahead of the current centre of gravity of the people being addressed. If the concepts are too complex, then those being addressed will not be able to understand in terms that are meaningful to them. It will ‘go over their heads’. (The example left shows the thinking of the leaders to be coming from ORANGE but the culture of the people is centred in PURPLE – indicating a c complete values mismatch.) If the language and concepts are too simple for the current centre of gravity, then people are likely to feel they are being patronised.
What Beck is advocating is a sophisticated and values-oriented form of educational scaffolding, as outlined by David Wood, Jerome Bruner & Gail Ross (1976).
The 4Q/8L schematic, developed by Beck (2002b) from Ken Wilber’s (1996) All Quadrants/All Levels concept provides a means of overviewing how well the culture (Lower Left) and the structure (Lower Right) in any context are matched. A structure too complex for the ’followers’ is likely to result in confusion and frustration or even sheer apathy. A structure too simple for the followers is likely to be perceived as childish or patronising.
As Steve Reicher, Alex Haslam & Nick Hopkins (2005) note, successful engagement with their followers means the leaders’ actions and achievement have to be a practical expression of their followers shared values and beliefs.
Beck further adds that it may be necessary to communicate with multiple vMEMES at once in a single message or related series of messages. That indeed is a mighty challenge that many who have taken on board Gravesian ideas are still wrestling with.
So what…? (Conclusions)
Firstly, it’s critical for all leaders (and managers) to realise that people are driven by different motivational systems in different contexts – though there may be overriding self-expressive/individualistic or conformist/collectivist preferences. Thus, while obviously some facets of management have to be applied universally – eg: Health & Safety – there needs to be considerable flexibility in what motivational strategies are used. Leaders and managers need to match the motivating factors to the dominant vMEMES they see in their people.
Another point on this issue is its importance to recruitment and promotion.It’s been recognised for some years now that getting such decisions wrong can be incredibly expensive for an organisation. Getting the right people with the motivational make-up appropriate for the role is crucial if an organisation of any kind is to be successful.
This is especially true when it comes to leadership and management. People dominated by BLUE are likely to excel in running a Move-Away-From meta-programme to spot problems and often will have the potential to become highly effective in administrative roles such as accountants, Health & Safety managers and Quality Assurance managers. However, they are unlikely to be good at visioning – a key aspect of leadership. ORANGE and 2nd Tier thinking are much more the kind of mindsets required for visioning.
The style of leadership needs to be matched to the culture of the people being led. There also needs to be a matching of the culture of the people to whatever systems/functions/structures are in place/to be put in place. The language and the concepts used by the leaders and managers needs to be close to the vMEMETIC level of where the workforce/audience/followers is at or the message(s) will simply not be received in any comprehensible or satisfactory way.
In communication, leaders and managers need to think about what memes they are putting out and how those memes will be accommodated into schemas or not. What people believe will impact upon their motivation but equally their motivation will influence what they believe.
Finally, though empirical evidence is a little mixed, the role of temperament cannot be ruled out and it may have a part to play in explaining gender differences in leadership.
Of necessity, some of the discussion in this article has been overly-brief. The hope is that it will succeed in stimulating further and deeper investigation into the models and theories considered here and their applicability to leadership.
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IT40 Places & Things in the Media for 01/25/2019
WhatsApp • Facebook Messenger • Instagram • Mark Zuckerberg Opening Bell: Longtime Trump ally Roger Stone has been arrested in connection with the Mueller probe. Plus, Mark Zuckerberg pens an op-ed in The Wall Street Journal defending Facebook.
WhatsApp • Facebook Messenger • Instagram • Mark Zuckerberg Opening Bell: Longtime Trump ally Roger Stone has been arrested in connection with the Mueller probe. Plus, Mark Zuckerberg pens an op-ed in The Wall Street Journal defending Facebook. (5/40)
Submitted to "IT40 Places & Things in the Media for 01/25/2019"
Cheddar Live
Opening Bell: Longtime Trump ally Roger Stone has been arrested in connection with the Mueller probe. Plus, Mark Zuckerberg pens an op-ed in The Wall Street Journal defending Facebook. Cheddar brings...
Facebook plan to integrate Whatsapp, Instagram and Messenger
Social media giant said process will be “long”
Matt LLoydStory Editor
Facebook have confirmed a plan to intergrate three major social media platforms.
The social media giants revealed services on Whatsapp, Facebook Messenger and Instagram will be merged at a deep level reports the New York Times.
Facebook confirmed while all three apps would remain standalone, they would be linked at a deeper level allowing messages to travel between the three platforms.
If completed, the plan would allow Facebook users to communicate with friends who only had a Whatsapp or Insta account.
The way each platform is built currently makes that impossible.
Work on the project, said the the NYT to be a personal project of Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, has begun and is expected to be completed by the end of the year or in early 2020.
The scheme is designed to make the three services more useful and to keep users on the platforms for longer.
Facebook said in a statement: “We want to build the best messaging experiences we can; and people want messaging to be fast, simple, reliable and private.”We’re working on making more of our messaging products end-to-end encrypted and considering ways to make it easier to reach friends and family across networks.”
Lots of discussion and debate were said to be going on around how the system would work, the statement added.
How to Stop Misinformation
Rumors on WhatsApp have led to mob violence. Here’s how to prevent them – without sacrificing privacy.
Aviv Ovadya
January 25, 2019, 5:30 AM EST
It’s a start.
Photographer: Prakash Singh/AFP
Aviv Ovadya is the founder and chief executive officer of the Thoughtful Technology Project. He was formerly the chief technologist at the University of Michigan’s Center for Social Media Responsibility.
Last July, an engineer at Accenture was beaten to death by a crowd that thought he was a child kidnapper. They were angry, violent and completely wrong. The rumors about the man were “fake news” spread on WhatsApp, an incredibly popular messaging service owned by Facebook.
In response, the Indian government now wants to force companies to take several steps – including breaking encryption – that could compromise privacy and security for their users. But what if there were a way to combat misinformation on the platform while still maintaining privacy?
Most of WhatsApp’s 1.5 billion users use the app to communicate with friends, conduct business and stay in touch with family. But it’s also becoming a worldwide conduit for political disinformation, anti-vaccine fearmongering and mob-rousing rumors. Especially in regions with poor education and governance, the consequences can be deadly and destabilizing.
There’s no easy fix for this problem. WhatsApp messages are encrypted end-to-end, meaning that no one besides the user – not even WhatsApp itself – can read them. The company can use metadata to determine who contacted whom, and how often, but the content of each message is inaccessible. This type of encryption is critical for privacy: It ensures that WhatsApp can’t target you with ads based on what you write or lose your messages to hackers, and it offers crucial protections for users in authoritarian regimes. But it also makes addressing misinformation extremely hard.
To its credit, WhatsApp has tried to get around these limitations. It has launched a public-education campaign, limited message forwarding, and added a label that shows when a message has been passed on from others, which could be an indicator of misinformation. External groups of “rumor busters,” including the cross-newsroom collaboration Verificado, ask WhatsApp users to forward them potential misinformation so they can publicly debunk it. But while these efforts are a decent start, they haven’t yet caught on nearly as well as the rumors have.
In this case, there seems to be fundamental trade-off between privacy and information quality. But WhatsApp may not actually have to choose.
For starters, it could create an updatable list of rumors and fact-checks, similar to what Facebook uses to identify misinformation in its news feed. Each phone could regularly receive a portion of this list tailored to match what the user would be likely to see (based on metadata the app already collects, such as location). Whenever users post or receive a link or rumor that’s on the list, WhatsApp could display a fact-check, related article or other context, just as Facebook has started to. It could even warn them before they share known misinformation. The beauty of this approach is that it doesn’t require WhatsApp to collect any new information about anyone. It maintains privacy while directly addressing misinformation.
To make such a system work, though, a few questions would have to be answered – notably, how would WhatsApp find out about misinformation, and how could it be curated? Let’s consider each in turn.
First, WhatsApp could add an “Is this real?” feature that lets users forward suspicious-looking messages or media to a pool of trusted verifiers, similar to the system pioneered by Facebook and the International Fact-Checking Network. Once the content has been reviewed, the user who reported it could be notified if it had been debunked or if additional context was available. That information would also be made available to all users, whether they reported it or not. This would give everyone the ability to discreetly flag questionable content, even if shared by friends or family, while allowing WhatsApp to alert users about misinformation without infringing on their privacy.
Second, fact-checkers would need to know what to focus on. A brute-force approach to every suspicious piece of content won’t work. Instead, WhatsApp should help journalists triage. Facebook does this by analyzing what content is being shared the most, but WhatsApp’s encryption means that it can’t take the same approach. A potential solution to this dilemma is “differential privacy,” a technique used by Apple to extract insights from large sets of data – such as determining what’s popular, or what websites consume the most battery life – without compromising any particular individual’s privacy.
Ideas like these won’t entirely solve the misinformation problem, which will require major changes across society. But they can protect well-meaning friends and relatives from being tricked into forwarding dubious content. They can provide a sort of real-time contextual education, helping users interpret and judge the information they receive. Perhaps, too, they can help us have our cake and eat it: maintaining privacy, supporting public discourse and protecting people from deadly rumors.
To contact the author of this story:
Aviv Ovadya at [email protected]
Facebook plans to integrate WhatsApp, Instagram and Messenger chats: Report
Chats across all three apps will be end-to-end encrypted
Published: January 25, 2019 9:31 PM IST
Social media giant Facebook is reportedly planning to allow cross-platform messaging between its Messenger, Instagram and WhatsApp apps. While each platform will continue to operate as standalone app, the underlying infrastructure will allow users to communicate between the ecosystem.
According to The New York Times, chats across all three apps will be end-to-end encrypted, but Facebook is yet to offer a timeline when the integration will happen. By allowing users to communicate with one another across platforms, Facebook may be looking to keep more users engaged and get the merged system as their primary messaging service.
“We want to build the best messaging experiences we can; and people want messaging to be fast, simple, reliable and private,” said Facebook in a statement to NYT. “We’re working on making more of our messaging products end-to-end encrypted and considering ways to make it easier to reach friends and family across networks,” it added.
The move makes sense too as not everyone on WhatsApp, has the other two apps installed. There may be a case where a user is on Facebook and WhatsApp, but doesn’t have Messenger installed. By merging chats on all three apps, it will, say, give WhatsApp users an opportunity to communicate with other users who are on Instagram or Messenger, but not on WhatsApp.
Secondly, the move will also help Facebook to show higher under engagement to advertisers, thus help its advertising arm grow. Facebook has a big share of users on its social media platform, and with this integration, it will compete with Apple’s iMessage and Google’s messaging service.
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Care & Health/
Hickman's Farriery
John Hickman
Code: HIFARR
Hickman's Farriery was first published in 1977 and has since been completely revised and updated to bring it into line with the latest developments in this field. The new edition demonstrates how traditional skills can be combined with modern science to benefit the welfare, soundness and performance of the horse. The book begins with a short history of horseshoeing, tracing its origins to pre-Christian times. The authors then move on to explain the underlying structure of the horse's front and hind legs so that farriers can better understand the scientific principles of their craft. The tools used on the foot and at the anvil are described in detail, as are the various types of horseshoe that can be applied. The chapter on shoemaking includes numerous practical exercises, each one illustrated with specially taken step-by-step photographic principles of their craft. Further chapters examine the care of the feet in shod and unshod horses, including youngstock; methods of preventing slipping; and the use of pads. The final chapter looks at injuries caused by shoes and abnormalities of gait, the shoeing of defective feet and surgical shoes.
COLONEL JOHN HICKMAN, MA, FRCVS, Hon.FWCF, was Emeritus Reader in Animal Surgery of the University of Cambridge. He served in the Royal Army Veterinary Corps from 1936 to 1947 and was Honorary Colonel Commandant from 1970 to 1979. He was the founder president of the British Equine Veterinary Asociation and the first editor of the Equine Veterinary Journal. He wrote Veterinary Othopaedics, was co-author of An Atlas of Veterinary Surgery and edited Horse Management and Equine Surgery and Medicine. Colonel Hickman died in 2000. MARTIN HUMPHREY, BVMS, MRCVS, Dip., WCF, qualified as a veterinary surgeon from Glasgow University in 1979. He worked in general and equine practice, developing a special interest in lameness. In 1983 he achieved the farriery qualification of Dip.WCF by examination. He was awarded a British Equine Veterinary Association Trust travel scholarship to study farriery in North America. He now has a busy farriery practice in Hertfordshire which combines with his continued involvement in veterinary practice.
Free Chapter Download CLICK HERE
Adobe Acrobat Reader is required to view chapter downloads. Get it here.
Author John Hickman
Illustrations: photographs and illustrations
The Essential Hoof Book
The Principles of Farriery
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Restoration Hardware to open boutique hotel in New York
Aug 4, 2015 11:46am
Restoration Hardware is getting into the lodging business. The upscale home-furnishings company is planning to open a boutique hotel and restaurant around the corner from its upcoming flagship store in the meatpacking district of New York City.
The company leased all of 55 Gansevoort St., a 25,000-square-foot building near the 70,000-square-foot space it leased last year for its flagship at 9-19 Ninth Ave., which was the home of eatery Pastis.
The 14-room hotel will act in part as a showroom for the brand, including Restoration Hardware's furniture and fixtures, and will have a ground-floor restaurant. It is the first hospitality concept launched by the California-based public company.
"Given what's happening with the High Line and the Whitney Museum and the major office tenants going there, that neighborhood is gaining a lot of credibility," Jeffrey Davis, the head of JLL's hotels and hospitality group in the city, told Crain's New York Business. Davis was not involved in this particular transaction. "There's a lot of demand that bodes well for hospitality."
The Restoration Hardware deal also follows other big consumer brands that have taken space in the neighborhood to showcase their products. Lexus last year opened a boutique that was part art gallery, café, retail store and auto showroom.
Restoration Hardware's hotel at 55 Gansevoort St. is owned by Delshah Capital.
Mark Masinter, a executive with Open Realty Advisors, helped arrange the hotel deal for Restoration Hardware, along with brokers Paul Amrich and Barry Finkelman, who are both with CBRE.
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Need an astrophysicist here
By BadDoggie (Sun May 18, 2008 at 04:54:26 AM EST) science, universe, astrophysics (all tags)
If the universe is 13.7 billion years old, how can it possibly be 56 billion light-years across? Since the speed of light is constant and cannot have changed, the maximum size of the the universe measured between its two most distant points should be no more than 27.4 billion light-years wide. I'll explain a little further inside.
The speed of light (most likely) hasn't changed since the creation of the universe. A couple videos in cdk007's series, Why Young Earth Creationists Must Deny Gravity explain some of the problems with light speed changes, namely impossible violations of E=mc2 and F=mA. Hell, even "Answers in Genesis" accepts this because of the magnitudes of difference required.
Thanks to Einstein we know that mass is directly related to the speed of light and therefore any increase in the speed of light requires an inverse-squared amount of mass reduction to balance the energy equation (since energy cannot be created nor destroyed). I'm down with that. With less mass gravity then becomes magnitudes of exponentiality weaker and everything falls apart.
So we can be pretty certain that light's speed hasn't changed, not over the long term, not even as a "blip". I don't think anyone can argue with this, certainly not me.
But that leaves us with the problem of a universe which has expanded more than twice the amount it should have been able to. The best attempt at an explanation I've had so far have revolved around violation of the Theory of Relativity: "The light's kind of surfing along with the expansion, so moving at its own speed plus that of the expanding time-space."
BZZT! Fail. If I'm traveling in a spaceship at 0.9999999999c (ignoring the fact that the gravity would crush me to near-singularity), if I switch on a flashlight, relative to an observer the light's moving away from that observer at a speed only 0.000000000001% faster than I am. My spacecraft's speed isn't added to the light. Taking that further, if I could manage to exceed the speed of light by 4ft/sec (walking speed) and I flipped on the headlights, I couldn't notice any change in front of me nor could I even see the trail of light behind me since it'll never catch up to me.
Light's speed in a vacuum is the ultimate speed limit and it can't be changed. Since nothing can move faster than it how can the universe have expanded to its current dimensions?
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Need an astrophysicist here | 24 comments (24 topical, 0 hidden)
There's kind of an explanation by TheophileEscargot (2.00 / 0) #1 Sun May 18, 2008 at 05:03:24 AM EST
You have to remember that space itself is expanding. Think of the photon that's been travelling at the speed of light for 13.7 billion years. Ok, for the first billion years it would have covered 1 billion light-years. But that was 12.7 billion years of expansion ago. So by now, that 1 billion light-years has now expanded so it's a lot bigger.
It is unlikely that the good of a snail should reside in its shell: so is it likely that the good of a man should?
Nope. by BadDoggie (1.00 / 1) #2 Sun May 18, 2008 at 05:47:59 AM EST
You're playing the Additive Game which viollates Relativity and the speed limit, basically what I've explained in the details: the light travels at speed c regardless of any other motion. It can't move faster, it can't get a boost, It may red- or blue-shift, but that's frequency, not speed. Light can't hitchhike on the expanding "ether".
OMG WE'RE FUCKED! -- duxup ?
I never said it did by TheophileEscargot (4.00 / 1) #3 Sun May 18, 2008 at 06:05:00 AM EST
Think about the first mile your photon travelled, from point A to point B. Since space has been expanding since then, that mile is now much longer than a mile, say 10 miles.
That doesn't mean that back when the photon traversed it, the photon was travelling at ten times the speed of light. The elastic has stretched since then. If the photon went back, it would now take ten times as long to cover B to A.
Maybe that needs clarifification by TheophileEscargot (4.00 / 3) #5 Sun May 18, 2008 at 06:54:16 AM EST
Suppose the first mile that this photon covered was from A to B. This was 13.7 billion years ago. Say for the sake of argument, A to B used to be 1 mile, but by now has grown to 10 miles.
Now take a mile in the middle of the journey, say from L to M. Back when the photon passed through it, that was just a mile. By now though, it's 5 miles.
Now take the last mile that the photon travelled, Y to Z. The universe hasn't had time to expand since then, so that's still 1 mile.
Now if you think about the average mile that the photon has passed through, that average mile is going to be most like that L to M mile. By now that average mile has grown to 5 miles.
So, the photon originally covered 13.7 billion lightyears in distance. On average, those lightyears have now stretched out to 5 lightyears. So the distance the photon has covered has by now stretched out to 5 * 13.7, or 68.5 billion light-years.
That doesn't mean that the photon ever went went faster than light. Back in the day when it moved between those points, they were much closer together.
One answer by ucblockhead (2.00 / 0) #4 Sun May 18, 2008 at 06:17:39 AM EST
One answer is inflation. The idea is that the universe underwent a massive expansion at far greater than the speed of light before settling down to a state where the current laws of physics apply. No one knows how big the actual universe is.
The size of the Observable universe is explained here.
[ucblockhead is] useless and subhuman
As a PhD astrophysicist I hereby state by joh3n (4.00 / 2) #6 Sun May 18, 2008 at 07:13:12 AM EST
you should see what ucblockhead said.
Also, you should be careful when you play the adding velocities game. The only requirement that the universe has is that all observers agree on the speed of light. It's perfectly allowed for two pieces of the universe to not be in causal contact, just as long as they both agree on the rules.
I just ate about 7 pounds of meat
-theantix
*sniff* by ni (4.00 / 2) #7 Sun May 18, 2008 at 07:43:14 AM EST
It's perfectly allowed for two pieces of the universe to not be in causal contact
Is that why theantix no longer posts? Is his universe no long in causal contact with husis?
Is this all just about love, joh3n? Is ALL astrophysics secretly above love?
"These days it seems like sometimes dreams of Italian hyper-gonadism are all a man's got to keep him going." -- CRwM
Love by joh3n (2.00 / 0) #10 Sun May 18, 2008 at 08:51:11 AM EST
and pie.
I have to agree about the pie part by R343L (4.00 / 1) #14 Sun May 18, 2008 at 09:30:53 AM EST
But pie is also love. I'm not sure we have this reduced right.
"There will be time, there will be time / To prepare a face to meet the faces that you meet." -- Eliot
but what kind of pie? by dev trash (4.00 / 2) #17 Sun May 18, 2008 at 10:08:10 AM EST
Fruit pies are good, I like blueberry, and raspberry myself. but a cream pie is also good too.
it wasn't pie ... by BlueOregon (4.00 / 1) #19 Sun May 18, 2008 at 10:29:55 AM EST
... but I had a creamy rhubarb cake last night (more or a rectangular rhubarb torte, mind you). Mmm ... rhubarb.
I have forever been anti-rhubarb by dev trash (2.00 / 0) #23 Mon May 19, 2008 at 01:52:57 PM EST
I am sure the pies and the tortes are good, but as a child we had one kind of rhubarb, boiled. Ick.
As a PhD astrophysicist, I hereby state, by ana (4.00 / 2) #8 Sun May 18, 2008 at 07:47:14 AM EST
you should read what joh3n wrote. After all, he's a cosmetoligist, and i'm just a local person gone bad (where "local" means 100 parsecs in this case).
"And this ... is a piece of Synergy." --Kellnerin
As a ex-BSc physicist who's forgotten most of it by TheophileEscargot (4.00 / 2) #9 Sun May 18, 2008 at 08:02:28 AM EST
I think you, joh3n and ucblockhead are wrong when you imply that if it wasn't for inflation, the size of the Universe in light-years would be the age of the universe * 2 as BadDoggie calculates.
The points that the hypothetical photon has passed through, have expanded apart since it passed through them. So you can't just calculate distance = speed * time, since you're adding up a bunch of tiny distances, many of which have grown bigger since the photon passed through them.
Two things by Herring (4.00 / 3) #11 Sun May 18, 2008 at 08:58:47 AM EST
How can you be an ex-BSc? DO they take it away if you don't use it? (Note: although I'm not qualified, I use physics every day for things like walking, seeing etc.)
Also, how can inflationary theory be correct when, in the early universe, there was such tight control of the money supply?
You can't inspire people with facts
- Small Gods
Good point by TheophileEscargot (2.00 / 0) #12 Sun May 18, 2008 at 09:27:35 AM EST
Since nobody's taken my degree away, I suppose technically speaking I'm still a Physicist, despite that fact I hardly remember a thing. It's quite scary really.
Re inflation: you can't spend your way out of a recession because of the laws of economic gravity. However in the early stages of the universe gravity was a trivially weak force.
Er.... by Herring (4.00 / 1) #16 Sun May 18, 2008 at 09:56:53 AM EST
"You can't spend your way out of a recession"
Hang on. A recession is defined as something like 3 consecutive quarters of negative economic growth.
Economic growth becomes positive when more economic activity happens - in other words when people spend more.
Ergo the only way out of a recession is spending.
Well spotted by TheophileEscargot (2.00 / 0) #18 Sun May 18, 2008 at 10:15:38 AM EST
That last paragraph was complete bollocks.
Ah, but that's Hawking Spending by dark nowhere (2.00 / 0) #22 Sun May 18, 2008 at 05:05:35 PM EST
Which requires the spontaneous authorship of IOUs that get sucked in and written off as bad debt at least until the recession is over.
See you, space cowboy.
I didn't mean to imply that by ucblockhead (2.00 / 0) #13 Sun May 18, 2008 at 09:29:45 AM EST
I mentioned inflation in that it means that the size of the universe is essentially unrelated to its age and that therefore he was really asking about the observational universe.
Sorry, I misunderstood [nt] by TheophileEscargot (2.00 / 0) #15 Sun May 18, 2008 at 09:40:35 AM EST
That's not what I was saying by joh3n (2.00 / 0) #21 Sun May 18, 2008 at 01:31:30 PM EST
Inflation allows for the universe to have the same temperature everywhere, even if the regions are NOW not in causal contact (since they were in contact before inflation, and reached thermal equilibrium then). Inflation is just an example of how the universes size can be much larger than our observed horizon size. There are a number of different ways to have the universe be larger than the horizon size.
Um... by NoMoreNicksLeft (2.00 / 0) #20 Sun May 18, 2008 at 12:10:19 PM EST
I think that even time itself has little meaning, when we're talking about velocities like this.
It can't be relative to Earth, because Earth is less than 5 billion. And what other reference point even has meaning?
I don't know if 14 billion is the correct age... it's good enough for me that it's far larger than 6000 years, or whatever the stone age mythology says it is.
Also, you should consider that one of the components of c seems to have changed in just the last few millions years, there is evidence of this being the case. One of the natural nuclear reactors in Africa seems to confirm this, as does light passing through some nebula whose name escapes me at the moment.
It's a strange universe.
Do not look directly into laser with remaining good eye.
Magic and little pixies by DullTrev (2.00 / 0) #24 Mon May 19, 2008 at 04:57:08 PM EST
And, as has been said elsewhere, inflation. The speed of light is the ultimate speed limit for travelling through space-time. Space-time itself can expand at whatever damn speed it feels like, apparently.
Inflation is a great theory, because it makes other problems go away, leaving you only with the problem of how the feck inflation could have happened. This is why you should love cosmology.
Sometimes I wish I'd actually done some work and been a proper scientist, instead of getting all my information from The Sky At Night.
DFJ?
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Missionaries You Should Know: Rosewell Graves
By David J. Brady
By: David J. Brady January 29, 2019
If you took all the ways Southern Baptists have worked to reach people in other lands with the gospel and rolled them into one, you would have Rosewell H. Graves, a true missionary Renaissance man. The overarching goal of his life was to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ, and he did so as a medical doctor, a church planter, an itinerant evangelist, a seminary professor, a writer and publisher, and a supporter of numerous mercy ministries.
At the heart of his many accomplishments is the under-sung virtue of perseverance. Graves has the distinction of being the longest-serving Southern Baptist missionary—56 years. There were many times he could have quit and gone home, but he served until the very end of his life. He came to South China in 1856 when he was twenty-three and died there in 1912 at the age of seventy-nine.
“At the heart of Graves’s many accomplishments is the under-sung virtue of perseverance. He served on the field for fifty-six years—the longest of any Southern Baptist missionary.”
Youth, Conversion, and Call to Missions
Graves was born into a wealthy and notable family in Baltimore, Maryland. His father was a medical doctor, and his mother—an ardent supporter of Christian missions around the world—was an accomplished writer.
As a teenager, Rosewell came to faith in Jesus Christ through the ministry of Reverend Richard Fuller. Fuller was considered to be one of the best preachers of that era and a devoted promoter of the missionary movement among Baptists. Even after his conversion, Graves was committed to following in his father’s steps as a physician. That changed, however, when the Southern Baptist Convention met in Baltimore in 1853.
Missionaries J. Lewis Shuck and T. J. Bowen spoke about the needs of a lost world. Young Rosewell received their message as a direct appeal from the Lord for him to enter missionary service. He continued his medical courses, but in 1856, he left America for China to preach the gospel in and around the city of Canton, now known as Guangzhou.
Ministry in China
Graves went to China as a single missionary. His closest friends and missionary colleagues were Charles and Eva Gaillard. Seven years after Graves’s arrival, Charles was killed in a typhoon. Heartbroken, Eva wrote the Board about this unexpected turn of events saying, “Strange are the paths of the future and in wisdom hidden from our view.” (Letters of Eva Gaillard, IMB Archives)
During that time of mourning, Rosewell and Eva drew close to each other. Their friendship blossomed into love, and in 1863, they were married. Rosewell adopted Eva and Charles’s son as his own. Unfortunately, after only one year of marriage, Eva fell ill and died. Once again, Graves was a single missionary—for seven more years.
In 1872 he married again, this time to Jane Norris, whom he had met in his hometown of Baltimore while visiting the United States. Jane, a gifted teacher, returned to China with Rosewell, and for sixteen years she served by her husband’s side until her own death in 1888. Then, in 1890, Rosewell married a third time to widow Janie Lowery Sanford, who was also a Southern Baptist missionary in South China. Jane and Janie were both missionary teachers who opened schools for girls, including the first school for the blind in China.
Graves preached far and wide in South China and held medical clinics everywhere he went. He regarded the healing of the sick as the most valuable entry point to telling people about Jesus. He said, “We find medical work of special service in preparing the way for the preaching of the word and the founding of new churches… In China, we find it especially useful in opening new stations, by overcoming the prejudices of the people and showing the benevolent aspect of Christianity in a way that the simplest may understand.” (Forty Years in China, by R. H. Graves, pp. 224-225)
Graves was also active in the distribution of thousands of Chinese tracts and New Testaments. Over the years, he wrote many of his own tracts, theological books, and hymns in Chinese. He also translated numerous books of the Bible into Hakka, another language in South China. Furthermore, he was one of the founders of the China Baptist Publication Society.
Training National Partners to Reach China
Graves realized that foreigners could never fully evangelize China. Chinese Christians would need to reach their own land with the gospel. Graves, therefore, spent much of his time training men for the ministry. Theological education was the ministry in which his profound intelligence and learning paid great dividends as he discipled scores of men to be evangelists and pastors.
Graves said, “Our commission is not only to disciple and baptize all nations but also to teach them to observe all things that Christ has commanded. Building up the native brethren in the most holy faith is one of the most laborious as well as delightful branches of our missionary work.” (Letters of Rosewell H. Graves, IMB Archives)
The training program he founded became the first school for theological education ever established overseas by Southern Baptists. Eventually, it was named Graves Theological Seminary in his honor.
The Impact of Women in China’s Spiritual Awakening
During his life, Graves experienced many setbacks, but he also saw the beginnings of a great spiritual awakening in South China. He wrote, “God is causing springs to burst forth in the desert, the water of life is welling up in this howling wilderness.” (Letters of Rosewell H. Graves, IMB Archives)
Little did Graves realize that his life would also have a profound spiritual impact on America. He wrote a letter to his mother in 1867, describing his ministry experiment in which Christian women would take the Bible from house to house, sharing the gospel with unbelieving females. This novel approach overcame the barrier that missionaries had faced for decades in trying to reach Chinese women who were largely secluded in their homes.
Rosewell’s mother, Ann Graves, was deeply moved by her son’s letter and immediately invited her friends to a meeting to learn more about this new missionary strategy of women reaching women with the gospel. These meetings continued and slowly began to spread, eventually resulting in one of the most important explosions of missionary support in the history of Southern Baptists. Rosewell’s letter was the spark that set aflame the great fire of missionary support and zeal that would become the Woman’s Missionary Union (WMU). Ann Baker Graves became known as the mother of that vital movement.
“Rosewell’s letter was the spark that set aflame the great fire of missionary support and zeal that would become the Woman’s Missionary Union.”
Enduring Legacy
Rosewell Graves died in 1912, the same year as Lottie Moon. He witnessed China move through many transitions, yet China’s overwhelming need for the gospel remained. During his fifty-six years of ministry in China, Graves preached countless sermons, planted numerous churches, trained hundreds of seminary students, and published many books. He treated thousands of patients in his missionary medical practice and saw hundreds of them embrace God’s way of salvation by grace through faith in the finished work of Christ.
Rosewell Graves’s life remarkably previewed the future scope of Southern Baptist missions around the world—utilizing many platforms, yet all with the single goal of making disciples of Jesus to the honor and praise of his great name.
David J. Brady is the pastor of Christ Community Church, a Southern Baptist congregation in Mount Airy, North Carolina. He was born in Guyana and raised in Belize, where his parents served as Southern Baptist missionaries. David is the author of Not Forgotten: Inspiring Missionary Pioneers, highlighting the lives and labors of eighteen Southern Baptist missionaries. He has also authored an evangelistic book titled The Gospel for Pet Lovers.
David is also co-host of the Missions History Podcast, which discusses important people and moments in missions history. You can check out the first season in its entirety here.
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On Becoming a Fully Mobilized Church: 6 Cumulative Traits
Nathan Garth | December 6 2016
The Role of the Church in Equipping Missionaries
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Back-to-back Hail Bajas; December 10-12 & 14-16
The Saudi Automobile & Motorcycle Federation (SAMF) has released further details about the back-to-back Hail Bajas, which will decide the outcome of the revised 2020 FIA World Cup for Cross-Country Bajas on December 10-12 and 14-16.
Working alongside H.R.H. Prince Khalid bin Sultan Al-Abdullah Al-Faisal, SAMF President and Chairman of the Organising Committee, an experienced team of officials led by Yousif Abdu and Rally Director Ziad Jamous have devised two challenging routes for the concluding events in the 2020 calendar that will also give many competitors the chance to compete against world champions.
Baja Hail 1 will offer 592 competitive kilometres in a route of 890km through the An Nafud desert. Baja Hail 2 has a slightly shorter format and offers 479 kilometres of competition in a route of 780km.
Both events will offer one selective sections per day over two days across terrain similar to that used by the Hail Rally that first entered the FIA cross-country rallying calendar in 2008 after running as a national club event for the first time in 2006.
Manuel Vidal will work as Clerk of the Course for the first time with assistance from deputy Mauro Tavella, both individuals able to call upon their considerable FIA Baja experience through their senior organisational links with events in their native Spain and Italy respectively.
The event is also sanctioned by the FIM represented by board member Larbi Al-Sebai, and open to motorcycle and quad riders. Entries for all disciplines close on November 30.
Rally headquarters will be situated within the Hail University Complex from December 10 to 16. Full details of Covid-19 precautions and requirements for foreigners planning to attend the event are available on www.bajahail.com.
Both Hail Bajas will run under the supervision of the Hail Regional Development Authority in co-operation with the General Authority for Tourism and National Heritage and the General Authority for Sport.
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The Message & Requests of Our Lady
First Part of the Message: A Vision of Hell
“Our Lady showed us a great sea of fire which seemed to be under the earth,” wrote Lucia. “Plunged in this fire were demons and souls in human form, like transparent burning coals floating about in the blaze, now thrown into the air by the flames that issued from within themselves together with great clouds of smoke, now falling back on every side like sparks in a great bonfire, without weight or balance, amid shrieks and groans of pain and despair, which horrified us and made us tremble with fear.
The demons could be distinguished by their terrifying and repulsive shapes, like frightful unknown animals, all black and transparent.
This vision lasted but an instant. How can we ever repay our kind heavenly Mother, who had already prepared us by promising, in the first apparition, to take us to heaven? Otherwise, I think we would have died of fear and terror.”
Second Part of the Message: Chastisement of the Nations
“You have seen hell where the souls of poor sinners go,” said Our Lady. “To save them, God wishes to establish devotion to my Immaculate Heart in the world. If what I say is done, many souls will be saved and there will be peace.”
Then Our Lady described the terrible things that would soon happen in the world because of sin:
“The war is going to end: but if they do not stop offending God, an even worse war will begin during the reign of Pius XI. When you see a night illumined by an unknown light, know that this is a great sign God gives you that He is about to punish the world for its crimes, by means of war, famine, and persecutions
of the Church and of the Holy Father.”
‘God wishes to establish devotion to my Immaculate Heart in the world. If what I say is done, many souls will be saved and there will be peace.’
“To prevent this, I shall come to ask for the consecration of Russia to my Immaculate Heart, and the Communion of reparation on the First Saturdays. If my requests are heeded, Russia will be converted, and there will be peace; if not, she will spread her errors throughout the world, causing wars and persecutions of the Church. The good will be martyred; the Holy Father will have much to suffer; various nations will be annihilated. In the end, my Immaculate Heart will triumph. The Holy Father will consecrate Russia to me, and she shall be converted, and a period of peace will be granted to the world. In Portugal, the dogma of the faith will always be preserved, etc…”
Third Part of the Message: Martyrdom & Conversion
The third part of the secret is best left to Sister Lucia herself to tell:
“After the two parts which I have already explained,” writes Lucia, “at the left of Our Lady, and a little above, we saw an Angel with a flaming sword in his left hand. Flashing, it gave out flames that looked as though they would set the world on fire; but they died out in contact with the splendour that Our Lady radiated towards him from her right hand.”
Pointing to the earth with his right hand, the Angel cried out in a loud voice: ‘Penance, Penance, Penance!’
“And we saw, in an immense light that is God, a bishop dressed in white – we had the impression it was the Holy Father – other bishops, priests, men and women religious, all of them climbing a steep mountain, at the top of which was a large rough Cross.”
“Before reaching this point (the cross), the Holy Father passed through a big city half in ruins. He trembled with a halting step, afflicted with pain and sorrow, praying for the souls of the corpses he met on his way. Having reached the top of the mountain, on his knees at the foot of the large cross, he was killed by a group of soldiers who fired bullets and arrows at him. And in the same way there died, one after another, the other bishops, priests, men and women religious, and various lay people of different ranks and positions.”
“Beneath the two arms of the Cross were two Angels, each with a crystal chalice in his hand, into which they gathered up the blood of the martyrs and with it doused the people who were making their way to God.”
The Requests of Our Lady
When she appeared at Fatima in 1917, Our Lady said she would come to ask for the ‘Five First Saturdays devotion’. This she did on 10 December 1925, when she appeared to Sister Lucia saying: “I promise to assist at the moment of death with the graces necessary for salvation all who, on the first Saturday of five consecutive months, go to confession, receive Holy Communion, pray the Rosary, and keep me company for a quarter of an hour while meditating on the fifteen mysteries with the intention of offering me reparation.”
Our Lady also asked for people to pray and make sacrifices for sinners. She asked for conversion and the amendment of life. Finally, she asks for the Pope, in union with all the bishops of the world, to consecrate Russia to her Immaculate Heart. At Fatima, she said “I shall come to ask for the consecration of Russia to my Immaculate Heart.” And over ten years later, on the night of 13 June 1929, she appeared to Sister Lucia saying, “God is asking the Holy Father to consecrate Russia to my Immaculate Heart in union with all the bishops of the world. He promises to save it by this means.”
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israelandstuffcom | December 7, 2014
Israeli PM appeals to Kerry: Pollard’s life in danger, time has come to release him
When Jonathan Pollard was hospitalized on Friday after losing consciousness, PM Netanyahu asked Kerry if 30 years of imprisonment as a convicted spy was enough.
By Barak Ravid
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has asked U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry to release Jonathan Pollard, imprisoned 29 years ago for spying for Israel, in light of the recent deterioration in his health.
Jonathan Pollard during an interview at the Federal Correction Institution in Butner, North Carolina, May 15, 1998. – Photo: AP
Netanyahu told Kerry during a phone call Saturday evening that Pollard’s life was in danger. “After 30 years in prison, the time has come for him to be released and allowed to live out the remainder of his life as a free man.”
On Friday, the former U.S. Navy analyst was hospitalized after losing consciousness, his wife told activists working for his release.
A statement issued by the activists said that Pollard’s wife Esther had been notified by the authorities that he had been taken to a hospital outside the prison in which he is being held.
Netanyahu talked with Pollard’s wife Esther on Friday afternoon over the phone, and asked her to wish her husband good health in the name of all Israeli citizens.
“Jonathan is sick, his health in in danger, and after 30 years in prison it’s time he is released. We’ll continue to fight until his release,” the prime minister said in a statement.
American Jewish leaders have also urged the president to free Pollard due to his failing health.
“We urge President Obama, especially in this holiday season and given Mr. Pollard’s worsening health, to take steps immediately to expedite gain Mr. Pollard’s release and to commute his life sentence to the more than 29 years he has already served,” the Conference of Presidents, the umbrella organization of U.S. Jewish groups, said in a statement.
Category: Israel News | Tags: Barack Obama, Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel US, Jonathan Pollard
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Prepositions Which prepositions are preferable in this sentence: Mr Black has been working at (in) this company since ( from) April 25, 2018 until present ( to the present day/up to the present day/till present
We usually say we work "at" or "for" a company--both are common. Use "since" and "until" alone, or use the pair "from...to" Mr Black has been working at/for this company since April 25, 2018. Mr Black has been working at/for this company until now, but he is considering leaving it. Mr Black worked at this company from 2015 to 2016. Mr Black has been working at/for this company from April 25, 2018 to the present. Like Rena, I prefer the first choice: Mr Black has been working at/for this company since April 25, 2018. the present perfect continuous tense makes the "until" portion redundant.
Mr Black has been working at this company since April 25, 2018 Since this is in the present perfect continuous, ('has been working") you don't need "until now/ etc" because it automatically means that he still works there.
Mr Black has been working at this company since April 25, 2018 until present. I'd say that (until present/to the present day/up to the present day/till present) are all correct and can be used interchangeably, but they give the idea that he's not going to be working there anymore. However, if you meant that he's been working and will continue to work at that company, then it's better if you don't use the final part. Mr Black has been working at this company since April 25, 2018.
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Aging in Asia
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» Programs » Political Exchange Programs » US-Japan Young Political Leaders Exchange
2013 US Young Political Leaders Delegation to Japan
September 28–October 11, 2013
Tokyo, Kumamoto, Kanagawa
As part of the 2013 exchange program, a delegation of six state and local-level US political leaders visited Tokyo, Kumamoto Prefecture, and Kanagawa Prefecture for a series of meetings and roundtables with national policymakers, business leaders, and prefectural and local-level officials. This group had the added quality of being a delegation of military veterans, who took particular interest in Japan’s national security issues and the role of its Self Defense Force.
During the course of their two-week visit, the delegation met with 11 Diet members from both major parties and over thirty prefectural and city assembly members. This included the secretary-general of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) Shigeru Ishiba, as well as former secretary-general of the main opposition Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) Goshi Hosono.
While in Tokyo, the delegation’s meetings with party leaders were complemented by discussions on Japan’s foreign and economic policy with ministry officials, business leaders, and Diet policy staff. They also sat down with a journalist from the Nikkei newspaper on the role of the media in Japanese politics and were briefed on the role of the US-Japan alliance in humanitarian assistance and disaster relief by the former Japan ground self-defense force lieutenant general who was the point person in the prime minister’s cabinet office on US-Japan coordination for Operation Tomodachi after the Great East Japan Earthquake.
The trip continued with visits to Kumamoto, Kanagawa, and Sumida, where they were briefed by local-level officials including over thirty prefectural and city assembly members. In Kumamoto, they had the opportunity to sit in on a prefectural assembly session and made a site visit to the Self-Defense Force Camp in Kitakumamoto. The delegation then spent two days in Kanagawa where they observed the inner workings of a local mayoral election campaign and made a visit to the Naval Air Facility Atsugi for a briefing on US-Japan maritime self-defense issues. Back in the Tokyo Metropolitan Area, the delegation was then briefed on the dynamics of municipal politics by young and upcoming members of the Tokyo Metropolitan and Sumida City assemblies.
ADAM BUSHEY, Political Appointee, Office of the Governor of New York (Democrat)
EMILY CRAMER, Field and Fundraising Coordinator, Cutler for Maine (Democrat)
JIM HOLDEN, Chief Deputy and General Counsel, Office of the Indiana State Treasurer (Republican)
AILEEN KENNEY, Business Development, The Boeing Company, Washington, D.C. (Democrat)
DANIEL MURRAY, Kansas State Director, National Federation of Independent Business (Republican)
MATTHEW GABLER, Delegation Escort; Member, Pennsylvania House of Representatives (Republican)
This program was organized in cooperation with the American Council of Young Political Leaders (ACYPL), and with the kind assistance of Japanese program alumni who have visited the US on this program.
JCIE is a nonprofit, nonpartisan foreign affairs institute with offices in Tokyo and New York.
Japan Center for International Exchange (JCIE/Japan)
Meisan Tameike Bldg. 7F, 1-1-12 Akasaka
admin@jcie.or.jp
Japan Center for International Exchange (JCIE/USA)
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info@jcie.org
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Receive information about JCIE’s latest publications and events.
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FILE - Tyler Perry poses at the grand opening of Tyler Perry Studios in Atlanta on Oct. 5, 2019. Perry and the Motion Picture and Television Fund are being honored with the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences said Thursday. Perry and the MPTF will receive their Oscar statuettes at the 93rd Academy Awards on April 25. (Photo by Elijah Nouvelage/Invision/AP, File)
Credit: Elijah Nouvelage
By LINDSEY BAHR, Associated Press
Filmmaker Tyler Perry and the Motion Picture and Television Fund are being honored with the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences said Thursday.
The group that puts on the Oscars decided to give the award to two recipients this year in recognition of the “widespread generosity” that they’ve witnessed amid the pandemic. It’s also the first time an organization has received the award.
Both Perry and the MPTF have strived to help people in the entertainment industry impacted by the health crisis. Perry helped create a safe way for many to return to work at his Tyler Perry Studios while the MPTF has provided social services to nearly 9,000 members.
“Tyler’s cultural influence extends far beyond his work as a filmmaker,” said academy president David Rubin in a statement. “He has quietly and steadily focused on humanitarian and social justice causes from the beginning of his career, caring for people who are most often ignored.”
Rubin added that, “the work of the MPTF is more vital than ever, and the organization has gone above and beyond to help our community.”
There have been 39 Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Awards given since 1957, with recipients including Bob Hope, Oprah Winfrey and, most recently, Geena Davis. Perry and the MPTF will receive their Oscar statuettes at the 93rd Academy Awards on April 25.
For over 10 years, the award has been presented at the untelevised Governors Awards, but this year because of the pandemic it is shifting back to the main ceremony.
FILE - In this Nov. 16, 2017 photo, actor-filmmaker and author Tyler Perry poses for a portrait in New York. Perry and the Motion Picture and Television Fund are being honored with the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences said Thursday. Perry and the MPTF will receive their Oscar statuettes at the 93rd Academy Awards on April 25. (Photo by Amy Sussman/Invision/AP, File)
Credit: Amy Sussman
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Search JTA's historical archive dating back to 1923
His Glib Yiddish Once “passed” Nordic Governor of Minnesota As Avrom Yitzcock Greenburg
See Original Daily Bulletin From This Date
A tall, light-haired boy and two dark-haired youths had gone to St. Paul, Minn. to visit the daughters of an Orthodox Jewish family.
“This is Mr. Greenburg,” the dark-haired ones said, introducing their companion to the girls’ father, with whom they were already acquainted.
The father, however, became suspicious. He took the light-haired youth into the kitchen and began to question him. Speaking in Yiddish, he asked the youth his name.
“Mr. Greenburg,” came the reply. Then he asked for the first name.
“Avrom Yitzcock Greenburg,” he was told.
But the old gentleman was still suspicious and asked many more questions in Yiddish, until finally the youth asked the reason for this cross-examination.
ACCEPTED AS A JEW
“I think you are a Gentile,” the old man said.
The youth replied that his father was Jewish and that his mother was a Gentile. After that everything was all right.
That light-haired youth is now the governor of Minnesota, Floyd B. Olson. He is of Swedish and Norwegian descent.
As a prank, several of the Jewish chums with whom he grew up in North Minneapolis had taken him to this St. Paul home. The governor likes to recount the story in telling how most of his boyhood friends were Jews and that because of these early years spent in their company he learned to speak Yiddish fluently.
He tells another incident when, as a lawyer, his mastery of the Jewish tongue surprised a client, for whom he was prosecuting a damage suit. The defendant offered to settle for #200 and, the governor says, “I went to him explaining that a third of the money would be my fee.”
The client turned to a Jewish friend and asked him, in Yiddish, what he thought. The friend, also speaking Yiddish, replied that he thought the attorney was concealing something, that the plaintiff should get only $200.
“The two argued for some time,” Governor Olson says, “and it became increasingly apparent that they though I was trying to put something over on them. Finally, speaking in Yiddish, I said: ‘What do you think I am, a crook?'”
HE HAD HIS WAY
“The two men looked completely flabbergasted. Finally one said, ‘Did you hear what I heard?’ After that I didn’t have any trouble with them.”
There are many other instances where the Minnesota governor’s ability to speak Yiddish has proven helpful.
It is merely another factor in making this son of a railway workman, this former newsboy, salesman, miner, longshoreman, fisherman and lawyer, the colorful and aggressive executive he is.
Paul Olson, his father, came from Norway to Minneapolis and in 1890 met and married Ida Nelson, who had come from Sweden. Their son, born in 1891, was named Floyd Bjornstjerne Olson—the Bjornstjerne for Bjornstjerne Bjornson, Norway’s greatest lyric poet and orator.
This boy, born on Friday the 13th, Nov. 13, 1891, was destined to become the first Farmer-Labor governor of Minnesota.
BEGAN AS NEWSBOY
At 14, when his father, taken ill, lost his job, the present governor became a newsboy and contributed to the support of his parents, at the same time attending high school. At 19 he entered the University of Minnesota law school as a special student but a short time later was forced to discontinue because of lack of funds. Then began four years of “adventuring” which carried him to many parts of the country and to many different occupations.
He returned to Minneapolis in 1914 and resumed his law studies, being admitted to the bar in 1915. Four years later he was made a special assistant county attorney. It was but a step of 16 months until he was county attorney, which office he occupied until he became governor in 1930.
As Hennepin county attorney he became widely known for his ability as a prosecutor. While in that office he prosecuted the leaders of the Ku Klux Klan on charges of criminal libel and secured the first such conviction in the United States.
FORBADE FORECLOSURES
Unassuming in manner, this governor who speaks Yiddish has come to be known both in his own state and throughout the nation as a standard bearer “of the masses of the people.”
During the recent economic crisis he used his executive powers to forbid foreclosures of mortgages on farms and homes. When this power was questioned he caused the Minnesota legislature to enact a law preventing foreclosures, except in special cases, for a two-year period.
As governor, he has also established minimum wage scales for highway labor and fixed a maximum eight-hour day, six-day week.
He is an admirer of the great Jewish leaders of the world. A convincing speaker, he has lifted his voice at public protest meetings held in Minnesota against Nazi treatment of German Jews.
As a speaker he likes repartee from the crowds he is addressing. “It gives me ideas,” is the way he puts it, adding a maxim of his own:
“All oratory is good for is to fool a jury, or in politics, to fool the voters.”
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
From Notre Dame to Prague, Europe’s anti-Semitism is literally carved in stone
By Toni L. Kamins March 20, 2015 11:07 am
From the Archive: In Selma, sold-out yarmulkes and Shabbat behind bars
By Gabe Friedman January 17, 2015 9:00 pm
From the Archive: Jews immigrating to Spain
By Gabe Friedman December 13, 2014 8:46 pm
From the Archive: Jews welcome the stranger
By Raffi Wineburg November 30, 2014 1:22 pm
From the Archive: Synagogues under fire
By Raffi Wineburg November 23, 2014 10:38 am
From the Archive: They came to bury Yasser, not to praise him
By Julie Wiener November 14, 2014 1:20 pm
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Home › Engineering and Science › Biomedical Engineering professor and team develop treatment for traumatic brain injury
Biomedical Engineering professor and team develop treatment for traumatic brain injury
Jun 1, 2020 | Engineering and Science, Faculty/Staff, General News, Research
Dr. Teresa Murray, associate professor in Biomedical Engineering and the Center for Biomedical Engineering and Rehabilitation Sciences at Louisiana Tech University, is collaborating with former Louisiana Tech doctoral student Dr. Chelsea Pernici and professors at the University of Arizona to help develop solutions to traumatic brain injury.
Murray and Pernici are working with Dr. Jonathan Lifshitz and Dr. Rachel Rowe, director and research assistant professor, respectively, with the Translational Neurotrauma Research Program at the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Phoenix, to develop a treatment that could prevent memory and emotional problems in patients suffering from axonal injury caused by traumatic brain injuries (TBIs).
The study was led by Murray and Pernici who used a new imaging technology to show how diseases and injuries affect the brain over time and how medicines could reduce brain damage. This novel imaging was created in Murray’s lab. Through this technology, the group of researchers were able to repeatedly image the same axons in the brain before and after brain injury, providing proof of TBI-related axonal pathology.
Using a novel combination of high-resolution imaging and a GRIN lens implanted in the brain of mice, the team documented axonal injury and the recovery process after a blunt injury to the brain. GRIN lenses are microscopic glass lenses that allow scientists to focus closely on the cells for good image quality. These lenses are smaller than Lincoln’s nose on a U.S. penny and were adopted by a handful of biologists to better study the brain.
Murray developed an improved GRIN lens system to see more details of brain cells. Her team also designed 3D-printed hardware to help them find the exact same cells for each imaging session. Her improved GRIN lenses allowed the team to find and evaluate the same injured axons over several weeks post injury.
“The fine communication elements of neurons — axons — are torn, ruptured and damaged, which contributes to a multitude of clinical symptoms,” Lifshitz said. “To date, these processes have been inferred from fixed histological sections, clinical imaging and cells in culture. No one has observed an axon prior to injury, the consequence of injury and the outcome. Here, we show that axons do sustain injury and can either recover or become truncated.”
Tracking the time in which axons become affected, the team employed a clinically approved drug, minocycline, to reduce inflammation, which slowed axon injury, recovered them from injury and preserved function. The team tested the drug’s effectiveness for immediate use within 45 minutes of the incident, compared to delayed use at three days post injury – both time points showed positive effects. The minocycline drug treatment promoted the recovery of injured axons. With treatment, a much larger percentage of the damaged axons healed, compared to those without treatment.
“Most brain injuries cause damage to just a few axons,” Murray said. “These few axons can’t be seen on MRIs and CT scans. So, most TBI patients are sent home with the hope that they will get better over time. However, even a few damaged axons can disrupt communication in the brain and affect neurological function.”
“The novel fluorescence imaging method using GRIN lenses allows researchers to study brain cells in both time and space, offering a unique opportunity to better understand the effect of drugs on brain structure over time,” Pernici added. “It’s exciting to see that although axons become damaged after TBI, the injury can resolve and with this method, we have the opportunity to better understand that timescale.”
The team plans to continue their research by pairing minocycline with another drug to further reduce this early damage. If successful, this treatment could lessen the chances of memory loss and emotional problems for people suffering a TBI.
“This study provides hope that we can use minocycline effectively if the drug can be taken early in the process and not given long-term. This could help reduce the inflammation, and thus some of the permanent damage caused by brain injury,” Murray said.
No drug currently on the market is clinically used to prevent axon injury. The results of their research were published in Scientific Reports on May 8.
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Assignment Asia
Art, Tradition, and Identity
Heroin's Hold On Myanmar
Challenging Gender Norms
Operation: Drug War
Xinjiang: The Pains and Gains of Development
Gun Violence in the Philippines
Thailand's Missing Children
Forced to Fight: Children On Myanmar's Battlefields
A conflict between government forces and various ethnic groups has raged in Myanmar since independence in 1948. The long-running civil war has not only displaced more than half a million people, but also forced the country's young into the front lines. Reporter Barnaby Lo travels to Myanmar's impoverished countryside, where young villagers tell stories of being abducted and coerced to work as soldiers either by the military or insurgents.
This episode of Assignment Asia features groups and individuals on a mission to save lives in Thailand, Afghanistan and Cambodia.
Between male belly dancers in Turkey and female guards in India, this episode features stories of people challenging gender norms across Asia.
Since President Rodrigo Duterte took office and declared a war on drugs, hundreds of people have been killed in that "war."
Miniature painting in Istanbul, lion dancing in China, and using rap to preserve culture in China.
China is undergoing development at a dramatic pace fueled by decades of economic growth. But perhaps nowhere in the country is the process more complicated than in Xinjiang.
There are few corners of Asia where heroin is so pure, cheap and readily available as Northern Myanmar. Myanmar is now one of the worst consumers of this illegal narcotic.
Anchor Tony Cheng brings us two stories of people trying to change their lives.
Reporter Barnaby Lo in Manila takes us on an in depth investigation of guns and the debate over gun control in the island nation.
This week in a single topic episode, reporter Dusita Saokaew in Pattaya, Thailand tells the story of a mother's desperate search for her daughter. "Gigi" a 9 year old girl selling flowers on a street corner becomes a victim of a kidnapping. The case exposes the dark world of gangs and pedophilia in Thailand.
Many refugees are targeted by traffickers who exploit and abuse them.
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Home >News >World >Former Pakistan PM Nawaz Sharif’s wife contests by-election
Pakistani army soldiers help a polling officer carry election materials received from the election commission office in Lahore on 16 September 2017, for the by-election of the parliamentary seat held by Nawaz Sharif. Photo: AP
Former Pakistan PM Nawaz Sharif’s wife contests by-election
1 min read . Updated: 17 Sep 2017, 08:20 PM IST AFP
Kalsum, wife of former Pakistan PM Nawaz Sharif contested a parliamentary by-election after her husband's seat became vacant when he was ousted from office
Lahore: The wife of former Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif contested a parliamentary by-election Sunday after her husband’s seat became vacant when he was ousted from office.
The Supreme Court ended Sharif’s tenure and banned him from holding public office in July following an investigation into corruption allegations against him and his family.
Maryam, Sharif’s daughter, led the campaign for the seat in Lahore, the family’s political stronghold, as her mother, Kalsum, is being treated for throat cancer in London.
The seat has long been controlled by Sharif and his allies, but the by-election is seen as a test of his Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz party’s popularity.
The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) party, led by former cricketer Imran Khan, who played a key role in Sharif’s dismissal, is among opposition parties fielding candidates in the election.
A candidate from the Milli Muslim League, a new political party backed by Jamaat-ut-Dawa (JuD)), which is listed by the United Nations as a terror outfit, is also standing.
Muhammad Yaqub Sheikh is running as an independent candidate because his party has not yet been registered by the Election Commission.
Hafiz Muhammad Saeed, the leader of JuD, who has a US $10 million bounty on his head, is under “preventative detention" but photographs of him appeared on Sheikhs’ campaign posters.
JuD is considered by the US and India to be a front for Lashkar-e-Taiba, the militant group blamed for the attack on India’s financial capital, Mumbai, that killed more than 160 people.
The Supreme Court on Friday rejected an appeal from Sharif against his disqualification, which made him the 15th premier in Pakistan’s 70-year history to be ousted before completing a full term.
The case against the prime minister stemmed from the Panama Papers leak last year, which spurred a media frenzy over the extravagant lifestyles and high-end London property portfolio of the Sharif dynasty.
The Supreme Court has also ordered the country’s anti-corruption watchdog, the National Accountability Bureau, to open a criminal case against Sharif, his sons—Hussain and Hassan—and his daughter Maryam.
Last month Sharif led legions of supporters from the capital Islamabad to his hometown, Lahore, in a days-long procession that brought thousands into the streets in a show of force.
During the trip Sharif repeatedly blasted the court’s actions, saying the decision was an “insult" to Pakistanis.
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Liverpool Anglican Cathedral
Let us play! Liverpool's Anglican Cathedral recreated...in Lego bricks
Peter Rogers, 60, from Stoneycroft, spent six months recreating the famous landmark in a 2.5 metre model
Peter Rogers with his Lego model of the Anglican Cathedral
The Liverpool Echo's twice-daily email brings you the biggest stories - don't miss out
by Mike Taylor
Liverpool's Anglican Cathedral has been recreated – in thousands of Lego bricks.
Peter Rogers, 60, from Stoneycroft, spent six months recreating the famous landmark in a 2.5 metre model currently being showcased in the Cathedral itself.
The model, which weighs around 100 kilos, was finally completed on December 18 after threats from Peter’s wife to clear the dining table for Christmas dinner.
It was a case of second time lucky for Peter, who tried and failed in an attempt to build the iconic cathedral two years ago.
He estimates that his successful attempt has used around £5,000-worth of Lego bricks.
He said: “I love the building itself – I’ve been around the world, but it just can’t be beaten in terms of ‘wow factor’.
“I got the plot plans from the Cathedral’s shop and after I retired, decided to have another go at it. It was a challenge but very enjoyable at the same time.
“There are more intricacies to the building than you first think, such as porches and detailed brickwork.
“I am delighted that the model is on display at the cathedral itself, especially if it can help raise money for the real thing.”
In pictures: How the cathedral and other Liverpool landmarks were built
Peter has already built Lego recreations of Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium complete with closing roof, a 10-foot Titanic, the Tardis and Hogwarts School in the past.
Members of the public are now being invited to guess how many bricks are in Peter’s model, with the nearest guess winning a family pass to Legoland Windsor.
Cathedral fundraiser Tina Morris said: “Our cathedral is referred to by many as the ‘great space’ – it is fantastic that we now have a ‘little space’ to go with it.
“Money raised by the Cathedral Foundation goes to the upkeep of the building, so when Peter allowed us to display his Lego model, it seemed like the perfect way to illustrate who we are and what we do and why our building is so important to the people of Liverpool.”
To enter, visit the Cathedral to see the model and post your guess in the postbox. A small donation for each guess is welcomed.
All money raised goes to the Cathedral Foundation, which helps keep the cathedral free to visitors and goes towards the upkeep of the building.
The competition closes on Friday, April 4.
Fog rolls in as the Anglican Cathedral towers over Liverpool (Image: Colin Lane)
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American Utopia
Main MenuMore options »
2-6 weeks add to cart more by this artist
[ Nonesuch Records / CD ]
Release Date: Friday 9 March 2018
This item is currently out of stock. We expect to be able to supply it to you within 2 - 4 weeks from when you place your order.
American Utopia is David Byrne's first solo release since 'Grown Backwards' in 2004.
The new album started with longtime collaborator Brian Eno, and later David was joined by producer Rodaidh McDonald (The xx, King Krule, Sampha, Savages).
Additional contributors include Lopatin (AKA Oneohtrix Point Never), Jam City, Thomas Bartlett, Jack Peñate, and Sampha.
"Is this meant ironically? Is it a joke? Do I mean this seriously? Am I referring to the past or the future? Is it personal or political?
These songs don't describe an imaginary or possibly impossible place but rather an attempt to depict the world we live in now. Many of us, I suspect, are not satisfied with the world - the world we have made for ourselves. We look around and we ask ourselves - well, does it have to be like this? Is there another way? These songs are about that looking and that asking.
This album is indirectly about those aspirational impulses. Sometimes to describe is to reveal, to see other possibilities. To ask a question is to begin the process of looking for an answer. To be descriptive is also to be prescriptive, in a way. The act of asking is a big step. The songs are sincere, the title is not ironic. The title refers not to a specific utopia, but rather to our longing, frustration, aspirations, fears and hopes regarding what could be possible, what else is possible. The description, the discontent and the desire - I have a feeling that is what these songs touch on.
America, or to be correct - the United States - was founded as a utopian experiment. One can point out that yes, there were less than noble business interests at play, and this experiment applied only to white males of means, much of which is still true. Clearly there was poison in the well, and much of what was built on the backs of slaves, with half the country disenfranchised. There was genocide, exploitation and land grabs. But I'm talking about perception, which is different than reality. The perception was (past tense) that here might be a new way of living, of cooperating with one another, even if the experiment was being played out only by a portion of the population. The rest of the world, for a long time, viewed the American experiment as exciting, noble and something to be emulated - at least in the ways it succeeded. It was viewed as a fresh start, a place where old, ingrained ideas could be jettisoned, and a world of both fairness and opportunity could be established. Though it never did succeed in all its aims, enough of them were realized in its brief history to give hope to many.
Now it seems - in this place, and in others - we are seeing those dreams, those possibilities, being withdrawn. The experiment seems on the verge of complete and utter collapse. So, naturally, we now ask ourselves - was it too much to ask? Were we wrong about how humans can be? Can we start over? Is there another way? A different way? Do we have a choice in the matter? This asking is a good sign.
I have no prescriptions or surefire answers, but I sense that I am not the only one looking and asking, wondering and still holding onto some tiny bit of hope, unwilling to succumb entirely to despair or cynicism.
It's not easy, but music helps. Music is a kind of model - it often tells us or points us toward how we can be."
1. I Dance Like This
2. Gasoline And Dirty Sheets
3. Every Day Is A Miracle
4. Dog's Mind
5. This Is That
6. It's Not Dark Up Here
7. Bullet
8. Doing The Right Thing
9. Everybody's Coming To My House
10. Here
Watch Everybody's Coming To My House via Youtube
Songs From The Bardo
Ghosteen
Pop & Jazz Home
Easy Listening / Nostalgia
Info / Help
A Hotblack / Raindance Production
© 2013-2021 Marbecks
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Injuries Caused By Unreasonably Slippery Conditions on Factory Trawlers
The Jones Act provides a remedy for fishermen or fish processors injured due to unreasonably slippery conditions on a factory trawler or other fishing vessel. Whether a condition is unreasonably slippery will depend on the facts and circumstances of each case. If you are injured on factory trawler due to an unreasonably slippery condition, you should consult with an experienced maritime injury lawyer to explain your rights under the Jones Act and general maritime law.
The Jones Act provides, in relevant part:
A seaman injured in the course of employment or, if the seaman dies from the injury, the personal representative of the seaman may elect to bring a civil action at law, with the right of trial by jury, against the employer. Laws of the United States regulating recovery for personal injury to, or death of, a railway employee apply to an action under this section.
46 U.S.C. § 30104. The quantum of evidence necessary to support a finding of Jones Act negligence is less than that required for common law negligence, Havens v. F/T POLAR MIST, 996 F2d 215, 218 (9th Cir. 1993), Ward v. American Hawaii Cruises, Inc., 719 F.Supp. 915, 917 (D. Haw. 1988), and even the slightest negligence is sufficient to sustain a finding of liability. Havens v. F/T POLAR MIST, supra at 218. The Jones Act standard of care is ordinary prudence under the circumstances. Gautreaux v. Scurlock Marine, Inc., 107 F.3d 331, 338 (5th Cir. 1997) (en banc). This standard is designed to be very light; because seamen are considered wards of admiralty and the court, the Jones Act is interpreted broadly for their protection. See, e.g., Socony-Vacuum Oil Co. v. Smith, 305 U.S. 424, 431, 83 L. Ed. 265, 59 S. Ct. 262, 266 (1939).
Under the Jones Act, the Ninth Circuit holds that “the employer of a seaman owes the seaman a duty under the Jones Act to provide the seaman with a safe place to work." Ribitzki v. Canmar Reading & Bates, 111 F.3d 658, 662 (9th Cir. 1997); Glynn v. Roy Al Boat Mgmt. Corp., 57 F.3d 1495, 1498 (9th Cir. 1995); Johnson v. Griffiths S.S. Co., 150 F.2d 224 (9th Cir. 1945). The Jones Act was passed in 1920, and within three years the Ninth Circuit stated in Pan American Fisheries v. Hoof, 291 F. 306, cert. den., 263 U.S. 712, 44 S.Ct. 38: “The duty of a master to provide a safe working place . . . is a positive and continuing one, and cannot be delegated.” The seaman's employer is legally responsible for the negligence of the plaintiff’s co-workers while acting in the course and scope of employment. See Gilmore & Black, The Law of Admiralty, 277 (2d Ed. 1975). It is negligence to fail to protect employees from a known hazardous condition. See, e.g., Perkins v. American Power Fuel Supply., Inc., 246 F.3d 593 (6th Cir. 2001). Negligence is a legal cause of an injury or damage if it played any part, no matter how small, in bringing about the injury or damage. Therefore, even if the negligence operated in combination with the acts of another, or in combination with some other cause, the negligence was a legal cause of the injury or damage if it played any part, no matter how small, in bringing about the injury or damage. Ninth Circuit Pattern Jury Instruction No. 9.1.3 (1997); Gapay v. Q&S Enterprises, 133 F. Supp. 2d 1139 (D. Alaska 2000).
Courts have consistently held employers liable for unreasonably slippery deck conditions. See, e.g., Spinks v. Chevron Oil Co., 507 F2d 216 AMC 1165 (5th Cir. 1975); Cooper v. Loper, 1990 AMC 540 (D. N.J. 1990); Willener v. Deep Sea Enterprises, Inc., 1970 AMC 1238 (D. Or. 1969). A deck that is unreasonably slippery is not fit for its intended use and is unseaworthy. For instance, in the notorious Supreme Court case of Mitchell v. Trawler Racer, 362 U.S. 539 (1960), the seaman lost his footing and fell from a ship’s rail that was covered with slimy fish gurry from unloading operations. The Supreme Court held that the shipowner had a duty to furnish a ship reasonably fit for its intended use and that the rail was unsafe. See also Jeter v. Star Fish & Oyster Co., 482 F.2d 457 (5th Cir. 1973) (fish slime on the dock was unseaworthy condition); Martin v. Harris, 560 F.3d 210 (4th Cir. 2009) (fall on fish slime and gurry on the dock); Robinson v. Pocahontas, Inc., 477 F.2d 1048 (1st Cir. 1973) (fish slime unreasonably slippery); Bates v. Merritt Seafood, Inc., 663 F. Supp. 915 (D.S.C. 1987) (same).
Further, under the general maritime doctrine of unseaworthiness, “[a] shipowner has an absolute duty to ‘furnish a vessel and appurtenances reasonably fit for their intended use.” Mitchell v. Trawler Racer, Inc., 362 U.S. 539, 550 (1960). Unseaworthiness is found where the vessel is engaged in an unsafe method of operation. Morales v. City of Galveston, 370 U.S. 165 (1962).
A vessel's condition of unseaworthiness might arise from any number of circumstances. Her gear might be defective, her appurtenances in disrepair, her crew unfit. The number of men assigned to perform a shipboard task might be insufficient. The method of loading her cargo, or the manner of its stowage, might be improper.
Usner v. Luckenbach Overseas Corp., 400 U.S. 494, 91 S. Ct. 514, 517-518, 27 L. Ed. 2d 562 (1971) (internal citations omitted); see also Webb v. Dresser Indus., 536 F.2d 603, 606 (5th Cir. 1976), cert. denied, 429 U.S. 1121, 97 S. Ct. 1157, 51 L. Ed. 2d 572 (1977). Gear, tools and other obstructions on the deck may amount to an unseaworthy condition. See, e.g., Billedeaux v. Tidex, Inc., 1994 AMC 1103 (5th Cir. 1993); Barlas v. United States, 279 F. Supp. 2d 201 (S.D. N.Y. 2003) (finding the presence of debris on the deck of a passageway constituted an unseaworthy condition). The duty to provide a seaworthy vessel is absolute and nondelegable. American President Lines, Ltd. v. Welch, 377 F.2d 501 (9th Cir. 1967), cert. denied, 389 U.S. 940, 88 S.Ct. 294; Hudson Waterways Corp. v. Schneider, 365 F.2d 1012 (9th Cir. 1966); American President Lines, Ltd. v. Redfern, 345 F.2d 629 (9th Cir. 1965). Liability for unseaworthiness is not dependent upon a showing of fault. Mitchell v. Trawler Racer, Inc., 362 U.S. 539, 550 (1960).
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Middle-class families are struggling to pay for college
Rose Conlon and David Brancaccio Sep 24, 2019
https://www.marketplace.org/2019/09/24/middle-class-families-are-struggling-to-pay-for-college/
ROBYN BECK/AFP/Getty Images
What does it mean to be middle class in America?
You might think of financial benchmarks like owning your own house or earning enough to take an occasional vacation.
But Caitlin Zaloom, a cultural anthropologist and professor at New York University, says that most middle-class families today share one common experience: struggling to pay for college. It’s the subject of her new book, “Indebted: How Families Make College Work At Any Cost” and her recent piece in the New York Times.
Zaloom says middle-class families tend to make too much money to qualify for the federal grants reserved for low-income families — but not enough to pay for college outright.
The outcome is parents faced with a hard decision between watching their children take on large loans or risking their own financial security in order to pitch in.
She spoke with “Marketplace’s” David Brancaccio about why middle-class families are having such a hard time paying for college. The following is an edited transcript of their conversation.
David Brancaccio: One of the central organizing principles of being middle class is worrying about college costs?
Caitlin Zaloom: That’s right. And especially worrying about college costs because it is the most important way today that families can open up opportunities for their kids. The way that people experience themselves as middle class is by parenting — by making sure that their children can have opportunities that parents themselves didn’t have.
Brancaccio: We have three kids (who are now adults) but they were very concerned about how much we helped them with college costs. And my spouse and I would always say that this is the most important thing we could spend money on; helping you get these opportunities.
Zaloom: I think that idea is very much about what it means to be middle class. Of course, that opportunity has not been available for many, many Americans – historically or today. But I think that promise is what middle-class parents focus on.
Brancaccio: But it’s a nightmare because you also have other duties as a parent.
Zaloom: That’s right. And the focus on college starts at the moment, really, that children are born. Parents begin worrying about how they’re going to pay for this goal that is 18 years out. But of course there are many things that they have to pay for In the meantime — like daycare, or getting an apartment or buying a home in a school district that will provide a good education in the meantime.
Brancaccio: And the answer to how people pay, if they’re middle class, is in the title of your book — “indebted” — that’s the way it’s done?
Zaloom: It is through debt, but it’s also through really any means possible. So by drawing down savings, by raiding retirement funds, by taking out second mortgages, by taking on second jobs.
We all know that there is more than $1.5 trillion in outstanding student debt and more than 44 million borrowers. But I think we haven’t reckoned fully with what the effect is on our family lives, what the effect is on our relationships between parents and children who have to face down those costs.
Brancaccio: Making these sacrifices, going into debt — is there a proper return on investment if the family is able to pull this off?
Zaloom: So we know that college pays off in the long run, on average. But I think we also need to take account of the ways that debt affects people differently. For instance, women and people of color carry more debt than their white peers, and they also have more trouble in the labor market getting compensated.
Brancaccio: You’re an anthropologist and you met people who really opened up their lives to you on this question of paying for college — what was the biggest surprise to you?
Zaloom: One of the biggest surprises was just how strongly committed to college and to education all of these families were. I think that we need to support parents in that idea — historically, it’s a very critically American idea which we don’t recognize or support enough.
Brancaccio: Bigger than buying a house?
Zaloom: I think it is bigger than buying a house. In fact, I think that buying a house is part of the college endeavor actually — because people buy houses for the school that their kids might go to, not just for the roof over their heads.
The class of 2008 offers advice to the class of 2018
How am I going to pay for this? Saving for your kids’ college education
How good is it for the class of 2018?
Many high school seniors in the “class of COVID” are rethinking their college plans
What it feels like to be a middle class family today
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Apple Slowly Ramping Up iPhone Developer Program
Friday March 14, 2008 1:34 pm PDT by Arnold Kim
A series of "non-acceptance" emails sent out by Apple today to applicants interested in becoming registered iPhone Developers has generated some confusion and concern.
In the email, Apple thanks the applicant for their interest in the iPhone Developer Program, and states that the iPhone Developer Program is only available to a limited number of developers during the beta period. Apple plans on expanding the program during the beta period and will contact applicants again "at the appropriate time".
Despite theories that every applicant has received the same letter, we can confirm that some developers have already been accepted into the iPhone Developer Program.
The $99/year iPhone Developer Program should not be confused with the SDK itself, which is available for free download. iPhone Developer Program provides a developer with the beta release of the iPhone 2.0 Firmware as well as a developer certificate which provides the ability to install applications onto the iPhone itself. Without the certificate, developers are only allowed to install applications onto the iPhone Simulator that accompanies the free SDK.
It is believed that the iPhone Developer Program will be open to all comers after June when the program is out of beta. At that time the iPhone 2.0 firmware will be publicly available.
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iMac Pro Available to Order December 14, Starting at $4,999
Tuesday December 12, 2017 6:04 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple today announced the iMac Pro will be available to order on Thursday, December 14. Pricing starts at $4,999 in the United States.
iMac Pro is a powerful, top-of-the-line workstation designed for professional users with demanding workflows, such as advanced video and graphics editing, virtual reality content creation, and real-time 3D rendering.
"iMac Pro is a huge step forward and there's never been anything like it," said John Ternus, Apple's VP of Hardware Engineering.
The all-in-one desktop computer has a 27-inch Retina 5K display within a sleek space gray enclosure. Apple also includes a space gray Magic Keyboard with Numeric Keypad and Magic Mouse 2 in the box. A space gray Magic Trackpad 2 is optional.
Apple said the iMac Pro is the fastest and most powerful Mac ever, at least until the modular Mac Pro is released.
The machine can be configured with up to an 18-core Intel Xeon processor, up to 4TB of SSD storage, up to 128GB of ECC RAM, and an AMD Radeon Pro Vega 64 graphics processor with 16GB of HBM2 memory.
The high-end performance is made possible by an all-new thermal design that delivers up to 80 percent more cooling capacity than a traditional iMac.
With four Thunderbolt 3 ports, the iMac Pro can drive two 5K displays or four 4K displays at 60Hz simultaneously. It also has a 10 Gigabit Ethernet port, four USB-A 3.0 ports, an SD card slot, and a 3.5mm headphone jack.
Other tech specs and features include a 1080p front camera, stereo speakers, four microphones, 802.11ac Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth 4.2.
Apple previewed the iMac Pro at its Worldwide Developers Conference in June. The news, together with the modular Mac Pro, helped alleviate some criticism that Apple was no longer focused on professional users.
Apple has yet to provide exact pricing details on a configuration-by-configuration basis.
Related Roundup: iMac Pro
Buyer's Guide: iMac Pro (Don't Buy)
djeeyore25
That truly is a $5K display.
laz232
Integrated system, thus any problems => loss of HDD (some companies do not allow any HDD/SSD out of their premises, not even for repair purposes - due to data security), monitor not replaceable, no choice of GPU
All of which means that this is not a Pro machine for my professional usage.
I personally don't like an integrated monitor solution, I don't like the lack of GPU choice, the fixed memory and SSD (and the fact that it's not removable - see above), all the ports being at the back.
Edit: expanded re: HDD/SSD,
Edit2: added 2nd paragraph
Fozziebear71
Didn't take long for the Apple haters to show up in the thread.
AcesHigh87
Why not a 4K display for that kind of money?
Why would you want a 4K display when it already has a 5K one?
pete2106
Nice, I've been looking for a computer to play Minecraft on.
Lol pay by the pixel :p
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London Met alumna among world's 100 most promising young scientists
Yelena Novikova has been named as a G20 Young Global Changer.
Yelena Novikova, a MA International Security Studies graduate, has been named among the top promising young influencers at the G20 Think 20 Global Solutions Summit.
The Summit’s goal is to find global solutions to local problems. One of the ways G20 seeks to achieve that goal is by creating a global community of gifted young experts. This new generation of problem-solvers also got a chance to contribute their ideas within the framework of the Summit.
After leaving London Met, Yelena took on an internship at Tomorrow’s Company, a think tank that exists to inspire and enable business to be a force for good in society. It was Yelena’s internship which inspired her to dedicate her research to Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG).
The alumna was awarded the prestigious scholarship after her change project was assessed by representatives of Kiel Institute for the World Economy, the German Development Institute and other organisers. The research focuses on the integration of ESG factors into mainstream investment analysis and core corporate strategy alike.
The Young Global Changers Scholarship Programme was open to applicants from all around the globe. Some of the benefits of winning include being included in the G20 process and engage in the development of powerful narratives for one or more of the global solutions of the conference, meeting Nobel Laureates and pitching ideas to world renowned thinkers and forming part of an exclusive network of like-minded Young Global Changers and building long-lasting relationships.
The Summit took place in Berlin on May 29-30. Some additional events were also organised exclusively for Young Global Changers on 28 and 31 May.
Find out more about Security Studies MSc at London Met.
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Free no obligation quote and UK design service available.
Sand Pit
Ards
Moyle
Na h-Eileanan an Iar
Newry and Mourne
Long Jumps
Long jump runways are popular athletics facilities which can be installed in a range of surface types and designs for clubs, schools and colleges with use in competitive events and recreational games.
Long Jump Designs
The designs for a long jump facility can vary for each different project with the two main surface types being polymeric rubber and Multisport synthetic turf.
Long Jump Installers
We have completed many projects to install and maintain long jump runway facilities of various sizes with specialist sand landing pits in a range of specifications.
Long Jump Surfaces
We are Long Jump Surfaces, our expert team have completed many projects to install and maintain long jump runway facilities of various sizes with specialist sand landing pits in a range of specifications. If you'd like more information about the installation of long jump surfaces, our friendly and experienced team are here to help.
Athletics tracks and long jump surfaces are very popular at schools, universities and sports clubs. It's important to have these surfaces installed to the highest standards so that children are able to improve their skills and take part in a variety of sports.
Long jump runways are the most common surfaces which are used at schools, these facilities can be installed in a range of different designs and area sizes. There are also a number of long jump facility funding opportunities available for schools throughout the UK.
You can find out more information on Long Jump Surfaces by contacting our specialist team via the provided contact form. This will allow you to ask any questions and receive any answers or information you require.
Design Specification for Jumping Tracks
There are a few different design specifications for jumping tracks to choose from when you have the long jump runway facility installed, each surface type has individual qualities which are better suited to different projects.
Polymeric Rubber - This material is the most traditional for athletics tracks and long jump surfaces. It's made up of polymeric EPDM rubber crumb which is mixed together with a binder and laid out onto a sub base. The sub-base for a polymeric surface would be made up of a layer of angular stones and a layer of macadam which creates a stable foundation for the long jump runway surfacing.
Needlepunch Synthetic Turf - This is a fibre bonded artificial grass material which is woven together and infilled with silica sand to create a durable and hard-wearing surface. The needle punch synthetic turf is popular with primary school jumping tracks and compact facilities as it provides a more comfortable landing surface to prevent injury from trips and falls when young children are using the facility. You can also choose from a number of colour options and rainbow designs with this particular specification which makes the long jump runway even more engaging for kids.
Sand Pit - The landing pit area is an important part of the full long-jump facility installation as it provides a safe surface for athletes to land on and gives accurate distance scores once the jump has been completed. Washed and dried silica sand is used in the landing pit and the area size may be altered to meet the requirements of each project. For more information on sand pits for long jumps please click here http://www.longjump.org.uk/sand-pit/ Rubber edgings can also be installed around the perimeter of the sandpit to enhance the safety qualities of the local acility.
Each long runway installation project varies in design, area size and budget, and we can help you customise the whole process to make sure you get the best end product for your school or club.
If you're looking to create a versatile and sustainable area for your school, please contact us so we can offer an idea of costs for your project.
Construction of Long Jumps Near Me
The construction of long jumps usually follows a similar process, however, every project varies slightly and no two jobs are exactly the same.
The installation starts with excavating the existing area and preparing the ground, a geotextile membrane is laid out to stop the growth of weeds and contaminations, and then the sub base is put down.
The sub-base for a polymeric long jump runway will include a layer of angular stones and then a layer of macadam. A needle punch runway could have the same sub base system or it could just have the angular stones without the macadam. We will also install a long jump pit which is located at the end of the runway and provides athletes with a save place to land their jump.
When it comes to installing the jumping track surfacing, this process is different for each of the surface types. The polymeric surfacing is poured out onto the sub base and left to dry, whereas the needle punch synthetic turf will be rolled out, similarly to a carpet, and then secured at the edges. Line markings can be applied to both surface specifications so that the facility and surrounding areas, may be used for both long and triple jump events at different distances.
AAA Sports Organisation
You may come across the AAA Sports Organisation when looking into the athletics sector; the AAA is known as Amateur Athletic Association. It is the original governing body for athletics and was around before UK Athletics. The group continues to exist to stand for the volunteer area of the sport but not to govern. Various academic institutions and also other organisations in Great Britain work together with the Amateur Athletic Association.
This organisation offers open forums, setting up competitions which will help with the development of younger athletes. The AAA has produced these competitions in order to act as development tools for grassroots as well as to help youngsters to develop in the future.
A second duty that is presented to the Amateur Athletic Association is safeguarding the history of the particular sport. Top-level athletes are often rewarded with exceptional and historical medals and trophies by the governing body. Many people closest to you are becoming interested in sports due to the work carried out by this group. To find out more about AAA organisation, please complete the contact form provided.
National Athletic Competitions
The Amateur Athletic Association holds National athletic competitions in order to increase the involvement in children’s sports. Sports products and sponsorships are often financed by the organisation because they give cash to events like the National Championships whenever possible. UK Athletics and British Athletics are the governing authorities to this sport however Amateur Athletic Association stand for the volunteering part.
The AAA creates new track and field standards for various sports activities every year which is then submitted. These kinds of requirements depend on the results of past events and generate four unique grades that the greatest sports athletes get categorised into. The overall performance standards for the sports and athletics events are compiled by databases of information collected through the years and this is revised every two years.
These standards are awarded to children with badges along with certificates. Plaques are also given out by the Amateur Athletic Association, to kids who achieve Grade 1 which improves the number of people who participate in athletics. Small grants or loans are available to young people looking to take up a career in athletics by the AAA Charity for the Young.
Compact Long Jump Surfaces Near Me
Many sports clubs and schools have started to have more cost-effective facilities constructed for sports and athletics. A lot of young people do not get the opportunity to engage in athletics because schools and colleges find it difficult to have high-quality sporting areas like long-jump tracks installed. The reason behind this may often be because of limited space outside or a lack of available funds for the school.
In a number of establishments, compact long jump surfaces and sports facilities are now being developed and built in smaller sizes to match restricted spending budgets and to be more cost-effective. They are also designed to improve the FUNdamental sporting motion skills of run, jump and throw.
In academic institutions these facilities are built to enhance the kids' running, jumping and also throwing, and even multiple activity participation into athletics. Running tracks, jumping run ups as well as discus circles are some favoured facilities that can be fitted. Multi activity areas can be achieved by setting up a single track; this can be used for long-jump, relay races, hurdles and many others.
In both primary and secondary schools that cannot get a full-sized track, this really makes a fantastic alternative which is much less expensive as well as takes up significantly less room. For more details on athletics please click here http://www.longjump.org.uk/athletics/ When someone completely enjoys performing a certain activity such as long-jump or discus, they are able to progress onto professional clubs inside the United Kingdom. There are not many facilities that target people at the beginners level, which makes young children unwilling to take part in athletics.
It is very important for little ones to participate in sports at a young age - KS One and Two - and carry on through KS Three and KS Four. A new sports and athletics model has been produced by UKA, permitting small children to gain access to sports and athletics areas. The newest model could be constructed in vibrant colours to appeal to younger people and is also more cost-effective, meaning it is a fantastic entry-level sports facility for academic institutions.
Get in touch with a member of our team by filling out the enquiry form above. We will get back to you shortly with all the information you need.
Considering that the specification and design of compact facilities could be altered, near enough any club or school can have one put in. A lot of establishments tend to get long jump runways in addition to high-jump fans put in within their compact facility. We're able to adjust the size and dimensions of each construction to fit the available space on site.
The flexible design of compact sports and athletics facilities ensures that they are highly relevant to a variety of situations. To find out about athletic areas please visit this page http://www.longjump.org.uk/area/ For a lot of projects, existing sports and playgrounds could be developed in educational institutions to produce a far more diverse sporting provision. Children of every school key stages can benefit from personal growth when learning additional skills through distinct sporting activities.
More young people may be motivated to participate in the new sporting activities if they have a high quality and attractive facility readily available for them to use. For almost any nearby school looking to reduce costs and stick inside a spending budget, the compact recreational products present an amazing option. In terms of FUNdamental skills of athletics, a lot more kids are capable of learning and practising jogging, jumping plus throwing through a range of activities.
CONTACT US NOW FOR MORE DETAILS
The main target for UKA is to motivate kids and young people to engage with sporting activities together with athletics, which is why these kinds of facilities are extremely essential. This is developed even more by hosting IAAF and IPC World Championships in London in 2017. By enabling young children to utilize the compact facilities, there is a greater chance for sports athletes to improve their abilities and move into professional athletics clubs because of this.
To find out more details about the long jump runway specifications and construction, as well as the funding opportunities available for schools please take a look around the rest of our website or feel free to contact us.
Long Jump Surfacing InstallersAbout Long Jump InstallersLong Jumps RunwaysAthletics Track InstallationLong Jump Sand PitLong Jump Runway AreaContact Long Jump UK
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How Chorus Worldwide Helped Indie Developers to Release Mobile Games in China
Mintegral Head of Supply EMEA Sean Parmenter sat down with Chorus founder Shintaro Kanaoya to discuss what indie studios need to know before launching in China
By Mintegral2018-08-21
The opportunity presented by the size of the Chinese mobile games market is well known.
Larger publishers can find navigating the Chinese market less difficult, owing to their size and experience, as well as having deeper pockets.
However, many independent studios give up on publishing in China because of the perceived difficulty in entering the market. Whether it’s negotiating through the alternative app store landscape or dealing with legal issues, it can sometimes seem like more hassle than it’s worth.
As a mobile advertising platform with a specific focus on China and APAC, I often talk to publishers about both the challenges and opportunities that China represents. And we are not the only company doing so.
Chorus Worldwide is an indie-focused publisher which specialises in bringing Western games to Asian audiences. It has successfully released over a dozen indie titles into the market including the first two entries in The Room series.
I sat down with Chorus’ founder Shintaro Kanaoya to ask him what advice his company has for independent developers considering making the move to China.
Sean Parmenter: How interested are indie developers in releasing in China?
Shintaro Kanaoya: What we’ve found is that there’s a lot of interest, especially for Western studios, but Asia is an area they don’t understand how to reach.
China is obviously the biggest part of that and what we find is that developers say “we know China is big, we know a bit about it but we wish we knew what we were doing.”
So there is a lot of interest, but there’s also a high level of ignorance, uncertainty and lack of understanding.
You mentioned that you’ve published on iOS in China. Is targeting iOS a better starting point for mobile game developers looking to release into China for the first time?
It is. The journey is a lot easier for sure.
You can release in China using the same process as the rest of the world. The checkbox for China is there, whereas for Google Play it really isn’t. So it’s actually pretty straightforward and anyone can put their game on the app store.
The tricky part is that if you put it there and no-one knows about it, then it can disappear without a trace. But for us, iOS is the easiest platform to release with.
The Room and The Room 2 were your most successful titles in China. How did you overcome the discovery problem?
The first thing is that both games had already been very successful already. We launched The Room in 2015.
It was already on the Chinese App Store in English, but it had done modest numbers in comparison to everywhere else because it hadn’t been localised．
When we announced the formation of Chorus Worldwide in 2013, we established a relationship with Apple explaining what we were doing in terms of curating releases from the West and bringing them to Asia.
I think that relationship and building up trust meant that we were doing good localisation, which meant that Apple was confident in us.
This meant they were happy to feature the game and that was the number one driver of downloads.
For Android releases, you have used a local partner to connect you to the market. Why did you do that?
As I’m sure everyone knows, the Google Play store is not a big player in the market. Instead, the area is dominated by local Chinese app stores.
So the biggest issues for anyone going into China is that you have to build relationships with each of the stores, integrate their SDKs and then aim to get featured on each of them.
On top of that, there’s the requirement for the ISBN license from the government to operate.
All of that takes boots on the ground and a lot of resources, which we don’t have.
We look for partners already doing that, sub-licensing the games that we’ve got the rights to and then finding someone we like and trust to go through the process of that.
For example, our partners who helped us launch The Room on Android had relationships with all the top stores.
But they also had an SDK, which had the other SDKs connected to it, so it made that part a lot easier.
They had a technical solution, the relationships and were able to get the government license for us, all of which are hard to do if you’re not in China.
We knew it was something we were never going to be able to do, so we researched and found our partners and took it from there.
Let’s say you’ve got everything you need for launch in terms of infrastructure support, but the game itself isn’t localised. What advice do you have for localising a game successfully into China?
Find someone really good and that you really trust to manage the localisation process is absolutely key.
Unless you speak it yourself, if you send away a text file to a localisation company and it comes back, you don’t know if a translation is any good or not.
We pride ourselves on that translation being solid, that it’s well written and it’s done by a native speaker who has played the game.
So our advice would be to find someone that you can trust to review the translation.
Otherwise, we have seen this in the past where things have been localised and we’ve had to change the lot because it’s wrong or wrong for the genre.
Without knowing the language you’re going into, there’s the potential not just to get things wrong but to cause offence. So it’s important to be careful.
In addition to adapting the in-game text to the local market, did you have to adapt the commercial strategy of each game to do well?
We did for The Room and The Room 2, which were premium games in the West.
We made them free at the point of download, allowed you to play it up to the end of the first chapter and then asked for an in-app purchase to unlock the rest of the game.
The reason we took that approach is that anything with a price will cause people to disregard the game, especially if it’s something that doesn’t have a well-known IP or fits culturally with the market.
When you’re trying to introduce something unusual into the local market, it’s important to let the players try it first before making a purchase decision. That’s one of the things that worked with The Room and The Room 2.
Apple had featured it, people were able to look at the store page and the screenshots. By going free, we were able to get people to hit the download button and try it out.
I think that was really important to its success. I think if we hadn’t done it, we would have struggled to get as much traction as we did.
Finally, what would be your top tips for any indie looking to release their mobile game into China for the first time?
If you don’t understand the market and have never done anything there before, find a partner.
Whether it’s a company that covers a few countries like a China-only partner or us, find someone who you can work with that has proven successes already.
The worst thing you can do is go in blind and hope for the best. If you spent two years developing a game and we definitely want to be in China, then that’s such a waste. You’re potentially ignoring, or not doing your best, in the biggest market in the world.
So you either need to build that expertise in your team somehow or to work with a partner.
It’s commercially different and culturally different, so you want to be able to bridge that gap.
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ADVANCE WEATHER WARNING ADVANCE WEATHER WARNING ADVANCE WEATHER WARNING
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Changes may be coming to Massachusetts’ driving while high on marijuana laws
Fresh on the heels of a 497-page report written by the state Cannabis Control Commission’s special commission on OUIs, Gov. Charlie Baker introduced a bill that would enact several changes to state law on driving while high endorsed by the board — some of which are strongly contested by civil libertarians as being overly intrusive and possibly unconstitutional.
Among the biggest proposed changes, the bill would extend the state’s “implied consent” laws to apply to cannabis. In other words, should an accused stoned driver refuse a test aimed at detecting marijuana in their system, they would face the same penalties as an alleged drunk driver refusing a breathalyzer test. In Massachusetts, that can earn you a license suspension of anywhere from six months to life, depending on your record.
Which, on its face, might seem pretty reasonable! Though the science is still out on the extent to which driving while high on marijuana— with some studies, it’s worth noting, downplaying comparisons to drunk driving — people shouldn’t be driving while they’re impaired on any drug. It makes sense to enact laws discouraging folks from driving while high, or evading a test to discover if they are.
The problem is: so far, no such empirically reliable test exists, at least not one anywhere near the consistency of an alcohol breathalyzer. Sure, blood tests can detect marijuana in your system, but not whether you imbibed it in the past 15 minutes or past month, and certainly not any precise level of intoxication. Saliva-based tests face similar hurdles, and, as a newer method, are also prone to both false positives and negatives.
Even Oakland-based Hound Labs — creators of a highly touted “weed breathalyzer” reportedly slated for testing in Boston — acknowledge their device would detect THC up to hours after smoking, which, for many users, is more than enough time to come back down.
Some in the scientific community question whether such a device is even conceptually possible, pointing to the fact that no reliable metric exists that can correlate a specific level of THC in a user with a level of impairment, in the way a blood alcohol concentration reading can.
“They want the equivalent of a breathalyzer for drugs, they want a silver bullet,” special commission member John Scheft told MassLive last month. “We don’t have it.”
That makes some advocates nervous. A representative from the Massachusetts ACLU was the sole “no” vote in a 8-1 vote against the recommendation, and other branches have sued their state over similar laws in the past.
For now, though, Baker’s bill will be taken up for consideration by a legislative committee, who will vote on whether the bill should proceed to a full floor vote — whether or not that will happen remains to be seen.
How Pennsylvania’s economy can benefit from the legalization of recreational marijuana
When will the first recreational marijuana Boston store open?
What to expect from recreational marijuana in 2019
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COS 2019
Driverless Vehicles
Singapore Port
Cycling Improvements
Political Office Holders
International Civil Aviation
Air Safety Investigation
Sea Transport
Advancing the Maritime Industry
Maritime Safety & Security
Marine Safety Investigation
Rail Safety Investigation
Speech by Minister Khaw Boon Wan at Ministry of Transport’s Committee of Supply Debate 2017 on 8 March 2017
08 Mar 2017 Speeches
1. Madam Chair, Budget 2017 positions Singapore for an uncertain future. There will be challenges, but we will be in a good position if we can succeed in capturing the many opportunities that will also arise. Budget 2017 calls on all stakeholders to work together to seize these opportunities. The transport sector will play its part.
Transport and the Economy
2. The transport sector is a key pillar of our economy. Many Singaporeans make a good living working in it. Collectively, the industry employs more than 300,000 workers. The potential for further growth is also great. Many well-paying jobs are waiting to be filled.
3. More importantly, the transport sector is a key enabler for our economy. It connects us not just within our island, but to the rest of the world. This started from Singapore's early days as a centre for entrepot trade, and allows Singapore to thrive as an international hub today. This is why we are continually upgrading our infrastructure. This year, we are working concurrently on multiple projects, including Changi Airport Terminals 4 and 5, the Pasir Panjang and Tuas Terminals, the KL-Singapore High Speed Rail, the JB-Singapore Rapid Transit System Link, the Downtown and Thomson-East Coast Lines.
4. The transport sector is also a crucible of innovation. It is ripe for disruption and transformation. The scope for using technology to raise productivity is substantial - self check-in facilities at the airport, robotics for baggage handling, driverless cargo vehicles, automated cranes at our sea-ports, LTA using big data to optimise traffic flow, predictive maintenance for trains, and drones for all kinds of deliveries. Who knows what else the future will bring? Working with EDB, we offer Singapore as a test-bed, an incubator for new ideas, and for companies and start-ups to run trials here. What works can then be commercialised elsewhere. Along the way, we hope some local companies can acquire new capabilities and business opportunities.
5. Later, Second Minister Ng Chee Meng and Senior Minister of State Josephine Teo will elaborate on some of these exciting initiatives and trends. Many of these changes will happen during their career. It is appropriate for the young Ministers to spearhead these developments and see them through. As for me, I shall look forward to enjoying the benefits as a consumer during my lifetime!
Riding the Wave of Change
6. I agree with Mr Sitoh Yih Pin on the inevitability of technology advancements. The human mind is wired to explore new ways of doing things. And we will always seek to better our lives. Last week, DeepStack was reported to have beaten the world's best poker players. Artificial intelligence had already beaten chess grandmasters and Go champions several years ago.
7. These technology advancements will create opportunities to change and improve our lives. If Netflix offers better value than StarhubTV, consumers will switch. I am familiar with Netflix, but I don't use it. I still enjoy going to the cinema, for its old romantic ambience. This is the hard reality of the market that the incumbents will always suffer. Such competition is unsettling for them, but it is good for consumers. As regulators, our job is not to stifle innovation but to be fair to all players, and we should always put consumer interest as our top priority. But I agree with Mr Sitoh that as a Government, we should also be concerned about the workers who will be impacted. He highlighted the stress on the taxi drivers. We should help them, not by insulating them from innovations, but by alerting them to the potential disruption, and preparing them for change. Change is unpleasant. But everyone can be helped to adapt to change.
8. As noted by the Committee for Future Economy, the best way to ensure relevance is to acquire and develop deep skills. And going beyond that, to master competencies. Last month, I launched the Singapore Rail Academy, which aims to nurture a Singapore core with deep technical expertise. As a start, the Academy has partnered e2i, the Employment and Employability Institute, to develop a foundation programme for both fresh graduates as well as mid-career upgraders. Mr Melvin Yong was there with me at the launch. We have great ambitions for the Academy. It will develop programmes to train workers in critical areas of rail operations and maintenance. It will work with the rail operators and Institutes of Higher Learning to offer pre-employment programmes, as well as continuing education and training. An example is the part-time Diploma in Rapid Transit Technology. I agree with Mr Yong that we should also learn from good rail operators overseas, by attaching our professionals there to pick up best practices.
9. The Academy will develop a competency framework for railway professionals, and also accredit training programmes. This will facilitate job upgrading. The Academy will also take charge of industry branding, and work with industry partners to improve working conditions by utilising technology to lighten workloads, and enhance employee health management.
10. But what is most critical is for our transport workers to be open to learning new skills. Then they can ride the wave of technological change. I agree with Mr Yong that we must tap on the strong tripartite relationship and platforms to help our workers adjust. So for taxi drivers affected by competition, we are working with the National Taxi Association and taxi companies to help them cope. For bus captains, we are working with the National Transport Workers' Union and public bus operators, to help them adapt.
Car-lite 2030
11. Madam, new technology, disruptive business models and commuters' demand for higher levels of service are transforming the way we move about. History is truly in the making. Where these will lead us, we cannot be sure. But it sure is exciting! We have simplified the evolving drama under the banner of making Singapore car-lite by 2030. But it is much more than about cars, or their depopulation. It is also about making it easier and more enjoyable for everyone to walk, cycle and take public transport. There will be less need to own cars, and we can look forward to reclaiming many road lanes and car-park spaces and using them instead for the community and for greenery. It is about a lifestyle change, a mindset shift, and improving the quality of life for all.
12. We are testing many of these ideas in Ang Mo Kio by making it a model cycling town. Phase 1 is done. Phase 2 will begin shortly. We are making Tampines Town the second model walking and cycling town. Design work will start soon. Today, many residents there already use bicycles and personal mobility devices (PMDs) to get around. Many who work in Tampines live in adjacent towns. So, we will provide trunk cycling routes connecting Tampines to neighbouring towns, and also to Changi Business Park and Singapore Expo. We will improve crossings, we will widen footpaths, and we will improve safety at bus-stops. We are determined to make cycling and the use of PMDs both pleasant and safe.
13. At its core, our public transport system will have a high capacity, highly connected and reliable public train system.
14. We are making progress. The expansion of our rail system is on track. Our rail network is growing on average by 1 km every month. This year, we will extend the East-West Line by four stations to Tuas West, and the Downtown Line by 16 stations to Singapore Expo. We will soon select and appoint the operator for the Thomson-East Coast Line. We have begun to call tenders for the Circle Line Stage 6. We have started planning for the Jurong Region and Cross Island Lines. When all these lines are completed, 8 in 10 households will have a train station within a 10-minute walk. I will be one of them
15. We particularly look forward to the opening of Downtown Line 3. It will be a game-changer for residents living in the East, just as Downtown Line 2 was for the West and North-West residents. When in full operation, the entire Downtown Line will serve a daily ridership of more than half a million commuters. A recent study found that one out of six rides on the Downtown Line was made using new EZ-Link cards. So, these are new travellers. This suggests that a sizeable number of commuters perhaps living along the Bukit Timah corridor are switching to rail. The experience of the Downtown Line gives us confidence that car-lite Singapore is achievable.
17. Over at Bukit Gombak, Mayor Low Yen Ling has called for Hume MRT Station to be opened. I heard her appeal. The long term development of that precinct, including the upcoming Rail Corridor development, can justify an MRT station. And that is why we have made provision for it. However, the pace of development will determine the timing of the opening of the station. As soon as there is sufficient ridership justification, we shall open the MRT station. This is our commitment.
Raising Rail Reliability
18. Mr Ang Wei Neng observed that train reliability is improving. Indeed, it is. Although we are not yet where we want to be, but we will get there, not to worry. As he has noted, we have an objective measure called the Mean Kilometres Between Failure, or MKBF, to track our progress objectively. Our MKBF crossed 160,000 train-km in the first half of last year. It further improved to 192,000 train-km in the second half, close to my target of 200,000. That is why I am raising the bar to the next target of 300,000 train-km. And next year, we will shoot for 400,000. It can be done.
19. As I previously explained to Mr Dennis Tan in this House, raising train reliability is a multi-year effort. It is not multi-week or multi-month, it takes years because replacement of ageing assets takes time. We have replaced all the old sleepers. This year, we will replace the old third rail system which has been causing some problems to the East-West line recently. We will soon complete the upgrade of the signalling system for the North-South Line which will bring a lot of benefits to many residents including the residents of my favourite MP Er Dr Lee Bee Wah. Next year, we will do the same for the East-West Line. But let me sound an alert. Re-signalling is a complex engineering operation. Er Dr Lee Bee Wah knows that. Getting it done perfectly and flawlessly is almost impossible. That has been the painful experience of London, Hong Kong and Taipei. They warned us that we should expect many teething problems when we cut over the signalling system to the new one this year. So I am all mentally prepared for criticisms by Er Dr Lee Bee Wah. We will do our best to minimise inconvenience, but be prepared for some hitches. So, please bear with us.
20. Mr Ang highlighted the recent hitches between Jurong East and Joo Koon stations on the East-West Line. We have very old signalling components there which need replacement. We are planning to replace them but sometimes maintenance and replacement works may not be completed during the limited engineering hours. That is why train service for that stretch was occasionally impacted when planned works extended into revenue hours. I have heard Mr Ang's suggestion and I shall ask LTA and SMRT to consider ending the revenue service for that stretch of the East-West Line earlier so that we have more engineering hours for these works.
21. Meanwhile, we have completed the transition of SMRT Trains to the New Rail Financing Framework (NRFF). We took ownership of SMRT's rail assets last October, and Temasek's delisting of SMRT also allows it to focus on its core responsibility without the short term pressures of being a listed company. This is an important achievement. It took us many years and I am glad that we have now completed it. The rail industry structure is now in a better shape to allow us to replace and upgrade ageing assets promptly. This should improve reliability.
22. We will soon call tenders to upgrade the North-South and East-West Lines' power supply system. It has been a source of problems for the last few years and now that we have taken over the assets, we are going to change this - replacing of the power supply system and also to replace all our first-generation MRT fleet with 66 new trains. And it will not just be a mere one for one replacement. We will, in the process, upgrade the train as well as the power supply system to tap on new technology which is now available. For the North East Line, we are also working with SBST to refurbish and upgrade their first-generation trains. For the Bukit Panjang LRT, we have started the process for its renewal. We target to call a tender this year for a complete replacement of its ageing components and an upgrade of its systems.
23. Mr Zaqy Mohamad asked if we can do predictive maintenance for our trains and tracks. Indeed, predictive maintenance is the way to go. We are acquiring the necessary tools and capabilities for this purpose. These include new generation automatic track inspection systems and condition monitoring tools for real-time data collection and analysis. I also heard Mr Zaqy's concern about the noise generated from passing trains in his constituency. We are aligned with the NEA on what is acceptable level of noise. We are closely monitoring the situation, and are implementing system-wide noise mitigation measures. Our trains have noise-dampening wheels, and our operators are servicing the train wheels and tracks more frequently. Where necessary, we will install noise barriers. This is however a major multi-year programme, as we have to coordinate it closely with so many other maintenance, improvement and upgrading works that compete for precious engineering hours.
Improving Public Bus Services
24. Buses complement our MRT. Under the Bus Service Enhancement Programme (BSEP), we have injected 850 buses, and introduced 70 new or amended routes. The improvement has been felt on the ground. I appreciate Mayor Low's feedback on new bus services in Bukit Gombak. But I know that we can never do enough. I heard her call for better connectivity to the upcoming Community Club in Bukit Gombak. I also heard Er Lee Bee Wah's feedback on Services 811 and 860, and more covered walkways. We will see what else we can do. But let me also plead and seek MPs' understanding that for financial prudence, bus service provision requires a minimum ridership. And if ridership goes down as commuters switch to rail, we have to remove or amend existing bus services. Otherwise, we have half empty buses running on roads causing pollution and are a waste of taxpayers' money.
25. Meanwhile, our bus infrastructure has expanded in tandem with the larger bus fleet. We have now three new interchanges and more parking lots at existing interchanges. Critically, we have moved all the bus operators to the Bus Contracting Model, with LTA taking over bus assets and infrastructure. This is another major transformation in the transport sector and for the bus industry. Next month, we will be awarding the tender for the third bus package at Seletar. The tender has now closed. I was looking at the bids and it has attracted very competitive bids, with lower prices on average compared to the previous two tenders. This is good for taxpayers. Later this year, we will call the tender for our fourth package at Bukit Merah. With competition, bus operators are working harder to improve their service. And this is good for commuters.
26. As Mr Melvin Yong pointed out, our bus captains are the key to delivering higher service level. Our bus captains strive to improve bus arrival regularity and reduce bunching, a very big complaint from the ground. LTA has set fair but ambitious standards, and our bus captains are work closely with their service controllers to manage bus arrivals real-time. That is why sometimes, some buses on certain routes have to drive very slowly to arrive punctually as scheduled because road conditions can vary during the day. This is the only way to solve the bunching problem. If you want bus drivers to drive as fast as the roads can take, then sometimes they may arrive too early and there will be complaints on bus bunching. But I accept that this is still a new system for both the regulator and the regulatee and we shall see how else we can calibrate the system to make it work better for us. But it has worked very elsewhere, in London and Australian cities, and I see no reason why it cannot work here too.
27. As our public transport system improves and expands, fewer people will need to own a car. Going car-lite is, however, a journey. Meanwhile, our various vehicle control policies, like COE and ERP remain relevant. But, from time to time, we refine them as circumstances change.
28. One major move this year is to stop the contribution of motorcycle COEs to the Open Category. Very few motorcycles have been registered using Category E COEs due to the high COE Category E premiums. This recent move will stabilise the motorcycle population. It is in response to many MPs' and motorcyclists' as well as Chambers of Commerce's concerns that the motorcycle population is shrinking.
29. Another move is to improve the progressivity of the vehicle tax system. In 2013, we introduced the tiered Additional Registration Fee (ARF), for cars, taxis and goods cum passenger vehicles. This year, we extended the same to motorcycles. So this is the reason behind this move, because MP Faisal was asking about the rationale behind this move. We are increasing the ARF only for the high-end models. The large majority of motorcycle buyers will not have to pay higher ARF.
30. I thank Mr Thomas Chua for his comment, and yes indeed, we always consult the industry. I think LTA's dialogue with them is at least twice a year. And in fact both ideas came up from the industry in the process of brainstorming and we are happy to be able to implement it this year. As I said, the Singapore Motor Cycle Trade Association is an important stakeholder and is our partner. We are on the same side. Other than market sensitive information, we share with them as much as we can.
31. Mr Henry Kwek voiced the challenges faced by businesses and we are mindful of their difficulties. That is why there are several concessions to help them manage costs so the ARF for commercial vehicles are low, motor taxes are low and road taxes are low for them. Secondly, commercial vehicles can go for repeated 5-year COE renewals to help businesses better manage cash-flow.
32. Euro 6 emission standards are regulated by my colleagues in MEWR but we did discuss in Cabinet and the intention to move to Euro 6, next year, having served the industry notice since 2014, I think that is sufficient time for the industry to respond. I know there are some concerns: Will there be enough vehicles and why can't we go through Euro 5 first etc? But having decided on Euro 6, I think we should just move. There will be enough models to meet the demand. The Minister for the Environment and Water Resources will share more details later. My own take on this issue is that transport does impact our health. Europe's embrace of diesel vehicles has now made many cities highly pollutive. It is a sad case of unethical commercial practices making money at the expense of public health. They are now trying to reverse the trend. Paris, Madrid, Athens and Mexico City have all announced that they will ban diesel vehicles from their city centres, latest by 2030. I think we too, should nudge down the population of diesel vehicles and work towards becoming a diesel-free city. The restructuring of the diesel tax should be read in that context.
Financial Sustainability
33. Madam, as we work towards Car-Lite 2030, let us be also mindful that the significant improvements to our public transport network require high capital investments and incur higher operating costs.
34. Under the new Bus Contracting Model, the Government is now responsible for buying and replacing buses. We pay bus operators a fee to run the bus services. Although fare revenue goes to the Government, it is not enough to cover operating costs, and the Government has to top up the deficit. And it is a huge deficit. Over the next five years, we expect to subsidise public bus services by close to $4 billion. Similarly, with the transition to the New Rail Financing Framework, the Government is now responsible for replacing rail assets. Over the next five years, we also expect to spend $4 billion on rail. And all this is on top of about $20 billion we will be spending to build new public transport infrastructure.
35. We must ensure that the fiscal burden does not become too excessive for taxpayers. In the earlier years, I remember as a young officer in civil service, our objectives were to split the responsibility in transport by having taxpayers pay for the construction of infrastructure. But commuters bear the operating costs through transport fares. In other words, transport fares must be able to cover operating costs. But over the years, as fares have not kept up with rising costs, taxpayers have to subsidise more and more of the operating costs, especially as we have been raising service standards significantly.
36. This is clearly not sustainable. While the Government will continue subsidizing public transport heavily, we must find a fair balance in the relative burden to be borne by commuters, taxpayers and operators. Remember that commuters are also taxpayers. Fares are regulated by the independent Public Transport Council, through a multi-year fare formula. The current fare formula will expire after this year's fare exercise. The Public Transport Council will be reviewing the formula. They will consult widely. I am confident that they will decide wisely. Last year, they took a big step to standardise the train fares across all MRT lines, and no longer make a distinction between aboveground and underground lines. This was a major step. They slayed a sacred cow! Many commuters have benefitted. They have seen their fares reduced. I know. As a regular user of the Circle Line, I have seen my fare reduce from 92 to 87 cents. But remember: the PTC cannot always bring good news, sometimes they have to adjust fares upwards. And when they do, I hope commuters will be understanding.
37. Madam Chair, we are enhancing our transport system to meet the needs of Singaporeans and also to support our future economy. A good transport system connects people to places, and also connects people with one another. Public transport is a common space, where we interact with fellow Singaporeans, and where collective memories are made. So let us shape this common space together, to raise our quality of life and make Singapore among the most liveable cities in the world.
38. Thank you.
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Last updated on 19 Jun 2018
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