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__label__wiki	0.636278	0.636278	Famous Depression · Apr 01, 2009 Marianne Faithfull beats depression At 62, rock’s smoky-throated Grande dame Marianne Faithfull recently faced one of her most difficult opponents: clinical depression. We say one of, because it was not her first brush with a body and soul threatening malaise. She has previously been confronted with Hepatitis C and breast cancer and conquered both. For Marianne, depression was a whole other story. “Depression is real, you don’t want to get out of bed, you don’t want to do anything, and everything just looks pointless.” Marianne defeated her depression by going into therapy, and doing acupuncture, massage, exercise and yoga. “I also really needed to work. ‘Easy Come’ helped to get me here. I recorded in nine days, with no rough-mix playbacks. I just had to trust and have faith — in myself, and in the band and the singers. And, it worked!” Her only regret these days? Marianne wishes she could quit smoking. “I’ve tried to, and I’ve cut down a lot. But I haven’t managed to stop yet. And I ought to, I know. It’s the last destructive thing I still do!” Marianne was recently presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award in World Arts at the Women’s World Awards ceremony in Vienna. It was quite an affair. Jordan’s Queen Noor handed her the trophy; “That night I looked back and realized it’s been such a journey.” hbcprotocols@gmail.com	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line512
__label__cc	0.552754	0.447246	Lane Gordon Young October 26, 2017 admins Uncategorized August 4, 1935 ~ October 19, 2017 Lane G. Young, 82, died Thursday, October 19, 2017, at his home. Lane Gordon Young was born August 4, 1935, in Comfrey, MN, to Charles Forbes Thompson and Ione Isabel (Wallin) Young. He attended grade school, high school and tech school in Minneapolis, MN. Lane was married December 7, 1963, to Sharon Claudette Carter. Lane joined the U.S. Navy and served for eight years. After his military service, he was hired by Honeywell Aeronautical Division and worked on both the Mercury and Apollo space projects. He later worked for the State of Minnesota DOT, retiring in 1995. Lane’s hobbies were archery, bagpipes, native style flute making and camping. He loved science and anything to do with space studies. He played with a bagpipe band and traveled for competitions and events both within the U.S. and Internationally for many years. He also participated in archery competitions and won first place in Minnesota using a recurve bow rather than a compound bow. He enjoyed attending Broadway Musicals, but his favorite times were spent with his family. Lane is survived by his wife, Sharon; one daughter and son in law, Kristin (Robert Joseph) Heath, Sioux Falls, one son and daughter in law, James (Raquel) Young, Medford, OR; seven grandchildren, Bridgett (Brian) Randall, Justin Heath, Alyssa (Rion) Venegas, Arianna Heath Thorin, Isabela Young, Fernando Young, and Caroline Young; and three great-grandsons and three great-granddaughters. Lane was preceded in death by his parents Charles Forbes Thompson and Ione Isabel (Wallin) Young; and his brother, Duane Ronald Young. Shaleen Rodenborn says: Lane was a very good husband, father and friend. His first concerns were always his wife and family. Lane was my aunt Sharon’s loving husband, who will be dearly missed. Mary Lu Saavedra says: It is with great sadnes I have learned of the passing of your husband. Please know you are in my thoughts and prayers. Mary Lu	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line521
__label__wiki	0.737415	0.737415	Amidst disagreements Reps summon Buhari over killing of 43 farmers in Borno, insecurity The House of Representatives Tuesday resolved to invite President Muhammadu Buhari to brief the House on the True State of the Security of the Nation, leading to last weekend killing of 43 farmers in Borno State amidst disagreement by members. The House also condemned the killing of the unarmed civilian farmers at Zabarmari village Jere Local Government near Maiduguri, in Borno State by suspected Boko Haram insurgents. These resolutions were reached at plenary following the adoption of a motion titled: “Urgent Need to condemn and investigate the insane killing of unarmed Farmers in Jere Local Government of Borno State is sponsored by members of the House from the State. Prior to the resolutions, members of the House were sharply divided during debate on the motion with regards to the prayer inviting Buhari to appear before the parliament. While some members including, the Majority Leader, Alhassan Ado-Doguwa were of the opinion that the House leadership should rather meet behind closed doors with the President, hence it was a security issue but most members chanted no. As the session was becoming rowdy, the Speaker called for an executive session after which all the prayers were taking. Moving the motion, lead sponsor, Ahmed Satomi expressed pains that more than 43 people were killed in an “insane” and barbaric attack of rice farmers in Jere Local Government Area of Borno State on Saturday 28th November 2020. Satomi said he was troubled that the attackers tied up agricultural labourers working in rice fields and slit their throats in Zabarmari village Jere Local Government near Maiduguri, in Borno State. The lawmaker said he was: “Disturbed that some of the victims were labourers from other States of the Federation who had travelled to work on the rice farm fields in Borno State. “Worried that the exact number of people killed in the incident is not yet known as over 44 dead bodies were recovered buried, all of them slaughtered, along with six others with serious injuries and many more residents are reported missing. “Recognize that at the funeral of the victims on Sunday 29th November 2020 the governor of Borno State, Babagana Zulum, statted that “Our people are in very difficult situations, they are in two different extreme conditions: in one side, [if] they stay at home, they may be killed by hunger and starvation; on the other, they go out to their farmlands and risk getting killed by the insurgents. “More worried by the inability of the Military and Security Forces in averting the continued wanton killings by Book Haram insurgents, bandits, and terrorists in the North East and across the country. “Aware that President Muhammadu Buhari has condemned the senseless killing of several hard-working farmers by terrorists as the entire country is hurt by the dastard. “Also aware of the urgent need for the President and Commander of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to reorganize the security architecture of the country to end insurgency in the North East, banditry, and all acts of terrorism across the nation”. ⟵OPEC delays talks with allies until ThursdayBusiness — The Guardian Nigeria News – Nigeria and World News Week 2 Winners for Myschool CBT Challenge 7⟶	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line529
__label__wiki	0.534552	0.534552	Sara Krakauer TGC Program Innovation on Earth Global Citizenship Resources for Innovation Academy and Beyond Guest Post from Ireland: Peace Wall After a few wrinkles in the original plan, Mr. Mac made it to Ireland! Make sure to follow along on his blog too. Visit http://mmccormackblog.wordpress.com/ to keep reading what’s happening on his trip and I’ll be back soon for more Japan posts. It’s currently 10 am in Ireland, so I would say Ohio (good morning) to him. It’s 6 pm here in Japan, so I’d say konbanwa (good evening) to people here. And to all of you back home, it’s 5 am, so let’s go with Oyasuminasai (good night) until the sun rises! Your neighbor is your other self dwelling behind a wall. – Kahlil Gibran Today was another BEAUTIFUL day here in Belfast. The weather has been 70 and sunny since we got here which is unlike the clouds and rain we were warned about. Today we met with a panel of local professors to discuss the history, and current troubles between Catholics and Protestants in Ireland. Ireland has never been a diverse island, so rather than racial violence, like in America, they have had years of religious conflicts. However, the two sides are not fighting over religious beliefs, but rather a power struggle of two cultures. Although, the times have been more peaceful since the Good Friday Agreement in 1998, the issues still remain evident. As we toured Belfast today the neighborhoods and homes were proudly claiming their specific colors. The Unionists, Loyalists, or Protestants loudly represent the Union Jack of the UK. The Republicans, Nationalists, or Catholics loudly represent the Republic of Ireland colors of green, white, and orange. Dividing the two neighborhoods lies a giant wall, ironically known as the Peace Wall, which we visited today. The mammoth 18 foot wall was built so people could not shoot or throw objects at their rival neighbors. Standing in front of the wall today was bittersweet, because I had knowledge of the violence it represents, but admired the breathtaking beauty of the artwork and poetry that cover the walls today. Posted in Guest Posts 10 thoughts on “Guest Post from Ireland: Peace Wall” dalena s. on June 19, 2014 at 1:09 pm said: Mr.Mac the art looks amazing Anna S. on June 19, 2014 at 4:39 pm said: I didn’t know that Ireland has 2 different cultures! In fact, I didn’t even know that there are 2 cultures of Ireland that are fighting. But at least there’s some peace now! Hopefully in the future, there will be complete peace in Ireland. 🙂 What else did you notice about Ireland? ~ Anna IrelandFellowshipMcCormack on June 20, 2014 at 5:45 am said: Yes, Ireland has split into 2 countries. Northern Ireland which is part of the UK and loyal to the queen, and the Republic of Ireland, which has its own government and is part of the European Union. I have noticed there are 2 different generations here in Northern Ireland, pre and post troubles. The younger generation is reminded of the violence everywhere they go but seem to want to move on. The older generation is almost haunted by the violence and can’t seem to get past their memories. It is somewhat similar to slavery here in America, but more recent. It is important to remember your history because it is a large part of your culture, but it is also important to move on and learn from prior mistakes. It is just hard for the 2 sides to find a comfort in between. Josh B,. on June 24, 2014 at 6:20 pm said: CCOL! That is some amazing artwork. You said they were in a fight in Ireland. Is it a major fight or a small one? Is the weather nice there? I saw that there was a lot of of really beautiful art work. Do a lot of people in Ireland do a lot of art? rian on June 25, 2014 at 12:29 pm said: the wall was amazing and so pretty but why it is there is kind of sad. But I wish I could go because so far it seems really cool. I am excited to learn more so keep writing. 🙂 ps.DONT FORGET MY ROCK COOL! That is some amazing artwork. You said they were in a fight in Ireland. Is it a major fight or a small one? Is the weather nice there? I saw that there was a lot of of really beautiful art work. Do a lot of people in Ireland do a lot of art? Sean M. on June 26, 2014 at 2:24 pm said: I think it’s very interesting that people of the same religion are fighting. What belief exactly are they fighting over? P.s., I’m going to Ireland too!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Isabel K. on June 28, 2014 at 11:34 am said: I have the same question as Sean M. What specific belief(s) are the Catholics and Protestants fighting over? and in addition, what is the Good Friday agreement? Declan D. on July 4, 2014 at 3:32 pm said: What is the importance of joining the Eu instead of the united nations or are they part of both? Leave a Reply to Declan D. Cancel reply Get in Touch: innovationonearth@gmail.com The Heroes Among Us Superheroes Needed: Connection in the Age of Corona Guest Post: Kennedy Space Center How can I summarize my experience in Southern Africa in 55 minutes? Democracy works when you take action! The Night Skies of Southern Africa Fish River Canyon, Spitzkoppe, and the Weird Rocks of Namibia Birds of Etosha National Park Night Safari at Etosha Big Animals of Etosha National Park The Living Desert, by the Sea Journey Through the Namib Desert New Mexico: Our Nation’s Heritage South to Cape Town, and then North! Valentines Around the World Sure, it’s cold, but who else is excited to go back?! Peace is the key Summer 2017 Top 6 Experiences A Challenge to Teachers: #NoHateClassroom Five Senses in the Alps RT @leenski79: @BCBSMA instead of “lighting it up blue” and other PR nonsense, why don’t you do something that will actually help kids with… 1 year ago Follow @globetwisting Sacred to Me, Sacred to You	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line533
__label__cc	0.520419	0.479581	These students go from 0 to 60mph in 2,3 seconds Frans van Beveren On Friday evening, the Eindhoven student team URE presented its new car at the 18 September square. The URE13, as the car is called, has an electric drivetrain that was developed by the team itself at the university. The URE13 weighs 193kg and has 180hp. In just 2.3 seconds, the car accelerates from 0 to 100km/h. With the URE13 the team will once again take part in student races all over Europe in the Formula Student. According to CFO Alex Pap, this year the student team has chosen a different strategy: “We have focused on a strategy that allows us to test as much as possible so that the car becomes reliable”. The parts of the car have also changed a lot this year: “We have paid attention to three main points: better cooling of the battery and of the engines, so you can have more power and drive more efficiently. We also paid a lot of attention to the weight of the car, which is why we made the aerodynamics package as light as possible, made less use of aluminium components and used less glue. We also conducted research into how tyres develop while driving. We now know which setting causes the tyre temperature to rise rapidly. That’s why we also know what kind of tyres we’re going to use next year or even later this year.” In addition to developing the URE13, University Racing Eindhoven has another project in progress: developing an autonomous racing car. During the racing week in Germany, the Formula Student Driverless has been organized since last year. The Eindhoven student team wants to take part in this in two years’ time and is busy converting the car from two years ago. “Our goal is to drive an autonomous demo at the end of August or the beginning of September here in Eindhoven. We are now in the testing phase. The mechanical and electrical part of the car is finished. We are now going to test to see if the car will really be autonomous going forward. It’s difficult because we’ve never done it before, it really is trial and error.” Before an Eindhoven car can drive autonomously on a circuit, there is still much to be done, but the team’s ambition is clear: “Ultimately, we want to win. We are going for the highest podium.” Photo: Tom Salemink Frans van Beveren leads IO on a daily basis. He is fascinated by everything related to technical progress, innovation, sustainability, and industrial design. Influencing uterine waveforms makes getting pregnant easier Game app helps people with a fear of needles to get corona vaccine Lonza’s Cocoon will soon make dozens of stem cell therapies all at once Photonics activities Technobis continue as PhotonFirst	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line534
__label__cc	0.64855	0.35145	Tag: Series: Aubrey/Maturin Book Review: O’Brian’s Aubrey/Maturin Series, Books 1-3 by Ryan May 5, 2020 May 6, 2020 on Aubrey/Maturin series, Books 1-3 – by Patrick O’Brian Master and Commander (1970) – 412 pages – Publisher – Amazon – Kobo Post Captain (1972) – 527 pages – Publisher – Amazon – Kobo H.M.S Surprise (1973) – 405 pages – Publisher – Amazon – Kobo Genre: Historical Fiction It is 1800, with Europe convulsed in the Napoleonic Wars. On the Mediterranean island of Minorca, a ship-less British lieutenant and an impoverished doctor attend a concert, sitting next to each other by happenstance. The officer has the temerity to keep time to the string quartet a half-beat fast, which draws the ire of the doctor… Don’t do what I did when I first tried to get into this series decades ago and get frustrated trying to understand all the 18th/19th century sailing lingo thrown at you. For an example, try to parse this passage in chapter 2 (page 79) of Master and Commander, the first book in the series: "Hitch on the runners," said Jack. "No, farther out. Half way to the second quarter. Surge the hawser and lower away." The yard came down on deck and the carpenter hurried off for his tools. "Mr. Watt," said Jack to the bosun. "Just rig me the brace-pendants, will you?" The bosun opened his mouth, shut it again and bent slowly to his work: anywhere outside Bedlam brace-pendants were rigged after the horses, after the stirrups, after the yard-tackle pendants (or a thimble for the tackle-hook, if preferred): and none them, ever, until the stop-cleat, the narrow part for them all to rest upon, had worked on the sawn-off end and provided with a collar to prevent them from drawing in towards the middle" There is no glossary at the end of the book, or much of any kind of info-dump to this point. There is only a drawing of a typical square-rigged ship with all the different sails identified. But upon my second reading, I realized that you aren’t required to understand the jargon in order to enjoy the series. In fact, it’s the total immersion within the world of the British navy and life during the Napoleonic Wars that is one of the draws of the Aubrey/Maturin series. Reading them is akin to walking through a time portal into that era with no preparation; you will at first struggle to comprehend the lingo, the culture, the motivations of the characters, but slowly you begin to tease out the rules the society is based upon, then later begin to know the characters, and by then it doesn’t really matter if you still don’t know the difference between a spritsail and a topgallant. O’Brian almost never will tell you anything directly, instead you either hear it spoken of in conversation, or have to imply it from the actions of the characters. Normally this steep learning curve wouldn’t keep the reader engaged long enough to endure those growing pains, but O’Brian has provided two of the most compelling characters I’ve ever come across to keep you turning the pages. Jack Aubrey is a talented leader of men and a cunning strategist on board a ship, a man of action, yet fails at practically every endeavor he attempts on shore. Stephen Maturin, an Irish-Catalan physician, is a man fascinated with the natural world, a spy for the British government, and a man of introspection. These two could not possibly be more different, but as the series goes on, their friendship, though tested at times (including upon their first meeting), endures and if anything gets stronger. O’Brian’s prose is another bright light to help you through your initial struggles. His words are of the time, but his style is certainly not. Unlike the authors of the early 19th century, O’Brian does not spend much time in setting the scene or spend hardly any time in authorial asides. He will flit from perspective to perspective at a whim, not caring too much if the reader doesn’t follow, at least right away. He will bring up subject matters the authors of that period would not touch with a 20-foot pole. His humor is subtle and dry and of course era-appropriate, so don’t be surprised if you don’t recognize much of it until your immersion training is almost complete. Once you start to get a handle on O’Brian’s world, you will be irreparably hooked. That moment for me happened about half-way through the second book in the series (Post Captain) at which point I finished the last 250 pages or so in one sitting. I then waited impatiently for Book 3 (H.M.S Surprise) to arrive in the mail, then finished that 400-page book at a more leisurely pace (one week) only because I wanted to savor it. I am so far resisting the temptation to buy the next batch of volumes in e-book format, but I already have the first three in physical form and don’t want to mess that up (plus, the Aubrey-Maturin trade paperbacks, though expensive, are well-made). What makes this series so great? I think the amalgamation of the sublime main characters, O’Brian’s almost poetic prose style, and his complete commitment to immersing the reader into the period gets you half an explanation. But ultimately it’s the plot that completes the package. After all, if there was nothing for Aubrey and Maturin to do, it would be a boring, though aesthetically pleasing, set of books that would be praised only in elite literary circles. Thankfully, O’Brian uses these brilliant foundations to support a cracking story. If you like naval action, you have it in abundance. If you like reading historical romance, you have plenty of that. If you like political intrigue, you have that in spades as well. While the story is set during the Napoleonic Wars and the general historical events that occurred during this period, O’Brian does not limit himself to depicting naval battles that actually happened. However, it is clear that although much of the action that occurs in the books did not happen in real life, they could have happened because of his singular commitment to correct detail, and most of the characters, though they didn’t exist, feel as real to the reader as any who actually did. In his introduction to Master and Commander, O’Brian writes that “when I describe a fight I have log-books, official letters, contemporary accounts or the participants’ own memoirs to vouch for every exchange. Yet, on the other hand, I have not felt slavishly bound to precise chronological sequence.” Prose Examples Jack Aubrey addresses his men before an engagement in Post Captain: "Shipmates," he said, loud and clear, smiling at them, "that fellow down there is only a privateer. I know him well. He has a long row of gun-ports, but there are only six- and eight-pounders behind 'em, and ours are twenty-fours, though he don't know it. Presently I shall edge down on him - he pepper us a while with his little guns, but it don't signify - and then, when we are so close we cannot miss, why, we shall give him such a broadside! A broadside with every gun low at his mizzen. Not a shot, now, until the drum beats, and then every ball low at his mizzen. Ply 'em quick, and waste not a shot." (Chapter 9, page 330) Stephen Maturin writes in his diary about an interaction with Aubrey in H.M.S. Surprise "I must go down into the yard, said he: we are stepping the new capstan this evenings. Had there been powder-smoke in the room, a tangible enemy at hand, there would have been none of this hesitation, no long stare: he would have known his mind and he would have acted at once, with intelligent deliberation. But now he is at a stand. With that odious freedom I prattled on: in doing so I overcame my shame; but it was bitter cruel and sharp while it lasted.... Book/Series Information I’ve seen many say that the 20 books (and one fragment) in the Aubrey/Maturin series is one long book, therefore they should be read in order. Based on the first three books in the series, I think that is mostly correct. I think you can get away with starting with Post Captain and not miss much of the ongoing story (I think O’Brian originally intended Master and Commander to be a stand-alone novel, so all of the plot points were tied up neatly at the end), but for the remainder of the series I recommend reading them in published order. (All books published by W.W. Norton) Master and Commander (1970) Post Captain (1972) H.M.S. Surprise (1973) The Mauritius Command (1977) Desolation Island (1979) The Fortune of War (1980) The Surgeon’s Mate (1980) The Ionian Mission (1982) Treason’s Harbor (1983) The Far Side of the World (1984) The Reverse of the Medal (1986) The Letter of Marque (1988) The Thirteen Gun Salute (1989) The Nutmeg of Consolation (1990) The Truelove (1992) The Wine-Dark Sea (1993) The Commodore (1994) The Yellow Admiral (1996) The Hundred Days (1998) Blue at the Mizzen (1999) 21 (fragment) (2004) Prices (as of May 2020): $26.95 hardback, $15.95 trade paperback, $8 to $13 e-book, depending on the store or volume number (Amazon is the cheapest). If you’d like to try before you buy, your local library will undoubtedly have copies of at least the first few books in the series. Other Works by the Author Posted in BooksTagged Author: Patrick OBrian, historical fiction, Series: Aubrey/MaturinLeave a Comment on Book Review: O’Brian’s Aubrey/Maturin Series, Books 1-3	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line536
__label__wiki	0.964828	0.964828	Breaking News from around the UK News Reviews and Debate from around the World It is almost a month since Christmas was “downsized” across the country. But in most parts of the UK, people did meet in Christmas “bubbles” if only for just one day. So what impact did this have? The overall picture shows a sharp increase in cases around this time. However, a closer look at the numbers suggests this trend was already happening and was probably caused by the new, more infectious variant of the virus rather than increased contact between people. Firstly, a quick reminder of the rules. Initially, the plans for the UK would have allowed up to three households to mix indoors between 23 December and 27 December. But on 19 December, Prime Minister Boris Johnson scaled back these Christmas bubbles because infections were beginning to rise sharply, driven in part by a new variant of Covid-19, across south-east England. Gatherings were banned in most of this area, including London, Essex and Kent, (except for people in support bubbles), while in the rest of England, people were allowed to meet only two other households on Christmas Day. Decisions in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland saw the window for gatherings reduced too, and in Wales only two households were allowed to gather. A survey from the Office for National Statistics suggests that roughly half the population in Great Britain who were allowed to hold gatherings did so. However, this doesn’t tell us about where in the country gatherings happened or who they involved. Research into social contact across the UK, conducted by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM), suggests there was a decline in contact to mid-November levels over the Christmas period, driven by closed schools and workplaces. This means contacts, which are defined as face-to-face meetings of around five minutes or more, were roughly the same as during the second English lockdown. It was also a big decline from contacts seen in the three weeks up to Christmas. This is important when looking for spikes because the virus thrives on close contact between people so less contact means fewer infections. “I was expecting to see a reduction in contacts because of the closure of schools and workplaces, but potentially an increase in risky contacts,” says Prof John Edmunds, from the LSHTM’s faculty of epidemiology and public health and a member of the government’s scientific advisory body, Sage. He says the research did not show an increase in contacts with more vulnerable groups, such as elderly people, as expected. This suggests people may have decided not to spend Christmas with those at higher risk from the virus. Across the UK, cases continued to rise over and after the Christmas period. However, whether this was influenced at all by the Christmas bubbles is very difficult to say. Looking at the data, we might expect to start seeing the impact of a Christmas spike in the first week of the New Year. This is because the typical incubation period – the time for symptoms of the virus to appear – is, on average, about five days. That means the sharp increases seen between the 20 and 30 December cannot be attributed to the holiday. In the first few days of 2021, cases continued to rise at the same pace as before Christmas and, in early January, appear to have peaked, although it is too early to tell if the decrease will be sustained. “I actually can’t see any convincing evidence that Christmas actually did anything to make things worse at all, but trying to prove it definitely, one way or another, is not necessarily that easy,” says Paul Hunter, a professor at the University of East Anglia’s medical school. His mathematical modelling suggests cases have increased in line with trends that were happening before households starting mixing over Christmas. And clear analysis on case rates around Christmas is affected by a number of things, including: When we look specifically at parts of the country where gatherings were allowed, and the new variant was less prevalent, the trend is fairly similar to the country as a whole, albeit with a time lag of a few days. In north-east and north-west England, Scotland and Wales, we see cases rising around the holiday. But those rises start happening before or a couple of days after Christmas Day. This makes it unlikely that the upward trend is sparked by festive bubbles, because there wouldn’t have been enough time for people to start exhibiting symptoms if they caught it during the holiday. Data from the Office for National Statistics infection survey highlights that these increases start happening around the same time the new more infectious variant increased in those areas. So, it could be that the new strain helped steepen an upward trend that was happening before the holiday. The fact that there hasn’t been a specific spike after Christmas doesn’t mean that people didn’t catch the virus at festive gatherings. “I am sure that there were some additional cases as a result of contact over Christmas,” says Prof Edmunds. “That is almost inevitable with the very high levels of infection that we have at the moment. “However, the major spike that we saw [around Christmas] was most likely due to the new strain not increases in contacts.” There is limited official data on where people actually catch the virus, but the test-and-trace programme in England does ask those who test positive where they have been in the days up to developing symptoms. In the week ending 3 January, around 20,000 people said they had visited friends or family in the run-up to testing positive. This was roughly double the number on the week before. This data doesn’t mean they caught the virus there but gives an indication of where people had been. It also represents a relatively small proportion of all events people recorded. For example, in the same week 80,000 people said they had been shopping, before testing positive. What do you want BBC Reality Check to investigate? Get in touch Read more from Reality Check Nóra Quoirin: Compelling evidence of abduction An inquest into the death of a teenager who went missing during a holiday in Malaysia has left several questions unanswered, her family has said. Nóra Quoirin, whose mother is from Belfast, disappeared from her room at the Dusun resort on 4 August 2019. Her body was found 10 days later about 1.6 miles (2.5km) away. Earlier this month a coroner ruled that she died as a result of misadventure, but her family said they were “utterly disappointed” with the verdict. In an interview with Irish broadcaster RTÉ, Nóra’s mother Meabh said there is “compelling evidence” that her daughter was abducted. Nóra, who was born to Irish-French parents, lived with her family in London and was understood to be in Malaysia on an Irish passport. She was born with holoprosencephaly, a disorder which affects brain development. Since her disappearance, her parents have believed that she was abducted. They have always maintained that wandering off was not something they could imagine their daughter doing. Meabh Quoirin told RTÉ: “One of the most compelling things that we found out was that in a relatively small area, the plantation where Nóra was eventually found, there was vast numbers of specialist personnel deployed to find Nóra. “Not only that, on four different occasions, trained personnel went to the plantation area and searched it and, in fact, some officers were even in the precise location Nóra’s body was recovered. “They had all reported that there were no signs of human life at any point. That for us is compelling evidence to say that she was not there by herself.” Mrs Quoirin added that “there was a lack of evidence around DNA and prints”. She said that when the family went to the inquest, “we had a lot of unanswered questions and while many of those questions cannot be answered, we actually found out a great deal about what went on during those 10 days when Nóra was missing”. “In fact we felt it really strengthened our case, our belief, that Nóra was abducted and we found some compelling evidence to support our view on that.” Mrs Quoirin added that her daughter “was not physically or mentally capable” of leaving the chalet via the window. “Not only that – we also learned that none of her fingerprints could be found on the window and yet other unidentifiable prints were found on that window.” Everyone has heard about doctors and nurses catching Covid-19 but some of the worst affected hospital staff have been cleaners and porters. Dr John Wright of Bradford Royal Infirmary tells the story of a cleaner who became ill while doing her job, and is now stricken with guilt for taking the virus home. The first person I see early each morning when I arrive at the hospital is our cleaner, Karen Smith. During 10 months of uncertainty, Karen has been the one constant, apart from a few weeks in spring, when she was ill with Covid-19. Usually Karen cleans the offices of the hospital’s Institute for Health Research, but in the first wave of the pandemic she was called to the Covid wards. It was a frightening time for everyone, but Karen volunteered for an extra shift on Good Friday as there was a staff shortage – and on that day she thinks she was infected. We know that working in hospitals increases your risk of infection by a factor of three, but this risk is not evenly spread. Antibody tests carried out in many NHS hospitals over the summer showed it was not the ICU consultants or infectious “red zone” clinical staff who had the highest rate of infection, but porters and cleaners working in those areas. Their risk of infection was double that of their clinical colleagues. This heightened risk for hospital staff also applies to their household contacts. As she cleaned the hospital in April, Karen was scared not for herself, but for her family. She and her husband, Mal, had moved into a caravan in Mal’s parents’ garden, while his mother was ill with cancer – and they stayed on after she died, to support Mal’s 80-year-old father, Malcolm. Mal, a hospital porter, was shielding because he has chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and Malcolm senior was clearly vulnerable because of his age. Stopping work, however, was not a luxury Karen could afford. And unlike some hospital staff who were housed in hotels to protect their families, she went back home every night. She became ill towards the end of April, followed by Mal at the beginning of May. The weather was hot, she remembers, as they coughed and wheezed in the caravan. “It was like being in a tin box,” she says. “I got Covid and couldn’t get over it properly. And then Mal got it and his was on another level compared to mine – and then his dad got ill, and that was a different ball game altogether.” Prof John Wright, a doctor and epidemiologist, is head of the Bradford Institute for Health Research, and a veteran of cholera, HIV and Ebola epidemics in sub-Saharan Africa. He is writing this diary for BBC News and recording from the hospital wards for BBC Radio. The couple had to go inside the house to cook and to use the bathroom but did their best to keep away from the elderly Malcolm, who would go into a different room whenever they entered. “We tried so, so hard not to give it to him – but then he got ill and he just went to his bed. Honestly, he was just like a little child, under the quilt looking all bewildered. He started with the shivers and we rang 111. They said to bring him to Accident and Emergency to get him tested, and we couldn’t believe it when it came back positive,” Karen says. Later, he was brought into hospital. I have fond memories of meeting Malcolm on the ward after he was admitted, acutely struggling with symptoms of cough and shortness of breath from his Covid infection. He was a kind and gentle man, stoical and patient. He was adamant that he had been careful to keep his distance from Karen and Mal in the house, but admitted wandering over to show them articles in the Telegraph and Argus – Bradford’s daily newspaper – whenever I was mentioned in it. I felt strangely culpable that I might have been the cause of the transmission. Malcolm made a good recovery and was eager to be discharged. But Covid is an unpredictable illness, and it can happen that improvements in a patient’s condition are followed by a sharp deterioration. And this is what happened with Malcolm soon after he arrived home. “He didn’t want to go back into hospital – he said to get him some Tunes because they would help him breathe,” says Karen. “But nothing could help him, he was so, so ill. We had to say to him, ‘No, you’ve got Covid and you need proper medical care.’ He was such a lovely man, bless him.” Malcolm was readmitted after two nights at home and died on 28 May. Karen returned to work. But like many people who have had this illness, she has been suffering the after-effects, both physically and mentally. She’s now on an inhaler for breathlessness, can barely taste anything seven months later, and is constantly tired. She is also receiving medication for anxiety because of the fear that she will have to return to the Covid wards, where potentially she could get ill again. And in her case there is the added pain of having lost a loved one, mixed with feelings of guilt. “When I start to think about him the tears come and sometimes I’ll be crying almost all day – cleaning and crying. If I’m having a bad day, I won’t be able to talk,” she says. “The guilt is always there, as I’ll never know for sure where he picked it up. Mal’s dad didn’t set foot out of the door, and so in my head I feel such guilt, because we had to go into the house, we didn’t have any choice. I go over it all but it’s hard to escape from, because I got it, Mal got it and then his Dad got it. Deep down I think that’s what’s happened, and it will take time to come to terms with.” Karen has been referred for counselling, but there is a long waiting list. Both Karen and Mal also had to wait for the vaccine, though both had it on Wednesday. This was a huge relief for Karen, as anything that reduces her chance of reinfection also helps her cope with her anxiety. If NHS trusts are serious about following the science then arguably they should be vaccinating cleaners and porters first. The fear of transmitting the virus to our loved ones at home is the ghost that haunts all front-line staff. Many went into isolation during the first wave, but this was never a sustainable approach, and with a virus that is so contagious and an environment in which it is so prevalent, transmission to family members is unfortunately common. Karen and Mal personify this occupational risk, and its potential deadly impact. Follow @docjohnwright and radio producer @SueM1tchell on Twitter Anyone watching Parliament this week would have been left in little doubt that ministers want the local elections in England to take place as planned in early May. Cabinet Office Minister Chloe Smith told MPs that while the date is officially under review, she’s not in favour of delay, saying voters have a right to be heard and the bar for moving the poll is “very high”. But that’s unlikely to be the end of the story. In some quarters of local government, there is a growing push for postponement, not least from some Conservative councillors who’ve been setting out their concerns and urging the government to make an early call. These are a significant and complex set of elections which – depending where you live – could determine who runs your council, who oversees your police force or who is your decision-making mayor. As well as the votes already planned for this year, the polls that were postponed from last year are due to take place in May, making this a big set of elections – and a crucial test for political parties. Few in local government welcome the idea of delaying such an important democratic exercise, but some are now saying it’s the most practical option. I’ve been shown a summary of concerns set out by returning officers – council officials who are responsible for running the elections. Key among them are the availability of safe venues for ballots to be cast and counted, and finding enough willing staff to take on public-facing roles with back-up plans for any Covid outbreaks. Typical polling stations, such as village halls and community centres, have in many cases been closed for the best part of a year. One council leader said they were struggling to get hold of the people who manage them, adding: “Even if we get them open we’ll have to deep clean the dust and spiders before we even start making them Covid-safe.” Police and crime commissioner, council and mayoral elections had been due to take place in 2020 but were postponed due to Covid. Another questioned how many sports halls would be needed for socially-distant ballot box counts. In several places the expectation is, if the elections go ahead, it will take a few days to count the votes, perhaps even over the weekend after the Thursday poll. Nicholas Rushton, the Conservative leader of Leicestershire County Council, thinks a delay until autumn would be sensible, saying: “The health of the public and candidates outweighs the need to vote.” He added: “People are saying to me, ‘we’ve got enough on our plates at the moment dealing with the pandemic, without having to deal with the election’.” That’s a view echoed elsewhere. Councils have taken on some crucial roles during this pandemic, from supporting the most vulnerable to helping test and trace efforts, and resources are thin. The Cabinet Office said it’s been working closely with electoral teams and public health bodies to put a strong set of measures in place to make the elections safe, pointing to the fact polls have happened elsewhere during the pandemic. One local election official told me they had been offered support by government and were confident they could address the practicalities, but added: “It is tricky on every level.” What’s worrying some is the impact on campaigning, public confidence and turnout. Traditional door-to-door canvassing and leafleting is likely to be curtailed for fear of spreading the virus, with an increased focus on digital campaigns. Councillor John Fuller, leader of South Norfolk Council and chairman of the District Councils Network, advocates a delay until early summer or autumn, saying there’s more to an election than placing an ‘X’ in the box. “Elections should be informed and opportunities for candidates to meet the electorate,” he said. “With so many elections, and candidates in a series of local and regional races, effectively subcontracting the campaign to Twitter or Facebook isn’t the sort of election that anyone should welcome.” It isn’t a universal view. One senior local government figure said the May date was a viable option given the time there’s been to prepare, adding there should be no “delay to democracy” unless there was absolutely no way to avoid it. Steve Rotheram, the Labour Mayor of the Liverpool City Region, said elections had taken place safely around the world. He said: “The government should be putting every conceivable measure in place to ensure that this May’s elections can run as safely and smoothly as possible – including a mass campaign to encourage postal voting. “People deserve clarity, so at a later date, should government plans change, it should say so as soon as possible before money is wasted in preparation for something that won’t take place.” The Cabinet Office, clear that preparations are already well underway, pointed out the government’s plans to vaccinate the most vulnerable at pace, as well as options for postal and proxy votes, with additional measures expected to be put in place for those who can’t make it to a polling station. But one Conservative council leader is still convinced ministers will budge, saying their position was “more crumbly” after a blunt call this week in which some local authorities made clear their concerns. “I wouldn’t rule out an announcement soon,” they said, adding: “For the sake of clarity we need a decision sooner rather than later.” The government has made clear it’s working to the May date – unless the pandemic or the vaccine roll out takes an unpredictable turn. With that in mind, councils are pressing on with plans. But they’re definitely not printing the ballot papers just yet. Boris Johnson says it is his “fervent belief” that improving girls’ education in developing countries is the best way to “lift communities out of poverty”. The prime minister has announced MP Helen Grant as a special envoy for efforts to support girls’ education. It is expected to be a key theme of the UK’s presidency this year of the G7 group of major industrial countries. “It can change the fortunes of not just individual women and girls, but communities and nations,” says the PM. Even before the pandemic, millions of children in developing countries did not have any access to school – and girls from disadvantaged families are particularly vulnerable to missing out on education. whether through poverty or prejudice. The Covid pandemic has created even more barriers to education, with a peak of 1.6 billion children around the world having faced school closures. Mr Johnson, as foreign secretary and prime minister, has previously highlighted girls’ education as a key to improving the health, wealth and security of the poorest countries. He once described it as the “Swiss army knife” of development, as getting girls to stay in education could avoid early marriage, improve their chances of getting a job and provide more income for children to be better fed. The prime minister said the international target of ensuring all girls can have 12 years of good quality education would be the “simplest and most transformative thing we can do” to tackle poverty and to “end the scourge of gender-based violence”. “The benefits of educating girls are enormous – a child whose mother can read is 50% more likely to live past the age of five and twice as likely to attend school themselves. With just one additional school year, a woman’s earnings can increase by up to a fifth,” said Mr Johnson. Helen Grant, now the special envoy for girls’ education, said: “High quality female education empowers women, reduces poverty and unleashes economic growth. “I will be making it my mission to encourage a more ambitious approach to girls’ education from the international community.” There has been a series of pledges from the international community over the past three decades to provide at least a primary school education for all children – all of which have been missed. Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said hosting the G7 should be a chance for the UK to act as a “moral force for good in the world”, but accused the Conservatives of engaging in “a decade of global retreat”. “We need to seize this chance to lead again, just as Blair and Brown did over global poverty and the financial crisis.” Irish hauliers bypassing Welsh ports because of Brexit, say bosses Irish hauliers are bypassing Welsh ports to avoid Brexit bureaucracy, industry leaders say. So called “teething problems” with new export rules are causing “enormous strain on staff”, according to one haulage company. But others warn of a longer-term shift by truck firms from using Holyhead, Fishguard and Pembroke Dock. Gwynedd Shipping said it was operating at 65% normal volumes and the pressure of extra paperwork was challenging. Andrew Kinsella, the firm’s managing director, said: “It’s an enormous strain on our staff in terms of processing bookings. “We process around 400 or 500 bookings a week, the reality is we’re operating at 65-70% of previous volumes. “Whilst we see recovery in the number of clients and we’re starting to get to a better pattern in terms of shipments I still think it’s going to take several weeks for things to return to normal. Whether things return to pre-Christmas, pre-Brexit volumes remains to be seen.” Mr Kinsella thinks there will be long-term consequences for the ports. “You can already see the shift in terms of the number of sailings,” he said. “I think you’re seeing a shift away from Holyhead particularly in terms of weekend, off-peak traffic. I think longer term, the viability of all of these services will be something those ferry services will continue to scrutinise.” This week Stena Line moved its new ship to the Rosslare – in the Republic of Ireland – to Cherbourg route. It also intends to sail the Belfast-to-Liverpool route. “Due to the current Brexit-related shift for direct routes and increasing customer demand, Stena Line has decided to temporarily deploy the Stena Embla on Rosslare-Cherbourg,” Stena Line said. At Rosslare Europort, business is booming, says general manager Glen Carr. “We’ve seen unprecedented demand in the first two weeks of trading compared to last year,” Mr Carr said. “On our European routes there’s a 500% increase in freight volume going through the port compared to last year.” “Eighteen months ago we would have had three sailings a day directly to mainland Europe from Rosslare Europort, today we have 15.” Mr Carr says his customers want to bypass the UK because of Brexit. “I think that’s testament to demand, particularly from our exporters and importers, on the island of Ireland and the need to unfortunately bypass the UK because of Brexit to trade directly with the EU,” he added. He believes this change in operations will not be temporary. He said decisions by ferry companies and businesses who trade with the EU to re-direct freight, have been made based on market analysis. “The business case for the extra services out of Rosslare, were not based on the first two weeks of this year,” Mr Carr said. “They were based on analysis of the market and conversations with our exporters and importers who were switching. “So there is a genuine switch and we foresee services being maintained out of Rosslare.” UK Government ministers have played down concerns about the long term viability of Welsh ports. Giving evidence to the Welsh Affairs Select Committee this week, Wales Office Minister David TC Davies MP, said former haulage industry colleagues referred to the issues as “teething problems”. Secretary of State for Wales Simon Hart MP, said: “There is some evidence that things aren’t looking necessarily, permanently bleak. “It’s one of those areas where we have to keep a very wary eye it on, but I think and hope that it is a temporary dip in the graph.” But transport expert Prof Stuart Cole, of the University of South Wales, thinks Brexit delays will be the incentive Irish companies needed to switch permanently to trading directly with the European mainland. Prof Cole said the EU wanted to reduce congestion and pollution in parts of Europe. One solution was to move freight by sea rather than road. Until now there was no reason for Irish hauliers to move from using Welsh ports and Dover, Prof Cole said. “The route worked perfectly, there was a predictable journey time and that’s important for food and component parts going to factories,” he said. “That kind of change required a significant shift, and that’s what’s there now.” Bangor University economics lecturer, Dr Edward Thomas Jones, believes it is too soon to predict longer term changes. “Because businesses stockpiled before Christmas in anticipation of Brexit, there is of course less use of the port [at Holyhead] since Brexit,” he said. “On top of that, coronavirus means there are fewer tourists going on holiday to Ireland. “We’ll have a better idea of the future of the port in six months when these businesses who have stockpiled start buying again. “Hopefully, by the second half of the year coronavirus will have been resolved and tourists will once again be able to travel back and forth.” The Papers: Fortress Britain and modern miracle workers Sign up for a morning briefing direct to your inbox Covid: Will mass community testing be offered across Wales? People queued around the side of a leisure centre to be mass-tested for Covid when Merthyr Tydfil was considered a hotspot in November, and the Army was drafted in to help. UK Health Secretary Matt Hancock has credited this method of “lateral flow” testing for asymptomatic people with lowering case rates in Liverpool, another Covid hotspot. He has since announced these regular rapid tests would be used in communities across England. But are they likely to be rolled out across Wales? It is a quick way of testing for coronavirus symptoms and returns a result in about 30 minutes. This means those who have been in close contact with someone who has tested positive will not have to self-isolate if their test comes back negative. Instead of having to self-isolate, they could remain at work or in the classroom if they tested negative with a lateral flow test each morning. An article in the BMJ medical journal raised concerns about the effects of rapid testing in Liverpool, where a pilot scheme was carried out. The lateral flow tests, which do not require processing in a laboratory, were reported to have missed half of all cases and a third of those with a high viral load who were likely to be the most infectious. Angela Raffle, a consultant in public health at the University of Bristol medical school, also said increasing lateral flow testing was “very worrying” and warned the benefits of finding symptomless cases “will be outweighed by the many more infectious cases that are missed by these tests”. However Susan Hopkins, chief medical adviser to NHS Test and Trace in England, said the lateral flow tests could identify many cases of infection in people without symptoms. While she admitted there were “false” negatives” and the method had “limitations”, Dr Hopkins said its use was a “gamechanger”. Mass testing pilots were run in two Covid hotspots in Wales at the end of last year. On the first day of testing in Merthyr Tydfil in November, 977 people were tested and nine of them were positive. Mass testing followed in the Lower Cynon Valley in December. Across both areas, a total of 1,100 positive Covid cases were identified after 50,000 lateral flow tests were carried out. The Welsh Government also started a four-week pilot of routinely testing asymptomatic South Wales Police officers on 23 December. Its aim was to reduce the numbers off work self-isolating, despite not being infected, following contact with a person who has tested positive. While the trial is still ongoing, the Welsh Government said results so far showed a steady decline in Covid-related absences. Regular testing of asymptomatic health and social care workers has also begun, and a pilot scheme is under way at the Tata Steel site in Port Talbot. There were also plans to roll it out in schools and colleges across Wales in January, if they had opened as originally planned. Lateral flow tests have been made available in all 317 of England’s local authority areas from this week as part of a community testing regime. Councils have been encouraged to prioritise tests for those people who cannot work from home during the lockdown. The Scottish government is also offering community testing in areas that have high prevalence of coronavirus. A Welsh Government spokeswoman said officials were evaluating the results of pilots and initiatives, and looking at what was happening in other parts of the UK as it develops its approach to community testing. However, a number of more targeted schemes are currently operating. “We have announced regular asymptomatic testing of health and social care workers, in education and daily contact testing in South Wales Police,” the spokeswoman added. “A pilot has also started at the Tata Port Talbot site. “We are also exploring other opportunities for regular testing to support critical services.” The Welsh Conservatives have called for lateral flow testing to be “ramped up” in hospitals. Health spokesman Andrew RT Davies said in December: “Hospitals are reporting high percentages of staff self-isolating, and therefore putting increasing strain on services and remaining staff.” Plaid Cymru leader Adam Price has raised the need for “Covid Support Areas” – saying research from the north of England suggested post-industrial communities may be disproportionately affected by the virus. In line with this, he called for mass testing as well as more financial support in areas such as Merthyr Tydfil, Blaenau Gwent and Rhondda Cynon Taf. Part of rail bridge collapses near fatal Stonehaven derailment site Part of a rail bridge has collapsed near the site of the fatal Stonehaven train derailment. A 24m (79ft) section of the side wall has fallen from the bridge, about a mile north of where three people died when a train left the track and crashed last August. Network Rail said it was a “structural fault” and not caused by a landslip. The line between Aberdeen and Dundee remains closed while structural engineers assess the fault. The structure is located three miles north of Carmont signal box. The collapse was discovered just before 10:00 on Friday. The rail company said the damage to the parapet was “extensive” and that the line was expected to be closed for a “significant” period of time while repairs to the bridge take place. The Network Rail Twitter account told followers engineers would be working around the clock to complete repairs. Specialist staff are also checking similar bridges as a precaution. The line between Aberdeen and Dundee had just reopened in November, nearly three months after the Stonehaven derailment. The driver, a conductor and a passenger died when the Aberdeen to Glasgow service derailed near Stonehaven on 12 August after heavy rain. An interim report said the train hit washed-out rocks and gravel. A Network Rail spokesman said: “The line is currently closed while our engineers repair a damaged side wall on a bridge between Carmont and Stonehaven. “Specialist structural engineers are currently assessing the fault and putting plans in place for its repair. “Our engineers will be working around-the-clock to complete this work as quickly as possible.” Joanna Lumley shocked at claims disabled workers unpaid Disabled workers at one of the UK’s oldest social enterprises, Clarity, have allegedly been denied £200,000 in wages by the new owner. The company produces toiletries and beauty products under the Clarity, Beco and Soap Co brands. Actress Joanna Lumley and Sir Iain Duncan Smith MP have spoken out strongly over the claims. Nicholas Marks, who bought the company last year, says all currently employed staff have been paid. Community, the union which represents Clarity’s workers, claims that a number of disabled employees at the firm have not been paid wages and furlough payments. Steven Steppens, 60, has been blind since birth, and has worked at Clarity since 1985. He is officially on furlough until his redundancy is completed at the end of January. He says he has received no money since September and has been relying on his savings to get by. “I loved it,” he says of working there. Losing the job, and the fight over the organisation’s future, have taken a toll on his mental health, he says. “I want to see justice done, not just for me, but also for my friends who are visiting food banks.” A number of employees have brought successful employment tribunal claims for unauthorised deduction of wages against Clarity, including Mr Steppens. Clarity was ordered to pay him £706. A number of other employment tribunal claims are ongoing, according to Community. Joanna Lumley, who had been a supporter of Clarity, called it “the best of the best” and said she was “shocked” to learn of the allegations over treatment of workers. “Justice must be done as soon as possible,” she told BBC News. Clarity was founded in 1854 by a wealthy blind woman, Elizabeth Gilbert, as the Association for Promoting the General Welfare of the Blind, to provide opportunities for workers whom other employers overlooked because of their disabilities. Before the takeover, three-quarters of its staff were disabled people. Its supporters and patrons in the past have included Winston Churchill, Charles Dickens and Queen Victoria. Clarity went into administration last year, as it was losing money and unable to fund the hole in its pension scheme, according to a spokesman for the administrators, FRP. In January, it was bought by Nicholas Marks. Sir Iain Duncan Smith, whose London constituency is home to Clarity’s headquarters, raised the issue in the House of Commons on 12 January. “Staff have failed to receive national insurance contributions, with many failing to receive their wages or support while undertaking childcare,” he told MPs. “The total amount that these decent but very vulnerable people have failed to receive is now around £200,000. They cannot claim benefits because they are essentially employed.” Community estimates that about 60 former employees of Clarity are still awaiting payment of their wages and furlough payments, most of them disabled workers. A spokesman for Nicholas Marks said that Sir Iain’s remarks were “highly inaccurate” and the company “does not recognise” the £200,000 figure. “The grievances echoed by Sir Iain Duncan Smith simply reflect disgruntled ex-employees. All employees currently working have been paid in full up-to-date and the company is dealing with redundancies and gross misconduct of former employees,” he said. Community says it is not aware of any staff who have been accused of gross misconduct. The spokesman for Mr Marks said that Mr Marks had “saved this historic company from permanent failure”. However, other bids for Clarity were made, including one from the well-known social entrepreneur, Cemal Ezel, who runs the Change Please coffee business, which creates opportunities for homeless people. He is still interested in buying the brands, he told BBC News. Though Mr Ezel’s final bid was slightly higher, the administrators’ report says they chose to sell to Mr Marks because he was in a better position to complete the deal by 31 January. Mr Marks’s spokesman said that he had to make “some sensible commercial decisions to place it on to a proper business footing and regrettably some staff had to be let go”. On Wednesday, Clarity’s website was still running the Certified Social Enterprise mark, denoting an organisation devoted to “creating positive social change”. The spokesman said Clarity Products was not a social enterprise and was not “purporting to clients” that it was, though it retained the “social enterprise ethos through the continued employment of fully paid disabled staff”. Wrongly using the logo for nearly a year was “simply an oversight”, and it is being removed. On Thursday morning, the website was unavailable – the company spokesman said he was not aware why. In a response to Sir Iain’s query, Treasury Minister Jesse Norman wrote that he had “specifically asked HMRC to note the circumstances you describe, and to consider whether and how there may be a case for early intervention”. Another company owned by Mr Marks, a Preston-based caravan maker called Lunar Automotive, was reported to HMRC by the local MP, Sir Mark Hendrick, for allegedly refusing to pay wages and pension contributions for its workers. This company was also bought out of an administration run by FRP. Mr Marks’s spokesman was not able to comment in detail on the Lunar Automotive case, but said the company had not heard back from HMRC. Headlines Video Belarus protest: Thousands march through Minsk protesting re-election of Lukashenko Trump quizzed about QAnon conspiracy theory at town hall Trump tells Michigan rally America is getting better and better It is almost a month since Christmas was "downsized" across the country. But in most parts of the UK, people did meet in Christmas "bubbles" Advertisement 150*150 All Rights Reserved Insight News Report 2020. Proudly powered by WordPress Theme: Refined News.	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line537
__label__cc	0.711729	0.288271	Welcome to our website all about inter* Dear media professionals visiting our site. It doesn’t matter how much you already know about intersex matters, we are certain that you will still find this portal useful and informative. We have compiled information on a variety of topics on our website. It has been set up to provide information for anyone dealing with inter* issues. Intersex is the term used to define general inborn physical characteristics which do not correspond with society’s conventional binary view of gender. This might sound a little complicated, but what it means in simple terms is that the bodies of intersex people cannot be classified according to the way society defines male and female genders. Being intersex is not an illness; it just means that the body has developed in a different way. We are always very pleased when members of the media take an interest in inter* people and we would like to commend you for this. However, there are a few things that you need to be aware of. We have compiled some information to help members of the media to present inter* people in the media in an appropriate way. You can also learn what it is like to be intersex from inter* people, and you can access further literature and information relating to human rights violations. Our glossary also provides brief explanations of important terms related to inter. Please feel free to browse through our website. What is inter/intersex? Posted on 1. December 2019 11. February 2020 Intersex is the term used to define general inborn physical characteristics which do not correspond with society’s conventional binary view of gender. It can be understood in genetic, hormonal or anatomical terms. Signs of being intersex can manifest shortly before birth, in infancy or during puberty. They also sometimes remain undiscovered. Inter* is described in many ways. Please take a look at our glossary if you would like to know more about the different terms and names. How many intersex people are there? This question is difficult to answer. The number of inter* people in Germany has never been officially documented. Moreover, the most appropriate ways to define intersex, male and female are being continually debated. Scientific research suggests that the number of inter* people among the general population lies at between 0.02 and 1.7 per cent. Comparatively speaking, there are nearly as many twins in Germany as there are inter* children.[1] there are approximately the same number of red-haired people as there are intersex people.[2] Being intersex is therefore not as rare as you would think. Yet not many people know about it because it has been a taboo subject for so long. Variations in sex characteristics are not an illness. Intersex is not an illness and does not generally pose a threat to health. However, some variations can be associated with specific health risks. Intersex is described by medicine by means of diagnoses. Medicine also uses the general term “disorders/differences of sex development”. However, the term DSD has been criticised by organisations and activists because it gives the impression that there is something wrong with the bodies of intersex people and that they are somehow “faulty” and therefore require some form of treatment. Does intersex need to be treated? No. Intersex in itself does not require treatment. Because intersex bodies can be very different from each other, it is important that intersex people know their bodies well and know about the types of services that are provided on an individual basis. Unfortunately, cosmetic procedures are continually offered nowadays which do nothing to improve health, but can in fact achieve the opposite effect.[1] You will find information surrounding discussions on human rights here. You will find further information on health matters here. [2] Approximately 1 to 2% of German citizens are naturally red haired . [3] Cf. Schweizer, Katinka/Richter-Appelt, Hertha (2012): Die Hamburger Studie zur Intersexualität In: Schweizer, Katinka/Richter-Appelt, Hertha: Intersexualität kontrovers. Giessen: psychosozial Verlag. pp. 187–205. Posted in Educators, Friends, Media Professionals, Parents Relatives If, through your work as a journalist or producer of media content, you are in a position to report about intersex, there are certain aspects you need to take into account. We have drawn up a list of the most important issues here. Talk with rather than talk about Intersex people are in the best position to talk about themselves, to explain which aspects are relevant to them and how they want to see their concerns represented. Find out about the organisations that represent intersex people, the terms that are used, the demands that have been stated and the themes that are particularly relevant for intersex people. Do not talk about intersex people, instead talk with them. Even if many people have questions concerning the often-discussed all-gender toilets or civil status, these topics are often not as relevant to intersex people as issues such as the right to protect their own bodies and social recognition. Terms and their effect Avoid terms with negative connotations, such as “disorder”, “defect” or “abnormality”. Also avoid evaluative terms such as “ambiguous”, “too small/too big” or “atypical”. These types of terms enforce the idea that there are primarily “men” and “women” and that intersex is therefore something deficient or unnatural. You should instead use terms such as “gender diversity” or “variations in sex characteristics”; challenge binary gender norms. Avoid drawing comparisons or confusing intersex with trans* or homosexuality. Make it clear that being intersex is an inborn physical characteristic. It does not mean that conclusions can be drawn about the gender identity or sexual orientation of an intersex person. It is also necessary to avoid making comparisons with other cultures, mystical creatures or the animal kingdom in an attempt to somehow “naturalise” intersex. If you do this, you are communicating that being intersex is something “exotic” or “mystical” and nothing to do with reality. You should instead explain the concerns and requirements of intersex people in the here and now. Recognition and not trivialisation Avoid trivialising human rights violations that have been committed against intersex people. Make it clear that human rights violations have been committed against intersex people who have been subjected to surgical procedures without their consent which were carried out on the basis of false beliefs or because medical professionals failed to provide adequate information. At the same time, avoid presenting intersex people in a one-dimensional way so they are only portrayed as victims. The United Nations estimates that up to 1.7% of the population is intersex. This figure is not highlighted by the media. It is therefore important to consider that by reporting in an inclusive and respectful way, you can help to support intersex people and make their concerns and requirements more visible. The information on how to portray intersex people in the media is based on observations made by Andreas Hechler. Please click here to view an interesting article which focuses on the problems concerning the way intersex is reported and tackles the issue in a critical and concise way. You might also find the dos and don’ts for educators interesting. Posted in Media Professionals Voices – role models – empowerment Posted on 23. November 2019 11. September 2020 Intersex people have not often been seen in the public arena. They are rarely represented in series, books or on television. We have brought together here a number of accounts by intersex people and their families who have shared various aspects of their lives with us. There are a number of videos, articles and projects on the subject of intersex on the internet. We have listed a few them here: OII Europe (Organisation Intersex International, Europe) has gathered together the testimonies of inter* people from across Europe in the section of their website called #MY INTERSEX STORY. If you look on the project page, you will find videos and information about the project. Inter* people from across the whole of Europe tell their stories in the book. (The website and testimonies are in English) The Interface Project, which was founded in 2012, portrays the various everyday realities of intersex people. The people introduce themselves in short videos and give accounts of their lives. Each video is accompanied by a transcript. The TV programme Auf Klo on the public youth TV channel funk has a guest called Audrey from Switzerland in one of its episodes. Audrey talks about various experiences, such as the medical procedures, that she underwent as a child and teenager. (The videos are in German, French or English. Most of them also have German subtitles..) You can watch other videos by Audrey on her YouTube channel (Audr XY). There is a video on Planet Schule, a website that provides education about the media, in which Lynn from Berlin explains what it is like to be intersex. OII Europe’s YouTube channel includes a video entitled “My intersex story”. (English with German subtitles.) The German TV channel WDR also aired a segment in which a mother is interviewed about what it is like to have an intersex child. Ted Talk by Emily Quinn – The way we think about biological sex is wrong (English with German subtitles). Emily Quinn is an author, graphic artist and an activist with InterAct. The books InterTransExpress and Identitätskrise 2.0 are a collection of short stories, poems and drawings on everyday life and the protest activities of a “gender outlaw”. Both books describe personal experiences and highlight the viewpoints of inter* people. Here is a list of further materials by intersex people: Books and websites This anthology includes short, personal stories by intersex people from all over the world: Inter – Erfahrungen intergeschlechtlicher Menschen in der Welt der zwei Geschlechter. Elisa Barth et al. (2017/2013): Berlin: NoNo Verlag / Münster: assemblage edition. Short stories, poems and drawings by an intersex person: Identitätskrise 2.0 oder eine Analyse meiner linken DNA. By Ika Elvau (2019). Münster: edition assemblage. InterTransExpress* – eine Reise an und über Geschlechtergrenzen. By Ika Elvau (2014): Münster: edition assemblage. Websites on which intersex people tell their stories: Mein Geschlecht – a portal for young trans, inter and non-binary people. Inter Visibility – European Intersex Visibility. In English. Mein Testgelände – das Gendermagazin. Among others Intergalaktisch, Intersexy, Inter-Was? by Ika. Other websites and pamphlets on Inter: Regenbogenportal – an online information service on same-sex lifestyles and gender diversity. An extensive range of useful and informative texts on the subject of intersex produced by the German Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth (BMFSFJ). Inter* und Sprache. a pamphlet relating to the antidiscrimination project by TransInterQueer. If you want to explore the subjects of acceptance and diversity in more detail, you can find lots of recommended children’s books in the pamphlet Akzeptanz für Vielfalt. Come Join Us! Intersex Youth in Europe – English with German subtitles. My Intersex Story – English with German subtitles. We are here (a message for intersex youth) – English with German subtitles. What it’s like to be intersex – English with German subtitles. Unser Kind ist intersexuell – Video about parents of an intersex child. Deutsch Mein Kind ist inter* – animated Video. German with subtitles. Recommended movies/documentaries: Menschen hautnah – Weiblich, männlich, oder was? Leben mit dem dritten Geschlecht by Franziska Ehrenfeld, Insa Rauscher, Hannah Reineke (WDR, 43.30 minutes). Three inter* people from Germany are interviewed and accompanied around their day-to-day lives. Nicht Frau, nicht Mann! by Régine Abardia (arte 2017, 57 minutes). Two inter* people are primarily interviewed; one from France and the other from Germany. Protests organised by intersex people and empowerment meetings are also shown. No Box For Me – An Intersex Story by Floriane Devigne (58 minutes; French) Ponyboi by River Gallo (19 minutes; English). The short film tells the story of a precariously living inter* person in search of love and a better life. Hexenblut. Suskas Lötzerich (2014): Vienna: Luftschacht-Verlag. This autobiographical graphic novel written by intersex author Suskas Lötzerich describes in a very open and honest way what it is like to grow up as an inter person. Ach, so ist das?! Biografische Comicreportagen von LGBTI. Martina Schradi Band 1 (2014); Band 2 (2018). Stuttgart: Zwerchfell Verlag. Plus educational materials: https://www.achsoistdas.com/fuer-schulen/. The real-life experiences of intersex people are described in each of the two comic strip reportages. Sasha (pp. 63–66) Sefik (pp. 71–74) Mo (pp. 45–46) Yasar (pp. 83–88) Some of them are also translated into Russian, Spanish, English and Japanese. Let them talk! What genitals have to say about gender. A graphic survey. Yori Gagarim (2014): Münster: assemblage edition. A charming little book about the diversity of sex organs with short statements in English (including German translations). Posted in Educators, Friends, Inter* People, Media Professionals, Medical Professionals, Parents Relatives Solidarity and support The word “allyship” conveys the idea of connectedness, solidarity and support. In this context, allies are people, who are not intersex themselves, who support and campaign on behalf of inter* people and address their concerns. We would like to highlight a number of ways in which it is possible to prevent discrimination against intersex people and to become an ally of inter* people. We would also like to explain a few things that need to be taken into account when considering the subject of “allyship”. First of all, it is necessary to understand that people have different ideas about what it means to be an ally. Even though standing up for the rights of groups of people facing discrimination is commendable and worthwhile, it is sincerity, the type of action and tenacity that really count. It is not enough for an ally to simply describe the situation; the main objective should be to act and behave in an appropriate way. Combat discrimination – everyone can help The concept of binary gender is deeply rooted in many societies and is perpetuated through social practices. The practice of allowing intersex children to be operated on at an early age and to have their gender “aligned” with a prescribed norm stems from the deeply-held conviction that there are only two genders and all other perceptions of gender deviate from this and would not be accepted by society. Due to the concern that children would suffer discrimination over the course of their lives and would feel “defective”, numerous operations are carried out without the consent of inter* people instead of taking action against discrimination elsewhere. Fundamental changes, such as a change in public attitudes, are required to alter this situation. Here are a few tips on how to act in a supportive way and to show solidarity: Talk openly. The more intersex is discussed and is better understood by society, the less invisible and stigmatised inter* people will be. Talk about the subject among friends, family and colleagues. Do not tolerate false or discriminatory statements. Take gender diversity into account when you choose which words to use and throughout your everyday life. For example, you can try to speak in a gender-neutral way. Bear in mind that inter* people can identify as either binary or non-binary, just like endosex people. It is generally advisable to never to make assumptions about a person’s gender/gender identity based on a person’s appearance. It is more considerate to speak about and with people using their name and therefore avoid using gender-based personal pronouns (he/she, his/her, him/her etc.) until the people concerned have specified their preferences. You can also talk to expectant parents you know about intersex and generally avoid asking expectant or new parents about the sex of their child. It is much more important to enquire about the wellbeing of the child and its name. Support activists and/or organisations. There are a number of organisations with a great deal of expertise. They are part of a strong network and involve intersex people themselves, so it is not necessary to reinvent the wheel. (Examples include: www.oiigermany.org, www.ilga-europe.org, www.im-ev.de, www.dritte-option.de) When supporting disadvantaged groups, it is important to focus on the people being discriminated rather than on yourself. Although you are naturally allowed to express your sympathy and dismay, you should remind yourself and others that you are lucky that you can fit into societal norms and can therefore enjoy a number of advantages. Share your advantages with inter* people by providing your support. Do not pressure inter* people to spend their time drawing attention to matters such as gender construction. The needs of intersex people should be paramount. Include the subject of inter* and the perspectives of inter* people in your work. You can read more on the following websites: Die Menschenrechte von intergeschlechtlichen Menschen schützen – Wie können Sie helfen? – a toolkit compiled by OII Germany. (German) Guide to Allyship – a guideline project by Amelie Lamont. (English) 8 Ways You Can Be An Ally to Intersex Students – tips on how to engage with inter* people in schools. Written by Kenna, an intersex school student. (English) Intersex Awareness and Allyship – tips, info and a quiz by The Canadian Centre for Gender and Sexual Diversity. (English) “Advice for Being an Ally to Intersex People” – an article by Cary Gabriel Costello, author of the blog The Intersex Roadshow. (English) “We Need to End Intersex Erasure in Queer Communities” – Hans Lindahl on the necessity of recognising and providing a place for inter* people in the LGBT community. (English) “Es waren zwei Königskinder. Intersexualität und Queer Politiken”. A text by Joris Gregor on the boundaries and possibilities of queer politics in relation to the subject of intersex. (Published under the name Anja Gregor). (German) Posted in Friends, Media Professionals Human rights and inter* Cosmetic operations on intersex children are carried out to this day. The number of operations on the genitals of children that do not correspond with the expectations of parents and medical professionals is not declining despite the campaign efforts of support groups and activists.[1] Many organisations, such as the UN, Organisation Intersex International (OII), Amnesty International etc., define these surgical procedures as human rights violations because the children are not able to make decisions about their own bodies. These organisations believe that informed consent should be required from anyone who undergoes surgery. Parents should only be able to decide if their child should be operated on if the child’s health is at risk. In addition to operations carried out without consent, there are other areas which can be considered as violations of human rights. For example, when the right to grow and develop in your own way is being violated or it becomes difficult to access your own health records. Human rights, which are enshrined and protected by human rights law, presuppose that all people should be protected from discrimination and have the right to a private life. They should also be able to achieve the best level of health possible, and to be self-determined and recognised as individuals. The human rights of intersex people are violated if intersex is classed as a disorder. surgical procedures are carried out on inter* children without consent. informed consent is not taken seriously. the right to grow and develop in your own way (particularly in terms of gender identity) is not respected. it is difficult to access medical records. it is difficult to join sports clubs and other organisations due to discrimination. You can read a comprehensive report by OII Germany about human rights violations here. In its survey (2020), the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) also asked inter* people about their experiences of discrimination. These can be viewed in detail on the FRA website. The LSVD has briefly summarized the data. Amnesty International has also focused on the subject of intersex and human rights. On the Amnesty International website, you can also read stories by inter* people whose rights have not been and are not being protected. You can also find some suggestions of what you can do to protect the human rights of inter* people in the document solidarity and support. [1] Hoenes, Josch; Januschke, Eugen; Klöppel, Ulrike (2019): Häufigkeit normangleichender Operationen „uneindeutiger“ Genitalien im Kindesalter. Follow-up study. Berlin: Centre for Transdisciplinary Gender Studies. Posted in Friends, Inter* People, Media Professionals, Medical Professionals How does physical sex develop? Posted on 9. November 2019 11. February 2020 What is gender and how many genders are there? These questions have existed for as long as human beings have inhabited the Earth. For a long time, gender was determined by the genitals and then more specifically by the presence of the testicles (gonads). Since chromosomes and hormones were discovered about 150 years ago, gender is now based on four components: chromosomal, hormonal, gonadal and the external sex organs. We generally talk about intersex/variations of sex characteristics when not all of the four components follow the same lines, however, there are no clear boundaries which define where inter*, male or female begin or end. Medicine is continually trying to define this. The medical definition currently encompasses a host of different diagnoses which are defined as DSD disorders/differences of sex development. The standard approach in medicine is to describe situations in terms of diagnoses. However, the use of the word diagnosis immediately draws associations with illness; variations of sex characteristics are not illnesses. Using these terms in a non-medical context has been strongly criticised. You can find out more about this and other terms in our glossary. This video from the TV programme Quarks shows how gender develops.	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line540
__label__wiki	0.50393	0.50393	Be prepared — to help September 1, 2011, 3:03 pm 0 Edit The Pittsburgh area isn’t prone to hurricane strikes, even though remnants of Hurricane Ivan rumbled through in 2004, causing thousands of dollars in damages. Neither is our region an active epicenter for earthquakes, though many of us felt the one last week that originated in Virginia and left cracks in the Washington Monument. We do get tornados here, though they’re fairly infrequent. And, yes, we are prone to flooding, though nothing like the floods that devastated parts of the Midwest this year and the Upper Missouri River Valley. Weather patterns in western Pennsylvania and West Virginia are far from perfect, but when it comes to natural disasters, one could argue that we’ve been blessed. Well, this past weekend many residents of Jewish Pittsburgh were prepared to share their blessing with other Jews evacuating areas along the East Coast smack in the path of Hurricane Irene. Some came to Pittsburgh and were put up in homes of Jewish Pittsburghers (see our story, page 1). There were actually more offers of help than there were people who needed it. That’s something to be proud of. Said Schmuel “Jay” Angel, executive director of Congregation Poale Zedeck, who sent out an e-blast seeking offers of help, “it was a real tribute to the community.” True, and to make the response more impressive, no one was following any laid out plan of action in the event of a natural disaster. It just happened naturally. That’s commendable, but it also begs a question: should there be a contingency plan of action in place? Even though Irene knocked out power to more than 5 million people, caused millions — perhaps billions — of dollars in damages, and is blamed for the deaths of at least 40 people, experts are saying the East Coast still got off relatively easy. Irene’s wind strength barely reached that of a stage one hurricane as it came ashore. And it quickly weakened to a tropical storm. What if it were a stage two hurricane, or a stage three? Things could have been very different. It wouldn’t severely tax our community’s resources to develop a plan to lodge, feed and generally care for people fleeing from some future storm. We could even partner with the city and county or a broader blueprint for Jews and non-Jews alike. Maybe it would never be needed — hopefully, it would never be needed — but it’s a good and humane tool to have.	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line542
__label__wiki	0.720247	0.720247	Donald, Israel and the Jews By Arthur C. Abramson October 27, 2016, 7:10 pm 0 Edit It’s that time of the year, shortly before a presidential election with control of Congress also on the line. The American Jewish community is, as usual, asking a perennially problematic question: Which candidate will be best for Israel? For the last 26 years, as executive director of a Jewish communal relations organization and as someone with a doctorate in political science and a particular expertise in the politics of the Middle East and American foreign policy, I have always been able to answer that question relatively easily: As Israel’s only reliable ally, what is best for Israel is what is best for America. A strong, reliable United States reinforces and enhances Israel’s safety and security in a very insecure world. Using that variable as the primary factor in determining voting choice should help alleviate concerns about divided loyalties and/or confused responses from those who may ask the question. But, too often, that is not the case. For example, while Republicans and Democrats are both increasingly concerned about Donald Trump as a serious national security challenge, too many in the Jewish community remain complaisant about Trump’s background and perceived unquestioning support of Israel’s hardline policies regardless of how they may negatively impact American national interests. Traditionally, when the national security establishment converges on a foreign policy recommendation to the president, we expect them to bring acquired knowledge, empathy, common sense and rational thought to its final shape. For instance, when the primary actor, i.e. the president, brings few of these variables to the table, the process is flawed, and a poor outcome is likely to result. In fact, following many years of historical research and the conducting of countless interviews with former and contemporary policymakers, I have found no evidence that presidents and/or their senior colleagues act upon these issues in a manner that is — first and foremost — contrary to their perception of American national security. But, other factors often intrude that can have a major factor in shaping the policy-making process. Be it religiosity, domestic and/or bureaucratic politics, or simply a belief in the “righteousness” of the cause, a president’s worldview almost always becomes structured in a manner that can justify action in order to protect the nation’s interests regardless of the many other variables that may actually intrude when making decisions. While Presidents Eisenhower, Kennedy, Nixon, Carter, Ford, Bush I and II, and Obama rarely shifted from a security-oriented modus operandi as they sought to determine Middle East policy, different presidents were strongly influenced by other significant concerns. With Harry Truman, for example, biblical influences and a sincere “desire to do what’s right,” moved him to find a haven for Jewish refugees from the Holocaust in a newly created and recognized Jewish state. For Lyndon Johnson and Bill Clinton, personal relationships reinforced their security concerns. In terms of our current presidential candidates, while Hillary Clinton brings years of involvement in dealing with Arab and Israeli leaders, Trump has no such experience and has yet to indicate any real understanding of Middle Eastern history and present problems. In addition, as the Republican standard bearer, Trump has gone along with his party’s move away from a two-state solution for Israel and the Palestinians. Now, the Republican Party platform calls for a “one-state” solution that imposes Israeli control over the Palestinians into the future. While that stand may pander to some in the American Jewish community as insuring Israel’s security, national security experts in both Israel and the United States would argue otherwise. For them, a one-state solution would create an apartheid-like situation in which public support for Israel would diminish by the day, leaving her a pariah state that is increasingly isolated on the world stage. In turn, more regional and localized conflicts would likely arise as Israel’s enemies take advantage of her reduced international support. So, American Jews (like all Americans), should ponder their choices come election day wisely: who do they trust to make decisions that are in America’s interests first and foremost, interests that should be guided by policies developed from reasoned thought, a strategic understanding of the world (including the need to maintain American commitments globally), and a recognition that a secure America is a well-led America? That answer should not be difficult to discern. Arthur C. Abramson, Ph.D., is the former executive director of the Baltimore Jewish Council.	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line544
__label__wiki	0.759001	0.759001	Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh wants a new home February 10, 2016, 11:56 pm 0 Edit David Ainsman asks Bishop David Zubik a question while Federation President Jeff Finkelstein, center, looks on during a 2011 briefing in one of the meeting spaces at Federation’s offices in Oakland. Stan Franzos photo For $4 million, the Oakland headquarters of the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh could be yours. The Jewish community’s umbrella organization is currently entertaining offers for the sale of the property located at 234 McKee Place in the hopes of soon moving to another location in the city. The 26,280 square foot site houses Federation’s nearly 14,000 square foot office building, an adjacent 2,000 square foot house and parking areas. Adam Hertzman, Federation’s director of marketing, said that the time has come to move out of the 60-year-old building. “The biggest impetus is that Federation has outgrown the space,” he explained. “There’s so many elements and needs that the organization has that the building doesn’t accommodate for anymore. “There’s no space for us to communicate the work that Federation giving does and that’s what it’s all about,” continued Hertzman. “To me that should be the first thing you see when you come to Federation headquarters — something that helps you as a member of the community to understand why it’s important to help people in need and why Federation is a part of that work.” Hertzman rattled off several deficiencies with the current space. “There is no really great space to hold events,” he said. “We have a set of conference rooms they can all be combined into one big room, but it’s not a nice space. There is a kosher kitchen, but it’s very small. … The building is not disabled accessible on the second floor; that’s a big deal for us.” Plans for moving began six years ago at the same time as efforts were made to address disabled accessibility, he said. “There was a decision a couple of years ago as to whether to make some major changes to make it truly accessible and they decided to make a fix to enable handicap accessibility on the second floor, but it’s not true accessibility.” In addition, said Hertzman, the roof leaks. Security could also be improved. At the end of the day, it makes more economic sense to move than to retrofit the current space to meet current needs. And because the main building is so small, some staff has to work from the adjacent house, known as the Rudolph Building. In selecting its new home, Federation officials are looking for 22,000 to 30,000 square feet of space that includes parking “or some relatively easy way for our volunteers to get in and out of the Federation building” and remain in proximity to the Jewish community, said Hertzman. “We are conscious of being close or accessible to Jewish Pittsburgh. “If you look at the largest concentrations of Jews in Pittsburgh they are in Squirrel Hill, the South Hills, Fox Chapel, and then the Wexford, Sewickley, Mars area,” he added. “So it has to be somewhere that’s relatively accessible to those populations.” Locations currently under consideration are in Oakland, Squirrel Hill, the South Side, the Strip District, Lawrenceville and downtown. Hertzman cited the Federation-spearheaded Jewish Community Facilities Study as a tool for potentially aiding the move. According to Federation’s 2015 Annual Report, Federation has worked with “19 agencies and congregations in Pittsburgh’s East End to explore space needs collectively.” “The Jewish Community Foundation has retained the services of Larry Rubin for fiscal year 2015-2016 as a consultant to try to bring some of the Jewish institutions together to reach agreement on one or more scenarios envisioned in this study,” he said. Scenarios included expanding the JCC in Squirrel Hill or moving into a renovated Rodef Shalom Congregation. Federation’s staff and the community will play a role in determining Federation’s new site, said Hertzman. Real estate broker David Koch of CBRE “is working with us to develop a survey of staff and a community input process to help us gauge not just the needs from Federation’s perspective, but from other stakeholders in Pittsburgh as well.” While a location has yet to be finalized, Hertzman has some idea of how the space will look. “The image of the old stodgy Federation is not an accurate portrayal of what Federation is doing and what we are all about,” he said. So planners are looking at options “like different office layout, more collaborative places to work … space that is more modular so we can do more things in the Federation building.” Direct Energy’s downtown office is an example, said Hertzman. “It’s not hallways and offices; the offices are actually smaller. We don’t need file cabinets in the same way that organizations used to. We don’t need space for storage for paper.” Other examples are “in other federations that have moved,” he explained. “The federation in Greater Washington, D.C., has a space like this, a big open area that serves five different purposes. In the middle of the space, [there’s a] lunchroom, collaboration area, classroom for small lectures, cafe, place to serve lunch to small groups of leaders in the community, for that matter it’s a space for Jewish community professionals to get together and collaborate.” Google’s space in Bakery Square is another example. “What we end up with will be inspired by Google’s’ space in Bakery Square and closer to some of the stripped down reinvented bars in Lawrenceville where it’s a beautiful but low cost vision for making an existing space open and inviting,” said Hertzman.Hertzman said that the goal is to have a new location acquired within six months. As Federation has already received offers on its current home, “without a doubt we will move within two years.” Adam Reinherz can be reached at adamr@thejewishchronicle.net.	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line545
__label__cc	0.641956	0.358044	McDermott is reportedly parting ways with client and Trump personal lawyer Michael Cohen McDermott is reportedly parting ways with… By Debra Cassens Weiss Posted June 13, 2018, 1:02 pm CDT Michael Cohen/a katz(Shutterstock.com). Michael Cohen and his lawyers at McDermott Will & Emery are reportedly going their separate ways. The law firm is expected to end its representation of President Donald Trump’s personal lawyer after a privilege review of seized documents is complete, anonymous sources tell ABC News, the Wall Street Journal, the National Law Journal, the New York Times and USA Today. ABC was the first with the report. Cohen hasn’t been charged in the investigation into his business dealings. In an email to Vanity Fair, Cohen denied telling friends he expects to be arrested. Cohen hasn’t hired new lawyers yet. A source tells the Journal that Cohen hasn’t decided whether he will cooperate with prosecutors, but sources told ABC that Cohen is likely to cooperate with investigators. The McDermott lawyers representing Cohen are Stephen Ryan and Todd Harrison. A source tells the Times that the split is primarily over payment of Ryan’s legal bills. Above the Law offers its speculation on possible reasons for the split. If Cohen were planning to cooperate, he wouldn’t need lawyers as expensive as those at McDermott, the blog says. Another possibility is that Cohen can’t afford to pay McDermott. A third scenario is that McDermott “is embarrassed and no longer wants to be associated with Trump world,” the blog says. Another possibility is Cohen plans to represent himself. McDermott did not immediately respond to the ABAJournal.com request for comment.	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line548
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__label__cc	0.552429	0.447571	Business & Economy News Poland Multi-country Salmonella outbreak linked to Polish eggs Warsaw, Poland – Almost 1,500 people have been sickened by Salmonella linked to Polish eggs in an outbreak that has lasted more than six years and affected 18 countries. Since 2012, more than 600 cases have been recorded by the United Kingdom, almost 300 by the Netherlands and nearly 200 by Belgium. Two deaths have been reported – a five year old child in Croatia and another patient in Hungary. In a report published in December 2017, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) identified eggs from Poland as the vehicle of infections in the multi-strain outbreak. Despite the implementation of control measures, new outbreak cases with similar magnitude and temporal patterns were reported in 15 EU countries, including the Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland. The Polish National Institute of Public Health – National Institute of Hygiene (NIPH–NIH) confirmed that it has seen an increase in salmonellosis cases since 2014. As part of the ECDC investigations into the Salmonella outbreak, the Polish eggs were traced back to three egg packing centers and 52 laying hen farms. Most of them, and the three packing centers, belong to one Polish consortium. Reports suggest that the source of infection was likely to be at the level of laying hen farms. The Directorate General for Health and Food Safety (DG SANTÉ) said more than 600 consignments with 97 million eggs were withdrawn from 18 EU/EEA countries in response to the outbreak. The outbreak is one of the two large multi-country foodborne outbreaks in Europe. The other is caused by a previously unknown Salmonella serotype and has been traced to sesame seeds imported from Sudan. TagsEuropean Union • Food & Drinks • Food safety • Healthcare • Poland 4 comments on “Multi-country Salmonella outbreak linked to Polish eggs” Pingback: Poland at the heart of an EU-wide ‘sick cow’ meat scandal – Kafkadesk Pingback: Poland and Slovakia most at risk of Salmonella and other food-borne outbreaks – Kafkadesk Pingback: Poland ranks first in food security index in Central and Eastern Europe – Kafkadesk Pingback: Poland ranks first in food security index in Central and Eastern Europe – Food Gist	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line552
__label__wiki	0.74677	0.74677	Karina Magdalena Writer. Editor. Literary critic. Publisher. ALL MY BOOKS Invisible Others THE FIFTH MRS BRINK YOU MAKE ME POSSIBLE Tag Archives: parade The Day We Became Delta (An edited version of the following article was published in the Sunday Independent on 9 November 2008; a bit of the background story to the post I want to write next.) They thought that he was just another white man come to make their lives miserable. The previous owner of the Zandvliet Delta farm filed for insolvency. The new one announced himself to the farm residents, wanting to meet every family individually. Nico Jansen, an outspoken member of the community, remembers his first encounter with Professor Mark Solms: “We were scared that he would want us off his land. But I knew we had to stand up for ourselves, because we belonged here.” He told Solms straight out, “You’re not going to kick us off!” Mark Solms had no such intentions. Namibian-born, he emigrated in 1988 in search of better career opportunities. After having made a name for himself as a world-leading researcher into the brain mechanisms of dreaming, in 2002, he decided to follow his own dream of returning to Southern Africa. His late relative, Friedrich 4th Prince of Solms-Baruth, knew that Zandvliet Delta had been lost to creditors and recommended it. “He thought I would recognise the value of this place,” Solms recalls. “I came to look at the land after the great veld fires of that year. I remember the smoke-heavy air and the rustling of leaves when I walked around the farm. No decision had to be made; it was exactly the place I was looking for.” The land in question, which became known as the Solms Delta, is situated in the Franschhoek Valley just off the R45 between Franschhoek and Paarl. The sheer beauty of the region and the quality of the wines produced here are world-famous. But Solms knew that settling and making wine in the area required a sensitivity to the historical burdens embedded in the local communities living in the Valley: “Very consciously, on a local scale I wanted to contribute to the transformation which was taking place in the country. I saw the farm as an opportunity. Only after getting here, I realised how challenging the whole project would be.” Mark Solms was unprepared for the lack of enthusiasm and engagement he met with on the farm: “There seemed to be no common purpose or hope. The lethargy and depression were overwhelming.” For centuries people had lived here with strictly predetermined possibilities and would not think beyond them. He had to confront the “deeply uncomfortable role of a white farmer” which he suddenly personified. The attitude of most people on the farm was that, since he was the owner, they must be scared of him; or, if he does not live up to the role, then he can be taken advantage of. “We had to work around layers and layers of scar tissue,” he says. Moreover, he had to confront “the racism that exists in oneself”, and the tendency to transform while maintaining one’s own privileges. Jansen was very sceptical about the plans Solms had for the Delta. “It was very difficult for us to believe in white people’s good intentions,” he remembers. But then Prof, as Jansen refers to Solms, took them by surprise. He met with all the families on the farm and addressed their fears directly. He also recognised Jansen’s leadership qualities and the young man became a facilitator between himself and the community: “He told me the reason he liked me was that I said what I thought, about him and the situation. It wasn’t a smooth path. There was a lot of mistrust on our part at first. But then Prof did two things that made people begin to respect him. He told us to work on our houses at the same time as we worked on his. Then he asked us what we were passionate about. Our answer was sports, especially rugby. So he had DSTV installed in all our homes.” These events were “attitude changing, real eye-openers,” Jansen recalls. “From the beginning Prof treated us as humans, and we decided to meet him halfway. Prof told us that he wanted to set right the things his people had done wrong. And I felt I could guide Prof’s dreams. I am proud of the fact that he didn’t break any of his promises.” Shortly after his first visit to the Delta, Jansen telephoned Solms to tell him that the residents of the farm had organised “a prayer meeting to thank the Lord for sending them an owner they didn’t have to be scared of.” Solms knew that transformation would take time. Given human nature and the injustices of the past, “nobody can take your word for it in this place, sincerity has to be proven.” The changes have been gradual, but if he had to define the turning point, it would be the Bastille Day parade in Franschhoek last year. Tokyo Sexwale suggested using the festivities to celebrate, not the storming of the Bastille, but our local freedoms: the Huguenots’ freedom from religious persecution, freedom from slavery, Mandela’s freedom. The Solms Delta people created a unique float for the parade: a pyramid of wine boxes, each representing an inhabitant of the farm. They walked with the float, wearing t-shirts with their hands imprints on them in the colours of the South African flag, making music and waving to the crowds. It was “nation building on a small scale,” Solms remembers, “That day we were one, we were Delta, all of us.” The farm workers suddenly felt that a commercial event for the elites had turned into a festival in which there was a place for them. And to crown their achievement, they were awarded the prize for the best float. The feeling of belonging made Solms realise that they had “genuinely transformed the farm, in structure and feeling.” In 2005, the Solms family established the Wijn de Caab Trust to benefit all the historically disadvantaged residents of the farm and other employees of the Solms-Delta wine company. In due course, Mark Solms convinced a dear friend from Britain, Richard Astor, to buy an adjacent farm, Lubeck Delta, and the Trust was restructured in the process. With the help of loan funding secured by the Solms and Astor families, the Trust purchased a third adjoining farm, Deltameer. The three linked properties now became equal partners in a common enterprise. Alex van Heerden with Richard Astor and the Gramadoelas Richard Astor first visited his friend on Solms Delta in 2003. He returned several times and the beauty of the place grew on him, but he never considered settling here. In 2005, because of personal misfortune he needed a change and that was when Mark Solms suggested he buy the adjoining farm: “Mark managed to communicate his passion to me. I have been looking for a cause I could get involved in and it was suddenly easy to see the opportunities to make a difference here.” There was only one obstacle: “I love wine, but I can’t take it seriously; I don’t have the palate or Mark’s passion for it. He sees wine as an art form. I told him that the one art form I can be passionate about is music.” The idea for the annual Oesfees (Harvest Festival) was born. Celebrated for the first time in April this year, it was an enormous success. Farm workers from the entire area were invited to participate in the festivities, involving traditional music, local food and wines. Richard Astor, a cornet player, performed on stage with the likes of David Kramer and the Delta Optel Band, consisting of Solms Delta residents and led by the young Cape music enthusiast, Alex van Heerden. Farm youth dancing “Alex fitted perfectly into the project. He brings music out of people,” Astor says in admiration. Employed by the Delta Trust (established by Astor), van Heerden can now pursue a lifelong passion: “I have always wanted to uncover the common musical heritage we Afrikaans-speaking people share in this area.” In the mid-1990s van Heerden founded the “Gramadoelas” band and began his field research work in the rural areas of the Cape to get material for them. The project was not financially viable; nobody was ever interested in getting properly involved. Coming to work for the Trust has been a dream come true for van Heerden. Forty people are now directly involved in the music projects on the farm. Two bands, the Delta Optel and a brass band, meet regularly for practice. Van Heerden and historian Tracey Randle are collecting materials for a music heritage centre which is to open on the farm in 2010. Van Heerden is also in charge of the Saturday evening concerts which will begin in December. “I feel healed by making music with my people,” he says, clearly moved, “There is a feeling of unconditional sharing involved.” Mark Solms with David Kramer Richard Astor knows that “all these great people on the farm can’t be a coincidence.” He says of his friend, “Mark brings out the best in people in a realistic way. He builds confidence and helps people realise their potentials.” The pool of talented individuals involved in the Solms Delta projects attests to this. Cathy Macfarlane began as administrator at the farm in March 2007. A former teacher with no experience in administration, equipped only with vast enthusiasm, she swiftly adapted: “Working here has been an adventure. It’s tough at times, but I love my job.” As Solms Delta’s administrator, she coordinates all the entities on the farm, interviews new staff members (mostly appointed internally), and until recently was responsible for the certification of wine. Her latest projects are a fynbos reserve and “Fyndraai”, a restaurant which from December onwards will delight farm visitors with traditional Khoi cuisine based on the dedicated research of food scientist Renata Coetzee. Tracey Randle was fresh out of university when she came to work at the farm in 2004. Finding vast amounts of artefacts during the renovations of Delta, Solms had an idea for a museum on the farm and employed Randle to direct it. A passionate historian, she shares his vision on how history can be told in a multitude of voices, an idea inspired by André Brink’s novel A Chain of Voices. In 2005, Brink was invited to open the Museum van de Caab which became one of the most sought after tourist attractions of the region. The Museum is unique in that it seeks to present history from individual perspectives of all the people who have ever lived, worked and died on the farm. There is no attribution of blame, just a display of the resilience of the human spirit. In 2004, Medwin Pietersen and Johan O’Rayn came to work at the Delta as security guards, but both had a passion for history, which they have been given the opportunity to develop at the Museum and by completing heritage management courses. Later this month they will be travelling abroad for the first time in their lives on an exchange program to Sweden: “We’ll be visiting museums and schools in Malmö and learning how best to teach children about history, heritage and culture at school,” says Pietersen. At home, Pietersen’s wife is one of the teachers involved in supervising the farm children in their after-school activities. The after school is an initiative coordinated by Frances Semmelink, a social worker employed by the Wijn de Caab Trust to represent all its beneficiaries. She began working for the Solms family as an au-pair while studying social work at the University of Stellenbosch. Recognising her potential, Mark Solms invited her to invest her skills in helping the Delta community after she completed her degree. Her focus is education: “It’s crucial that we break the cycle of poverty and dependency, so that children can move on if they wish to in the future.” By providing financial assistance for education on all levels, private health care and encouraging independent home ownership, the Trust aims at broadening the horizons for its beneficiaries. Semmelink coordinates various other projects, including all sports activities on the farm: a rugby team coached by the cellar manager, Fanie Karolus, a young basketball team led by a noted American player, Kyle Ray, and a walking team participating this month in the Big Walk in Cape Town. Semmelink knows that one has to remain “realistic about change, it’s a slow process,” but people see that it is real and that they are truly making a difference. “There is still drinking and domestic violence, but it’s on the decrease. The community realises that they have the power to control and stop things. They recognise their responsibility.” She adds with a confident smile, “People are happy.” Even though he swore early on in life that he would never work on a farm, today Nico Jansen is the estate manager of Solms Delta. “Before, I used to work for a construction firm. I never believed in farming because it had broken my people, but now I love it.” He is proud of all the achievements on the farm. “People started taking care of themselves, they drink less. They feel that they can uplift themselves and restore their dignity,” he says. “Every week people come to me asking for work here, and it’s not about money. It’s about the respect and equality we all share here.” The cycle of fatalism has been broken. People on Solms Delta know they are the masters of their future and that their fates are interlinked. “If you can transform one farm, why not a valley or a province?” asks Solms. What is he happiest with? Being greeted with a smile by every person on the farm and hearing the spontaneous eruptions of music on his daily walks. He explains, “Music is a genuine expression of pleasure and cultural participation.” As I leave Solms Delta inspired by these stories, the voices of all the people fuse into the words of Theresé Willemse, a young woman working at the Museum van de Caab: “We are a whole big family here.” This entry was posted in Memories, What I've Written and tagged A Chain of Voices, Alex van Heerden, André Brink, basketball team, Bastille Day, Big Walk, Cape Town, Cathy Macfarlane, cellar manager, concerts, cycle of fatalism, David Kramer, Delta Optel Band, Deltameer, dignity, equality, exchange program, Fanie Karolus, float, food scientist, Frances Semmelink, Franschhoek, Franschhoek Valley, freedom from religious persecution, freedom from slavery, Friedrich 4th Prince of Solms-Baruth, fynbos reserve, Fyndraai, Harvest Festival, historian, historical burdens, Huguenots, Johan O’Rayn, Karina Magdalena Szczurek, Kyle Ray, Lubeck Delta, Malmö, Mandela’s freedom, Medwin Pietersen, museum, Museum van de Caab, music, Nico Jansen, novel, Oesfees, Paarl, parade, Professor Mark Solms, region, Renata Coetzee, respect, responsibility, restaurant, Richard Astor, social worker, Solms-Delta, Sweden, Theresé Willemse, Tokyo Sexwale, tourist attractions, Tracey Randle, traditional Khoi cuisine, transformation, University of Stellenbosch, white man, Wijn de Caab Trust, wine, wine farm, Zandvliet Delta on August 9, 2014 by Karina. Operation Oysterhood: 15 January Professor Elleke Boe… on Operation Oysterhood: 24 … Bookruse on Operation Oysterhood: 8 D… Bookruse on Operation Oysterhood: 19 … Thomas W. on Operation Oysterhood: 6 D… Yolisa on Operation Oysterhood: 5 D… Literary Couples What I've Read What I've Written Writing Couples	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line553
__label__wiki	0.889808	0.889808	The Three Gorges reservoir has become a danger By Other News Sources on March 11, 2010 • ( Leave a comment ) Translated by Probe International From the South Urban Daily (Nanfang dushi bao), posted March 3, 2009 (March 11, 2010) The large-scale construction that accompanied the building of the Three Gorges dam and its reservoir has increased the number of landslides—both new and reactivated—in the surrounding area. County seats recently built on land near the reservoir are now particularly prone to landslides. Local schools and residential buildings are already suffering cracked foundations and walls. And although the Three Gorges project is not completely finished, a new battle is emerging. The state has pledged tens of billions of dollars in an effort to control geological disasters in the reservoir vicinity, but the frequency of landslides and concerns regarding dam safety have added to the mounting fears over stability. It appears the Three Gorges dam will never truly be complete. Statistics provided by the Seismic Office of Fengjie County in Chongqing Municipality show that seismic activity has increased since 2003—when the Three Gorges reservoir was filled for the first time. In 2008, when officials attempted to fill the reservoir to 175 metres, at least 14 earthquakes were reported in the Fengjie area—five of which were felt at a maximum magnitude of 2.9. Statistics for the Chongqing area of the reservoir report show that as of March 18, 2009, a total of 166 geological disasters have occurred in 14 counties and districts, including: Fengjie, Kaixian, Wanzhou, Wushan, Wuxi, Yunyang, Wanzhou, among others. It’s worth noting that among the 166 geological disasters, 121 are sites of recent deformations…e.g. landslips, mud-rock flows and mountain collapses. With a total volume of about 60.24 million cubic meters, the new or recently activated landslides have affected a population of 11,535 and as much as 2,380 mu (1 mu=1/15 ha) of farmland has been lost. The anxious woman For decades, Wang Zuxiu has lived on the banks of the Yangtze, peacefully tending her orange trees. But, in recent years, her world has been overtaken by fear: fear for her own safety and fear for the safety of her home, which she believes is sinking. One night in 2009, she was startled from sleep by what sounded like a giant rock rolling into the river near her house. The next morning she saw that, although her house remained intact, a giant rock had indeed made its way into the water. As a result, Wang has developed the habit of checking her small bungalow regularly and has since discovered that cracks have formed around her house. The cracks, she says, expand as the water levels in the reservoir fluctuate. She also describes sounds like a rumbling underground through the night. This is not entirely an illusion. According to the card “How to deal with collapse, landslides and debris flows” sent to Wang by the Land Resources Bureau of Badong County in Hubei Province, her house is located in the lower edge of a 1.28 square-kilometre plot of land deemed at risk from landslides. The card instructs Wang Zuxiu and her family how to react in case of an emergency. Accordingly, in the event of a landslide, officials at an emergency response centre will use a broadcast system to warn residents to evacuate. Nearly every villager has seen the official evacuation maps, displayed at prominent locations around the village–including the village entrance and at all major intersections. Wang Zuxiu believes that the cracks around her house are most likely associated with reservoir fluctuations, which are part of the dam’s operating process. The biggest cracks occur in late spring and early winter when the reservoir is lowered and raised. What Wang Zuxiu really wants is to move but, she says, “nobody (from the resettlement bureau) has come to register my home.” With disappointment, she says other villagers have already been registered—pointing to nearby houses. 3,000 students, studying on top of a potential landslide The First High School of Badong County stands nearby on the same disaster-prone land as Wang Zuxiu’s small house. From a distance, the school does not appear to be under threat, as it was built more than 100 metres above the reservoir’s water level—even at peak ‘tide’. But a closer inspection would shock people: cracks affect almost every building in the school. One of the biggest is an east-west crack formed in recent years that runs across the ground from the school gate. The school filled this crack with asphalt last winter, but it reopened in the spring when the reservoir was lowered. Nobody is sure how many cracks are in the school’s classrooms and dormitories. Some cracks appear on classroom walls, while others have cut off an entire staircase in the teaching building. In the heavily populated dormitory for female students, a major fissure on the floor meets up with cracks that connect to the teaching building. These splits were also filled with asphalt. Pencil marks indicating expanding crack width can be found everywhere around the school. In an examination room, for example, markings show that the gap of one crack has grown from 22 mm to 24 mm in the last two years. Song Fagang, the school’s principal, said that no construction inspectors have been invited to assess the school because, if an inspector did come and witnessed how dangerous the situation is, he explained, classes would have to be cancelled and teachers and students living in the dormitory would have to leave. Because of the school’s high standing, officials have taken note of problems. But a solution to the real dilemma—moving as many as 3,000 teachers, students and other staff—has yet to be forthcoming, even though it is common knowledge that the buildings are dangerous. After two major landslides in 1995, the Huangtupo (yellow earth slope) was identified as a “reactivated” ancient landslide by the geological agency. It is now one of the most dangerous landslide areas in the Three Gorges reservoir. In 2008, the central government came up with a plan to relocate ten-thousand people from the Huangtupo over the next three years. A number of major buildings such as the county government office and hospital have already been relocated. According to the plan, the resettlement of the 3,000 staff and students at First High School of Badong County is listed as a priority, and should take place in the next two years. But now, it appears that this project is considered too big to undertake. “There is a big hole of funding”, the principal says. The new site for the school is on the hillside on the opposite side of the Yangtze River—where the geological conditions are safer. But the budget for building the new school is as much as 200 million to 300 million yuan RMB—the bulk of which is slated for the construction of a ‘complicated’ underground foundation. That amount of money would build two or three schools of the same size on land beyond the reservoir area. “Normal” earthquakes Fengjie, in Chongqing Municipality, about 100 km upstream from Badong County in Hubei Province, and 180 km upstream from the Three Gorges dam, has experienced at least four earthquakes since the filling of the reservoir—including one when the epicentre of the earthquake was located at the Xingfu (Happiness) High School. Local media reported that because the earthquake was caused by the filling of the reservoir, it was normal. Gong Zhengda, a retired teacher at the school remembers the incident well. It occurred at 9:50 A.M. on November 11, 2008, after the Three Gorges reservoir had been filled to 173 metres. The shock knocked him to the floor of his house while he was watching TV with his family. Without hesitation, he dragged his wife and daughter out of the house and ran. Gong recalls as many as 2,000 students pouring out of the school buildings and running to the highway, where they gathered, frozen with fear. One student was injured. After the earthquake, Gong used a piece of chalk and wrote the date on a cupboard in the kitchen. Since then, he has started carrying his ID card, bank cards and large sums of cash inside his coat pocket in case of another emergency. In the wake of the incident, local media quickly confirmed the relationship between the earthquake and the filling of the reservoir, attributing the cause to the latter but describing the event as ‘normal’ because its magnitude registered only around 2.0. This ‘normal’ seismic activity brought about dramatic changes to the school grounds, however. The bridge linking teaching buildings has become twisted, leaving cracks visible. In spite of deterioration, thousands of people continue to use the bridges every day. One student said he has grown accustomed to the damage but felt afraid, nevertheless. All female students were moved to the office building because of damages to their dormitory, and the principals and party secretary were forced to relocate to a temporary shelter in an open space. Various seismic monitoring instruments have since been installed near the ground and on the roofs of the school buildings. As a safety precaution, the playground facing the Yangtze was locked. The school’s principal said students are put through two exercises per year that reinforce evacuation procedures and how to deal with an earthquake emergency. A plan is also in place to relocate the school but no time frame has been set and, again, resettlement of the school population is considered too large to handle. Tens of billions to be spent on dealing with geological disasters This reporter has heard from multiple sources that there will be 10 billion RMB in funds available for post-project plans in the Three Gorges area. Pan Jiazheng, member of both of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Chinese Academy of Engineering, says that the builder of the Three Gorges project should be held responsible for the geological disasters that are a result of the dam’s reservoir. “Now the question is, when should the money be spent,” says Chen Jin, director of the Changjiang River Scientific Research Institute. Mr Chen insists that the money should not be spent now, as the reservoir has yet to be filled to its maximum height of 175 metres. Until it reaches this height, there is no way to know the full impact of the reservoir on the area. This means that any money spent on projects might go to waste or be spent ineffectively. Chen thinks money should be used to monitor the vicinity area over the next four to five years. In the meantime, students at the Badang High School and Xingfu High School continue to study in dangerous buildings, connected by broken bridges. Yang Chuanmin, South Urban Daily, March 11, 2010 Categories: Dams and Landslides, RIS, Three Gorges, Three Gorges Probe Tagged as: dams and landslides, RIS China idles 40% of windpower turbine output capacity Severe drought puts spotlight on Chinese dams	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line556
__label__cc	0.652574	0.347426	U.K. carbon credit tax scammers get stiff sentences (June 19, 2012) Three men have been sentenced to lengthy prison sentences for running a carbon credit tax racket that cheated U.K. taxpayers out of 39 million pounds ($US60 million) in just 69 days. London: Tax fraudsters who established bogus companies for the purpose of importing VAT-free carbon credits, only to sell them with VAT included to unsuspecting buyers, are now behind bars. Sandeep Singh Dosanjh, 30, Ranjot Singh Chahal, 35, and Navdeep Singh Gill, 31, all from southern England, were sentenced to 15 years in prison, 11, and nine-year terms respectively for their part in a fraud to pocket tax revenues that should have gone to Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs but instead were laundered through offshore bank accounts and turned into spending money. Mastermind Dosanjh’s earnings from the scam reportedly paid for a Rolls-Royce and a £1-million house in the heart of London. As a direct result of this investigation – the three men were captured in a series of dawn raids in August 2009 – U.K. law was changed in a bid to ward off repeat scams of this type. VAT fraud – dubbed by the mainstream media as ‘carousel fraud’ or ‘missing-trader fraud’ – has dogged the European Union’s carbon credit market for years. Forensic auditors and Europol warned that carbon credit markets would fall victim to fraud and organized crime. At the time referring to billions of dollars lost to emissions-related tax fraud in 2010, Chris Perryman of Europol’s Criminal Finances and Technology section in The Hague said: “It is clear that [carbon trading] fraudsters are fully aware of the potential that trading in intangible commodities has to further their ends. Such goods or services can be traded without the need to be physically moved or transported, which represents an obvious opportunity to frustrate Law Enforcement efforts to track and trace transactions.” As a result, France, the Netherlands, Spain – as well as now the U.K. – have all had to alter their tax law on carbon credit transactions. Meanwhile, the European Commission has set up a special team of “cyber firefighters” in an effort to stamp out fraud in the EU Emissions Trading Scheme. Tagged as: carbon credit scams, carousel fraud, EU Emissions Trading Scheme, VAT fraud Weibo Watch: Issue 11 German firm to help map landslide threat at Three Gorges Dam	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line557
__label__wiki	0.522746	0.522746	Category Archives: Phillip Berg The Birthers’ Are Back – And At The Supreme Court! 25 Wednesday Mar 2009 Posted by jschulmansr in 2008 Election, Barack, Barack Dunham, Barack Hussein Obama, Barack Obama, Barry Dunham, Barry Soetoro, capitalism, Chicago Tribune, Columbia University, Credit Default, Currencies, currency, Currency and Currencies, D.c. press club, dollar denominated, dollar denominated investments, economic, Economic Recovery, economic trends, economy, Electoral College, Electors, Fed Fund Rate, Federal Deficit, federal reserve, Finance, financial, fraud, Free Speech, gold, Harvard Law School, hawaii, hyper-inflation, id theft, IMF, Indonesia, Indonesian Citizenship, inflation, Investing, investments, Joe Biden, John McCain, Latest News, legal documents, Markets, name change, natural born citizen, Oath of Allegiance of the President of the United State, obama, Occidental College, Phillip Berg, Politics, poser, Presidential Election, Sarah Palin, socialism, stagflation, Stimulus, Stocks, The Fed, Today, treason, U.S., u.s. constitution, U.S. Dollar, voter fraud, we the people foundation ≈ Comments Off on The Birthers’ Are Back – And At The Supreme Court! 2008 Election, Barack Dunham, Barack Hussein Obama, Barack Obama, Barry Dunham, Barry Soetoro, capitalism, Chicago Tribune, Columbia University, Currency and Currencies, D.c. press club, Electoral College, Electors, Finance, fraud, Free Speech, gold, Harvard Law School, hawaii, id theft, Indonesia, Indonesian Citizenship, Investing, investments, Joe Biden, John McCain, Latest News, legal documents, Markets, name change, natural born citizen, Oath of Allegiance of the President of the United State, Occidental College, Phillip Berg, Politics, poser, Presidential Election, Sarah Palin, socialism, Stocks, Today, treason, u.s. constitution, U.S. Dollar, voter fraud, we the people foundation I am not a “birther” unless- my asking Mr. Obama to provide his Birth Certificate for everyone to see- qualifies me as one. The idea that Mr. Obama refuses to do so borders on unbelievable! Now he is facing “criminal” charges because he hasn’t. Please don’t tell me he already has, he hasn’t. The certificate of live birth is not the same as a Birth Certificate, and even that was proven to be a forgery! Next why is he refusing to let anyone see anything about his personal past history, like school records,and anything where then he had to show some kind of identification to be registered and be enrolled. Mr. Obama, what are you hiding? Could it actually be that you really aren’t qualified and eligible to be the President? I have some real concerns and now the rest of America is starting to share those concerns! Could your meeting with the Supreme Court Justice’s was really about that very issue? Something like, hey guys I’m not actually eligible to be President, so if you ‘hear any of the “eligibility” cases’ and this is found out (not eligible to be President)- it will cause widespread rioting and destruction; along with a complete loss of trust by the American people. Is that what really transpired? Mr. Obama prove your eligibility! Another concern I have is what you are doing to this country. You say you inherited this mess from President Bush and a 1 Trillion Deficit mess. Yet your cure is to spend 10 Trillion of American money (to supposedly fix the problem), more money total, than every President from Washington to Bush Jr. combined! Our own allies are even imploring you to stop this disastrous course. China is warning you that they are going to buy less, if any at all of our new debt you are having issued, and are afraid they are going lose big time on their investments in our debt because of it. Your policies are destroying the American dollar or is that part of your plan? You continue to have your agents in the Fed and treasury illegaly try to artificially supress precious metals prices, especially Gold and Silver prices by leasing out or outright selling of America’s Gold at a negative basis. Why is their no transparency and accounting of where and how America’s gold is being used. China and Russia are calling for a new reserve currency run by the IMF and where the U.S. Dollar would only represent 40% of the value of the currency basket. One minute you are against that along with Geitner and the next you are both saying that that might be a good idea? Real time inflation. not the conjured, manipulated reports (like yesterday’s durable goods); currently the inflation rate is at 8.5% up another point in just the last month! China and Russia are aware of this and are buying up and increasing their Gold Reserves to protect themselves from Inflation and a falling Dollar. Next you are mortgaging my kids, grandchildren. and great grandchildren’s futures under an onerous, outrageous levels of debt. . So I ask based on these facts alone – Mr. Obama where is your Birth Certificate? If you don’t have anything to hide then why not, just order the State of Hawaii to provide (unseal) the Birth Certificate? What are you afraid of? Mr. Obama prove your eligibility to be the President of the United States… Justice, Supremes confirm getting Eligibility Challenge- World Net Faily By: Bob Unruh of World Net Daily © 2009 WorldNetDaily The U.S. Supreme Court and the U.S. Justice Department today confirmed that documentation challenging Barack Obama’s eligibility to be president has arrived and soon will be evaluated. Confirmation came from Defend Our Freedoms, the foundation through which California attorney Orly Taitz has been working on a number of cases that raise questions over Obama’s qualification to be president under the Constitution’s demand that the office be occupied only by a “natural born” citizen. Taitz was informed by Karen Thornton of the Department of Justice that all of the case documents and filings have arrived and have been forwarded to the Office of Solicitor General Elena Kagan, including three dossiers and the Quo Warranto case. “Coincidently, after Dr. Taitz called me with that update, she received another call from Officer Giaccino at the Supreme Court,” the website posting said. “Officer Giaccino stated both pleadings have been received and [are] being analyzed now.” The report from the Supreme Court said the documents that Taitz hand-delivered to Chief Justice John Roberts at his appearance at the University of Idaho a little over a week ago also were at the Supreme Court. WND has reported on dozens of legal challenges to Obama’s status as a “natural born citizen.” The Constitution, Article 2, Section 1, states, “No Person except a natural born Citizen, or a Citizen of the United States, at the time of the Adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the Office of President.” Where’s the proof Barack Obama was born in the U.S. or that he fulfills the “natural-born American” clause in the Constitution? If you still want to see it, join more than 340,000 others and sign up now! Some of the legal challenges question whether he was actually born in Hawaii, as he insists. If he was born out of the country, Obama’s American mother, the suits contend, was too young at the time of his birth to confer American citizenship to her son under the law at the time. Other challenges have focused on Obama’s citizenship through his father, a Kenyan subject to the jurisdiction of the United Kingdom at the time of his birth, thus making him a dual citizen. The cases contend the framers of the Constitution excluded dual citizens from qualifying as natural born. Further, others question his citizenship by virtue of his attendance in Indonesian schools during his childhood and question on what passport did he travel to Pakistan three decades ago. Adding fuel to the fire is Obama’s persistent refusal to release documents that could provide answers. While his supporters cite an online version of a “Certification of Live Birth” from Hawaii, critics point out such documents actually were issued for children not born in the state. WND reported earlier on a proposal by U.S. Rep. Bill Posey, R-Fla., and the criticism he’s taking for suggesting that the issue be avoided in the future by having presidential candidates supply their birth certificate. “What you should do is stop embarrassing yourself and take the Reynolds Wrap off your head,” MSNBC commentator Keith Olbermann suggested to Posey. U.S. Rep. Neil Abercrombie, D-Hawaii, has asserted Posey’s judgment is skewed. “The citizenship of someone who has reached the point of running for president of the United States is not really an issue,” Abercrombie said. Posey said he made the suggestion because he’s seeking the truth, and “the more and more I get called names by leftwing activists, partisan hacks and political operatives for doing it, the more and more I think I did the right thing.” Hawaiian officials have confirmed they have a birth certificate on file for Obama, but it cannot be released without his permission, and they have not revealed the information it contains. John Eidsmoe, an expert on the U.S. Constitution working with the Foundation on Moral Law, told WND a demand for verification of Obama’s eligibility appears to be legitimate. Eidsmoe said it’s clear that Obama has something in the documentation of his history, including his birth certificate, college records and other documents that “he does not want the public to know.” Officials for the Obama campaign repeatedly have refused to comment on the questions, relenting only once to call the concerns “garbage.” Other members of Congress have been reading from what appears to be a prepared script in response to queries about Obama’s eligibility: Among the statements from members of Congress: Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz.: “Thank you for your recent e-mail. Senator Obama meets the constitutional requirements for presidential office. Rumors pertaining to his citizenship status have been circulating on the Internet, and this information has been debunked by Snopes.com, which investigates the truth behind Internet rumors.” Sen. Mel Martinez, R-Fla.: “Presidential candidates are vetted by voters at least twice – first in the primary elections and again in the general election. President-Elect Obama won the Democratic Party’s nomination after one of the most fiercely contested presidential primaries in American history. And, he has now been duly elected by the majority of voters in the United States. Throughout both the primary and general election, concerns about Mr. Obama’s birthplace were raised. The voters have made clear their view that Mr. Obama meets the qualifications to hold the office of president.” Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio: “President Obama has provided several news organizations with a copy of his birth certificate, showing he was born in Honolulu, Hawaii on August 4, 1961. Hawaii became a state in 1959, and all individuals born in Hawaii after its admission are considered natural-born United States citizens. In addition, the Hawaii State Health Department recently issued a public statement verifying the authenticity of President Obama’s birth certificate.” U.S. Rep. Rush Holt, D-N.J.: “The claim that President Obama was born outside of the United States, thus rendering him ineligible for the presidency, is part of a larger number of pernicious and factually baseless claims that were circulated about then-Senator Obama during his presidential campaign. President Obama was born in Hawaii.” The response provided no documentation. Taitz had approached Justice Antonin Scalia during his appearance in Los Angeles before meeting with Roberts at his Idaho appearance. She’s suggested that there was misbehavior at the Supreme Court because some of her earlier papers were not filed properly, nor were they returned to her. Hers was just one of the issues reportedly presented to the Supreme Court justices in conference for an evaluation on whether a hearing should be held. No hearing ever has been held at that level on the evidence involved. Her Quo Warranto case is pending at the Justice Department. It essentially raises a demand for proof by what authority Obama has assumed the powers of president. Here is a partial listing and status update for some of the cases over Obama’s eligibility: New Jersey attorney Mario Apuzzo has filed a case on behalf of Charles Kerchner and others alleging Congress didn’t properly ascertain that Obama is qualified to hold the office of president. Pennsylvania Democrat Philip Berg has three cases pending, including Berg vs. Obama in the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, a separate Berg vs. Obama which is under seal at the U.S. District Court level and Hollister vs. Soetoro a/k/a Obama, (now dismissed) brought on behalf of a retired military member who could be facing recall to active duty by Obama. Leo Donofrio of New Jersey filed a lawsuit claiming Obama’s dual citizenship disqualified him from serving as president. His case was considered in conference by the U.S. Supreme Court but denied a full hearing. Cort Wrotnowski filed suit against Connecticut’s secretary of state, making a similar argument to Donofrio. His case was considered in conference by the U.S. Supreme Court, but was denied a full hearing. Former presidential candidate Alan Keyes headlines a list of people filing a suit in California, in a case handled by the United States Justice Foundation, that asks the secretary of state to refuse to allow the state’s 55 Electoral College votes to be cast in the 2008 presidential election until Obama verifies his eligibility to hold the office. The case is pending, and lawyers are seeking the public’s support. Chicago attorney Andy Martin sought legal action requiring Hawaii Gov. Linda Lingle to release Obama’s vital statistics record. The case was dismissed by Hawaii Circuit Court Judge Bert Ayabe. Lt. Col. Donald Sullivan sought a temporary restraining order to stop the Electoral College vote in North Carolina until Barack Obama’s eligibility could be confirmed, alleging doubt about Obama’s citizenship. His case was denied. In Ohio, David M. Neal sued to force the secretary of state to request documents from the Federal Elections Commission, the Democratic National Committee, the Ohio Democratic Party and Obama to show the presidential candidate was born in Hawaii. The case was denied. Also in Ohio, there was the Greenberg v. Brunner case which ended when the judge threatened to assess all case costs against the plaintiff. In Washington state, Steven Marquis sued the secretary of state seeking a determination on Obama’s citizenship. The case was denied. In Georgia, Rev. Tom Terry asked the state Supreme Court to authenticate Obama’s birth certificate. His request for an injunction against Georgia’s secretary of state was denied by Georgia Superior Court Judge Jerry W. Baxter. California attorney Orly Taitz has brought a case, Lightfoot vs. Bowen, on behalf of Gail Lightfoot, the vice presidential candidate on the ballot with Ron Paul, four electors and two registered voters. In addition, other cases cited on the RightSideofLife blog as raising questions about Obama’s eligibility include: In Texas, Darrel Hunter vs. Obama later was dismissed. In Ohio, Gordon Stamper vs. U.S. later was dismissed. In Texas, Brockhausen vs. Andrade. In Washington, L. Charles Cohen vs. Obama. In Hawaii, Keyes vs. Lingle, dismissed. Federal Criminal Complaint contends Obama Ineligible – WND By Bob Unruh An ex-military officer has raised the stakes in the ongoing dispute over Barack Obama’s eligibility to be president, filing a criminal complaint against the “imposter” with the U.S. attorney’s office for the Eastern District of Tennessee. Retired U.S. Navy officer Walter Francis Fitzpatrick III, who has run a campaign for two decades to uncover and try to correct what he believes are criminal activities within the military, accused the president of “treason.” In his complaint addressed to Obama via U.S Attorney Russell Dedrick and Assistant U.S. Attorney Edward Schmutzer, Eastern District, Tennessee, Fitzpatrick wrote: “I have observed and extensively recorded invidious attacks by military-political aristocrats against the Constitution for twenty years. “Now you have broken in and entered the White House by force of contrivance, concealment, conceit, dissembling, and deceit. Posing as an impostor president and commander in chief you have stripped civilian command and control over the military establishment.” He cited the deployment of “U.S. Army active duty combat troops into the small civilian community of Samson, Ala.,” and said, “We come now to this reckoning. I accuse you and your military-political criminal assistants of TREASON. I name you and your military criminal associates as traitors. Your criminal ascension manifests a clear and present danger. You fundamentally changed our form of government. The Constitution no longer works. “I identify you as a foreign born domestic enemy,” he wrote. The 1975 graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis told WND that a short time after his complaint was filed he was visited by two U.S. Secret Service agents, but they left after telling him they perceived no threat to the president in the document. Where’s the proof Barack Obama was born in the U.S. or that he fulfills the “natural-born American” clause in the Constitution? If you still want to see it, join some 350,000 others and sign up now! Officials with the Knoxville office of the Secret Service told WND the only person who could release information to the media was on vacation and they would not comment on the issue. Likewise, officials with the U.S. attorney’s office declined to respond to a WND request for a comment. Fitzpatrick told WND the U.S. Justice Department needs to look into the issue. WND reported this week that officials at the Justice Department, along with those at the Supreme Court, confirmed that documentation in a case challenging Obama’s eligibility had arrived and was scheduled for an evaluation. That case is being handled by California attorney Orly Taitz, who is working through her Defend Our Freedoms Foundation to handle several cases raising questions over Obama’s qualification to be president under the Constitution’s demand that the office be occupied only by a “natural born” citizen. Taitz was informed by Karen Thornton of the Department of Justice that all of the case documents and filings have arrived and have been forwarded to the Office of Solicitor General Elena Kagan, including three dossiers. Fitzpatrick said he has devoted his career fulltime to investigating issues in military justice and defending wrongly accused soldiers, sailors and Marines. His own career was torpedoed by a court-martial more than 20 years ago over his authorization of the use of a ship’s fund to sent an officer to the funeral for his brother, who had been killed by terrorists. Fitzpatrick’s situation has been described not only on his own website but forum pages on other websites that deal with military issues. He alleges his case was fabricated and even his signature was forged by officials connected to his case. He points to the fact that he ultimately retired and was awarded a military pension as support for his allegations. But he says the new complaint against Obama should define the issue of the president’s eligibility. “They either have to come and get me or get Mr. Obama’s eligibility proved. He has an officer in his military saying he is guilty of trespass on the Constitution,” Fitzpatrick told WND. “They can recall me against my will to active duty,” he said. “I would refuse. It’s an illegal order by a man who is not by commander in chief.” WND has reported on dozens of civil case legal challenges to Obama’s status as a “natural born citizen.” The Constitution, Article 2, Section 1, states, “No Person except a natural born Citizen, or a Citizen of the United States, at the time of the Adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the Office of President.” John Eidsmoe, an expert on the U.S. Constitution working with the Foundation on Moral Law, has told WND a demand for verification of Obama’s eligibility appears to be legitimate. My Note: Mr Obama, show us you are eligible, where is your birth certificate? – jschulmansr It’s Still Not Over- Part 2 Obama Where Is Your Birth Certificate? Posted by jschulmansr in 2008 Election, Barack, Barack Dunham, Barack Hussein Obama, Barack Obama, Barry Dunham, Barry Soetoro, capitalism, Chicago Tribune, Columbia University, Currency and Currencies, D.c. press club, Electoral College, Electors, Finance, fraud, Free Speech, gold, Harvard Law School, hawaii, id theft, Indonesia, Indonesian Citizenship, Investing, investments, Joe Biden, John McCain, Latest News, legal documents, Markets, name change, natural born citizen, Oath of Allegiance of the President of the United State, obama, Occidental College, Phillip Berg, Politics, poser, Presidential Election, Sarah Palin, socialism, Stocks, Today, treason, u.s. constitution, U.S. Dollar, voter fraud, we the people foundation ≈ Comments Off on It’s Still Not Over- Part 2 Obama Where Is Your Birth Certificate? 2008 Election, Barack, Barack Dunham, Barack Hussein Obama, Barack Obama, Barry Dunham, Barry Soetoro, capitalism, Chicago Tribune, Columbia University, Currency and Currencies, D.c. press club, Electoral College, Electors, Finance, fraud, Free Speech, gold, Harvard Law School, hawaii, id theft, Indonesia, Indonesian Citizenship, Investing, investments, Joe Biden, John McCain, Latest News, legal documents, Markets, name change, natural born citizen, Oath of Allegiance of the President of the United State, obama, Occidental College, Phillip Berg, Politics, poser, Presidential Election, Sarah Palin, socialism, Stocks, Today, treason, u.s. constitution, U.S. Dollar, voter fraud, we the people foundation Wow! What a firestorm I raised when I posted Part 1 yesterday! I was called various names, accused of being an Indnesian secret agent, and more. Everyone went back and pointed out that the “Certificate of Live Birth” posted was the the proof and how stupid was I to keep bringing this up, or that I had “sour grapes”. So let me answer…This “proof” was proven by forensic experts to be a forgery with an edge border around the certificate from a different year than then year when Barak Obama was born. Yet no one could post an answer to my next statement if I go to get my passport they U.S. Government will not accept that certificate as proof of citizenship; I must go get and provide my actual long form original certified copy of my Birth Certificate. They also could not provide an answer as to why Barak Obama will not produce his. Is he magically somehow above the rest of us as citizens? According to the constitution he is not! So I am still very concerned about Barak Obama’s eligibility to be my President. If he is really a legal citizen of the United States then why can’t he just provide his Birth Certificate? Why is he hiring so may lawyers and legal defense teams to prevent people from seeing his information and keeping it sealed up? What does that information contain that he is afraid of? What does he have to hide? Could the reason we have this problem is because Howard Dean and the Democrats never vetted their candidate? Just like Obama has not properly vetted his cabinet appointments. This is basic. If they can’t even do that right, how would you expect them to manage your health care? This is the reason we are now faced with this Constitutional dilemma. It is a major issue for anyone who must follow orders from the ‘Commander-in-Chief’, especially all our men in uniform. It can’t be that hard to find out if Obama is really a natural born American. This issue must be resolved, there is no question about it. Let’s get with it folks. This all seems surreal. Nothing like this fraud has ever been attempted before in the history of this Country. Who else knows what information are in those sealed documents and aided and abetted Obama in this fraud? Who were the people who was suppose to have vetted Obama? Here is this Man is taking up residence in the White House and being in control of everything including our nuclear weapons and no one has seen any documented proof of who this person really is or where he came from. He has also embarked on the largest spending program ever seen in this country which most financial experts agree will provide very little actual stimulus to you or me, the average American citizen. I don’t believe that the Attorney General will appoint a special Prosecutor to investigate these charges. What is the next legal step? The Supreme Court refuses to hear any of the cases that have been brought against Obama. It seems that may be why Obama had that closed meeting with the Court. He probably told the Justices something along the lines of “I’m not eligible, but if you take a case and rule against me there will be rioting in the streets. At which time I will be forced to call for Martial Law and that will probably lead to Revolution. If you leave well enough alone, they will eventually give up or I will have them shut up”. Either one of these scenarios will surely destroy us, So what happens now? I will re-iterate this, I hope he can and will just show us bona-fide proof that he is an American citizen. Because as I just stated we will have either revolution or at least rioting in every major city of this country. If he does prove his eligibility I will be one of the first to shout this out from the rooftops! I will immediately publish both an apology and retraction of any and all articles which I have published doubting his American Citizenship. But at the rate Barak is trying to hide his personal information, the amount of money he is spending to keep it hidden is enough to cause ANY sane and prudent man to question what he is doing. Here is where I buy my Bullion, get one free gram of Gold just for opening an account! Catch the New Bull! – Buy Gold Online – Get 1 gram free just for opening account– just click here and then again on the Gold Bar!, no minimums – Buy Safely, quickly, and at low prices, guaranteed! – Bullion Vault.com More Military Officers Demand Eligibility Proof — World Net Daily By Bob Unruh of World Net Daily Plaintiff: ‘In the worst case … it’s going to be revolution in the streets’ Military officers from the U.S. Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines are working with California attorney Orly Taitz and her Defend Our Freedoms Foundation, citing a legal right established in British common law nearly 800 years ago and recognized by the U.S. Founding Fathers to demand documentation that may prove – or disprove – Barack Obama’s eligibility to be president. Taitz told WND today she has mailed to U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder a request that he “relate Quo Warranto on Barack Hussein Obama II to test his title to president before the Supreme Court.” The lengthy legal phrase essentially means an explanation is being demanded for what authority Obama is using to act as president. An online constitutional resource says Quo Warranto “affords the only judicial remedy for violations of the Constitution by public officials and agents.” Requesting the action are Maj. Gen. Carroll Childers; Lt. Col. Dr. David Earl-Graef; police officer Clinton Grimes, formerly of the U.S. Navy; Lt. Scott Easterling, now serving on active duty in Iraq; New Hampshire State Rep. Timothy Comerford; Tennessee State Rep. Frank Nicely and others. “As president-elect, Respondent Obama failed to submit prima facie evidence of his qualifications before January 20, 2009. Election officers failed to challenge, validate or evaluate his qualifications. Relators submit that as president elect, Respondent Obama failed [tO] qualify per U.S. CONST. Amend. XX [paragraph] 3,” the document said. John Eidsmoe, an expert on the U.S. Constitution now working with the Foundation on Moral Law, an organization founded by former Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore after he was removed from office for formally recognizing the Ten Commandments’ influence in the U.S., said the demand is a legitimate course of action. “She basically is asking, ‘By what authority’ is Obama president,” he told WND. “In other words, ‘I want you to tell me by what authority. I don’t really think you should hold the office.’ “She probably has some very good arguments to make,” Eidsmoe said. The letter, dispatched to Holder today, is the latest development in the quest by a multitude of lawyers and plaintiffs nationwide for documentation that Obama qualifies to be president under the requirements of the U.S. Constitution. Some of the lawsuits question whether he was actually born in Hawaii, as he insists. If he was born out of the country, Obama’s American mother, the suits contend, was too young at the time of his birth to confer American citizenship to her son under the law at the time. Several of the cases have involved emergency appeals to the U.S. Supreme Court in which justices have declined even to hear arguments. Among the cases turned down without a hearing at the high court have been petitions by Philip Berg, Cort Wrotnowski, Leo Donofrio and Taitz. Taitz’ plaintiffs, some of whom potentially face life-or-death situations in defense of the U.S. Constitution on a daily basis, note that information on Quo Warranto against a federal officer normally is related to the attorney general. But since Holder is an Obama friend and appointee, they are asking for the appointment of a special prosecutor to help in presenting documentation to the Supreme Court. “This information on Quo Warranto includes action between the United States ex rel. and the State of Hawaii over original birth records of Barack H. Obama II being withheld per Hawaii’s privacy laws. Hawaii’s action obstructs the constitutional duties of election officers to validate or evaluate President Elect Obama qualifications to become President under U.S. CONST. art. II § 1, and amend. XX § 3,” the document said. Eidsmoe said it’s clear that Obama has something in the documentation of his history, including his birth certificate, college records and other documents, “he does not want the public to know. ” What else could be the reason for his hiring law firms across the nation to fight any request for information as basic as his Occidental College records from the early 1980s, he asked. A separate lawsuit has sought the documents to find out whether they indicate Obama, possibly under the name Barry Soetero, attended the college on aid for foreign students. Obama’s critics warn of the impending constitutional crisis should it be discovered Obama is ineligible and the resulting chaos of trying to figure out what, if any, of his executive branch orders, should be valid. According to the online Constitution.org resource: “The common law writ of quo warranto has been suppressed at the federal level in the United States, and deprecated at the state level, but remains a right under the Ninth Amendment which was understood and presumed by the Founders, and which affords the only judicial remedy for violations of the Constitution by public officials and agents.” Taitz told WND the “relators” include members of the Army, Air Force, Marines and Army and feature recipients of some of the highest honors the nation awards, including the Purple Heart. One is Harry Riley, a veteran military officer who spent part of his career in the Pentagon. Riley said the issue is basically over whether Americans will allow “the trashing” of their Constitution. “Myself, along with hundreds of thousands of other warriors, have fought for the U.S. Constitution. The whole issue is one of constitutional crisis, in my judgment. How can an individual become the commander-in-chief, or the president of the U.S., with questions regarding his constitutional qualifications?” he asked. “The whole idea is that America cannot allow an individual to serve as president who isn’t qualified. It destroys our Constitution. It’s the bedrock of our nation,” he said. “In the worst case, in the long run, if he continues [to fight revealing his documentation,] it’s going to be revolution in the streets,” he warned. “It’s simply a matter of producing a $12 birth certificate,” Riley said. “It’s just mindboggling to think an individual who’s been sworn in as the president of the United States would be so small and be such a hypocrite who would be unwilling to simply show a birth certificate,” Riley said. Taitz told WND she has assembled a list of about 100 names of people – so far – who are willing to be plaintiffs in such a demand. Childers told WND he’d be perfectly happy if Obama is legitimate, but the truth still matters. “I personally admire many things about him,” he said. “But if he’s not legitimate, if he’s allowed to violate the Constitution, what else are they going to violate? Take my guns, and my television, telephone? What’s the limit?” Taitz told WND she’s asking for the appointment of a special prosecutor, such as the role Archibald Cox played in investigating Watergate. According to author Chester Antieau in his “The Practice of Extraordinary Remedies,” Quo Warranto is one of the oldest rights in common law. “The earliest case on record appears in the 9th year of Richard I, 1198,” he wrote. “The statute of 9 Anne c. 20 in 1710 authorized a proper officer of a court, with leave of the court, to exhibit an information in the nature of quo warranto, at the ‘relation’ of any person desiring to prosecute the same – to be called the relator. Early American statutes were modeled after the Statute of Anne and, indeed, the statute has often been ruled to be part of the common law we inherited from England.” Antieau noted the Pennsylvania Supreme Court has ruled, “Quo warranto is addressed to preventing a continued exercise of authority unlawfully asserted, rather than to correct what has already been done. …” ts first recognize purpose, he said, is “to determine the title of persons claiming possession of public offices and to oust them if they are found to be usurpers.” Among those who are subject to its demands, under court precedent, are chief executives in other U.S. governmental positions, including governors and sheriffs. As WND has reported on several occasions, none of the so-called “evidence” of Obama’s constitutional eligibility produced thus far is beyond reasonable doubt nor as iron-clad as simply producing an authentic birth certificate, something Americans are required to do regularly but the president still refuses to do. As Jerome Corsi, WND senior staff writer, explained, “The main reason doubts persist regarding Obama’s birth certificate is this question: If an original Hawaii-doctor-generated and Hawaii-hospital-released Obama birth certificate exists, why wouldn’t the senator and his campaign simply order the document released and end the controversy? “That Obama has not ordered Hawaii officials to release the document,” Corsi writes, “leaves doubts as to whether an authentic Hawaii birth certificate exists for Obama.” Although Obama officials have told WND all such allegations are “garbage,” here is a partial listing and status update for some of the cases over Obama’s eligibility: Pennsylvania Democrat Philip Berg has three cases pending, including Berg vs. Obama in the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, a separate Berg vs. Obama which is under seal at the U.S. District Court level and Hollister vs. Soetoro a/k/a Obama, brought on behalf of a retired military member who could be facing recall to active duty by Obama. Corsi had gone to both Kenya and Hawaii prior to the election to investigate issues surrounding Obama’s birth. But his research and discoveries only raised more questions, the biggest being why, if there exists documentation of Obama’s eligibility, hasn’t it been released to quell the rumors. Instead, a series of law firms have been hired on Obama’s behalf around the nation to prevent any public access to his birth certificate, passport records, college records and other documents. My Note: Mr. Obama, “Why Can’t You Just Provide Us With Your Birth Certificate?” – jschulmansr Catch the New Bull! – Buy Gold Online – Get 1 gram free just for opening account– just click here and then again on the Gold Bar!, no minimums – Buy Safely, quickly, and at low prices, guaranteed! – Bullion Vault.com	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line559
__label__wiki	0.906026	0.906026	Kansas two-sport standout Gil Reich dies LAWRENCE, Kan. – Former Kansas football All-American and men’s basketball standout Gil Reich died April 22, in Barrington, Illinois. Reich was 87 years old. A native of Steelton, Pennsylvania, Reich came to KU after transferring from the United States Military Academy in 1952. He excelled at cornerback, quarterback and punt returner for head coach J.V. Sikes, leading the Jayhawks to a 7-3 record in 1952. Reich earned All-American honors from multiple media outlets, including Associated Press and the Football Writers Association of America. Additionally, he was an All-Big Seven First Team selection as a defensive back. Reich accounted for 428 yards in total offense that season, splitting quarterback duties with Jerry Robertson, and threw five touchdowns passes. He averaged 17.2 yards on 19 punt returns, and also served as the Jayhawks’ punter and kicked extra points. Under head coach Phog Allen, the 6-foot Reich was a starter on the 1952-53 NCAA runner-up team that posted a 19-6 record, won the Big Seven regular season title and ended the year ranked No. 3 by the Associated Press. Reich averaged 8.0 points his lone season at KU. Reich was a second-round NFL Draft pick of the Green Bay Packers in 1953, and the Boston Celtics selected him with the 32nd overall pick of the NBA Draft that same year. From his obituary, Reich graduated from KU with a civil engineering degree in 1954 and followed that with two years of active duty as a commissioned officer in the United States Air Force in Lake Charles, Louisiana. He was a retired executive vice president of the Equitable Life Assurance Society, now known as AXA Equitable, with 35 years of service in Chicago, Milwaukee and New York. He and his wife, Kay, lived 14 years in Skidway Island, Savannah, Georgia, before moving to Barrington. Chairman of the University of Kansas Alumni Association in 2001-02 and member of the Kansas Athletics K Club, Reich has been inducted into many hall of fames, including the Kansas Athletics Hall of Fame and the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame.	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line567
__label__wiki	0.544161	0.544161	Top Times (PDF) Match Challenge All-Time Top-Five (PDF) Coach Clark Campbell Xu wins, Jayhawks break records on day three of championship WATCH ($) AUSTIN, Texas – After having 24 swimmers and divers advance into Thursday evening’s final events, the Kansas swimming and diving team scored a jaw-dropping 225 points on the day and hold onto second place at the 2019 Big 12 Championship held inside the Lee and Joe Jamail Texas Swimming Center. Thursday’s performances increased the Jayhawks’ second-place total to 466.50 points thanks to two Kansas school records and a first-place finish heading into the final day of the Big 12 Championship. Senior Vicky Xu highlighted the day when she became the first-ever Kansas Big 12 Diving Champion with a first-place finish on the three-meter board. Xu finished with a score of 380.00 and became the first individual conference champion for the Jayhawks since 2014 when Chelsie Miller won the 400-yard individual medley. In addition to Xu’s performance, Kansas saw two new school records in both the 100-yard breaststroke and the 200-yard freestyle relay, respectively. In Thursday morning’s preliminary swim, junior Haley Downey broke her own record set a year ago in the 100-yard breaststroke (1:01.43) when she swam a time of 1:01.31. That performance fed into the evening where Downey broke that record again (1:00.51) to finish second in the event and sparked the Jayhawks to close the meet breaking a 10-year old record in the 200-yard freestyle relay, swimming a time of 1:31.38 – edging the previous mark by just one, one-hundredth of a second (1:31.39). The evening’s final events started with the 100-yard butterfly when the Jayhawks had two swimmers on the blocks in the ‘A’ final with a personal-best swim from freshman Kaitlyn Witt of 54.52. The 400-yard individual medley came next with an ‘A’ and ‘B’ final swim for the Jayhawks. Sophomore Ellie Flanagan swam and won the ‘B’ final with a time of 4:22.24, a 3.15 second time drop form her preliminary time earlier that day (4:25.39). Freshman Paige Riekhof represented the Jayhawks in the ‘A’ final event with a time of 4:21.21. Junior Jenny Nusbaum swam a 1:46.70 in the 200-yard freestyle ‘A’ final to finish third. Following Nusbaum in the ‘A’ final was freshman Claire Campbell with a personal-best swim (1:48.57) in and Lauryn Parrish(1:49.51) in seventh. Sophomore Crissie Blomquist received a fifth-place finish in the ‘B’ final with a personal-best time of 1:50.64, and freshman Franki Petrosino dropped time from the morning and finished in 1:51.33. Downey broke the Kansas school record for the second time on Thursday with a new time of 1:00.51 and earned a silver medal in the 100-yard breaststroke ‘A’ final. Steward swam a lifetime-best and NCAA ‘B’ cut time with a mark of 1:01.58. Witt (1:03.93) and Flanagan (1:06.45) swam in the ‘B’ final for the Jayhawks. The Big 12 Championship continues Saturday morning, March 2 at 10 a.m. with the preliminary rounds, and continues with finals competition at 6 p.m. Senior Haley Bishop touched the wall at 54.90 in the 100-yard butterfly ‘A’ final. Freshman Kaitlyn Witt finished the 100-yard butterfly ‘A’ final in seventh place with a time of 54.52. Freshman Paige Riekhof swam a 4:21.21 in the 400-yard individual medley ‘A’ final. Junior Jenny Nusbaum finished third with a time of 1:46.70 in the ‘A’ final of the 200-yard freestyle. Sophomore Lauryn Parrish stood on the podium for her 200-yard freestyle ‘A’ final time of 1:49.51. Freshman Claire Campbell swam a personal-best time of 1:48.57 in the 200-yard freestyle ‘A’ final. After breaking the school record in the morning, junior Haley Downey swam another record time of 1:00.51 in the 100-yard breaststroke in the ‘A’ final. Freshman Kate Stewrad touched the wall in the 100-yard breaststroke ‘A’ final at 1:01.58. Junior Elizabeth Amato-Hanner competed in the 100-yard backstroke ‘A’ final with a finishing lifetime-best time of 53.77. Sophomore Manon Manning touched the wall at 53.96 in the 100-yard backstroke ‘A’ final. Freshman Dewi Blose swam in the 100-yard backstroke ‘A’ final for a time of 55.35. Senior Vicky Xu dove her way into first-place with a score of 380.00 in the three-meter diving event. The 200-yard freestyle ‘A’ squad consisting of Bishop, Nusbaum, Sieperda, and junior Carly Straight swam a Kansas school record time of 1:31.38. Head coach Clark Campbell Thoughts on the Friday competitions: “What a crazy good night. We set it up with a really solid morning, it was probably our weakest session this morning out of all of the sessions that we have had so far. But we came out today and just put the hammer down. It was just good from the get-go. We started off really well with the 100-yard butterfly and then just kept it rolling with really good momentum. It seemed like as the meet got going we were finding our speed, and I think that as the meet has rolled on the girls have gotten more confident and faster and really stepping up their level. So it was a special night.” This Friday compared to other years: “A few years ago Chelsie Miller won the 400-yard individual medley and she was our last conference champion since Vicky (Xu) and you will never forget that night, that was a special night as well, good momentum. But, as far as top to bottom in every single swim and every single dive this has been the best Friday we have ever had.” @kuswimdive /kuswimdive	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line568
__label__wiki	0.556277	0.556277	AS DUBAI GETS BUILT April 9, 2013 January 30, 2015 \| ajsalvador During our 13 month stay in Dubai we had the opportunity to witness and live in a highly contrasting city. A city usually described as fake or uncharacteristic of its region, has proven us to be a complex and fascinating city. Dubai’s construction boom at the turn of the 21st century came to notice with its opulent and ambitious constructions with a variety of architectural styles. Its tall and impressive skyline is perhaps more successful collectively than each project individually. There is no hierarchy in the design of the buildings or a relation to any sort of context. Burj Khalifa, currently the tallest building in the world, has imposed itself over the rest of the city. Dubai lacks hierarchy not only vertically but even more horizontally. The city has been mostly developed by private companies, and its unplanned growth is reflected in its lack of a coherent urban layout. The famous Palm Jumeirah, a 5.72 sq km development in the sea is an example of an ambitious yet ambiguous project that captivates Dubai’s architectural statement. When the skyscrapers meet the ground and immediately meet the 2 story pre-boom villas is where these fascinating contrasts start to occur. On one side of the street you can find storefronts of ethnic restaurants, next to a high-end retail shop, across from an oversized villa and behind a 60 story building. Accidentally and unplanned is in these spaces where Dubai shows its multicultural character where a variety of occupants interact with each other and where different building scales meet. Skycrapers and villas Dubai and the UAE’s population is largely made up of foreigners. According to The Government of Dubai, the local Emiratis make up only 15% of the Emirate of Dubai’s population. In the construction business, foreigners play a key role both in the managerial positions as well as in the labor workforce. Workers come mostly from the Indian sub-continent and Southeast Asia. These workers are involved in all types of construction projects. Recruiting agencies and labor supply companies are responsible for relocating these workers to the UAE. The impact that the UAE and other gulf states have in the economy of the countries where these workers come form is significant. The remittances sent by these workers are an active source of income for their families and to the economy of the country. Therefore, the construction boom and economy of Dubai goes beyond the boundaries of the UAE. These labor force being mostly made up of a male population has also a direct impact on the demographics of Dubai. According to The Government of Dubai, the total population of Dubai is around 2 million inhabitants, where approximately 1.5 million are male and 500,000 are female. An interactive map of Dubai found at the Government of Dubai website, breaks down the demographical statistics of each neighborhood. In the areas predominantly inhabited by workers, such as Al Quoz, the male population can reach up to 99%. Demographic Map of Dubai: http://bit.ly/13NnBmC Without getting into the discussion of the working conditions that these workers face, we are interested in exploring and analyzing Dubai in the context of the region and the area that it impacts; to understand what happens in the rest of the world as Dubai gets built. This model is very similar in other gulf countries, such as Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Kuwait, which are also actively building. European and American, architecture, engineering, and construction companies are involved in large-scale developments which employ a foreign labor force just as in the UAE. Government projects such as the 3.5 sq km King Abdullah Financial Center in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia is currently employing thousands of workers, heavily relying on a foreign workforce. Contractors are assigned by the government a quantity of visas depending on the scale of the project. These visas are sometimes restricted with a quota or limit of the nationalities that need to be employed. With the state of the economy and construction in Europe and the United States, the Middle East also become influential in the European construction market, as individuals and companies search in this area for projects and opportunities. Dubai, has achieved more than just facades and ambitious projects. It has become an extremely influential city with significant impact in other regions outside the Gulf. Its infrastructure and its Arabian sense for hospitality, has paid-off by making Dubai a destination that yearly hosts events that range from sport events to professional congresses or simply an attractive tourism destination. All these different layers makes Dubai a fascinating and complex city. Architecturally it might look banal and fake but you don’t need to look too deep to discover and experience the richness of its contrasts. Multicultural crowd at Jebel Ali Racecourse Posted in Texts < A FLUVIAL ECOLOGY – THE FUTURE OF DUBAI CANDIDATE CITY >	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line569
__label__cc	0.512647	0.487353	Justia › US Law › Case Law › Oklahoma Case Law › Oklahoma Court of Civil Appeals Decisions › 2009 › ANDRES v. OKLAHOMA FARM BUREAU MUTUAL INSURANCE CO. ANDRES v. OKLAHOMA FARM BUREAU MUTUAL INSURANCE CO. 2009 OK CIV APP 97 Case Number: 106748 Decided: 08/31/2009 Mandate Issued: 12/04/2009 THE COURT OF CIVIL APPEALS OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA, DIVISION IV JENNIFER ANDRES, an individual, and JOSE ANDRES, an individual, Plaintiffs/Appellants, OKLAHOMA FARM BUREAU MUTUAL INSURANCE COMPANY, a Domestic For Profit Business Corporation, Defendant/Appellee. APPEAL FROM THE DISTRICT COURT OF TULSA COUNTY, OKLAHOMA HONORABLE DAMON CANTRELL, TRIAL JUDGE AFFIRMED IN PART, REVERSED IN PART, AND REMANDED WITH DIRECTIONS Donald E. Smolen, II, Daniel E. Smolen, Mark L. Miller, SMOLEN & SMOLEN PLLC, Tulsa, Oklahoma, for Plaintiffs/Appellants Stephen M. Coates, WILSON, CAIN & ACQUAVIVA, Tulsa, Oklahoma, for Defendant/Appellee DOUG GABBARD II, PRESIDING JUDGE: ¶1 In this action for breach of contract and breach of good faith against their insurance company, Plaintiffs, Jennifer Andres and Jose Andres, appeal a summary judgment granted in favor of Defendant, Oklahoma Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Company (OFB). We affirm in part, reverse in part, and remand with directions. ¶2 On May 16, 2007, sewage water from the City of Tulsa's main sewer line backed up and allegedly caused extensive and permanent damage to Plaintiffs' home in Tulsa. Plaintiffs contacted their insurance company, OFB, and it promptly investigated the matter. On May 24, OFB denied the claim on the grounds that the policy in question specifically excluded property damage caused by "water which backs up through sewers or drains." ¶3 Plaintiffs then filed the present action, alleging that the claim was covered by the policy, that OFB breached its contract, and that it also breached its duty to deal fairly and in good faith with them. OFB answered and later filed a motion for sanctions, alleging that Plaintiffs' lawsuit had no merit. It also filed a motion for summary judgment, alleging similar grounds. Plaintiffs requested that the matter be stayed pending additional discovery. ¶4 The trial court refused to stay the matter, and, following a hearing, granted summary judgment in favor of OFB. Plaintiffs appeal. ¶5 Summary judgment may only be granted when there is no substantial controversy as to any material fact, and one of the parties is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Jordan v. Jordan, 2006 OK 88, ¶ 17, 151 P.3d 117, 121. We review a grant of summary judgment de novo, that is, without deference to the trial court's ruling. Young v. Macy, 2001 OK 4, ¶ 9, 21 P.3d 44, 47. ¶6 Resolution of the present case involves, in part, the interpretation of an insurance contract. The interpretation of an insurance contract, and whether it is ambiguous, are determined by the court as a question of law. Dodson v. St. Paul Ins. Co., 1991 OK 24, ¶ 12, 812 P.2d 372, 376. We also review questions of law de novo. Weeks v. Cessna Aircraft Co., 1994 OK CIV APP 171, ¶ 5, 895 P.2d 731, 733 (approved for publication by the Oklahoma Supreme Court). ¶7 When addressing a dispute concerning the language of an insurance policy, a court must first determine as a matter of law whether the policy language at issue is ambiguous. Wynn v. Avemco Ins. Co., 1998 OK 75, ¶ 17, 963 P.2d 572, 575. Policy language is ambiguous if it is reasonably susceptible to more than one meaning on its face. Dodson v. St. Paul Ins. Co. at ¶ 12, 812 P.2d at 376-77; Littlefield v. State Farm Fire and Cas. Co., 1993 OK 102, ¶ 7, 857 P.2d 65, 69. If the insurance contract contains no ambiguity, a court must construe its language in accordance with the plain, ordinary meaning of its terms. Haworth v Jantzen, 2006 OK 35, ¶ 17, 172 P.3d 193, 197. However, where an ambiguity is found in the policy language, or where the exclusions are obscure or technical or are hidden in complex policy language, a court must resolve the ambiguity in a manner that conforms the policy to the parties "reasonable expectations." Max True Plastering Co. v. U.S. Fid. and Guar. Co., 1996 OK 28, 912 P.2d 861. In other words, a policy or provision thereof will be construed, not by what the drafter necessarily intended, but by what a reasonable person in the position of the insured would have understood the term or policy to mean. American Econ. Ins. Co. v. Bogdahn, 2004 OK 9, ¶ 9, 89 P.3d 1051, 1054. This is called the doctrine of reasonable expectations. ¶8 The doctrine of reasonable expectations was first adopted by the Oklahoma Supreme Court in the Max True Plastering case. It is designed to protect both the insured from the potential traps of poorly drafted policy language, and to protect the insurer from loose or ill-considered judicial interpretation when policy language is clear. It is also entirely consistent with long-recognized Oklahoma rules for interpreting insurance policies and other contracts of adhesion, including: 1) ambiguities are construed most strongly against the insurer; 2) in cases of doubt, words of inclusion are liberally applied in favor of the insured and words of exclusion are strictly construed against the insurer; 3) an interpretation which makes a contract fair and reasonable is selected over that which yields a harsh or unreasonable result; 4) insurance contracts are construed to give effect to the parties' intentions; 5) the scope of an agreement is not determined in a vacuum, but instead with reference to extrinsic circumstances; and 6) words are given effect according to their ordinary or popular meaning. Max True Plastering at ¶ 8, 912 P.2d at 865. ¶9 In the present case, Plaintiffs first assert that the damage caused by the sewage backup is clearly covered by the policy because the plain, ordinary meaning of the exclusion relied upon by OFB does not apply to raw sewage, but only to "water." The pertinent policy term states: EXCLUSIONS - LOSSES WE DO NOT COVER Under Dwelling, Other Structures and Personal Property Coverages, we do not cover loss resulting directly or indirectly from: 3. water damage meaning: b. water which backs up through sewers or drains . . .Plaintiffs argue that "sewage" is not the same as "water," and, if OFB intended to cover raw sewage, it should have done so using clear and unambiguous language in its policy. See Chicago, R.I. & P.R. Co. v. Aetna Ins. Co., 308 P.2d 119 (Kan. 1957). ¶10 No Oklahoma cases have construed a similar policy term. However, some courts, including a Florida appellate court in Florida Farm Bureau Insurance Co. v. Birge, 659 So. 2d 310 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 1994), have reached a conclusion consistent with Plaintiffs' argument. Nevertheless, we believe the better rule is that a reasonable person would expect water backing up, or discharging through, their sewer or plumbing system to contain raw sewage. Thus, we agree with OFB that this exclusion covered raw sewage. ¶11 Plaintiffs next assert that the insurance policy contained inconsistent and ambiguous terms. Plaintiffs note that under "Perils We Insure Against," the insurance policy specifically covered: 14. Accidental Discharge or Overflow of Water or Steam from within a plumbing . . . system[.] Plaintiffs assert that a sewer line is part of the plumbing system of a house, and, therefore, the policy both included and excluded coverage for the accidental discharge or overflow of water containing sewage. We agree. ¶12 In World Fire & Marine Insurance Co. v. Carolina Mills Distributing Co., 169 F.2d 826, 829 (8th Cir. 1948), the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals construed an insurance policy which contained insuring and exclusion clauses almost identical to those found in this case. The Court concluded: If the excepting clause be construed as applying to the state of facts in this case, as appellant [Insurer] contends, an irreconcilable conflict must exist between its meaning and the insuring clause, with the result that the contract must be found to be ambiguous. In that event, the contract will be construed favorable to the insured who did not prepare it. The application of the latter rule of construction would lead to striking down the excepting clause and an affirmance of the judgment. Other cases have reached similar results in reviewing similar policy terms. See King v. Travelers Ins. Co., 505 P.2d 1226 (N.M. 1973); Fine v. Underwriters of Lloyd's London, 239 F.2d 362 (3rd Cir. 1956); Cantanucci v. Reliance Ins. Co., 349 N.Y.S.2d 187 (N.Y.App. Div. 1973). ¶13 Although OFB has cited cases to the contrary, we are not persuaded by them. For example, in Gammons v. Tennessee Farmers Mutual Insurance Co., 1986 WL 13039 (Tenn. App.), the Tennessee Court of Appeals held that accidental discharge of water from within the plumbing system "was not the cause of the damage to the Gammons' house because the water and sewer that overflowed into their home was not from within the system but rather from the city's sewer lines." We find it unlikely that a court could conclusively identify the origin of sewage. A homeowner typically owns that portion of the sewer line across his or her own property, and, therefore, any sewage which discharges into the home might well come from within the homeowner's own system. We do not believe such a distinction can be drawn by the policy language, applied in practice, or interpreted by any reasonable insured person in this manner. ¶14 A reasonable person in the position of the insured would have understood the clause providing coverage for "Accidental Discharge or Overflow of Water or Steam from within a plumbing . . . system" as including raw sewage, and would have understood the clause excluding "water which backs up through sewers or drains" as excluding raw sewage. Because the policy contained these conflicting provisions, it is ambiguous. Accordingly, we construe this ambiguity against OFB and in favor of Plaintiffs, and we conclude that the policy provided Plaintiffs coverage for damage caused by the overflow of raw sewage into their home. Plaintiffs were entitled to summary judgment as a matter of law on their claim for breach of contract. ¶15 Our finding that Plaintiffs' loss was covered by OFB's policy does not, however, end our inquiry. While OFB breached its contract with Plaintiffs, additional facts must exist to support a claim that OFB breached its duty of dealing with Plaintiffs fairly and in good faith. Here, OFB asserts that the undisputed facts show that Plaintiffs cannot prove such a claim. ¶16 In order to prove a claim of breach of an insurer's duty of dealing fairly and in good faith, a plaintiff must prove the following elements: 1) the insurer was required under the insurance policy to pay the insured's claim; 2) the insurer's refusal to pay the claim in full was unreasonable under the circumstances because either: a) it had no reasonable basis for the refusal, b) it did not perform a proper investigation of the claim, or c) it did not evaluate the results of the investigation properly; 3) the insurer did not deal fairly and in good faith with the insured; and 4) the insurer's violation of its duty of good faith and fair dealing was the direct cause of the injury sustained by the insured. See Oklahoma Uniform Jury Instructions-Civil (2d) No. 22.2. ¶17 In the present case, we have already determined that OFB was required under its insurance policy to pay Plaintiffs' claim. However, the second element of a claim for breach of an insurer's duty of dealing fairly and in good faith requires proof that the insurer's refusal was unreasonable. The Oklahoma Supreme Court has held that an insurer's refusal to pay is not unreasonable or in bad faith when there is a legitimate dispute concerning coverage or when there is no conclusive precedent on the issue presented.1 Christian v. Am. Home Assur. Co., 1978 OK 141, 577 P.2d 899; Claborn v. Washington Nat'l Ins. Co., 1996 OK 8, ¶ 14, 910 P.2d 1046, 1051; Skinner v. John Deere Ins. Co., 2000 OK 18, ¶ 17, 998 P.2d 1219, 1223; Duensing v. State Farm Fire and Cas. Co., 2006 OK CIV APP 15, ¶ 40, 131 P.3d 127, 138. ¶18 Here, OFB denied the claim on the grounds that the claim was not covered by the policy; it relied upon decisions from nine other jurisdictions which supported its theory; its legal theory was plausible; and there was no Oklahoma precedent. Nothing in the appellate record suggests that OFB lacked a good-faith basis for refusing to pay Plaintiffs' claim. Thus, we conclude as a matter of law that OFB had a reasonable legal basis for refusing to pay the claim, and it is not liable for breach of the duty of good faith and fair dealing. The trial court properly entered summary judgment on this claim. ¶19 On Plaintiffs' claim for breach of OFB's duty of good faith and fair dealing, the summary judgment in favor of OFB is affirmed. However, on Plaintiffs' claim for breach of contract, the summary judgment is reversed and this cause is remanded with directions that the trial court enter summary judgment in favor of Plaintiffs and set the matter for trial on the issues of damages, attorney fees, and costs. ¶20 AFFIRMED IN PART, REVERSED IN PART, AND REMANDED WITH DIRECTIONS. RAPP, J., and FISCHER, J., concur. 1 We note that this rule has been adopted by almost every state and federal jurisdiction that has considered the issue.	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line570
__label__cc	0.591811	0.408189	Home Personal Injury Maryland Lonaconing Lonaconing Personal Injury Lawyers Donald Scott Goldbloom Grantsville, MD Personal Injury Lawyer with 42 years of experience (301) 895-5240 12590 National Pike Grantsville, MD 21536 Personal Injury, Bankruptcy, Criminal Defense and DUI & DWI Donald S. Goldbloom has been practicing law in the Grantsville area since 1996. Formerly, he worked as an attorney in both Baltimore and Cumberland, Maryland. A native of Baltimore, Donald chose to move to western Maryland , appreciating the natural beauty of the mountains and the rich culture of the local area. Donald earned his bachelor's degree from the University of Virginia in 1973, majoring in American Government, and his law degree from the University of Baltimore in 1976. In 1982 Donald moved to Cumberland, Maryland, gaining experience in many facets of the law as a general practitioner. For a... Robert Alderson Cumberland, MD Personal Injury Attorney with 37 years of experience (301) 724-3424 100 South Liberty Street Cumberland, MD 21502 Personal Injury, Criminal Defense, Divorce and Family Devin Shamir Luqman Frederick, MD Personal Injury Attorney with 7 years of experience (301) 900-8680 129 West Patrick Street Frederick, MD 21701 Personal Injury, Criminal Defense, DUI & DWI and Immigration Devin Luqman is a native of Frederick, Maryland. He brings discipline, integrity, problem-solving, and creative thinking from past cases to his role as managing partner, focusing his practice on criminal law, immigration, and personal injury cases. After graduating from the University of Baltimore School of Law and becoming licensed to practice law in the state of Maryland, Mr. Luqman served as an Assistant Public Defender in Maryland, receiving dozens of favorable trial verdicts before both judge and jury. 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Patrick Street Free ConsultationPersonal Injury, Bankruptcy and DUI & DWI Attorney with sophisticated practice including Bankruptcy, Criminal and Civil Litigation, Corporate and Business Law, Personal Injury, Fraud, Real Estate Law and Litigation, Wills and Trusts and Administrative Law. Counsel of record in more than 2300 bankruptcy cases in Maryland and the District of Columbia. Supervisory counsel in hundreds or thousands more. Civil and criminal/traffic litigation in State and federal courts in Maryland and the District of Columbia. *General civil practice including business organization and corporate, general business, contracts, landlord tenant, wills, etc. Milliondollaradvocates.com superlawyers.com thenationaltriallawyers.com (Top 100) National Academy for Bankruptcy Attorneys (Top 10 in... Richard Lundin Personal Injury and Family Richard S. Lundin's dream of becoming a Washington D.C lawyer started far from the nation's capital, working part-time as a litigation assistant in Phoenix Arizona. It was at Arizona State that Rick graduated with a degree in finance, and later George Washington University where he earned his Juris Doctor. It was also during this time that he worked for federal judge, the Honorable Charles R. Richey, who left a strong impression on Rick's early legal career. It was 1994 when Rick was hired by James Nickelsporn, who later invited him to be his law partner, forming Nickelsporn &... Imad Soubra Free ConsultationPersonal Injury, Bankruptcy, Criminal Defense and Divorce The George Washington University Law School and Thomas M. Cooley Law School, Lansing, Michigan Soubra Law Firm is founded on the principals of providing effective and affordable legal representation to their clients. The Firm specializes in all aspects of Family Law including divorce, custody and visitation, child abuse situations, child and spousal support determination, prenuptial agreements, and adoption. The practice areas also include Criminal Defense, DWI/DUI, Workers' Compensation, and Car Crashes. My name is Imad Soubra, and I am the principal of Soubra Law Firm. I offer my clients individual and personal attention when I handle their cases. I make myself available to my clients to offer them the affordable and efficient legal service... John R. Salvatore Hagerstown, MD Personal Injury Attorney with 49 years of experience Personal Injury, Criminal Defense, DUI & DWI and Estate Planning John Salvatore is a veteran attorney who has been practicing since 1972. A graduate of the University of Baltimore School of Law, he is known for and specializes in criminal defense cases, he also handles business law, personal injury, civil litigation and a variety of other types of cases. He was formerly a police officer in Greenbelt, Maryland and an appointed State’s Attorney in Washington County. He practiced law with various firms in the Hagerstown area until establishing his own firm in 1992. He has served as the President of the Washington County Bar Association, is... D. Bruce Poole JD (301) 790-3600 29 W Franklin St Free ConsultationPersonal Injury Washington and Lee University School of Law Bruce Poole, Esq. has been negotiating deals and trying cases for over 35 years. He has been named by The National Trial Lawyers to the Top 100 Civil Trial Attorneys’ List and, in 2017, received a lifetime achievement membership in America's Top 100 Attorneys. He is also a member of the Million Dollar Advocates Forum and the Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forum, honorary organizations for the top trial lawyers in America, as well as the Academy of Truck Accident Attorneys, National Trial Lawyers: Top 10 Trucking Trial Lawyers Association, the American Association for Justice, the American Association for Justice's Trucking... Stewart Andrew Sutton Germantown, MD Personal Injury Attorney with 33 years of experience 8 Executive Park Court Free ConsultationPersonal Injury, Business, Divorce and Legal Malpractice University of California - Los Angeles I’m Stewart A. Sutton and I have been practicing law in Maryland, the District of Columbia, and California for over 30 years. I am a general practitioner, who helps individuals, families, employees, entrepreneurs, and small businesses solve their ordinary and sometimes extraordinary legal problems. My areas of practice include: family law; business law; personal injury; civil rights; wills and trusts; legal malpractice, real estate litigation, and appeals. I limit my practice to representing no more than a dozen litigation clients at a time. My philosophy is to provide the highest quality legal representation to a small number... John Robert Discavage (301) 668-1341 151 W. Patrick St. Attorney John R. Discavage earned his Bachelor of Sciences and Bachelor of Arts degrees in 1996 from the University of Dayton. Before attending law school, Mr. Discavage worked for Judge Walter Rice in the Federal District Court of Ohio and the Federal Public Defender’s Office in Dayton, Ohio. He then went to the University of Dayton School of Law, where he received his Juris Doctorate degree. After graduating, Mr. Discavage moved back to Maryland and began prosecuting cases for the Frederick County State’s Attorney’s Office. Attorney Discavage has participated in seminars and advocacy courses throughout the state of Maryland, and... Lawrence E. Heffner Jr. (301) 695-2977 153 W. Patrick St., Ste. D Free ConsultationPersonal Injury, Bankruptcy, Estate Planning and Real Estate Philip Santa Maria (301) 874-1520 8345 Layton Court Personal Injury and Products Liability Arthur Crum Personal Injury and Workers' Comp Arthur Crum concentrates his civil litigation practice on representing individuals who have been injured in vehicle accidents including automobile, motorcycle and commercial truck accidents. Thomas J. Dolina (301) 739-1013 82 W. Washington Street Personal Injury, Employment, Medical Malpractice and Workers' Comp Mr. Dolina practices in business and employment law, personal injury, worker’s compensation, and professional malpractice litigation. He represents clients in transactional matters, and has an active trial practice. He has substantial trial experience before the Maryland District and Circuit Courts and the Federal District Courts. Mr. Dolina is a member of the bar for Maryland, West Virginia, Colorado, the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland, and the U.S. Courts of Appeals for the District of Columbia and the Fourth Circuit. With significant experience in alternative dispute resolution, Mr. Dolina has worked with the American Arbitration Association, the... Carl David Somerlock (301) 494-8208 259 W Patrick St Personal Injury, Criminal Defense, DUI & DWI and Family Richard Bricken Free ConsultationPersonal Injury, Criminal Defense, DUI & DWI and Traffic Tickets Richard P. Bricken, P.A. is a highly respected law firm with extensive knowledge and experience. Mr. Bricken is a competent and experienced trial attorney who will work tenaciously to advocate for, or to defend, your rights in court. We apply a comprehensive approach to trial strategy with aggressive representation to ensure that you achieve a positive outcome. He is nationally recognized in the Martindale-Hubbell Bar Register of Preeminent Lawyers as AV Preeminent Peer Review Rated by Martindale-Hubbell, a testament to our skill and ability in helping you reach your goals. We are devoted to providing results in every case we... Matthew J Engler Frederick, MD Personal Injury Lawyer with 8 years of experience (301) 740-3322 30 West Patrick Street Free ConsultationPersonal Injury, Medical Malpractice and Workers' Comp Bradley Jay Reed Hagerstown, MD Personal Injury Lawyer (301) 460-6000 1936 Dual Hwy David Gormley Waldorf, MD Personal Injury Lawyer with 28 years of experience (301) 645-4100 11705 Berry Road Suite 202 Waldorf, MD 20603 Free ConsultationPersonal Injury, Bankruptcy, Estate Planning and Probate Dave Gormley is a Partner and the head of our Bankruptcy and Real Estate departments. He has been handling bankruptcy and foreclosure cases for over 10 years. There isn’t much related to bankruptcy or foreclosure he has not already seen. Dave is admitted to practice in Maryland and the Federal Courts, including the U.S. Bankruptcy Court and the U.S. Supreme Court. He lives near Annapolis with his family. Silver Spring, MD Personal Injury Lawyer with 13 years of experience (410) 244-5068 8403 Colesville Road Free ConsultationPersonal Injury, Bankruptcy, Criminal Defense and DUI & DWI Uzoma Obi Hyattsville, MD Personal Injury Lawyer with 22 years of experience (240) 676-4827 7411 Riggs Road, Suite 400 Hyattsville, MD 20783 Free ConsultationPersonal Injury and Business At LAW OFFICE OF UZOMA OBI, LLC, we are a new kind of law firm for a changing world. We are consistent, patient and professional, giving each new case the attention it deserves. In his role as the Principal Attorney, Uzoma draws on his diverse and broad experience to help clients across a number of practice areas with primary focus on personal injury, auto accidents, Workers Compensation, and business law. Uzoma earned his Law Degree from the University of Maryland School of Law. He is also licensed as a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and is also a member of the... Jobeth Rocky Bowers Baltimore, MD Personal Injury Lawyer with 6 years of experience (410) 885-6200 339 E 25th St Free ConsultationPersonal Injury, Criminal Defense, Insurance Claims and Medical Malpractice I run a client centered practice handling cases in personal injury (worker's compensation and auto accidents) and criminal defense (crimes, serious traffic offenses) I take pride in the results that I provide with my clients, as well as the ongoing communication I maintain with my clients in order to better prepare their cases and claims. Ronald V. Miller Jr. Baltimore, MD Personal Injury Lawyer with 25 years of experience (800) 553-8082 1 South St Free ConsultationPersonal Injury, Insurance Claims, Medical Malpractice and Products Liability Maryland personal injury trial lawyer. I am an experienced personal injury lawyer who represents individual victims in car accidents, product liability, birth injury, and other medical malpractice cases. I am listed in Best Lawyers in America under plaintiffs' personal injury litigation, have a 10.0 rating on Avvo and 10.0 rating on Justia, and have been included on the Maryland Super Lawyers list by Thomson Reuters. I am also a proud member of the Million Dollar Advocates Forum. Call today for a free consultation! Ellicott City, MD Personal Injury Lawyer with 14 years of experience (800) 470-7423 3697 Park Ave Ellicott City, MD 21043 Free ConsultationPersonal Injury, Criminal Defense, Medical Malpractice and Products Liability Eric Todd Kirk Baltimore, MD Personal Injury Attorney with 26 years of experience (410) 591-2835 1001 N. Calvert Free ConsultationPersonal Injury, Criminal Defense and Workers' Comp I am a Personal Injury Attorney, a Workers' Compensation Lawyer and a Criminal Defense Counselor. Over the course of 20 plus years, I have handled thousands of cases involving accidental injury including hundreds of car accident cases in which my clients have sustained serious personal injury, incurred huge medical bills and lost wages, and were caused to suffer from pain and endure mental anguish. I proudly handle cases throughout Maryland, focusing in Baltimore, Baltimore County, Towson, Essex, Dundalk, Middle River, Parkville, Owings Mills, Randalstown, Pikesville, Ellicot, Anne Arundel County, Glen Burnie, Annapolis, Howard County, or Columbia, Ellicot CIty,... Pawnee A. Davis Bethesda , MD Personal Injury Lawyer with 15 years of experience (844) 350-8343 4800 Hampden Lane Bethesda , MD 20814 Free ConsultationPersonal Injury, Divorce, Domestic Violence and Family University of Pittsburgh School of Law and California State University - Sacramento I am an award-winning attorney who is experienced and knowledgeable. I am committed to serving my clients well through assertive and strategic advocacy. All cases are handled with care and with a focus on getting results for my client. I seek the best resolution for you. What is different about my firm? In Family Law, we place special focus on Domestic Violence as we have an excellent success rate! Allergic Reaction Injury cases have a special spot in our hearts as we have first-hand experiences with allergic reactions! In Business Law, we focus our steadfast efforts on contracts, internal business compliance risk... Scott MacMullan Annapolis, MD Personal Injury Attorney with 11 years of experience (443) 494-9775 156 South St. Free ConsultationPersonal Injury, Criminal Defense, DUI & DWI and Domestic Violence As a native of Anne Arundel County, Scott MacMullan is the owner and founder of Scott MacMullan Law, LLC. His connections to the local community, as well as his background working for two of the preeminent judges in Maryland, give him a unique perspective in court and puts his clients in a premier position as to the facts of their case. He focuses his practice on personal injury and criminal defense matters. He is passionate about helping his clients solve their problems and providing them with the maximum amount of compensation that they are entitled under the law. Call 443-494-9775... Paul D'Amore (410) 324-2000 111 South Calvert Street Free ConsultationPersonal Injury and Medical Malpractice After a decade of successful practice, Paul decided he would rather help real people instead of the rich hospitals and insurance companies that once retained him. He resigned his partnership at a prestigious defense firm, and began working as a personal injury lawyer serving injured people in their fight for justice against the very hospitals, corporations and insurance companies that once retained him. Since then, Paul has obtained tens of millions of dollars in compensation for his injured clients and their families. The results that Paul has achieved for his injured clients have earned him recognition as a Super... Christopher S. Norman (410) 567-0800 1829 Reisterstown Road Free ConsultationPersonal Injury, Medical Malpractice and Nursing Home Christopher S. Norman has the unique honor of having been named a “Super Lawyers Rising Star” first for his work defending healthcare providers, and most recently for his work advocating on behalf of injured patients. Chris leverages the “inside knowledge” that he gained as a “Rising Star” medical malpractice defense attorney in his unrelenting effort to get the most for the injured patients that he now represents. In addition to being named a “Super Lawyers Rising Star” on numerous occasions, Chris has also been honored as a Lifetime Charter Member of Rue Ratings' Best Attorneys in America and with... Bruce Plaxen Westminster, MD Personal Injury Attorney with 38 years of experience (410) 871-0664 133 East Main Street #2b Free ConsultationPersonal Injury, Medical Malpractice, Products Liability and Social Security Disability Award winning and well-respected personal injury attorney representing people who have been injured due to accidents and negligence throughout the state of Maryland. Mr. Jonathan Neal Portner Esquire Columbia, MD Personal Injury Attorney with 32 years of experience (410) 995-1515 7226 Lee DeForest Drive Free ConsultationPersonal Injury, Criminal Defense, DUI & DWI and Medical Malpractice Mr. Portner is the Managing Partner of Portner & Shure, P.A. and is licensed to practice law in Maryland, Virginia and Washington, D.C. He represents clients in matters of criminal defense, personal injury, including motor vehicle accidents, medical malpractice, workers' compensation, and drug and medical device injuries. Mr. Portner supervises Portner & Shure’s seven fully staffed offices, a staff of fifty and four lawyers. Every week he is involved in helping to recover over $500,000 in settlements and trial awards against the major insurance companies. Further, Mr. Portner is routinely in court, or advising in serious criminal... Michael D. Steinhardt Owings Mills, MD Personal Injury Lawyer with 46 years of experience (866) 902-4111 10451 Mill Run Cir Owings Mills, MD 21117 Free ConsultationPersonal Injury, Medical Malpractice, Social Security Disability and Workers' Comp University of Baltimore School of Law and Georgetown University Law Center Michael H. Bereston Annapolis, MD Personal Injury Lawyer with 43 years of experience Serving all of Maryland and the District of Columbia, the law firm of Michael H. Bereston, Inc., provides dedicated representation in complex civil litigation with a concentration in birth injury and medical malpractice. As a more than 20 year veteran civil litigator, Mr. Bereston has represented both plaintiffs and defendants. In recent years, Mr. Bereston has devoted his practice exclusively to the representation of injured victims. Mr. Bereston has been in practice for many years with extensive trial experience. He is a graduate of the Johns Hopkins University (B.A.) and the University of Baltimore Law School (J.D.). Mr. Bereston... Mr Andrew V Jezic Prior to entering private practice in 2003, DC criminal lawyer Andrew V. Jezic served as a Maryland prosecutor for nearly eight years. During his time as a prosecutor, Mr. Jezic prosecuted some of the most serious felony cases in Montgomery and Anne Arundel counties. Now as a Maryland & DC criminal defense attorney, Mr. Jezic aggressively represents defendants around the state and in Washington, D.C. facing such serious charges as murder, rape and armed robbery. He has handled over 100 jury trials in his career and over 35 homicide cases. Mr. Jezic has been selected to three of the most prestigious... Daryl Wesley Price Gaithersburg, MD Personal Injury Attorney with 26 years of experience (240) 780-3003 26 N Summit Ave Gaithersburg, MD 20877 Free ConsultationPersonal Injury, DUI & DWI and Workers' Comp My clients come mostly from the Spanish-speaking community here in the Olde Towne Gaithersburg area. We handle a wide variety of legal matters and meet clients outside standard business hours in the event of emergencies. We speak Spanish. Se habla espanol. My professional goal is to empower YOU as a client by helping you navigate through a very complicated and time-consuming personal injury process. I will listen to your story in detail, conduct interviews, gather documentation, take photographs, present claims for benefits, and aggressively fight for a positive resolution in your case. My significant experience with techniques and strategies will... Personal Injury Attorneys in Nearby Cities Personal Injury Attorneys in Nearby Counties The Oyez Lawyer Directory contains lawyers who have claimed their profiles and are actively seeking clients. Find more Lonaconing Personal Injury Lawyers in the Justia Legal Services and Lawyers Directory which includes profiles of more than one million lawyers licensed to practice in the United States, in addition to profiles of legal aid, pro bono and legal service organizations.	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line571
__label__wiki	0.814438	0.814438	Abraham Lincoln: Martyr America's Presidents - Abraham Lincoln VOA Learning English presents America’s Presidents. Today we are talking about Abraham Lincoln. Abraham Lincoln, 1860 He was the 16th president of the United States. Many Americans consider him one of country’s greatest leaders. Yet people alive when Lincoln was elected in 1860 would probably be surprised by modern-day opinions about him. He had little formal education or government experience. During the presidential campaign, critics made fun of his appearance and his simple way of talking. They warned that he was not very intelligent and would harm the nation’s image. Some of his opponents – especially in Southern states – had even bigger concerns. They were afraid Lincoln would use the power of the federal government to end slavery in their states. They were right. Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation paved the way for the 13th Amendment to the Constitution, which abolished slavery throughout the country. Abraham Lincoln was born in the frontier state of Kentucky. His family was very poor and had a simple home: a log cabin. Lincoln had to support his parents and his sister by working, so he rarely went to school. Instead, he taught himself by reading books. Eventually, he became a lawyer in the state of Illinois. Abraham Lincoln in 1846, by Nicholas Shepherd As a young man, Lincoln was known for several qualities. He was tall and thin. He was very strong – his neighbors remembered him cutting down trees. And he was honest. The people he defended in court called him “Honest Abe.” In time, Lincoln was elected to the Illinois General Assembly, the state’s legislature. He also served one term as a congressman in the U.S. House of Representatives. But he was not popular there. Voters did not like his opposition to the country’s war with Mexico. So Lincoln withdrew from politics and turned his attention to his family. He had married a Southern belle named Mary Todd in 1842. They had four sons. But two died when they were very young. Mary Todd Lincoln in 1846 or 1847 Lincoln also developed his legal career representing railroad companies. Some people thought he might become the best railroad lawyer in the country. But that is not what happened. In the 1850s, Lincoln returned to national politics. The division over the issue of slavery was deepening. Lincoln was not an anti-slavery activist, an abolitionist. But he did not support the country’s policies on slavery. Lincoln believed slavery violated the American Declaration of Independence, which said all men had the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. To be clear, Lincoln did not believe that black people should have the same rights as white U.S. citizens. But he did not agree that one person should own other people, or profit from their work while they earned nothing and were held captive. About 4 million enslaved people lived in the U.S. in 1860. Lincoln decided to compete in elections for a seat in the U.S. Senate. He was chosen as the candidate of a new, anti-slavery party. Members called themselves Republicans. During the election campaign, Lincoln famously discussed the issue of slavery in a series of debates with Stephen Douglas, the Democratic Party’s candidate. Lincoln’s words moved some voters. But they did not earn him enough votes to get elected. Abraham Lincoln 1857 by Alexander Hessler So, while Douglas took the seat in the Senate, Lincoln prepared to run for president. Lincoln said that, if he were elected, he would not expand slavery to new territories in the country’s west. But he promised not to interfere with slavery in the Southern states, where it already existed. Voters in Southern, slave-holding states did not trust Lincoln. Not a single Southern state supported him in the election of 1860. But he won anyway. The support of anti-slavery Northerners gave him the presidency. In answer, seven Southern states withdrew from the Union. Four more later joined them. These states formed a new government, called the Confederate States of America – or, the Confederacy. The Confederate States of America included Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Arkansas, North Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia. Confederate officials chose their own president and wrote their own constitution, which permitted each state control over its own laws – especially laws that protected slavery. Confederate officials said they no longer recognized the power of the U.S. federal government, or its chief executive. As that chief executive, Lincoln would have to decide what to do. President Lincoln’s first test came a little more than a month after he was sworn-in. Abraham Lincoln in 1860 The event involved Fort Sumter, a federal military base on an island off the coast of South Carolina. Soldiers on the base needed food. Lincoln said he would send some by ship. But Confederate officials considered the fort part of South Carolina, which belonged to the Confederacy. They demanded that the Union soldiers leave the fort. But Union forces and the U.S. president ignored the Confederates’ demands. As promised, Lincoln sent the supply ships. As expected, Confederate soldiers attacked. A day and a half later, the fort’s Union soldiers surrendered. Fort Sumter under the Confederate flag The clash did not last long, and no one was killed in the fighting. But the battle at Fort Sumter marked the official beginning of hostilities between the Union and the Confederacy. Lincoln immediately took action to answer the loss of Fort Sumter. He called on state militias for troops and asked for a special meeting of Congress. The president was careful not to ask Congress to make an official declaration of war, in part because he did not want to recognize the Confederacy as a separate nation. Instead, he called the Southern states’ opposition a rebellion. However, the conflict between the Southern Confederacy and the Northern Union was a civil war. Neither side expected the fighting to last very long – a few weeks or maybe months. Instead, the Civil War lasted four and a half years. Most of the major battles took place near Washington, DC, in the states of Maryland, Virginia and Pennsylvania. Soldiers and civilians also clashed in the west, in Tennessee, as well as in the southern states of Mississippi, South Carolina, and Georgia. But the war involved the entire country. At least 4 million men fought in it. Among the soldiers were African-American and Native-American men. More than two percent of the population died in the Civil War. The conflict divided families. Brothers, fathers and sons fought against each other. Women in both the North and South also supported the war effort. They cooked meals, made and repaired clothing for the troops, served as nurses and cared for the soldiers. Both white and African-American women also took over the work of men who had left to fight. And more than 620,000 men died -- recent scholarship says as many as 750,000. The Civil War remains the bloodiest war in American history. And it changed the country. The war radically affected American politics, economics, and society. Abraham Lincoln was the U.S. president through all of it. Next week's article will discuss Lincoln’s presidency and legacy. I'm Kelly Jean Kelly. Kelly Jean Kelly wrote this story for Learning English. George Grow was the editor. Listening Quiz Quiz - America's Presidents: Abraham Lincoln (Part One) Start the Quiz to find out formal - adj. received in a school frontier - n. a distant area where few people live cabin - n. a small, simple house made of wood belle - n. a very attractive and popular girl or woman abolitionist - n. a person who wants to stop or abolish slavery entire - adj. complete or full; not lacking or leaving out any part nurse - n. a person who is trained to care for sick or injured people James Buchanan: Passive Franklin Pierce: Ineffective Millard Fillmore: Forgotten	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line574
__label__wiki	0.774207	0.774207	Why Beijing’s Wolf Warrior Diplomacy Suddenly Quieted Down Posted by Zero Hedge \| Aug 20, 2020 \| Business & Economics \| 0 Thu, 08/20/2020 – 02:00 Authored by Huidong Zhang via The Epoch Times, Top-level Chinese officials have recently shifted away from the regime’s wolf warrior diplomacy tactic to a more toned-down approach. This turnaround can be interpreted as the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) not wanting to decouple from the United States nor shut out of the global economic order led by Washington. Yang Jiechi, a top member of the Politburo, wrote, “China is always open to dialogue and communication with the U.S.,” in an article dated Aug. 7. Cui Tiankai, Chinese ambassador to the United States, said the U.S.-China relationship should be “cooperation rather than confrontation” at the Aspen Security Forum on Aug. 4. Foreign Minister Wang Yi addressed the China-U.S. Think Tanks Media Forum on July 9, saying, “China can restore and restart the dialogue mechanisms at all levels and in all areas.” Although the above statements from the CCP officials reveal that Beijing is begging for a dialogue with Washington, the words carry no weight and may not lead to concrete actions. Wolf Warrior Diplomacy Creates a Global Enemy For a long time, the CCP has regarded diplomacy to be a way of extending its tyranny. Its aggressive and offensive diplomacy is characterized by the goal of inciting national sentiment and brainwashing the Chinese people. For example, as former leader of the Communist Party, Mao Zedong’s revolutionary diplomacy was in line with his personal ambition—to become a leader of the world revolution. He classified nearly all nations as enemies. The United States and Western Europe became “imperialists,” the communist countries that abided by the Soviet Union were the “social imperialists,” and the remaining third world countries basically close to Europe and the United States were the “anti-China” faction. The few countries left were the “widespread poor friends” in Africa, which the regime could exploit using its foreign aid policy. In the 1969 Sino-Soviet border conflict, a very annoyed Soviet Union was preparing to carry out a “surgical nuclear strike” against China. A firm opposition from the United States spared the Chinese people from nuclear attack. Under the provocative “anti-imperialist” and “anti-revisionist” foreign policy of the regime, the Chinese people have suffered endlessly from an arrogant and isolated dictatorship. The subsequent leaders of the CCP realized that the time wasn’t right for the CCP to become a world leader; so they adopted former leader Deng Xiaoping’s “economic foreign policy with a strong nationalist diplomacy” to confuse the international community. During this period, the CCP organized various demonstrations in mainland China to threaten the international community, such as the 1999 students’ anti-American demonstration, the Chinese internet users’ boycott of French retail giant Carrefour in 2008, the 2012 anti-Japanese protest, and the anti-Korea demonstration in 2017. The wolf warrior diplomats, however, remained quiet. China’s economy developed rapidly after the United States helped it join the World Trade Organization (WTO). Its national strength also increased significantly, especially after it surpassed Japan to become the world’s second largest economy in 2010. Its capital strength seemed to prepare the CCP to achieve its ambition of changing the world order so it dominated the world. CCP hack writer Jin Canrong, a professor on Sino-U.S. relations at Renmin University of China, even declared the so-called “win-win” as China wins twice. The new superpower is now ready to launch its revolutionary diplomatic wars around the world. The global pandemic enabled the wolf warrior diplomats to launch a series of attacks in order to shirk accountability for the wide spread of the CCP virus, commonly known as the novel coronavirus. First, they inferred that the United States was the source of COVID-19, which provoked the China-U.S. conflict. Second, shamelessly demanding gratitude from the world for providing defective face masks. Third, the Chinese ambassador to Australia warned Australia to stop the international inquiry into the origin of the CCP virus. Fourth, the Chinese ambassador to Paris slandered staff in France’s nursing homes on his embassy’s website and sharply criticized the Western response to the outbreak for being laggardly. Fifth, the Chinese Embassy in Brazil tweeted that Eduardo Bolsonaro, the son of the President of Brazil, had been infected with a “mental virus” during a recent trip to the United States after he tweeted that the regime is a “dictatorship.” Sixth, the Chinese Embassy in Germany called local tabloid BILD “bad” when it claimed that China owes a debt to Germany because of the CCP virus pandemic. Seventh, the Chinese Embassy in Sweden posted on its website that think tank Frivärld’s claim that “China should apologize” is totally groundless, unjustified, and is a more terrifying virus. These diplomatic spats caused by the wolf warriors on the surface demonstrate the tough line of the regime, but also constantly brainwash the Chinese people. As the state-run media Global Times wrote, “The days of China getting bullied are gone.” The ultimate goal of such tactics is to trap the international community into the blame game and obfuscate the fundamental issue of the source of pandemic. However, this wolf warrior diplomacy has brought an obvious side effect, namely, “the big power diplomacy with Chinese characteristics” proposed by CCP leader Xi Jinping has deteriorated to distrust by all countries in the world, and to once again becoming the “human enemy.” A recent Pew Research Center survey showed “roughly two-thirds of Americans now have a negative opinion of China, the highest percentage recorded” since Pew began asking the question 15 years ago. Shifting to Dialogue Mode Buys Time Wolf warrior diplomacy has not only failed to elevate international power proposed by China’s foreign ministry, it has ruined the image of a worldly new power the CCP created through painstaking efforts. The relationship between the CCP and other countries in the world continues to deteriorate—especially U.S.-China relations. After U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo stated that the freedom-loving nations of the world “must start by changing how our people and our partners perceive the Chinese Communist Party,” and (we) “can’t treat this incarnation of China as a normal country, just like any other,” the regime finally realized the change in U.S. foreign policy toward the CCP. In order to maintain the legitimacy of the regime, the CCP top officials had to beg for a dialogue with the United States. Yang Jiechi, a Politburo member and director of the Office of Foreign Affairs of the Communist Party of China wrote: “The two countries need to engage in dialogue and communication in all areas. China is always open to dialogue and communication with the U.S.” Obviously, Yang deliberately forgot what Pompeo said in his speech, “Yang’s promises, like so many the CCP made before him, were empty.” The dialogue will not occur because the United States has recognized, as Pompeo stated, “that the only way—the only way to truly change communist China is to act not on the basis of what Chinese leaders say, but how they behave.” The United States has said it clearly: “When it comes to the CCP … we must distrust and verify.” The CCP’s begging for a dialogue with the United States can be interpreted as a delaying tactic and pinning its hopes on the upcoming presidential election. “China prefers that President Trump—whom Beijing sees as unpredictable—does not win reelection,” according to a statement made by NCSC (U.S. National Counterintelligence and Security Center) Director William Evanina on Aug. 7. The CCP has never given up its ambitions of global hegemony. Therefore, the United States must be alert to the current behavior of the CCP, because what the CCP does has always threatened the security of the United States and the world. CCP Breaking Away From World Economic Order As we all know, from the cover-up of the coronavirus outbreak to the suppression of whistleblowers, the CCP’s actions, aided by the WHO director general’s misleading information, have led to a world pandemic that continues to erode the international community. It is inevitable for people around the world to demand compensation from the CCP for damages caused by the virus. Already, some countries in Africa have publicly asked the CCP to reduce or forgive their debts—this is compensation in disguise. Conflicts around the issue of claims will erupt after the pandemic is over. The CCP may have to leave the international economic order. Countries will not move their industrial supply chains to China, especially after seeing the threat of the CCP’s tyranny to the global economy and politics. Considering national security and the safety of people’s lives and health, countries will accelerate their decoupling with the regime. A tidal wave of decoupling from the CCP has already begun. Countries involved in cooperation projects and organizations led by the CCP’s investment-oriented “One Belt, One Road” (OBOR, also known as Belt and Road Initiative), Shanghai Cooperation Organization, and the BRICS, have had serious conflicts and disagreements with the CCP over the pandemic and diplomacy. India and Brazil, members of the BRICS, for instance, have shown deteriorating relations with the CCP. Through the pandemic, deterioration of relations between the CCP and other countries has accelerated. Once the industrial chain moves out of China, it will be difficult to get it back. The status of “world factory” will never return. The CCP’s perverse actions will only lead to its exclusion from the international community and the world economic order. This post has been republished with permission from a publicly-available RSS feed found on Zero Hedge. The views expressed by the original author(s) do not necessarily reflect the opinions or views of The Libertarian Hub, its owners or administrators. Any images included in the original article belong to and are the sole responsibility of the original author/website. The Libertarian Hub makes no claims of ownership of any imported photos/images and shall not be held liable for any unintended copyright infringement. Submit a DCMA takedown request. PreviousThe Great Election Fraud: Will Our Freedoms Survive Another Vote? NextWhat Role Will Crypto Play During “The Great Reset”? Zero Hedge's mission is to widen the scope of financial, economic and political information available to the professional investing public, to skeptically examine and, where necessary, attack the flaccid institution that financial journalism has become, to liberate oppressed knowledge, to provide analysis uninhibited by political constraint and to facilitate information's unending quest for freedom. Visit https://www.zerohedge.com The Racist History of Zoning Laws UK Supreme Court Judge Slams “Totalitarian” COVID “Control Freaks” In Government Former NSA Tech Chief Says Mueller Report Was Based On CIA-Fabricated “Evidence” The Social Consequences of Zero Interest Rates	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line575
__label__cc	0.672532	0.327468	Kelly Ripa Reveals She's Wearing Her 18-Year-Old Daughter's Clothes on TV Lizzy Buczak Quarantine life is preventing many of us from going to the store and updating our wardrobe. Without anything new to wear, Kelly Ripa had the perfect solution -- raid her daughter’s closet. On Tuesday’s episode of “Live with Kelly and Ryan,” Ripa confessed that she was wearing her 18-year-old daughter, Lola’s, clothes. “It’s gone there,” she said in the virtual episode, according to PEOPLE. So what did the 49-year-old steal from her daughter’s closet? A white blazer with a black graphic t-shirt along with some layered necklaces. Ripa opted for beachy waves to complete the look, which she said her daughter Lola helped her style with the help of a hack she saw on TikTok. “My daughter learned how to do my hair using the tie of your bathrobe,” she told viewers. “She watched a TikTok video on how to do hair by wrapping your hair around the bathrobe tie. And my daughter did my hair!” Ripa, who doesn’t seem to show any signs of dark roots growing in despite not being able to go to the hair salon, revealed her secret weapon is spray root touch up. “At this point, it’s all spray because my hair is all gray,” she confessed. This isn’t the first time Ripa addressed her gray roots. In March, she posted a close-up photo on her Instagram story of her roots coming in with the caption, “Root watch week one.” In another “at-home” edition of her show, she opened up about the hardships of social distancing despite being quarantined at home with her husband, Mark Conseulos and their three children. “I haven’t gotten to hug my parents. I want to hug my parents. I miss hugging my parents,” she told co-host Ryan Seacrest. “And my kids, like, won’t hug me. And I’m like, ‘Guys, we’ve all been in lockdown together. We’re fine. You can give me a hug. It’s fine.'” Lola Consuelos Live With Kelly and Ryan!	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line582
__label__wiki	0.73741	0.73741	The Magazine of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Field New Titles & Bestsellers Index to Interviews SF Crossing the Gulf History of Locus Magazine Charles N. Brown (1937-2009) Science Fiction Awards Database Conventions List Links by Category Faren Miller reviews Mary Robinette Kowal September 14, 2016 May 7, 2018 admin 0 Comments Faren Miller Ghost Talkers, Mary Robinette Kowal (Tor 978-0-7653-7825-5, $24.99, 300pp, hc) August 2016. Cover by Chris McGrath. Mary Robinette Kowal had her own ways of finding gritty truths in the course of her five ‘‘Glamourist Histories’’, where the forces of history, and the waywardness of life (and character) shatter the gloss that can make standard Regency Romantic Fantasy seem bland. When she turns to a mixture of spycraft and spiritualism in Ghost Talkers, this apparent standalone is even more brutally direct about the horrific death tolls of Britain’s Great War (World War One), showing its ghosts as they see themselves in their last moments. The first line is stark enough: ‘‘The Germans were flanking us at Delville Wood when I died.’’ The medium in charge of this Spirit Circle touches his soul directly and feels this: ‘‘He is leaning against a wall, trying not to look at where his legs used to be…. He blinks, trying to focus, but the world is starting to go grey around the edges.’’ British troops have been conditioned to report back to the medium (intensely aware of them even while ‘‘anchored’’ by mundanes, plus one back-up spiritualist). Though circle members work covertly – posing as genteel ladies running ‘‘hospitality huts’’ not all that far from the trenches of France – it’s a demanding form of spycraft in its own right. Ginger, the medium and viewpoint character throughout the book, knows the danger: Even alternating control, their three-hour shifts were soul-numbing. The sheer number of deaths over the past two weeks had forced all the mediums to go to double shifts, and Ginger was not at all sure how long they could continue that pace. Already one girl had lost her grip on her body. They were keeping her physical form comfortable, in hopes that her soul would find its way back, but it seemed unlikely. Conditions worsen further, with what may be the first indications that Germany knows about the Corps and is searching for the means to counter or destroy it: a night attack on an encampment where soldiers are sleeping, and the deaths of two officers by what seems to be murder. When murder victims don’t know who or what killed them, they linger. Two spirits have some connection to the greatest mystery of all: the full nature of the German threat. An intelligence operative who seems to have been killed for what he learned can’t hang on to enough of it to pass on (in either sense of those words). He comes to haunt Ginger, trying to steer her down the path he took to that lost knowledge, even as his essence threatens to slip away – furiously determined to be more than a fading wisp. His continuing presence leads her to a Front that throngs with post-traumatic stress. For a Sensitive, it’s horror: ‘‘memories crowded in with every thundering concussion’’ and ‘‘brimstone-scented air burned with reminders of death.’’ Though the medium’s awareness of emotions in the form of multi-colored auras (vivid throughout the book) might seem to give Ginger an advantage over the ghost beside her, this lets her ‘‘see the emotion, but not understand the reason behind it.’’ While her fondness for stories of Watson and Holmes can’t really help her here, her driving need to understand does yield results – enough to save some lives, but not to stop a war. Read more! This is one of many reviews from recent issues of Locus Magazine. To read more, go here to subscribe. ← Previous 2016 Sunburst Awards Winners Changes at Bloomsbury USA Next → Ian Mond Reviews The Emissary by Yoko Tawada December 6, 2018 locusmag 0 Carolyn Cushman Reviews American Demon by Kim Harrison and Spells for the Dead by Faith Hunter July 3, 2020 locusmag 0 Gary K. 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Locus SF Foundation dba Locus Publications 655 13th St. #100 ph. +1-510-339-9196 locus@locusmag.com Weekdays: 9-5 Pacific Time Suggestion, tips, typos? You can send news, tips, and suggestions to locus@locusmag.com. If you see problems or bugs on the site, please let us know and include the URL and also which browser you are using. Locus Magazine and Website cover science fiction, fantasy, young-adult, horror books, short fiction, anthologies, magazines, films, news, conventions, and international. Also interviews with SFF authors, editors, artists, and more. Copyright © 2021 Locus Publications. All rights reserved. PLEASE SUPPORT LOCUS WITH A DONATION TODAY! Everyone in the publishing industry has taken a hit during the coronavirus crisis, and that includes Locus. We are a non-profit, and rely on donations and subscribers to stay alive. 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__label__cc	0.590993	0.409007	Access Statistics for Pedro Nuno Teixeira European Identity and the Learning Union 0 1 2 26 0 7 14 67 Is Mass Higher Education Working? An Update and a Reflection on the Sustainability of Higher Education Expansion in Portugal 1 2 7 100 2 5 16 231 Markets in Higher Education: Can We Still Learn from Economics' Founding Fathers? 0 0 1 11 0 0 4 47 Returns to Postgraduate Education in Portugal: Holding on to a Higher Ground? 0 1 4 20 2 5 16 47 Returns to Postgraduate Education in Portugal:Holding on to a Higher Ground? 0 0 0 18 2 5 17 80 Returns to postgraduate education: Holding on to a higher ground? 0 0 0 0 3 5 16 16 The European university landscape: A micro characterization based on evidence from the Aquameth project 0 0 0 0 1 4 10 27 The Impact of Horizontal Job-Education Mismatches on the Earnings of Recent University Graduates in Russia 0 0 3 21 2 5 17 28 The Tortuous Ways of the Market: Looking at the European Integration of Higher Education from an Economic Perspective 0 0 0 12 1 2 4 26 The tortuous ways of the market: looking at the European integration of Higher Education from an economic perspective 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 19 Total Working Papers 1 5 21 311 14 41 142 702 A Portrait of the Economics of Education, 1960-1997 0 1 1 15 0 2 11 84 A reluctant founding father: Placing Jacob Mincer in the history of (labor) economics 0 0 0 2 1 2 4 22 Albert O. Hirschman (1915-2012): the passions and interests of an engagiert economist 0 1 1 8 0 2 4 54 Competition and diversification in public and private higher education 1 1 1 7 1 2 5 29 Conquering or mapping? Textbooks and the dissemination of human capital theory in applied economics 0 1 2 4 1 4 9 16 Economic beliefs and institutional politics: Human capital theory and the changing views of the World Bank about education (1950–1985) 0 2 2 2 1 3 7 13 From Catholic Social Thought to Catholic Economics and Back: António Almodovar’s interest into an unexpected subject 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 5 Gary Becker’s early work on human capital – collaborations and distinctiveness 0 0 0 7 1 6 21 99 Gary Stanley Becker (1930-2014). Economics as a study of human behaviour 0 0 2 15 0 1 12 58 Gender pay gaps and the restructuring of graduate labour markets in Southern Europe 0 0 1 4 1 2 7 31 Great expectations, mixed results and resilient beliefs: the troubles of empirical research in economic controversies 0 1 1 17 0 1 3 76 Lionel Robbins on the principles of economic analysis – the 1930s lectures 0 0 1 1 0 2 4 4 Mark Blaug (1927–2011), Polymath Economist and Historian of Ideas 0 0 0 1 0 0 5 19 Mirowski Philip and Plehwe Dieter (eds), The Road from Mont Pèlerin. The Making of the Neoliberal Thought Harvard, Harvard University Press, 2009, 480 pages, ISBN: 978-0674033184 0 0 1 4 0 1 5 28 Myths, Beliefs and Realities: Public-Private Competition and Program Diversification in Higher Education 0 0 0 24 0 0 0 131 Policy changes, marketisation trends and spatial dispersion in European higher education: comparing public and private sectors 0 0 1 2 0 2 8 25 Serving the Institute and the Discipline: The Changing Profile of Economics at MIT as Viewed from Textbooks 0 0 0 5 0 2 6 29 Subject mix and productivity in Portuguese universities 0 0 0 22 0 2 5 116 The Ascent and Decline of Catholic Economic Thought, 1830–1950s 0 2 8 23 2 4 20 63 The European university landscape: A micro characterization based on evidence from the Aquameth project 0 0 0 80 0 2 3 283 The Institutional Movement in American Economics, 1918-1947 0 0 0 3 0 0 1 16 The Scientific Contribution of Leonor Vasconcelos Ferreira 0 0 0 7 0 2 11 97 The «Human Capital Revolution» in Economics 0 2 5 22 1 5 11 71 Unequal futures? Mass higher education and graduates' relative earnings in Portugal, 1995--2009 0 0 2 7 0 1 5 29 ‘Catholic in its faith, Catholic in its manner of conceiving science’: French Catholic political economy in the 1830s 0 0 0 6 0 0 2 47 Total Journal Articles 1 11 29 288 9 48 171 1,445 Jacob Mincer: The Founding Father of Modern Labor Economics 0 0 0 0 1 2 12 36 Jacob Mincer: The Founding Father of Modern Labor Economics 0 0 0 0 1 2 15 142 Total Books 0 0 0 0 2 4 27 178 Gary S. Becker 0 0 2 6 1 2 9 45 Human Capital, by Gary S. Becker: A Reading Guide 0 0 3 15 1 3 15 56 Public and private higher education in Europe: competition, complementarity or worlds apart? 3 14 27 63 5 28 75 160 The Portuguese Public University System: On the Road to Improvement? 0 0 0 3 0 1 5 12 Theodore William Schultz 0 1 1 6 0 2 11 35 Total Chapters 3 15 33 93 7 36 115 308	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line592
__label__wiki	0.657262	0.657262	Archive for the ‘Senate’ Category Hindsight is 20/20 in 2020 for these elected officials who just couldn’t wait to sign off on Norquist pledge back when Posted in Contracts, Elections, Ethics, House, Senate, Legislature, Legislators, Lobbyist, Politicians, Public Records, Senate, Taxes, Transparency on July 9, 2020\| 5 Comments » Quickly. What do these 27 Louisianans have in common, other than having been elected to political office? Paul Hollis John Alario Jack Donahue Gerald Long Fred Mills Barrow Peacock Steve Carter Greg Cromer Cameron Henry Dorothy Hill Valarie Hodges Dee Richard Alan Seabaugh Kirk Talbot Conrad Appel Barry Milligan Jeff Landry Bill Cassidy Clay Higgins Steve Scalise Ralph Abraham Well, to make it more interesting, I’ll throw in these names: Tom Cotton Matt Gaetz Brian Kemp Cindy Hyde-Smith Michael Guest Tate Reeves Roy Blunt Ben Sasse Christopher Sununu Jim Jordan Tim Scott Kristi Noem Lamar Alexander John Cornyn Each of the aforementioned is among the 172 members of the U.S. House of Representative, 48 U.S. senators 12 governors and 27 Louisianans who signed Grover Norquist’s no-new-tax pledge, which reads simply enough: I, ______, pledge to the taxpayers of the ______ district of the state of ______ and to the American people that I will: One, oppose any and all efforts to increase the marginal income tax rates for individuals and/or businesses; and Two, to oppose any net reduction or elimination of deductions and credits, unless matched dollar for dollar by further reducing tax rates Of the 20 Louisiana legislators who signed the pledge, seven are still in office. They are Hollis, Mills, Peacock, Henry, Hodges, Seabaugh and Schroder. Schroder is no longer in the legislature, having moved up to State Treasurer. Landry, a former member of the U.S. House, is now Louisiana’s attorney general with an eye on the governor’s office just up the street. Kennedy and Cassidy, of course are Louisiana’s two U.S. senators while Higgins, Scalise, Abraham and Johnson are in the House. Abraham, an unsuccessful candidate for governor last year, is a lame duck and will exit Congress next Jan. 20. Norquist, who founded the organization Americans for Tax Reform (ATR) wears his capitalist idealism on his sleeve. He’s been widely quoted saying thing like: “Our goal is to shrink government to the size where we can drown it in a bathtub.” He advocates standing on one’s own two feet: “We want to reduce the number of people depending on government so there is more autonomy and more free citizens.” Norquist feels that such reliance on government weakens one’s character: “The welfare state creates its own victim/client constituency. By making individuals free and independent, we reduce the need for ‘charity’ to those truly needy citizens what we can certainly afford to help through real charity.” Moreover, he is convinced that government spending, fueled by entitlements, is harmful to the U.S. economy: “What’s hurting the U.S. economy is total government spending. The deficit is an indicator that the government is spending so much money that it can’t even get around to stealing all of the money that it wants to spend.” The COVID-19 pandemic shutdown unquestionably crippled the US—the world—economy, necessitating Congress to pass a $350 billion paycheck protection bill to bail out companies with forgivable SBA loans of up to $10 million which, of course, caused Norquist to pitch a hissy fit even before another $330 billion was added to the relief package. He wrote a letter urging lawmakers not to approve a second stimulus bill, saying: “Government spending is inhibiting the fast recovery we want in jobs and incomes, not stimulating it.” But what Norquist neglected to point out is his Americans for Tax Reform had just received up to $350,000 in stimulus money from the first bill. In other words, he got his and now he doesn’t want anyone else to get theirs because it’s wasteful government spending, it kills incentive, creating victimhood. Oops. Maybe all those members of congress, legislators, and governors listed above might like to reconsider signing off on Norquist’s “Don’t do as I do, do as I say do” pledge.. Perhaps Norquist should “funnel” that guvmint money to the CHOCTAW INDIANS of Mississippi, the tribe he helped Karl Rove, Tom DeLay, Ralph Reed and JACK ABRAMOFF funnel more than $1 million away from the Choctaw back in 1999. Of course, when it came time to put up or shut up, Norquist chose to shut up by REFUSING TO TESTIFY before the Senate Indian Affairs Committee’s hearing on lobbying abuses. But perhaps the best illustration with the fewest words to describe Norquist’s role in the sordid affairs with Abramoff, DeLay, Reed, and Rove can be seen HERE. If all this doesn’t leave you needing a shower, I just don’t know what could. Unless it’s this: Others that received PPP funding included the Ayn Rand Institute (between $350,000 and $1 million), Fox News host Tucker Carlson’s The Daily Caller ($350,000 to $1 million), Newsmax, the conservative TV network owned by Trump ally Christopher Ruddy ($2 million to $5 million), and (wait for it), the shipping business owned by Secretary of Transportation Elaine Chao’s family ($350 to $1 million). Chao just happens to be the wife of (ahem) Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky. They’re all right HERE. (Ayn Rand, for those who may not know, was a Russian émigré who fled the communist revolution, became an actress in the US and who wrote The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged. Atlas Shrugged has become something of a capitalism bible to her followers.) To borrow from Charles Dickens, we seem to have the ghosts of capitalism past and the ghosts of capitalism present in one tidy little story. I can’t wait for the ghost of capitalism future to make its appearance. But I would be remiss if I didn’t include one last Norquist quote because it’s really a gem: “Hypocrisy is the tribute that vice pays to virtue.” Sen. Kornpone can continue Trump support and keep base, or do the right thing – call Trump out – and keep his soul Posted in Ethics, Politicians, Senate on June 3, 2020\| 10 Comments » Has anyone else noticed how quiet Louisiana’s junior US Senator has been lately? It’s been a scant four months since his Feb. 4 glowing review of Trump’s 2020 State of the Union Address. In that four-paragraph PRESS RELEASE, Sen. John Kennedy gushed on and on about how he (Kennedy) was in favor of “freedom, prosperity and building a better tomorrow for America’s kids.” He went on to affirm that the SOTU address “showed the president’s commitment to moving all these priorities forward.” He lavished praise on Trump because “America is respected around the world” and added that Americans “have reason to be optimistic” and “confident.” It was enough to kick in the gag reflex. But lately, Sen. Kornpone has been uncharacteristically quiet. Normally, he’d run over his best friend to get to a TV camera. No more. And he’s not alone. News services all over the Internet have posted stories about how Republicans in Congress cut and run when asked for comments about Trump’s rhetoric about bringing in the troops, shooting looters, turning vicious dogs loose on protesters, about dispersing protesters with chemicals so he could have his precious Bible-holding photo-op. No Republicans, it seems, want to talk about that or the killing of George Floyd or of the groundswell of resentment against this administration for bungling one crisis after another. Right now, as I see it, Kornpone has two choices: He can continue to pander to a tyrannical president whose support appears to be eroding from beneath him while keeping his own political support in a decidedly Red State. Or he could do the right thing and condemn Trump’s incendiary tweets, his divisive rhetoric, his crazed confrontations with the media, his incredibly inane photo-ops and lose some of his support from Louisiana’s white supremacists—but keep his soul. Alleged victim of sexual abuse by Baton Rouge physical therapist accuses DA, sheriff’s office of dragging heels Posted in Boards, Courts, Ethics, Senate on November 8, 2019\| 4 Comments » A Baton Rouge physical therapist has been formally charged with inappropriate touching of female patients and inappropriate comments about their bodies, but the bill of information from the East Baton Rouge District Attorney’s office might never have been submitted had it not been for the dogged pursuit of one woman who refused to allow her complaints to be ignored despite the best efforts of the DA’s office and East Baton Rouge Parish sheriff’s investigators to do just that. Physical therapist Philippe Veeters, doing business as Dutch Physical Therapy, was first arrested last February on the basis of complaints by several of his female patients, but East Baton Rouge Parish DA Hillar Moore didn’t get around to submitting a bill of information against Veeters until Nov. 1. The woman, who requested that her identity not be revealed, says she was assaulted by Veeters on June 7, 2018, said, “After dealing with the sheriff’s office for months, I contacted the FBI with all my documentation showing how the police kept lying to me and changing their stories. they did try to investigate them. However, Mr. Hillar Moore apparently invited himself to that meeting and shut that meeting down. Moore told the FBI that it is just too hard to go against a doctor,” she said. “This was disturbing and sickening, knowing Mr. Veeters had already admitted to the detectives within one week what he did to me without consent—trying to pretend it was a normal Medical procedure. “I have since learned another victim went to the sheriff’s office in 2012…but no one ever took her seriously or even investigated her assault,” the woman said. “I had to fight so hard against the people who should be protecting us. They had his admission on tape, they had others who reported it to them and the board yet they kept lying to me. Why?” She said sheriff’s office investigators initially were supportive and told her she was doing the right thing in filing charges against Veeters. But then she said authorities suddenly began “to tell me different stories and start(ed) deflecting when we question(ed) them on things” and opened and closed her case three times. “I now know why victims do not come forward. It takes so much power and strength to report something like this and you aren’t allowed to heal and push the memory away as quick (sic) as you would like.” She said she and her husband met with sheriff’s office investigators but got no answers. “I also have emails dating back to July 2018 between Hillar Moore and myself—where I’d share things with him about the sheriff’s office,” the woman said, “and from July 2018 until January 2019 he would tell me he’d get with them and they’d get back to me. He never got back to me!! It was almost comical. I went from patient to angry that someone didn’t want to protect the women in our community. He completely stopped responding to me once I told him I learned who Floyd falcon was. Never heard from him again! “When I finally met with the assistant DA in May 2019, she claimed they were protecting me. I have no idea what they were protecting me from nor do I believe her. Considering they wanted all my medical records from the board and were upset my mental health records were not obtained, I doubt they were protecting me from anything.” She also was critical of George Papale, legal counsel for the Louisiana Physical Therapy Board, which had received complaints of sexual abuse by Veeters from at least half-a-dozen women. The board finally got around to continuing a prior nine-month suspension handed down on Oct. 5, 2018, suspending Veeters indefinitely on September 13 of this year, seven months after his arrest. The consent decree signed by Veeters and his attorney, Floyd Falcon, noted that “This is not the first disciplinary action” taken against Veeters “for related professional misconduct and sexual misconduct of a physical therapy patient.” The board did not recommend disciplinary action on a similar complaint in 2012 and in January 2014, placed Veeters “on notice,” but took no formal disciplinary action against him. The board’s reluctance did not deter Papale from firing off a 24-page letter of complaint to State Sen. John Alario in which he asked for an investigation “on behalf of the citizens of Louisiana” of actions taken by the Senate and Governmental Affairs Committee during and following a May 15, 2019 hearing relative to the board, which Papale termed “unlawful and unprofessional.” Papale, who no longer represents the board, complained that committee chair Karen Carter Peterson and Sen. Jean-Paul rebuked the board “with callous disregard for the truth” by repeatedly mischaracterizing the adjudication of a complaint by saying “a person who is under nine counts of sexual assault charges is under probation with the board” and “this guy got a nine-month slap on the wrist.” His letter also accused the committee of threatening and attacking board members, its employees and contractors and of saying the board was failing the citizens of Louisiana “without investigation into the validity of the complaints, nor a basic understanding of administrative laws, processes, or procedure.” To read the full text of that 24-page letter, go HERE. Consent agreement of OCTOBER 5, 2018 Latest CONSENT AGREEMENT Do contributions from Lindsey Graham’s PAC and Trump’s communications with senators constitute jury tampering? Posted in Campaign Contributions, Corruption, Courts, Ethics, Senate on November 5, 2019\| 5 Comments » Google the definition of jury tampering and you get several hits, all of which say the same thing. I have chosen to include the following definition from the web page of USLegal: A person commits the crime of jury tampering if, with intent to influence a juror’s vote, opinion, decision or other action in the case, he attempts directly or indirectly to communicate with a juror other than as part of the proceedings in the trial of the case. Jury tampering may be committed by conducting conversations about the case outside the court, offering bribes, making threats or asking acquaintances to communicate with a juror. (emphasis mine) A juror includes any person who is a member of any jury, including a grand jury, impaneled by any court or by any public servant authorized by law to impanel a jury. The term juror also includes any person who has been summoned or whose name has been drawn to attend as a prospective juror. (emphasis mine) Certainly, I am not an attorney nor am I a legal scholar by any stretch of the imagination. But if the House does ultimately approve articles of impeachment for President Donald Trump—which now seems inevitable—then the question of jury tampering could conceivably arise, which could explain why Mitch McConnell advised Trump to back off his tactic of CRITICIZING SENATORS who may soon be sitting in judgment of him. As a disclaimer, let me say up front this is not a partisan essay but a legitimate question about a legal conundrum that may need to be addressed down the road if the laws concerning jury tampering are to be enforced across the board at all levels of jurisprudence. The potential problem revolves around the fact that (a) the House, which will have to vote to impeach, will act in the same role as a grand jury does when it indicts an individual and (b) the Senate will serve as the jury in the trial that would follow. That means that every member of Congress—435 House members and 100 senators—would be serving at some point as either a member of the grand jury (House) or the petit jury (Senate). So, when Trump goes tweets any criticism of any representative or senator over the issue of impeachment, is he committing the crime of jury tampering? When he says Republicans need to “GET TOUGHER AND FIGHT” on impeachment, could that be considered an attempt to influence a juror’s vote? Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) is one of Trump’s more vocal supporters who championed the impeachment of Bill Clinton but now rails against a similar move to impeach a president from his own party. And Graham’s sometimes steadfast defense of Trump and his strident criticism of the impeachment hearings creates a glaring jury tampering problem in its own right. You see, Graham heads up a political action committee (PAC) called FUND FOR AMERICA’S FUTURE. In fact, on the PAC’s web page is a quote from Graham: “I helped establish Fund for America’s Future several years ago to support conservative candidates for federal and state office. We will work hard to grow the Republican Party and chip away at the Democrats’ control of Washington.” And as Shakespeare wrote in Hamlet, “Ay, there’s the rub” (often misquoted as “Therein lies the rub”). Of 21 Republican senators up for reelection next year, 15 have accepted $110,000 between them from Fund for America’s Future this year alone—all since the subject of impeachment was first broached inside the Beltway. These senators, with the amounts they received, include: Dan Sullivan, Alaska: $10,000; Tom Cotton, Arkansas: $5,000; Cory Gardner, Colorado: $5,000; David Perdue, Georgia: $10,000; Joni Ernst, Iowa: $10,000; Mitch McConnell: $10,000; Susan Collins, Maine: $5,000; Cindy Hyde-Smith, Mississippi: $5,000; Steve Daines, Montana: $10,000; Ben Sasse, Nebraska: $5,000; Thom Tillis, North Carolina: $5,000; Jim Inhofe, Ohio: $5,000; Lamar Alexander, Tennessee: $10,000; John Cornyn, Texas: $10,000; Shelley Moore Capito, West Virginia: $5,000. Louisiana Sen. Bill Cassidy had no contributions from Graham’s PAC, though he did receive $11,200 from Miriam and Sheldon Adelson, the Las Vegas Republican power brokers. Several other senators also received contributions from the father and daughter from Nevada. Additionally, several senators received contributions from Citizens United Political Victory Fund. That’s the PAC that convinced the SUPREME COURT to remove limits on corporations spending on political campaigns, a decision that led to the creation of super PACs. Interestingly Citizens United Political Victory Fund provided compensation of an undetermined amount to Kellyanne Conway, who never passes up an opportunity appear on Fox News to defend Trump and to attack the impeachment hearings. No explanation was provided as to the purpose of that payment to her. That compensation, of course, further clouds the issue of jury tampering. Cotton ($5,000), Daines ($10,000), and Graham ($5,000) also received funding from Citizens United Political Victory Fund while 10 received contributions from Citizens for Prosperity in America PAC, an organization that contributes 100 percent to Republican causes and candidates. Those included: Sullivan: $15,000; Gardner: $5,000; Perdue: $10,000; Ernst: $10,000; McConnell: $5,000; Daines: $5,000; Tillis: $10,000; Inhofe: $5,000; Graham: $5,000; Cornyn: $11,600. Money is never given to any politician without the expectation of something in return. And inasmuch as these senators received these contributions this year with the full knowledge that they would likely be sitting as a jury in judgment of fellow Republican Trump, the question of (wait for it) quid pro quo comes into play and that would appear to constitute jury tampering. In 1929, the Louisiana legislature voted to impeach Gov. Huey Long but he pulled a brilliant move that guaranteed victory. He convinced 15 senators to sign a pledge, the so-called “ROUND ROBIN” not to vote to convict. They were later rewarded with state jobs and other favors with some even alleged to have been paid in cash or given lavish gifts. That certainly was jury tampering by every definition of the term. As far as we know, Trump has yet to attempt to get 34 senators to sign such a pledge. As far as we know. Follow the money: it’s true yesterday, today and tomorrow when determining who is backing our political candidates Posted in Campaign Contributions, Education, Elections, Ethics, Finances, Legislature, Legislators, PACs, Politicians, Senate, Uncategorized on October 6, 2019\| 3 Comments » Some weeks ago, I stopped counting political brochures arriving in my mailbox by sheer numbers, choosing instead to measure them by the pound. Republic Services has probably had to put another truck or two into service just to cart away the political mail-outs cluttering the mailboxes on my street alone. They’re too slick to use for the bottoms of bird cages, so they serve no real purpose other than to attest to the fact we are needlessly killing far too many trees. It wouldn’t be so bad if they actually offered anything new but, to paraphrase a line uttered by Frasier on the sitcom Cheers, they’re redundant, they repeat themselves, they say the same things over and over—and still they don’t tell us a thing about the candidate except perhaps in the case of one Edith Carlin, who insists she’s the male version of Donald Trump, a rather dubious self-accolade, if there ever was one. Carlin describes herself in her fliers as “an outsider like President Trump.” (And yes, she does underscore the word outsider.) She goes on to say, “Just like President Trump, Edith Carlin is a self-made person…” Really? Did she begin drawing millions from her father while still a child? Did her father purchase her way into the Wharton School of Business? Did she hire undocumented workers, not pay them, and default on billions of dollars of loans from banks into order to become “self-made”? Did she become “self-made” by declaring bankruptcy half-a-dozen times? Is she “self-made” from cheating thousands of students in a fraudulent “university” that was under investigation until making a big campaign contribution to the attorney general who was investigating the school? Is that what she means by “self-made”? She should be so proud. She says she “will hold the government accountable in a way politicians can’t.” Really? How does she plan to do that? That promise has been made thousands upon thousands of times by thousands upon thousands of candidates but nothing seems to change. But she’s different, I suppose. She’s proposing to waltz into a 39-member body and single-handedly convince her fellow senators and 105 House members that they’ve been wrong all along and they will obligingly repent of their evil ways. That’s about as absurd as every four years, the candidates for mayor-president of East Baton Rouge Parish vow to make public education better when in reality, the mayor’s office has zero to do with the school board. Zero. Well, one of the things Carlin says she’ll do is “fix I-12 issues without raising the gas tax.” Well, Ms. Carlin, it would be most interesting to hear just how you plan to go about doing that. “After billions of dollars in tax increases,” she says, “the government now admits taking too much from us.” I suppose she’s referring to the $300 million – $500 million surplus of Gov. John Bel Edwards’ administration. But personally, I much prefer a surplus of $500 million to the eight years of $1 billion deficits of the best-forgotten Jindal administration. She is running against State Rep. J. Rogers Pope, a fellow Republican, who is term-limited and who is running for the seat of former State Sen. Dale Erdy, also term-limited. Pope is a former Livingston Parish school superintendent who brought our school system up to among the best in the state. Pope’s big sin is he doesn’t always vote the party line, choosing instead to vote his conscience, an attribute many claim as their voting philosophy but which few can back up. But when you cross party lines, you cross the party and the party is the party is the party and the party doesn’t forget. Carlin claims politicians “haven’t fixed our drainage problems,” that “80 percent of our district flooded.” True. I flooded, as did thousands of others. And of course, Carlin’s hero, Trump, dragged his feet in getting the requirements for assistance approved by HUD. It’s been three years and many still have received nothing from FEMA. As for fixing our drainage problems, she says we need an engineer to fix those problems. She is an engineer. But guess what? Rogers Pope was an educator. Do you think they assigned him to the House Education Committee? Nope. That would make far too much sense. They tucked him away where he wouldn’t be a nuisance to Jindal and John White. Does Carlin think she’ll fare any better? Maybe, maybe not. Regardless, she says she’ll work to improve drainage problems but she’s against taxes. It’s going to be interesting to see her just snap her fingers and make our problems vanish. But to really understand the candidate Carlin, it’s always best to follow the money to see who is the power behind the politician (and she is now officially a politician, her denials notwithstanding). So, I went onto the campaign finance records to see who her backers are. The results were eye-opening, to say the least. To narrow the field, I looked only at contributions of $500 or more. I found 65 contributions totaling $68,500 since January 1, 2019, including a couple of multiple contributions by the same donor, namely Republican power broker Lane Grigsby, who also backed Jindal and who is backing Eddie Rispone for governor. I also noted a $2,500 contribution from Koch Industries. But the real story is that of those 65 contributions, is that exactly 11 were from Livingston Parish while 32 were from East Baton Rouge Parish, 14 from other parts of the state and eight were from out of state. That’s 11 from Livingston and 54 from elsewhere. Those 11 Livingston Parish contributors (actually, only 10 because one person contributed on two different occasions) accounted for $14,500 (including $4,500 from just three persons) while the 32 East Baton Rouge Parish donors ponied up $37,500. The 14 from other areas of the state gave $17,500 and out-of-state contributors chipped in $13,500. So, Livingston Parish contributors gave just 21 percent of Carlin’s total while backers in Baton Rouge put up 54.7 percent of her total. Livingston Parish voters may wish to ask themselves why so many people in Baton Rouge are involving themselves in a race in Livingston Parish. Well, let’s see who they are: EastPac, NorthPac, WestPac, and SouthPac, all arms of the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry (LABI), combined to give $19,267. Since there are limits as to how much a political action committee may give, LABI simply bent the rules by creating not one, not two, not three, but four PACs. Lane Grigsby: $2,500. Todd Grigsby: $1,000. ABC (Associated Builders and Contractors) Pelican PAC: $2,500. The Louisiana Homebuilders Association PAC: $2,500. TransPac (a trucking industry PAC): $1,500. Investment portfolio manager Meagan Shields: $3,000 (two $1,500 contributions). Louisiana Student Financial Aid Association (LASFAA) PAC: $1,000. Besides Koch Industries of Wichita, Kansas, out-of-state contributors included: Republican State Leadership Committee, Washington, D.C.: $2,500. Chevron, San Ramon, California: $2,500. Stand for Children PAC, Portland, Oregon: $2,000. Weyerhaeuser, Seattle, Washington: $1,500. Marathon Petroleum, Findlay, Ohio: $1,500. Tanner Barrow, Worthing, South Dakota: $1,000. Micham Roofing, Sparta, Missouri: $500. Louisiana contributors not from Livingston or East Baton Rouge Parish who contributed were from Bossier City, Slidell, New Orleans (2), Shreveport (2), Raceland, Jennings, Mandeville, Alexandria, Prairieville, Covington, Ponchatoula, and Gray. So, those who haven’t already voted early may wish to ask themselves why the Republican party has turned on one of its own in such a vicious manner—but mostly why so much outside money is being poured into Edith Carlin’s campaign. You may also wish to ask yourself whether she will be beholden to the people of Livingston Parish or to the faceless PACs of Baton Rouge, Washington, and elsewhere. She may call herself a political outsider, but from here, she looks more like a puppet with the potential to be controlled by political insiders from outside Livingston Parish.	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line595
__label__wiki	0.932848	0.932848	BREXIT EU will not restart negotiations with UK on Brexit deal By LoveWorld UK on 12th June 2019 News The conditions for the existing Brexit deal will not change, despite the election of a new prime minister in the UK, said a spokesman for the European Commission at a regular press conference in Brussels on Tuesday Former Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, who remains favorite to succeed Theresa May as UK prime minister, threatens recently that if the European Union doesn’t agree to offer UK better conditions for its Brexit departure. He will reject paying the EU 39 billion-pound “breakup fee” which refers to the debt that the UK owes to the EU, scheduled to be paid back by stages in future years. Boris said money is the best way and a lubricant for reaching a good deal. Meanwhile, officials from France and Germany also said no new talks on UK’s Brexit will be relaunched.	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line596
__label__cc	0.587584	0.412416	WISN.org Worldwide Indigenous Science Network What is Indigenous Science? Cultural Advisors Indigenous Mind Program and Research Sacred Species Conservation Elder Networking Tag Archives: media Colonization, Indigenous Science 9 December 1988 Personal Correspondence on Education, Media, etc. (PDF) August 8, 2015 Archivist Dec. 9, ’88 Dear Louella This meeting was a bit scattered. Maybe we are trying to figure out nature of our group. Judgment as to what to do is a tricky business. I would not rush, but on the other hand people may not wait for emergence of some integrating sense in the group. I do not know how to assess that. But as usual, I write up what come to my mind. I guess we were discussing how better to do the communication needed between the Developed and the Developing countries/peoples, Emergency situations are exceptional (hopefully). When poverty, deprivation, malnutrition are not “News Worthy”, how do we get people in well-to-do countries to know? Or Perhaps, you had International Development Education in your mind. It appears that other occasional bursts we do not know much and care less. Of course, the people in our group are exceptional. Our group was almost like Who’s Who of International Development. I am an outsider to that. I have never done anything worth talking about for International Development. But outsiders have one natural advantage. I know something about the reason why ordinary people do not know and cannot afford to care. And the “outsider” point of view also helps in looking at the World View (Common Sense, Prejudice) of a Culture that Education and Media create, maintain and enforce. I mentioned “Education” along with media. Because “education” is a propaganda, brainwashing. And Media do educate, at least in the sense they select and define what is expected to be known for the majority of people, and thereby they guide and influence the Accepted Perception of the World, if not manufacture the operational “Reality”. Media confer Value Status for a certain knowledge and deny to others, Just as schools and universities do. You note that “News” do have “Commodity Value”. Knowing comes with Value sensation. There is no such thing as “Value Free Knowledge”, including that in Science. Intellectual Snobism is just a minor case among others, but it sticks out because it is a “Caricature” of what we always do. When I came to the U.S., I used to pick up New York Times from waste baskets at street corners to see what Media(um) is saying. It had very obvious bias/prejudice/ideological slant, both implicit and explicit. American intellectuals apparently did not see that, I was very much puzzled by the curious phenomenon that so intelligent people can so easily be misled by so obvious propaganda. As I told you before, I used to go to meetings of “Foreign Policy Forum” etc. There I find myself completely off base from everybody, say on issues of Korea, Quimoi-Matsu Island, Vietnam, Rearmament of Japan, etc. What Americans had as the Reality was completely different from the common sense view of Asia and Asians that ordinary Japanese held. I was lucky not being called “Pinko” and thrown out of the group. By a chance, I met the head of Peace Corps and asked what the U.S. was doing to help education of brick layers, carpenters, bicycle repairmen in India besides educating Ph.D. engineers, top managers, elite bureaucrats. He was very much surprised by my question, which was just a natural question that anybody from poor countries would ask. His answer was, more or less, that Leaders of Nation were most important and implied that poor people did not matter much. Later, I found out that the head of Peace Corps was a brother-in-law to the President Kennedy and very intelligent man, besides being a “liberal”. When I entered Canada some 20 years ago, I used to see glaring bias, prejudice, ideological slant in Globe and Mail just as I saw them in New York Times. To be honest, I used to see “glaring bias” even in the Herald under Cleo and Doug just as well. I also found out that Canadians in general did not know who Herbert E. Norman was. He was very famous in Japan as a great Canadian Historian, Diplomat, because his books were the standard texts in graduate schools in History. In Canada, the only guy whom I could find and talk about Norman was Chester Ronning. Ronning was delighted to talk about him — in fact he got quite drunk and we were laughing till 4 o’clock in morning —. Perhaps, McCarthy Committee in the U.S. did not like him was enough reason for Canadians to forget him. Later, an American scholar by a name of Dower published a book on Norman and in the introduction to the book he accused of the ideological bias of scholars. I happened to be acquainted with the Big Name scholar mentioned in the book at Princeton, and knew how the bias worked, As far as I know, response of Canadian academic was minimal. It appears that Canadian academics did not wish to stand up against the American “authority” on the subject. Interestingly, now that I think of it, I do not see “misinformation” as clearly as I saw years before. I guess I am “culturally assimilated” to “know” things like the top 10% of Canadians. I mean not that I know as much as the elites know, but in the selection of “what counts as knowing” and at the limit by which I stop asking questions. Nonetheless, to my ears and eyes, CBC, Globe and Mail, etc. are still biased media. I suppose that keep me outsider, in the sense I do not share the same Myth with the intellectual elites of this country. You can take as evidence that I am not quite “educated” enough in canadian Culture. Recently I have come to see that Noam Chomsky et al talking about the Ideological bias of American Intellectuals. When Chomsky was on air, CBC host Peter Gzowsky was very much upset and could not refrain from interrupting so much that he ruined the interview. Gzowsky later recognized how unprofessional that was and did the second interview. But that tells me how deep and emotional a certain “prejudice” is. Just as Japanese and German intellectuals did not “see” nor “hear” what were going on around them during W.W.II., American Intellectuals did not see what the U.S. was doing in the world then. Canadian intellecturals are not too far different (if my academic colleagues are a fair sample of them). I am sympathetic to laborers who come home totally exhausted and have no mind to think or even “feel” anything. “Entertained” by media may be the best that they can. If they are ignorant, I do not blame them. They are kept ignorant and deceived. In alienated works, they may become numb and cannot think of anything “deep”. But I think it inexcusable that Intellectuals being “blind” to the deceptions that are going around, if they did not create the deceptions for themselves. As much as they contemptuously talk of the incapacity or apathy of lower class people to engage in anything requiring “heavy” discourse, I would expect intellectuals to be more capable. Yet, the intellectuals don’t do “home works” either. “Heavy Thinking” is avoided just the same. They are just as ignorant, unfeeling, apathetic, powerless, gutless, incapable of thinking, 615 the ones whom they look down with contempt. If Chomsky was right, the “liberal intellectuals” are the one who perpetuating the deception. I do not exempt what so called “scientists” and Educators” from this. For example, it is only recently that people have come to pay some attentions to “unfortunate unemployed” and Natives issues. International Development Aid is important. Protests against Apartheid have to be kept up. Concerns about Human Right issues in other countries must be voiced. But I feel funny about the phenomenon that somehow the problems internal to our own country are avoided. Is it because the internal problems negate our “righteous superiority” and make us feel “inferior” or “guilty”? Is it because they demand “heavier” thinking than the problems at far away places? Or the “heavy thinking” not only too much for their mental capacity, but also threatening to the system of injustice that is good to their privileged economic and social positions? If so, we may be using “poor starving people in Ethiopia” to make us feel superior in the name of “humanitarian aid”. I grant that it is better than nothing. But there remains the question of hypocrisy of charity. We create and maintain the very system that victimize them and then turn around to say we are so good people that we help them. The degree of deception by our Media is far less than that by our own self-deception. If our Media are sensationalistic and superficial, it is perhaps because we are sensationalistic and superficial. In my graduate school days, I used to live in a Quaker Weekend Project House in the middle of Philadelphia slum. I was invited as a foreign student to the discussion sessions that the weekend volunteers were having. There I learned quite a lot. A Black Lady, a welfare mother, who lived in the house in front of ours, came to know me well enough to tell me that “Your people come here for weekend and need not stay. We have no hope getting out here”. That made me thinking for a long time. The lady knew I was from Japan and some of her “boy friends” were GIs who defeated Japan only some 10 years before. I was an enemy to them. They must have sensed the irony that I got paid to be a Ph.D. physicist in one of most expensive universities — I was told that my “education” cost the U.S. tax payers several million dollars —, while they had to suffer humiliating poverty without any hope of ever getting out of it. The location was reputedly a “dangerous” place in the city. Drunkenness, Violence, etc. were just ordinary scene there. But our daughter was born there, and we have never felt any danger. They used to give our daughter a Nickel, which they could not afford do to their own kids too often. The guys and women who loved our daughter were drunk and fighting or prostituting in the alley behind our house the night before. But they were essentially graceful people (unlike some academics that I came to know later). That made me question who is keeping them poor and makes them violent. One time, they organized a protest march against city administration. It was like a festival. I saw beautiful shine in their faces. The Drunkards and prostitutes whom I knew walked in dignity and grace. I do not question if the March was “effective”. Even if it was an ephemeral flare like that of the girl who sold matches in Anderson’s story, I think the moment of human dignity is worth having. Such was an image internal to the most developed and wealthiest nation in the world then, seen by eyes of a guy from a recipient country of its international aid. Needless to say the image was quite different from what I used to see in Hollywood movies. (I was a Marilyn Monroe fan.) I do think Canada is a beautiful country. Canadians, in general, are well off indeed. They are lucky enough to be generous. But then, I also see internal problems. Not that I could do anything much to help, but wonder if “Internal CIDA” may not be a bad idea. But then, the “internal Development Project” requires “heavy discourse”. How to do that is another question. If event the intelligent People with good hearts in our group feel it “too much”, then there is not much chance. I wonder about this. You are an excellent organizer and probably know how and when to do things. Any idea? You were talking about inviting some students from the Third World countries to our meetings. That is a splendid idea. I would very much like to try that. And perhaps, when an opportunity arises, we invite Native Americans and listen to what they have to say. However, judgment as to when is somewhat tricky. I am reading books like one by Edward Said [Orientalism], who is an Egyptian Arab, and find the problem of “Different Cultures” very difficult. To an extent, one has to prepare to face a bewildering world, say, like that form reading the World of Algerians through Camus. Viewed from North American “Etiquette”, that is not a suitable topic for a dinner conversation. I do not know how to do it without becoming “Anti-Social”. To get to know people “ought” to be pleasurable and be fun to do. Humans have natural sensuality to enjoy knowing others and have a sense of belonging/relating. But I am very clumsy at the sort of things. You are always smooth and graceful, tell me the secret! Sam k. Dr. Shigeru KounosueconomicseducationIndigenous Sciencemedia The Credo Mutwa Research Library 573 Waine'e Street © 2017 WISN.org	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line598
__label__wiki	0.682587	0.682587	NMR-based metabolic characterization of chicken tissues and biofluids: a model for avian research Caroline Ivanne Le Roy1, Luke John Mappley2, Roberto Marcello La Ragione3, Martin John Woodward1 & Sandrine Paule Claus1 Metabolomics volume 12, Article number: 157 (2016) Cite this article Poultry is one of the most consumed meat in the world and its related industry is always looking for ways to improve animal welfare and productivity. It is therefore essential to understand the metabolic response of the chicken to new feed formulas, various supplements, infections and treatments. As a basis for future research investigating the impact of diet and infections on chicken’s metabolism, we established a high-resolution proton nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR)-based metabolic atlas of the healthy chicken (Gallus gallus). Metabolic extractions were performed prior to 1H-NMR and 2D NMR spectra acquisition on twelve biological matrices: liver, kidney, spleen, plasma, egg yolk and white, colon, caecum, faecal water, ileum, pectoral muscle and brain of 6 chickens. Metabolic profiles were then exhaustively characterized. Nearly 80 metabolites were identified. A cross-comparison of these matrices was performed to determine metabolic variations between and within each section and highlighted that only eight core metabolites were systematically found in every matrice. This work constitutes a database for future NMR-based metabolomic investigations in relation to avian production and health. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nation (FAOSTAT: http://www.fao.org/home/en/), calculated that approximately 22 billion chickens were produced commercially worldwide in 2012, China being the main producer with over 5 billion birds. A major production issue in commercial systems is animal density that is favourable for rapid spread of disease. Most chicks receive a cocktail of vaccines at hatch or even in ovo, but remain susceptible to typical production related endemic disease and other food borne zoonosis such as Salmonella or Campylobacter (Boer and Hahné 1990; Dufrenne et al. 2001). All infections represent a large potential economic loss for the chicken industry and is one of the main cause of meat contamination by food born pathogens (Tessari et al. 2009; White et al. 1997). Vaccines and antibiotics are commonly used to tackle such infections in order to stop spread and symptoms and minimize the associated cost. With regard to antibiotic use, increasing antimicrobial resistance has been observed in animal farming and has become a major concern in recent decades, stimulating the development of alternative treatments (McEwen and Fedorka-Cray 2002; Casewell et al. 2003). Therefore, in the interest of improving animal welfare and product quality, new more specific treatments are needed. Finally in the same purpose, attention is brought towards improving animal feeding. Chichen feed generally consists of a mix of grounded grains (corn, rice, wheat) and proteins most often from soya beans. However, the grain/protein ratio is different for egg laying and meat production. There are numerous added supplements including certain amino acids, minerals and oils. In addition feed is supplemented with vitamins A, D3 and riboflavine and mineral salts. Multi-‘omics’ approaches help to gain better understanding of host-pathogen-drug interactions (Nicholson et al. 2004; McDermott et al. 2011). This consists in using together genomic (study of the genome) (Klug et al. 2012), transcriptomic (study of gene expression) (Bernot 2004), proteomic (studying the proteome) (Blackstock and Weir 1999) and metabonomic (studying the metabolome). Chicken genomic (Burta et al. 1995), transcriptomic (Murphy 2009) and proteomic (Doherty et al. 2004; Mann 2007; Mann and Mann 2008) data have already been published but, to date, none of them have reported a detailed analysis of the chicken metabolome. Metabonomic has been mainly developed for clinical and nutritional (nutrimetabonomics) research (Nicholson et al. 2002; Holmes et al. 2011; Solanky et al. 2003; Claus and Swann 2013) and allows to look at quantitative and qualitative metabolic variations caused by genetic mutation or environmental stress in a sample set (Nicholson and Wilson 2003). The nutrimetabonomics approach is therefore useful to evaluate the impact of nutrition and food on the host systemic metabolism and understand the dietary impact on productivity in livestock farming. This paper presents the annotated NMR metabolic profiles of twelve chicken biological matrices to serve as reference for future studies. We selected four major biological matrices for the host systemic metabolism: liver, kidney, spleen and plasma. In addition, samples from the digestive system, including: colon, caecum, ileum and faecal water were analysed. Three relevant to industrial production and that could be used to evaluate or assess product quality: egg (yolk and white) and pectoral muscle. Finally brain cortex was also analysed. Animal husbandry and sample collection Five 15–16 weeks of age NovoGen Brown commercial laying hens (Gallus gallus) were purchased from the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) in Surrey. Animal husbandry conformed to animal Home Office licence (PPL 70/7249) and all procedures were performed in compliance with the Animals Scientific Procedures Act, 1986. Animals were provided with food (Chicken Layers Pellets, Dodson & Horrell—Composition detail in Material supplement) and water ad libitum. After 1 week of acclimatization (see food composition in supplement), animals of 15 weeks of age and weighing on average 1000 g (n = 6) were sacrificed by cervical dislocation. Tissues were sampled aseptically immediately after euthanasia and snap frozen in liquid nitrogen (−195.79 °C) and then transferred at −80 °C for storage until analysis. The following tissues were sampled: liver (right lobe), the right kidney, half longitudinal cut of the spleen, the right lobe of the prefrontal cortex, the middle of the external surface of the left pectoral muscle. Digestive tract samples were washed with PBS before freezing and faeces were collected directly by emptying the colon. One cm of proximal colon was sampled and 2 cm of the end on the left caecum were taken, 2 cm of ileum were sampled approximately 3 cm before the caecum. Plasma was sampled by post-mortem cardiac puncture. Egg yolk and white (n = 6) were sampled from randomly chosen eggs laid by older animals that had just come into lay (18 week old) from the same cohort of birds on the same diet and kept within the same environment. Sample biopsies were homogenised using a bead beater (Qiagen, TissueLyser LT) at a frequency of 1/25 for 10 min for the digestive tract tissue and the muscle and 3 min for the liver, the spleen, the kidney and the cortex using glass beads. For this step, 0.1 g of tissue were homogenised in 1 mL of a 3:1 (v/v) MeOH/H2O solution for polar metabolite extraction. After centrifugation 10 min at 12 000×g, 0.9 mL of supernatant was dried in speed vacuum for 4.5 h at 45 °C and resuspended in 600 μL of phosphate buffer (pH 7.4) 0.2 M containing 90 % of D2O and 10 % of H2O plus 0.01 % of sodium 3-(tri-methylsilyl)-propionate-2,2,3,3-d4 (TSP) for NMR reference. Samples were then transferred into 5 mm NMR tubes for analysis. Egg yolk and white were prepared following the same protocol. Plasma samples were mixed at a 2:1 (v/v) ratio with phosphate saline buffer with 90 % D2O, of which, 500 µL were then transferred into 5 mm NMR tubes. Faecal samples were extracted by mixing 0.1 g of faeces in 1 mL of phosphate buffer (plus TSP) with a bead beater for 3 min using glass beads at the frequency of 1/25. Samples were centrifuged at 12 000×g for 10 min in a refrigerated centrifuge and supernatants were kept at 4 °C overnight to let urea precipitate. After centrifugation for 5 min at 12,000×g, the supernatant was transferred into 5 mm NMR tubes. NMR spectra acquisition For all polar tissue extracts, egg yolk and faeces, 1H-NMR spectra were acquired on a Bruker Advance DRX spectrometer operating at 700.19 MHz and equipped with a CryoProbe™ from the same manufacturer. A standard 1-dimensional noesypr1D pulse sequence (noesypr1d 90° pulse length of 7.7 µs and total acquisition time 3.34 s) with water presaturation applied during relaxation delay (2 s) and a mixing time of 100 ms at 298 K was used. Plasma and egg white 1H NMR spectra were acquired using a Carr-Purcell-Meiboom-Gill (CPMG) (Meiboom and Gill 1958) pulse sequence to limit signal contribution from albumin and ovalbumin respectively. CPMG were acquired with simple presaturation of the water peak and a total spin–spin relaxation delay (2nτ) of 120 ms was used with the following sequence (90°-ts-180°-ts-FID). For each sample 256 scans (16 dummy scans) were recorded into 64 K data points over a spectral width of 12019 Hz as for noesypr1D. 1H–1H COSY and 1H–13C HSQC were obtained for each biological matrix on one representative sample for metabolite identification purposes. Data processing and analysis Prior to Fourier transformation, an exponential window with line broadening of 0.3 Hz was applied to each 1D NMR spectrum. All spectra were phased manually and baseline corrected on MestReNova software (2013 Mestrelab Research S.L.). Spectral calibration was performed using TSP (δ 0.00) for all tissues and yolk samples, lactate (δ 1.33) for plasma and the H1 proton of α-glucose (δ 5.23) for egg white spectra. One representative spectrum was selected from each biological matrix for illustration purpose and peak assignments. Each peak was associated to a metabolite in accordance to available database such as HMDB or previously published papers. If a molecule presented a signature with several peaks, the presence of all the peaks for this same compound was assessed prior to validation by 2D NMR experiment such as COSY and HSQC. For these spectra signal suppression was done at δ 4.84 during FID processing using a MestReNova function (with the convolution option) to attenuate water resonance. Signal assignment and metabolite identification was done using an in house standard database, published literature (Merrifield et al. 2011; Claus et al. 2008; Nicholson et al. 1995) and online public databases: the human metabolome data base (HMDB, http://www.hmdb.ca) and the magnetic resonance data bank (BMRB, http://www.bmrb.wisc.edu). For statistical analysis, spectra were imported into MatLab (version R2013b, The MathsWorks inc.) and residual signal water region was removed (δ 4.70–5.10) before normalisation (to account for variations in sample size and distribution) using a median-base probabilistic quotient method (Dieterle et al. 2006). Principal component analysis (PCA) was performed using algorithms provided by the Korrigan toolbox (Korrigan Sciences Ltd) in order to evaluate dominant sources of variation between biological matrices. Venn diagrams were also created using online Venny software (Venny 2.1 http://bioinfogp.cnb.csic.es/tools/venny/). Systemic Metabolic characterisation of several mammals, including rodents (Claus et al. 2008; Griffin et al. 2000; Martin et al. 2007; Martin et al. 2009a, b), pig (Merrifield et al. 2011), humans (Ndagijimana et al. 2009; Holmes et al. 1997; Nicholson et al. 1995) and horse (Escalona et al. 2014) is available but, to date, no overview of any bird metabolic phenotype has been published despite their industrial significance and worldwide source of protein. This work gives a summary of the metabolic composition of twelve biological matrices detectable by NMR spectroscopy in order to be used for future NMR-based metabonomics research. Representative 1H-NMR spectra of the twelve biological matrices investigated in this study are presented in Figs. 1, 2, 3 and 4 to offer an overview of the chicken metabolome. Organs and biofluids related to: the general metabolism (liver, kidney, plasma and spleen Fig. 1), product destined to consumption (egg yolk and white and muscle Fig. 2), the frontal cortex (Fig. 2) and the lower digestive tract (colon, caecum ileum and faeces Fig. 3). The numerical key for annotation is presented in Table 1 and complementary information provided by 2D spectroscopy for peak assignment is given in Supplementary material 1 and 2. Partially assigned 700 MHz 1D NMR spectra of chicken liver, kidney, spleen and plasma. Numerical key described in Table 1 Partially assigned 700 MHz 1D NMR spectra of chicken muscle, egg white and yolk and cortex. Numerical key described in Table 1. In the figure, write egg white and egg yolk Partially assigned 700 MHz 1D NMR spectra of chicken colon, caecum, ileum and faeces. The Numerical key is described in Table 1 Venn diagram representing metabolic similarities between the 12 studied chicken matrixes. a chicken general metabolism: plasma, Liver, Kidney, Spleen. b Muscle, egg yolk, egg white and brain cortex. c Digestive system: Colon, Caecum, Ileum, Faeces. Each umber represents a zone of intersection that refer to the table presented in Supplementary material 3, the numbers in brackets indicate the number of metabolites shared in the specified zone (between two and four matrixes), details of the metabolites are displayed in Supplementary material 3 Table 1 1H assignment for identified metabolites and tissue/biofluid. Legend: L, liver; K, kidney; S, spleen; B, cortex; M, pectoral muscle; Ce, caecum; Co, colon; I, ileum; F, faecal water; P, plasma; W, egg white; Y, egg yolk Matrix characterization The hepatic metabolic profile (Fig. 1a) was characterised by high levels of betaine, lactate and glucose. This was the only biological matrix where it was possible to detect glutathione (in its oxidised form since the total pool of glutathione becomes oxidised during tissue extraction), in very small quantities, in contrast to what is commonly found in mammalian hepatic metabolic profiles (Martin et al. 2007; Waters et al. 2002; Duarte et al. 2005; Claus et al. 2008). Similarly, kidney metabolic profiles (Fig. 1b) were rich in lactate, which is consistent with the important role of the kidney in energy metabolism. In addition, betaine and creatine were found in very high concentrations. Betaine is an important osmolyte in the kidney and its concentration generally increases in case of water privation such as diarrhoea resulting from infection. In birds the most important kidney osmolytes are myo-inositol, betaine, glycerophosphorylcholine, and taurine(Lien et al. 1993) that were all detected using 1H-NMR. The metabolic profile of the spleen was characterized by high levels of betaine, myo-inositol and phosphocholine (Fig. 1c). This was one of the few matrices that did not possess any unique metabolic feature, as all the metabolites detectable by NMR spectrometry were shared with liver, kidney and plasma. This similarity may be explained by the high vascularization of this tissue. In particular, it shared with plasma high lactate and betaine levels. Unique to plasma metabolic fingerprints were large resonances from lipoproteins, mainly HDL and VLDL (Fig. 1d). It was also possible to see high lactate, glucose and betaine levels. Its metabolic profile was similar to liver, kidney and spleen, but it was the only matrix where it was possible to identify malate, derived from the metabolism of the citric acid cycle. The pectoral muscle presented the most distinctive metabolic features in respect to the other tissue type samples, with only twenty-three identifiable metabolites (Fig. 2a). Three metabolites were in noticeably high concentration: anserine, creatine and lactate. We only detected AMP in muscle. Due to its pKa close to 7 anserine is a very good buffer that maintain muscle pH neutrality (Boldyrev et al. 2013). The ability of anserine to maintain a certain pH in the muscle is known to increase the rate of glycolysis (Davey et al. 1960). It is also a well-known antioxidant (Kohen et al. 1988), playing an important role during muscle contraction. The metabolic profile of egg white had high glucose content and presented only twenty-three detectable metabolites (Fig. 2b). This was not surprising knowing that egg white is relatively poor in micronutrient and is mainly constituted of water (88 %), protein (10 %) and less that 1 % of carbohydrates (Reserves 2007). Egg nutritive values for embryo development are mainly attributed to these proteins (Reserves 2007). It was also the only matrix where we could detect glucose derived molecules, such as uridine diphosphate glucose (UDPG) involved in embryo retina development (Dreyfus et al. 1975) and UDP-N-acetyl glucosamine (UDP-GlcNAC) as previously described by Donovan et al. (Donovan et al. 1967) that can be associated with muscle expansion (Ullrich et al. 1981). UDPG is involved in polysaccharide synthesis and UDP-GlcNAC is related to glycosaminoglycan, proteoglycan and glycolipid anabolism but nothing specific to its role in eggs could be found in the published literature. In contrast, yolk polar phase metabolic profile featured high levels of amino acids and carbohydrates such as glucose and galactose (Fig. 2c). All amino acids essential for protein synthesis but cysteine (that can be generated from methionine or serine) were detectable in the yolk as well as residual lipids that constitute 66 % of yolk dry matter (Reserves 2007). No particularly distinctive metabolites were observed in the yolk. The metabolic profile of the cortex presented a high content in myo-inositol, creatine, glutamate, taurine and 4-aminobutyrate (GABA) (Fig. 2d). Carnosine was also detected, which is a known brain antioxidant (Kohen et al. 1988). Surprisingly in contrast with muscle, it was not possible to detect anserine, which has been reported to be present in birds central nervous system(Biffo et al. 1990). The metabolic profiles of gastrointestinal segments were characterised by the presence of amino acids and short chain fatty acids (SCFAs) (Fig. 3). A distinctive feature of the ileum was the presence of glucose (Fig. 3c). Furthermore, the aromatic region was richer in phenylalanine and tyrosine than colon and caecum. The ileum did not present any unique metabolic feature. The metabolic profile of the caecum contained high levels of short chain fatty acids and amino acids (Fig. 3b). It was also possible to detect isobutyrate a product of amino acid degradation by gut bacteria. A very high level of O-phosphocholine, which has been associated with an immunologic response to bacterial infections (Wiens et al. 2003), was observed in this tissue. The metabolic profile of the colon (Fig. 3a) was high in short chain fatty acids (acetate, propionate and butyrate) and amino acids (alanine, aspartate, glutamate, glutamine, glycine, histidine, isoleucine, leucine, methionine, phenylalanine, proline, tryptophan, tyrosine and valine). It was the only tissue where we detected 3-hydroxyphenylacetate. Unlike previously published results for rodents (Claus et al. 2008), glucose resonances were not visible in the colon, despite its presence in faeces. Colon was the digestive system related matrix presenting the poorest metabolic diversity with thirty-six detectable metabolites. Finally, in birds, faeces also contain urine since the digestive and urinary systems share the same portal (the cloaca). Therefore, it was not surprising to observe forty-three metabolites, of which only ten of them pertained exclusively to faeces: 2-hydroxybutyrate, 3-hydroxyisobutyrate, arabinose, benzoate, dimethylamine, methylamine, N-acteylglucosamine, N-acetyltyrosine and trigonelline (Fig. 3d). Matrix cross comparison Cross tissues comparison of detectable metabolites was performed using a Venn diagram (Fig. 4 and Supplementary material 3) and revealed the high metabolic variability existing between the twelve biological matrices investigated in this study. Only eight core metabolites were found out of a total of seventy-eight detected molecules. Detected core metabolites were all amino acids: alanine, glutamate, isoleucine, leucine, phenylalanine, proline, tyrosine and valine and can be considered ubiquitous stable metabolites. Matrices related to general metabolic processes (liver, kidney, spleen and plasma) shared twenty-eight metabolites related to energy and protein metabolism. Biological matrices related to the digestive system (colon, caecum, ileum and faeces) shared 23 core metabolites associated with microbial activity, energy metabolism and protein degradation. The largest source of metabolic variation between the twelve biological matrices was visualised using PCA (Fig. 5a). The scores of liver, kidney and spleen samples were clustered together on the three first principal components representing 77 % of the total variance (PC1, PC2 and PC3, Fig. 5a). Surprisingly, this was also observed for muscle and brain cortex tissues. Metabolic profiles of samples derived from the digestive system were also grouped together but presented the highest variability between samples of the same matrix. These were the samples driving separation on the first component, which was associated with increased levels in short chain fatty acids produced by gut microbial activity. Finally, plasma, egg yolk and egg white were clustered together on PC2 due to their high glucose content. Yolk and plasma metabolic profiles also clustered together because they shared high lipid levels. Interestingly, egg-derived samples were the most metabolically homogenous, with the least inter-individual variability indicating that their metabolism is tightly regulated. Metabolic variability between the twelve described chicken matrices. a 3-Dimentional PCA score plot derived from the 1H-NMR spectra of liver, kidney, spleen, brain, muscle, plasma, white, yolk, colon, caecum, ileum and faeces of six animals. b PCA loadings representing the metabolic variations on PC1. c PCA loadings representing the metabolic variations on PC2. d PCA loadings representing the metabolic variations on PC3 The metabolic profiles of colon, caecum, ileum and faecal water shared many similar metabolic patterns. 23 shared metabolites were related to microbial catabolism of polysaccharides (acetate, butyrate) and protein degradation (amino acids). Propionate, another important product of polysaccharide fermentation was not found in the ileum but was observed in all other digestive matrices, indicating that propionate fermentation does not occur in this part of the digestive system. It was not possible to separate caecum and colon metabolic profiles using pairwise comparison such as orthogonal projection to latent structure discriminant analysis (O-PLS DA) due to their high metabolic similarity. However, it was possible to distinguish the ileum from colon and caecum based on lower SCFAs concentration, which suggests that gut microbiota (GM) at this level of the gastro intestinal (GI) tract is less active (Fig. 5b). The same was observed in mice where more SCFAs were found in the lower part of the GI tract due to high microbial colonization (Martin et al. 2009a, b). This metabolic characteristic clearly separated the cluster of GI samples from the other matrices on the PCA plot. Faecal water was the biofluid presenting the highest quantity of identifiable metabolites, of which ten were uniquely found in this matrix probably as a result of the complexity of the food provided (see Supplementary material 4 and Fig. 5a and b) and high microbial activity. These ten metabolites were mostly SCFAs, likely derived from gut microbiota activity as well as methyl donors including methylamines. The high similarity level existing between GI tract metabolic profiles and faecal waters indicates a great level of exchange between the GI lumen and the enterocytes. Birds were fed with un-medicated layer pellets (Dodson and Horrell) that mainly contain wheat rich in complex carbohydrate, vegetable oil and soya as a protein source (for more information see Supplementary material 4). Highly metabolically active tissues, liver, kidney and spleen, appear to be very similar although they serve different purposes (i.e. spleen is more involved in immune control) as presented on the PCA plot. However, due to the high number of studied matrices and their high variability, this model lacks of sensitivity to separate the three tissues which present a high level of metabolic similarity, both qualitatively and quantitatively. Nevertheless, they also present distinct features such as glucose and creatine levels that were detectable using pairwise comparisons and PCA (Supplementary material 4). Egg metabolic profiles were dominated by energy metabolites (saccharides) and amino acids for both yolk and white matrices. Yolk was also extremely rich in cholesterol and lipids, which are essential to cell membrane formation and are also sources of energy (Yeagle 1989; Spector and Yorek 1985). These results confirm the high nutritive value of chicken eggs due to their initial purpose to support fetal development. The metabolic profile of muscle has only been described in mice for cardiac muscle (Griffin et al. 2001), which in its structure and function is different to striated skeletal muscle. Despite their differences, both muscle metabolic profiles appear to be characterized by lactate, which is the main product of glucose anaerobic fermentation by muscle during exercise (Brooks 1986). Creatine was also found in high concentration, which is consistent with its important role as a phosphate donor to quickly regenerate ATP during muscular contraction (Bessman and Geiger 1981; Casey et al. 1990). Finally taurine, also involved in contractility, was highly concentrated (Pierno et al. 1998). In comparison to previously described metabolic profiles of mammals from mice, pigs and humans, these profiles show high qualitative but not necessarily quantitative similarities for liver, kidney, ileum, colon and plasma. This shows that despite the level of genetic and evolutionary differences existing between birds and mammals, their core metabolic functions remain very similar. The main difference previously mentioned between chicken and mammalian metabolic profiles were observed in the liver where we observed that glutathione levels were noticeably lower in birds. Glutathione is involved in cell protection due to its antioxidant properties (Meister 1983). This difference had been already reported in quail (Gregus et al. 1983), suggesting a major shift in hepatic detoxification mechanisms between mammals and birds. Indeed, several publications have reported a higher susceptibility of birds to toxic substances and a higher bioaccumulation in comparison to mammals (Walker 1983) consistent with a modification of detoxification metabolism during evolution. This study presents a large overview of chicken metabolic profiles in various tissues and biofluids that could be used as a database for future NMR-based metabonomic analyses in avian studies. Future works focussing on the metabolic impact of GI infection and treatment on host metabolism and on the influence of diet and growth condition would be useful to assess product quality (i.e. meat and egg). 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International Journal of Food Microbiology, 134(1–2), 147–153. Nicholson, J. K., Connelley, J., Lindon, J. C., & Holmes, E. (2002). Metabonomics: A platform for studying drug toxicity and gene function. Nature Reviews Drug Discovery, 1(2), 153–161. Nicholson, J. K., Foxall, P. J., Spraul, M., Farrant, R. D., & Lindon, J. C. (1995). 750 MHz 1H and 1H–13C NMR spectroscopy of human blood plasma. Analytical Chemistry, 67(5), 793–811. Nicholson, J. K., Holmes, E., Lindon, J. C., & Wilson, I. D. (2004). The challenges of modeling mammalian biocomplexity. Nature Biotechnology, 22(10), 1268–1274. Nicholson, J. K., & Wilson, I. D. (2003). Opinion: Understanding “global” systems biology: metabonomics and the continuum of metabolism. Nature Reviews Drug Discovery, 2(8), 668–676. Pierno, S., De Luca, A., Camerino, C., Huxtable, R. J., & Camerino, D. C. (1998). Chronic administration of taurine to aged rats improves the electrical and contractile properties of skeletal muscle fibers. The Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, 286(3), 1183–1190. Reserves, E. (2007). Chicken embryo utilization of egg micronutriments. Brazilian Journal of Poultry Science, 9(1), 1–8. Solanky, K. S., Bailey, N., Beckwith-Hall, B. M., Davis, A., Bingham, S., Holmes, E., et al. (2003). Application of biofluid 1H nuclear magnetic resonance-based metabonomic techniques for the analysis of the biochemical effects of dietary isoflavones on human plasma profile. Analytical Biochemistry, 323(2), 197–204. Spector, A. A., & Yorek, M. A. (1985). Membrane lipid composition and cellular function. Journal of Lipid Research 26(9), 1015–1035. Ullrich, S. J., Kent, C., & Carlson, D. M. (1981). Changes in galactosyltransferase activity in chick pectoral muscle during embryonic development. Biochem J, 196(1), 17–23. CAS PubMed PubMed Central Article Google Scholar Walker, C. H. (1983). Pesticides and birds: mechanisms of selective toxicity. Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment, 9(2), 211–226. Waters, N. J., Holmes, E., Waterfield, C. J., Farrant, R. D., & Nicholson, J. K. (2002). NMR and pattern recognition studies on liver extracts and intact livers from rats treated with alpha-naphthylisothiocyanate. Biochemical pharmacology, 64(1), 67–77. White, P. L., Baker, A. R., & James, W. O. (1997). Strategies to control Salmonella and Campylobacter in raw poultry products. Revue scientifique et technique (International Office of Epizootics), 16(2), 525–541. Wiens, G. D., Brown, M., & Rittenberg, M. B. (2003). Repertoire shift in the humoral response to phosphocholine-keyhole limpet hemocyanin: VH somatic mutation in germinal center B cells impairs T15 Ig function. J Immunol, 170(10), 5095–5102. Yeagle, P. L. (1989). Lipid regulation of cell membrane structure and function. FASEB Journal, 3(7), 1833–1842. We thank the staff of APHA for taking care of the birds during the study. The authors also want to thanks Dr. Radoslaw Michal Kowalczyk from the Chemical Analytical Facility (CAF) of the University of Reading for his help during the 2D NMR spectra acquisition. Department of Food and Nutritional Sciences, University of Reading, Whiteknights, Reading, RG6 6AP, UK Caroline Ivanne Le Roy, Martin John Woodward & Sandrine Paule Claus Department of cancer research, University College London, London, UK Luke John Mappley Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Surrey, Guilford, Surrey, GU2 7AL, UK Roberto Marcello La Ragione Caroline Ivanne Le Roy Martin John Woodward Sandrine Paule Claus Correspondence to Sandrine Paule Claus. Caroline I Le Roy, Martin J Woodward, Roberto M La Ragione, Luke J Mappley, Sandrine P Claus declares that they have no conflict of interest. All applicable international, national, and/or institutional guidelines for the care and use of animals were followed. Supplementary material 1 (EPS 1571 kb) Supplementary material 3 (XLSX 25 kb) Supplementary material 4 (EPS 15362 kb) Open Access This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made. Le Roy, C.I., Mappley, L.J., La Ragione, R.M. et al. NMR-based metabolic characterization of chicken tissues and biofluids: a model for avian research. Metabolomics 12, 157 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11306-016-1105-7 Accepted: 17 August 2016 Nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR)	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line603
__label__wiki	0.810498	0.810498	Brutal Choice in Houston: Sell Home at a Loss or Face New Floods Miguel Lameda removed flood damaged debris from a relative’s home in the Canyon Gate at Cinco Ranch neighborhood of Houston. Miguel Lameda removed flood damaged debris from a relative’s home in the Canyon Gate at Cinco Ranch neighborhood of Houston.Credit...Todd Heisler/The New York Times KATY, Tex. — When Hurricane Harvey struck Houston, floodwaters swept through Eileen and Jeff Swanson’s two-story brick home, blanketing the first floor in muck and nearly destroying a domestic existence 12 years in the making. Their china cabinet, in the family for three generations, was reduced to a sodden mess. A couch, once a soft red, had blushed into a watery burgundy; the carpet squished like grass at the bottom of a marsh. A dirty foot-high water line ran wall to wall, marking the local crest of an event that the National Weather Service called “the most significant tropical cyclone rainfall event in United States history.” After the floodwaters receded, the Swansons returned to a house ravaged, endless questions, few answers — and a looming decision. They are not alone. Hundreds of homeowners in Canyon Gate at Cinco Ranch, a quiet subdivision in a west Houston suburb, are mired in a slow, frustrating effort to rebuild. Others have formed an uneasy exodus, their attachment to familiar places and routines irreparably battered by a storm that dumped 50-plus inches and caused widespread flooding. They are now selling their gutted homes at well below pre-storm prices. The fundamental decision — stay or go — is one being faced by homeowners all around the Houston area. As climate change increases the frequency and intensity of storms like Harvey, no neighborhood is immune from being flooded again. But the Swansons and other homeowners in Canyon Gate face a far more certain prospect: Their neighborhood is on land that was designed to be flooded. It is part of a reservoir that was built by the United States Army Corps of Engineers in the 1940s to prevent catastrophic flooding downtown, a fact that developers did little to publicize when they built Canyon Gate in the 1990s. On a blistering September afternoon at the Swanson house, 20 box fans and an industrial blower ran nonstop in a battle against rot and decay. The family was still consigned to five rooms upstairs, and Ms. Swanson, 48, a senior executive assistant at an industrial automation company, was downstairs watching a YouTube demonstration of how to hang wallboard. At the top of the steps, Mr. Swanson, 52, was compiling a mental to-do list: Make another trip to Home Depot, haul more stuff to the storage unit, get back in time to help with the delivery of a stack of new wallboard. Their 23-year-old son Allen, who is severely developmentally disabled, was watching television. It was already a familiar routine. “It feels like our life is somewhere between, ‘Where do I start?’ and ‘Why isn’t this getting done?’” Mr. Swanson said. There was a lot keeping the Swansons in Canyon Gate. They had paid off the house, purchased in 2006 for $225,000, just a few months before the flood. That freed them from a monthly mortgage. The home was close to their younger son Nick’s school and in a neighborhood they loved, and they had adapted the space to suit Allen’s disabilities — he has seizures, so they needed open areas where they could watch him from other parts of the house. In a hundred different ways, floods or no floods, this was their home. And yet the case for leaving was clear. Two weeks before the floods, Mr. Swanson had quit his job as a security guard, with the intention of looking for work without so many late hours. The Swansons had some savings, but the money was meant to pay for Nick, 17, a high school junior, to attend college. With only one income, there was little money left over for repairs and renovations that would cost upward of $60,000. Hanging over the entire process was the knowledge that a similar — or even worse — flood could hit again, possibly even as soon as the next hurricane season. “I am pretty sure we would not have moved into this house if we knew,” Ms. Swanson said. ‘It’s Worth Saving’ Hugh Durlam knew he was staying. As a 13-year resident and former homeowners association board member, Mr. Durlam was completely invested in Canyon Gate. But he wanted to know what happened to others in the neighborhood. So on the Canyon Gate Facebook page he administers, he recently posted a survey asking homeowners if renovations were completed or close to completion, if they were still rebuilding, or if they had not yet started. Of the 202 responses, all but two were involved in some kind of renovation. “This is going to be a brand-new 20-year-old community. It’s worth saving,” said Mr. Durlam, who works for a Houston engineering firm. He supports a plan to deepen the reservoir and build a levee to protect the neighborhood, he said, “something that should have been done a long time ago.” Christina Raena Micu isn’t certain about what to do next. When Harvey hit, she anxiously watched television footage of the storm from a Dallas hotel room, where she had taken shelter with her husband and two of her three children. Her 20-year-old son had stayed behind, sending dispatches as the waters invaded their neighborhood, before finally evacuating in chest-deep water with only a backpack. Inside Ms. Micu’s home, everything on the first floor was submerged within or floating atop a couple of feet of muddy water. When she returned from Dallas, she rushed to her bedroom hoping her collection of childhood photos had somehow survived. She had left the photo albums in a pile on the carpeted floor with plans to one day organize them on a bookshelf. They were stuck together, the images swirled into watercolor blurs, too damaged to save. But what she saw next was more immediately concerning: mold. “I have a 5-year-old son with asthma who has already been hospitalized once for it,” she said. “I can’t just move back in. It’s much more complicated than that for me.” After she moved her family into an apartment about 10 minutes away, signing a one-year lease with some financial assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Ms. Micu, a real estate investor, embarked on a monthslong renovation of her flood-soaked home, ripping out the floors and walls and repeatedly treating the house with mold bombs, foggers and air purifiers. Almost every day, Ms. Micu weighed her choices. Some days, she was sure she would stay. The house was in a safe neighborhood, roomy with a swing set in the backyard. Before the storm, she was even planning an addition. Other days, she knew moving was her only choice. Both options were expensive. Selling meant taking a big hit: She paid $183,000 for the house six years ago and figured it was not worth much more than half of that now. But for as long as they lived in their temporary apartment, she was paying rent and a mortgage. FEMA gave her about $16,000, but the renovation bids were all around $70,000. By the time the four-bedroom house passed a mold test in February, Ms. Micu was thinking that she might split the difference. Move her family elsewhere, but keep the house as a rental. “With my son’s immune system, I can’t have a situation where the mold is a trigger,” said Ms. Micu, a Houston native whose parents are Filipino immigrants. “I can’t take the chance.” Something else was nagging Ms. Micu. She wondered how the subdivisions could have been built in a reservoir. And if they had to be sacrificed, shouldn’t the homeowners be compensated? “This pushed our lives in another path,” she said. “How could we have known that we would return from Dallas and practically have to start over?” The questions are what pushed her to look for a law firm. In September, she became one of the lead plaintiffs in a federal class-action suit against the Army Corps of Engineers. “Harvey took away my photo album with pictures from every year of my life. It took so many things. It took the purse that my husband bought me as a gift. He spent three months looking for it,” she said. “Harvey took away my sense of security, but so did the Army Corps of Engineers. What happened to us was wrong.” When Paulette Delynn Archer, 70, greets a visitor in the doorway of her one-story brick house, she is framed by large picture windows that reveal the emptiness inside, where flooding and renovation have left little more than wood studs between the front door and the back patio. “Come in, let me show you the house,” Ms. Archer offered in a cheery voice that soon gave way to silence. “Well, this used to be my house. Now it’s just a shell.” Ms. Archer had once delighted in having guests over to see her four-bedroom home, where everything was the color of soft gold or pumpkin. This is where she had raised her only son, where her husband and mother spent their final days, where she had planned to spend her remaining days. But the four feet of mud and water that gushed through the house had demanded something radically different. Two decades ago, Ms. Archer and her husband had paid roughly $200,000 for the house and watched it appreciate to more than $300,000. She said it would cost well over $100,000 to renovate the house and her FEMA grant would only cover a small fraction. How a Community Was Sacrificed to Save Houston After Hurricane Harvey hit, these communities, built in what is called a flood pool, were sacrificed to save the city of Houston. We followed homeowners as they decided whether to cut their losses or rebuild, knowing it could happen again. “We never anticipated having that sense of community on our doorstep.” “It was a hell of a good home, and we could afford it.” “Hopefully, our authorities can win our trust back again.” “Harvey took away from us our normal everyday life that you go through.” “Nobody anticipated it, so very few people really were prepared for it.” “Our community is right next to the reservoir. And they knew that, because they designed it.” “The nation’s fourth largest city, Houston, bracing for catastrophic flooding.” “The Army Corps of Engineers say in order to save homes downstream, it has to flood others upstream. That includes homes in Cinco Ranch and Bear Creek.” “3,000 homes got water behind the Barker Reservoir. Harvey didn’t flood them — the federal government flooded them.” “A lot of people think that they did that to save downtown, and I understand. But now we need help. We need help, too.” “What do we do next? How do we solve this thing without going dead broke?” “Much of our developed area on the east side of the county is protected by levees. The reservoir was backing up like a bathtub filling. We didn’t know exactly how high it would rise.” “This storm, 38 inches of rain in about a three day period, is probably almost total for the year what we normally get. Had those flows gone around the ends of the dam, they would have caused a great deal of flooding. So we had to make a tough decision.” “We have opened the gates, and we are actually flooding homes downstream now.” “This area is designed to hold that water if necessary. It’s unfortunate for you all, but that’s how it’s designed.” “Oh, my God. Oh, my God. Already has — already has mold growing. God. Almost no one around here has flood insurance. It’s not supposed to be an area that floods.” “Everything I own was in that house. I lost my wife about a year ago. And so there was a lot of emotion, and a lot of memories that I have to not think about.” “As we were driving into the neighborhood, Lily kept saying, it feels so weird to be here. We were trying to kind of prepare her that it’s going to look a lot different.” “And it’s like it’s a huge stupid beach. It’s usually like there’s so much grass. All the kids running around. It just feels weird seeing it like this, because all this trash is never here. It was like so high and scary. Like, first the water was up to here. Then it started getting into the houses. See this like Post-it note thing? My mom told me it was like, make sure there’s no dead bodies.” “He has been so obsessed with looking through flooding pictures. At least five times a day, he wants to look and see the house when it first flooded and the picture of Lily’s school.” “So the grant is a max of $33,300, and you can only get that once you’ve been inspected. We have almost 800,000 registrations in the state of Texas alone. Right now it’s just a waiting process, because it does take while for them to get to you.” “So what’s going to happen is, don’t freak out, you’re going to get a denial letter from FEMA, because you have a homeowners. But when you get your reward letter from your homeowners, telling how much they’re paying you, you’re going bring a copy of that letter to me. And I’m going to fax it to Washington, and then FEMA picks back up what the homeowners didn’t pay.” “O.K. But then — O.K.” “O.K.?” “Now what do I do for wheels?” “For that? I don’t know.” “I mean, you’re it? I don’t qualify?” “It’s left up to your inspector. It ain’t left up to me.” “How about accommodations? My daughter is selling her house. I’m out of — I have no place to go.” “I’ll put that in your notes.” “Homes were substantially destroyed, and I think you really have to make a serious decisions as to whether you want to rebuild. If I lived behind that reservoir and my house had four or four and a half feet of water in it, I don’t think I could rebuild. I wouldn’t want to rebuild.” “We’re paying the mortgage and the rent. We do get a low interest loan from FEMA, and so that helps a lot. We live with my daughter and her kids. We want my grandkids to grow up here.” “There were lots of sleepless nights — where was the money going to come from in order to rebuild our house? But we did receive a small grant from FEMA, and the church was able to cover three months worth of rent. I think we both just sat there and cried. It was so overwhelming. We were so fortunate. None of my other neighbors are in a similar situation.” “So the hurricane hit, right? Now, it’s react time. What are you going to do with your property? The longer you hesitate, the more damage that’s going to accrue on your house. As horrible as it’s been, everybody has been pretty upbeat and happy. Hello, sir. Not everybody, but most people. Hey, how are you doing, sir? I’m James. I’m James Smith with Keller Williams Energy Corridor Realty. How are you? I was just wondering how everybody is doing?” “About in the same shape. Waiting on FEMA, most of us. And S.B.A. loans.” “Got you.” “Just in a holding pattern until we can repair our homes.” “If you give me a call, I can give you some information on the proper people that come in and get in contact with. All my advice is going to be at no cost to you. And if I ever can help you, just give me a call.” “Appreciate it.” “No problem. I’ll let you get back to work, sir. So there’s a lot of properties that actually went into foreclosure. A lot of those now the bank owns. Let’s go. You be careful. Now, they’re going to be totally renovated with all the new items on it. Because there’s too many people selling — that’s going to create a buyer’s market. They can kind of set the price.” “I’m 87. I’m not going to spend the last years of my life building back a house that I ain’t going to go and live in. I’m going to sell it. We just don’t talk about what has gone and will never be back.” “There’s Dad. Look at my beautiful mother.” “See, all that furniture sitting out on the lawn was 62 years of accumulation, of memories. And, that hurts.” “For a while there, it looked like a ghost town in here. I’d say, like a quarter of the community is back. All right. We still have a lot of little things that have to be done, but we’re home.” “It feels exciting to be back in the house, and a little bit overwhelming.” “Where are all the flooded pictures?” “You want to see all the flooded pictures?” “Yeah. Where are they?” “Remember when our house looked like that?” “Yeah. I want to see the X on it.” “Oh, I don’t think I took a picture of the X. You know what? Maybe I did. Hold on, let me look. There it is.” “I love to move back in.” “We already moved back in, didn’t we? So did we get to take that down?” “Yeah.” “Yeah, it’s not there anymore, is it? I can’t describe how happy I am to be back in my own house. I do you have a sense of guilt that comes along with it. There’s a lot of people that haven’t even had their FEMA visits.” “For my own sanity, I got to stay positive and moving forward.” “Our community never should have been developed. It’s hundreds and hundreds of houses. Now we are proof that we need better regulations.” After Hurricane Harvey hit, these communities, built in what is called a flood pool, were sacrificed to save the city of Houston. We followed homeowners as they decided whether to cut their losses or rebuild, knowing it could happen again.CreditCredit...Todd Heisler/The New York Times In the mornings, while staying at a La Quinta Inn, Ms. Archer would make lists in a blue three-ring binder of items lost, mostly items that came to her in her dreams. “I finally stopped trying to sum up my entire life. It was just too stressful. But that list told me that as much as I loved my house, there was no way out of this but to sell,” said Ms. Archer, who spent the first part of her career as a flight attendant then became a police officer for the Port of Houston Authority. “I couldn’t get a loan at my age and with no job. How would I pay it back?” She had lost everything once before, as a teenager in a house fire. The crushing loss felt the same; the inability to recover felt far different. Like other homeowners, Ms. Archer said she had no idea the house was built in a reservoir. She was told over and over that she did not need flood insurance, she said. Two or three times she purchased it anyway and then let the policy expire. Three years earlier, she had taken out a reverse mortgage, which allows homeowners over 62 years old to convert equity into cash. After the flood, her house was worth less than the loan balance. It left her in a terrible bind. “I am sitting here thinking that I am not going to be able to get out of this situation,” she said. How One Houston Suburb Ended Up in a Reservoir Most residents whose homes flooded during Hurricane Harvey had no clue that their gated community was built in an area prone to such damage in extreme storms. She eventually negotiated with the lender to offer the house as a short sale for $125,000. Earlier this month, Ms. Archer closed on the sale and walked away for good. Now fearful of floods and the sound of hard rain, she plans to move near a nephew in Dallas, where she will re-enter the job market 10 years after her retirement. “There is no way I could have imagined I would be starting over at this point in my life,” she said, then sighed deeply. “I know everything will be O.K. Eventually.” On a fall afternoon, as they were in the garage sorting the few salvageable pieces — the roar of trucks carting debris in the distance — Mr. Swanson turned to Ms. Swanson, his wife of 24 years. “I don’t want to leave. Do you?” he blurted out. Ms. Swanson shook her head. Neither did she. For the Swansons, rebuilding was the only choice. They knew it would be hard, but this was home. Instead of returning to work, Mr. Swanson pitched in on the repairs. “For now,” Ms. Swanson said, “it make more sense for Jeff to be home helping with the house rather than to be on a job making $12 an hour.” The couple also bought flood insurance. In October, they received a FEMA grant for about $10,300, part of the more than $91 million the federal agency distributed in Fort Bend County. They also received donated kitchen countertops and cabinets through a state program and a $25,000 grant from Fort Bend Recovers, a local public-private disaster assistance coalition, for construction costs. There was still a gap, but it was manageable, and less than the cost of a new house and mortgage. The numbers made sense, but Mr. Swanson said he also had a more personal reason for staying. “It took me this many years to finally become a Texan,” he said. “Harvey is not going to run us away.” Nancy Pelosi Wants to Take Back the House. But She Faces a More Urgent Test. LA cops eye 2 more deaths in 'Grim Sleeper' case In Indiana and Beyond, Bruising G.O.P. Primary Fights Worry Party Leaders Agriculture colleges, extension get budget squeeze SPCA Seizes 300 Animals at Texas Ranch Ex-chair of civil rights group indicted in Ohio	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line605
__label__wiki	0.872129	0.872129	Four Attacks in One Week: The Rising Risk of West African Piracy It's no secret that African waters are among the most perilous in the world when it comes to piracy. Tom Hanks' "Captain Phillips" brought attention to Somalian piracy, but the immediate concern for ship owners is on the opposite side of the continent: West Africa. West Africa's Gulf of Guinea has been topping the charts for quite some time now when it comes to piracy and kidnapping. Last week, however, the problem accelerated: A total of four cases has been recorded in a single week, spanning from November 26 to December 2. In this week, a total of 14 crew members have been directly abducted from their ships, something that happened in just three days from two different ships. In one incident on November 26, the general cargo ship Milan was attacked and boarded by pirates, who went on to kidnap 10 crew members. In a separate incident three days later, the Greek tanker Agisilaos was attacked and boarded by pirates in the Gulf of Guinea south of Lome, Togo, while she was en route from Pointe-Noire, Republic of Congo, to Lome. Four crew members - including Filipino, Romanian and Russian nationals - were kidnapped, and the pirates escaped the scene. The list doesn't stop there. Armed pirates stormed the cargo vessel Tango Rey in Conakry Anchorage, Guinea. Six armed pirates boarded the ship and looted the superstructure and the living quarters of the crew. The last attack was repulsed. On December 2, the oil tanker Levanto was attacked in Nigerian waters by a host of pirates. Fortunately, the guards onboard thwarted the attack. Kidnappings rose by 40 percent in the Gulf of Guinea in the first nine months of this year, and the region of West Africa's coast now accounts for 95 percent of global maritime kidnappings, according to data from the International Maritime Bureau (IMB). West African pirates armed with guns and knives have attacked everything from oil platforms to fishing vessels and refrigerated cargo ships. Out of all the countries in the Gulf of Guinea, Nigeria (particularly the Niger Delta) accounts for the bulk of attacks on these ships. Source : Maritime executive Original link : https://www.maritime-executive.com/article/four-attacks-in-one-week-show-the-rising-risk-of-west-african-piracy Hull cleaning The Pole to Pole Network that’s… Four Attacks in One Week: The… Rates shoot up 25% in just… 10 Kidnapped from Freighter Off Niger… Marine One is a leader in agency , technical, engineer services and an accredited provider of maritime security. Grievance procedure Security Policy Sea trial Provions supply Operations at Colombo port Level 14, East Tower, World Trade Center, Echelon Square, Colombo 01, Sri Lanka Hotline 24/7: +94777443465 info@marinelanka.lk © Marine One Pvt Ltd. All Rights Reserved.	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line606
__label__cc	0.705438	0.294562	MaryGSykes.com CONFIRMED BY ILL. SUPREME COURT– YOU ARE VIEWING THE MOST DANGEROUS BLOG IN ILLINOIS. This blog warranted a 3 year suspension by the ARDC/Jerome Larkin! Mottos: "Sunlight is the best disinfectant". Justice Louis Brandeis ; "If the truth can destroy something, then it deserves to be destroyed" Carl Sagan; "Justice is Truth in Action" Benjamin Disraeli. Illinois uses the ARDC to quash dissenting attorney activist blogs ; "The freedom of the press is one of the greatest bulwarks of liberty, and can never be restrained but by despotic Governments" — (1776-First Amendment preamble adopted by 8 US colonies) BOOK YOUR APPT ONLINE! 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CONTACT US/Cost of Corruption/Make a DONATION In memoriam–Guardianships gone (deadly) wrong Links to other Probate victim websites New–RAFFLE TICKETS See our umbrella site — www.justice4every1.com Take our survey regarding attorney corruption and blogging! From FB: Some Great Law you can use in Motions and Briefs on parental rights Posted on May 13, 2018 by jmdenison Procedural right to Due Process–parents rights under state kidnap The right to procedural due process is implicated where a constitutionally protected liberty or property interest is concerned. Board of Regents of St. Colleges v. Roth, 408 US 564 (1972). The crux of procedural due process is the right to notice and an opportunity to be heard at a meaningful time and in a meaningful manner. Fuentes v. Shevin, 407 US 67 (1972). The US Supreme Court has repeatedly held that parents have a fundamental right to make decisions as to the companionship, care, custody and management of their children, which right is a protected liberty interest under the Fourteenth Amendment. Troxel v. Granville, 530 US 57, 65-66 (2000). As a result, there can be no doubt that the Fourteenth amendment is implicated whenever the government seeks to separate a parent from his or her child, and due process principles generally require the right to notice and a hearing before children are separated from their parents. Hollingsworth v. Hill, 110 F.3d 733, 739 (10th Cir. 1997). The separation does not have to be carried out with force for due process to be implicated; instead, duress or coercion will be sufficient, such as where a social services worker threatens to place the children in foster care if the children are not “voluntarily” placed outside of the home with family or friends. Croft v. Westmoreland County Children & Youth Services, 103 F.3d 1123, 1125 (3rd. Cir. 1997); Dupuy v. Samuels, 462 F.Supp.2d 859 (ND.Ill. 2005), aff’d, 465 F.3d 757 (7th Cir. 2006). However, where there is reasonable suspicion to believe that a child is in “imminent danger” of serious harm, a pre-deprivation hearing is not required. Hollingsworth, 110 F.3d at 739. In such a case, several courts have determined that a post deprivation hearing must be afforded within 72 hours, even if such a hearing has not been requested by the family. Patterson v. Armstrong County Children and Youth Services, 141 F.Supp.2d 512, 531-39. (WD Pa. 2001). Some courts have permitted slightly longer or required slightly shorter periods depending on the circumstances. Berman v. Young, 291 F.3D 976, 985 (7th Cir. 2002) (concluding that 72 day delay was “rather outrageous” but finding no damages), Jordan v. Jackson, 15 F.3d 333, 351 (4th Circ. 1994)( concluding that 75 hour delay was constitutionally permissible but was “near, if not at, the outer limit of permissible delay between a child’s removal from his home and judicial review. A delay of this length, absent extraordinary circumstances, for example, cf. County of Riverside, 500 U.S. at —-, 111 S.Ct. at 1670 (“bonafide emergency or other extraordinary circumstance” must be shown to justify delay greater than 48 hours), most certainly would be difficult to justify under either the statute or the Constitution (if it could be justified at all) where a removal is effected other than during, or shortly prior to, a weekend, as the Commonwealth has recognized through its statutory scheme. We are not prepared to say, however, that a delay of this length over an ordinary weekend is so offensive to principles of fairness as to require its invalidation under the Constitution. The state’s removal of a child from his parents indisputably constitutes an interference with a liberty interest of the parents and thus triggers the procedural protections of the Fourteenth Amendment. There are few rights more fundamental in and to our society than those of parents to retain custody over and care for their children, and to rear their children as they deem appropriate. Santosky v. Kramer, 455 U.S. 745, 753, 102 S.Ct. 1388, 1394, 71 L.Ed.2d 599 (1982); Quilloin v. Walcott, 434 U.S. 246, 255, 98 S.Ct. 549, 554-55, 54 L.Ed.2d 511 (1978); Stanley v. Illinois, 405 U.S. 645, 651, 92 S.Ct. 1208, 1212, 31 L.Ed.2d 551 (1972); Prince v. Massachusetts, 321 U.S. 158, 166, 64 S.Ct. 438, 442, 88 L.Ed. 645 (1944); Pierce v. Society of Sisters, 268 U.S. 510, 534-35, 45 S.Ct. 571, 573-74, 69 L.Ed. 1070 (1925); Meyer v. Nebraska, 262 U.S. 390, 399, 43 S.Ct. 625, 626, 67 L.Ed. 1042 (1923); see also Zablocki v. Redhail, 434 U.S. 374, 386, 98 S.Ct. 673, 681, 54 L.Ed.2d 618 (1978). To say that “the institution of the family is deeply rooted in this Nation’s history and tradition,” Moore v. City of East Cleveland, 431 U.S. 494, 503, 97 S.Ct. 1932, 1938, 52 L.Ed.2d 531 (1977) (plurality), as the Supreme Court often has said, see e.g., Michael H. v. Gerald D., 491 U.S. 110, 123-24, 109 S.Ct. 2333, 2341-42, 105 L.Ed.2d 91 (1989) Page 343 (plurality); Smith v. Organization of Foster Families, 431 U.S. 816, 845, 97 S.Ct. 2094, 2110, 53 L.Ed.2d 14 (1977), borders on understatement. The unitary family is the foundation of society. Through the intimate relationships of the family, our children are nurtured, tutored in the values and beliefs of our society, and prepared for life. See Parham v. J.R., 442 U.S. 584, 602, 99 S.Ct. 2493, 2504, 61 L.Ed.2d 101 (1979) (“[P]arents generally ‘have the right, coupled with the high duty, to recognize and prepare [their children] for additional obligations.’ “) (quoting Pierce, 268 U.S. at 535, 45 S.Ct. at 573). Through these relationships, our children–indeed, we, as parents–are strengthened, fulfilled and sustained. The bonds between parent and child are, in a word, sacrosanct, and the relationship between parent and child inviolable except for the most compelling reasons. Where the state seeks to interfere with these “essential,” Meyer, 262 U.S. at 399, 43 S.Ct. at 626, or “fundamental,” Santosky, 455 U.S. at 753, 102 S.Ct. at 1394, parental rights, its action must satisfy the procedural strictures of the Due Process Clause. Cf. id.; Lassiter v. Dep’t of Social Services, 452 U.S. 18, 101 S.Ct. 2153, 68 L.Ed.2d 640 (1981). Due process, however, does not always require prior process. See FDIC v. Mallen, 486 U.S. 230, 240, 108 S.Ct. 1780, 1787, 100 L.Ed.2d 265 (1988) (“An important government interest, accompanied by a substantial assurance that the deprivation is not baseless or unwarranted, may in limited cases demanding prompt action justify postponing the opportunity to be heard until after the initial deprivation.”); see also United States v. James Daniel Real Property, — U.S. – —, —-, 114 S.Ct. 492, 501, 126 L.Ed.2d 490 (1993) (hearing may be postponed until after the event in extraordinary situations) (citing Fuentes v. Shevin, 407 U.S. 67, 82, 92 S.Ct. 1983, 1995, 32 L.Ed.2d 556 (1972)). And, as appellants concede, it is well-settled that the requirements of process may be delayed where emergency action is necessary to avert imminent harm to a child, see Weller v. Dep’t of Social Services, 901 F.2d 387, 393 (4th Cir.1990); Doe v. Hennepin County, 858 F.2d 1325, 1329 (8th Cir.1988), cert. denied, 490 U.S. 1108, 109 S.Ct. 3161, 104 L.Ed.2d 1023 (1989); Donald v. Polk County, 836 F.2d 376, 380-81 (7th Cir.1988); Hooks v. Hooks, 771 F.2d 935, 942 (6th Cir.1985); Duchesne v. Sugarman, 566 F.2d 817, 826 (2d Cir.1977), provided that adequate post-deprivation process to ratify the emergency action is promptly accorded. See Weller, 901 F.2d at 396; Hennepin County, 858 F.2d at 1329. This entry was posted in Uncategorized by jmdenison. Bookmark the permalink. 1 thought on “From FB: Some Great Law you can use in Motions and Briefs on parental rights” jmdenison on May 13, 2018 at 10:26 am said: Reblogged this on Justice for Everyone Blog.	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line608
__label__wiki	0.863262	0.863262	Cha Jun-hwan South Korean skater Cha Jun-hwan is a four-time South Korean champion, a Grand Prix Final bronze medallist, and a Winter Olympian. Cha has been ranked as one of the Top 10 men’s singles skaters in the world standings, and has set several international records and South Korean firsts across his junior and senior careers. Cha showed early promise on the rink, claiming victories at the Asian Open and Merano Cup at novice level, and landing two consecutive South Korean Junior Championships titles. Later, on the international junior circuit, he would score gold medal wins at the Autumn Classic in Barrie, and at Junior Grand Prix events in Germany and Japan. During this time, he also made his mark at the top level of international competition with fifth-place finishes at the Junior Worlds and the Youth Olympics. Cha took his first of four consecutive national titles in Gangneung in 2017, and has since proven himself to be the most decorated South Korean men’s skater of his generation. He made his senior international debut in the 2017-18 season, which saw him land a top ten finish at Skate America, and compete at his first senior Winter Olympic Games in South Korea. The following year would see him take home several pieces of silverware, including bronze medals at the Finland and Skate Canada Grand Prix events and at the Grand Prix Final in Vancouver, and Challenger Series silver medals at the Autumn Classic and Finlandia. At the 2019 Four Continents Championships, Cha recorded a personal best score of 97.33 in the short programme, which became one of the highest men’s scores under the new ISU Judging System. Book Cha Jun-hwan	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line613
__label__wiki	0.55469	0.55469	International Day to End Obstetric Fistula 2017 [:en]Today is International Day to End Obstetric Fistula, but what exactly is Obstetric Fistula? Although it affects millions of women, few Canadians know about it because very few women in Canada are at risk of developing this heartbreaking condition. Obstetric Fistula, also known as Vesico-vaginal Fistula (VVF) is traumatizing. It is a child birth related injury where a hole develops between the rectum and vagina or between the bladder and vagina. Women who survive days of labor and the death of their baby are left incontinent, which means they have no control over constantly leaking urine and feces. This condition affects millions of women around the world, primarily in poverty stricken countries where there is very limited access to healthcare and an emergency caesarean section Free surgeries are provided for women on board the Africa Mercy and training is given to local & international health care professionals including surgeons, nurses and traditional birth attendants. Dr Andy Norman, VVF Surgeon presents Rose with a bag during the Dress Ceremony, a ceremony where women are given a new dress to symbolize their new start in life. Monica Ciolfi from Qualicum Beach, British Columbia, is a nurse who has volunteered with Mercy Ships during two field services and worked closely with ladies suffering from Fistula. We spoke with her recently about her work and what she knows about Fistula. When did you first hear about Obstetric Fistula? I first learned about Obstetric Fistula when I was researching Mercy Ships. many years before I applied. When I read specifically on the type of surgeries performed on the ship, I saw that vesicovaginal fistula repair was one of the major ones. I did not know at this time what this was, so I read up on it a bit more on the internet. When did you first encounter women suffering from Obstetric Fistula? In 2015 I spent 3 months aboard the Africa Mercy in Madagascar and was so blessed to have spent 6 weeks caring for women after they had corrective surgery for the their Obstetric Fistulas. In 2016 I returned to the ship and worked solely on the VVF ward for 10 weeks. Was there one particular woman whose story moved you? Can you tell us about her? Yes. One young woman was 16 years old and her boyfriend/husband accompanied her on the ship because she was under the age of 18, she had to have a caregiver with her. She had an obstructive labour when she was only 14 years old. Her baby died, as most of them do in these circumstances, and she was left childless and with an obstetric fistula. She also had drop foot on one side, presumably from nerve damage as a result of her prolonged labour. Unlike most women with obstetric fistulas, her husband stayed by her side. Despite all she had been through in her young age, she still smiled as if everything was going to be okay. Because of her resilience, I still remember her story and her sweet face. Another young woman, who I think was in her mid-twenties also remains one of my most memorable patients. As a result of an obstructive labour, she not only had a vesicovaginal fistula (which left her leaking urine), but also a rectovaginal fistula, which left her leaking feces as well. Years before coming onboard the Africa Mercy, she met a doctor who told her he would give her a colostomy to allow her fistula to heal, and then eventually reverse it later on. She was never able to get her colostomy reversed because she was unable to pay for it. I found it so unethical that a doctor would leave this women with a colostomy, in a country where there are no resources or supplies to give her the quality of life she should have at such a young age. She had surgery on her bowel to fix the previous surgery that had been done before she could be considered for a fistula repair. She remained on the ward for weeks and because very well-known by all the hospital staff. What sort of emotions were brought up while working with these women? Pretty much every emotion at some point or another. Sadness, after hearing that their families had abandoned them due to their conditions and that their hope of a family of their own had been taken from them so abruptly. Hope, when women would come to the ship and then be cleared by the screening team to have their surgery. Excitement, when women would have their catheters removed and then void on their own for the first time since before their injuries. Happiness and Joy, when the women would go home with fully functioning bladders. Anxiety, when thinking about the women going home and all the post-operative instructions they needed to follow in order to keep their fistula from re-opening. They weren’t suppose to have sex for a minimum of 3 months after their surgery, and a lot of women were fearful that their partners would not be compliant with this. Some also had long journeys home, sometimes 12 hours or more on a truck, and they were afraid that the driver would not stop if they needed to empty their bladders, which were now up to 50% smaller than before. Overall it was very emotional taking care of these women, but more so in a positive and fulfilling way. They all touched my heart in a different way. What do you think is the biggest challenge is for these women? It’s difficult to just choose one. But I would guess that losing a child that had been carried to term would be the hardest part. I am not a mother, but I hear a lot from friends and co-workers who are mothers and how having a child has changed their lives so significantly, but in the end they never regret having their child and are proud to say that it is the best thing they have ever done. I have never heard of a case where a woman with an obstructive labour leaving them with a fistula, had a baby that survived. For many mothers, I think their motivation to find strength and carry on comes from their children, so I can see the greatest challenge for women with fistulas is to have to face each day without their child, and often times, without their husband or family. What are some of the differences between women in North America and women in Africa when it comes to childbirth and accessibility to healthcare? In Africa, many women start doing physical work when they are young. In combination with malnutrition, this can cause stunted growth, leaving the women much smaller in Africa than North American women who are generally well nourished and do not do physical labour from a young age. During birth, a baby has a very difficult time getting through the tiny pelvis of a small women. In North America it does happen, but before the newborn baby is at any significant risk, the specialized doctor (in the hospital) or the midwife (potentially at home or in hospital) will intervene and get the birthing mother to a hospital where she can have a C-section to maintain the safety of the mom and baby. In Madagascar and many other African countries, accessibility to health care is minimal. Most of the population of Madagascar is rural, and without access to a specialist who can perform a C-section (assuming the family can afford it), the odds of intervening on the labour in due time is unlikely. When we discharged patients after their surgeries, we told them to start saving as soon as they found out they were expecting so that they would have enough money to pay for a C-section, which kind of gives you an idea of how much planning and budgeting healthcare costs in countries such as Madagascar. What needs to change to decrease the percentage of women who develop Obstetric Fistula? So much. Mostly infrastructure and accessibility to health care services, and subsidized services for at-risk pregnancies. Preventing women from being in obstructive labour would mean changing their roles in their families/villages and ultimately their culture entirely. Ending malnutrition is always on the agenda in less developed countries. But if all women had access to get a C-section when they needed it, and could also afford it, I believe the incidences of new obstetric fistulas would decrease over time. In Madagascar alone, their is one obstetric fistula clinic. For the majority of the country, it takes greater than 3 days to travel to it. Their is an estimated 80 000 cases of obstetric fistula in Madagascar, with 2 000 new cases every year. Monica and patient in Madagascar More than 2 million women in sub-Saharan Africa, Asia, the Arab region, and Latin America and the Caribbean are estimated to be living with fistula, and some 50,000 to 100,000 new cases develop annually. Yet fistula is almost entirely preventable. Its persistence is a sign of global inequality and an indication that health systems are failing to protect the health and human rights of the poorest and most vulnerable women and girls. – See more at: http://www.unfpa.org/obstetric-fistula#sthash.535LDJbq.dpuf A Big thanks to Nurse Monica for sharing with us to help spread awareness around this critical maternal health issue! Tam Lowe, Ward Nurse, VVF Team Leader speaks to the ladies. [otw_shortcode_button href=”https://interland3.donorperfect.net/weblink/WebLink.aspx?name=mercyships&id=25&_ga=2.67284690.2123822582.1495577432-368023662.1495575245″ size=”large” bgcolor=”#de2421″ icon_position=”left” shape=”square”]SUPPORT OUR WOMEN’S HEALTH PROGRAM[/otw_shortcode_button]	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line619
__label__wiki	0.541028	0.541028	Not enough money to cover school spending plans Posted by Thomas Mitchell \| May 9, 2019 \| Tom Mitchell, Top Stories \| 0 Penny wise and pound foolish? Democratic Gov. Steve Sisolak announced recently that he is donating his $163,000-a-year salary to the state’s poorest public schools. “I asked the people of Nevada for the chance to lead this state for many reasons, chief among them being the opportunity to improve educational outcomes for every child in every classroom in the state,” Sisolak wrote in a letter to the Nevada State Board of Education. “To show my commitment to this goal, the First Lady and I are donating my net state salary back to public education. It is my sincere hope that with these donations, I can begin to fulfill my promise to our educators, families, and children and make a positive impact on our public schools.” According to news accounts, the money would be split among the state’s 416 poorest schools — less than $400 per school. This is the same governor who declared in his State of the State speech that he would increase the cost to build new public schools and playgrounds. “This session I will work to return prevailing wage to public construction projects — as it was before the 2015 session — including, and most importantly, for our children’s schools,” Sisolak declared. “Not only do prevailing wage laws support highly skilled workers in Nevada, they guarantee our children are learning in well-constructed, high quality educational facilities. Let’s do this.” In pursuit of that largesse for state construction unions, the Assembly at the end of April passed Assembly Bill 136, which would reverse a modest rollback passed in 2015 that reduced the prevailing wage for public school and college construction to 90 percent of the prevailing wage and raised the threshold for covered projects from $100,000 to $250,000. The prevailing wage law requires that workers on public construction jobs be paid no less than the “prevailing” wage in the area where the work is being done. The wage rate is set by the state Labor Commissioner based on a survey of contractors. The survey is so time consuming that in reality only union shops bother to comply, meaning the prevailing wage is the highest union wage. Every Assembly Republican present voted against AB136. Assemblyman Gregory Hafen, a Pahrump Republican, was quoted by the Carson City newspaper as saying that the state’s school districts have estimated AB136 would add $35 million to the cost of building public and charter schools. Alexis Hansen, a Sparks Republican, said it would add 25 percent to the cost of new schools. Strangely, Nevada System of Higher Education originally said the bill would cost it $18.5 million over the next two years, but later withdrew its fiscal note during testimony before the Assembly Ways and Means Committee, saying it was too difficult to forecast what the market will be in the next two years. Should the bill pass the Senate and be signed as promised by the governor it will snatch funds from schools that could have been spent on such things as Sisolak’s proposed 3 percent salary hikes for all state teachers, plus 2 percent merit raises in each of the next two years. The Clark County School District is already complaining that the funding earmarked for the district is inadequate to cover those proposed raises. The outlook was further clouded this past week when the Economic Forum, which by law sets the amount of money the Legislature may spend during the next biennium based on current taxes, said a paltry $42.8 million more than previous estimates will be available to spend. That’s less than 0.5 percent of the $8.8 billion general fund budget. Gov. Sisolak spun the news by boasting that the report means Nevada has the “fastest growing economy in the country and continues to outpace the rest of the nation in terms of job growth.” Assembly Republican Leader Jim Wheeler said the Economic Forum forecast will put the governor’s no new taxes promises to the test. “In its simplest terms, the Governor and the Democrats are trying to spend more money than is available,” Wheeler said in a statement put out by the Republican leadership. “How will Democrats keep their promise to teachers and unions while still balancing the state budget?” Republican Assemblywoman Robin Titus remarked, “Simply put, there is not enough money to go around.” It is time for our lawmakers to make some tough decisions and not be penny wise and pound foolish. Thomas Mitchell is a longtime Nevada newspaper columnist. You may email him at thomasmnv@yahoo.com. He also blogs at http://4thst8.wordpress.com/ All editorials, Letters to the Editor, columns and comments are the sole opinions of the authors and do not reflect the views or opinions of Mesquite Local News. PreviousPublic records bills still pending in Carson NextVVHS Seniors Give Musical Farewells Bank of Nevada celebrates its 20th Anniversary with ‘20 for 20 Financial Literacy Program’ Reasons vs. Excuses for Teenagers Rebekah Peoble Appointed New Student Regent This Week In History Sept. 10, 2015	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line621
__label__wiki	0.935924	0.935924	Disney's 'Cinderella' bibbidi-bobbidi-boos $500 million by Frank Pallotta @frankpallotta May 6, 2015: 6:06 PM ET While everyone is watching "Avengers: Age of Ultron" soar at the box office, another of Disney's franchises is casting its own spell. Disney's (DIS) "Cinderella" crossed the $500 million mark at the worldwide box office, the company announced on Wednesday. The live-action film, which brings to life the 1950 animated classic, has been a quiet hit at the box office for Disney. It opened in March to an impressive $67.8 million and has pulled in almost $195 million in the U.S. This puts the fantasy film third domestically so far this year behind "Ultron" and Universal's smash hit, "Furious 7." "Cinderella" is also another successful film in the company's attempts of taking its animation classics and adding a live-action spin. 5 Stunning stats about Disney 2010's live-action "Alice In Wonderland" grossed $1.02 billion worldwide while last summer's "Maleficent" (based on 1959's "Sleeping Beauty") grossed $758.4 million globally. If you add in the haul of "Cinderella," Disney has made over $2 billion with live-action films based on its animated canon. And the company has many more films like this to come with "The Jungle Book," "Mulan," "Pinocchio," "Dumbo," and "Beauty and the Beast" starring Emma Watson as Princess Belle are all in development. If future reimagined films continue to make strides with audiences, Disney may have another blockbuster brand to go along with the likes of Marvel, Pixar, and "Star Wars." CNNMoney (New York) First published May 6, 2015: 6:06 PM ET	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line622
__label__wiki	0.824579	0.824579	[Feature] May The 4th Be With You – Star Wars Games We’ve Played On Nintendo Consoles May 4, 2020 9:32 pm Published by Mike Scorpio Leave your thoughts With it being May 4th, also known as “Star Wars Day” we wanted to put together a little feature highlighting just some of the many Star Wars Games on Nintendo consoles. Star Wars games have been on Nintendo consoles since the NES era. In general, there have been quite a fair amount of lackluster titles that didn’t quite make the par. That said, there have been a number of Star Wars games that we have played that we did in fact enjoy. So in the spirit of Star Wars Day, here are some Star Wars games that we have played on Nintendo consoles. Star Wars: Force Unleashed – Wii Star Wars: Force Unleashed and its sequel on the Nintendo Wii was not everyone’s cup of tea but we liked them. In the games, you play as the secret apprentice of Darth Vader called Starkiller in a non-canonical story set between the third and the fourth Star Wars films. You get to string combos of Lightsaber techniques and force powers together to cause wanton destruction and decimate both Rebel fighters and the Imperial Forces alike. It was chaotic fun. At least, for me it was. Star Wars: Episode I Racer – N64 Star Wars: Episode I Racer brought one of the most memorable moments from Star Wars: Episode One – The Phantom Menace to the Nintendo 64, Pod Racing. It wasn’t quite to the liking of games like Wipeout or F-Zero but it still a solid racing experience nonetheless. The game will be seeing a new lease of life with a remastered version on Nintendo Switch, courtesy of Aspyr Media. Star Wars: Rogue Squadron – N64 Star Wars: Rogue Squadron on the Nintendo 64 was at the time for me, THE Star Wars game at the time. Being able to fly around in the fabled X-Wing and infamous Tie-Fighter in what I thought were epic dogfights was a dream come true. It might not hold a candle to the later games in the series that released on the Gamecube but it helped scratch an itch of being able to zip around in an X-wing and fly the Millenium Falcon. Star Wars – NES Star Wars on the Nintendo Entertainment System was the first Star Wars game I ever played. Though the NES had released about 6 years after the release of the first Star Wars film, it wasn’t until 1991 did a game of the film release on the home console. The game expanded on the story of the film and allowed the player to roam the deserts of Tatooine on a Land Speeder and fly through the trench of the Death Star in an X- wing. It wasn’t the prettiest of games but it opened the doors to many more Star Wars games to come. Star Wars Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy – Nintendo Switch Star Wars Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy was originally released for Microsoft Windows and Xbox back in 2003. It has been ported to the Nintendo Switch earlier this year by Aspyr Media and is a first/third-person shooter with lightsabers that takes place after the events of Star Wars Episode III: The Return of the Jedi. You play as a Jedi Knight in training who must help Luke Skywalker and Kyle Katarn put a stop to a Sith cult’s plans to resurrect Sith Lord Marka Ragnos. It hasn’t aged particularly well but it does have an online multiplayer so you can duke it out with other aspiring Jedi Knights. Well, that is just some Star Wars Games that we have played on a Nintendo console in our lifetime. What Star Wars games have you played on a Nintendo Console? Celebrate Star Wars Day with us and let us know in the comments below. Tags: Gaming, Nintendo, Nintendo 64, Nintendo Switch, Star Wars, Star Wars Day, Video, Wii U Categorised in: Feature, Nintendo, Nintendo Switch	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line625
__label__wiki	0.832919	0.832919	Source attribution, All articles needing coordinates, Articles incorporating text from Wikipedia, Battles involving the British East India Company 19th century in Nepal Wars involving Nepal 19th-century military history of the United Kingdom Gurkhas Nepal–United Kingdom relations 1814 in Asia Battle of Jaithak Stockaded position of the Nepalese at Jaithak The Battle of Jaithak is the subsequent battle fought by the 53rd division of East India Company after the Battle of Nalapani against Nepalese forces. Nalapani had cost both sides dearly, but in Nahan and Jaithak, further West, they were to suffer more. Kazi Amar Singh Thapa’s son, Ranajor Singh Thapa, was in command there. Nahan had been left undefended. Ranajor Singh had orders from his father to retire to a position north of the Nahan town, and to occupy the surrounding heights and the fort of Jaithak, situated at a point where two spurs of mountainous ridges meet, and the peak at the intersection rises to a height of three thousand six hundred feet above the level of the plains.[1] Major-General Martindell, who had assumed command of Gillespie’s forces, took possession of Nahan on 24 December and immediately set about preparations for the attack on Ranajor Singh’s positions.[1] 1 British positions 2 Southern stage 3 Northern stage British positions[edit \| edit source] Two detachments were formed to occupy different arms of the ridges: one from the north with 738 men commanded by Major Richards, while another from the southern and nearest ridge to Nahan with a thousand men led by Major Ludlow.[1] The result of the first day’s battle at Jaithak was almost a repetition of the first day at Nala Pani for the British. They were the very troops who had fought at Nalapani - British grenadiers, not just the native sepoys. During the night of 25 December, Major Richards, having furthest to go, set out an hour earlier, taking his troops on a wide sixteen mile detour to the north, to get into position for the attack on Ranajor Singh’s ridge early the next morning.[2] Southern stage[edit \| edit source] Major Ludlow, who led the attack up the southern slope of the ridge, left the camp at midnight and came first upon the enemy.[2] He fell in with Ranajor Singh's outer picquet at three in the morning, at about a mile's distance from the point to be occupied.[2] The defending party retired and the Major's advance guard pushed up the hill in pursuit, exposed to its irregular fire.[2] At the top of the hill was a village and a small ruined temple of Jumpta, where they met with a second post of the Nepalese, which similarly retired.[2] This was where they were assigned to await the attack by Major Richard’s party to the north. On reaching it, a halt was called until the rest of his detachment should come up and enable him to secure himself.[2] However, a little further on, a small, lightly defended Nepalese stockade was seen, which the British grenadiers in Ludlow’s force, having found easy victories earlier that day, entreated to be allowed to attack in order to avenge the humiliation they had suffered at Nalapani.[3] This was a questionable move as it meant abandoning the original battle plan. Ludlow saw, indeed, that the stockade itself was of no great strength, and he thought it might be carried by a coup-de-main before the Nepalese should have time to reinforce its garrison.[3] The occurrences at Nalapani ought to have suggested greater caution. Jaspao Thapa, Ranajor Singh's best officer, was in charge of the stockade.[3] The greater part of the force at Jaithak had, on the first alarm, been collected within or behind the stockade, in a little hollow, out of sight of the assailants.[3] Jaspao allowed the British to come close under the stockade, and then from either side, a little down the ridge, he pushed out flanking parties round both sides of the British troops. The flankers opened a deadly cross-fire on the grenadiers from all quarters at once.[3] Not having expected such a reception, the British were confounded, and drew back; whereupon the Nepalese, seizing the opportunity, charged them sword in hand from the stockade, and, in the end, drove the detachment from all the ground it had gained, in spite of three efforts of Major Ludlow to rally his men.[3] The Indian sepoys, who were waiting at the Jumpta temple to the rear, were still unformed and with few officers in charge.[4] They were caught up in the rush of the retreat, which rapidly developed into a rout.[4] Ludlow and his men, defeated and exhausted, arrived back in camp at the foot of the ridge before 10 o' clock that morning, before, in fact, the attack had even been scheduled to begin.[4] The British lost 31 Europeans, and about 120 native sepoys were killed or wounded.[4] Northern stage[edit \| edit source] Meanwhile, Major Richards and his men on the northern approaches managed to secure a point on the top of the ridge.[4] A defensive arrangement was complete by noon; but the troops were astonished to hear nothing in the direction of Major Ludlow's post; where, indeed, every thing was over some time before Major Richards arrived at his ground.[5] At about one o' clock, Ranajor Singh paraded his men outside the walls of Jaithak, preparing to attack.[5] The fight broke out, where irregular shots were exchanged and occasional charges made whenever it seemed advantageous.[5] This state of affair continued for most of the day, until at 4 o' clock, Major Richards fearing that his ammunition would not last, for the bullocks and hill porters with the spare rounds had not come up, wrote to Major-General Martindell to solicit a reinforcement.[5] At the same time, as the Gurkhas were beginning to be more bold and troublesome, he concentrated his force and gave up his earlier post at the watering-place.[6] By sunset nine charges had been made by the Nepalese, and repulsed each time by a volley;[6] but as it became necessary to conserve the ammunition, the pioneers were employed in collecting stones, which the new position was steep enough to render as an effectual weapon of defense.[6] The post was maintained until half-past seven, two hours after sun set, when positive order arrived from Martinell to retire, fearing another Nalapani.[6] Having no hope of a reinforcement, or of fresh ammunitions, Richards had no choice but to obey.[6] The British lost many men during the process of confused retreat that night, either to the enemy fire or to the steep and narrow mountain pass.[7] Conclusion[edit \| edit source] This first day of battle at Jaithak cost the British over three hundred men dead and wounded and cooled Martindell’s ardour for battle. For over a month and a half, he refused to take any further initiative against the Nepalese army. Thus by mid-February, of the four British commanders the Nepalese army had faced till that time, Gillespie was dead, Marley had deserted, Wood was harassed into inactivity, and Martindell was practically incapacitated by over-cautiousness. It set the scene for Octorloney to soon show his mettle and change the course of the war. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Prinsep, p. 96. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 Prinsep, p. 97. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 Prinsep, p. 99. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Prinsep, p. 100. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 Prinsep, p. 101. ↑ Prinsep, p. 102. This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Fraser, James Baillie. (1820). Journal of a Tour Through Part of the Snowy Range of the Himālā Mountains, and to the Sources of the Rivers Jumna and Ganges. London: Rodwell and Martin. This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Prinsep, Henry Thoby. (1825). History of the Political and Military Transactions in India During the Administration of the Marquess of Hastings, 1813–1823, Vol 1. London: Kingsbury, Parbury & Allen. Bibliography[edit \| edit source] Fraser, James Baillie (1820). Journal of a Tour Through Part of the Snowy Range of the Himālā Mountains, and to the Sources of the Rivers Jumna and Ganges. London: Rodwell and Martin. OCLC 69385527. http://books.google.com/?id=7ZlBAAAAcAAJ&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false. Parker, John (2005) [1999]. The Gurkhas: The Inside Story of The World's Most Feared Soldiers. London: Headline Book Publishing. ISBN 9780755314157. http://books.google.com/?id=eOqLQgAACAAJ&dq=The+Gurkhas. Pemble, John (2009). Britain's Gurkha War: The Invasion of Nepal, 1814-16. Casemate Pub & Book Dist Llc. ISBN 978-1-84832-520-3. Prinsep, Henry Thoby (1825). History of the Political and Military Transactions in India During the Administration of the Marquess of Hastings, 1813–1823. 1. London: Kingsbury, Parbury & Allen. OCLC 152785969. http://books.google.com/?id=Tq1jAAAAMAAJ. History of the Nepalese Army Retrieved from "https://military.wikia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Jaithak?oldid=1414495" Uttarakhand articles missing geocoordinate data Source attribution	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line626
__label__wiki	0.907679	0.907679	Zimbabwe Court dethrones opposition leader April 1, 2020 Steven Addamah News, Zoom 0 Zimbabwe’s main opposition leader has lost a court appeal to remain president of the biggest opposition party, the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), local media report. The Supreme Court of the Southern African nation has confirmed the High Court’s decision that declared MDC-Alliance’s Nelson Chamisa an illegitimate leader of the opposition party after he wrestled power a few hours after the death of founding leader, Morgan Tsvangirai. The Supreme Court ruled that the appointment was illegal as Chamisa had not been elected by a congress as per the party rules. The court observed that Dr Thokozani Khupe was the genuine acting president of the party at the time of Tsvangirai’s death, and restored the status quo. The judge directed Khupe to convene an extraordinary congress within three months to elect the party’s new president. The judge, however, noted the imbroglio that the party’s leadership had become entangled in could well be water under the bridge, which for the sake of the party’s stature and credibility, needed to be correctly and systematically constructed. Despite the internal leadership wrangles, Chamisa won close to 45% of the national presidential vote, losing narrowly to President Emmerson Mnangagwa in 2018 amidst claims of electoral fraud. The MDC has split many times since its formation more than 20 years ago – in nasty power struggles that have weakened its performance at elections. MDC alliance opposition leader Nelson Chamisa Congo-Brazzaville mourns its former President Marseille’s ex-president Pape Diouf dies of Covid-19 Donald Trump Received Morocco’s Highest Award for Normalization Process Autonomy Initiative, only basis for settlement of Sahara dispute- Ministerial Conference DRC: President Tshisekedi met Jean-Pierre Bemba and Moïse Katumbi to talk “Sacred Union of the Nation” Djibouti: UN criticizes authorities for banning MRD party Morocco for France is “extremely solid, reliable and long-term partner”- French MP Unicef calls for the reopening of schools in DRC NewsLetter : Enter your email address	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line629
__label__wiki	0.710981	0.710981	Winter commencement to be held Dec. 16 Winter commencement ceremonies will be held at 10 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 16, in the Leggett & Platt Athletic Center at Missouri Southern State University. The 69th graduating class includes 421 students receiving 487 undergraduate degrees, and 23 students receiving graduate degrees. Bryan Vowels, a 1992 graduate of Missouri Southern, will be the keynote speaker. At MSSU, Vowels was involved with campus life including serving as president of Student Senate and Phi Beta Lambda. He received the Outstanding Graduate and Spencer Bartlett Respect awards. He went on to get his MBA from the University of Arkansas where he received the Sam Walton Achievement in Excellence in Leadership and Academics Award. He also holds his Certified Financial Planner and Chartered Financial Analyst certifications. He was named Outstanding Alumni from MSSU in 2012. Vowels now serves as a Managing Director – Investments with the Vowels & Stovern Wealth Management Group of Wells Fargo Advisors. He also serves as branch manager for the Joplin Wells Fargo Advisors Office. In 2011 and 2014, he was named one of the top 100 branch managers in the country by On Wall Street. Prior to joining Wells Fargo Advisors, he served as a national bank examiner with the U.S. Treasury Department and as a senior vice president for a local bank in Fayetteville, Ark. He and his wife, Leticia, have been active in the Joplin community since returning to the area in 2001. They both helped start the Aspire Scholarship Program that provides scholarships for single parents seeking a career-oriented degree. He has coached soccer in the area the past 15 years and also helped start Rebuild Joplin after the tornado devastated the community in 2011. Vowels is past president of the United Way of SW Missouri and the Bright Futures USA Board. He currently serves on the MSSU Foundation, Bright Futures Joplin, and Community Foundation of the Ozarks Joplin Board of Directors. KGCS-TV will provide live coverage of the ceremony, which will also be rebroadcast at 7 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 17. The station is available on local cable systems, including Cable One, Mediacom and Suddenlink. DVD copies will be available for purchase. For more information, contact Judy Stiles at 417-625-9777. PreviousVariety of Kinesiology 101 classes available NextBryan Burns Named MIAA Field Athlete of the Week	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line630
__label__cc	0.599808	0.400192	Weinberg: I’ll Wait to See Hamilton on Netflix and Skip the Lecture from the Arrogant Posers (Fred Weinberg) – Donald Trump — that’s President-Elect Donald Trump — may never get a fair shake from the left-leaning media but I think it is only fair to point out the hypocrisy when it occurs. You take your family to a Broadway show. No, you take your family to a fifth-grade dance recital. No, you take your family to an NFL game. OK, how about a minor league baseball game. It’s your family. Your daughter, your son, your wife. You are a semi-famous person. Maybe the Vice President-Elect. Or a columnist for a newspaper. And when a teacher steps up to introduce the recital, she sees you in the audience and lectures you about your responsibilities. You and you alone. Or, when they play the National Anthem, a pine-riding-loser-backup-quarterback refuses to stand and then tells the public address announcer that you are the reason. Or the manager of the local baseball team makes a statement before the game begins over the PA system that you need to protect all the players on both teams, the implication being that you won’t. Oh, I forgot to mention that you were booed when you and your family walked in. Let’s put it another way. Suppose Vin Scully, at the ceremony where President Barack Obama gave him the Medal of Freedom, shared his thoughts on socialism (not a fan) loudly, as the President was hanging the medal around his neck? Suppose Ted Nugent, playing in front of the President and his daughters (hard to imagine but possible), made a Nugent-like comment from the stage (definitely possible) about the President? What would be the reaction, then? What we’re dealing with here is NOT the First Amendment. Everybody has the RIGHT to do what we just imagined here. What we’re talking about is CLASSLESS BEHAVIOR! Of COURSE I’m talking about that jerk at Hamilton who decided to lecture Vice President-Elect Mike Pence and his daughter. And the mainstream media which would be blowing a collective gasket had the Motor City Madman done the same thing. Do you really think that just because someone you don’t like gets elected you have the right to toss civility and class out the window? Your mama must be so proud. The only class shown in that theatre that night was when Pence told his daughter when they were being booed that was what freedom sounded like. Now let me be clear. Nobody is going to take away your right to lecture an elected official. That is protected by the First Amendment which, in turn, is protected by the Second Amendment. But there is a time and place for everything. Had these clowns invited Mr. Pence back stage for a private chat, that would have been the time and the place. The rules and civility would have dictated Pence accepting such an invitation. That’s not what these arrogant posers wanted. They wanted to make a scene. Which, of course, diminished their message. Hamilton may be a great show, but I am no longer in the market for tickets. I’ll wait for the movie and see it when it’s on Netflix. Mr. Weinberg is publisher of the Penny Press. Get to know more about him by visiting www.PennyPressNV.com. Related ItemsOpinion Orrock: Conservative “Doubting Thomases” Need to Grow Up & Get off Trump’s Back Mitchell: A suggestion for a presidential commutation	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line633
__label__wiki	0.559585	0.559585	H-1B Spouses Still Eligible for Work Permit: Federal Judge By Laura D. Francis Sept. 28, 2016, 2:03 PM U.S. workers who allegedly lost jobs to foreign H-1B workers lose lawsuit over regulations giving H-1B workers’ spouses work permits Replacement of U.S. workers with H-1B workers has caused scrutiny of program, including by presidential candidates Spouses of H-1B high-skilled workers continue to be eligible for work permits. A group of American technology workers couldn’t convince a federal judge in Washington, D.C., that recent Homeland Security Department immigration regulations are harming their job prospects (Save Jobs USA v. Dep’t of Homeland Sec., 2016 BL 318510, D.D.C., No. 1:15-cv-00615, 9/27/16). Save Jobs USA, representing U.S. workers who allegedly lost their jobs to foreign workers on H-1B visas, challenged 2015 regulations giving work permits to the spouses of some high-skilled H-1B workers. The temporary H-1B visas are heavily used in the tech industry, but... Laura D. Francis	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line634
__label__cc	0.657507	0.342493	JUNE 16 – Astronomy Night at Callaway Gardens CSU’s Coca-Cola Space Science Center continues its Callaway Gardens Astronomy Night series with a program starting 9 p.m. Monday at Overlook Pavilion. The program is free and part of a Monday evening series at Callaway. For more information, call 706-649-1470 or go to http://www.ccssc.org. JUNE 16-19 – Early Childhood Enrichment Camp Continues CSU’s College of Education continues its month-long “Summer Spectacular 2008” series of weekly activities for children ages 4-11. The program runs from 9 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday. Participants research and write about theme subtopics and bring the overall theme (Natural History Museum) to life by creating displays. CSU early childhood education students and professors direct the programs at both River Road and North Columbus elementary schools. Parents can sign up their children for $25 per child, per week for any or all sessions. For more information, call 706-568-5392. JUNE 16-20 - Space Camp: ‘Comet Jumpers’ CSU’s Coca-Cola Space Science Center continues its summer space camp series with “Comet Jumpers” for ages 5-7 from 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday at the center, 701 Front Ave., Columbus. Participants will explore the planetarium, fly jet simulators, perform experiments, play space games and learn to use the solar telescope. The fee is $205. For more information, call space camps director Michael Seckinger at 706-649-1477 or go to http://www.ccssc.org. To register online, go to http://columbus.augusoft.net/. JUNE 16-20 – CSU Sports Camps CSU coaches, athletes and others will direct various sports camps for kids this week in four or five-day programs: • Soccer, ages 7-14, 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday through Thursday, CSU Soccer Complex, $200 • Soccer, ages 4-14, 9 a.m.-noon Monday through Thursday, CSU Soccer Complex, $125 • Baseball, ages 5-13, 9 a.m.-noon, Monday through Friday, Ragsdale Field, $125 To register or for more information, call 706-507-8070 or go to http://columbus.augusoft.net/. JUNE 16-20 – ‘Activ8’ Summer Camps Continuing Education continues its “Activ8” series of enrichment camps this week on CSU’s main campus. There is no registration deadline as spaces are open for several of the courses that will run Monday through Friday in various categories (in parentheses): 9 a.m.-4 p.m. • PRIME (mathematics), girls only, ages 11-14, Howard 101 9 a.m.-noon • 21st Century Quilt (Create-A-Lot), ages 11-14, Howard 104 • Ancient World (Global), ages 8-11, Howard 103 • Art in Action (Showbiz), ages 11-14, Howard 107 • Design Your Own Clothes (Create-A-Lot), Ages 11-14, Elizabeth Bradley Turner Center 213 • Jazz, Funk and Hip Hop (Sports and Dance), ages 8-11, Elizabeth Bradley Turner Center 214 (FULL) • Juggling (Showbiz), ages 8-11, Howard 105 • Lord of the Rings (Trendy), ages 11-14, Howard 108 • PowerPoint (iTech), ages 11-14, Elizabeth Bradley Turner Center 216 • PSI (3 R’s), ages 8-11, Howard 102 • Taste Test (Scienceologies), ages 8-11, Howard 106 • Web Design (iTech), ages 8-11, Center for Commerce and Technology 409 1-4 p.m. • 21st Century Quilt (Create-A-Lot), ages 8-11, Howard 104 • Bones and Blood (Scienceologies), ages 8-11, Howard 103 (FULL) • Design Your Own Clothes (Create-A-Lot), Ages 8-11, Elizabeth Bradley Turner Center 213 (FULL) • Freestyle (Showbiz), ages 8-11, Howard 107 • Juggling (Showbiz), ages 11-14, Howard 105 • Keyboarding (iTech), ages 11-14, Elizabeth Bradley Turner Center 216 (FULL) • Lego Robots (iTech), ages 11-14, Center for Commerce and Technology 409 (FULL) • Office Basics (Create-A-Lot), ages 8-11, Elizabeth Bradley Turner Center 216 • Spanish Stars (Global), ages 11-14, Howard 102 • Taste Test (Scienceologies), ages 11-14, Howard 106 • Who am I? (Ur Life), ages 8-11, Howard 108 For ages 5-7, this week’s Activ8 program is “Asia: Lands of Mystery” ($149), from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. in the Elizabeth Bradley Turner Center. Fees per course range from $79-$95. All Activ8 campers can eat lunches brought from home or purchase a meal during a supervised lunch hour in the Davidson Student Center cafeteria. Also, for a small, added fee, “before care” and “after care” services are available as parents can drop off campers anytime after 7 a.m. and pick them up any time until 6 p.m. Space is limited and the schedule is subject to change. For more information, including schedule updates, all 706-507-8070 or go to http://www.activ8er.com. For walk-up registration, go to the Continuing Education front desk in the Elizabeth Bradley Turner Center. JUNE 20 - Fall Orientation for Commuter Students CSU will hold daylong orientation on Friday, June 20 for fall 2008 new students who will not reside in university housing. Check-in is from 8-9 am in University Hall (formerly Fine Arts Hall). The cost of program is $40 per student and $15 per guest. Participants have an opportunity to meet other new students, explore campus resources and organizations, learn academic policies and procedures, and distinguish between academic myths and facts. For reservations, call 706-568-2330. For more information, call the Orientation Hotline at 706-568-2180 or go to http://orientation.colstate.edu/. JUNE 21 - Space Science Center Anniversary to Feature Astronaut Story Musgrave CSU’s Coca-Cola Space Science Center will celebrate its 12th anniversary and a pair of other milestones from 10:30 a.m.-7 p.m. Saturday, June 21. A slate of free entertainment for all ages also will commemorate CSU’s 50th anniversary and an appearance by astronaut Story Musgrave signifies NASA’s 50th anniversary. Musgrave, 72, will give a 6 p.m. presentation in the Omnisphere Theater. He has flown six NASA space missions over 30 years, including flights on all five Space Shuttles. He’s also accomplished as a trauma surgeon, scientist and author, and served as a consultant to Disney’s imagineering group, Applied Minds, Inc., and the movie “Mission to Mars.” Free tickets (limit four per person) for Musgrave’s presentation are available at the center, 701 Front Ave., Columbus. Guests also will have an opportunity to visit with Musgrave in a “meet and greet” session starting at 5 p.m. Earlier activities will involve Omnisphere Theater shows, air rockets, model rocket launches, T-shirt give-aways and movies in the shuttle. For more information, call 706-649-1470 or go to http://www.ccssc.org. JUNE 21 - Sci-Fi Under the Stars Double Feature: ‘Destination Moon’ and ‘Rocketship X-Man’ CSU’s Coca-Cola Space Science Center will screen “Destination Moon” and “Rocketship X-Man” (both from 1950) on the center’s south lawn starting 9 p.m. Saturday, June 21. Part of the center’s Sci-Fi Under the Stars series, the double feature is free as guests are invited to bring snacks, lawn chairs and bug spray. For more information, call 706-649-1470 or go to http://www.ccssc.org.	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line635
__label__wiki	0.5324	0.5324	Game report: Calgary 10 @ Rochester 16, Calgary 2 @ Rochester 3 Posted on June 5, 2014 by Graeme Wow, I haven’t done one of these game report things in a while! I think talking about the games every week on the Addicted to Lacrosse show has meant I didn’t feel the need to talk about them again on the blog. Also since I spend much of Sunday writing the Money Ballers column, I didn’t make time to write game reports as well. But they’re different media; I can get into more details here than I would on the show plus some people simply aren’t interested in watching or listening to a show but they’ll read a blog, or vice versa. Anyway, the game. Or rather, the games. First off, I make the trek to Rochester for this one, my first such trip in many years. My tickets were second row from the glass, right next to the Rochester bench. This meant that I could watch the line changes and see everything that happened at one end of the floor. It was great. What I didn’t anticipate was the view of the other end of the floor. When play was happening at the far end, this was my view: I tried yelling “Angus, sit down!” but he wouldn’t. Actually, that was a joke. I didn’t really consider yelling anything but positive encouragement at Angus Goodleaf. Just doesn’t seem like a very bright move. So I watched half the game from close up in very high definition, and the other half on a grainy Jumbotron at an angle 100 feet away. We had a plus and a minus just before the game. The plus was the Native American dancers, who I believe perform at the beginning of every Knighthawks game. That was very cool, and the outfits they were wearing were awesome. That was followed by the minus, the national anthems, accurately described as “lounge-y” by Stephen Stamp in his Championship Game live blog, sung by a guy who should probably have waited until afterwards to start hitting the Genny Cream Ale. The game itself was very entertaining. You already know the result and how the lead changed hands a couple of times before Rochester scored 6 straight, and Calgary almost came back but never tied it, so I won’t go over all of that. One thing I noticed about the Calgary defense (and to some extent the Rochester defense as well) is that they weren’t trying to prevent shots entirely. There were a few shot clock violations and occasions when a player would just roll the ball into the corner with a second left, but the Calgary defenders weren’t as aggressively trying to keep the Knighthawks from shooting as I’ve seen in the past. They seemed to say “Sure, feel free to shoot, but you’re going to have to thread the needle between a whole bunch of people before it even gets to Poulin.” Rochester did shoot in a lot of cases, and more often than not the ball never got anywhere near the net. One defensive play I must point out is one by Brad Self late in the third. Unfortunately, I can’t link to a video of the play because the camera was on Mike Poulin at the time, but Poulin made a save and then launched the ball down the floor, looking for Dane Dobbie coming off the bench in transition (as he does frequently). Self made a diving catch just past the restraining line, preventing Dobbie from having a breakaway. The ball then got loose and Dobbie ended up with it anyway, but by that point the defense had come out and Calgary never got a shot off at all. It was an excellent play and really got the crowd fired up. I do have video of a couple of goals to share, both behind-the-back beauties. First is Cory Vitarelli early in the 3rd quarter, and the other is Stephen Keogh with a little over 6 minutes left in the fourth. Vitarelli’s was particularly nice, since most behind-the-back shots come from in close, but his was from way out there. Both goalies played very well though Mike Poulin seemed to get rattled a couple of times. This is a problem with some goaltenders – once you get them rattled or shaken up for whatever reason, they’re done. Poulin sometimes does that too but once he gets pulled (or pulls himself), he spends five minutes on the bench or in the dressing room getting refocused. He’s very good at this because more often than not, when he comes back he’s much better. He did this twice during game 2, but once the Knighthawks got on a roll in the fourth quarter, nothing could stop them. So Rochester dominated the 4th to win game 2, and we headed to the mini-game with Rochester holding all the momentum. But then Shawn Evans and Curtis Dickson opened the scoring for Calgary (just as they had in game 2), and still led with less than 2½ minutes left. Nobody believed it was over at that point, but I thought that the Roughnecks had killed whatever momentum Rochester had going in. And maybe they had, but over the next 1:15, Craig Point and Joe Walters grabbed it right back. The Roughnecks poured on the pressure over the last minute, but Matt Vinc stepped up and stopped every shot, the last one just a second before the final buzzer. I know there are people who don’t like the idea of the mini-game but after this year’s playoffs, I don’t think it’s going away anytime soon. The first two were very exciting to watch on TV and I imagine this one was too, and it was amazing to see live. I imagine it was everything the NLL was hoping for when they made the decision to move away from single-game elimination. I have to say that it was pretty painful to watch the Roughnecks leave the floor. Scott Ranger in particular looked absolutely devastated. He was the last Roughneck through the handshake line and it didn’t look like he said a word to anyone. A few more celebratory pictures: So congratulations to the 2014 NLL Champion Knighthawks, and even more congratulations for the unprecedented three-peat. Rochester is a class organization from the top on down, so it’s nice to see them rewarded with so much success. But hey, three’s enough, dontcha think? Saw a report before the game that Derek Hopcroft had been activated and was very excited about it. Then he was scratched. Ouch. I knew the Philadelphia Wings fans yelled “SUCKS!” after every name when the starting lineups are announced. I didn’t know they did that in Rochester too. After Rochester’s 3rd goal in the mini-game, Dan Dawson was the first offensive player back to their bench. He made a point of telling everyone “Calm down, it’s not over yet” to make sure the defenders didn’t get too excited and let their guard down. That’s the kind of veteran leadership a guy like Dawson bring to the team. The fact that he’s one of the best scorers ever is a bit of a plus too. In a lot of cases, a player who returns to an arena where he used to play is given some positive acknowledgement from the crowd, perhaps in the form of some extra cheering. Colin Doyle got a very nice reception in Toronto when he first played here as a member of the San Jose Stealth. This is particularly true if the player helped his former team win a Championship, as Doyle did in Toronto a few times and as Shawn Evans did in Rochester in 2007. But I didn’t see any of this recognition on Saturday with Evans. He didn’t seem to get any love from the Knighthawk fans who even booed him briefly after he fell, appeared injured, and then got up and ran to the bench. I even saw a sign saying “My 4-year-old is taller than Shawn Evans”. But who was the first Roughneck in line for the handshakes after the game? Shawn Evans. Cody Jamieson is quickly becoming one of my favourite players but I didn’t realize until this game that he’s not the biggest guy out there. In fact, he’s only 5’9″, the shortest guy on the Knighthawks and only an inch taller than little Evy. Note, however, that he weighs 40 pounds more than Evans. Y’ever notice that Dane Dobbie talks a lot during the game? To his teammates, to his opponents, to the refs, to everybody. Very social dude. During the warm-ups, my son (who’s in grade 9 – a freshman in high school if you’re south of the border) pointed at a particular passing drill and said “Hey, we were doing lacrosse in gym last week and we did that same drill! But it’s a bit different because they’re actually catching the ball.” Some general notes about my trip to Rochester Wow, is the New York State Thruway a cheap toll road. Cost me $2 to get from Buffalo to the Rochester exit, about 41 miles or 65 km. If I take the 407 across the top of Toronto from Dundas Street in Burlington (near my house) to Highway 400 (to head north of Toronto), that’s 61.6 km and at the cheapest possible time, it would cost me $12.74. At the most expensive time, $19.26. More if I didn’t pay $1 per month for a transponder. Here’s a handy tip for Canadians going to the US or Americans going to Canada. What a Canadian calls “tea” an American would call “hot tea”. What an American calls “tea”, a Canadian would call “iced tea”. In the US, however, there are two types of (iced) tea: sweetened and unsweetened. Sweetened is what a Canadian would simply call iced tea. Unsweetened iced tea is not available in Canada, and is an interesting drink similar to sweetened iced tea except that it has the unique property that no matter how much sugar you add to unsweetened iced tea, you can’t make it taste good. We stayed at the Rochester Plaza, about a five minute walk from the BCA. Very convenient, but there weren’t a lot of places to eat nearby. We walked up to the arena (this was well over 2 hours before game time) and found nothing except a closed Tim Horton’s (in Canada, I don’t think they’re allowed to be closed), a closed pizza place, and another closed place (maybe Jamaican?). We ended up back at the hotel and ate there, though later I did notice a couple of places across the street. The next morning, the Tim Horton’s was still closed (WTF?!) so we found a Denny’s on the GPS. Dear Garmin: The Denny’s that you said is here isn’t. This entry was posted in Calgary Roughnecks, Game Review, Rochester Knighthawks. Bookmark the permalink. ← Finals game 2/3 picks The Wings fly away, Pt. 1 →	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line637
__label__wiki	0.959348	0.959348	Undated photo of Ewold Hold Photo distributed by Tawi Tawi Police Ewold Horn Friday, May 31, 2019 - 09:01 Dutch hostage killed during escape attempt, Philippine army says Dutch man Ewold Horn was killed on Friday morning while trying to escape his hostage takers in the Philippines, the Philippine military said in a statement. The Dutch birdwatcher has been a hostage of terrorist organization Abu Sayyaf for years. "I am shocked by this terrible outcome, and express my sympathies to Ewold's family," Dutch Foreign Affairs Minister Stef Blok said in a statement about the Groningen man. "I have also been in contact with the family. I am going to ask my Filipino counterpart for further clarification.” According to the Philippine military, Horn was killed while trying to get away from his captors during a military offensive in Patikul. Military troops encountered an Abu Sayyaf group at a roadblock and it turned into "more than an hour of gunfight", according to the statement. Six combatants were killed and 12 injured. "After an hour and 30 minutes of gun battle, troops recovered the remains of Horn", said Barangay Pansul, leader of the battalion involved in the gunfight. A woman's body was also found. According to the statement, she was the wife of one of Abu Sayyaf's leaders. Ewold Horn was taken hostage along with a man from Switzerland while on a bird safari in the Philippines in 2012. The Swiss man managed to escape at the end of 2014 when the army attacked the camp where the two were being held. Horn was too weak to get away at the time. In January another freed captive told Philippine media that Horn was still alive and in relatively good condition.	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line638
__label__wiki	0.85985	0.85985	Dominant opening weekend has Gators near unanimous no. 1 in USA Today/NFCA Division I Coaches Poll Category: NCAA I News LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Outscoring its opponents 38-1, including an 8-0 victory over No. 2 Michigan, has Florida atop the first regular season USA Today/NFCA Division I Coaches Poll. The Gators (4-0) dominant weekend had them receive 31 of a possible 32 first-place votes and 799 points. Taking part in the USF Wilson-DeMarini Tournament, UF run-ruled all four opponents and posted three shutouts. In a rematch of last year’s WCWS National Championship series, the Gators scored three runs in the bottom of the first and cruised the victory over the second-ranked Wolverines, 8-0. Florida also defeated Illinois State (11-0), Virginia Tech (8-0) and hosts USF (11-1). Despite the setback to Florida, Michigan (4-1) recorded three run-rule victories over South Carolina (15-3), Illinois State (12-0) and USF (11-2) before closing out the weekend with a 3-1 win over the Hokies. Moving up a spot to No. 3 is Auburn after an offensive show at Jane B. Moore Field over the weekend. The Tigers outscored their opponents 86-10, which included a school-record 28-2 victory over Butler and a 22-5 triumph against Appalachian State. LSU fell to No. 4 following a 4-1 showing at its Tiger Classic. The Tigers triumphed over Ohio State (9-0), North Florida (9-0), Connecticut (13-2) and Pacific (10-1), but was upset on Saturday by the Pacific (2-1). Alabama remained at No. 5 going 4-1 at the UCF Knights Invitational. The Crimson Tide picked up a walk-off win over No. 19 James Madison, 2-1 and also toppled Fordham (9-1), Rutgers (6-0) and Liberty (10-2). Their lone defeat was a 8-1 setback to the then-No. 17 Knights. Oregon (5-1) stayed put at the No. 6 spot, while UCLA (4-1) dropped one notch to No. 8. New to the top 10 this week are undefeated squads Louisiana-Lafayette (4-0), Arizona (6-0) and Georgia (4-0) coming in at No. 7, 9 and 10, respectively. The Ragin’ Cajuns and Wildcats moved up four spots each, while the Bulldogs jumped two spots. Making the biggest moves were No. 11 Washington and No. 24 Fresno State. The Huskies (4-0) knocked off then-No. 9 Oklahoma (10-3) and then-No. 14 Minnesota (7-2) on their way to an undefeated opening weekend. An undefeated start, which included a 7-3 win over then-No. 8 Tennessee helped the Bulldogs (5-0) catapult into the Top 25 after receiving three points in the preseason poll. Joining Fresno State as a newcomer to the poll is No. 25 Texas A&M (4-1). Dropping out this week are then-No. 23 North Carolina State (3-2) and then-No. 24 Notre Dame (3-2). The USA Today/NFCA Division I Top 25 Poll is voted on by 32 NCAA Division I head coaches, one representing each conference. Records reflect games played through Feb. 14, 2016. 2016 USA Today/NFCA Division I Softball Coaches Poll Week 1 \| Feb. 16, 2016 (Results through 2/14) Rank Team Points 2015 Record Last Poll 1 Florida (31) 799 4-0 1 2 Michigan 746 4-1 2 3 Auburn (1) 733 5-0 4 4 LSU 675 4-1 3 5 Alabama 662 4-1 5 6 Oregon 643 5-1 6 7 Louisiana Lafayette 563 5-0 11 8 UCLA 555 4-1 7 9 Arizona 479 6-0 13 10 Georgia 472 4-0 12 11 Washington 463 4-0 20 12 Tennessee 430 4-2 8 13 Florida State 411 4-1 10 14 Oklahoma 406 3-2 9 15 UCF 351 4-1 17 16 Missouri 302 0-0 15 17 Arizona State 291 6-0 22 18 Kentucky 266 3-1 18 19 James Madison 259 4-1 19 20 Minnesota 243 3-2 20 21 Baylor 143 2-1 16 22 California 121 3-1 21 23 South Alabama 101 5-0 25 24 Fresno State 83 5-0 RV 25 Texas A&M 76 4-1 RV Dropped Out: No. 23 North Carolina State, No. 24, Notre Dame Receiving Votes: Texas (48), Notre Dame (33), Nebraska (13), Florida Atlantic (13), Mississippi State (10), North Carolina State (4), Long Beach State (3), North Dakota State (1), North Carolina (1), Oregon State (1). The USA Today/NFCA Division I Softball Coaches Poll is voted on by 32 NCAA Division I head coaches, one representing each conference.	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line639
__label__cc	0.547298	0.452702	NSU’s own Jeffrey S. Girard named as State Achaeologist of the Year April 23, 2015 / NPJ Jeffrey S. Girard, regional archaeologist and assistant professor at Northwestern State University, was named as State Archaeologist of the Year at a ceremony held in Baton Rouge. The honor was part of the 2015 Louisiana Culture Awards presented by Lt. Gov. Jay Dardenne and the Louisiana Office of Cultural Development. Winners were selected from public nominations earlier this year in concert with the Louisiana State Arts Council, Louisiana Trust for Historic Preservation, Louisiana Archaeological Survey and Antiquities Commission, Louisiana Folklife Commission and Council for the Development of French in Louisiana. Girard has been regional archaeologist in the Louisiana Division of Archaeology and a member of Northwestern State’s faculty since 1989. He has been president of the Caddo Conference Organization since 2013. Girard is co-author of “Caddo Connections: Cultural Interactions within and beyond the Caddo World” and author of a chapter in “The Archaeology of the Caddo.” He has authored or co-authored nearly 30 articles or book chapters on the Caddo, colonial pottery and archaeology in regional, state, national and international journals. Girard earned a bachelor’s in archaeological studies and a master’s degree in anthropology from the University of Texas. Press Release: NSU ← NPSO – Arrest Made in Connection with Campti Arson Job Opening – City of Natchitoches →	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line643
__label__wiki	0.593077	0.593077	Stories From Patients & Staff First-hand stories from our patients and staff News from our projects The latest news from our medical humanitarian programs Statements & Opinion Official statements from Médecins Sans Frontières, and Opinion-Editorials from our spokespeople. Where you can find coverage of our work in Australian and New Zealand news media. Find information about the work we are doing in countries around the world How we respond to emergencies and disasters and help those in greatest need, no matter where they are. Find out more about our medical approach in emergency and resource-poor contexts. Read our activity reports and publications. MSF Australia Find out more about Médecins Sans Frontières' office in Australia. Read our annual financial reports and find out more about our finances Approved fundraising events are a great way to support our work. Help us bear witness to the plight of our patients through social media. Join us at one of our public events. Send an eCard to your family or friends. We work to help the people in greatest need, wherever they are. Our medics carry out more than eight million patient consultations a year and our medical activities run from basic vaccination campaigns to complex surgery. Our emergency medical work extends to neglected, forgotten diseases and long-term care for chronic conditions. We also advocate for affordable, high-quality medicines for the world's poorest people. Chagas is not as well known as diseases such as malaria or cholera yet it affects between six and seven million people and kills up to 12,500 each year. Read Issue Ebola (or Ebola haemorrhagic fever in full) is a highly contagious viral disease transmitted via bodily fluids. There is currently an outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo. An obstetric fistula is a hole between the vagina and the bladder or rectum, through which urine or stool leaks continuously. They are devastating injuries resulting from complicated childbirths, affecting more than two million women worldwide. Since its discovery in 1981, HIV/AIDS has killed more than 25 million people. HIV gradually weakens the body’s immune system, usually over a period of up to 10 years after infection. Kala azar (leishmaniasis) Kala azar is the second largest parasitic killer in the world - only Malaria is more deadly. Along with Chagas disease and sleeping sickness, kala azar is one of the most dangerous neglected tropical diseases (NTDs). Every year, malaria kills around 660,000 people and infects more than 200 million. Ninety percent of these deaths occur in sub-Saharan Africa. Nine children die every minute because their diet lacks essential nutrients. They will continue to do so unless food aid changes. Many women across the world give birth without medical assistance, massively increasing the risk of complications or death. Ninety nine percent of these deaths are in developing countries. The majority are preventable with appropriate care. Measles is a highly contagious viral disease characterised by a rash, and mainly affects young children. It is one of the leading causes of death in children, even though it is easily prevented by vaccines. Meningococcal meningitis is a highly contagious bacterial form of meningitis – a serious inflammation of the meninges – the thin lining that surrounds the brain and spinal cord. Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders (MSF) teams have offered trauma-related care in over 40 areas around the world, including; the Russian Federation, Sudan (Darfur), Iraq, Congo and Kashmir. Sexual and gender based violence Médecins Sans Frontières offers patients who have suffered sexual violence medical care, treatment to prevent the development of sexually transmitted infections (STIs), and psychological support. Our medical approach Work overseas Work in our office Volunteer in our office Donate one-off Impact of your donation Find Médecins Sans Frontières Australia \| Doctors Without Borders on FacebookFind Médecins Sans Frontières Australia \| Doctors Without Borders on TwitterFind Médecins Sans Frontières Australia \| Doctors Without Borders on LinkedInFind Médecins Sans Frontières Australia \| Doctors Without Borders on Youtube Médecins Sans Frontières Australia Ltd. ABN: 74 068 758 654. Registered Charity Number: CFN 11960. All donations are processed in AUD. Donations over $2 are tax-deductible in Australia only.	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line644
__label__cc	0.612743	0.387257	Home/Sports/Talk about A&M passing through the state of Ohio Talk about A&M passing through the state of Ohio President of the college football qualifiers Gary Barta spoke with reporters on a conference call Tuesday night following the announcement of the PSC’s second top 25 of the season. This week’s top six has not changed from last week. Alabama has always retained the first place followed by Notre Dame in second, Clemson in third and Ohio State in fourth. While one point of contention was Texas A&M remaining in fifth place, one notch from the playoffs and ahead of sixth-seeded Florida, which lost to the Aggies in early October, another began involving the Aggies. vis-à-vis the Buckeyes who may run out of opportunities to impress the committee due to circumstances beyond their control. How important is a head-to-head victory (between the Aggies and the Gators)? Well, this is important. This is certainly one of the criteria we use to assess. The two teams, they are both with a loss. Texas A&M’s only loss is against Alabama. They beat Florida, as you mentioned. More recently, last week, you watched the Kentucky game that Florida played, and it was a first half that Kentucky was really playing well in. Florida eventually pulled out. Texas A&M, once again, continued to play excellent defense. When you go through all of these criteria, at the end of the day, I would say there was a lot of back and forth. Kyle Pitts is back for Florida. He had three touchdowns. It makes the difference. At the end of the day, Texas A&M, with all these other criteria, Texas A&M beat Florida. This ends up tipping him over to Texas A&M. Ralph Lauren Ends Justin Thomas Sponsorship Following Insult Sean Couturier leaves the Flyers-Penguins match in the 1st period, does not return in the 2nd Rise of Vitek Vanacek: Caps beat Sabers 2-1 Karl-Anthony Towns tested positive for Covid-19, as list of postponed NBA games grows Drue Chrisman says goodbye to Buckeye Nation, declares himself for NFL Draft Klete Keller opens up to authorities over Capitol Riot charges	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line647
__label__cc	0.523872	0.476128	Currently Filtering by Tags: huntington Blog post by Parissa Djangi, winner of the NACBS-Huntington Library Fellowship Posted by rdaily under Blog, Prize \| Tags: huntington \| 0 Comments Getting to Know Lady Maria Nugent at the Huntington Library Thanks to the generosity of the NACBS-Huntington Library Fellowship, I spent October 2016 in the Huntington Library’s Ahmanson Reading Room, huddled over a cache of Lady Maria Nugent’s letters, which are essential sources for my dissertation. It was the first time I would see in person and touch a manuscript that Nugent – the fascinating, well-written, and well-traveled wife of Sir George Nugent, Commander-in-Chief of India from 1811-1815 – herself had touched. To view the hand-written pages of a woman I had spent so much time reading about on impersonal, published pages was thrilling. Getting up close and personal with Nugent’s letters and reading her sincere words gave me new perspectives on her imperial experience. It was then, while bent over Nugent’s brisk, hurried letters, that it occurred to me how these seemingly simple pages had gone through quite the journey. Nugent was sitting in India when she scratched words to the page, regaling her adventures and misadventures on the subcontinent to Anna Eliza Grenville, the Duchess of Buckingham and Chandos, her friend back in England. From Nugent’s hand, the letters had traveled overland and then undertaken a multi-month sea voyage before they arrived at the palatial Stowe House in Buckinghamshire, where they remained for a century. In the 1920s, the yellowed parchment ended up in sunny southern California, where a young woman from graduate school in New York was perusing them in 2016. The global journey of Lady Maria Nugent’s letters mirrors the trans-regional scope of my dissertation. My research focuses on the British wives who accompanied their husbands on high-ranking posts across the empire during the Age of Revolutions. These women – like Lady Maria Nugent – left behind friends and family to do their wifely duty by supporting their husbands and traveling to faraway colonies in the Atlantic and Indian worlds. I am primarily interested in what my subjects actually did in their time abroad and what significance and meaning can be interpreted from their actions. My source base consists of the texts and documents that my subjects themselves produced, including their journals, letters, and artwork. Lady Maria Nugent was my gateway into this project and she remains at the center of it. Born in New Jersey just before the American Revolution, Nugent would spend much of her life colony-hopping. From North America, her loyalist family would travel to Ireland before finally settling in England. After marrying George Nugent in 1797, she would undergo further journeys: to Jamaica from 1801-1805 as the Governor’s wife and, finally, to India. In both these locations, Nugent wrote incredibly rich and detailed journals to share with friends and family back in England. Though her Jamaican and Indian journals have been published in various forms, her private letters have not - and many of them happen to be at the Huntington Library in the Stowe Collection. When the Nugents embarked for India, they left behind their four young children – including an infant who was only a few weeks old - in the care of their friends and relations. Over the course of her four-year absence, Nugent wrote frequent, long, and remarkably revealing letters to the Duchess of Buckingham and Chandos, who eventually took over the care of Nugent’s children. While reading Nugent’s candid letters to her friend, I was struck by how emotional they are. More often than not, the pages are filled with the trauma of familial separation and longings of maternal reunion. While her journals make clear that the separation was difficult for Nugent, her letters to the Duchess of Buckingham and Chandos are much more emotionally candid. She wrote more specifically and deeply about her emotional state and the anguish of separation. She also gave elaborate instructions regarding childcare to the Duchess, demonstrating that though she was thousands of miles from her children, her maternal role was still important to her. Discussions about her longing for home and family sometimes outnumbered her descriptions of Indian life. Indeed, Nugent seemed to write of her experiences in India almost as a distraction from her heartache, and because she knew it was her duty as a good correspondent to keep Anna Eliza up-to-date on the goings-on in India. The letters were not, as I had expected, merely a record of life in India. They were also a moving, emotional testimony of a woman who felt as if her life had been split in two. Accessing the manuscript letters at the Huntington Library has enabled me to think more holistically about Lady Maria Nugent and her experiences abroad. Though my research focuses on her social activities and practices in Jamaica and India, her letters to the Duchess of Buckingham and Chandos also challenged me to think about the private and personal costs of imperial service. She was not just a body moving from one site to the next; she was also a human being whose mind and heart existed in multiple locations at once: though she was physically in India, England and the family life it represented for her were always at the forefront of her thoughts. The affective dimensions of her experience are just as important as the social, cultural, and political ones, and no less deserving of my scholarly attention. Without the generous support of the NACBS-Huntington Library Fellowship that allowed me to excavate this collection, I may have overlooked this very human component of Lady Maria Nugent’s complicated imperial story. Parissa Djangi is a PhD student in the Department of History at Stony Brook University. UPDATE: 2012 NACBS-HUNTINGTON LIBRARY FELLOWSHIP COMPETITION Posted by jaskelly under Grants and Awards, NACBS \| Tags: dissertation, fellowship, huntington, NACBS-Huntington \| 0 Comments NORTH AMERICAN CONFERENCE ON BRITISH STUDIES 2012 NACBS-HUNTINGTON LIBRARY FELLOWSHIP COMPETITION The NACBS, in collaboration with the Huntington Library, offers annually the NACBS-HUNTINGTON LIBRARY FELLOWSHIP to aid in dissertation research in British Studies using the collections of the library. The amount of the fellowship is $2500. A requirement for holding the fellowship is that the time of tenure be spent in residence at the Huntington Library. The time of residence varies, but may be as brief as one month. Applicants must be U. S. or Canadian citizens or permanent residents and enrolled in a Ph.D. program in a U. S. or Canadian institution. Nominations and applications for the 2011 award are invited. Please note that the applications are due on November 30, 2011. Applications should consist of a curriculum vitae, two supporting letters (one from the applicant's dissertation advisor), and a description of the dissertation research project. The letter should include a description of the materials to be consulted at the Huntington and the reason that these are essential sources for the dissertation. Applicants are also eligible to apply simultaneously for a number of months under the Huntington’s own fellowship program, so that residence at the library can be extended to support a more sustained period of research. The Huntington’s own fellowships pay $2500 per month and the deadline for applications is 15 December 2011. A copy of the application package should be sent to each member of the Huntington Library Fellowship Committee listed below. Letters should be placed in sealed envelopes, signed across the flap and given to the applicant for inclusion in the application package. Applications must be postmarked by November 30, 2011. Awards will be announced by January 30, 2012. Send materials to: Professor Melissa Harkrider Professor Carole Levin 612 Oldfather Hall Professor Stephen M. Miller, 265D Stevens Hall University of Maine Orono, ME 04469	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line648
__label__wiki	0.782154	0.782154	Celebrating African stories told by Africans Ten Thousand Stories and more from Africa’s most loved storyteller; MultiChoice Africa’s most loved storyteller Multichoice is committed to continuing the journey of storytelling for years to come. At the heart of this commitment is the desire to tell stories that resonate with Africans throughout the continent, stories that echo shared sentiments of triumph, success and growth, stories that share ideals, beliefs, embrace change and encourage diversity. It is through these stories that we can come together as one. This promise to showcase the best of African storytelling is perfectly captured in the “10 000 Stories” promo which was launched as part of the recent Multichoice Media Showcase. This creative masterpiece was the brainchild of poet and writer Lebohang Masango. It explores themes around diversity, innovation, local content, international content, sports and a general love for stories. Brought to life by Masango and other talented African poets, it is an ode to all who have been part of the journey, celebrating the legacy of the MultiChoice and the more than 10 000 stories which have been told over the years. ‘I drew inspiration from Maya Angelou and the grand idea explored in most African philosophy. The idea that one individual is amplified when standing as a collective ‘I come as one but, I stand as 10 000’, the core of the poem is around collectivism and collaboration, something storytelling does so well. Stories are a way of preserving memories and making history and Multichoice through its existence has made history, changing the ritual around coming together. The modes of viewing content may change with technological advancement, however, the essence of storytelling as preserving history does not change”, Lebohang Masango. Multichoice has been telling African stories for over 20 years, reaching far and wide across the continent. Its DStv and GOtv platforms have continued to grow over the years, launching numerous local channels with more planned as the group increases its local content investment. ‘Storytelling plays a critical role in our society; it shapes the hopes and dreams of our youth – it cradles aspirations while positively changing pre-conceived ideas on what the world has to offer. It is through storytelling that many dreams are expressed, and it is through storytelling that our people learn that as much as we are diverse, we are also quite similar’ says MultiChoice Spokesperson. MultiChoice is determined to continue showcasing unforgettable stories that cater to a diverse audience. At the heart of MultiChoice’s reason for existence is to provide customers with variety and choice, it is with this in mind that the company is focused on enhancing its innovation, value and local entertainment offering. ‘We are proud to have been at the forefront of enhancing the local television industry, by investing in original productions which showcase authentic stories and talent across our continent. Great stories either reflect reality or create one, we are aiming to create a reality that is progressive, inclusive and forward-thinking.’ Concluded says MultiChoice Spokesperson. About the writer and poet: From South Africa Lebohang Masango is a PhD candidate and holds a Master of Arts degree in Social Anthropology from the University of Witwatersrand, South Africa. She is a writer and a poet. She has co-authored Mpumi and Jabu’s Magical Day (David Philip, 2020) with Professor Claudine Storbeck, the Director for the Centre for Deaf Studies at the University of the Witwatersrand. She is the award-winning author of children’s book, Mpumi’s Magic Beads (David Philip, 2018), which is available in all 11 of South Africa’s official languages. The book has been awarded the 2019 South African Literary Award for Children’s Literature and the Exclusive Books IBBY SA Award for Best Writer. She has also written The Great Cake Contest as part of the voluntary literacy initiative Book Dash in 2018 and co-authored O Šomile, Kolobe Ya Ditšhila for a child protection NGO in 2020. About the poets: Chika Jones is a Nigerian performance poet and theatre critic. In 2013, he won a National poetry slam 'War of Words' and has been on some of the biggest stages ever since. In 2014, he was a guest performer for the Wole Soyinka at 80 cultural exchange, and in that same year, he was selected to attend the Caine Prize Short Story workshop for the Port Harcourt Book festival. Between 2015 and 2019 he has performed poetry at the Lagos Book and Arts Festival, Lagos International Poetry Festival, Ake Arts and Book Festival, and he was selected to attend the 2016 class of the Farafina creative writing workshop. In 2017, he performed as part of the poetry production 'Finding Home' which toured Berlin, Germany, and Lagos, Nigeria. In 2018, he performed his debut one-man play at the Lagos Theatre Festival. He recently finished a poetry chapbook about the Nigerian civil war titled Gifts of Salt, expected to be published in 2021 From Kenya: Mumbi Macharia is a performing spoken word poet, writer, blogger, content creator and event curator from Nairobi, Kenya. She began spoken word poetry in 2016, having competed in the Kenya edition of Slam Africa, and thereafter becoming a luminary in the spoken word scene, and has been a featured act at events such as Kwani? Open Mic, and Poetry After Lunch in Nairobi. Outside Kenya, she has been featured at poetry events in Kampala, Uganda and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Her poetry spans a wide range of topics, from love, collective African pride, mental health, spirituality, and the inevitability of heartbreak. Mumbi defines herself as the personification of poetry. It is how she expresses God. -Ends	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line651
__label__wiki	0.939332	0.939332	Tag: Show Notes Show Notes Episode 102: Where No Voyager Has Gone Before & Episode 103: Pass The Butter Robot https://www.buzzsprout.com/174127/6403738-where-no-voyager-has-gone-before.mp3 Tonight! Mark Hamill follows the dogs on Twitter, a micro Voyager and we remember to Save the Clock Tower! All that and more on the scifi edition of Multiverse Tonight! Welcome to Multiverse Tonight! Thoughts on Discovery so far. Leslye Headland’s Disney Plus Star Wars series has been much anticipated, now we’re getting an idea of what the show will be about Headland in an interview with Youtuber Fantastic Frankey, said that the show will be a martial arts thriller with a female protagonist at a point of time that has been unexplored in previous Star Wars shows and movies quote “I would say it’s in a pocket of the universe and a pocket of the timeline that we don’t know much about,” “That’s what I can say.” unquote About the show being female centric she said quote “Just because my show is technically, yes, ‘female-centric’, meaning it centers around a female protagonist, I don’t think that necessarily excludes men from that space,”. “I relate to male characters all the time. I root for Mando. I root for Luke… An inclusive space means an inclusive space. But at the same time, I think that just because something has a female protagonist doesn’t necessarily mean it’s only for women.” “I kind of see if Star Wars is a religion… I like to think of my show as a tent revival,” Headland continued. “You can come over if you want to. We’re going to be talking about some cool stuff. There’s going to be some things we haven’t discussed in the canon yet. There are going to be some characters you don’t know about. I would love you to join us. I would love you to be interested in it. If it’s not your thing — the cool thing about Star Wars right now is there’s so much you can align yourself with and get invested in, but if you don’t like it, that’s fine.” unquote So not a lot of go on here, maybe we’ll get more on the show in the spring. Mark Hamill’s dogs have joined Twitter. His dogs Mille and Mabel have their own twitter address @HamillFurballs and their first follower is their fur daddy, Mark Hamill who tweeted quote “Guess who is officially their first follower? That’s right, your favorite Hamill… ME! #I_Officially_Have_No_Life, Star Trek author Dave Galanter, who wrote the Discovery Novel Dead Endless has revealed that he is battling late state cancer, in a post on twitter the author wrote, quote A FB post I made about what is happening with me. Or to me. pic.twitter.com/NmwwpwCFYv — Dave Galanter (@DaveGalanter) November 1, 2020 Dutch Physicists at Leiden University have created a microscopic microprinted ship that resembles the USS Voyager that moves on its own in liquid. The ship, which was built as part of a larger research project. The ship was highlighted in a scientific paper entitled quote “Catalytically propelled 3D colloidal microswimmers” published in the journal Soft Matter. The mini ship is one of several artificial microswimmers and is only microns big and will be able to move thanks to chemical reactions between the platinum coating and the hydrogen peroxide solution it is place in. The researchers are hopeful that these 3D printed designs will help them learn more about biological microswimmers, like bacteria, white blood cells and sperm. The hope is that by learning who those things work, they could design a medical use for synthetic microswimmers. Think the nanites from Star Trek. During ViacomCBS’s third quarter investors conference call, CEO Bob Bakish held up Star Trek as a sort of proof of the potential for the streaming service. Quote We ended the quarter with 17.9 million domestic subscribers, up 72% year-on-year, which basically puts us just under the year-end [target]… And both, CBS All Access and Showtime [streaming], each had robust consumption growth in signups. Starting with All Access, the service benefited from strong demand for sports, like UEFA and the NFL, originals like Star Trek: Lower Decks, and CBS network content like Big Brother and Love Island, as well as from the 3,500 library episodes added from Nickelodeon, BET, Comedy Central, MTV and Smithsonian. Plus, the almost 200 films from Paramount that we added in late July, as part of our preview launch. CBS All Access is now in the early stages of benefiting from the power of the combined company. Unquote Also talked about was how beneficial Star Trek has been to the growth of Pluto TV quote Pluto TV continues to build on its position as the number one FAST, free ad-supported streaming television service in the United States. In the quarter, Pluto TV’s domestic [monthly users] grew 57% to 28.4 million, and globally grew to nearly 36 million… In fact, in the U.S., Pluto now has well over 100,000 hours of compelling content available to consumers. We recently added nine ViacomCBS channels, including Star Trek, Bellator, CBSN, Dallas, and CSI. unquote Paramount Plus was also brought up, the rebranding of CBS ALL ACCESS will be out in early 2021 and will combine quote live sports, breaking news and a mountain of entertainment, including exclusive original content, plus a diverse and deep library of shows and movies, spanning all programming genres from ViacomCBS’ leading brands in one unified service unquote Back to the Future writer Bob Gale recently spoke with the Hollywood reporter about actress Elsa Raven who passed away on November third at the age of 91. Elsa will be known to back to the future fans as the lady asking for donations to Save the courthouse clock tower. Gale told the Hollywood reporter quote”She was one of those A-list performers who could turn a small role into a memorable one,” “Although she is on screen for probably less than a minute, everyone remembers her. And casting her is an example of director Bob Zemeckis’s philosophy that every role is important and can be made memorable.” “Bob would never save money by hiring a cheaper performer in a small role, a lesson we learned on our first movie: a mediocre day player can ruin a film.””Elsa communicates some key exposition in our movie which the audience needs to know, and it takes a great actress and a great director to make that come across in an entertaining way,” “She will always be remembered. Elsa, rest in peace, and my condolences to your many nieces and nephews.” Elsa also appeared in movies notably The Amityville Horror, Twilight Zone the Movie, Indecent Proposal, and Titanic. She also appeared in several tv shows including Quincy M.E., The A-Team, Highway to Heaven, Frddy’s Nightmares, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Murphy Brown, Seinfeld, and Third Rock From The Sun. The Orville’s Third Season is getting back on track. The production, like all Hollywood productions had been put on hold when the pandemic started, The Orville had gotten about halfway through shooting when the shutdown hit. Now prep work has begun, with production set to begin in December. No target date for the season debut has been announced, but the end of 2021 is expected. Jurassic World Dominion has wrapped up production at UK’s Pinewood Studios which required 40,000 COVID tests, millions spent on protocols and for the isolation of the cast and crew. Director Colin Trevorrow told Deadline dot com quote “There are a lot of emotions,”“I’m not sure I can put it into words,” continues Trevorrow. “It has been remarkable. Our crew and our cast has been so resilient. All producers have worked around the clock to make it the best it can be. It has been inspiring.” unquote Trevorrow thinks that the experience of doing this during the quarantine will enhance the final film quote “I think that close proximity to each other has made the movie better. Everything we were going through emotionally we would share. We would rehearse on Sundays, we crafted the characters, which made the emotion of the film richer. I think the movie will be stronger for it.” unquote The movie is due out in June of 2022. Johnny Depp is out of the Third Fantastic Beasts movie. He broke the news on Instagram saying quote “I wish to let you know that I have been asked to resign by Warner Bros. from my role as Grindelwald in ‘Fantastic Beasts’ and I have respected and agreed to that request” Even though he’s out of the movie, Depp will still make the ten million dollar salary he was to get for making the movie, he had a pay or play contract with Warner Bros that said the he would be paid regardless if he acted in the film or not. The movie will now be pushed back from its original target in November of 2021 to the summer of 2022. And while were on movie dates, Ryan Reynolds video game movie Free Guy and the sequel to Murder on the Orient Express, Death on the nile are now unmored from set release dates. Free Guy was due out on December eleventh and Death was due on December eighteenth. I guess we’ll just have to wait until covid settles down before we get to see these. XBox ‘s first Halo Game, Halo: Combat Evolved came out Ninteen years ago this past Sunday. I’ll just let that one sit here… And that brings us to the end of the scifi news. Show Ender If you’re a subscriber, be sure to share with your friends and if you’re brand new to the show, please be sure to subscribe. And leave us some feedback and let us know how we’re doing. Thanks for watching the SciFi edition of Multiverse Tonight, we will be back in two weeks with the comic book edition. Now please exit the universe in an orderly fashion. Good Night! Multiverse Tonight is a production of Half-Baked Genre Productions. Copyright 2020 All Rights Reserved. https://www.buzzsprout.com/174127/6403909-pass-the-butter-robot.mp3 Tonight! WandaVison has a release date, The Suicide Squad gets a Sly new star, hope for Venture Bros fans and we remember one of Scooby Doo’s creators, all that and more on the comic edition of Multiverse Tongiht! Chris Claremont and Fabian Nicieza are returning to the X-Men to finally tell the story about the fabled third Summers brother. The series, called X-Men Legends is a series that will bring back some of the biggest writers in X-Men history to tell stories related to the time periods and stories in which they were writing the characters Fabian in a statement said quote”It’s incredibly exciting to finally tell the story of the infamous ‘third’ Summers brother. Twenty-five years in the making, to see the truth about Adam-X revealed — and drawn so magnificently by Brett Booth — is one of the most surreal experiences of my career!” “Getting the opportunity to tell this tale while kicking off the new X-Men Legends series is a x-tremely x-citing!” unquote Future issues of the series will feature work by Chris Claremont, Louise Simonson, Larry Hama, Peter David among others. New Marvel Disney Plus series WandaVison will debut on the service on January fifteenth, it was expected that the series would debut in December. This makes the final season of Agents of Shield the only MCU series or movie during 2020. And here’s a fun fact, WandaVision was filmed like an actual sitcom, in front of a live studio audience. The audience had to sign very strict NDAs to keep them from leaking spoilers about the show. Star Elizabeth Olsen told Entertainment Weekly quote “It was insanity,” “There was something very meta for my own life because I would visit those tapings as a kid, where my sisters were working [on Full House].” Paul Bettany added quote “We were all so high by the end of it, we wanted to keep on running the show,” “Maybe take it out on tour or something. WandaVision on ice.” Disney Plus By the Way just passed it’s first anniversary with nearly 74 million subscribers. Marvel has laid off publisher John Nee, according to sources telling The Hollywood Reporter. Nee joined the house of ideas in January 2018 taking over for Dan Buckley after he was promoted to president of Marvel Entertainment. Before this Nee had worked for DC and co-founded and ran gaming company Cryptozoic Entertainment. When asked for comments, Marvel did not respond. Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman have reignited their feud, this time for a good cause. In this case, it’s a sales contest. From November tenth to December twentieth, anyone will have the ability to purchase Aviation Gin or Laughing Man coffee at Sam’s Club locations in the US. Each purchase will count as a vote for either star, Aviation for Team Ryan and Laughing Man for Team Hugh. You can also vote online as well https://samsclub.promo.eprize.com/thefeud/ An entry there will also put you in the running for a virtual party with Hugh and Ryan. The ultimate winner gets bragging rights and Sam’s has pledged to donate equally to both the laughing man foundation and the SickKids Foundation on December twentieth. The estate of Marvel artist John Busecema has been robbed. According to the late artist’s daughter, Dianne Buscema-Gerogianis reported pieces of comic art stolen. The 45 pieces range from an original Mephisto to original art from Just Imagine Stan Lee Creating Superman. In a post on facebook she wrote qutoe “I am reaching out to you all as 45 pieces of Dad’s original artwork was stolen from our family this morning,” “I cannot go into detail as the police and authorities have been notified. I am asking to please contact me if you hear or see anything for sale. I cannot post photos of everything that has been taken, but I am posting some.” John Buscema passed away in 2002 and was really big in Marvel back in the sixties and seventies. DC Comics has named Marie Javins as the new Editor in Chief. IN a statement DC Senior Vice President and General Manager Daniel Cherry III said quote “Marie intrinsically understands the power of comics and their unique ability to entertain and empower, which makes her a perfect choice to be DC’s next Editor-in-Chief, “In addition to her many creative talents, she’s also incredibly committed to increasing access to this amazing industry by mentoring the next generation of comic book creators and helping them find their voices. I look forward to working with her in her new role.” She will now be the sole EIC, Marie and Michelle Wells were named co-editors in chief in August after the departure of Bob Harras and the restructuring caused by parent company AT&T. Javins will spearhead the company’s publishing schedule with an eye on growing imprints and expanding the brands reach worldwide, as well as providing editorial and creative guidance. The Batman’s Robert Pattinson is trying to make his own version of Batman. IN an interview with Vanity Fair France Patinson said quote “To start, The Batman, I’m using things at the moment that seem fragile compared to the importance of the project,” Pattinson told Vanity Fair France (h/t Battinsonverse on IG for the translation). “Conversations I’ve had with close friends, embryos of dreams. This is the secret and sensitive part of the actor facing the heaviness of the project… On The Batman, on Tenet, a gigantic team of technicians surrounds you and when you say, ‘Let’s go Robert…Action!’ You have to forget this mass of people and play in front of your own thoughts, your own demons. “Yes, I have an actor’s excitement to face the tension of the set, the inordinate expectation of all these people and to transform it into a dialogue between me and myself. It’s an exciting and horrible feeling to be that ‘little shit’ who risks planting all the heavy artillery, all that war infrastructure, because she wasn’t able to go and get it… I think about that, a few days before a shoot.” “I look first at the character and what I have to do with it, how I’m going to have to invent nuances in this shell, making it more complex, more complex all the time,” Pattinson said. “Batman is a role in which I have to learn how to play ambiguity better. It’s out of the question to interpret a character of a single color. It’s beautiful, people who seem to live in two states at the same time.” unquote The Batman is due in theaters on March fourth, 2022. Superman and Lois is set to debut on the CW in February and series star Elizabeth Tulloch has been giving regular updates and teases on social media. Lately, she’s promised to keep plenty of purple in Loi’s wardrobe, afer fans told her that Lois wore lots of purple. Saying quote “I just want everyone who said that they want to see Lois in a lot of purple to know that I heard you loud and clear,” “There’ll be a lot of purple.” unquote The series revolves around Lois and Clark as they deal with the stress, pressures and complexities that come from being working parents in today’s society. James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad has added one more to the roster, Sylvester Satallone. Sly’s involvement was part of an instagram post of Funn and Stallone with the caption quote Always love working with my friend @officialslystallone & our work today on #THESUICIDESQUAD was no exception. Despite Sly being an iconic movie star, most people still don’t have any idea what an amazing actor this guy is. Unquote Speaking of The Squad, The Peacemaker spinoff series with John Cena has a working title. According to The Ronin, it’s going under the name The Scriptures. The site also says that the show will film from JAnuary eighteenth to June eighteenth. This jives with a recent tweet from James Gunn saying that shooting would begin after a two week quarantine. The spinoff series is planned for HBO Max with James Gunn writing all eight episodes and directing some of them. The election here in the US is over, despite what the current occupant of the White House says and Joe Biden and Kamala Harris are the winners. Wonder Woman actress Lynda Carter celebrated the win on social media by noting the date that the win was finally announced was a very special date for her in another way, she tweeted quote “On this day 45 years ago, I appeared on television as Wonder Woman for the very first time. I am honored to be a part of this legacy and everything that it represents, and so thrilled to celebrate the power of women on such an auspicious day!” unquote the Wonder Woman series ran for three seasons between 1975 and 1979, one season on ABC and two on CBS. A throwaway joke from the first season of Rick and Morty is getting realized. The Butter Robot as seen in the episode Something Ricked This Way Comes was unveiled during the Rick and Morty Global Celebration panel during the Adult Swim virtual festival. The Butter Robot according to it’s website The Butter Robot dot com has An assortment of audio / visual sensors and lifelike mechanical movements give the Butter Robot the ability to relay its unique, human-like personality while performing complex commands. It has Text to voice that will allow users to enjoy the robot interacting with its surroundings or parroting what you tell it to say through it’s app. An emotion engine that will allow the robot to quote “reacts” to influences from its environment and adapts to become more “self-aware” over time while choosing to “rebel” against commands. You can preorder the Butter Robot now for the introductory price of 147 dollars , it comes numbered and has Justin roiland’s Embossed Signature. Order yours at https://thebutterrobot.com/ Lego has announced thier biggest Lego kit yet. The Roman Colosseum, this set has a total of nine thousand thirty six pieces that fit together to recreate the world famous concrete structure. The finished structure will be 10.5 inches high, 20.5 inches wide and 23.5 inches deep. The set will be availiable starting on Black Friday as part of the Lego stores and Lego dot com Black Friday Deals. The list price for the set is $549.99. If you buy me one, I’ll build it on a livestream. Geoff Johns will be creating a new comic at Image Comics with artist Gary Frank. The comic called Geiger takes place on a post apocalyptic Earth. Here’s the synopsis quote “Who are the scavengers of a dying earth? Geiger is set in the years since a nuclear war ravaged the planet, desperate outlaws battle for survival in a world of radioactive chaos. Out past the poisoned wasteland lives a man even the Nightcrawlers and Organ People fear. Some name him Joe Glow, others call him The Meltdown Man. But his name…is Geiger.” Geiger number one will be out in april. Netflix is gonna try something new, a programmed channel, ya know, like network tv. I know, novel concept right. Netflix started testing the concept in France with a handful of users and then will release it to the rest of France. No word on if they’ll try it in the US or other countries. The People’s choice awards happened and there were a few genre winners, Mulan won Action Movie of the Year, Disney’s Onward won Family Movie, Riverdale won Drama Show, Cole Sprouse from Riverdale won Male tv star or 2020, and Wynonna Earp got Sci-Fi Fantasy Show. The Venture Bros might have found a new home, av club dot com reports that a tweet from HBO MAx head Andy Forssell might be the answer Venture fans have been waiting for. QuoteThe Venture Bros fans are passionate, but incredibly civil. I’ve received tons of emails, all of which are short very well written notes, oozing with politeness. Class fans. Nothing imminent, but know that we’re working on it. #SaveTheVentureBros unquote So keep politely reaching out Venture Bros fans! We may save Rusty yet! The house from the show Full House has sold for Five point Three Million Dollars. The Victorian style home located at 1709 Broderick in the Postcard Row neighborhood of San Francisco has been listed on the market since May 2019 for six million dollars, the price ws cut to five and a half million this past February. Remember the movie Bloodshot that opened just as movie theaters worldwide shut down? Yeah, probably not. After theaters shut down, it quickly went to Video on Demand release, now Vailent’s parent company DMG has confirmed plans for a sequel with Vin Diesel reprising the role. DMG Entertainment Creative Head and Filmmaker Dan Mintz told CBR dot com quote “I think [Bloodshot] was very successful in that respect, a lot of people saw it and it did very well in the post-release rollout but you can’t use the same evaluation process, pre-COVID, to this,” Mintz told CBR. “[Are] Vin Diesel and all those people going to still continue? Yes, because it did so well and the response to it has been so well, it’s just that the response has been in a non-transparent environment, as opposed to a transparent environment like box office numbers.” unquote No concrete details about a new Bloodshot movie has surfaced. The other half of Scooby Doo’s creators, Ken Spears has passed away. According to Spear’ sson, Kevin his dad died from complications related to Lewy Body Dementia, a degenerative condition similar to Alzheimer’s disease. Ken was born Charles Kenneth Spears on March twelfth, 1938. He grew up in LA where he befriended the son of William Hanna, in 1959, he was hired at Hanna Barbera Productions. While working in the editing department he met Joe Ruby and began a writing partnership. Spears and Ruby would create such memorable shows as “Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!” “Dynomutt,” “Dog Wonder” and “Jabberjaw” for Hanna-Barbera and The Barkleys and The Houndcats for Depatie-Freleng. They would then be hired to supervise CBS’ Saturday morning cartoon lineup and later ABC’s. Spears also was a story consultant for the 1974 Plant of the Apes cartoon series. In 77, Spears and Ruby created their own Ruby Spears Productions where they produced shows like Superman,” “Alvin and the Chipmunks,” “Fangface,” “Mister T,” “The Plastic Man Comedy-Adventure Hour,” “Thundarr the Barbarian” and “Saturday Supercade.” In 1981, they sold the company to the parent company of Hanna Barbera. Joe Ruby died back on August twenty-seventh of this year at the age of 87 In a statement Kevin said quote “Ken will forever be remembered for his wit, his story-telling, his loyalty to family, and his strong work ethic,” Kevin Spears says. “Ken has not only made a lasting impression on his family, but he has touched the lives of many as co-creator of ‘Scooby-Doo.’ Ken has been a role model for us throughout his life and he will continue to live on in our hearts.” unquote Ken Spears passed away at the age of 82, he is survived by his sons Kevin and Chris,their wives and his five granchildren and three great grandchildren. Thanks for watching the comic book edition of Multiverse Tonight, we will be back in two weeks with the scifi edition. Now please exit the universe in an orderly fashion. Good Night! Multiverse Tonight is a production of Half-Baked Genre Productions. Copyright 2020 All Rights Reserved Author Thomas TownleyPosted on December 1, 2020 Categories UncategorizedTags Show NotesLeave a comment on Show Notes Episode 102: Where No Voyager Has Gone Before & Episode 103: Pass The Butter Robot Show Notes Episode 101: Gonzo Goes to Court https://www.buzzsprout.com/174127/6194770-gonzo-goes-to-court.mp3 Tonight! Green Lantern plans to go big on HBO Max, What is the plural of Cyclops?, and Seth McFarlane and Danny McBride are Eastbound and Down, loaded up and trucking, They gonna do what they say can’t be done on Multiverse Tonight! The Batman is filming in the United Kingdom until February next year giving it just over a year to work on post production before it’s March forth 2022 release date. The film most recently had to halt production lead Robert Pattinson, tested positive for Covid, he has since then recovered. HBO Max’s Green Lantern series will be written like a tv show, but have feature film level production values according to producer Marc Guggenheim. Mr. Guggenheim commented on the series during a panel that had been recorded for ComiCon Internationals website and released as part of the Storytelling Across Media mini conference. Marc said quote “I happen to believe — and this is not a universally-held opinion — that you can’t do a ten-hour show or an eight-episode show, like an 8-hour movie,” Guggenheim said. “I don’t think that works. When I see it done, there’s always some flabby episodes in the middle. I think you have to approach it like a TV series and approach each episode like its own entity. Even though it’s streaming, even though hopefully people will binge it, you’ve got to make each episode a satisfying meal. You’ve got to look at it with a different tempo than you would have in a two-hour movie. That being said, certainly the show for HBO Max that we’re all working on, we are approaching it with the production ambitions of a movie. So we’re writing it like a TV show but we’re hoping to produce it like a film.” In an exclusive to the Hollywood Reporter, it’s been made known that Jared Leto will be reprising the Joker for The Snyder cut of Justice League. Shooting of new materia l for the movie is currently underway with Ben Afleck, Ray Fisher, Amber Heard and Jared Leto . Also joining the reshoots is Joe Manganiello, who will reprise Deathstroke for the film. Deathstroke first appeared in the 2017 cut of the movie as a post credit scene with Lex Luthor. Suicide Squad sirecgtor David Ayer in response to a fan question about What was the toughest scene to leave on the cutting room floor said qutoe The first forty minutes unquote He went on to say that the movie was quote It was ripped to pieces – I can’t emphasize that enough unquote The call for Warner Bros to make an Ayers cutt of Suicide Squad has been getting a lot of push recently even by Cedric The Entertainer who in a recent Cameo said qutoe “HBO Max, AT&T, listen, y’all gotta release the Ayer Cut of Suicide Squad,” “It’s time. The Ayer Cut, man, we’re all waiting for it. You know what I mean? That’s the one. And everybody, you all know this, when we do this all the proceeds will go to charity. We want y’all to ask for it. Hit em up! And then, bring back Jared Leto as the Joker, and do the Harley Quinn/Joker movie. That’s necessary! Quit playing, The Ayer Cut! Let’s get it! Let’s go. I want to see it, I know you want to see it. Suicide Squad gang, let’s go baby!” unquote The new Superman series, Superman & Lois has recruited Degrassi The Next Generation star Stacey Faber to play a new character named Leslie Larr. Her character description reads quote “the right hand to one of the most influential people on the planet, she’s gone from a young, idealistic dreamer to a hardened, world-worn dream killer. Athletic, strong… and oftentimes heartless.” Y The Last Man is finally getting in front of cameras, FX on Hulu has announced the start of production. The series stars Diane Lane, Ashley Romans, Ben Schnetzer, Olivia Thirlby, Amber Tamblyn, Marin Ireland, Diana Bang, Elliot Fletcher and Julianna Canfield. Unquote No word on when the series is expected to air Doom Patrol’s second season is going to Blu-ray and DVD this January twenty sixth, 2021. The official press release says quote Get ready to embrace the strange. DC’s favorite misfit heroes are back to save the world once again with the release of Doom Patrol: The Complete Second Season on Blu-ray and DVD on January 26, 2021 from Warner Bros. Home Entertainment. Strap yourself in for an exhilarating ride with all 9 episodes from the second season of the original DC series, plus enjoy the captivating extra features including two behind-the-scenes featurettes. Doom Patrol: The Complete Second Season is priced to own at $29.98 SRP for the DVD ($39.99 in Canada) and $39.99 SRP for the Blu-ray ($44.98 in Canada), which includes a Digital Copy (U.S. only). Both sets have an order due date of December 22, 2020.DC’s strangest group of Super Heroes are back again to save the world – that is if they can find a way to grow up…both figuratively and literally. Following the defeat of Mr. Nobody, the DOOM PATROL now find themselves mini-sized and stranded on Cliff’s toy race car track. Here they begin to deal with their feelings of betrayal with Niles Caulder aka The Chief, while confronting their own personal baggage. As each Super Hero faces the challenge of moving beyond trauma and failure, they must come together to protect the newest family member, Niles’ daughter, whose powers remain a mysterious but real threat to bringing on the end of the world. Unquote Doom Patrol has been renewed for a third season on HBO Max, probably next year. TV’s new Batwoman Ryan Wilder will not only debut on tv, but will also debut in the final issue of the Batwoman comic. The issue which will hit shops on October twenty seventh. A few preview pages show Ryan living out of a van and disillusioned with the system. It’s not apparent how the comics version of Ryan Wilder will be to the CW version. Season two is expected in January. Neil Gaiman has been teasing fans on the production of Netflix’s adaptation of Sandman. Speaking with Yahoo Gaiman said on watching the first footage from the show quote “I’ve been watching dailies, but nothing produced the profound, emotional reaction on me that watching a camera test of our Morpheus in his glass prison did. I saw him and said, ‘Oh, this is Sandman.” unquote he also tased some of the stories that would be in season one including 24 hours, Dream a Little Dream of Me, A hope in Hell and Collectors, he also promised that the show would be scary quote “It will be scary,” “But it will be lots of other things, too, because the joy of Sandman is that it’s a lot of different things in the soup, and you can taste all the flavors.” unquote no official release date for the series has been announced, but it seems to be aimed at late 2021, early 2022. The new Blade movie starring Mahershala Ali is moving toward the writing stage. The Hollywood reporter reports that Marvel is looking for writers saying quote “Current projects that studios are hoping to populate with Black behind-the-camera talent include Marvel’s Blade movie starring Mahershala Ali, which is looking for writers,” unquote The current wisdom is that Blade will be aimed at the October of 2022, but in this time of CoVid, that is subject to change. Hopefully they can get Wesley Snipes in for a cameo. The Falcon and the Winter Soldier star Anthony Mackie says that shooting during a pandemic is kinda hard. The series was in the middle of shooting when the pandemic hit, now six months later their back filming in the Czech Republic with health and safety protocols in place. Mackie told Entertainment Weekly quote “Everybody’s very afraid of each other. The food is bad because they have to pack it up somewhere else and bring it to us in Ziploc bags. Yeah, it’s awful,” “You’re literally living in quarantine. It’s not like the NBA bubble where they had a barbershop and friends to hang out with.” “No, if you get within six feet of somebody, there’s some little Czech dude coming and poking you with a stick saying, ‘You have to move,'” “So it’s rough.” unquote The short six episode series was originally going to be the first Marvel Studios series out of the gate, but not Wand Vision Will be. The show will be out in early 2021. Shang-Chi and The Legend of the ten Rings has wrapped up principal photography in Australia. Filmmaker Destin Creeton celebrated the fack with an Instagram photo. And the words We. Are. Wrapped. Not to be out down star Simu Liu followed up with a post of his own of him and Creeton saying quote “We made a baby!” “We can’t wait to introduce him to the world in 9 months…” unquote The Marvel movie is due out on July ninth, 2021. Some big news concerning the Moon Knight series, first it was reported that Star Wars star Oscar Isaac was in talks to play the role of Moon Knight/Marc Spector and now it’s being reported that Mohamed Diab has been tapped to direct the series. Diab’s work includes the 2016 Cannes Film Festival’s Clash and Cairo 678 Both are the highest grossing Eqyptian and Arabic titles of all time No official announcement on either Oscar Isaac or Mohamed Diab has been forthcoming. The Merriam Webster Dictionary is stepping in to help your grammar, specifically how do you say the plural of Cyclops . Here’s their post quote “Unlike most rules of pluralization, the plural of Cyclops is Cyclopes. Instead of adding es to Cyclops, the plural is adapted from the Latin based singular Ciclope or Cyclope, and thus the plural became Cyclopes.” “With that grammar laid out, the plural of Cyclops, which is a proper noun ending in -s that denotes a mythical giant creature, should be either Cyclopses or Cyclops—but usage evidence doesn’t concur. The most common plural form of Cyclops (which is now frequently found in lowercase) is Cyclopes (pronounced \sye-KLOH-peez\).” unquote So there you have it, you now know what to call a bunch of different versions of Cyclops that show up in an X-Man crossover. Ryah Reynolds picked a hell of a year to get to vote for the first time in America. Ryan and his wife Blake Lively showed off with smiles and a photo of Instagram with the caption quote This is my first time voting in America. I’d like to thank my wife Blake for making my first time so gentle and loving. It was super scary at first, than exciting and now I’m a little tired. But proud. #VoteEarly unquote His new movie Free Guy is due in theaters on December eleventh. The Willow sequel series has been officially given the greenlight. The series will have Willow director Ron Howard as executive producer with Warwick Davis back as hero Willow Ufgood. Crazy Rich Asians director Jon M. Chu has been tapped to direct the pilot and executive produce. Jonathan Kasdan and Wendy Mericle will serve as show runners. Quibi the short form video series provider is shutting down. The startup raised two billion in initial funding but never found an audience. The service launched in April just in time for the pandemic and never really got out of the blocks, even though the app had been downloaded about 9.6 million times since launch, Quibi founders Meg Whitman and Jeffery Katzenberg in a statement said quote Because the idea itself wasn’t strong enough to justify a stand-alone streaming service or because of our timing. Unfortunately, we will never know, but we suspect it’s been a combination of the two.”unquote FXX’s series Archer has been given a twelfth season. This news arrives before the last episode of the eleventh season. FX president of Original Programming Nick Grad said quote”Archer is back in a big way this season, with viewership up as the Emmy Award-winning spy series returns to its roots and begins to plot a 12th season next year,” “Our thanks to [executive producers] Adam Reed, Matt Thompson, Casey Willis and the entire team at Floyd County Productions for keeping Archer as fun as ever and true to form. Together with its unbelievable voice cast, Archer is set to give fans another great season.” unquote Viewership for the first five episodes of the season were up 32 percent over season ten. Seth McFarlane and Danny McBride are bringing tv a Burt Renyolds movie from the seventies. Smokey And The Bandit will come from the writing team of David Gordon Green and Brian Brandon James of Rough House Pictures with Danny McBridge, Jody Hill, and Seth McFarlane, and Erica Huggins of Fuzzy Door teaming up to bring this show to life. No network has been named. Muppet Babies are going to court. Disney is being sued by Jeffrey Scott, a tv screenwriter of many eighties shows. He alleges that the new Muppet Babies show was created by Disney misappropriates elements from the original Muppet Babies production bible he created and he says he owns. According to the complaint filed in California Federal Court. Back in 1983, Muppet Babies, which was produced by Marvel Productions and The Jim Henson Company contracted Mister Scott ro to help with the creation of the show, he got twelve thousand per scrip plus a royalty of $3500 for each new episode plaus a Developed for television by credit. The complaint reads quote “Scott is the registered owner of the copyright in the Muppet Babies production bible,” states the complaint. “The Muppet Babies Production Bible created the show’s nursery setting, the child versions of the characters, the mix of entertainment and education, and the blueprint for its stories. Scott created, developed and refined character traits, running gags associated with each character, and the characters’ relationships with each other.” unquote Scott also claims that the character of Nanny was his creation and the setting of the nursery too. Scott is claiming copyright infringement, breach of contract (stemming from his ’80s deal), breach of implied contract (arising from the alleged agreement for compensation for his recent idea submissions), and fraud. We will keep an eye on this for any future developments.https://www.scribd.com/document/481227544/muppetbabies-pdf Rick and Morty co creator Dan Harmon speaking at the digital version of the PaleyFest said that the Clone Beth mystery will play a major role in season five. He said quote You know as much as Rick knows,” “I don’t want to keep secrets with the audience. She’s Schrodinger’s Beth right now. The fact she may or may not be a clone is actually the important thing. It’s the profound revelation about Rick’s commitment to non-commitment and how abusive that can be as a parent. That is the important thing here. We’re adding aunts to the family. We’re having fun looking at more options with space Beth.” unquote It also looks like The Vat of Acid episode has broken Morty of his obsession with Jessica, he said quote “There’s an episode in Season 5 where Morty has a relationship with another female character that’s not Jessica. It’s a great little story and my longtime friend and collaborator John Schrab wrote it. [Schrab] has a natural directorial instinct. He also is a tender writer, like a very juvenile John Hughes. He feels heartache on a level that a man his age shouldn’t. There’s an episode in Season 5 that my Emmy is going to,” unquote Paramount has moved the animated movie Rumble from January nineteenth to May 14, 2021. THe movie, from Paramount Animation and WWE Studios is based on the graphic novel by Rob Harrel, is set in a world where monster wrestling is a global sport and monsters are superstar athletes. The movie features the voice talents of Geraldine Viswanathan, Will Arnett, Terry Crews , WWEsuperstars Becky Lynch and Roman Reigns Tony Danza, Stephen A. Smith, Jimmy Tatro, Ben Schwartz and Michael Buffer. The Strange Talent of Luther Strode is getting a big screen adaptation. The movie is based on the Image comics comic book series from Justin Jordan and Tradd moore. THe movie will be produced by Allnighter’s Dinesh Shamdasani, Hunter Gorinson and Amanda Kruse. Justin Jordan is currently working on the screenplay. In the press release Justin said quote “Luther Strode remains one of my very favorite things I’ve ever worked on and getting the chance to bring it to a new audience as a film is exciting beyond belief,” said Justin Jordan. “Especially since Allnighter is dedicated to staying true to all of the foundations – from the tone to the mythology, and, of course, the kinetic action exemplified by Tradd’s artwork – that people have loved about the comic.” unquote HBO Man and Cartoon Network are reviving Tiny Toon Adventures for the streaming service. Steven Speilberg will executive produce Tiny Toons Looniversity, the show will follow the characters minus Elmyra Duff, as they go to Acme Looniversity (in other words, the same stuff they did in the original show. Amblin TV’s Co Presidents Justin Falvey and Darryl Frank said about the reboot quote “These smart, hilarious and cheeky characters have left an indelible impression on the childhoods of so many. We’re thrilled to be able to continue our relationship with Warner Bros. Animation, HBO Max and Cartoon Network to reimagine the Tiny Toons for new audiences, and we know that fans of the original series will be just as excited to share the show with their children as they will be to revisit a childhood favorite.” unquoteThe reason for Elmyra being left out is not known, the word that she was being left out was broken my Elmyra original voice actor Cree Williams,she tweeted quote “I just got the word that ELMYRA will NOT be included in the Tiny Toons reboot.” unquote There are several possible reasons for her exclusion, perhaps it’s because her rights are tied up with Pinky and The Brain or the fact that her character is associated with Elmer Fudd. Who knows. Sony is in talks to buy Anime streaming service Crunchyroll rom WarnerMedia, Sony reportedly will spend 957 million dollars for the service, that’s hundreds of millions more than they paid for Funimation in 2017. This deal would give Sony a near streaming monopoly over Anime. Cruncyroll has around 70 million subscribers worldwide. Bette Midler says that she, Sarah Jessica Parker adn Kathy Najimy will be reprising their roles for the Hocus Pocus sequel that Disney has been working on. Bette told Fox 5 New York that quote “They want to make a movie, they’ve asked us if we were interested and of course all of us said yes,””I’m game, I’m totally game.” unquote There hasn’t been any official word about casting or story details. But with everything that’s been going on this year, that’s to be expected. Author Thomas TownleyPosted on December 1, 2020 Categories UncategorizedTags Show NotesLeave a comment on Show Notes Episode 101: Gonzo Goes to Court Show Notes Episode 90: Strange New Worlds, Familiar Old Format & Episode 91: FanDome, ThunderDome, DomeDome Remembering 2020, Looking Foward to 2021's Promise – Multiverse Tonight – The Podcast about All Your Geeky Universes Remembering 2020, Looking Foward to 2021's Promise 33:59 2021: The Year We Rebuild, We Hope. 28:26 Multiverse Tonight Promo 00:42 Have Yourself A Marvel-ous Christmas 33:56 That's No Moon, It's A News Station. 18:48 Tonight! Ewan McGregor’s costly divorce, Strange New Worlds with an old format and we remember actor Ben Cross. All that and more on this edition of Multiverse tonight! Hi Welcome to Multiverse Tonight, I’m your host Thomas Townley. Disney’s Rogue One prequel series has a co-star for Diego Luna, Adria Arjona has joined the Disney Plus series. Arjona is known for Netflix’s 6 Underground and will be in Sony’s Morbius movie. The series still has yet to be granted a title. And while we’re on the subject of Disney Plus Star Wars series, According to making star wars dot com, production sources familiar with the Obi-wan series production have indicated that the series will start filming next month with exterior shots filmed somewhere in Southern California. Maybe production is being sped up because of Ewan McGregor’s divorce settlement. According to various sources, The actor has agreed to split his royalties from all the movies and tv shows he made before May 2017 with this ex-wife, Eve Mavrakis. He will also be handing her alimony to the tune of 35, 868 a month, and 14, 934 a month in child support. He will also be giving her five of his cars, their LA home, and half a million dollars in cash. Ouch. This Christmas, Disney Plus is gifting us with a new Star Wars Holiday Special, this time instead of a goofy live-action one it will be The Lego Star Wars Holiday Special. The forty-five minute show will feature the animated Legos in the spirit of the original 1978 special. According to executive producer Josh Rimes quote “We wanted to give a wink and a nod to the original,” “It’s a celebration of the saga. A lot of characters will be interacting with different characters and perhaps even different versions of themselves at different ages.” unquote The story will involve Rey and BB-8 heading out on a quest to quote “gain a deeper knowledge of the Force, but their visit to a mysterious Jedi Temple sends them careening through time and space.” unquote The Lego Star Wars Holiday Special will be released on November seventeenth on Disney Plus. The Clone Wars might be over but there’s still more to be told in audiobook form. The animated cast members are providing their voices to the audiobook edition of Star Wars The Clone Wars Stories of Light and Dark anthology. Returning to reprising their roles are Corey Burton (Cad Bane and Count Dooku), Nika Futterman (Asajj Ventress), Matt Lanter (Anakin Skywalker), Catherine Taber (Padmé Amidala), James Arnold Taylor (Obi-Wan Kenobi), and Sam Witwer (Maul). The book has ten stories retelling episodes from Clone Wars and a new Nightsisters story. The book goes on sale on August twenty-fifth. If you’re in the mood for more Picard, there are plenty of tie ins to go and things to buy. First off is the Picard season one soundtrack on oldfashioned vinyl.. The limited-edition release is pressed on two 140 gram ‘Transparent Green W/ Splatter’ vinyl platters, and features printed inner sleeves and a gatefold jacket. The vinyl release comes out on October 9th and can be bought for $32.98. There will also be a 2021 calendar so you can mark the time till next season. And the show is coming to Blu-ray, it arrives on October sixth. In November, we get the book Star Trek The Wisdom of Jean-Luc Picard from Simon & Shusters Adams Press and edited by Chip Carter. The book has 208 pages and will be out on November tenth. Star Trek Strange New Worlds will be a different format than Picard and Discovery, one that’s more familiar to older Trek fans. Episodic. Alex Kurtzman participating in the Deadline Emmy Contenders panel updated everyone about the new series taking place on Pike’s Enterprise quote I think Strange New Worlds, under the guidance of Henry Myers and Akiva Goldsman, it’s going to be a return in a way to TOS [Star Trek: The Original Series]. We are going to do stand-alone episodes. There will be emotional serialization. There will be two-parters. There will be larger plot arcs. But it really is back to the model of alien-of-the-week, planet-of-the-week, challenge-on-the-ship-of-the-week. With these characters pre-Kirk’s Enterprise. I think what people responded so much to in all three characters is this kind of relentless optimism that they have. And that they are at the young phase of their careers. unquote, He also spoke about Pike keeping his optimism despite having knowledge of his fate learned during his time on Discovery. Quote That Pike, who has experienced this extraordinary trauma, which he is famous for. It is how he knows how he is going to die. The idea is, how does a character who knows how he is going to die live optimistically from that point on and lead a ship? It’s a great question. I have never seen a show where a character knew that already. You have to have an inherent optimism in your world view in order to say, “I am going to get up every morning knowing how it is going to end for me.” And still, lead everybody to be the best versions of themselves. Unquote Alex Kurtzman in an interview with Gold Derby noted that writing is ahead of schedule on the Trek Productions at the moment. The Discovery writer’s room has already started on season four of the series and that Strange New Worlds is scheduled to begin production next year. He told them quote “We’ve been running all of our writers’ rooms on Zoom, and the silver lining is that we’ve been actually been able to get quite ahead on the scripts for upcoming seasons of Discovery, and Picard, and Strange New Worlds, which is going to be shooting next year, and Section 31.” unquote He also talked about how the pandemic slowed post-production on Discovery, including having the musicians recording their instruments individually and having Jeff Russo having to mix it all together. Season Three of Discovery starts on October fifteenth. Next year might see more Trek and a new name for CBS All Access. A new profile on Financial Times about ViacomCBS Chairperson Shari Redstone reports that the media conglomerate has a shortlist for a new super streamer and the leading contender is Paramount Plus. The apparent motivation for rebranding CBS All Access is that management believes that the CBS name skews older and that the Paramount name might have a broader appeal. After all, they did rebrand the SpikeTV channel into the Paramount Network. David Tennant, during a Reddit AMA session, said that he would like to have a part in the Star Trek Universe. This wouldn’t be too far to go for Tennant after all he’s been Doctor Who, he’s been a part of the Marvel universe on Jessica Jones and a part of the Harry Potter universe as well. Maybe they can make him a part of Discovery, Picard, Strange New Worlds, or a part of Section 31. Anywhere they could put him, he’d probably be great. Nichelle Nichols’s family has launched a GoFundMe campaign to raise money to help sue her former caretaker who they allege financially abused her while pretending to protect her interests. All funds raised will pay for the legal fees and has a goal of 100,000 dollars, right now it’s about 64 percent to its goal. For more information about it look up the Shields Up, Nichelle Nichols! GoFundMe campaign or click on the link in the show notes. https://www.gofundme.com/f/shields-up-nichelle-nichols Well while we’re on legal news, we have a final judgment in the Star Trek Discovery Tardigrade case. If you’ll recall in my past episodes, I talked about how Tardigrade video game Anas Abdin claimed that the Tardigrade story in the first season of Star Trek Discovery was similar to the story in his video game Tardigrades. The US District Court in the Southern District of New York dismissed his claims back in September, it was appealed to the Second Circuit Court of Appeals and they have come back affirming that CBS and Netflix did not infringe on the work of Mister Abdin because the works aren’t similar enough and that the use of Tardigrades aren’t enough saying quote “Abdin’s space-traveling tardigrade is an unprotectable idea because it is a generalized expression of a scientific fact—namely, the known ability of a tardigrade to survive in space,” the court said. “By permitting Abdin to exclusively own the idea of a space-traveling tardigrade, this Court would improperly withdraw that idea from the public domain and stifle creativity naturally flowing from the scientific fact that tardigrades can survive the vacuum of space.” The court also found that the elements of the Tardigrade game were uncopyrightable stock themes from scifi and that his human characters weren’t similar enough to the Discovery ones. https://news.bloomberglaw.com/ip-law/cbs-beats-copyright-claims-over-star-trek-discovery The next Star Trek novel is up for preorder, Greg Cox brings us Star Trek A Contest of Principles, the book sees the crew of the Enterprise split between competing missions. While Captain Kirk is observing elections on a newly democratic planet, while Spock is searching for Doctor McCoy after Bones is kidnapped from a nearby planet and is being forced to study a deadly sickness. Here’s the blurb quote “An epic new Star Trek saga by New York Times bestselling author Greg Cox set during the original five-year mission! The planet Vok is holding its first free elections after years of oppressive military rule. Captain James T. Kirk and the crew of the Starship Enterprise have been dispatched by Starfleet to serve as impartial observers, but remaining neutral proves a challenge, as Kirk confronts a tangled web of scandal, conspiracy, and assassination plots—with the stability of an entire sector at stake.To make matters worse, Dr. Leonard McCoy has vanished while on a mission of mercy to Braco, a nearby planet only a system away. With Kirk unable to abandon his vital mission on Vok to hunt for his friend, it’s up to First Officer Spock and Christine Chapel to lead a team in search of the missing doctor, even if it means risking whatever fate befell McCoy. Unknown to his friends and crewmates, however, McCoy has been spirited away to another world, Ozalor, where he’s expected to find a cure for a mysterious ailment plaguing a member of the planet’s ruling family. Torn between his Hippocratic oath and his desire to escape, McCoy finds himself at the center of deadly palace intrigues—and a struggle for power that may ultimately consume all three worlds! Greg Cox is the New York Times bestselling author of numerous Star Trek novels and short stories. He has also written the official movie novelizations of War for the Planet of the Apes, Godzilla, Man of Steel, The Dark Knight Rises, Daredevil, Ghost Rider, and the first three Underworld movies, as well as books and stories based on such popular series as Alias, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, CSI, Farscape, The 4400, Leverage, The Librarians, Roswell, Terminator, Warehouse 13, Xena: Warrior Princess, and Zorro. He has received three Scribe Awards from the International Association of Media Tie-In Writers, as well as the Faust Award for Life Achievement.” Star Trek: A Contest of Principles goes on sale on November 10th. Oscar-nominated director Garth Davis will be directing the second sequel to Tron. The movie has been languishing in development hell since 2017 with Jared Leto attached to star. Mr. Leto on Instagram posted quote “I’m struck with such gratitude for the opportunity to bring this movie to life, especially as both the original video game and the film affected me so deeply as a young child,” “The fact that I get to be a part of this new chapter is mind-blowing.” unquote Tron Legacy made 400 million and enough interest to make a sequel. No expected release date yet. Netflix has bought a trilogy of Fear Street movies from Disney. The movies are based on the RL Stine teen horror series. The movies are already complete having been produced by Fox and originally intended for release this past June, but they were pulled due to the pandemic. The Fear Street books are based in a fictional Ohio city. No word on when they will be released. The Nutty Professor is getting a reboot, Project X Entertainment’s James Vanderbilt, William Sherak and Paul Neinstein have landed the rights to it, they previously rebooted the Scream franchise. No studio is attached to it yet. Hey, there’s actually a box office to report on. Let’s start at number 9. Back to the Future with 140,000. 8 is Jurassic Park with 180,000 7. Peninsula with 210,000. 6. Star Wars Episode V The Empire Strikes Back with 230,000. Number five Cut Throat City 240,000. Number four the Goonies with 260,000. Number 3 Words on Bathroom Walls with 462,000, number two The SpongeBob Movie Sponge On the run with 550,000 and number one with a bullet Unhinged which comes in with four million 60 thousand. Tonight we remember actor Ben Cross, who passed away after a battle with cancer on August eighteenth from cancer. He will best be known for movies like 1981’s Chariots of Fire, 1995’s First Knight, 2004’s Exorcist The Beginning, and his role as Sarek in 2009’s Star Trek. His television credits include The short-lived remake of Dark Shadows in 1991, appearances on the 80’s Twilight Zone, The Ray Bradbury Theater, Tales from The Crypt, Poltergeist The Legacy and Twelve Monkeys. He is survived by his wife and two children from his first marriage. He was 72. Tonight! What came from DC’s first Fandome, Marvel puts Wolverine in three colors and theaters open up, but is it a good idea? All that and more on the comics edition of Multiverse Tonight! Welcome to episode 91 of Multiverse Tonight! DC Fandome. Here are the highlights. The Batman had a trailer and it was revealed that the movie is only 30 percent shot, the film is scheduled for 2021. A trailer was shown for Wonder Woman 84. A trailer was shown for Justice League The Snyder Cut and it looked damn good. But be prepared for a long show it will be put up on HBO MAX in four hourlong installments. The new game Gotham Knights was revealed, it’s a co-op adventure game starring Nightwing, Robin, Batgirl, and Red Hood fighting to protect Gotham City after the apparent death of Batman. They will face the Court of Owls and other members from the Dark Knights’ rogue gallery. The Flash movie was revealed. With Barry Allen getting a new Batman made costume and confirmation that The Flash will be time traveling in order to change the DC Multiverse. They also hinted at revisiting classic DC Movies with concept art showing the flash teaming up with Michael Keaton’s Batman. At the Suicide Squad panel, James Gunn revealed every character for the movie Idris Elba plays Bloodsport Margot Robbie plays Harley Quinn Viola Davis plays Amanda Waller Sean Gunn plays Weasel Pete Davidson plays Blackguard Daniela Melchior plays Ratcatcher 2 Joel Kinnaman plays Colonel Rick Flag Nathan Fillion plays TDK Jai Courtney plays Captain Boomerang Steve Agee plays the on-set King Shark and John Economos Mayling Ng plays Mongal David Dastmalchian plays Polka-Dot Man Alice Braga plays Sol Soria John Cena plays Peacemaker Juan Diego Botto plays Presidente General Silvio Luna Peter Capaldi plays The Thinker Michael Rooker plays Savant Flula Borg plays Javelin Joaquín Cosío is Mayor General Mateo Suarez Jennifer Holland plays Emilia Harcourt Storm Reid plays Tyla Gunn said that this was quote “by far the most fun I’ve ever had making a movie,” unquote He also confirmed on twitter quote I can confirm #TheSuicideSquad is 100%, zero interference, no-holds-barred ME, &, again, I can’t wait for you guys to get a glimpse of it at #DCFanDome. (Yes, I’m pimping FanDome a lot, but that’s because I know how exciting it’s going to be – for my film & other stuff too!😬) unquote A Suicide Squad game was already reveled from Rocksteady Studios. It’s another co-op game and will be out in 2022 for PS5, Xbox Series X, and PC. Black Adam was teased with Dwayne Johnson revealing that along with Noah Centineo as Atom Smasher we will see the Justice Society of America, no casting news year but the cast will include Hawkman, Cyclone and Doctor Fate. Conversely, Shazam 2’s panel revealed that it will be called Shazam Fury of the Gods and will be out in November of 2022. Aquaman w was teased only with a note from James Wan that it was quote “a little bit more serious, a little bit more relevant to the world that we’re living in today.” unquote Sandman on Netflix’s panel had Neil Gaiman saying that the show will be faithful to the books, but slightly looser and that the pandemic has allowed for more work on the scripts. Titans season three will see Jason Todd becoming the Red Hood and will see Barbara Gordon becoming GCPD commissioner and Dr. Jonathan Crane’s Scarecrow making an appearance on the show. The Milestone imprint is making a return All isn’t sunshine and lollipops at DC WarnerMedia has laid off dozens from the company including editor-in-chief Bob Harris, senior VP of publishing strategy and support services Hank Kanalz, VP of marketing and creative services Jonah Weiland, VP global publishing initiatives and digital strategy Bobbie Chase, senior story editor Brian Cunningham, and executive editor Mark Doyle, who oversaw the rollout of the Black Label graphic novels. Jim Lee remains the CCO. According to sources about a third of the editors are getting laid off. Insiders have also told the Hollywood reporter that a majority of the staff at DC Universe are gone as well, seeming to indicate that the streaming service might not be long for this world. Also gone is DC Direct, the in house merchandising and collectibles arm, ending its 22-year long history of making green lantern rings and batarangs. In the interim DC Comics has named Marie Javins and Michele Wells as Interim Editors in Chief. Javins was in charge of digital strategy at DC and Wells was head of the Young Adult Imprint. In an interview about that change with the Holly wood Reporter, DC Publisher Jim Lee said quote “We thought it would be a great pairing to bring them together to help draft and organize the content we’re doing along these lines,” Lee said. “Across digital, across global, we want to make sure we have diversity and inclusivity and making it in a way that we have authenticity to the storytelling that we’re doing. “It’s really about consolidating all of our efforts and having every editors involved in all these directives and also organizing, broadly speaking, in content that is for kids 6 to 11 and then 12 to 45,” he continued. “It’s about consolidating format and oversight to a smaller, more concentrated editorial group.”. Unquote He also confirmed that comics at DC aren’t dead and that they are very much in the business of making comics. They will just be making less comics saying quote …we will be reducing the size of the slate. But it’s about looking at everything and looking at the bottom 20 percent, 25 percent of the line that wasn’t breaking even or was losing money. It’s about more punch for the pound, so to speak, and increasing the margins of the books that we are doing. It was about aligning the books to the franchise brand content we’ve developed and making sure that every book we put out, we put out for a reason. unQuote He also disputed the rumor that DC will be only selling trades and that Marvel will start publishing DC’s comics. There’s a lot more of this interview, if you want to read it, I’ll have a link to it in the show notes. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/dcs-jim-lee-companys-future-we-are-still-business-publishing-comics-1307413?utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter The Joker’s new sidekick Punchline is getting her own origin story one-shot. Punchline number one arrives in November. The issue is written by Batman writer and Punchline co-creator James Tynion IV and Sam Johns and has art from Mirka Andolfo with a cover by Yasmine Putri and a variant cover by Frank Cho. The story follows the consequences of her role in the joker war. Quote Punchline is the story of Alexis Kaye, and how she’ll take Leslie Thompkins, Harper Row, and Cullen Row on a harrowing journey that reveals her radicalization to The Joker’s ideology. Unquote It’ll be out on November tenth. This December DC Comics is releasing Through the ’80s The end of eras hardcover and it will include the entire text of Alan Moore’s unproduced Twilight of the Superheroes proposal… Twilight of the Superheroes was something that Moore proposed before he left DC in 87. Twilight would have restored the Multiverse and would have taken place in a future ruled by superhero dynasties and chronicled the final battle between heroes, villains and aliens. The hardcover will also feature issues from various 80’s DC comics as well as essays. It comes out on December fifteenth and costs 49.99. Swamp Thing will premiere on The CW on October sixth with a 90-minute premiere. It was canceled by DC Universe, but don’t expect it to get a second season on The CW. CW President Mark Pedowitz said in May quote “At the moment, it’s just the one season,” “I do not know if it would come back. Obviously that would be a discussion for Warner Bros. and The CW. But at this time, Swamp Thing is just the episodes we have.” unquote, In other words, big ratings might be enough to get a second season. So if you really want it, show up for it. Marvel Comics is exiting the Age of Khonshu and is welcoming us to Enter The Phoenix. Here’s the official teaser quote “Keep an eye on Jason Aaron and Javier Garron’s latest Avengers epic, THE AGE OF KHONSHU for startling revelations about Moon Knight amidst a thunderous clash with a disgruntled god bent on reshaping the world in his image! Then, gear up for the grand return of the cosmic chaos-bringer of life and death in Jason Aaron and Javier Garron’s ENTER THE PHOENIX, on sale in December!” Marvel Comics is making a new anthology series, Wolverine: Black, White, and Blood. The series will see stores drawn in Black and White with just a splash of Red. Launching in November, each issue has three stories taking place at various points in our heroes life. Episode one will have a story with Gerry Duggan and Adam Kubert taking place at Weapon X, Matthew Rosenberg and Joshua Cassara show Wolverine undercover with Nick Fury and Declan Shalvey gets Logan into a deadly trap. Future issues of Wolverine: Black, White & Blood include stories by Vita Ayala, Chris Claremont, Saladin Ahmed, Donny Cates, Ed Brisson, Kelly Thompson, Greg Land, Salvador Larroca, Kev Walker, Chris Bachalo, Leonard Kirk, and others. The series starts this November. Theaters are opening back up and it looks like new movies like THe New Mutants and Tenet will finally hit the big screen, but is it such a good idea to go? Doctor Strange director Scott Derrickson doesn’t think so. He took to twitter to push for everyone to stay home instead quote “Don’t go see Tenet or any other movie in theater. There, I said it,” unquote. I think he might be right, I frankly won’t be going unless it’s a matinee with very very few people or if we can get this under control with a vaccine. New York Comicon is …yep…you guessed it going virtual. The online event will take place from October 8th to the 11th via their Youtube channel, the first panels to be announced are Star Trek American Gods and Hulu/FX. Fans will get to interact with the panels via Youtube live chat and ReedPops Discord channel. Reed Pop will also have a virtual marketplace for autographs, videos, and professional workshops. Brandon Lee’s costume from The Crow has sold at auction for 25,000 according to Kruse GWS Auctions. The distressed black shirt, leather pants, and trench coat were worn in multiple scenes in the 1994 classic. The star died after being accidentally shot during the making of the film. Apple and Google have both banned Fortnite from their respective app stores. Publisher Epic Games is now suing both Apple and Google. In a statement to Deadline dot com Apple said quote “Epic enabled a feature in its app which was not reviewed or approved by Apple, and they did so with the express intent of violating the App Store guidelines,” Apple said in a statement provided to Deadline. “We will make every effort to work with Epic to resolve these violations so they can return Fortnite to the App Store.” unquote Apparently this is over Epic allowing people to skip the Apple and Google stores and allow players to pay Epic directly. Author Thomas TownleyPosted on August 29, 2020 Categories UncategorizedTags Comics, DC, Marvel, Show Notes, Star Trek, Star WarsLeave a comment on Show Notes Episode 90: Strange New Worlds, Familiar Old Format & Episode 91: FanDome, ThunderDome, DomeDome Show Notes: Episode 88 – Robots. Now with Feeling Skin! & Episode 89 – Will We Ever See the New Mutants? Tonight! Warner Herzog takes a break, Paramount puts the breaks on one of the Star Trek movies and Genre TV does well at the Emmy nominations. All that and more on the SciFi edition of Multiverse Tonight! Welcome to the SciFi edition of Multiverse Tonight episode 88. I’m on vacation from my day job this week, gonna try to catch up on some books and movies that have been piling up. One thing I haven’t been missing is Star Trek Lower Decks. I loved the first episode, very funny, full of Star Trek references. This show should be taken as a love letter to the history of Star Trek. Stop thinking about it as a serious show, it’s not it’s a comedy, it’s not here to be an allegory or a morality tale, think of it as the dish of ice cream. I am looking forward to the entire season, well done CBS. Let’s get on with the news. The Mandalorian novel from Del Rely has been delayed. The novel by Adam Christopher will now be out in the fall of 2021. Spekind of the Mandalorian, Wwarner Herzog plans on taking a break from acting to get back to his own films. Speaking with the BFI at Home series on Youtube. He said “I have done a lot more acting recently, and I have to review it, because it takes away too much attention from the real things that I’m doing.” unquote. His documentary Fireball has been acquired by Apple TV Plus. The new Star wars game show Star Wars Jedi temple Challenge host Ahmed Best speaking with the Coffee with Kenobi podcast revealed the origins of his character on the show Kelleran Beq saying quote “In my idea of Kelleran Beq, the reason why he has a purple lightsaber and the purple kyber crystal is because, in my mind, purple lightsaber wielders have an intimate relationship with both the Light Side and the Dark Side,” Best revealed to Coffee With Kenobi. “It takes a special Jedi to be able to balance those two.” He added, “‘Kelleran’ is a name that I came up with because I like this idea of names being derivatives. ‘Wilhelm’ automatically turns into ‘William’ after generations and generations and accents change and regions change and I wanted to find a way to tie the sequels and the prequels together in Kelleran Beq. And I played a character, because of Anthony Daniels, in [Star Wars:] Attack of the Clones named ‘Achk Med-Beq,’ which was so duly named, and ‘Kelleran,’ to me, sounds like the origins of the name ‘Kylo Ren,’ so I wanted to have Kelleran be the root name to Kylo Ren and as you go down generations, you get to Kylo Ren.” unquote Okay. The comic book Star Wars Doctor Aphra, won the award for Outstanding Comic Book at the GLAAD Awards, it beat out BOOM!’s The Avant-Guards and Lumberjanes, Comixology’s Liebestrasse, DC Comics’ Harley Quinn: Breaking Glass, First Second’s Bloom and Laura Dean Keeps Breaking Up with Me, Image’s Crowded and The Wicked + The Divine, and Marvel’s Runaways. Doctor Aphra was created for the Star Wars Darth Vader comic. The Doctor is a morally amibquous acchelogist and a lesbian. PS5 and Xbox Series X players will be getting a Star Wars game. Star Wars Squadron is coming to the next gen consoles, however it will not have any upgrades over it’s planned versions on PS4 and Xbox One. Here’s the blurb “Master the art of starfighter combat in the authentic piloting experience Star Wars: Squadrons. Buckle up and feel the adrenaline of first-person multiplayer space dogfights alongside your squadron. Pilots who enlist will step into the cockpits of starfighters from both the New Republic and Imperial fleets and fight in strategic 5 vs. 5 space battles. Modify your starfighter and adjust the composition of your squadron to suit varying playstyles and crush the opposition. Pilots will triumph as a team and complete tactical objectives across known and never-before-seen battlefields, including the gas giant of Yavin Prime and the shattered moon of Galitan.” Star Wars Squadron Will be out on PS4, Xbox One and PC on October second and on PS5 and Xbox Series X sometime in November. A bit of science news now, usually we talk of Star Trek inspiring scientific advances, this time it’s Luke Skywalker’s prosthetic hand that has inspired researchers at the National University of Singapore to bring the feeling of touch to electronic skin. According to scientists at the university they have built electronic skin that can be used by robots and prosthetic limbs that recreate the sense of touch. The e-skin known as Asynchronous Coded electronic Skin consists of a network of sensors that are connected via a single electrical conductor and can give the robots or humans with a prosthetic limb the ability to feel pain, temperature, shape and texture. Assistant professor Benjamin Tee in an interview with Reuters said quote “When you lose your sense of touch, you essentially become numb … and prosthetic users face that problem,” “So by recreating an artificial version of the skin, for their prosthetic devices, they can hold a hand and feel the warmth and feel that it is soft, how hard are they holding the hand.” unquote This would be a big boost to amputees, very nice. Breaking News! Nickelodeon and CBS Television Studios announced that award-winning director and producer Ben Hibon (Codehunters) would direct, co-executive produce, and act as the creative lead of Nickelodeon’s upcoming animated series Star Trek: Prodigy. The CG-animated series follows a group of lawless teens who discover a derelict Starfleet ship and use it to search for adventure, meaning, and salvation. Paramount Pictures has decided to not go ahead with Noah Hawley’s Star Trek movie. If you’ll remember Hawley’s movie was given the greenlight by the studio.. The studio had also been working on a movie with Quentin tarantino, no word on the fate of that one. No word on the next movie in the franchise or if they’ll just stick to tv shows for now. Congratulations to Sonequa Martin Green on the birth of her daughter Saraiyah Chaunte Green. Sonequa shared the news on Instagram with photos of her and her husband Kenric Green. On Instagram, Martin-Green writes, “We welcomed our sweet baby girl last Sunday, July 19th at 8:32 in the morning. It was a profoundly beautiful home birth, and now both of our children have been born in the water. We never felt that anything was missing, but now that she’s here, we feel a perfect sense of completeness. Her name is Saraiyah Chaunté Green, she’s got Mommy’s initials and Mommy’s middle name. She’s utterly perfect, just like her brother. Thanks be to Yeshua, she’s the final piece to our Love-given puzzle.” unquote. Star Trek Lower Decks is out and animation studio Titmouse has started an exclusive t-shirt club featuring ten exclusive shirts, one for each new episode. Each shirt is available for one week between each new episode and then it’s gone forever. . You can get them at titmousestuff.com for $20 dollars. Courteney Cox is returning to the role of Gale Weathers for the upcoming Scream reboot. Spyglass Media Group and Paramount made the announcement and they also said filming should start later this year in Wilmington, NC. The movie is being directed by directors Matthew Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett with a script written by James Vanderbilt and Guy Busick. Courtney is joined by David Arquette. Christopher Eccleston will be reprising the role of the Ninth Doctor for the Audio series Doctor Who The Ninth Doctor Adventures from Big Finish Productions and BBC Studios. The audio series will be released as four separate box sets each with three episodes The first will be released in May 2021. No plot details at this time. Eccleston in a statement said quote “After 15 years, it will be exciting to revisit the Ninth Doctor’s world, bringing back to life a character I love playing” No word on any plot details.Each volume will run about two hundred forty minutes and have a price point of 19.99 with the entire series will cost 88 dollars. The Emmy nominations were announced The Mandalorian walked away with fifteen nominations including Drama Series, Sound Mixing, Special Effects, stunt coordination, cinematography, fantasy or sci fi costumes, sound editing, voice over, production design, 3 nominations for outstanding single-camera picture editing drama, outstanding prosthetic makeup, music and Guest Actor in a drama for Giancarlo Esposito Watchmen made off with the most nominations of any show with 26 nominations including limited series, lead actor in a limited series or movie for Jeremy IronsLead Actress in a limited series for Regina King,Supporting actor and actress nominations for Yahya Abdual-Mateen II, Jovan Adepo, Louis Gossett Jr. and Jean Smart and several technical emmy nominations. Also receiving nominations were The Good Place, Westworld, Big Mouth, Central Park, The Simpsons, Bob’s Burgers , Rick and Morty, BoJack Horseman, Robot Chicken, The Handmaid’s Tale, What we do in the shadows and more. The Emmy Awards Will be hosted by Jimmy Kimmel on ABC on September twenty. https://variety.com/2020/tv/news/emmys-2020-nominations-complete-list-1234715939/ Tonight we say goodbye to the legendary pitchman for Quaker Oats and actor Wilford Brimley. Anthony Wilford Brimley was born in Salt Lake City on September twenty seventh 1934. He dropped out of high scheel at the age of fourteen and worked as a cowboy. He joined the Marines during the Korean War and served in the Aleutian Islands for three years. He also later worked as a bodyguard for Howard Hughes, a ranch hand, wrangler and a blacksmith. While blacksmithing for film and television, at the encouragement of his friend actor Robert Duvall, he started acting during the 1960’s as an extra and stunt man in Westerns like Bandolero and True Grit. His big break came when he was cast on The 70’s tv series The Waltons showing up in eight episodes. From there he starred in films such as The China Syndrome, The Thing, Cocoon, Remo Williams The Adventure Begins, Cocoon The Return, The firm among others. His television roles included appearances on Kung Fu, the tv film Ewoks: The Battle for Endor, Walker Texas Ranger and Seinfeld. He also was a frequent star in commercials for Quaker Oats, Liberty Medical and the American Diabetes Association. Wilford was diagnosed with type II diabetes in 1979. Wilford came down with a kidney condition in June of 2020 and died on August first in a hospital in St George Utah, he was eighty five. Tonight! Looking forward to the next Wonder Woman movie, Could the New Mutants get pushed back once again? And what’s Pixar’s next film? All that and more on the comic book edition of Multiverse Tonight! Welcome to episode 89 of Multiverse Tonight. I’m your host Thomas Townley. If you’re listening to this the week it comes out, well I’m on vacation. I was supposed to be at Planet Comicon this week, but well I’ve covered that in the last episode. Frankly, I’m just happy to have an extended period of time off from work, I’m starting to get annoyed having to answer the same questions over and over again. Where is blank? Do you have blank? Etcetera, Etcetera. However, it’s nice to be able to sit back in my easy chair and read a book or watch a movie or show that I haven’t gotten to. Well let’s see what we’ve got in the news. The Flash movie will be a time travel film according to Director Andy Muschettii, it’s been proposed that the movie will be a soft reboot of the DC Universe movie franchise. Muschietti in a radio interview said quote “It is a story of time travel: Flash travels back to try to save his mother,” Muschietti said. “It is a spectacular action movie but it has a big heart.” unquote So this makes me wonder how his version will differ from the animated version of the same story? Any ideas? Warner Bros and DC Comics have announced a new animated movie with a twist. Batman: Death in the Family based on the 1988 comic book event which featured a call in to decide if Robin number 2, Jason Todd lived or died at the hands of the Joker, he, well, died. This new version will be updated for the present with an interactive Blu-ray that will allow the viewer to make the famous choice using their remote control. Also on the Blu-ray will be four new animated shorts featuring Sgt. Rock, Adam Strange, Death and The Phantom Stranger. The Blu0ray will be out on October thirteenth for 24.98. The Harley Quinn animated series is now out on HBO Max, both seasons one and two have been put up on the new streaming service so fans who haven’t had the opportunity to see it can now watch it. This is leading to speculation about the demise of the DC Universe app, but so far no indications about it’s collapse have been forthcoming. A little business news here, Could EA be hinting at an acquisition of WB Games? The Warner Bros owned game studio has been rumored to have a for sale sign on it. The hint came during EA’s quarterly investor call when EA CGO Blake Jorgensen said that quote it;s more interested than ever” unquote at acquiring studios and that any future acquisitions would include big assets. If EA bought Warner Games it would get IP like Mortal Combat and license to make games based on LEGO, Harry Potter , Game of Thrones and the DC Universe. Other rumored parties interested in acquiring WB Games are Activision, Take Two Interactive and Microsoft. If such a deal goes down, I’ll let you know. Wonder Woman 2 hasn’t even been able to get into theaters but Wonder Woman 3 is already being thought of. Last month director Patty Jenkins said that she’d paused on development of the third film. However in an interview with German publication Geek, Ms. Jenkins revealed that Wonder Woman number 3 will most likely be her final run with the character. Saying quote “[Wonder Woman 1984] gave me a chance to do a lot of things that I couldn’t accommodate in the first movie.” . “I was so happy to tell the Wonder Woman origin story. It was almost her birth, but we really haven’t seen what she is capable of. It is exciting for me to show her at the peak of her strength. But it is also very important that she fights an internal struggle: she is a Goddess and tries to help humanity. She is not only someone who fights evil, she tries to show bad people how to improve. It’s an interesting dilemma.” “The next one is probably my last Wonder Woman movie,” , “so I have to put everything I want to show there. We have to think carefully.” Lucifer season five comes to Netflix on August twenty first and it’s about to get a little meta. Accoring to TVLine, Episode Three deals with a murder taking place on the set of a Warner Bros tv show about a quote devilish hunk and his police detective paramour. DC Comics in puting the Wildstorm series Gen13 back in print. The series was a massive hit back in the 90s and will now be avaliable in a new Deluxe edition hardcover coming next year. The new trade will be called Gen13: Starting over and will be out in May of 2021 and will be a reprinting of the previous collected editin from 2002, but with new trade dress and cover. DC Fandome, DC’s virtual comic con has revealed its lineup of hosts, presenters and special guests. Names include Adam Brody, Amy Smart, Brandon Vietti, Brenton Thwaites, Brett Dalton, Chris Pine, Christopher Priest, Cress Williams, Conor Leslie, Dan Jurgens, Damon Lindelof, Danica McKellar, David F. Sandberg, Emanuela Lupacchino, Ezra Miller, Gal Gadot, G. Willow Wilson, Grant Morrison, Greg Berlanti, Greg Weisman, Idris Elba, James Gunn, Jason Fabok, James Wan, Minka Kelly, Mark Waid, Marc Guggenheim, Kode (BossLogic) Abdo, Nathan Fillion, Patty Jenkins, Tara Strong, Timothy Dalton, Tom King, Val Kilmer, Viola Davis, Zachary Levi and Zack Snyder. The event takes place on Saturday August 22nd starting at 10 AM Pacific Daylight Time. Go to DCFANDOME.com for more information. Will The New Mutants ever see the light of day? The film is supposed to be out on August 28th of this year, however promotional materials for the movie from Taiwan are casting some doubt on that being an absolute. The promo’s there changed from August 28th to the always ambiguous Coming Soon. SOme have wondered if it might just go straight to say Disney Plus, however Director Josh Boone says that’s not an option saying quote “With most movies, you sign contracts that guarantee a theatrical release, so it needs to open to ever go digital in the first place,” Boone says. “We just, too, would like to see people to see it in the theater. But it needs to obviously be at the right time when it’s safe to go back.” unquote. So in other words, it needs to be in theaters first. Well while we wait for that, production must go on. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings has gone back into production in Australia according to a news station in the country. They sent the crew back to work constructing sets for the picture and they reported that the cast has returned as well. The movie was in production when the pandemic hit forcing a halt to the production as well as pushing the release date from February 2021 to May 2021.Shang-Chi will star Simu Liu in the titular role with Tony Leung as The Mandarin and also starring Awkwafina and RFonny Cheng. Marvel’s new digital game, MArvel Duel has launched in select markets in Thailand, INdonesia, Philippines and Malaysia. The game is a strategy card game where you create a roster of heroes and villains to collect and battle with. “The power to save the Marvel universe is in your hands! Marvel Duel is a fast-paced strategy card game featuring the world’s greatest Super Heroes and Super Villains,” an overview of the game said. “A mysterious evil force has altered the most iconic events of Marvel history. Restore the universe by summoning your favorite characters and outsmarting your opponents with effective strategies! Assemble your deck, save the universe!” unquote However don’t plan on playing it soo, The game was never intended for a global release, so it might be a fame just for those markets. According to a report from Business Insider, in 2017, Marvel apparently considered taking the Spider-man title of off Miles Morales. Laging sales caused the publisher to explore possible phasing out the common legacy superhero names for it’s younger more diverse characters and replacing them with new code names. According to former Marvel assistant editor Charles Beacham quote “It would have made him less important,” Charles Beacham, a former assistant editor at Marvel who addressed the diversity concerns in the story, said. “He becomes Spider-Man with an asterisk. It takes away the power for kids who relate to this character.” unquote However as you well know, Marvel didn’t go through with it. Good call. IDW Publisher Jud Meyers has been ouster from his posistion at the head of IDW after only three weeks on the job. Late Friday night, IDW put out a short statement to the press saying that it had quote parted ways with Jud Meyers unquote Before his ousting he had been places on administrative leave and IDW president Jerry Bennington has been acting as publisher in the meantime. Pixar has announced its next Feature Film, Luca. The movie will take place on the Italian Riviera and feature the coming of age story of a young boy experiencing an unforgettable summer. Here’s the official press release quote Pixar Animation Studios announced today that its next feature film release will be Luca. Directed by Academy Award®️ nominee Enrico Casarosa (La Luna) and produced by Andrea Warren (Lava, Cars 3), Luca is set to open in U.S. theaters June 18, 2021.Set in a beautiful seaside town on the Italian Riviera, the original animated feature is a coming-of-age story about one young boy experiencing an unforgettable summer filled with gelato, pasta and endless scooter rides. Luca shares these adventures with his newfound best friend, but all the fun is threatened by a deeply-held secret: he is a sea monster from another world just below the water’s surface. “This is a deeply personal story for me, not only because it’s set on the Italian Riviera where I grew up, but because at the core of this film is a celebration of friendship. Childhood friendships often set the course of who we want to become and it is those bonds that are at the heart of our story in Luca,” director Enrico Casarosa said in a statement. “So in addition to the beauty and charm of the Italian seaside, our film will feature an unforgettable summer adventure that will fundamentally change Luca.” Luca arrives in theaters on June eighteenth 2021. Funko is looking back with it’s Retro Toy line of Funko Pops based on classic Mattel and Hasbro toys. Including Barbie, GiJoe, Stretch Armstrong, Operation,Play-doh, My Pet Monster and Mr. Potato Head. You can grab them from your favorite retailer or grab some exclusive ones including Mr. Monopoly at Target. Twenty two years after it’s last episode Animaniacs is back. The series debuts on Hulu on Friday November twentieth. There will be thirteen new episodes featuring Yakko, Wakko, Dot and Pinky and the Brain. And remember grownups, it’s not meant for you, but for your kids. I’d like to close tonight noting the passage of WWE Superstar Kamala. Who has passed away at the age of seventy this past saturday. New of his passing was broken by the twitter for the Cauliflower Alley Club saying quote The CAC family wishes to extend our sincerest condolences to the family friends and fans the world over upon the news that the legendary James “Kamala” Harris has passed away at the age of 70. Rest in Peace James.” unquote. He made his debut in 1978 and worked for Continental Wrestling Association, Mid-South Wrestling and World Class Championship Wrestling before making his World Wrestling Federation debut in 1984. He worked for the WWF in the late eighties and early nineties and would make sporadic appearances later, usually in gimmick battle royals. His last match was in 2006. His health deteriorated in his later years, high blood pressure and diabetes cost him his legs in 2012. So here’s to you Kamala, the Ugandan Giant. Author Thomas TownleyPosted on August 14, 2020 August 11, 2020 Categories New Episode, Show NotesTags DC Comics, Marvel, Show Notes, Star Trek, Star WarsLeave a comment on Show Notes: Episode 88 – Robots. Now with Feeling Skin! & Episode 89 – Will We Ever See the New Mutants?	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line652
__label__cc	0.513687	0.486313	Delta Air Lines (DAL) reported its quarterly earnings on Tuesday, October 13. The major airline company posted yet another large net loss as summer travel was hindered by the COVID-19 pandemic. The company's revenue came in at $3.06 billion, which failed to meet Wall Street's expected revenue of $3.11 billion. This was down 76% from $12.56 billion during the same quarter last year. "While our September quarter results demonstrate the magnitude of the pandemic on our business, we have been encouraged as more customers travel and we are seeing a path of progressive improvement in our revenues, financial results and daily cash burn," said Delta's CEO, Ed Bastian. "The actions we are taking now to take care of our people, simplify our fleet, improve the customer experience, and strengthen our brand will allow Delta to accelerate into a post-COVID recovery." Delta posted a net loss of $5.38 billion, or $3.30, per share for the quarter. Last year at this time, the company reported net income of $1.50 billion. The entire airline industry continues to struggle with the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. In total, Delta has reported more than $11 billion in losses the last two quarters. Due to the losses, the company has been forced to continue to retire aircrafts. Approximately one fifth of its employees accepted buyouts and early retirement packages. Similar to other major airlines, Delta has introduced enhanced cleaning procedures and other safety procedures, such as leaving the middle seat open. Delta continues to withhold guidance, but remains optimistic with Thanksgiving and Christmas travel seasons arriving soon. Delta Air Lines (DAL) shares ended the week at $31.47, down 3.7% for the week. Wells Fargo Reports Earnings Wells Fargo & Co. (WFC) released its third quarter earnings report on Wednesday, October 14. The long-standing banking institution reported its third consecutive quarter of poor results largely due to low rates causing reduced net interest income. Wells Fargo reported revenue of $18.9 billion. This was down from $22.0 billion reported in the third quarter last year, but surpassed analysts' expected revenue of $18.0 billion. "Our third quarter results reflect the impact of aggressive monetary and fiscal stimulus on the US economy," said Wells Fargo's CEO, Charlie Scharf. "Strong mortgage banking fees, higher equity markets, and declining sequential charge-offs positively impacted our results, while historically low interest rates reduced our net interest income and our expenses continued to remain elevated. We continue to provide support for our customers having helped more than 3.2 million consumers and small businesses by deferring payments and waiving fees." Wells Fargo reported quarterly net income of $2.0 billion or $0.42 per share. This compares to net income of $4.6 billion or $0.92 per share for the same quarter last year. The bank's net interest income was reported at $9.4 billion for the quarter, which fell by 19% year over year. The reduced income is a result of the Federal Reserve's decision to keep interest rates at historically low levels due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In other areas the bank's non-interest type income exceeded analysts' expectations at $9.5 billion. Wells Fargo continues to withhold any future guidance due to uncertainties with the pandemic and further fiscal stimulus. Wells Fargo & Co. (WFC) shares ended the week at $22.86, down 9.3% for the week. Del Taco Posts Earnings Del Taco Restaurants, Inc. (TACO) reported its latest quarterly earnings on Thursday, October 15. The second-largest Mexican-American fast food chain's shares dropped 5% in the hours after the report's release. The company reported net revenue of $120.8 million for the quarter. Revenue was relatively unchanged year over year with a 0.5% increase, but exceeded analysts' expectations of $120.4 million. "As we continue to navigate the challenges and opportunities related to COVID-19, I am proud of our actions to stabilize our business as demonstrated by our strong third quarter performance, said John D. Cappasola Jr., President and CEO of Del Taco. "Positive third quarter comparable restaurant sales for company-operated and franchised restaurants reflects our value-oriented [Quick Service Restaurant+] positioning, expanding off-premise convenience and use of innovation with the very successful launch of new fresh Guacamole and our Crispy Chicken menu. We also drove operational efficiencies and maintained our cost discipline to help slightly expand our restaurant contribution margin after adjusting for the timing of advertising expense which will normalize during our fourth quarter." The restaurant company reported net income for the quarter at $5.8 million or $0.15 per share. This was an increase compared to a net loss of $7.7 million or $0.21 per share at the same time last year. The company's sales increased year over year by 4.1% due to company operated restaurants' sales increasing 2.0% and franchised operated restaurants' sales increasing 6.5%. During the quarter, one company-operated and four franchise-operated restaurants opened, while two franchise-operated restaurants closed. The company is also anticipating two restaurants opening in the fourth quarter, with the first Del Taco location opening in the state of Ohio. The company continues to refrain from forward-looking statements, but is looking ahead to 2021 to improve brand engagement and transforming their digital capabilities. Del Taco Restaurants, Inc. (TACO) shares ended the week at $8.18, down 13.5% for the week. The Dow started the week of 10/12 at 28,671 and closed 28,606 on 10/16. The S&P 500 started the week at 3,500 and closed at 3,484. The NASDAQ started the week at 11,732 and closed at 11,672. Treasury Yields Buoyed by Consumer Spending Earlier in the week, the U.S. Treasury yields saw its biggest single day drop in the past four months due to reported setbacks in the efforts to develop a vaccine for COVID-19. However, later in the week Treasury yields rose in reaction to economic data related to increased consumer spending in September. On Monday, Johnson & Johnson reported that clinical trials for its COVID-19 vaccine were paused due to an unexplained illness in a participant. Another pharmaceutical company, Eli Lilly, reported a pause in its clinical trial for COVID-19 antibody treatment. The 10-Year Treasury note yield slid 4.9 basis points to 0.726%, the biggest single day drop since the middle of June. The 30-year bond yield slipped 6 basis points to 1.513%, the biggest single day drop since early July. On Friday, treasury yields increased following data of a 1.9% increase in U.S. retail sales for September. Treasury yields move inversely to prices, the increase in September retail sales alleviated concerns that consumer spending would halt without an additional government stimulus package. "Despite unemployment benefits expiring for millions of Americans, today's retail sales figure shows us there is still some gas in the tank for the consumer," said Charlie Ripley, a senior investor strategist for Allianz Investment Management. Mortgage Rates Fall Further Freddie Mac released its latest Primary Mortgage Market Survey on Thursday, October 15. After a period of relative stability, rates fell further. "Low mortgage rates have become a regular occurrence in the current environment," said Sam Khater, Freddie Mac's Chief Economist. "As we hit yet another record low, the tenth record this year, many people are benefitting as refinance activity remains strong. However, it's important to remember that not all people are able to take advantage of low rates given the effects of the pandemic." HD Supply Reports Earnings	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line653
__label__wiki	0.771532	0.771532	Willy Boly ruled out of Newcastle clash Date: 26th October 2019 at 4:02pm Wolves defender Willy Boly has been ruled out of the game against Newcastle United on Sunday afternoon, according to the Birmingham Mail. The newspaper claim on their website that the French enforcer will miss the trip to St James’ Park after suffering an ankle injury in training in the build-up to the game. The Birmingham Mail report that the defender, who has been linked with both Arsenal and Tottenham, has been in great form for the Midlands’ side but will not be available. Boly has started all but one game in the Premier League for Sunday’s visitors and played the full 90 minutes against Slovan Bratislava on Thursday in the Europa League. This is a great boost for Newcastle going into the game. The Magpies have been massively struggling in front of goal so far this season, and the fact that their opponents will be missing their main defender ahead of the clash could see them find much more space in the final third. Steve Bruce’s side has the joint-worst attack in the league and have failed to score more than one goal in a single game so far this season, and Joelinton will be relishing the opportunity to come up against a defence that could be reshuffled at St James’ Park. Boly has been a brick wall at Molineux so far this season, and wins an average of almost five aerial battles [4.9] per game according to WhoScored, and would be one of their biggest defenders to help his side should Newcastle attempt to utilise the long ball on Sunday afternoon – something which could be unlikely given the absence of Andy Carroll.	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line655
__label__wiki	0.570431	0.570431	Coronavirus update: Beach states may be the new hot spots May 28, 2020 OpinionKent Kroeger By Kent R. Kroeger (Source: NuQum.com, May 28, 2020) “I don’t believe I am costing lives at all,” said Missouri Governor Mike Parson (R) in late March as he rejected calls for a statewide stay-at-home (SaH) order. “The effects that (a statewide SaH) will have on everyday people are dramatic. That means businesses will close, people will lose their jobs, the economy will be in worse shape than ever.” At the time Governor Parson said those words, eight Missourians had lost their lives to COVID-19. Two months later, the death toll stands at 705 (or about 115 people per 1 million Missouri residents), putting the Show-Me state at 26th among the 50 states (plus District of Columbia) in the relative number of COVID-19 deaths. Missouri is ranked 37th in the relative number of confirmed COVID-19 cases at 2,088 per 1 million people. In other words, Missouri’s performance so far in containing the coronavirus is roughly average to above-average. It can’t emphasized enough that this pandemic is still an ongoing and many of the Middle America states that refused to impose stay-at-home orders, such as Iowa, Nebraska and Arkansas, are now in the middle of their first wave of cases (as opposed to states like New York and New Jersey that are near the end of the first wave). Still, it is legitimate to consider whether Governor Parson was at least partially correct about SaH orders (though he did end up issuing a SaH order on April 6th). This question is particularly important as all 50 states (plus the District of Columbia) are in the midst of slowly re-opening for business — some faster than others. What is not helpful nor analytically pertinent is the suggestion that one party is wholly responsible for increasing the number of COVID-19 deaths or worsening an economic recession merely for political gain. At least, as of today, explicitly political variables (e.g., a state governor’s political party, Trump’s share of the statewide vote in 2016, etc.) offer little information that can explain the relative number of COVID-19 cases and deaths across states. However, today we are in a period where many of the Democrat-led states (CT, HA, KY, LA, MI, MT, NY, NJ, OR, RI, PA, WA) are witnessing significantly lower numbers of new cases as the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic nears its end in those states (see Figure 1). Six out of the 10 states with the lowest relative number of new cases in the past week (May 19th to 25th) are led by Democratic governors. In contrast, four out of the 10 states with the highest relative number of new cases new cases in the past week are led by Republican governors. Figure 1: A state’s recent new cases (7-day moving average, May 19–25) as a percent of the state’s highest 7-day average (Data from 22 Jan — 25 May) Data Source: Johns Hopkins University — CSSE If there is a partisan effect on how long this pandemic is extending, it is more subtle than appreciated. A more explanatory hypothesis might be that the start of the summer tourism season is starting to increase new COVID-19 cases for coastal states (AL, CA, GA, ME, MD, MS, NC, SC, TX, VA). Figure 2 shows a selection of beach states and their 7-day moving average trends in new cases. Figure 2: New COVID-19 Case Trends by Selected Beach States (as of 25 May) We’ve seen the pictures and video from the Memorial Day weekend: Ocean City, MD tourists cramming along the boardwalk with not even a quarter of the people wearing face masks. Even you believe it is hard to transmit the COVID-19-causing virus (SARS-CoV-2) or believe its effect is not significantly different from the seasonal flu, not donning a mask is disrespectful to those who believe otherwise. Its called being neighborly and its a small price to pay if that is what it takes to keep our beaches and outdoor entertainment facilities open. In the next 14 days or so, we will see the impact of the Memorial Day weekend on new COVID-19 cases. If we don’t see a bump, expect almost all states to accelerate their phase-out of business closures and SaH orders. If we witness a surge, on the other hand, the recriminations and calls for extending SaH orders will thunder across cable news networks and social media. New COVID-19 Path Model (updated through 25 May 2020) Figure 3 (below) shows the coefficient estimates for a path (mediation) model estimated in JASP, a free statistical software package available here. More detailed results for this path model are in the Appendix at the end of this essay. As with previous path models I’ve estimated for the COVID-19 pandemic, the outcome of interest is the relative fatality rate for COVID-19 (measured in each state as the number of fatalities per 1 million people). The mediating variable is the relative confirmed case rate (number of cases per 1 million people) and the other predictor variables are: (1) A binary variable for West Coast states (CA, HA, OR, WA), (2) A binary variable for whether a state imposed a SaH order, (3) a binary variable for states that imposed travel restrictions, (4) the number of COVID-19 tests (per 1 million people), and (5) a state’s population density. [Note: An indicator variable for “Beach” states was only weakly correlated with the outcome and mediation variables and was therefore left out of the final path model.] Overall, the path model in Figure 3 explains 75 percent of the variance in relative confirmed case rates and 93 percent of the variance in relative fatality rates. Figure 3: COVID-19 Path Model (U.S. data updated through 25 May 2020) Data Source: Johns Hopkins University — CSSE; Data Analysis by Kent R. Kroeger (NuQum.com) In the case of COVID-19-related fatalities through May 25th, by far, the most significant correlate is the relative number of confirmed cases. That is not surprising. More puzzling is that SaH states have experienced disproportionately more COVID-19 fatalities than non-SaH states, all else equal. This relationship is weak enough, however, that it could change when the first wave of this pandemic is over for every state. Those two variables were the only variables significantly correlated with COVID-19 fatalities. The more interesting results are for the factors correlated with the relative number of confirmed cases where (as in past models I’ve estimated) a state’s population density and the number of COVID-19 tests (per 1 million people) are the most significant correlates with case rates. However, we also find two policy variables negatively correlated with case rates (SaH orders and Travel Restrictions). In other words, the presence of a SaH order and travel restrictions in a state independently correlate with fewer COVID-19 cases in that state. This is in consistent with our expectations that these policies should suppress confirmed case numbers (if only temporarily). Finally, the West Coast states (CA, HA, OR, WA) are also negatively associated with relative confirmed case rates. This relationship has been fairly consistent over time, if previous path models are an indication. The significance of West Coast states, however, may not be a function of the specific policies in those states (though all four were aggressive in putting SaH orders in place early). There is epidemiological evidence that the U.S. West Coast has been predominately hit by a slightly weaker form of the SARS-CoV-2 virus compared to the U.S. East Coast. For this reason, I hesitate to assume West Coast state policies are the sole reason for their relatively lower case rates. It most likely a combination of the SARS-CoV-2’s pathogenic characteristics and state policies. As I must always caveat any statistical finding related to the COVID-19 pandemic: the pandemic is far from over. In fact, we may only be in the first of many contagion waves for this virus, according to The University of Minnesota’s Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy (CIDRAP). Indeed, the hopeful discovery and production of a SARS-CoV-2 vaccine by early next year (or possibly late this year) may not completely eliminate the presence of COVID-19 in our lives. Furthermore, our knowledge about this virus seems to change by the day. On day the CDC can say picking up the virus from surface exposure, and the next day the CDC retracts that statement and says “it is possible to become infected by touching a surface containing the active virus.” We just don’t know enough to make strong declarative statements yet on what policies will or won’t defeat SARS-CoV-2. For all of these reasons, the partisan narratives polluting our airwaves over this virus are not helping in the slightest. These partisan tirades from both sides are, in fact, hurting the learning process for those in a decision-making position who must increasingly filter out the noise to get to the facts. No politician, in the U.S. or elsewhere, has made perfect decisions regarding COVID-19 and they will make mistakes going forward. [I know how successful New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has been in pushing policies that have successfully suppressed the virus in her country; but, remember, New Zealand is an island. They have an advantage. The same goes for Hawaii.] It is time to chuck the partisan noise driving the coronavirus narrative in the national media and, instead, focus on the actual facts. Recent COVID-19 data has not been a good news story for a significant number of Republican-led states. Unfortunately for some Democrat-led states (e.g., CA), it has been a tough week for them too. What is clear from a statistical point of view, the coronavirus does not give a bucket of owl spit about anyone’s political preferences. The coronavirus is brutally apolitical. Slowly and methodically, the U.S. states are converging towards similar COVID-19 case and death rates, independent of partisanship or public policy. That does not mean public policy is irrelevant. Governors are merely rearranging chairs on the Titanic. Ask Hawaiians if state-level coronavirus policies have made a difference. They have mattered, as we can see with the significance of travel restrictions and statewide stay-at-home orders in the above path model. Policies matter. But the pathogenic characteristics of the SARS-CoV-2 virus matter more. It is highly contagious and three to four times deadlier than the average seasonal flu, according to the newest estimates by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. So, please wear a mask…even if you are at the beach. Send comments to: kroeger98@yahoo.com or tweet me at: @KRobertKroeger1 APPENDIX: Path Model Output and Diagnostics ← Our law enforcement officers need new rules of engagement for minor crimes Joe Biden’s criminal justice legacy is more than just the 1994 Crime Bill →	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line657
__label__cc	0.6665	0.3335	Teachers Administrators Parents UPCOMING COURSES COURSE LIBRARY Activities SKILLS BLOG HELP WEBINAR PRICING Earns Certificate All Administrators Teachers Parents All Free Earns Certificate No Certificate ISTE Aligned Closed Captions Product Familiarization Certifications Courses Tech-Infused Lessons Frameworks/Resources Instructional Skills School Uploaded Content All < 15 min 15 min - 30 min 30 min - 45 min > 45 min ALL Administrator Apple Apple for Parents Art & Design Assessment Blended Learning Canvas Canvas for Parents Chromebooks for Parents Civics Computer Science Digital Accessiblity Digital Citizenship Digital Storytelling Early Childhood Educational Frameworks ELA ENL/ELL General Interest Google Google for Parents Holiday Infinite Campus for Parents iPad iPads for Parents Literacy Math Microsoft Microsoft for Parents NAO Parents Project Based Learning Promethean Remote Learning Rube Goldberg Schoology Schoology for Parents Science SMART SMART Table Social Emotional Learning Social Studies Special Ed STEM TCEA Website Makeover ALL PreK - 2nd 3rd - 5th 6th - 8th 9th - 12th English Spanish Mandarin SORT BY: Most Recent Alphabetical Highest Rated Most Watched Digital Online Certifications Below are some popular Digital Teacher Certifications that are available as a series of online courses. 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Full number including Area Code is required. Please describe what you would like your call to address. Questions on a piece of edtech? Issues with the OTIS platform? Send us an email about the issues you are experiencing, and our OTIS team of PD Specialist will get back to you. For more information on School, District, or Category Pricing, fill out the form below and a PD Specialist will reach out to you directly or call us toll free at 877.455.9369. Interested in scheduling a demo? Fill out the form below and a PD Specialist will reach out to you directly or call us toll free at 877.455.9369. Tell us your idea Have a great great idea for a course? We'd love to hear it. Use the form below to send your idea directly to our curriculum team.	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line660
__label__wiki	0.711245	0.711245	Share this Story: Piché: Stop jailing people with mental health issues. It kills Piché: Stop jailing people with mental health issues. It kills Sarah Speight, Souheil Benslimane, Aaron Doyle, Justin Piché Cleve "Cas" Geddes in happier times. Geddes hanged himself in the Ottawa-Carleton Detention Centre. OTTwp Cleve “Cas” Geddes died by suicide on Feb. 10, 2017 after being placed in a solitary confinement cell in the Ottawa-Carleton Detention Centre (OCDC) while awaiting a psychiatric bed. An inquest into his death resumes this week. Earlier in the inquest, we learned from Sigrid Geddes that her brother, Cas, had long struggled with schizophrenia. We learned that when Cas came before a judge facing charges, he was ordered sent to the Royal Ottawa Hospital for a psychiatric assessment. We learned that when no beds were available there, Cas eventually ended up alone in segregation in our jail, almost completely cut off from the outside world, his family and human contact. We learned from a psychologist who assessed him at OCDC that their discussions took place through a cell-door slot. It’s clear that Cas should have never been behind bars. Piché: Stop jailing people with mental health issues. It kills Back to video This isn’t the first time someone living with mental health issues has lost their life at the Innes Road jail. For instance, 15 years ago, on Nov. 5, 2003, James O’Brien also died at OCDC. The 59-year-old Cornwall resident struggled with mental health issues and was admitted in the psychiatric wing of Cornwall Community Hospital where he had an altercation with a fellow patient. James was arrested and brought before a Justice of the Peace who determined that it was unlikely that beds were available at the Royal Ottawa Hospital for a psychiatric assessment. Like Cas, James was also sent to our jail and later died. A coroner’s inquest into James’s death recommended in 2004 that OCDC “should not be the overflow site for the Royal Ottawa Hospital.” Yet here we are a decade and a half, and several deaths, later. This isn’t the first time someone living with mental health issues has lost their life at the Innes Road jail. Our neighbours and loved ones living with mental health issues end up in jail too often. Former Corrections Minister Yasir Naqvi said in 2016 that at least one-quarter of the prisoners at OCDC were living with serious mental health issues. Now the province wants to replace OCDC with a bigger jail, when it should invest the money earmarked for it in community care. It’s past time to stand-up against this injustice. A rally is being held at the Canadian Tribute to Human Rights (corner of Elgin and Lisgar) on Monday, Dec. 10 from 8:30 am to 9:00am to remember Cas Geddes and demand the expansion of care in the community. We in the community must step up to hold Ontario jails and prisons to a higher standard to end suffering to the degree that’s possible at OCDC. Starting on Dec. 10, a new JAIL (Jail Accountability and Information Line) will be taking calls from prisoners and their loved ones at 613-567-JAIL (5245). This line will track human rights abuses experienced by people incarcerated at OCDC and advocate for their needs to be met, and connect prisoners to community supports for when they are released. People incarcerated at OCDC will be able to call the JAIL hotline from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. every day to report mistreatment or to seek support. It’s our hope that this work will help prevent future deaths in custody, improve conditions of confinement, help keep people out of jail, and result in more investments in community services to diminish our lethal reliance on imprisonment. The authors are members of the Criminalization and Punishment Education Project, which has launched the JAIL / Jail Accountability and Information Line open to prisoners and their loved ones at 613-567-JAIL (5245).	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line661
__label__cc	0.60898	0.39102	April 24, 2020 Pink and Blue NotesLeave a comment Artist, artist interview, Photo gallery, Producer, Singer"Jimmy Lee", Blakeslee studioo, Raphael Saadiq, Rob Bacon April 13, 2020 Pink and Blue Notes2 Comments In the midst of a pandemic, Lindsey Webster, alongside the rest of us, is adjusting to the new normal. She released her fifth album, “A Woman Like Me,” on March 27th. Since then, “A Woman Like Me” has debuted #1 on iTunes jazz, and this week, the album is #1 on the Billboard chart. The project is doing extremely well and is bringing joy and positivity to Webster’s fans. Lindsey collaborated with artists she’d never met yet had always admired. Nathan East adds a solo to the title track, and Vinnie Colaiuta and Luis Conte can be heard on other songs. Creating and recording with new energy was an enjoyable part of the making of this album. Webster grew up in Woodstock and has always been supported and given the freedom to be her true self; it’s evident when listening to all of her music–especially, on this album. She is at the apex of her career and unapologetic about the woman she has become. Lindsey is always striving to better herself and figure out her place in the world. Listen to my conversation with Lindsey about her new album: https://mm2513.files.wordpress.com/2020/04/lindsey-webster2.mp3 artist interview"A Woman Like Me", "Feels Like Forever", "Only You", Billboard, Billboard Contemporary Jazz Chart, Contemporary Jazz, Keith Slattery, Lindsey Webster, Luis Conte, Nathan East, Vinnie Colaiuta, Woodstock	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line665
__label__cc	0.547508	0.452492	Royal Perth Yacht Club, Perth Royal Perth Yacht Club (RPYC) is one of the world’s most prestigious yacht clubs founded in 1865… Royal Perth Yacht Club (RPYC) is one of the world’s most prestigious yacht clubs founded in 1865. RYPC has a long-standing reputation for producing champions and staging major international events. RYPC offers an unbeatable blend of experience, location and resources to ensure that your needs are met both on the water and in the Club House. Royal Motor Yacht Club, New South Wales The Royal Motor Yacht Club Broken Bay, with its beautiful setting on Sydney’s magnificent… The Royal Motor Yacht Club Broken Bay, with its beautiful setting on Sydney’s magnificent Pittwater is widely recognised as one of Australia’s premier yacht clubs. Since its inception back in the 1920′s, the Club has undergone many changes. With the passage of time, there has been the inevitable transition from a small, semi-rural establishment for a tight-knit group of dedicated “boaties”, to the current modern facility catering for a diverse community of cruising, sailing, racing, fishing and social members that is the Royal Motor Yacht Club Broken Bay today. Middle Harbour Yacht Club, New South Wales Middle Harbour Yacht Club is one of Australia’s largest yacht clubs, and recognised as a… Middle Harbour Yacht Club is one of Australia’s largest yacht clubs, and recognised as a national leader in sail training and associated education programs. At the highest level of competition in their sport, members and their boats have continued a tradition of excellence winning all of Australia’s top events and bringing home many international honours. Fremantle Sailing Club Inc.,Western Australia Established in 1979, Fremantle Sailing Club (FSC) is a non-profit sporting organisation that… Established in 1979, Fremantle Sailing Club (FSC) is a non-profit sporting organisation that plays a key role in the Western Australian maritime community. It is the gateway to the Indian Ocean. An aquatic playground envied worldwide for the unique obstacle free expanse of water and consistent local winds. Home to over 3000 enthusiastic members of all ages, FSC is a community dedicated to the ocean. The Club boasts multi-purpose restaurant, bar and function facilities with unrivalled ocean views and international class cuisine. From BBQ to ballroom elegance, wine tasting to weddings, coffee to conference, the Club is your exclusive venue. Southport Yacht Club, Australia Established in 1946, Southport Yacht Club is known worldwide for its exceptional sailing and powerboat fraternities… Established in 1946, Southport Yacht Club is known worldwide for its exceptional sailing and powerboat fraternities, award-winning boating facilities and its exceptional and exclusive waterfront dining. Yorkeys Knob Boating Club, Australia Yorkeys Knob Boating Club is a popular Sport Fishing and Sailing Club located at Yorkeys Knob… Yorkeys Knob Boating Club is a popular Sport Fishing and Sailing Club located at Yorkeys Knob, just 15 minutes from the Cairns CBD, and easily accessible by land or sea.	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line666
__label__cc	0.722591	0.277409	A Comprehensive Guide to Aluminum Profiles in the Philippines A Guide to Buying Stainless Steel from Suppliers in Metro Manila Aluminum Profile Supplier in the Philippines: All About Aluminum as a Construction Material One Sky Aluminum: Establishing a Partnership with a Solid Aluminum Distributor Questions You Must Ask a Glass and Aluminum Supplier in the Philippines to Improve Your Home Design Reasons to Install Aluminum Windows in Your Philippine Property Stainless Steel and its Use in the Industry Stainless Steel in the Philippines: Properties, Families, and Uses The Wonder Alloy: A Discussion about Aluminum in the Philippines Tag: Aluminum and Glass Supplier Philippines Thermal Conductivity in Stainless Steel and Aluminum How are stainless steel and aluminum different in terms of thermal conductivity? Aluminum has better thermal conductivity High and low thermal conductivity are both useful Industries that benefit from high or low thermal conductivity Stainless steel and aluminum have long been lauded as one of the most useful industrial materials being used today. Many different industries at different levels benefit from their use, thanks to their many wonderful characteristics. Aside from strength, durability, and versatility, aluminum and stainless steel have other attributes that make them truly useful. One such attribute is thermal conductivity. This is the process by which thermal energy is transferred through matter and is usually measured in watts per kelvin per meter. Lower thermal conductivity means a lower rate of heat transfer while higher thermal conductivity means efficiency in conducting heat. If you want to know more about the thermal conductivity of stainless steel and aluminum then continue reading because it could prove useful for you and your future industrial endeavors. Right off the bat, the first thing of note between the two industrial materials is that aluminum has ‘better’ thermal conductivity. Important to note here that having high or low thermal conductivity is not inherently good nor bad. Aluminum simply has a relatively higher thermal conductivity. On the other hand, stainless steel has one of the lowest thermal conductivities for metal alloys. Another metric used to track thermal conductivity is the British thermal unit (BTU), which uses a number to represent the ability of a material to conduct heat. Aluminum has BTU of 118 while steel has 17. Comparing both to another material like copper, which has a BTU of 223, aluminum can still be a better option because it is lighter, cheaper, and easier to work with and manipulate thanks to its low melting point. Aluminum is also the most abundant metal found in the earth’s crust, making it more accessible than other choices. Both high and low thermal conductivity is useful for many different applications. You just have to know which specific metal can get the job done for you. Aluminum conducts heat well and this makes it good for heat exchangers, heat sinks, and even for cooking materials such as pots and pans. Since stainless steel is poor at conducting heat, it is better for manufacturing products that are exposed to high-temperature and corrosive environments such as automotive and aircrafts parts like engines and airconditioning systems. Using stainless steel can result in better energy efficiency which eventually leads to savings in the long run. There are many specific industries beyond that value a material’s thermal conductivity, regardless if they are high or low. For example, the construction industry is known for using stainless steel for countless structures and their parts. It is good for building facades, foundations, curtain walls, and other architecturally exposed structure designs. The food industry also uses stainless steel to keep production processes stable where heat is involved. This can be seen in ovens and conveyor belts. As for aluminum, the automotive and aerospace industries are its biggest beneficiaries because many car and airplane parts are made using aluminum. In fact, most air and spacecraft are made primarily using aluminum with the Boeing 737, the best-selling jet commercial airliner, being 80% aluminum. Even in small-scale product manufacturing, aluminum is widely used. It is a crucial component of light-emitting diodes or L.E.D lights, heat exchangers in electronics, and is also used for packaging, the second-biggest consumer of aluminum. Aluminum is more malleable and elastic than steel. Aluminum can be used to form different shapes The concept of thermal conductivity is complex, but knowing how and why they matter to many industries and manufacturing processes can be useful in helping you choose the right kind of metal alloy or material for future endeavors. Both stainless steel and aluminum are great, but it’s their less-popular qualities like their ability to conduct heat at varying levels that can make the difference. Click here if you want to know more about aluminum and stainless steel because there is certainly more to know about these wonderful metals. Understanding Low-E Glass and Its Applications What is Low-E glass and what are its applications Low-E glass is an energy-efficient glass Low-E glass can make your home or building more comfortable There are two types of Low-E coatings When it comes to glass, the type to be used for a given purpose is usually one of the last things people think about. Sure you have probably heard of bulletproof and tempered glass, but there is another type that is relatively unknown: Low-E glass. That being said, knowing what the nature of Low-E glass and its applications can be helpful when it comes to your endeavors that require the use of glass. Before getting into the specific details and features of Low-E glass, it is important to first understand how sunlight works and how it can affect your home or any other building. Sunlight contains different forms of energy such as light and heat thanks to electromagnetic radiation. You can perceive some of this radiation within a spectrum as the light and colors you can see in a rainbow, but light also exists outside of that spectrum. Other types of light that we can’t perceive but exist include infrared and ultraviolet light. Ultraviolet rays from the sun are what causes sunburns while you feel infrared radiation from sources of heat such as a fire, furnace, or oven. It is these three elements (visible light, infrared and ultraviolet) that Low-E glass and its applications are concerned with. Now that you understand some of the basic concepts surrounding low-emissivity glass, the reason why it is considered to be an energy-efficient glass is that it minimizes the amount of infrared and ultraviolet light that passes through it, without affecting the amount of light that passes through. This is thanks to an exceptionally thin layer of coating that is usually made from two or more layers of metal or metallic oxide. This is specifically made to block out unnecessary electromagnetic radiation. Low-E glass seeks to make any building have a consistent temperature by reflecting the interior temperature back inside while keeping ultraviolet and infrared rays out. Since Low-E glass makes the temperature of buildings more consistent, a comfortable atmosphere is usually achieved when it is applied to windows and other openings that allow light to pass through. The most common window set-up is either a double or triple-glazed unit wherein two or more glass panes are separated by a spacer and a gas-filled space — argon, and krypton being the inert gas of choice. Gas is needed to prevent heat from escaping in air drafts. Thanks to this kind of set-up, heat transfer is reduced and optimal thermal insulation is achieved — resulting in a more comfortable experience for the people inside the building regardless of whether it is sweltering or snowy outside. As mentioned above, low-emissivity glass relies on a thin coating of metal/metallic oxides to do the blocking of unwanted electromagnetic radiation. That being said, there are two kinds of Low-E coatings that you would do well to know. Passive Low-E Coating Passive Low-E coatings are made through the pyrolytic “hard-coat” process which produces a coating that is best used in very cold environments. The durable pyrolytic coating allows some of the sun’s short-wave infrared energy to pass through the glass, giving the building a form of “passive” natural heating. This helps you save money on electricity since you rely less on space heaters and other artificial heating methods. Solar Control Low-E Coatings If passive Low-E coating is made through the hard coat, pyrolytic process, then the solar control Low-E coating has the Magnetron Sputtering Vapor Deposition (MSVD) process. This coating, which is also called “soft-coat”, needs to be sealed in an insulated or laminated glass. What you’re getting with this coat when compared to the previous type of coating is superior resistance to the sun’s radiation. It is for that exact reason why solar control Low-E is the preferred coating for cold to hot climates. Since it offers better UV and infrared protection it keeps buildings cooler and reduces air conditioning-related energy consumption. If you are looking for a way to give your home or building better insulation and protection from the sun’s electromagnetic radiation, then Low-E glass can be a great option. With Low-E coating options available that are applicable for different climates, it is convenient regardless of your location. When you’re trying to decide which window size, style, and design are best for your building, you should also consider the type of glass you are going to be using. Not only does Low-E glass provide practical use and protection, but it can also be a source of energy efficiency and savings. SETTING HIGHER STANDARDS Our Expertise Will Guide You To Success. Without Fail. What are the Uses of Tempered Glass? What Is Fire Rated Glass? Qualities To Look For In An Aluminum Supplier ---Aluminum Profile ConcernsAluminum Railing ConcernsAluminum Composite Panel ConcernsStainless ConcernsPowder Coating Services ConcernsGlass ConcernsOther Concerns One Sky Aluminum & Stainless Supply Enterprise, established in 2011, continues to thrive today steadfast in its vision of "Setting Higher Standards for Philippine Aluminum". 1440 - 1444 Soler St., Sta. Cruz, Manila admin@oneskyph.com Copyright © 2021 One Sky Philippines. SEO by SEO-Hacker. Optimized and maintained by Sean Si.	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line667
__label__wiki	0.863639	0.863639	106 F. 3d 874 - United States v. Alexander 106 F3d 874 United States v. Alexander 97 Cal. Daily Op. Serv. 784, 97 Daily Journal D.A.R. 1151 Leaburn ALEXANDER, Jr., Defendant-Appellant. Argued and Submitted Oct. 7, 1996. Mark L. Tuft, Cooper, White & Cooper, San Francisco, California, for defendant-appellant. Adam Bialosky, Assistant United States Attorney, San Francisco, California, for plaintiff-appellee. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, Samuel Conti, District Judge, Presiding. D.C. No. CR-94-00331-SC. Before: FLETCHER and FERGUSON, Circuit Judges, and KING,* District Judge. FERGUSON, Circuit Judge: Alexander appeals from his conviction on five counts of unarmed bank robbery under 18 U.S.C. § 2113(a). He contends that the district court abused its discretion by departing from the law of the case and admitting a previously suppressed confession. We agree and reverse. I. FACTS On May 19, 1994, Alexander made a call to emergency 911 to report that someone was trying to enter his girlfriend's apartment by drilling through the bathroom wall. San Francisco Police Department ("SFPD") Officers Robert Red and Charles Anzore came to the address Alexander had specified in the 911 call. Officer Red searched for signs of attempted entry and found none. The officers then arrested Alexander on a felony warrant for failure to appear on a previous cocaine possession charge. The officers took Alexander into custody around 9:30 p.m. and transported Alexander to the SFPD's Richmond station. Recognizing Alexander as a bank robbery suspect, the officers notified the FBI. One SFPD officer and two FBI agents interrogated Alexander at the Richmond station at about 12:30 a.m. They later testified that Alexander orally waived his Miranda rights before giving them a detailed confession of several bank robberies, that Alexander appeared rational and coherent, and that he appeared to understand the rights being read to him before he agreed to speak to the officers. The interview lasted about one and a half hours. The agents did not ask Alexander to sign a confession or a written waiver of his Miranda rights, and they did not record the interrogation. Alexander was indicted in the Northern District of California on seven counts of bank robbery and one count of attempted bank robbery, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2113(a). Judge Walker, after a hearing, granted defendant's motion to suppress his confession. Evidence presented in support of defendant's motion included a recording of the 911 call Alexander made on the night of his arrest and declarations given by witnesses to Alexander's drug and alcohol intake and intoxicated behavior prior to his arrest. In his order, Judge Walker stated that he had reservations about the accuracy of the declarations submitted in support of the motion to suppress, but granted the motion on the basis of the tape or transcript of the 911 call Alexander made about three hours before he confessed. On October 27, 1994, the government filed a Notice of Appeal from Judge Walker's suppression order. However, on January 24, 1995, the government withdrew its appeal. This court granted the government's motion for voluntary dismissal of the appeal on February 3, 1995. When it was returned to the district court, the case was reassigned to Judge Samuel Conti. The government dropped three counts from the indictment, leaving five for trial, and filed a motion to reconsider the suppression order, requesting an evidentiary hearing. Judge Conti denied the motion because he did not wish to disturb the "law of the case." Alexander filed a motion to exclude evidence relating to his arrest for possession of crack cocaine. The government was allowed to introduce evidence of the drug arrest to show motive for the bank robberies; it produced witnesses Brenda Wilburn and Norman Hughes to testify that Alexander had a drug habit. Hughes's and Wilburn's testimony contradicted aspects of their declarations made in support of Alexander's motion to suppress his confession. In particular, they were confused as to when they had observed Alexander heavily smoking crack and acting "wild." In light of the impeachment of the declarations, the government filed a second motion to reconsider the suppression order on March 8, 1995. Judge Conti denied the motion, finding the inconsistencies not significant enough to warrant reconsideration of Judge Walker's ruling. On March 15, 1995, after the jury was unable to reach a verdict on any count, the court declared a mistrial. On March 21, 1995, the government filed a third motion to reconsider the suppression order, requesting an evidentiary hearing. Judge Conti granted this motion, stating that changed circumstances resulting from events that transpired during the first trial permitted reconsideration of the suppression order. Judge Conti held an evidentiary hearing in which the government presented evidence bearing on Alexander's state of intoxication at the time of the confession. Judge Conti then overruled Judge Walker's suppression order, and allowed the government to introduce evidence of the confession at the second trial. The jury returned a verdict of guilty on counts 1 through 5 of the revised indictment. Alexander was sentenced to a total maximum term of 262 months. II. THE LAW OF THE CASE Under the "law of the case" doctrine, "a court is generally precluded from reconsidering an issue that has already been decided by the same court, or a higher court in the identical case." Thomas v. Bible, 983 F.2d 152, 154 (9th Cir.) (cert. denied 508 U.S. 951, 113 S.Ct. 2443, 124 L.Ed.2d 661 (1993). The doctrine is not a limitation on a tribunal's power, but rather a guide to discretion. Arizona v. California, 460 U.S. 605, 618, 103 S.Ct. 1382, 1391, 75 L.Ed.2d 318 (1983). A court may have discretion to depart from the law of the case where: 1) the first decision was clearly erroneous; 2) an intervening change in the law has occurred; 3) the evidence on remand is substantially different; 4) other changed circumstances exist; or 5) a manifest injustice would otherwise result. Failure to apply the doctrine of the law of the case absent one of the requisite conditions constitutes an abuse of discretion. Thomas v. Bible, 983 F.2d at 155. Judge Conti justified granting the government's third motion for reconsideration of the suppression order on the basis of "changed conditions" and claimed it would be a "miscarriage of justice" to refuse to revisit the issue. He cited the inconsistent testimony of Wilburn and Hughes as the changed conditions that warranted this reconsideration. a. Mistrial as "Changed Circumstance" Judge Conti denied the government's second motion to reconsider the suppression order after hearing Wilburn's and Hughes's testimony for the purpose of establishing that Alexander had a drug habit. At that time, Judge Conti observed that the new testimony from Wilburn and Hughes indicated: the affidavits may be not 100 percent correct in regards but substantially correct, and I don't think that they would necessitate a new motion to suppress the confession due to the fact that the emphasis that Judge Walker placed was upon the 911 tape. Thus, the only change in circumstances since the denial of the Second Motion was the mistrial.1 The law of the case doctrine ordinarily precludes reconsideration of a previously decided issue. In this circuit, a mistrial is not cause for an exception. U.S. v. Tham, 960 F.2d 1391, 1397 n. 3 (9th Cir.1991) (rejecting the holding of United States v. Akers, 702 F.2d 1145, 1147-49 (D.C.Cir.1983)). Thus, reconsideration of the suppression order was not warranted. b. Questioned Credibility as "Changed Circumstances" Although the accuracy of the Wilburn and Hughes declarations was called into question in the first trial before Judge Conti, any inaccuracy was not material because Judge Walker did not rely on those declarations in making his finding that the government had not met its burden of showing that Alexander's waiver was voluntary, knowing, and intelligent. In his order granting Alexander's suppression motion, Judge Walker noted that "[w]hile the court has reservations about the accuracy of the alcohol quantities claimed in the Wilburn Declaration, the transcript of the 911 call convinces the court that defendant was incapable of waiving his Miranda rights..." Furthermore, in denying the government's second motion for reconsideration, Judge Conti found that Wilburn and Hughes's testimony was not substantially inconsistent, thereby obviating any claim that the circumstances had changed since Judge Walker granted the suppression motion. c. The "Clearly Erroneous" and "Manifest Injustice" Exceptions to the Law of the Case The government argues that Judge Conti's reconsideration of the motion to suppress can be justified by the "clear error" and "manifest injustice" exceptions to the law of the case doctrine. The government contends that Judge Walker committed "clear error" because he did not consider the balance of the 911 transcript and judged the credibility of conflicting declarants without an evidentiary hearing. However, in reviewing a district court's factual findings for clear error, we must not reverse as long as the findings are plausible in light of the record viewed in its entirety, even if we would have weighed the evidence differently had we been the trier of fact. Service Employees Int'l Union v. Fair Political Practices Comm'n, 955 F.2d 1312, 1317 n. 7 (9th Cir.), cert. denied, 505 U.S. 1230, 112 S.Ct. 3056, 120 L.Ed.2d 922 (1992). With regard to Judge Walker's credibility determinations in the absence of an evidentiary hearing, it appears from the record that Judge Walker based his decision to suppress Alexander's confession on the 911 transcript rather than on the declarations or the credibility of the declarants. Furthermore, "[w]hether an evidentiary hearing is appropriate rests in the reasoned discretion of the district court." United States v. Walczak, 783 F.2d 852, 857 (9th Cir.1986). Judge Walker's choice to forgo an evidentiary hearing was not an abuse of discretion because the 911 call, the authenticity of which was undisputed, was sufficient evidence to support his decision to suppress Alexander's confession. Judge Walker's finding that Alexander was delusional at the time of the 911 call was a finding of fact adequately supported by the record. When Alexander called 911 he apparently believed that someone was drilling through the wall of his apartment and indicated that he knew that the intruder was wearing a black jacket because he could hear him drilling through the wall, but the officers who responded found no signs of forced entry. These undisputed facts support Judge Walker's findings. Furthermore, Alexander called 911 and asked police officers to come to his apartment at a time when the police had an outstanding warrant for his arrest because he had failed to appear on a cocaine possession charge. Although the government and Judge Conti may disagree with Judge Walker's interpretation of the tape and his assessment of the likelihood of a knowing and intelligent waiver following such a delusional episode, Judge Walker's finding that Alexander was delusional was plausible in light of the evidence, and therefore was not clearly erroneous. The government claims that a "manifest injustice" would have resulted from suppressing Alexander's confession without an evidentiary hearing because the suppression was based in part on the affidavits of Wilburn and Hughes, whose testimony had been impeached. However, as Judge Conti noted when he denied the government's second motion to reconsider, the testimony was substantially consistent with the declarations and Judge Walker based his suppression order largely on the 911 tape and not on the declarations. Therefore, no evidentiary hearing was required to avoid manifest injustice. Because there was no substantial change of evidence, intervening change of law, other change of circumstances, showing of clear error, or showing that a manifest injustice would otherwise result at the time the prosecution submitted its third motion to reconsider the suppression order, the trial court abused its discretion in granting the motion. Thomas v. Bible, 983 F.2d at 154. The district court's departure from the law of the case requires reversal, and therefore, we need not address the additional issues raised on appeal. The conviction below is REVERSED and the case is REMANDED for a new trial. Honorable Samuel P. King, Senior United States District Judge for the District of Hawaii, sitting by designation Although Brenda Wilburn gave additional inconsistent testimony at trial that further impeached her credibility, that testimony did not relate to Alexander's drug use or drinking before the arrest and confession and therefore was not relevant to reconsideration of the suppression order	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line670
__label__cc	0.593792	0.406208	MONDAY, JANUARY 25, 2021 at 7 P. M. TO BE HELD VIRTUALLY VIA ZOOM The IFC Club, which meets on the fourth Monday of each month, is celebrating its sixth anniversary of engaging conversation. All are welcome to attend to explore the modern classic selected. Oradell Public Library hosts a film discussion group, modelled on our two successful book discussion groups, the Morning Book Club and the Evening Book Club. The IFC (Independent * Foreign * Classic) Film Club meets on fourth Mondays of the month. The film chosen for the next session (virtual via Zoom) on Monday, January 25, 2021 is Get Out (2017), an American horror film, written and directed by Jordan Peele in his directorial debut, following the story of Chris Washington, a young African-American man who uncovers a disturbing secret when he meets the family of his white girlfriend, Rose Armitage. If you are interested in attending and participating, please watch the film on your own before the session. There is also an opportunity to help decide with your fellow cineastes (film buffs) what independent, foreign, or classic films you would like to choose to discuss. The program is free and open to anyone interested, so join us online for now and come to the North Reading Room for the next meeting after the Library reopens. The Day of the Jackal: Book vs. Film On Monday, July 23, 2018 the IFC Film Club discussed The Day of the Jackal (1973), a political thriller, directed by Fred Zinnemann and based on the 1971 novel of the same name by Frederick Forsyth, about a professional assassin known only as the “Jackal”, who is hired to assassinate French president Charles de Gaulle in the summer of 1963. IFC Film Club Members Kathy Hughes and Chris Hasselkus provided this comparison of the book and film. Robert Milli Collection of Films on DVD Photograph by Michaelangelo Di Nonno Robert Milli (March 15,1933 - July 18, 2019), the stage, film, and television actor, who was a member of the IFC Film Club and had appeared in a number of presentations at Oradell Public Library, donated his collection to the Library in 2018. IFC Film Club Email Newsletter Please write to Director John J. Trause (trause @oradell.bccls.org) with your name and email address, if you wish to receive news from the IFC Film Club.	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line671
__label__wiki	0.690724	0.690724	Category Archives: Indian River Indians Indian Town Creek(s) in colonial Sussex Even the most experienced historians and genealogists consider the land records of colonial Sussex County to be unusually challenging. Much of the territory was once claimed by both Pennsylvania and Maryland, and although Pennsylvania eventually came out ahead in that dispute, more than half of the county was patented to Marylanders who paid Maryland’s taxes and obeyed Maryland’s laws into the 1770s. To further complicate the situation, the Maryland portion was originally part of Old Somerset County, but most of it was included in the new Worcester County in 1742. The shifting boundary lines can make it seem like a particular family relocated several times, when, in fact, their (quite stationary) farm may have been located in Somerset County, Maryland; Worcester County, Maryland; and Sussex County, Delaware, in a period of just over thirty years. However, the shifting boundaries aren’t nearly as confusing as the ever-changing and -evolving of the hundreds of tiny creeks and branches which are often the only geographical references found in early land records. Typically, surveyors referred to the nearest river and the nearest of its tributaries, the neighboring farmer if there was one, and occasionally a county road. It seems that many of these tributaries had numerous names over the years, few of which appear on surviving maps. Pinpointing the location of a particular location can become frustrating, and possibly even futile, when its description includes a place-name that doesn’t seem to appear in any other records. Or, worse, when the same name was given to entirely separate waterways or other places in the same region. For example, at one point, more than one local river or creek had a Great Branch, which was, of course, accompanied by a Great Neck. In the Broad Creek area, there was a Bald Cypress Branch which does not appear labeled as such on any map, yet just a few miles away, a tributary of the Pocomoke River is known as Bald Cypress Branch to this day. An especially confusing, yet important, example is the name Indian Town Creek or Indian Town Branch. The name doesn’t appear on any map that I’m aware of. Even the most seasoned researcher could be forgiven for coming across the name in colonial Worcester land records and not realizing that it belonged to two different creeks; one in Baltimore Hundred, now known as Dirickson Creek; and the other less than a day’s journey away near the head of Indian River, now known as Irons Branch, which was a boundary of the so-called Indian River Indians’ reservation known as Askeksy. As both are on the south side of Indian River, surveys which mention the creeks can sound as if they’re describing the same neighborhood. The first, but perhaps lesser-known Indian Town Creek, is a tributary of the body of water known as the Sound, or Little Assawoman Bay. It’s labeled Herring Creek on the Pomeroy & Beers Atlas of 1868 (itself a cause of confusion, since there is a Herring Branch just a few miles northwest), but has been known as Dirickson Creek since at least 1901. The origin of this name is rather mysterious, and surely deserving of further research. Obviously, English settlers named the creek after a nearby Indian settlement — but where was it? When was it established? Who lived there? And when did they leave? It’s possible that the band of migrating refugees who would become known as the Indian River Indians lived near the creek in the late 1600s. In 1705, their chief Robin stated that they had been forced to move from the Buckingham area to “Assawamen” before migrating northward yet again. However, this doesn’t necessarily mean that they couldn’t have joined an existing Indian settlement. Chief Robin’s brief statement allows for many possibilities, and the name Assawamen shouldn’t necessarily be associated with the Little Assawoman Bay (a later name for the Sound), anyway. In the absence of additional written information, archaeology might be able to shed light on the Indian presence at this location. What is certain is that the English continued to call the creek Indian Town Creek or Branch long after the town in question had been abandoned; the name appears in Worcester County land records in the mid-1700s, and was still in use when the original Sound Methodist Church was built on the southeast side of the creek in 1784. Since the second and better-known Indian Town Branch was the home of the Indian River Indians from at least 1705 into the 1740s, I’ll briefly comment on their journey from Assawamen to that final settlement. According to Robin, the band had lived at another site near Indian River after their (presumably involuntary) departure from Assawamen. We can only speculate as to where this settlement, perhaps occupied during the 1690s or even later, was located, but I think it’s worth noting that there is a persistent, albeit controversial, local legend associating Blackfoot Town (Dagsboro) with Indians. Without getting into all of the arguments for and against this alleged connection, I’d like to point out that Blackfoot Town was conveniently located between the head of the Sound and Askeksy, on one of the tributaries of Indian River. And although I’m not arguing that Blackfoot was an Indian name (for one thing, the name doesn’t appear in English records until the 1740s), I am suggesting that if the English village of Blackfoot developed on or near the site of an Indian settlement — possibly even the Indian River settlement alluded to by Robin — it might explain why local folklore vaguely hints at a Blackfoot Town – Indian connection. This is simply speculation on my part. Wherever the band’s first Indian River settlement was located, their next stop is well-documented. By 1705 they were living along a tributary near the head of Indian River, in the sparsely inhabited, swampy, northern outskirts of Somerset County, but were fearful of being forced to move yet again. In response to Robin’s request, the colonial Maryland government created a 1,000-acre reservation which apparently included the land the group was already living on. It was known as Askeksy or Askekecky (among other spellings), but the English unimaginatively called the residents of the reservation the “Indian River Indians,” and the creek that formed much of the reservation’s southern boundary was called Indian Town Branch, or sometimes Indian Branch. But, like its relative in Baltimore Hundred, it, too, was renamed. By the late 1800s, it was known as Yellow Branch (which is itself an interesting name; is it a coincidence that the local multiracial descendants of the various Indian tribes were called “yellow men,” as opposed to white, black, or red men, at that time?). During the first half of the 20th century, the branch’s eastern prong continued to be labeled Yellow Branch on U. S. Geological Survey maps, but the northern portion was known as Irons Branch, and eventually the name Yellow Branch fell out of use. Filed under Delaware, Delaware history, Delmarva Geography, Indian River Indians, Maps, Sussex County Tagged as Assawamen, Delaware, Dirickson Creek, Head of Sound, Indian River Indians, Indian Town Branch, Indian Town Creek, Maryland, Millsboro, Somerset County, Sound Methodist Church, Sussex County, Worcester County Askeksy and the “Indian River Indians” By the beginning of the 18th century, the dwindling peninsula Indian tribes had been herded, through a series of wars and peace treaties, into several settlements, some of which were officially recognized and reserved for them by the colonial governments, and some of which were simply located on unclaimed land. One of the latter was the last refuge of a band of Indians – probably Assateagues – who had been forced to move several times, leaving the Buckingham area in eastern Somerset (now Worcester, near Berlin) at an unknown date, and migrating north in search of a new home. They settled at a place called Assawamen, which was probably a tributary of the Sound known as Indian Town Branch (now Dirickson Creek), but moved north again to the south side of Indian River, which was the de facto boundary between Maryland and Pennsylvania at the time. The subject of this article, their final recognized settlement, was in existence by 1705, and was known by several similar names, including Askeksy, Askekesky, Askeckeky, Askekson, Acksquessance, and Askquessence. The Indians themselves, because they had settled near the Indian River (also known as the Baltimore River) , became known as the Indian River Indians. It should be noted that this name referred to this specific band of Indians, although others lived on both sides of the river. Their name for themselves does not appear in any records from the period. The so-called Indian River Indians first appear in official records dated May 1705, when their chief Robin appeared in Annapolis and signed a peace treaty on behalf of “Queen Wyransconmickonous.” Representatives of the Nanticokes and Choptanks also signed the treaty. Robin went on to tell Governor John Seymour that his people had “Extremly Suffered of Late Years by being disturbed & Expulsed from their several Settlements in Towns,” and were living in a town at the head of Indian River, but were “Continually Threaten’d to be Driven from thence…” He requested that the land on which their settlement was located, as well as one thousand adjacent acres, be reserved for the tribe’s use. The request was approved. In modern terms, Askeksy was located south of Millsboro between Irons Branch and Route 24. The branch was known as Indian Town Branch or Indian Branch during the 18th century, and clearly matches the southern boundary of the tract. This boundary more or less survives as Indian Town Road (which was known as Injun Town Road for decades and as recently as a few years ago) and a portion of Hickory Hill Road. The location of the northwestern boundary is a bit less clear, but it seems like Route 24 follows it roughly, or was at least laid out in relation to portions of it. The following map shows how modern roads roughly outline the old reservation over three hundred years after it was established. Based on descriptions of nearby tracts surveyed for William Burton, as well as modern estimates of the extent of the Pocomoke or Cypress Swamp prior to drainage and timbering efforts, the reservation was probably somewhat swampy, or at least very close to the swamp’s northern edge. The description of a tract named Panter Swamp mentioned a waterhole on or near the west prong of Indian Town Branch. There were still black bears and timber rattlesnakes in the area at the time. At about the same time that Askeksy was established, most of the Nanticokes moved from their reservation known as Chicacoan Town, near Vienna, to a site on Broad Creek which came to be known as Broad Creek Town. Aside from the fact that their leaders and Robin appeared in Annapolis at the same time, there is little information about their dealings with their new neighbors, just fourteen miles away. Recently I wrote about a so-called horse road which was in existence in 1748, connecting Broad Creek and the head of Indian River; this road may have begun as a trail between the two Indian settlements. Though the Indian River Indians aren’t mentioned in official records nearly as often as the Nanticokes, if the Nanticokes’ experiences during this period are any indication, they struggled to preserve their property and way of life as more and more land was cleared and farmed by the English. Sometimes the white farmers interfered with Indian hunters. Perhaps that’s why they joined the Nanticokes, Choptanks, Pocomokes, and visiting Shawnees at a place called Winnasoccum or Wimbesoccom for a secret powwow in June 1742. The tribes planned to massacre the local English settlers and retake the peninsula with the help of the French, who supposedly promised to land on the coast. The plot was discovered and thwarted, several Indians were arrested and interrogated, and in August the leaders of the Nanticokes, Choptanks, Indian River Indians, Pocomokes, and Assateagues signed a new, highly restrictive peace treaty. Tom Hill and Robin (probably the first Robin’s son) were identified as chiefs of the Indian River Indians. In the years following the suppression of the Winnasoccum Uprising, as the event has been labeled by some, many of the peninsula Indian tribes abandoned their lands and migrated to Pennsylvania. The Indian River Indians had already sold hundreds of acres to local English settlers prior to 1742, and sold the remainder of their reservation to William Burton in 1743. There is no known record of their existence as an organized tribe or band following this sale, and strictly speaking, their fate is unknown. They may have joined the Nanticokes at Broad Creek Town, many of whom moved north in 1744. Perhaps they moved north, too, or perhaps, like some of the Nanticokes, they lingered in the area, intermarrying with whites and/or blacks and producing new generations of mulattoes who gradually adopted English ways and preserved vague traditions about Indian ancestry. If so, it seems likely that some would have joined the multiracial community on the north shore of the Indian River which was in existence as early as the 1840s, and which eventually spawned the Nanticoke Indian Association. Filed under Indian River Indians, Maps, Sussex County Tagged as Delaware, Delmarva, Eastern Shore, Indian River, Indian River Indians, Maryland, Millsboro, Nanticoke Indian Association, Nanticokes, Sussex County 38th Annual Nanticoke Indian Powwow, Sept. 12-13 One of the most interesting annual events on Delmarva will be held this weekend, as the Nanticoke Indian Association welcomes members of of more than forty tribes, as well as the general public, to Oak Orchard for the 30th Annual Nanticoke Indian Powwow, a two-day event featuring dancing, drumming, singing, food, and crafts. Prior to the current succession of annual powwows, a number of similar events were held on and off throughout the 20th century, beginning in the 1920s. The association itself was organized in 1921 and incorporated the following year in an effort to preserve the identity and heritage of the multiracial descendants of several peninsula Indian tribes who had settled on the north side of Indian River at an unknown date (but prior to the 1850s), during an era when they were legally and socially classified as Negros and mulattoes, and discriminated against. Although the organization took the name Nanticoke, its members are believed to be descended primarily from a band of Assateague refugees which settled south of present-day Millsboro around 1700, as well as the dwindling remnants of other local tribes, which intermingled with each other as well as white settlers following the tribes’ decline in the 1740s. The degree to which they intermingled with blacks is somewhat controversial, and is complicated by the fact that generations of local Indians were called black whether they had black ancestors or not. I plan to post a couple of short pieces about the historical Nanticokes and so-called Indian River Indians this week. Previous articles which may be of interest include The Nanticokes’ Last Stand, which tells the fascinating story of an unsuccessful intertribal plot to attack and expel the English, as well as this somewhat technical, speculative piece about the Indian River surname Sockum and its probable connection to the Nanticokes of Broad Creek. Filed under Indian River Indians, Nanticoke Indians, Sussex County Tagged as American Indians, Delaware, Delmarva, Eastern Shore, Nanticoke Indian Association, Nanticoke Indian Powwow, Native Americans Road research, part 1: Broad Creek to Indian River 18th-century maps of the Delmarva Peninsula are frustratingly short on details when it comes to roads. The major routes are depicted, of course, like the well-known stage road from Salisbury to Laurel Town, but when it comes to some of the minor routes alluded to in land surveys from the first half of the century, researchers are left guessing. Waterways are usually the best geographical features to use as reference points, being more or less stationary and often (but not always) retaining their colonial-era names, but many of those ancient footpaths and roads still exist under the paved surfaces of modern highways. It’s just a matter of figuring out which ones. One such colonial road of uncertain location is mentioned in the description of a tract surveyed for Philip Wingate in 1748: “…Beginning at a markd white oke standing on ye north side of Broad Creek about three miles back in ye woods & on ye north side of a horse Rode leading from ye aforsd Broad Creek to ye Indian River…” As I don’t know exactly where Wingate’s land was located (“ye north side of Broad Creek” is a rather large area), I’m only speculating, but this so-called horse road may have originally linked the Nanticoke reservation known as Broad Creek Town and the Indian River Indian reservation known as Askecksy (among other, similar names), both of which were settled as early as 1705. The town of Laurel now occupies the site of Broad Creek Town, while Askecksy was located south of present-day Millsboro, near Injun Town Road or Indian Town Road. It is known that the residents of these Indian towns had settled there to escape English encroachment, and had contact with each other, despite belonging to different tribes; in 1742, they met in the area roughly between the two reservations known as Winnasoccum or Wimbesoccom, and planned to attack the local English settlers, as explained here. Shortly thereafter, the Indian River Indians sold their land, and most of the Nanticokes migrated to Pennsylvania. By 1748, the road in question may have been used almost exclusively by the English, and may have led directly to the mills located near the branches of Indian River, rather than the old Indian lands located a few miles south of them. I’ve crudely spliced together maps of Broad Creek Hundred and Dagsborough Hundred from the Pomeroy & Beers Atlas of 1868, which was the first map of the area to show its extensive network of unpaved roads, and highlighted the route that the horse road of 1748 may have followed. Eventually I’d like to complete a map of the entire area as it looked during the colonial era, but for now, this rough mash-up is better than nothing. Filed under Indian River Indians, Maps, Nanticoke Indians, Sussex County Tagged as Broad Creek, Delaware, Delaware history, Delmarva history, Delmarva Peninsula, Eastern Shore, Indian River, Maryland, Maryland history, Nanticoke Indians, Philip Wingate, Sussex County Map of the Nanticoke Indians’ territory, 1742 This week the Laurel Star (and presumably the Seaford Star) published an article I wrote about the Nanticoke Indians about a year ago, as well as a rough map of the area showing the approximate locations of the Nanticoke, Choptank, and Indian River reservations in 1742. It was in that year that the surviving tribes gathered near Trap Pond and planned to wipe out the English settlers and reclaim the Eastern Shore with the help of Shawnee warriors and French forces. The plot was discovered and foiled, otherwise the history of the peninsula might have unfolded quite differently. I’ll post the full article in a week or two, as I’d like for everyone who’s interested in the subject and able to do so to support the newspaper and buy a copy, but in the meantime here’s the map. Click to enlarge. Filed under Indian River Indians, Laurel, Maps, Nanticoke Indians, Sussex County Tagged as Broad Creek, Delaware, Delmarva, Delmarva Peninsula, Eastern Shore, Laurel, Nanticoke Indians, Nanticokes, Sussex County, Wimbesoccom, Winnasoccum “Sockum” and the Nanticokes of Broad Creek, part 2 A few months ago I posted an article entitled “Sockum” and the Nanticokes of Broad Creek, which explains why I believe the name Sockum, as both a surname and place-name, followed Nanticoke refugees as they drifted across the Eastern Shore between 1744 and 1850. When researching the subject, I missed at least one fact, which I just noticed yesterday. It might not be all that important, but every little bit of information helps. Scharf’s History of Delaware features a list of taxables in Dagsborough Hundred in 1785. This list proves that a James Sockam and a Widow Sockam (meaning the widow of a deceased Sockam) were living in the hundred at that time, which included the area later known as Gumborough Hundred. Interestingly, there was a James Sockam living in Nanticoke Hundred, Somerset County (probably in what would become Little Creek Hundred, Sussex County, following the resolution of the boundary dispute) in the 1750s. There was also a James Sockum living in Sussex County in the early 1800s. Without more information, it’s impossible to know how many Jameses we’re dealing with, but it seems likely that there were at least two or three generations of men named James Sockum (or Sockam, Soccom, etc.). It should be remembered that just as there were Nanticoke reservations along Chicacoan Creek and Broad Creek, there was a thousand-acre “Indian River Indian” reservation located near a tributary of Indian River known today as Irons Branch. Injun Town Road, located in Dagsboro Hundred, south of Millsboro, seems to trace the southern boundary of this tract. The Indian River Indians sold sections of the reservation in the 1730s and early 1740s, with the final tract being sold in late 1743. Presumably some of them migrated north with the Nanticokes, and presumably some of them stayed in the area, eventually moving to the north shore of Indian River. It’s possible that the James Sockam of 1785 was living with or near descendants of the Indian River Indians in the neighborhood of their old reservation. The Indian River Indian reservation, known as Askeckeky or Acksquessance, was located south of present-day Millsboro. Tagged as Delaware, Delmarva, Eastern Shore, Indian River, Nanticoke Indians, Nanticokes, Sockam, Sockum, Sussex County	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line673
__label__wiki	0.676771	0.676771	#110 – Lew Cantley, Ph.D.: Cancer metabolism, cancer therapies, and the discovery of PI3K "If I get a result that suddenly doesn't make sense, to me that's more exciting. . .if you figure out why it didn't work and what was wrong, then that's where most breakthroughs come from." — Lew Cantley In this episode, Lew Cantley, Professor of cancer biology and Director of the Sandra and Edward Meyer Cancer Center at Weill Cornell Medical College in NYC, walks us through his amazing discovery of phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) and the implications for the care of patients with cancer. He explains various combinations of therapies being tested and used, including the possibility of pairing prescriptive nutritional therapies to increase the efficacy of drugs like PI3K inhibitors. Lew also explains the metabolic nature of cancer through the lens of his research into the connection between sugar consumption, insulin resistance, and tumor growth. Additionally, Lew provides some details about his exciting new clinical trial that is just now enrolling patients with stage 4 breast cancer and endometrial cancer. Teaching science through the lens of discovery—a better approach to learning science [5:15]; The metabolic nature of cancer, mitochondria, and a more nuanced explanation of the Warburg Effect [8:30]; The observation that convinced Lew to stop eating sugar [20:15]; The connection between obesity, insulin resistance, and cancer [25:30]; Sugar consumption and tumor growth—What did Lew’s 2019 paper find? [32:00]; Natural sugar vs. HFCS, fruit vs. fruit juice, insulin response and cancer growth [43:00]; Increasing efficacy of PI3K inhibitors with ketogenic diets, SGLT2 inhibitors, and metformin [53:30]; Lew’s clinical trial enrolling stage 4 breast cancer and endometrial cancer patients [1:07:30]; Pairing diet with drug could be the future of cancer treatment [1:09:30]; PI3K inhibitors on the market, alpha vs. delta isoform, and the possibility of pairing them with a food prescription [1:16:15]; What questions will Lew be focused on in the next chapter of his career? [1:22:15]; Lew’s early work that ultimately led to the discovery of PI3K [1:27:30]; Studying the mechanism by which mitochondria make ATP [1:30:45]; How understanding the mechanism by which insulin drove glucose uptake into a cell got Lew closer to finding PI3K [1:38:15]; How Lew knew PI3K was important in driving growth of cancer cells [1:55:00]; Lew’s unlikely observation of phosphorylation at the 3′ position of the inositol ring resulting in the formation of phosphatidylinositol-3-phosphate [1:59:00]; and Teaching science through the lens of discovery—a better approach to learning science [5:15] Peter proposes the idea that science should be taught at a young age through the lens of discovery Currently, biology and other sciences are taught through rote memorization unfortunately If we’re trying to screen for people who are interested in science…what you have to be screening for is: the thinking that went into the experiment “Serendipity in science is absolutely critical that when you get a result that’s unexpected, you should be laser focused on understanding at the biochemistry, at the chemical level, why you got the different results then you expected to get.” Science is about one big mystery needing to be solved It’s about curiosity Peter points out that Lew’s career has been less about innate brilliance and more about his desire to follow an observation that had unexpected results “If I get a result that suddenly doesn’t make sense, to me that’s more exciting. It means there’s something more complicated going on than the simplest explanation for what I’m seeing. . . if you’ve broken up a whole new field because your simple explanation doesn’t work and you figured out why it didn’t work and what was wrong, then that’s where most breakthroughs come from.” The metabolic nature of cancer, mitochondria, and a more nuanced explanation of the Warburg Effect [8:30] Around 2005… {end of show notes preview} Lewis Cantley, Ph.D. Meyer Director of the Sandra and Edward Meyer Cancer Center at Weill Cornell Medical College, Professor of Cancer Biology in Medicine Lewis Cantley has made significant advances in cancer research, stemming from his discovery of the signaling pathway phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) in 1984. His pioneering research has resulted in revolutionary treatments for cancer, diabetes and autoimmune diseases. The author of over 400 original papers and more than 50 book chapters and review articles, Dr. Cantley is a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and a member of the National Academy of Sciences. He graduated summa cum laude with a B.S. in chemistry from West Virginia Wesleyan College (1971) and obtained a Ph.D. in biophysical chemistry from Cornell University (1975). He conducted postdoctoral research at Harvard University, where he was appointed assistant professor of biochemistry and molecular biology in 1978. He became a professor of physiology at Tufts University in 1985, but returned to Harvard Medical School as professor of cell biology in 1992. He became chief of Harvard’s new Division of Signal Transduction, and a founding member of its Department of Systems Biology in 2002. In 2007, he was appointed director of the Beth Israel Deaconess Cancer Center. He joined the faculty of Weill Cornell Medical College and NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital in 2012. Justin Malin says: The mouse colorectal experiment ties into what Rick Johnson had to say about fructose lowering ATP levels. Just had to pause for a moment to get that out. Now I’m going to have to go back to that one after finishing this one. BTW, I was wondering when you’ve have Lew Cantley on. Especially after the Seyfried and Mukherjee episodes. Individualized cancer treatment based on receptor expression and metabolomics would be awesome! So many ways to attack it and I think why not throw the kitchen sink and combine as many efficacious therapies as possible (based on the assays/characteristics) of the cancer you’re fighting?All that being said, minimizing your insulin AUC seems like a reasonable approach to preventing a lot of common cancers. Matt Hastings says: Peter – Another great podcast! Curious when you look back and think about the Seyfried podcast after talking to Lew, if you have a different outlook on the discussion? Not a loaded question. I enjoyed both, and they seem very interrelated. Bruce Rash says: Great to (finally!) hear some talk about a possible new therapy for pancreatic cancer. What version of PI3K was Lew referring to that worked in the mouse model for killing off pancreatic cancer cells? Is it readily available? I have pre-cancerous IPMN’s and so of course am always alert for new paths, as the SOC has appallingly grim outcomes…Thanks so much for your work Peter and crew! Mikal R says: Bruce: In different experiments, they use BYL-719 (alpelisib; brand name Piqray) and BKM120 (buparlisib; I don’t think this is licensed yet). Mark Smeder says: “Cancer: The Emperor of All Maladies” Watch free on Amazon prime!	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line676
__label__wiki	0.580877	0.580877	Video and photography by Carolyn Hide, cazeilcreative.com.au 3 pm Sunday 24 November, Hoskins Uniting Church, Lithgow 4 pm Saturday 30 November, St Hilda’s Anglican Church, Katoomba Soloists:Timothy Nunn (Elijah) and Elizabeth Coonan (Soprano) Janette Norcott (piano), Deb Coogan (cello), Tim Kaye (organ) Program note by Rowen Fox, Musical Director Elijah is undoubtedly one of the most outstanding choral works of the early Romantic era, although appreciation of it has waxed and waned over the years. This is a work I have been wanting to introduce to the choir ever since I took on its direction in 2012. It is also, incidentally, one of the first pieces I ever sang in with my undergraduate university choir and is therefore in no small part responsible for my lifelong obsession with choirs and choral music. It remains one of my all-time favourite works. Choral societies were incredibly popular in early Victorian Great Britain, where the oratorios of Handel (most notably Messiah) had never gone out of favour. When Mendelssohn was commissioned to compose a new oratorio by the Birmingham Festival, in 1845, he was living in Germany, where he was an almost lone voice championing the oratorios of Bach and Handel. So he was ideally suited to give the British singers more of what they loved. He responded with a work deeply influenced by the two great masters. His score combines the form and spirit of the earlier Baroque works with a new Romantic expressiveness and lyricism. After its first performance Elijah received unanimous and immediate acclamation as the first worthy successor to Messiah. To the Victorians, Elijah and Messiah stood for many years as the two unassailable classics of the genre. Today’s presentation is of necessity a greatly shortened version of the original. I have trimmed some of the scenes and cut many of the solo movements, focusing instead on the narrative arc as told through the exquisite choruses and Elijah’s stirring solo arias. Our accompanying instrumentation of piano, cello and organ is a response to multiple needs: the cello was suggested by the beautiful part for solo cello which accompanies Elijah’s most famous aria, ‘It is enough’, in the orchestral version. The organ supports the singers and underscores the many moments of great religious fervour. I arranged a new version of the overture, seeking an interplay of the three instruments. The rest of the performance arrangement has been prepared from existing parts in close collaboration with organist and choir president Tim Kaye, who created his own organ arrangement for this performance. tickets for our next concert Join the Phoenix Choir secretary@phoenixchoir.org.au Mailing list for future concerts president@phoenixchoir.org.au Enquiries – 02 4700 9308 Rehearsals 7pm at Blackheath Baptist Hall every Tuesday during	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line678
__label__wiki	0.84078	0.84078	Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Latin American History Oxford Research Encyclopedias Latin American History 1824–c. 1880 1991 and After Afro-Latin History Church and Religious History Digital Innovations, Sources, and Interdisciplinary Approaches History of Brazil History of Latin America and the Oceanic World History of Northern and Andean Spanish America History of Southern Spanish America History of the Caribbean Intellectual History Legal and Constitutional History Revolutions and Rebellions Science, Technology, and Health Full Article (492) 1492 and Before (9) 1824–c. 1880 (52) 1991 and After (36) Afro-Latin History (25) Church and Religious History (27) Colonialism and Imperialism (51) Cultural History (132) Digital Innovations, Sources, and Interdisciplinary Approaches (55) Diplomatic History (32) Environmental History (42) Family and Children (10) History of Brazil (112) History of Central America (36) History of Latin America and the Oceanic World (83) History of Mexico (166) History of Northern and Andean Spanish America (38) History of Southern Spanish America (52) History of the Caribbean (49) Indigenous History (50) Intellectual History (30) International History (35) Labor History (24) Legal and Constitutional History (11) Revolutions and Rebellions (50) Science, Technology, and Health (37) Slavery and Abolition (22) Social History (76) Urban History (19) The Abolition of Brazilian Slavery, 1864–1888 Brazil was the last Western country to abolish slavery, which it did in 1888. As a colonial institution, slavery was present in all regions and in almost all free and freed strata of the population. Emancipation only became an issue in the political sphere when it was raised by the imperial government in the second half of the decade of the 1860s, after the defeat of the Confederacy in the US Civil War and during the war against Paraguay. In 1871, new legislation, despite the initial opposition from slave owners and their political representatives, set up a process of gradual emancipation. By the end of the century, slavery would have disappeared, or would have become residual, without major disruptions to the economy or the land property regime. By the end of the 1870s, however, popular opposition to slavery, demanding its immediate abolition without any kind of compensation to former slave owners, grew in parliament and as a mass movement. Abolitionist organizations spread across the country during the first half of the 1880s. Stimulated by the direct actions of some of these abolitionist organizations, resistance to slavery intensified and became increasingly a struggle against slavery itself and not only for individual or collective freedom. Incapable of controlling the situation, the imperial government finally passed a law in parliament granting immediate and unconditional abolition on May 13, 1888. A Feminist History of Violence against Women and the LGBTQIA+ Community in Chile, 1964–2018 Hillary Hiner From a historical perspective, violence against women and the LGBTQIA+ community (lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, queer, intersex, asexual, and “+” for other possible associated identities) in Chile has presented itself and been understood in different ways. On the one hand, we have to take into consideration what Maria Lugones has named the “coloniality of gender” and how racism, sexism, and heteronormativity was installed from the colonial period onward, promoting specific violences against indigenous, black, lesbian, and trans women. Additionally, for a great deal of time, from roughly the colonial period until the 1990s, it was considered completely acceptable to use violence in the family and in intimate partner relationships to “correct” and punish women and girls. The Pinochet dictatorship (1973–1990) also adds another dimension to this discussion, as women were affected by gendered and sexualized state terrorism. However, the reappearance of strong women’s and feminist groups during the dictatorship also signaled a profound questioning of these types of gender violence, linking it to patriarchal structures and the need for democracy “in the country” and “in the home.” A similar effect was achieved by the emergence of LGBTQIA+ groups from the 1980s on, as they questioned the historic violence, hate crimes, and discrimination against gay men, lesbians, and, more recently, trans people. In both cases, then, pressures from social movement groups have forced the post-dictatorship Chilean state to pass laws and promote anti-violence public policy. For better and for worse, however, those anti-violence initiatives that have been most successful, in terms of visibility and public policy coverage, have generally centered on violences experienced by white-mestiza, cishet, urban women, particularly those that survive family violence. Historiographies on violence against women and the LGBTQIA+ community are relatively scarce, although there has been increased production in the last ten years, especially around the topics of women survivors of family or intimate partner violence and women survivors of torture and political prison. African American Boxer Billy Clarke in Modernizing Guatemala Alvis E. Dunn In the final decades of the 19th century the Central American nation of Guatemala represented some intriguing employment and entrepreneurial possibilities from the point of view of US citizens. The lure of coffee cultivation, mahogany harvesting, even mining was real. Additionally, the promise of employment building an inter-oceanic railroad resulted in significant numbers of African Americans journeying to Guatemala. The relocation offered good pay and many apparently believed that it would also take them to a place where Jim Crow racism was not the predominant and limiting factor that it was in the United States. For at least one of those men however, railroad work was not the primary enticement to the region. By 1893, such alleged opportunities in Guatemala had attracted the black athlete, entrepreneur, and entertainer Billy A. Clarke. During his two years in the country, with his sometime business partner and sparring mate, Rod Lewis, also an African American, Clarke operated a gymnasium where he taught the “Art of Pugilism,” staged several prize fights, and, for a time, captured the imagination of the capital city with the example of modern, imported entertainment and professional sports. Between 1892 and 1898, Guatemala was ruled by, first president, and later, dictator, General José María Reina Barrios. A globalizer enamored of modernization, European architecture, and North American technology, the environment fostered by Reina Barrios attracted not only contractors and African American workers from the United States to build railroads but also other foreigners who made for the Central American nation, bringing the outside world to the mile-high capital of Guatemala City. Into this setting came Billy A. Clarke, drawn by the same baseline possibilities of solid work and the prospect of less Jim Crow as his African American railroad compatriots, but with the additional promise that his individual skills as a fighter and promoter might reap even bigger rewards. The story of Clarke in Guatemala is one of race, identity, and creative self-promotion. Building an image that combined ideas of the exotic and powerful African with ideas of the North American armed with “know-how” and scientific fighting skills, Clarke became a Guatemala City celebrity and was eventually known as the “Champion of Central America.” The African Presence in Central American History Robinson Herrera Far from monolithic, the seven Central American countries—Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Panama—each have unique cultural traditions and historical trajectories. Their different geographies, while not deterministic in any facile manner, influenced their development in ways that continue to shape their national characteristics. The cataclysmic 16th-century Spanish Conquest introduced new peoples and cultural traditions to the region. African slaves, primarily from the sub-Saharan region, accompanied the first Spanish ventures, and, later, as the colonies consolidated and grew, peoples of African descent, both enslaved and free, became a part of the area’s economic and cultural landscape. Starting in the late 18th century, African peoples from the Caribbean—whether forcefully exiled or as a result of searching for economic opportunities—traveled to Central America. Despite a contemporary collective historical amnesia that imagines Africans isolated in specific regions, namely the Caribbean coast, peoples of African descent can be found throughout the Central American nations. Rather than addressing each country, a thematic approach that focuses on the Spanish Conquest, slavery, emancipation, the ethnogenesis of African connected cultures, the historical erasure of Africans, and the contributions of peoples of African descent helps to understand the complex ways that peoples of African descent have impacted the history of modern Central America. For far from isolated to small populations along the Caribbean, the African presence can be discerned throughout the region, even in places often perceived as entirely devoid of its influence. Africans in Brazil and Afro-Brazilian Religion and Culture Luis Nicolau Parés Of the estimated 4.9 million African captives disembarked in Brazil, 70 % were shipped from Central Africa, 24 % from West Africa, and the remaining 6 % from the East Coast of the continent. Despite their diverse political and cultural backgrounds, Africans were classified by slavers with a discrete number of generic categories often referred to as “nations.” The enslaved appropriation of such external labels, like Mina and Angola—distinguishing Western and Central Africans respectively—resulted in the formation of new collective identities. The novel ways of colonial belonging and behavior shaped and expressed themselves as distinct forms of Afro-Brazilian culture when organized around social institutions such as Catholic lay brotherhoods or other African-inspired associative dynamics. Religious practice, including music, language, bodily performance, cooking and dress, became a privileged domain for African cultural production, subsequently irradiating into other secular manifestations. The colonial calundu, concerned with healing and oracular functionalities, greatly influenced by the Bantu-speaking people, coexisted and intermingled with the more ecclesiastical West-African traditions of initiatory ritual dedicated to the worship of multiple deities. Despite common elements of celebration, healing and mediumship, Afro-Brazilian religious pluralism was historically marked by an extraordinary eclecticism. Different local interactions with the hegemonic Iberian Catholicism, Amerindian healing practices and French Spiritism, together with the circulation of people and ideas between Africa and Brazil after the end of the Atlantic slave trade, led to a wide range of regional variation. This heterogeneous Afro-Brazilian religious field, prone to continuous discrimination and selective tolerance by the authorities, is stressed by a discursive contrast between the alleged traditional pure African forms and the mixed syncretic Brazilian ones, all claiming their share of legitimacy and ritual efficiency. Agrarian Reform in Bolivia in the 20th and 21st Centuries Carmen Soliz Until the 1950s, the distribution of land in Bolivia, as in the rest of Latin America, was very unequal. But in 1953, a year after the 1952 national revolution, the nationalist revolutionary movement (MNR) enacted a decree on agrarian reform that dismantled feudal haciendas in the western highlands, abolished the system of forced peasant labor, and distributed expropriated lands to peasants. While the decree proved redistributive in the Altiplano and valleys, it ended up creating new concentrations of land in Bolivia’s eastern lowlands. This area, which constituted two thirds of Bolivia’s territory, was home to a number of indigenous groups who were displaced from their lands because of the expansion of latifundio in the second half of the 20th century. In 1996, after pressure from below, the neoliberal government of Gonzalo Sanchez de Lozada (1993–1997) approved a new agrarian law that recognized indigenous rights to collective territory (Tierra Comunitaria de Origen, TCO). In 2006, left-leaning President Evo Morales approved a new agrarian law. Although the new legislation mostly ratified the 1996 law, it established that only indigenous and peasant populations could be granted state lands. Despite this legislation claiming to protect the majority Indian and peasant population, scholars such as Colque, Tinta, and Sanjines note that it was under a neoliberal government, between 1996 to 2006, that much of the process of land distribution favored to indigenous groups of the lowlands, and it was under left-leaning President Evo Morales (from 2010 to the present [2018]) that much of land distribution favored medium and agricultural enterprises. The most important clash between the self-proclaimed indigenous Evo Morales and lowland indigenous groups was in September 2011 when indigenous groups living in the National Park and Indigenous Territory Isiboro Sécure (TIPNIS) protested against the government’s unilateral decision to build a road through their territory. Since 2011 (up to the present, 2018) the tension and political distance between president Morales and his loyal coca-leaf grower supporters—many of whom live on the borders of the park and are invested on the construction of the road—versus the indigenous groups of the lowlands have only grown. Ironically, it seems to be under Morales that key indigenous rights such as the right to prior consultation or the right to consolidate territories (TCOs) seem to be at the most risk. Agrarian Revolt in the Sierra of Chihuahua Elizabeth A. Henson On September 23, 1965, several years of protest, including land invasions, strikes, sit-ins, and cross-country marches, culminated in an armed attack on an army base located in the remote town of Madera, Chihuahua, in northern Mexico. Protesters had demanded that the state comply with land reform guarantees provided for by the constitution of Mexico; students from the normal schools joined in and raised their own demands. Instead of negotiating partial reforms, the state governor called out troops to burnish his reputation as an anti-communist crusader. Nominally organized in the Unión General de Obreros y Campesinos de México, movement leaders broke with national directives and encouraged “direct action” and illegal occupations, while the normalistas acted within a student activist tradition rooted in the Marxism of the 1930s. The agrarian demands came from landless workers in an agricultural valley planted in cotton, whose fortunes were linked to the world market and from dispossessed smallholders in the mountainous backlands now claimed by timber export companies. This mid-century modernization of land use had its counterpart in the protestors’ emulation of the Cuban revolution and their attempt to apply Che’s theory of guerrilla warfare. As the governor’s recalcitrance radicalized the movement, small groups undertook sporadic armed actions in the mountains, disarming forces sent after them. Other leaders moved to Mexico City to avoid arrest, undergo military training, and attempt to gather support; they returned to Chihuahua with the plan to attack the army base. Despite its spectacular failure, the event has been hailed as Mexico’s first socialist guerrilla struggle and served as inspiration for the dirty war of the 1970s, when armed revolutionaries fought the armed power of the state. Attention to its armed component has eclipsed the movement’s underlying basis, which was equally innovative and had lasting influence on Mexican social protest. Agricultural Transformations in Sugarcane and Labor in Brazil Thomas D. Rogers The Portuguese took sugarcane from their Atlantic island holdings to Brazil in the first decades of the 16th century, using their model of extensive agriculture and coerced labor to turn their new colony into the world’s largest producer of sugar. From the middle of the 17th century through the 20th century, Brazil faced increasing competition from Caribbean producers. With access to abundant land and forest resources, Brazilian producers generally pursued an extensive production model that made sugarcane’s footprint a large one. Compared to competitors elsewhere, Brazilian farmers were often late in adopting innovations (such as manuring in the 18th century, steam power in the 19th, and synthetic fertilizers in the 20th). With coffee’s growth in the center-south of the country during the middle of the 19th century, sugarcane farming shifted gradually away from enslaved African labor. Labor and production methods shifted at the end of the century with slavery’s abolition and the rise of large new mills, called usinas. The model of steam-powered production, both for railroads carrying cane and for mills grinding it, and a work force largely resident on plantations persisted into the mid-20th century. Rural worker unions were legalized in the 1960s, at the same time that sugar production increased as a result of the Cuban Revolution. A large-scale sugarcane ethanol program in the 1970s also brought upheaval, and growth, to the industry. Agustín Lorenzo: Beloved Bandit of History and Folklore Liliana Toledo Guzmán Agustín Lorenzo was a prototypical social bandit, according to Eric Hobsbawm’s definition in his studies of that phenomenon. As a bandit from south central Mexico believed to have lived between the 18th and 19th centuries, the exploits of Agustín Lorenzo have been recounted in myriad ways: myths, legends, loas, corridos, films, carnival representations, among others. Lorenzo is said to have stolen from the rich to give to the poor, swearing to avenge his grandfather’s mistreatment at the hands of his employer, the local landowner. To achieve his mission, the story goes, Lorenzo made a pact with the devil, to obtain supernatural powers. The attributes of this bandit undoubtedly place him in the same category as the great body of stories about banditry that have survived for centuries around the world, particularly considering their shared essence: a desire for justice. In the case of Agustín Lorenzo, it is possible to disentangle the universal principles Hobsbawm established regarding the phenomenon of social banditry from the local context in which this particular myth lives on. Hence, to analyze the myth of Agustín Lorenzo, it is essential to explore the narratives and meanings of the cosmogony of the Nahua peoples of south-central Mexico. Alberto Santos-Dumont and Brazilian Aviation Felipe Fernandes Cruz Aviation has played a unique role in the history of Brazil, beginning with the life of Alberto Santos-Dumont. Most Brazilians consider him to be the true inventor of the airplane over the North American brothers Orville and Wilbur Wright. Born in the province of Minas Gerais in 1873, he became a global celebrity in the early 1900s when he designed, built, and piloted several of his dirigibles and airplanes in Paris. He won major prizes for his aeronautical feats, such as the Deutsch de La Meurthe prize for an aerial circumnavigation of the Eiffel Tower. Santos-Dumont is a beloved national hero in Brazil. The potent symbolism of his life was often invoked in calls for the development of Brazilian aviation. Throughout the 20th century, aviation was hailed as a technological panacea for Brazil’s problems. Many Brazilians thought its development could boost homegrown industry and technology, and that aviation would in turn enable Brazil to conquer its frontiers by air. The potential to connect vast and often inaccessible territories by air was very attractive to a state with a weak grip on its frontiers. The dictatorial government of Getúlio Vargas, for instance, used propaganda and cultural programs to engender great excitement among Brazilians for the mass development of national aviation. This notion of frontier conquest by air played a major role in the development of aeronautical technology in Brazil, creating a unique history of frontier expansion and interaction with indigenous peoples. Starting in 1969, Brazil also became a major exporter of airplanes. Originally a state-owned company, the now privatized EMBRAER is one of the world’s largest aircraft manufacturers, selling military, airline and private jet aircraft around the world. Alcohol in the Atlantic David Carey Jr. Dating from the earliest times in Latin America, alcohol has played a crucial social, economic, political, and cultural role. Often reserved for politico-religious leaders, alcohol was a conduit through which power flowed in many pre-contact indigenous societies; indigenous drinkways (production, commerce, and consumption habits) were associated with communal ritual events and social prestige. Introduced to the Americas by Europeans, distillation profoundly altered the potency of alcoholic drinks for people who were accustomed to fermentation. Even as the social and cultural practices of alcohol consumption changed over time, alcohol continued to have political and economic implications in the colonial and national periods in Latin America. Fearing that inebriation bred disorder and recognizing that moonshining undercut their own revenues, colonial and national governments alike sought to regulate, if not control, the production, sale, and consumption of alcohol. In nations as diverse as Mexico, Bolivia, Peru, and Guatemala, indigenous women came to play integral roles in the (oftentimes illicit) sale and production of alcohol. A cash nexus for moving labor and land and a crucial component of the economic system by which (often unscrupulous) labor brokers recruited workers, alcohol was a currency of local economies. As a commodity of local, national, and international significance, alcohol shaped the fate of nation-states. People’s class, ethnic, race, and gender identities all played into their access to alcohol. Although a person’s choice of libation could define their position, some of the more fascinating histories of alcohol are punctuated with women and men who used alcohol to disrupt social conventions. Through the consumption of alcohol, rituals and ceremonies created and reconstituted community both within and across ethnic groups. Imbibing could also divide people. Even while they sipped their cognacs and brandies, elites portrayed indigenous people, the poor, and other marginalized people getting drunk on moonshine to discount and denigrate them. Often associated with (particularly violent) crime, alcohol was seen as a vice by many and excoriated during temperance movements. Yet defendants across Latin America took advantage of judicial systems that considered alcohol a mitigating circumstance in many crimes. As 20th-century evangelical sects that preached abstinence as the route to wealth and marital bliss grew to unprecedented numbers, traditional healers and biomedical practitioners continued to tout alcohol’s medicinal value. In short, alcohol was a marker of social position and cultural identity, a crucial component in community and state building, and a commodity around which different cultural traditions, healing practices, and policing policies developed and evolved. Alfred Métraux: Between Ethnography and Applied Knowledge Rodrigo Bulamah Alfred Métraux was part of a prolific moment in which French sociology and ethnology were enlarging their scientific scope and advancing toward new fields. Following the colonial expansion of France, Métraux participated in establishing ethnographic methods for codifying social life, material culture, and artistic forms. Through his own transatlantic voyages and personal exchanges, Métraux left personal documents in different parts of the world. Consequently, many are the archives that hold parts of his personal collections, letters, and published or unpublished materials. In addition, because of Métraux’s own cosmopolitanism, studies on the ethnologist’s life and works can be found in different languages. Métraux meticulously collected artifacts and documents from different cultures, and these items are now part of collections in museums in Argentina, France, and the United States. The multiplicity of themes Métraux dedicated himself to during his life reveal logics and developments of his work, as well as the importance of fieldwork to his making as an anthropologist, or a “man of the field,” as he used to describe himself. His intense and long-term relationship with Haitian Vodou was central in his career as it arose from his early interest in vanishing civilizations, religious systems, and material culture, and defined his personal agenda for future research. Alien Sightings and OVNI Culture in Argentina David M. K. Sheinin During the Cold War, there were thousands of Unidentified Flying Object (UFO) sightings in Argentina (in Spanish, Objeto volador no identificado or OVNI). The mainstream media reported on many of them. In a field termed ufología, some events were explained scientifically or somewhat scientifically; most were not. These sightings and their stories lived on in a culture of thousands of OVNI aficionados and their literatures, frequently spilling into larger popular cultures. OVNI culture disrupts chronologies. It offers a picture of Cold War Argentina that breaks with longstanding popular and academic chronologies that stress a dictatorship-versus-democracy binary. That binary is real. However, OVNI culture superimposes an often-neglected Cold War chronology on the mid- to late 20th century. OVNI stories and their cultural consumption evolve and vary not with reference to violent Argentine political and historical change, but in the context of a larger transnational Cold War culture in an Argentine context. Hallmarks of OVNI culture in Argentina include the enormous influence of U.S. popular culture, as well as references to apocalyptic nuclear weapons, and unscientific notions of psychoses in explaining late-night sightings of spacecraft and extraterrestrials. Alliance for Progress Stephen G. Rabe On March 13, 1961, President John F. Kennedy announced the Alliance for Progress, an economic assistance program to promote political democracy, economic growth, and social justice in Latin America. The United States and Latin American nations formally agreed to the alliance at a conference held in August 1961, at Punta del Este, Uruguay. U.S. delegates promised that Latin America would receive over twenty billion dollars in public and private capital from the United States and international lending authorities during the 1960s. The money would arrive in the form of grants, loans, and direct private investments. When combined with an expected eighty billion dollars in internal investment, this new money was projected to stimulate an economic growth rate of not less than 2.5 percent a year. This economic growth would facilitate significant improvements in employment, and in rates of infant mortality, life expectancy, and literacy rates. In agreeing to the alliance, Latin American leaders pledged to work for equality and social justice by promoting agrarian reform and progressive income taxes. The Kennedy administration developed this so-called Marshall Plan for Latin America because it judged the region susceptible to social revolution and communism. Fidel Castro had transformed the Cuban Revolution into a strident anti-American movement and had allied his nation with the Soviet Union. U.S. officials feared that the lower classes of Latin America, mired in poverty and injustice, might follow similarly radical leaders. Alliance programs delivered outside capital to the region, but the Alliance for Progress failed to transform Latin America. During the 1960s, Latin American economies performed poorly, usually falling below the 2.5 percent target. The region witnessed few improvements in health, education, or welfare. Latin American societies remained unfair and authoritarian. Sixteen extra-constitutional changes of government repeatedly unsettled the region. The Alliance for Progress fell short of its goals for several reasons. Latin America had formidable obstacles to change: elites resisted land reform, equitable tax systems, and social programs; new credits often brought greater indebtedness rather than growth; and the Marshall Plan experience served as a poor guide to solving the problems of a region that was far different from Western Europe. The United States also acted ambiguously, calling for democratic progress and social justice, but worried that Communists would take advantage of the instability caused by progressive change. Further, Washington provided wholehearted support only to those Latin American governments and organizations that pursued fervent anticommunist policies. The Alphabetic Colonization of Amerindian Oral Ecologies in Early Brazil Diogo de Carvalho Cabral Although it has received less scholarly attention than firearms, microbes, domestic animals and plants, market economy, and statecraft, alphabetic reading and writing was crucial in the European conquest and colonization of the Americas from the late 15th century on. Unlike the agrarian empires the Spaniards encountered in the Andes and the Mexican highlands, the Portuguese frontier advanced upon tribal peoples who relied exclusively on oral language, such as the Tupi of Atlantic Brazil. These were semi-sedentary horticultural villagers whose entire socio-ecology (myths and knowledge, territoriality, subsistence strategies, etc.) was conditioned by the face-to-faceness and fugacity of spoken words. In turn, their Portuguese colonizers—for a while rivaled by the French, who enjoyed short periods of stable settlement through the early 17th century—were urban-based, oceangoing merchants, bureaucrats, soldiers, and religious missionaries whose organization strictly depended on the durability and transferability of written texts. Even if most of the Portuguese who came to Brazil in the 16th century were themselves illiterate, colonization as a social enterprise framed their actions according to prescribed roles set down in writing (both handwriting and printed script). Thus, the Portuguese colonization of Brazilian native lands and human populations can be interpreted from the point of view of the imposition of an alphabetically organized way of life. Two major dimensions of this “letterscaping” can be discerned as to its impact on Amerindian bodies (human and nonhuman) and modes of understanding. Although the 16th century was only the introductory act in that drama, its historical record shows the basic outlines of the alphabetic colonization that would play out through the early 19th century: native decimation and enslavement, territory usurpation by sesmaria grants, forest recovery in former native croplands (then resignified as “virgin forest”), loss of native ecological knowledge not recorded in writing, disempowerment of native cultural attunement to the wild soundscape, among other processes. Animals in Latin American History Germán Vergara The evolutionary history of vertebrate nonhuman animals such as mammals in what is now Latin America extends back tens of millions of years. Given that anatomically modern humans first appeared in Africa a mere 200,000 years ago and would not reach Latin America until some 12,000 years ago, nonhuman animals in the region evolved for most of their history without interference from human activities. Once they appeared, humans began to shape the history of the region’s animals in profound ways. In fact, one could argue that animal history in Latin America has been a story of increasing human impact; from the Paleo-Indians, who may have driven countless species of megafauna to extinction; to the agrarian societies that domesticated species such as dogs, turkeys, and llamas (or tolerated the animals’ self-domestication); to the radical transformations brought about by the Columbian Exchange; to the industrialization process of the last two centuries. But animal history in the region is also marked by adaptation and agency on the part of animals, who have influenced the course of human history. This dynamic and adaptive human–animal relationship has been pushed to the limit during extinction pulses, manifest in the currently accelerating biodiversity crisis. Environmental history makes the convincing case that any historical account that neglects the environment offers an inaccurate depiction of the past. By the same token, animal historians suggest that a more complete understanding of history requires redefining its boundaries to include the often underappreciated story of nonhuman species and their interrelationships with human societies. Anticommunism in 20th-Century Chile: From the “Social Question” to the Military Dictatorship Marcelo Casals Anticommunism was a central force in the history of the Chilean political conflict in the 20th century. Not only did several political actors define their identities and actions by their opposition to Marxist-inspired revolutionary projects, but also the state in different moments excluded and persecuted everything identified as “communist.” To a great extent, anticommunism relied on three main “frameworks”: Catholicism, nationalism, and liberalism, all of which were crucial elements in the construction of the Republic since the 19th century. Different combinations and interpretations within each framework resulted in different anticommunist expressions, from pro-fascist movements and nationalist groups to the conservative-liberal right wing, the Social Christian center and even moderate socialists. Many of them, especially in the second half of the 20th century, understood anticommunism as a defense of different variations of capitalism. Of course, anticommunism was not a uniquely Chilean phenomenon. It was, in fact, an ideological trend worldwide. This conditioned the reception in Chile of global events and ideas, while it enabled the construction of transnational networks among related actors. The enactment of the Law of Permanent Defense of Democracy in 1948, which outlawed the Communist Party, symbolized the alignment of Chilean politics to Cold War bipolarity. However, the Marxist left was able to recover during the “long Sixties,” in a political and cultural environment marked by the Cuban Revolution. The Popular Unity government was the materialization of all anticommunist fears. The counter-revolutionary bloc created then paved the way to the 1973 coup and the subsequent military dictatorship, which used anticommunism as state ideology. Human rights violations were legitimated by the dictatorship from that ideological framework. Anticommunism decayed by the late 1980s alongside socialist experiences around the world. Arabic-Speaking Migrants in 19th- and 20th-Century Latin America Lily Pearl Balloffet Global transoceanic migration booms of the 19th century brought with them more than a quarter of a million migrants from the Arabic-speaking eastern Mediterranean destined for Latin American cities, towns, and rural outposts across the region. Over the course of the early 20th century, a near-constant mobility of circulating people, things, and ideas characterized the formation of immigrant identities and communities with roots primarily in the Levantine area of the Middle East. Over time, historians of this migration have come to interpret as central the transnational and transregional nature of the ties that many individuals, families, and institutions in Latin America carefully maintained with their counterparts across the Atlantic. As the 20th century progressed, Middle Eastern migrants and their subsequent generations of descendants consolidated institutions, financial networks, and a plethora of other life projects in their respective Latin American home places. Meanwhile, they continued to seek meaningful participation in the realities of a Middle East-North Africa region undergoing deep shifts in its geopolitical, social, and cultural landscapes from the disintegration of the Ottoman Empire and the end of World War I, through the tumultuous century that followed. Architecture in 20th-Century Brazil Fernando Luiz Lara Brazilian modern architecture was widely celebrated in the 1940s and 1950s as a tropical branch of Corbusian architecture. While there is truth and depth to the influence of Le Corbusier in Brazil, the architecture of this country is much more than simply an application of his principles to a warmer climate. Moreover, Brazilian 20th-century architecture cannot be defined only by a few decades in which their buildings coincided with and reinforce northern expectations. Many contemporary authors have explored the pervasive nature of such ethnocentrism in architectural history, which denies agency and initiative to anyone outside its intellectual borders. A more adequate analysis must give proper emphasis to Brazilian architects’ motivations and agency, exploring in their main buildings how they struggled to express themselves and their societal aspirations by skillfully manipulating a formal and spatial vocabulary of international modernity. A contemporary study of Brazilian 20th-century architecture would not be worthy of its title if it did not address similar double standards that have been applied domestically. It is paramount to understand that the influence of modernism in the built environment reached way beyond the well-known centers of Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo, and its manifestations go way beyond the high modernism of the 1940s and 50s. The ethnocentrism of the global North Atlantic repeats itself in Brazil, with the architectures of Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo overshadowing all others. If Brazilian architecture in general is not well known, notwithstanding its extraordinary achievements, still less known are the buildings erected in Recife, Porto Alegre, Belo Horizonte, and Salvador, to mention only four other major urban centers, or the hundreds of buildings in medium-size cities with as much quality and intentionality as those of Rio and São Paulo. Architecture in Mexico City, 1940–1980 Kathryn E. O’Rourke Architecture in Mexico City in the mid-20th century was shaped by rapid economic and urban growth, demographic change, new construction technologies, and politics. Architects adapted modernist idioms and those that evoked historical precedents for new purposes. Key figures who had begun practice earlier in the century, including Mario Pani, Juan O’Gorman, José Villagrán García, and Luis Barragán, designed major new works and strongly influenced the profession, even as a new generation led by Pedro Ramírez Vázquez, Ricardo Legorreta, and Teodoro González de Léon came of age. As they had been since the 1920s, public patrons were the most important clients of modern buildings, which often addressed needs for better housing, education, and health care. The period also saw the rise of modern suburbs and the evolution of the single-family house, as well as the creation of major buildings for increasingly important cultural institutions, especially museums. As they had in preceding decades, architects used the non-architectural arts, particularly painting, to distinguish their works. The legacy of the Mexican muralist movement was most evident on the facades of major buildings in the new University City, where the influence of international modernist planning principles was also striking. In 1968 Mexico City hosted the Olympics, for which architects, planners, and designers created a network of buildings and images that functioned interdependently to present Mexico as cosmopolitan and historically rooted in its indigenous history. Sprawl and pollution worsened in the 1970s, as the capital came to be dominated by buildings that were not designed by architects. While some observers questioned the relevance of architecture in the face of seemingly unstoppable and uncontrollable growth, talented young architects responded with buildings notable for their monumentality, mass, and sophisticated engagement with historical types. Printed from Oxford Research Encyclopedias, Latin American History. 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__label__wiki	0.705347	0.705347	ATEST Statement on State Department’s 2017 Trafficking in Persons Report Rankings Undermine Credibility of TIP Report: Malaysia, Burma and Qatar Upgrades Unjustified The following statement is from the Alliance to End Slavery & Trafficking (ATEST), a U.S.-based coalition that advocates for solutions to prevent and end all forms of human trafficking, of which Polaris is a member: Washington, D.C.— For the third straight year, the Alliance to End Slavery and Trafficking (ATEST) has serious concerns about the credibility of the State Department’s annual Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report, released yesterday. The TIP Report ranks governments worldwide, including the United States, into one of three tiers based on their efforts to combat and prevent human trafficking, forced labor, and other forms of modern slavery. Countries must improve their efforts to fight human trafficking to avoid the lowest ranking of Tier 3 and accompanying sanctions. While some country rankings in the report reflect real progress or challenges on the ground, there are a number of rankings that are a significant cause for concern, and overall the inconsistency in country rankings calls the integrity of the report into question. The ranking process should be objective, based on a country’s efforts to combat TIP. However, the highly questionable decisions to upgrade several countries with abysmal records on TIP, including Malaysia, Burma, and Qatar, points to uneven application of legal criteria, inconsistent analysis and undue political influence. It is important to note that the 2017 TIP Report’s U.S. Narrative highlights significant failures in combating human trafficking in our own backyard, including: 1) the fact that many trafficking survivors are still arrested and convicted of crimes their traffickers force them to commit; 2) the lack of state and federal vacatur laws to protect victims who are convicted; 3) the lack of funding for services for trafficking victims, especially housing; 4) failure to issue continued presence in a timely manner, possibly impeding investigations and making survivors more vulnerable; 5) continued charging of fees to H-visa program workers despite legal prohibitions creating vulnerability to debt bondage; 6) no civil actions or disbarments against noncompliant employers or labor contractors from U.S. programs; and 7) most notably, the disparity in federal prosecution efforts for both labor and sex trafficking –with just 13 federally prosecuted labor trafficking cases across the United States. ATEST is concerned that, while noting the vulnerability of LGBTQI communities to trafficking, the report no longer contains explicit references to this population in either the recommendations or narrative. In addition, we note that certain U.S. government actions taken outside the 2017 reporting period targeting immigrants are increasing immigrant worker vulnerabilities to trafficking in persons in the U.S. “The TIP report should provide an honest assessment of human trafficking and forced labor in each country. It should prioritize a country’s enforcement of laws that prohibit all forms of trafficking in persons, rather than enactment of legislation or stated commitments that fail to substantively change the situation of trafficking victims on the ground. While legislation and public commitments are important procedural steps, it is the implementation of those laws that protects vulnerable populations and holds perpetrators accountable for their crimes, and makes the greatest difference in ending modern slavery globally,” said Melysa Sperber, ATEST Director. ATEST is particularly concerned about Malaysia’s upgrade, which ignores the fact that migrant workers continue to toil in debt bondage and forced labor in key export sectors such as electronics and palm oil; that trafficked workers are more likely to be treated as immigration law violators than TIP victims; and that the number of victims identified is grossly inadequate given the millions of vulnerable migrants in Malaysia. Most worryingly, the Malaysian government has failed to prosecute any Malaysian officials for their involvement in the Rohingya smuggling rings and mass graves found on the Malaysia-Thai border in 2015. The reasons given for the upgrade are weak and fail to justify the change. Similarly, the State Department upgrade of Qatar to Tier 2 is unwarranted. The report cites reforms to the sponsorship system; however, those reforms have yet to be fully implemented and fail to demonstrate any real impact on the ground. The Qatari government has failed to meaningfully address migrant workers’ vulnerability to human trafficking. Specifically, it has failed to fully abolish the sponsorship system – workers still have no real ability to change employers; migrant workers still have no fundamental freedom to leave the country or their employer; domestic workers (a sector widely known to be highly vulnerable to trafficking) and other workers are not covered by the labor law; and the Qatari government fails to effectively monitor and punish violators and provide redress to workers whose rights are violated. Not all tier placement changes this year are in question. Some anti-trafficking activists who work in the Democratic Republic of the Congo agree that a downgrade to Tier 3 is warranted because the government has failed to stop widespread harassment of human rights workers on the ground. Likewise, anti-trafficking activists who work in Haiti concur with the country’s upgrade to Tier 2 Watch List. In recent years Haiti has enacted a tough new anti-trafficking law and enforcement action is beginning. And ATEST commends the State Department for downgrading Bangladesh to Tier 2 Watch List, as the country has not done enough to protect its millions of migrant workers overseas from forced labor and other forms of TIP. ATEST has long advocated for a victim-centered and comprehensive approach to fighting modern slavery that goes beyond a strong law enforcement response to address root causes. Taken as a whole, the administration’s investment in fighting human trafficking is lagging behind its rhetoric, and this year’s TIP Report reinforces our concerns about the credibility of the tier rankings. It is critical that Congress asserts its leadership and commitment to this issue. We ask Congress to reauthorize the Trafficking Victims Protection Act, which outlines the United States Government’s comprehensive anti-trafficking framework and provides critical tools to assist in combatting trafficking at home and abroad. In addition, we urge Congress to pass the TIP Report Integrity Restoration Act of 2017, introduced by Senators Robert Menendez (D-NJ) and Marco Rubio (R-FL). This bill would strengthen the annual TIP Report by modifying the criteria to determine whether countries are meeting the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking in persons (TIP) and by highlighting the importance of documenting concrete actions by countries to show impact in eradicating TIP. The Alliance to End Slavery and Trafficking is a U.S.-based coalition that advocates for solutions to prevent and end all forms of human trafficking and modern slavery around the world. ATEST member organizations include: Coalition to Abolish Slavery and Trafficking (CAST), Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW), ECPAT-USA, Free the Slaves, Futures Without Violence (FUTURES), International Justice Mission, National Domestic Workers Alliance (NDWA), National Network for Youth (NN4Y), Polaris, Safe Horizon, Solidarity Center, Verité, and Vital Voices Global Partnership. ATEST is a project of Humanity United and Humanity United Action. www.EndSlaveryandTrafficking.org Media Contact: Ann Brown ann@akbstrategies.com, 301 633 4193 Polaris Statement on the Notice from the USDA Canceling Farm Labor Survey Human Trafficking During the COVID-19 Pandemic Polaris Statement on Protests After the Murder of George Floyd	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line687
__label__wiki	0.783346	0.783346	Dr. King’s Nightmare By Bob Lord, www.otherwords.org \| Educate! Dr. King’s Nightmare2014-01-202014-01-20https://popularresistance-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2017/12/popres-shorter.pngPopularResistance.Orghttps://popularresistance-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2014/01/MLK-Memorial-ominous-150x94.jpg200px200px The wealth possessed by our nation’s 400 richest billionaires is equal to the collective net worth of all African-American households. As we commemorate Martin Luther King Jr.’s 85th birthday, we’ve all come to know his dream. Above all else, he dreamed that one day this nation would rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.” Chris Devers/Flickr Yet here’s the grim reality facing black America today: The net worth ofjust 400 billionaires, a group that could fit into a high school gym, is on par with the collective wealth of our more than 14 million African- American households. Both groups possess some $2 trillion, about three percentof our national net worth of $77 trillion. We chose to honor Dr. King by making his birthday a national holiday because of his tireless work for justice. And MLK stood not only for social justice, but for economic justice as well. Back in 1951, he told his future life partner, Coretta Scott, that a small elite should not “control all the wealth.” “A society based on making all the money you can and ignoring people’s needs, is wrong,” Dr. King explained. And the “March on Washington” was “for jobs and freedom.” At the time of his assassination in Memphis in 1968, Dr. King was standing with striking sanitation workers in their fight for economic justice. How would MLK view the Forbes 400 controlling as much wealth as our entire African-American population of about 41 million people? Could that state of affairs co-exist with his dream? Hardly. At the outset of that speech about his dream, the civil rights leader noted that one century after the Emancipation Proclamation, “the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity.” Dr. King’s dream was as much about economic justice as it was about social justice. Today’s distribution of wealth in America represents his nightmare come true — even with Barack Obama serving as our president. What derailed the dream? How is it that, 50 years out from MLK’s speech, black America has such a dismally small slice of our nation’s wealth? Here’s how: In the 1940s through the 1960s, U.S. economic opportunity and upward mobility outside the African-American community were the envy of the world. Back then, economic inequality was plummeting. While discrimination kept black America mired in poverty, Dr. King watched tens of millions of other Americans climb from humble beginnings to affluence. So, he justifiably believed that if African Americans could break free from the yoke of racial discrimination, they too could share in the American Dream. It would take a generation or two until most of them made it, but eventually they’d get there. Soon after the chokehold of racial discrimination on the advancement of blacks finally started to loosen, however, America began its return to the society that existed before Dr. King’s birth, where a small slice of the population lives in opulence while average Americans struggle to get by. Today, it’s not social injustice, but extreme inequality that constrains economic mobility, not just for black Americans, but all of us. America, once the land of opportunity, now has a level of economic mobility lower than that of almost all other rich countries. By the time African Americans broke mostly (but not entirely) free from racist constraints on their economic mobility, they were whacked with a new obstacle: the almost equally suffocating injustice of extreme inequality. They’re not the only ones suffering. But because they were locked out of the egalitarian economic progress that took place during Dr. King’s lifetime, they’re disproportionately represented in the group now stuck on the lower rungs of the economic ladder. So here we are, a half-century after Dr. King described his dream, living through a nightmare where 400 ultra-rich Americans control as much wealth as our entire African-American population. Bob Lord, a veteran tax lawyer and former congressional candidate, practices and blogs in Phoenix, Arizona. He is also an Institute for Policy Studies associate fellow. Distributed via OtherWords (OtherWords.org) Finance and the Economy MLK Worker Rights and Jobs	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line690
__label__wiki	0.895632	0.895632	Home Features The Shipping Point The Shipping Point Wal-Mart and other discount retailers are exploiting workers in California warehouses. Can an organizing campaign make a difference? by Harold Meyerson On May 14, Wal-Mart released its first-quarter financials for 2009 and announced that despite the recession -- or, perhaps, because of it -- business was booming. Shoppers in search of cheaper products had been flocking to its stores: A full 17 percent of its customers during the quarter were first-timers. The company had been able to exploit the downturn by reducing its legendarily bare-bones distribution expenses by an additional 5 percent. In keeping with its practice of compelling its manufacturers, shippers, truckers, and warehouses to continually cut costs, Wal-Mart had been able to "sweat the assets" in its distribution network more than usual, said Eduardo Castro-Wright, head of the company's U.S. division. On the very day that Wal-Mart released its quarterly statement, however, some of those assets announced that they'd be sweated no more. At 2:30 that afternoon, some 200 local warehouse workers, abetted by half a dozen priests and ministers and a number of union activists, paraded up San Bernardino Avenue to the main trucking gate at a Wal-Mart distribution center in Fontana, California -- an obscure Los Angeles exurb that is the epicenter of warehousing not just for Wal-Mart but for the entire U.S.?Asian trade sector. Moments before the demonstrators arrived, Wal-Mart security guards scrambled down the long driveway and rolled the main gate shut, lest the protestors come inside. A Wal-Mart truck, halfway down the driveway on its way to the street, slowed, then stopped. For the next two hours, the priests prayed, the activists spoke, the workers shouted their demands -- and the distribution center ceased its distributing. Then the county sheriffs carted away the four workers and three priests who had sat down in the driveway, and the demonstrators boarded their buses and left. The unthinkable had happened: Wal-Mart's supply chain had been broken, if only for an afternoon. The demonstration was an opening shot in a union drive to organize warehouse workers. Devised and run by the Change to Win Federation and backed financially by the Teamsters, it may be one of the more quixotic American organizing campaigns in decades, but it is surely one of the most important. Strategically, the warehouses in the Fontana area present a tempting target to the unions that seek to organize Wal-Mart, its nonunion peers, and the myriad transport and warehouse companies that ship their goods. But the obstacles are considerable, as employers can stall elections and intimidate workers. Their ability to do so will diminish if Congress enacts the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA) later this year, but even if EFCA passes, organizers will still face a mountainous challenge. A majority of the workers aren't employed by the warehouses but by some of the 270 temp agencies in the vicinity -- a conundrum that virtually compels Change to Win to organize the entire warehouse community. Forty-three percent of all the seaborne imports into the United States come through the adjacent ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, roughly 70 miles from Fontana by freeway. Two decades ago, when Asian imports began to dominate American stores, major retailers required warehouses where they could sort and route the products that came into Los Angeles and Long Beach before shipping them to their stores. The retailers needed a minimum of 60 acres per warehouse, but Los Angeles County was too built up to provide that kind of land. Instead, they found what they needed -- room enough for hundreds of warehouses, adjacent to major freeways running in every direction -- around Fontana, an old steel town whose mill had long since closed, situated about two-thirds of the way from Los Angeles to San Bernardino. The neat, newly built structures, some of them comprising more than a million square feet, now line the boulevards in Fontana and nearby Ontario. The buildings, though huge, are unobtrusive and opaque, devoid of windows and signage. The only way to distinguish among them is by the lines of trucks being loaded onto their docks: Here's a Target warehouse, next door a Home Depot, then a Wal-Mart. Like the Los Angeles and Long Beach harbors, to which few Angelenos travel, the Fontana warehouse district, which employs roughly 100,000 workers, is one of the key crossroads of the new global capitalist order, where Asian production meets American consumption. Yet it has stolen quietly into the landscape. But for the trucks pulling on and off the freeways (and belching the smoke that makes Fontana the planet's fourth-highest center of diesel particulate pollutants), the warehouses -- individually, in aggregate, and as an industry -- are easy to miss. "I've been living in Claremont [a college town about a dozen miles away] for seven years," says the Rev. Chris Hartmire, who for decades headed a farm-worker ministry that was at the side of the United Farm Workers in all its battles and who went to Fontana this May to be arrested at the Wal-Mart warehouse's gate. "But I never heard about the industry or the plight of warehouse workers. Nobody knew about this." Change to Win discovered the industry and its workers when it began to study the global retail supply chains that have emerged during the past two decades. Over the past several years, the federation's strategists devised an ingenious, complicated campaign -- its success still uncertain -- to organize the truck drivers who move the goods from the Los Angeles and Long Beach harbors to distribution centers, most in or near Fontana. This is no easy task, because the truckers are all independent contractors. Labor strategists identified the next link in the supply chain as the warehouse workers of Fontana, who labor, many for little more than the minimum wage and most without benefits, in what is effectively a one-industry town. Like the port truckers, the warehouse workers are largely Latino, and campaign director Nick Allen estimates that roughly 25 percent to 40 percent of them are undocumented immigrants. At first glance, Fontana might seem like an organizer's dream. The retailers can't really move their warehouses elsewhere -- there's no other expanse of empty flat land that's both close to the harbors and adjacent to key freeways, rail lines, and an airport. The work force is large, relatively homogeneous, and thoroughly exploited. No wonder that when one key Change to Win organizer first drove around Fontana, passing one massive warehouse after another, he remarked to a colleague, "it's River Rouge," a reference to Henry Ford's great factory on the outskirts of Detroit. Except it's not. At River Rouge, 100,000 autoworkers were all employed by Henry Ford. In the Fontana warehouse industry, the 100,000 workers not only work for a large number of different employers, but more than half actually are employed by a shifting panoply of temp agencies, even if they've worked at the same warehouse at the same job for many years. The practical and legal obstacles to organizing such workers, at least through a conventional campaign, are daunting. "If all the workers decided that they wanted to join a union tomorrow," acknowledges Jeff Farmer, the organizing director of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, which is funding the campaign, "they couldn't." It was only in November, when Barack Obama was elected president and the Democrats won close to a filibuster-proof supermajority in the Senate, that the Teamsters, with visions of EFCA dancing in their head, provided the funds for Change to Win to gear up what of necessity has been a highly unorthodox organizing drive. With workers employed by numerous warehouses and agencies, the organizers have skipped the worksites and gone door to door through the workers' residential communities. (Finding the workers has been made no easier by the region's sky-high foreclosure rate, the third-highest in the nation.) In a number of ways, the campaign in its current phase is closer to community organizing than union organizing, which is one reason why eight organizers from ACORN (the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now) have come in to help the 30 or so from Change to Win. The union's goal can't be simply to organize a warehouse, because the warehouse could send out for new workers from temp agencies or the retailer could move its trucks to another warehouse. Organizing temp agencies one by one is futile and legally questionable -- employers would just rely on other agencies, and agencies would insist their employees are independent contractors. So, Farmer says, "this is about creating a movement" -- a concentration of warehouse workers so big and militant that, if EFCA becomes law and diminishes employers' ability to block their workers' unionization, it could win a communitywide contract from the area's employers. One change that would greatly assist the organizers would be for the federal government to crack down on the scam of "permanent temporary" employees -- workers who are misclassified as temps or independent contractors. Perma-temps report to the same workplace and do the same job day after day. If the Obama administration cracked down on misclassification, businesses would be forced to list most of these warehouse workers -- and millions of others -- as regular employees. Then these workers could not only be organized but unionized. For now, however, Change to Win's strategy is to enlist the entire community of warehouse workers, perms and temps both, on the theory that a significant disruption of the retailers' supply chains will compel them to come to terms, whatever the workers' classification. It's an all-or-nothing campaign. "You have to build a campaign like the janitors had, that gets and enforces a communitywide contract. We'd want a $15 hourly minimum with health benefits," says Tom Woodruff, who heads the federation's organizing center in Washington, D.C. "You'd have to organize it all -- the whole industry out there. Of course, you'd have to be half crazy to do it." A warehouse used to be the place where a company stored its products for weeks or even months. But that was before major retailers, with Wal-Mart always in the lead, began in the 1980s to take advantage of the computerization of sales, production, and logistics to create a steady stream of products that moved in the shortest time possible from a Chinese factory to your local mega-mart. The warehouse whose gate the workers blocked was what is known as a cross-docking facility. On one side, a truck pulls up to the loading dock, hauling what had been a seaborne container that had arrived at the harbor in Los Angeles or Long Beach. Inside the warehouse, the container's contents are sorted electronically and reloaded onto Wal-Mart or Sam's Club trucks parked on the warehouse's other side. They are then driven to specific stores anywhere in a thousand-mile radius. Speed is at a premium. Homero Lovato, who served as a union monitor at the Wal-Mart demonstration, loads trucks in a nearby warehouse. Together with one other worker, he loads three, maybe four, trucks a day, making $42.50 per truckload. The work, he says, is a constant "rush job," with one worker scrambling to help the other should he fall behind. "If people have to go to the bathroom, they have to wait until the break," he says. "If people get sick, they have to stay on the job." The ways in which companies like Wal-Mart "sweat the assets" in distribution go well beyond such time-honored ploys as denying workers bathroom breaks. For one thing, Wal-Mart doesn't own many of its own distribution centers, particularly not the giant ones arrayed around Fontana. Neither do Target, Home Depot, Lowe's, or any of the mega-retailers who have flooded into the area. Instead, the warehouses are owned by commercial realtors who lease the facilities to warehouse-operating companies like Exel (a British firm) and Complete Logistics. It is these operating companies that actually run the warehouses and hire the full-time employees. By one recent estimate, however, 53,000 out of the just over 90,000 warehouse workers in the region are temps. Some of the temp agencies are mom-and-pop concerns, but a handful of big agencies, including Select and Staffmark, dominate the market. To run its warehouses in the Fontana area, Wal-Mart tends to rely on Exel, which in turn depends on Staffmark to provide temp workers. Wal-Mart thus avoids any responsibility for the conditions in the warehouses, but by numerous accounts, it takes a very hands-on role in ensuring that goods pass through the warehouses swiftly, efficiently, and at minimal cost. The savings from this system, which largely pass through the warehouses to the retail chains, are considerable. The area's unionized warehouse workers, chiefly Teamsters employed by UPS or in the cold storage facilities of local supermarket chains, earn about $20 an hour. Before the economy crashed last year, direct nonunion hires who worked in the region's Target distribution centers started at $12.80 an hour and could work their way up to $17 an hour, according to Edna Bonacich and Jake B. Wilson in their 2008 book Getting The Goods: Ports, Labor and the Logistics Revolution . Temps started at $8.50 an hour and could sometimes work their way to $12 an hour -- but that was before unemployment in the region soared to over 10 percent. For the past five years until January, Clarissa Lua and Blanca Cortes both worked at a warehouse of a nonunion UPS subsidiary -- and for a succession of temp agencies, even though their jobs at the warehouse didn't change. They were making roughly $9.50 an hour processing packages and affixing additional mail labels when necessary. The working conditions left a lot to be desired: When she was six months pregnant, Cortes fainted and fell in the summer heat. (Many of the warehouses lack heating and air conditioning, in a region where summer temperatures routinely rise above 100 degrees. "They wouldn't even buy us a fan," Cortes says.) Then on Jan. 20 they were laid off, replaced by workers to whom the temp agency was paying just $7 an hour. With unemployment rising and the warehouses scaling back, they have been unable to find work since. Bonacich and Wilson have documented a number of scams that some of the agencies use to reduce their financial obligations. Some workers, they report, have received two checks to cover the amount owed them: one a paycheck, the other a payment for the putative value of their "shares" in the company, on which the agencies contend they are not required to pay employment taxes, unemployment insurance, or workers' compensation contributions. Warehouse work wasn't always this desperate. "When I started, 15 years ago, I worked for the company [the supermarket chain Pick-n-Save] directly," Lovato says. "There were no temp agencies; the company hired you, put you on 90-day probation, and if you passed, you were a regular employee. But around eight or 10 years ago, they started moving to temp agencies. Now, they give you five-days-a-week work -- or less. You call every morning; they say, you have to come in today -- or, you have to wait." Olga Romero began working in warehouses decades ago in Los Angeles, where, she remembers, "the work was much better. There were no temp agencies then." But because of the high rates of gang-related violence in her neighborhood, she and her husband packed up their children and moved out to Fontana 15 years ago. In 2004, she stopped work to care for her husband, who'd had a brain aneurysm (he subsequently died). When she went back to work, she discovered she would have to find work through a temp agency. Lovato's and Romero's impressions of the descent of warehouse employment to low-paid temp work are confirmed by the data. According to a report on the area's logistics industry produced this February by Bonacich and Juan David de Lara, temporary employment in the region grew by a stunning 575 percent between 1990 and 2007. What changed warehousing in Southern California was the rise of China as global producer and America as global consumer and Wal-Mart as driver, shaper, and beneficiary of the change. It's not easy to find many beneficiaries of this change who actually live in Fontana. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, temp workers in the region make an average of $22,237 a year -- provided they work 40 hours a week, 50 weeks a year, which hardly any temp workers do. Since the warehouses generate no retail sales, the municipalities in the region don't collect much revenue -- a civic poverty to which the absence of sidewalks on many of the area's streets clearly attests. The private poverty is no less conspicuous. Some of the greatest concentrations of warehouse workers, says Change to Win's field organizing director, Manuel Roman, are found in trailer parks -- including the one through which we drove, where children played in the makeshift dirt streets. Now, with so many foreclosures in the area, Blanca Cortes says, families are doubling up, sharing their homes, apartments, and trailers with other families. The real-time public reaction to the union demonstration at the Wal-Mart warehouse gate was overwhelmingly positive. Honks of support issued forth from most of the non-Wal-Mart trucks that rumbled down San Bernardino Avenue. They mixed with the toots of support from the lonely train engine that plied the track encircling the vast, abandoned Kaiser Steel Mill that stretches for miles on the other side of the street. Plunked smack in the middle of Fontana's and Ontario's warehouses, the Kaiser Mill stands like some great ghost from an earlier era of American capitalism -- the era when America made its own goods and the world's as well, and when its workers were decently paid for their otherwise unrewarding jobs. One of the only two major mills located west of the Rockies, the factory was built in 1942 by Henry Kaiser to provide the steel for his San Francisco Bay shipyard that was turning out Liberty Ships at the rate of one a day; for the aircraft, tank, and truck factories that dotted the Pacific Coast; and for the postwar housing and office boom that was yet to come. Kaiser was widely regarded as Franklin Roosevelt's favorite capitalist. He thrived on government contract work, welcomed unions into his workplaces, instituted some of the first employment-based health benefits, constructed worker housing, and built a manufacturing and hospital (Kaiser Permanente) empire, some of which survives to this day. In the 1970s and early 1980s, however, the new owners and managers of the steel mill declined to invest in new technology, and the plant was shuttered in 1983. But during its heyday, the mill was celebrated for its labor-management relations, and its workers, as Fontana native Mike Davis recounts in his noir Los Angeles history City of Quartz , had the time and wherewithal to join (often company-sponsored) bowling, hunting, fishing, boxing, rock-climbing, auto-racing, tennis, and golf teams, not to mention the local drama club. The intergenerational downward mobility of the Fontana working class -- from a unionized, high-wage, permanent work force in an economy dominated by high-end manufacturing to a nonunion, low-wage, temporary one in an economy dominated by low-end retailing -- encapsulates the story of the American working class over the past 35 years. Now, amid some of the nation's highest rates of layoffs and foreclosures, "the crappy job system out here," in the words of Change to Win's campaign director, Nick Allen, "is coming apart." Whether the young union organizers can do what their Depression-era forebears did -- channel the anger of dispossessed workers into a groundswell of demands for a decent economic order, and that groundswell into a powerful union -- depends on a Congress that may yet reform labor law, on the unions funding and guiding the campaign, on the organizers themselves, and, as ever, on workers figuring the calculus between risk and hope and who may decide, as workers sometimes do, that they have precious little to lose. This is the first of two articles by Harold Meyerson on warehouse organizing; the second will appear in our October 2009 issue. Issue: The End of the War on Drugs Harold Meyerson Harold Meyerson is editor at large of The American Prospect. Read more by Harold Meyerson	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line691
__label__cc	0.716437	0.283563	Global Health Leadership Initiative Yale School of Public HealthHealth Policy & Management Collaboration of Health Care and Social Services May Decrease Medical Costs and Visits by Rosalind D'Eugenio Integrating social services with health care may improve health outcomes A Yale School of Public Health study finds that strengthening and better integrating social services with health care for people in need may improve health outcomes and reduce medical costs. The study—Patterns of Collaboration among Health Care and Social Services Providers in Communities with Lower Health Care Utilization and Costs— is published in the journal Health Services Research. The research team sought to understand how health care and social services providers coordinate their work in communities where there is relatively low health care use amongst older adults. To do this they compared U.S. communities that were performing very well or very poorly on key measures of avoidable health care utilization and costs for older adults. In the higher performing communities, health care and social service organizations regularly collaborated to identify problems affecting older adults in their areas and coordinated their activities–such as placing staff of social service agencies on site in hospitals. Lower performing communities, on the other hand, did not generally collaborate on substantive projects. “We found that organizations in higher performing communities regularly worked together to identify challenges faced by older adults in their areas and responded through collective action,” said Amanda Brewster, Ph.D., associate research scientist at the Yale School of Public Health and the study’s lead author. The team reviewed Hospital Service Areas (HSAs) across the United States and studied the best and worst performers in three areas: ambulatory care sensitive hospitalizations, all-cause risk-standardized readmission rates and average reimbursements per Medicare beneficiary. They selected 10 higher performing HSAs and six lower performing HSAs for inclusion in the study. To understand patterns of collaboration in each community, the Yale team conducted site visits and in-depth interviews with a total of 245 representatives of health care organizations, social service agencies, and local government bodies. Marie A. Brault Ph.D., Annabel X. Tan, M.P.H., Leslie A. Curry, Ph.D., of the Yale School of Public Health, and Elizabeth H. Bradley, Ph.D., former YSPH professor and current President of Vassar College, co-authored the study. Submitted by Elisabeth Reitman on October 06, 2017 Medicine in Politics Featured in this article Marie Brault, PhD Associate Research Scientist in Public Health (Social and Behavioral Sciences) Leslie Curry, PhD, MPH, BA Professor of Public Health (Health Policy) and Professor of Management; Lecturer, Yale College; Associate Director Yale Scholars in Implementation Science Training Program Patterns of Collaboration among HealthCare and Social Services Providers inCommunities with Lower Health CareUtilization and Costs	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line694
__label__wiki	0.526102	0.526102	Mortality following hip fracture: trends and geographical variations over the last 40 years Injury. 2008 Oct;39(10):1157-63. doi: 10.1016/j.injury.2008.03.022. Epub 2008 Jul 24. S Haleem 1 , L Lutchman, R Mayahi, J E Grice, M J Parker 1 Royal Sussex County Hospital, United Kingdom. dr_shahnawaz@yahoo.com DOI: 10.1016/j.injury.2008.03.022 Hip fractures are an ever increasing cause of morbidity and mortality. Treatment of this condition requires an all-encompassing approach from prevention to post-operative care. It is important in such a situation to gather data on the incidence and trends of hip fractures to aid in the future treatment planning of this important condition. A review of all articles published on the outcome after hip fracture over a four decade period (1959-1998) was undertaken to determine any changes that had occurred in the demographics of patients and mortality over this time period. The mean age of patients sustaining hip fractures was found to be steadily increasing over the study period at a rate of 1 year of age for every 5-year time period. The mean age in the 1960s was 73 years to a mean of 79 years in the 1990s. No notable differences were seen in the proportion of male patients over the years but a definite downward trend was noticed with regard to intracapsular fractures. The mortality at 6 and 12 months after injury remained essentially unchanged over the four decades reviewed. Mortality after a hip fracture remains significant, being 11-23% at 6 months and 22-29% at 1 year from injury. Geographical variations exist in the mortality after hip fracture. More detailed international comparisons are required to determine if these differences in outcome are accounted for by the variations in the demographics of patients or due to diversities in treatment methods. Hip Fractures / epidemiology Hip Fractures / mortality* Mortality / trends Sex Distribution	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line697
__label__wiki	0.552834	0.552834	On gender, diversity, and feminism Diversity in action Diversity in art About Raffia Raffia’s editorial board is looking for new members! The L-Word Raffia 14 December 2020 11 January 2021 Columns By Femke Boom I often find myself thinking about The L-Word, and I wonder how many LGBT+ people still remember this. I sometimes doubt the ‘younger’ people – although I am just about 28 myself – know about this one. The L-Word was a TV show that ran from 2004 until 2009, and it was about the LGBT+ community. It was (mostly) about lesbians to be precise. The L-Word is set in LA, right in the middle of the LGBT+ community. The L-Word shows topics like age difference in relationships, sexualisation of women and w/w relationships, gay marriage (unofficially, same-sex marriage is legal in California since 2015) and how a divorce worked for such a relationship, adoption and surrogacy, and so on. Most of the focus is on lesbian relationships, although one of the main characters, Alice, is bisexual. Alice’s sexuality was often a point of discussion in the show, as not everyone took her seriously; it led to the frequent comment “Why don’t you just choose a side”. Alice also had a theory that everyone was somehow connected through sexual / romantic relationships. She began a mind map, connecting her and all of her friends together via relationships they had with others (i.e. not actually with each other). It is famously referred to as ‘the Chart’ in The L-Word. Personally, I felt like the ‘bisexual-issue’ was never quite resolved as the same comment kept coming back until Alice ended up sticking to relationships with women. This TV show tackled taboos and stayed on-topic. It covered sexual harassment and abuse, partially through the character Jenny who had suffered much abuse through her young life. It showed the devastation of a loved one falling ill – someone in the show got breast cancer. This was especially well received by fans of The L-Word, as it is a disease that affects many and the portrayal of it in The L-Word was not romanticising cancer. This is something that tends to happen quite frequently in my opinion, like In a Walk to Remember or The Fault in Our Stars. In the later seasons of The L-Word a transgender character was introduced as well. This character was Max; he was first introduced as Jenny’s ‘butch girlfriend’ Moira, but as the story progressed, the more Max decided to show who he really identified as. It also showed Max getting hormone treatment and choosing his own perimeters regarding gender; he decided not to go for top surgery, and showed that one doesn’t necessarily have to fully transform physically to become themselves. Now why would I write about The L-Word? Part of it is nostalgia; it was one of the ways in which I discovered I identify as pansexual (bi at the time, as it is part of the same spectrum). It also reminds me of a talk I had with my mother about it because we watched this show together. She had a dear friend when she was young. They both studied medicine to become a nurse. Her friend, also a young woman, often struggled with drugs and relationships with men. She proposed to my mother to live together, just the two of them, for the rest of their lives (keep in mind, this was probably early 1970s). My mother, heterosexual and coming from a small village, refused. She told me that “I had no idea how that was supposed to work because we were both women; the idea of a same sex relationship had never even crossed my mind.”. When I came out as bi, her comment was “I think everyone is a little bi at heart”, so perhaps that is the real conclusion to that story. My other reason for writing about The L-Word is to show that this (albeit slightly older) TV show still has something to offer. I think many of its themes are relatable. It also got a sequel recently, although I admittedly do not know anything about it. For those who are interested, it is called The L-Word: Generation Q. As the theme song goes “Women who long, love lust. Women who live. This is the way, it’s the way that we live.” and I suppose that is what it is about. Amidst the glitz and glamour of LA, it boils down to the ordinary lives of the heroines… however ordinary that may be. The L-Word and its sequel The L Word: Generation Q (2019-) are both available on Videoland (NL). FemkeBoom, lesbian, review, television Previous Outgrowing Zwarte Piet – Turning a racist past into an inclusive future Next “How’s my favourite faggot doing?” Published by Raffia View all posts by Raffia Follow Raffia by email! Enter your email address to follow Raffia and to receive notifications of new articles by email. Would you like to be a part of a renowned magazine on gender, diversity & feminism? Radboud Gender & Diversity Studies’ Raffia magazine is looking for new members! See how you can apply.	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line699
__label__cc	0.58262	0.41738	PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION AND EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT William L Waugh Скачать презентацию PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION AND EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT William L Waugh e8e0ee62d42ffcacbc073b91ad154820.ppt PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION AND EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT William L. Waugh, Jr. , Ph. D Andrew Young School of Policy Studies Georgia State University Course Objectives Understand the course objectives Understand the course requirements Understand the course assignments Define emergency management and disaster as they are used in the field of emergency management Describe the historical evolution of emergency management as a function of government Describe the general relationship between emergency management and the professional field of public administration Describe the function of emergency managers in a complex federal system like the United States Scope Introduction of professor and students; review of course objectives and content; discussion of student assignments and course requirements (Objectives 1. 1– 1. 3). The historical evolution of emergency management as a function of government will be outlined and discussed. The relationship between the emergency management function in government and the professional field of public administration will be discussed in general terms, as a means of introducing students to some of the basic issues that will be addressed in depth later in the course (Objectives 1. 41. 7). Requirements Course syllabus Required readings for course: William L. Waugh, Jr. , and Kathleen Tierney, eds. , Emergency Management: Principles and Practice for Local Government (Washington, DC: International City/County Management Association, 2007). Nicholas Henry, Public Administration and Public Affairs, 11 th Edition (New York: Longman, 2010). Recommended resource: Claire B. Rubin and Associates, Disaster Time Line: Selected Milestone Events & U. S. Outcomes (1965 -2008) (Arlington, VA: Claire B. Rubin and Associates, 2009). SESSION 1 COURSE ORIENTATION AND INTRODUCTION Public Administration and Emergency Management Readings for Session 1: William L. Waugh, Jr. , “Local Emergency Management in the Post-9/11 World, ”pp. 3 -23 in Emergency Management: Principles and Practice for Local Government, 2 nd Edition, edited by William L. Waugh, Jr, . and Kathleen Tierney (Washington, DC: International City/County Management Association, 2007). Nicholas Henry, Chapters 1 -2, in Public Administration and Public Affairs, 11 th Edition (New York: Longman/Prentice-Hall, 2010). Introductions Explain why you are interested in emergency management as a professional field and as a research topic. Identify your specific research interests and your personal experience with emergency management research and disasters in general. Course objectives 1. Students will develop an understanding of the complexity of the American federal system and how it affects policy making, fiscal relations, and policy management. 2. Students will develop an understanding of the complexity of government programs in terms of the participation of agencies and actors from all three levels of government, the nonprofit sector, and the private sector. 3. Students will develop an understanding of bureaucratic politics and how politics affects policy design, decision making, program implementation, and administration. 4. Students will develop an understanding of the current debate over the role of government in American society and the importance of individual responsibility. 5. Students will develop an understanding of the administrative processes involved in managing major environmental hazards and disasters. Additional Objectives Students will understand the concept of “all-hazards” emergency management and the difference between “emergencies” and “disasters. ” Students will understand the intergovernmental system in terms of fiscal relations and program administration. Students will understand the importance of local government agencies and officials as “first responders” to disaster. Students will be able to identify the major administrative and political issues that may arise in a major disaster. Students will understand the process and impact of the professionalization of emergency management. Additional Objectives Students will understand the major issues concerning the potential liability of local officials for failing to prepare for or respond to a disaster adequately. Students will understand at least some of the major issues involved in managing response and recovery to a major disaster. Students will understand the relationship between policy making and policy implementation. Students will understand the impact of new technologies on emergency management. Students will understand the motivations and needs of individuals involved in disaster operations. Students will understand the conflicts among individuals, groups, and organizations involved in disaster operations. Emphases Students will gain a broad understanding of the policy making, policy implementation, and program administration processes in the American federal system. Students will gain a broad understanding of the relationships among the public, nonprofit, and for-profit sectors in American society. Students will develop problem-solving skills in the analysis of disaster events. Students will develop a better understanding of the role of government in American society and how government officials relate to their constituents. Students will learn how to analyze policy problems and formulate solutions. Student Evaluation Take-home mid-term examination: 30% Disaster case analysis: 10% Disaster organization analysis: 10% Disaster-policy position paper: 10% Final examination: 30% Class participation: 10% (participation includes the quality of student contributions to class discussions, as well as attendance, and the presentation of research papers). Disaster Case Analyses Each student will select a major U. S. or international disaster and prepare a written analysis not to exceed 12 double-spaced, typed pages, including bibliography. The analyses should include a brief (1 -2 page) description of the disaster and the emergency management effort; the nature of the disaster (i. e. , natural or technological/man-made); the number of human casualties and amount of property loss; the government(s) having jurisdictional responsibility and involved in the disaster response and recovery effort; the involvement of nonprofit and for-profit actors in the response and recovery effort; the major policy issues raised—e. g. , lack of mitigation effort, inadequacy of preparedness, response failure, recovery problems; and what disaster planning the community had done prior to the incident. Professor approval of topics is required. Organizational Case Analyses Each student will select a government, nonprofit, or for-profit organization involved in disaster mitigation, preparedness, response, and/or recovery and prepare a written analysis not to exceed 12 doublespaced, typed pages in length. The analyses should include The overall mission of the organization; The nature and extent of the organization’s involvement in recent disasters; How the organization fits into the regional and national emergency management systems; The sources of the organization’s funding; An evaluation of the historical preparedness, mitigation, response, and recovery roles of the organization; and An assessment of possible relationships between how the organization’s activities are funded and the roles it serves or policy positions it takes. Professor approval of topics is required. Disaster Policy Position Papers Each student will select a significant policy issue in emergency management, such as risk communication, disaster insurance, or evacuation of special populations, and prepare a position paper not to exceed 12 doublespaced, typed pages in length. The position paper must include A concise description of the policy issue (no more than two pages in length); An overview of the policy debate, including the major actors and their positions on the issue and/or the technical issues involved; A statement concerning the significance of the issue for emergency managers and/or the public; and The student’s own position on the issue specifying why he or she supports that position. Professor approval of topics is required. Emergency managers in a complex federal system Complex societies have competing social, political, and economic priorities. Deciding which priorities should be addressed first is often an intensely contentious process. In some measure, the policy choices are determined by the structures of government. When the United States government was created, the big priorities were foreign policy, national defense, the national economy, and the judiciary. These were the first four departments created in the federal government. Donald Kettl (2007) has suggested that, after over two centuries, the federal government might need to be restructured to fit the problems of today. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) was created in 2003 following the attacks on the World Trade Center towers and the Pentagon on September 11, 2001. The Department of Homeland Security competes with other departments and agencies for financial, human, and material resources. The Federal Emergency Management Agency, a unit within DHS, competes for resources with other units within the department. In the case of emergency management, there has been considerable frustration over the national focus on preventing terrorist attacks and the local need to focus on the more common natural and technological disasters, such as hurricanes, earthquakes, floods, and fires. Emergency Management Today The Katrina disaster in 2005 demonstrated the need to focus federal, state, and local attention on the threats posed by natural disasters, such as hurricanes, earthquakes, floods, and wildfires. There is growing evidence of the increasing vulnerability of American communities to natural and technological hazards. For example, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, more than 50 percent of the American population lives within 50 miles of the coast and 75 percent will live within 50 miles by the year 2025. Vulnerability to coastal flooding, high winds, and other storm-related damage will put more people and property at risk (Crossett et al. , 2004). Sea level rise and changes in weather patterns associated with climate change will further increase vulnerability to coastal storms and floods. Climate change will also have impacts upon agriculture and, thereby, will affect food supplies, Climate change may increase the likelihood of tropical diseases, as well. Emergency Management Today Mitigation, reducing risks to communities and preventing disasters when possible, is a complicated process because land-use regulation is a state function with responsibility sometimes delegated to local governments. Decisions affecting local development are very contentious because local governments wish the tax revenues that new development brings, developers wish the profits, and property buyers may choose to live in hazardous areas that are prone to flooding, earthquakes, hurricanes, landslides, and other risks. The property in hazardous areas, like floodplains, may also be relatively cheap because of the risk and, therefore, it may be developed for lowincome housing. Mitigation was the focus on the Federal Emergency Management Agency from 1993 to 2001. Obama Administration officials have been encouraged to again focus on mitigation and to address the needs of America’s most vulnerable populations. Emergency Management Today The Katrina disaster demonstrated the necessity to provide assistance to the poor, the elderly, children, and people with chronic conditions like heart disease and diabetes. The Katrina disaster also demonstrated the necessity to develop strong emergency management capabilities well before disaster strikes, rather than waiting until the disaster has begun. Collaboration and cooperation are the new approaches to dealing with problems. Collaboration and cooperation are essential in a complex political and social system in which authority is shared and essential resources are dispersed among public, private, and nonprofit organizations, as well as among individuals. The first “first responders” to disaster are family members, friends, and neighbors. The capacities of individuals, families, and the community to deal with disaster are critical. Emergency Management Today The local emergency management system includes individuals, families, community organizations, and the emergency response agencies such as the fire department, police department, and emergency medical services. Sharing resources among families and communities provides essential surge capacity to deal with the disasters that overwhelm communities. More and more attention is being paid to the need to (1) increase local capacities to manage known hazards and to deal with the disasters that do occur and (2) build a national system that can respond to catastrophic disasters when the capabilities of local agencies and even state agencies are overwhelmed. Terrorists also pose threats to the nation’s critical infrastructure and to special events. Banks, bridges, communications networks, and the power grid, for example, may be targeted. Sporting events, museums, political conventions, and other high-profile events may also be targeted. Emergency Management Today Americans often exhibit great distrust, even hostility, toward regulatory efforts, even when those efforts are deemed necessary to prevent loss of life and/or property. The politics of hazard reduction can be intense and the debates raise basic questions about the role of government in American society and conflicts between individual rights and community needs. The politics of emergency management raises fundamental issues in American society concerning individual and societal responsibilities for managing risk and the distribution of responsibility among federal, state, and local governments and individuals (businesses and persons). Emergency management policies and programs also should reflect the state of scientific knowledge about environmental hazards and human behavior. Emergency Management Today Emergency management is a rich field that brings together researchers in disciplines as disparate as social psychology and geophysics, policymakers in agencies as diverse as the U. S. Department of Defense and Catholic Relief, and practitioners in professions as different as geology and mental health. The effective implementation and administration of emergency management programs is a critical role of government and cannot be accomplished without the involvement of nonprofit organizations, private firms, and individual volunteers. Emergency Management Today Certainly the Katrina disaster demonstrated in 2005 the importance of emergency management capabilities at the local, state, and federal levels. There were dire political costs for officials who failed to prepare adequately for the disaster. Governor Blanco of Louisiana chose not to run for a second term after Katrina. Michael Brown, the FEMA administrator, was forced to resign during the disaster response. President George W. Bush and Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff were heavily criticized for the poor federal response (Waugh, 2006). But, New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin was reelected despite criticism of his performance during the disaster. The lesson was clear for public officials that the national emergency management system had to be fixed and there might be serious repercussions if they did not do it quickly (Waugh, 2006). Student Exercise Visit an emergency management agency in the community and report on the agency size (e. g. , number of personnel and size of budget), the location of its emergency operations center, the emergency operations plan and when it was last updated, and the agency’s history. 1. Do they have the resources to address hazards in the community and to deal with disasters that might occur? 2. How well trained in emergency management do the personnel appear to be? 3. Are any of the personnel Certified Emergency Managers (CEMs)? 4. Does the agency work closely with any nongovernmental organizations and/or private firms? Questions 1. Should people be permitted to build homes or businesses in hazardous areas such as on floodplains that have frequent flooding, exposed beach areas that may suffer frequent flooding during hurricanes and lessor storms, or areas prone to wildfires or mudslides? 2. Should governments be responsible for helping people recover from disaster when they have knowingly put themselves in danger? 3. How important is emergency management relative to economic and other problems today? How important is homeland security relative to other problems today? 4. Should public officials be held legally liable for failing to prepare their communities reasonably for disaster? Emergency management and disaster “Emergency management is the managerial function charged with creating the framework within which communities reduce vulnerability to hazards and cope with disasters. ” [This definition is from “The Principles of Emergency Management. ”] Emergency management may involve actions made by public, nonprofit, and private organizations; communities or collectives; and individuals. Increasingly, emergency management involves quantitative and qualitative analysis, formal planning, structured decision making, and the application of state-of-the-art information technologies to assure effective communication, decision making, and record-keeping. Emergency management agencies normally do not have a direct role in emergencies that may be dealt with by one of the community’s emergency response or public safety agencies or when one agency has a clear lead role in the emergency response, although emergency management agencies may assist in securing resources and may provide other support. Emergency Management and Disaster Emergency management agencies do have a direct role in disasters or large emergencies that require an action to coordinate the efforts of two or more governments or many agencies within the same government. “Disasters” are any events or conditions that cause significant property damage and/or injury to or death of people. Disasters may also be events or conditions that cause significant damage to the environment with or without harming people or their property. In emergency management terms, disasters are those events or conditions that cause enough property damage to necessitate assistance from government agencies and other nonprofit agencies in order for individuals, families, communities, or businesses to recover economically; enough psychological and social disruption to necessitate assistance from government and other nonprofit agencies; and/or sufficient numbers of injuries or deaths to require an extraordinary response. Emergency Management and Disasters According to the Stafford Act, “Major disaster means any natural catastrophe (including any hurricane, tornado, storm, high water, wind-driven water, tidal wave, tsunami, earthquake, volcanic eruption, landslide, mudslide, snowstorm, or drought), or, regardless of cause, any fire, flood, or explosion, in any part of the United States, which in the determination of the President causes damage of sufficient severity and magnitude to warrant major disaster assistance under this chapter to supplement the efforts and available resources of States, local governments, and disaster relief organizations in alleviating the damage, loss, hardship, or suffering caused thereby” (emphasis added). Emergency Management and Disasters Since the Hurricane Katrina disaster in 2005, FEMA and other agencies have been developing plans to deal with “catastrophic disasters” which overwhelm the capacities of state and local governments. Because state and local governments generally have primary responsibility in a natural or technological disaster, there are concerns that they may not be able to respond effectively and provisions may be needed to expedite federal assistance. Following 9/11, federal officials developed plans to take the lead role in “incidents of national significance” but, even in the Katrina disaster, state authority was not preempted. [This issue will be discussed in depth in a later session. ] Natural and Man-Made Disasters A natural hazard is an environmental risk that exists in nature, independent of human actions or activity. The level of risk to human life and/or property may be increased by the actions of individuals or communities. Natural hazards include major geophysical, meteorological, and biological hazards. A technological or man-made hazard is an environmental risk that is purposely or accidentally created by human activity, including failures of technology; accidents in the operation of technologies; failures to store, transport, or use hazardous materials properly; and intentional threats to human life and/or property. Natural and Technological Disasters Natural hazards often pose risks to human life and property because people choose to live near the hazards and/or to disregard the dangers that they present. The distinction between natural and technological or man-made hazards can be ambiguous given that many “natural” hazards pose little danger to human lives and property unless people fail to understand or heed the danger and remove themselves from harm’s way. Hazards may also be both natural and man-made. Droughts, for example, may be due to low rainfall and to man’s overuse of underground water reservoirs. Aquifers may be depleted by irrigation and other human activities, in other words, and not sufficiently replenished by rainfall or snowmelt. Major natural hazards (or disasters) Seismic hazards/earthquakes Hurricanes/tropical storms Volcanic hazards Floods Tornadoes and windstorms Tsunamis Sinkholes Avalanches Meteorite and asteroid strikes Droughts Epidemics (diseases) Landslides and mudslides Wildfires Winter storms, including ice storms Major technological or man-made hazards (or disasters) Structural failures (e. g. , building, dam, and bridge collapses) Nuclear facility accidents/failures Hazardous materials accidents/Spills—fixed facility Hazardous materials accidents/Spills—transportation Rail and other ground transportation accidents Shipwrecks and accidents at sea Power failure Aircraft crashes Radiological incident—fixed facility War/Nuclear attack Terrorism Civil disorder/Riot Telecommunications failure Questions 1. What kinds of natural disasters are common to your state or region and which poses the greatest threat to life and property? 2. Would you expect there to be a difference between how people react to natural disasters (“acts of God or nature”) and how they react to man-made disasters? Would you expect a difference in how they react to accidents, such as an air crash, and how they react to intentional disasters, such as the bombing of the Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City in 1995? 3. If people choose to live near or even on the slopes of a volcano, is the volcano a natural hazard or a man-made hazard? 4. What should be the role of the federal government in catastrophic disasters? Under what conditions should federal officials assume the leadership role in disaster operations? [This is a question that will be revisited several times in this course. ] Evolution of emergency management as a function of government Stages in the Historical Development of Emergency Management While emergency management is a relatively new field and profession, it is a function that is as old as government itself. Early in human history, hazards and disasters were handled by communities as a whole. One of the primary reasons for families to gather into communities was to provide assistance to one another when disasters struck, as well as to reduce the hazards posed by hostile men and beasts. Over the centuries, most societies developed procedures for responding to disasters, although initially the responses generally were ad hoc and voluntary. Churches, civic organizations, social clubs, trade unions, and other groups often assumed responsibility for disaster response. Stages in the Development of Emergency Management Floods and fires were the most common disasters and communities were generally forced to take care of themselves without support from regional and national authorities. Communities that were poor, with populations lacking sufficient education and other social resources, were ill-equipped to prevent or reduce property losses and human casualties. Some communities suffered frequent devastating disasters and their residents were unable to protect themselves. Today, communities still rely on support from family, friends, and neighbors, rather than government agencies, when minor disasters occur. But larger and increasingly complex disasters require the technical capabilities and the administrative and financial capacities of government agencies. The idea of managing environmental hazards likely evolved from the experience of dealing with common threats such as flooding. Stages in the Development of Emergency Management As communities clustered along waterways to take advantage of fertile farmlands and transportation links, dams, levees, and other barriers were constructed to protect the members of the community and their property. As communities got larger and wooden structures were built closer together, the risk and potential costs of fire increased. During the 18 th and early 19 th centuries, often in the immediate aftermath of a major fire, it became increasingly common for officials to issue orders requiring residents to build with brick or stone, rather than wood, to lessen the likelihood of catastrophic fires. Stages in the Development of Emergency Management As structures were built larger and taller, the danger increased. Hotels, theaters, hospitals, stores, factories, and schools were particularly vulnerable to fire, and they put large numbers of occupants at risk. During the 1800 s, for example, there were major fires in New York City, Canton (China), Chicago, St. John (Nova Scotia, Canada), New Brunswick (Nova Scotia, Canada), Vienna (Austria), Paris (France), and Exeter (England). Hundreds died in the fires and, in some cases, thousands of buildings were destroyed. The Great Chicago Fire and the fire that followed the Great Earthquake of 1906 in San Francisco have become legendary events in U. S. history and have encouraged the regulation of building standards and the professionalization of firefighters. Stages in the Development of Emergency Management Similarly, concerns about public health increased as cities grew. The potential for diseases to spread rapidly among urban residents presented special problems. Pestilence associated with war and diseases commonly carried by troops became even more hazardous as the size and mobility of armies grew. Frequent outbreaks of smallpox, cholera, yellow fever, and other diseases served to increase concern. Cities like Memphis, Tennessee, were plagued by yellow fever. Major outbreaks of influenza killed thousands in the U. S. and still pose significant health risks for the very young and the elderly. Public health regulations, particularly relating to clean water supplies and sewage treatment, have greatly reduced the risk of the more common health risks. Medical advances have virtually wiped out some threats, such as small pox, but other threats remain. Stages in the Development of Emergency Management Meanwhile, the potential for natural and technological disasters is growing due to increased population—particularly in more hazardous coastal areas and along waterways—and increased reliance upon technology. Society is more complex and more fragile, and disasters have greater effect. Government capacities have expanded in response to the increased risk of disaster and the resources of government agencies have been brought to bear to reduce the risk, prepare for possible disasters, address the effects of disasters that do occur, and help communities recover. Stages in the Development of Emergency Management In summary, the evolution of emergency management has been characterized by the development of communities to reduce risk from natural and man-made hazards, including war and other forms of violent conflict; application of known techniques and practices, such as levee-building, to reduce risk; development of ad hoc and voluntary associations, such as volunteer fire brigades, to deal with hazards and to respond to disasters; increased government role in regulating risky behavior, such as establishing standards for building materials and designs; increasing professionalization of disaster responders; increasing scientific knowledge about cause-effect relationships—i. e. , what causes disasters and how they may be prevented or reduced; increasing prohibitions against building in hazardous areas and public buyouts of hazardous property to prevent private development; and increasing development of legislation that promotes effective hazard reduction, preparedness, response, and recovery initiatives. Class Exercise: (20 minutes) The chapter by Elaine Enarson in Emergency Management: Principles and Practice for Local Government (2007) on “Identifying and Addressing Social Vulnerabilities, ” discusses the concept of social vulnerability and describes approaches to reducing vulnerabilities. Vulnerabilities exist prior to disaster and disaster operations generally focus only on needs and conditions that are created by the disaster (p. 259). A list of vulnerable groups is provided on page 261 and a selected list follows below. How is each group is more vulnerable than the general population when a disaster occurs and what can be done to reduce their vulnerability. Selected Vulnerability Indicators for U. S. Households, 2006 Population groups as percentage of the U. S. Population Senior Population, 65 and older 12% Children under 5 7% Foreign born 13% Speaks language other than English at home 20% Disabled population 15% Children with all parents in labor force (working) 70% Female household with children under 18 11% Individuals below poverty line 13% Questions 1. Does your community have a volunteer fire department or any other volunteer organizations and what problems would you anticipate in recruiting, training, and maintaining an adequate volunteer force? 2. What kinds of community organizations in your town or county respond to disasters and assist victims of small fires, floods, and other kinds of relatively minor disasters that may affect one or a few homes or businesses? 3. Does your community have an emergency management office and one or more full-time, paid emergency managers? 4. Does your community have a building code? Was it adopted locally or mandated by the state? Is the code one of the nationally recognized building standards? (If you decide to build a garage or a pool or an addition to your home, do you have to get approval from the city or county government and will they inspect the new construction? ) 5. To what extent should local officials regulate building, land-use, development, and other activities that may cause hazards and/or increase risk to other members of the community? Emergency management and public administration Public administration in the United States has evolved since the founding of the nation. The institutions of government have become more and more bureaucratized as staff has been added to the Congress, the executive, and the judiciary. In large measure, the bureaucratization of government institutions has been a reflection of the emphases placed upon accountability and professional administration, as well as the expansion of government functions and programs. The major change in recent decades has been the increased reliance upon nongovernmental actors in the delivery of public services. Many public services today are delivered by private firms and/or nonprofit organizations, rather than by public agencies. Emergency management and public administration Cooperation and collaboration among the many stakeholders who might be involved in any program, from health care administration to emergency management, is essential. Consequently, the ability to collaborate is a critical skill-set for professionals in the field. Governance is not a vertical or top-down process. It is a horizontal process requiring open communication and the sharing of information. American emergency managers also work in an environment in which government is largely distrusted by the population, although people generally do not distrust the public officials with whom they have interacted (Henry, 2010: 11). Emergency management and public administration While the image of public administrators or bureaucrats is very negative, polls have shown that the public has an increasingly favorable opinion of government workers (Henry, 2010). Because of the expansion of government programs, public administrators have discretionary authority and, thereby, have political power. They interpret law and make policy decisions. They spend public money. To be effective, public administrators must understand that they are accountable to the public. The administrative environment within which emergency manager work is highly competitive in terms of securing increasingly scarce resources, particularly financial and human resources. Budgets have been shrinking and services are being cut. Support for new programs is very limited. Emergency management and public administration Agencies compete for budgets and struggle to protect their “turf” (i. e. , their missions). It is not enough to have an important mission. One has to find allies and to cultivate relationships with elected officials, other agencies, and the public. Hence emergency managers have to make the case that their mission is very important and deserving of scarce public money while other public administrators are trying to make the case for their own programs and agencies. The profession of emergency management has evolved as the threats to human society have grown and the capacities of voluntary and other nongovernmental agencies have proven inadequate to respond to catastrophic disasters. Emergency management and public administration When the potential for casualties and property damage surpasses the capacities of community groups, more technically trained and experienced responders are required. Trained responders may be found in public safety and emergency response agencies, disaster relief organizations, private firms dealing with disasters and related phenomena, and even among individual volunteers to offer their services during disaster. Typically, communities develop specialized offices to handle such problems, albeit often without standard criteria for the education and training of the officers or responders. Initially, positions tend to be filled through election or appointment without specifying minimum education and experience requirements. Emergency management and public administration Public-private cooperation and the privatization of some emergency management functions will be topics of discussion in later sessions of this guide. What is important to note at this juncture is that more and more government programs, such as disaster operations, involve private firms, nonprofit organizations, other nongovernmental organizations (such as ad hoc volunteer groups), and individual volunteers, as well as public agencies. As a consequence, the field of public administration includes nonprofit organizations, as well as public organizations, and the focus is on governance, rather than simply government (Henry, 2010). Emergency management and public administration As risk increases or communities experience poor disaster responses, there is greater demand for professionally trained responders, whether the community employs volunteer or full-time, paid responders. As risk further increases and budgets expand, there is greater demand for full-time, paid fire departments, emergency medical services, and other emergency response agencies. To deal with major disasters, however, communities still require the integration of public, nonprofit, and private resources. Emergency management and public administration The professionalization of emergency management is a response to the need for more collaborative, integrated disaster operations. Emergency managers have to be able to integrate the technical skills and operations of the first responders (i. e. , firefighters, police, emergency medical personnel, etc. ). Increasingly, local government officials are finding themselves legally liable for poor performance during emergencies and therefore feel compelled to seek out competent administrators to assume responsibility for emergency management and related functions. First, however, local officials have to understand what kinds of skills and competencies are required. Emergency management and public administration The professionalization process begins with the definition of job duties and responsibilities, the identification of appropriate educational and training requirements, the determination of necessary work experience, the setting of performance standards, and the development of a code of ethics. Professional organizations, such as the National Emergency Management Association (NEMA), which largely represents state-level emergency managers, and the International Association of Emergency Managers (IAEM), which largely represents local emergency managers, develop standards and encourage the adoption of professional credentialing programs. Emergency management and public administration The Certified Emergency Manager (CEM) program is just such a program. It is administered by IAEM and requires years of practical disaster experience, emergency management training, and general management training (see the session on professionalization for more information on the CEM program). Certified emergency managers are replacing politically appointed emergency management personnel and, increasingly, are developing and encouraging the adoption of professional credentials. The Association of State Flood Plain Managers (ASFPM) has also created a professional certification program for flood plain managers. Emergency management and public administration The National Fire Protection Association’s NFPA 1600 standard has been accepted as the standard for private sector business continuity and emergency management programs. The Emergency Management Accreditation Program (EMAP) Standard has been accepted as the benchmark for public emergency management programs and EMAP is currently accrediting state and local emergency management programs. Increased professionalization also encourages the development of state and regional associations of emergency managers and other disaster professionals. State and regional associations provide forums for professional interaction, encourage training and education, and support emergency management programs. Emergency management and public administration The professionalization process should eventually result in strict standards for all seeking employment in the field and requirements that emergency managers update their skills and competencies through continuing education and training programs. National standards may evolve into international standards and professional organizations will become strong advocates for even stricter education and training requirements. Emergency management is still an emerging profession and the common body of knowledge for professionals in the field and the necessary skill-set are still being defined. Emergency management and public administration Increasing risk or a major catastrophe also can encourage efforts to manage hazards. Scientific knowledge relating to cause-effect relationships, as well as historical experience, may offer ways to reduce risks. Levees and dams for flood control and fire walls to contain building fires are common structural mitigation techniques. Some techniques are less commonly recognized and are not as widely accepted. Indeed, sometimes science offers little guidance for reducing hazards and the best strategy may be simply to avoid high-risk areas, such as barrier islands or floodplains. Emergency management and public administration Land-use regulation and building codes are common nonstructural techniques for reducing risk, and they are generally local government responsibilities in the U. S. However, such hazard reduction techniques are often in conflict with the preferences of homeowners, developers, businesspersons, and others and often (but not always) entail some increased cost for building or some loss of value for particular properties in the hazard area. The Professionalization of Emergency Management Building emergency management capabilities also means recruiting, selecting, and supporting professional emergency managers. Emergency management is a specialized occupation that requires familiarity with collective behavior in disasters, the nature of natural and other kinds of hazards, and techniques for managing hazards and disasters. The top national credential for profession emergency managers is the Certified Emergency Manager (CEM) designation. To be certified, applicants must have: Three years of emergency management experience, including participation in a full-scale exercise or actual disaster; Three professional references; The Professionalization of Emergency Management A baccalaureate degree (applicants can substitute two years of experience for 30 semester hours of credit until 2010); One hundred hours of emergency management education or training and one hundred hours of general management training with, in both case, no more than 25 hours accepted in any one topic area; At least six contributions to the profession in areas such as public speaking, teaching workshops or courses, publications, volunteer activities, awards, and special assignments; A management essay that demonstrates knowledge of comprehensive emergency management; and, An examination that demonstrates command of the common body of knowledge for emergency managers. The Professionalization of Emergency Management Emergency management is very different from firefighting, law enforcement, and other professions and knowledge of how people and communities behave in disasters, emergency planning techniques, and the kinds of disasters that might occur is essential. One of the major frustrations of professional emergency managers during the Katrina disaster was that decisions made by officials at all levels too often were based upon common misconceptions about disaster behavior and conditions. Officials did not understand the function of emergency management. As a result of those failures to understand what it is that emergency managers do and the common problems that arise in disasters, a working group was assembled in 2007 to develop a definition, mission statement, and vision for emergency management and to identify the basic principles that underlie the practice of emergency management. The Professionalization of Emergency Management The working group included representatives from the International Association of Emergency Managers (primarily local emergency managers), the National Emergency Management Association (primarily state-level emergency managers), the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Emergency Management Accreditation Program (EMAP) Commission (a standardsetting and accrediting body for state and local emergency management agencies), the National Fire Protection Association’s NFPA 1600 Committee (the standard-setting body for private emergency management programs), and the academic community. The group defined “emergency management” in these terms: “Emergency management is the managerial function charged with creating the framework within which communities reduce vulnerability to hazards and cope with disasters. ” The Professionalization of Emergency Management Emergency managers are not responsible for putting out fires, rescuing people or pets, running emergency shelters, and running other disaster operations, although circumstances may require that they take a direct role in such operations. Emergency managers manage hazards and coordinate the disaster operations. They help emergency responders by taking a lead role in emergency planning, securing needed resources, managing the emergency operations center (EOC), and providing support for all stakeholders involved in the operations. The Professionalization of Emergency Management The mission of emergency management was described in these terms: To protect communities by coordinating and integrating all activities necessary to build, sustain, and improve the capability to mitigate against, prepare for, respond to, and recover from threatened or actual disasters, acts of terrorism, or other man-made disaster. The vision was defined as: Safer, less vulnerable communities with the capacity to cope with hazards and disasters. The Professionalization of Emergency Management The eight “Principles of Emergency Management” are: Comprehensive Progressive Risk-Driven Collaborative Integrated Coordinated Flexible Professional [The principles are described in Chapter 1 of Emergency Management: Principles and Practice for Local Government ] The Professionalization of Emergency Management The professionalization of emergency management has evolved considerably since the civil defense days after World War II and through the 1950 s. The focus has broadened from nuclear war to natural and technological hazards and disasters and now includes acts of terrorism. There is a common body of knowledge, specialized management techniques and other essential skills, and a distinct culture. These will be discussed in the sessions that follow. Students of emergency management have increasing numbers of options to acquire the necessary knowledge, skills, and abilities to become professional emergency managers. The Professionalization of Emergency Management FEMA’s Higher Education Project has provided leadership in that educational process. There are now over 140 emergency management programs, ranging from certificate programs to doctoral programs. In 2006, there were also programs offering certificates, degrees, and/or courses in homeland security, humanitarian assistance, and public health and disasters. Discussion Questions 1. The “cavalry” role of government with agencies responding in the aftermath of disaster is reactive, rather than proactive. How can emergency management agencies be more proactive? 2. What kinds of capacity building are necessary for communities to manage environmental and technological hazards adequately? 3. Preparing vulnerable populations to deal with disasters is one of the biggest challenges for emergency managers today. What role should emergency managers play in developing programs for the elderly, the poor, children, and other vulnerable groups? 4. How important is it that communities hire professional emergency managers to address risks to their residents and the environment? [Why might communities choose to hire nonprofessionals despite the risks to life and property? ] 5. How do the “Principles of Emergency Management” reflect the complex legal and political environment in which emergency managers work? 6. How might the “Principles of Emergency Management” affect the organization of emergency management offices, how emergency managers work with other public officials, and the relationship between emergency managers and the public at large? English Vocabulary and a Guide to Its Learning Презентация management-РХТУ Презентация lec2Perspectives on managing London Museums. British Museum. British Museum. 04: 24 04: 24 1 Комп’ютерна графіка	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line700
__label__wiki	0.536698	0.536698	Australasian Accounting, Business and Finance Journal Home > bal > AABFJ > Vol. 14 (2020) > Iss. 5 Macroeconomic Determinants of Financial Distress in Turkey: An Econometric Analysis Arslan Ece, Mechanical and Chemical Industries Company, Ankara TurkeyFollow Güven Sayılgan, Ankara University, Ankara, Turkey The purpose of this paper is to investigate the possible links between macroeconomic factors and financial distress in Turkey. Based on the 2009/1-2016/2 quarterly data of macroeconomic factors and the number of filings for bankruptcy postponement, econometric models are developed using forward stepwise regression and classical regression methods to determine the factors influencing financial distress. A vector error correction model is also developed using macroeconomic factors found significant in both methods to investigate the interactions of financial distress with them. In the stepwise regression implementation, performed with 16 independent variables, statistically significant variables entered into the model are industrial production index with negative sign as expected and the unemployment rate with negative sign against the expectations. In the classical regression implementation, performed with 7 independent variables, statistically significant variables are ex ante real interest rate with positive sign and gross domestic product with negative sign as expected and money supply with negative sign against the expectations. The impulse response graphics of a vector error correction model involving bankruptcy postponement, industrial production index and nominal interest rate indicates that bankruptcy postponement is influenced by the shocks both in itself and in industrial production index. This is the first study in Turkey investigates macroeconomic determinants of financial distress. Ece, Arslan and Sayılgan, Güven, Macroeconomic Determinants of Financial Distress in Turkey: An Econometric Analysis, Australasian Accounting, Business and Finance Journal, 14(5), 2020, 86-107. doi:10.14453/aabfj.v14i5.6 http://dx.doi.org/10.14453/aabfj.v14i5.6 Journal Impact and Download Figures Special Issue from the Environmental Social & Governance for Sustainability Colloquium Special issue from the 2nd Annual International Conference on Business and Public Administration (AICoBPA) 2019 Advancing Business and Public Administration in The Age of Innovation: Priorities, Risk and Opportunities Women in Business in India The Impact of Regulations and Technology on the Business Environment in India All Issues Vol. 14, Iss. 5 Vol. 14, Iss. 4 Vol. 14, Iss. 3 Vol. 14, Iss. 2 Vol. 14, Iss. 1 Vol. 13, Iss. 4 Vol. 13, Iss. 3 Vol. 13, Iss. 2 Vol. 13, Iss. 1 Vol. 12, Iss. 4 Vol. 12, Iss. 3 Vol. 12, Iss. 2 Vol. 12, Iss. 1 Vol. 11, Iss. 4 Vol. 11, Iss. 3 Vol. 11, Iss. 2 Vol. 11, Iss. 1 Vol. 10, Iss. 4 Vol. 10, Iss. 3 Vol. 10, Iss. 2 Vol. 10, Iss. 1 Vol. 9, Iss. 4 Vol. 9, Iss. 3 Vol. 9, Iss. 2 Vol. 9, Iss. 1 Vol. 8, Iss. 5 Vol. 8, Iss. 4 Vol. 8, Iss. 3 Vol. 8, Iss. 2 Vol. 8, Iss. 1 Vol. 7, Iss. 4 Vol. 7, Iss. 3 Vol. 7, Iss. 2 Vol. 7, Iss. 1 Vol. 6, Iss. 5 Vol. 6, Iss. 4 Vol. 6, Iss. 3 Vol. 6, Iss. 2 Vol. 6, Iss. 1 Vol. 5, Iss. 4 Vol. 5, Iss. 3 Vol. 5, Iss. 2 Vol. 5, Iss. 1 Vol. 4, Iss. 4 Vol. 4, Iss. 3 Vol. 4, Iss. 2 Vol. 4, Iss. 1 Vol. 3, Iss. 4 Vol. 3, Iss. 3 Vol. 3, Iss. 2 Vol. 3, Iss. 1 Vol. 2, Iss. 4 Vol. 2, Iss. 3 Vol. 2, Iss. 2 Vol. 2, Iss. 1 Vol. 1, Iss. 4 Vol. 1, Iss. 3 Vol. 1, Iss. 2 Vol. 1, Iss. 1	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line706
__label__cc	0.673861	0.326139	Application of the Fair Labor Standards Act to Domestic Service; Announcement of Time-Limited Non-Enforcement Policy The Department of Labor's (Department) October 1, 2013, Final Rule amending regulations regarding domestic service employment, which extends Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) protections to most home care workers will become effective on January 1, 2015. The Department is not changing this effective date. This document announces a time-limited non-enforcement policy. For six months, from January 1, 2015 to June 30, 2015, the Department will not bring enforcement actions against any employer as to violations of FLSA obligations resulting from the amended regulations. For the following six months, from July 1, 2015 to December 31, 2015, the Department will exercise prosecutorial discretion in determining whether to bring enforcement actions, with particular consideration given to the extent to which States and other entities have made good faith efforts to bring their home care programs into compliance with the FLSA since promulgation of the Final Rule. Throughout the 12-month duration of this policy, the Department will continue extensive outreach and technical assistance efforts, in particular with States regarding publicly funded home care programs. Extension of the Approval of Information Collection Requirements The Department of Labor, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, conducts a preclearance consultation program to provide the general public and Federal agencies with an opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing collections of information in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A). This program helps to ensure that requested data can be provided in a desired format, reporting burden (time and financial resources) is minimized, collection instruments are clearly understood, and the impact of collection requirements on respondents can properly be assessed. Currently, the Wage and Hour Division is soliciting comments concerning its proposal to extend Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval of the Information Collection: 29 CFR Part 825, The Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993. A copy of the proposed information collection request can be obtained by contacting the office listed below in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of this Notice. The Family and Medical Leave Act The Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division proposes to revise the regulation defining ``spouse'' under the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (FMLA or the Act) in light of the United States Supreme Court's decision in United States v. Windsor, which found section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) to be unconstitutional. This Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) proposes to amend the definition of spouse to include all legally married spouses. Proposed Extension of the Approval of Information Collection Requirements The Department of Labor, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, conducts a preclearance consultation program to provide the general public and Federal agencies with an opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing collections of information in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA95). 44 U.S.C. 3056(c)(2)(A). This program helps to ensure that requested data can be provided in a desired format, reporting burden (time and financial resources) is minimized, collection instruments are clearly understood, and the impact of collection requirements on respondents can be properly assessed. Currently, the Wage and Hour Division is soliciting comments concerning its proposal to extend Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval of the Information Collection: Davis-Bacon Certified Payroll. A copy of the proposed information request can be obtained by contacting the office listed below in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of this Notice. The Department of Labor, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, conducts a preclearance consultation program to provide the general public and Federal agencies with an opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing collections of information in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA95). 44 U.S.C. 3056(c)(2)(A). This program helps to ensure that requested data can be provided in the desired format, reporting burden (time and financial resources) is minimized, collection instruments are clearly understood, and the impact of collection requirements on respondents can be properly assessed. Currently, the Wage and Hour Division is soliciting comments concerning its proposal to extend Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval of the Information Collection: Regulations 29 CFR Part 547, Requirements of a ``Bona Fide Profit-Thrift of Savings Plan'' and Regulations 29 CFR Part 549, Requirements of a ``Bona Fide Profit- Sharing Plan or Trust''. A copy of the proposed information request can be obtained by contacting the office listed below in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of this Notice. The Department of Labor, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, conducts a preclearance consultation program to provide the general public and Federal agencies with an opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing collections of information in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA95). 44 U.S.C. 3056(c)(2)(A). This program helps to ensure that requested data can be provided in the desired format, reporting burden (time and financial resources) is minimized, collection instruments are clearly understood, and the impact of collection requirements on respondents can be properly assessed. Currently, the Wage and Hour Division is soliciting comments concerning its proposal to extend Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval of the Information Collection: Nondisplacement of Qualified Workers Under Service Contracts. A copy of the proposed information request can be obtained by contacting the office listed below in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of this Notice. Presidential Memorandum of March 13, 2014; Updating and Modernizing Overtime Regulations The Department of Labor, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, conducts a preclearance consultation program to provide the general public and Federal agencies with an opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing collections of information in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA95). 44 U.S.C. 3056(c)(2)(A). This program helps to ensure that requested data can be provided in the desired format, reporting burden (time and financial resources) is minimized, collection instruments are clearly understood, and the impact of collection requirements on respondents can be properly assessed. Currently, the Wage and Hour Division is soliciting comments concerning its proposal to extend Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval of the Information Collection: Notice to Examinee, Employee Polygraph Protection Act. A copy of the proposed information request can be obtained by contacting the office listed below in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of this Notice. Proposed Extension of the Approval of Information Collection Requirements-Housing Occupancy Certificates Under the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act The Department of Labor, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, conducts a preclearance consultation program to provide the general public and Federal agencies with an opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing collections of information in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA95). 44 U.S.C. 3056(c)(2)(A). This program helps to ensure that requested data can be provided in the desired format, reporting burden (time and financial resources) is minimized, collection instruments are clearly understood, and the impact of collection requirements on respondents can be properly assessed. Currently, the Wage and Hour Division is soliciting comments concerning its proposal to extend Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval of the Information Collection: Housing Occupancy CertificateMigrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act. A copy of the proposed information request can be obtained by contacting the office listed below in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of this Notice. Proposed Extension of the Information Collection Disclosure to Workers Under the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act The Department of Labor, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, conducts a preclearance consultation program to provide the general public and Federal agencies with an opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing collections of information in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA95). 44 U.S.C. 3056(c)(2)(A). This program helps to ensure that requested data can be provided in the desired format, reporting burden (time and financial resources) is minimized, collection instruments are clearly understood, and the impact of collection requirements on respondents can be properly assessed. Currently, the Wage and Hour Division is soliciting comments concerning its proposal to extend Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval of the Information Collection: Disclosures to Workers Under the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act. A copy of the proposed information request can be obtained by contacting the office listed below in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of this Notice.	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line708
__label__wiki	0.901501	0.901501	After 75 years, a question about race haunts Truman’s calculation on Hiroshima Much of the world focused on President Harry Truman's explanation for using the bomb 75 years ago, but the Japanese I met had a different question. The destruction at Hiroshima, Japan, caused by the atomic bomb dropped on the city in August 1945. Photo courtesy of Creative Commons A. James Rudin (RNS) — Japan became the only nation to have suffered an atomic bomb attack when, 75 years ago, our nation struck Hiroshima on Aug. 6, 1945. Three days later, a second bomb fell on Nagasaki. In Hiroshima, more than 140,000 Japanese died when the B-29 Enola Gay dropped its single bomb. Because of Nagasaki’s hilly terrain, “only” 70,000 people were killed. The war ended days later without the need for a military invasion of the Japanese home islands. In the early 1960s, when both sites still showed the devastating effects of the American nuclear raids, I was sent as an Air Force chaplain to Japan. My duties there included monthly visits to the Atomic Bomb Casualty Commission facilities in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, where the staff, mostly American medical personnel, included enough Jewish families to constitute small viable congregations at each location. The ABCC had been established by the U.S. Public Health Service in 1948 to study two separate control groups: individuals who survived the atomic bombs and those who were not exposed to radiation. Not surprisingly, those who lived through the attacks were struck by cancer, birth defects, heart disease, skin deformities, genetic abnormalities, psychiatric problems and other maladies far in excess of the unexposed group. Large numbers of Japanese distrusted the ABCC because it was an American-run facility. In addition, the commission, which closed in 1975, did not provide medical treatment for the victims; its staff only studied the problems created by radiation. In Hiroshima and Nagasaki, I conducted worship services, set up religious education for Jewish youngsters, provided kosher food and in some cases counseled both American Christians and Jews who experienced psychological problems living and working in the sites of such horrific destruction. Hiroshima before, left, and after the atomic bomb was dropped on the city on Aug. 6, 1945. Photos courtesy of Creative Commons There were clear religious parameters for military chaplains: Only a Catholic chaplain could offer last rites to fellow Catholics, and only a Jewish chaplain could recite the traditional Vidui confessional prayer with a Jew who was nearing death. But I participated in many programs, lectures, classes and counseling sessions that centered on problems that affected both Jews and Christians. I tended to alcoholics and victims of domestic violence, depression and loneliness. I discussed the difficulties of intermarriage with Japanese women and American servicemen. While these were my primary duties, I was also involved with the overall spiritual life of the various bases and facilities I “covered” in southern Japan and Korea. Frequently, I was the sole Westerner inside the A-bomb museums in Hiroshima and Nagasaki — the only non-Japanese person gazing at the frightening photographs of eerie shadows embedded in concrete, all that remained of people who were instantly vaporized and thrust into buildings and streets. Sometimes I was the lone Westerner visiting the iconic Genbaku Dome in Hiroshima, the only physical structure that survived the atomic attack. I was often the only American who watched Japanese children linking their paper cranes into a chain as a symbol of hope and reconstruction. But visiting Hiroshima and Nagasaki each month for two years brought me into contact with several Japanese clergy: Christian, Shinto and Buddhist. I especially remember one Protestant minister who survived the bombing of Hiroshima, during which he lost his parents, wife and children. Stunned and dazed from the attack, he sought the comfort of some relatives who lived in the southern port city of Nagasaki. A day after arriving, the second atomic bomb destroyed much of his supposed “city of refuge.” In one of its many efforts to build and strengthen Japanese-American friendship, the Air Force designated me to present the minister with several Louisville Slugger baseball bats for his church team. A faded black-and-white photo taken during the ceremony shows both of us smiling. Happily, such weapons of mass destruction have not been employed since 1945, but the past record of restraint by the nations that possess nuclear weapon — a precarious balance of mutual destruction — provides no comfort for the future. Not surprisingly, Japan is among the most concerned nations about the possible sales of atomic weapons to terrorists. President Harry S. Truman, right, reads the announcement of Japan’s surrender to assembled reporters and officials in the Oval Office, on Aug. 14, 1945. Photo by Abbie Rowe/NARA/Creative Commons Much of the world accepted President Harry Truman’s explanation for using the bombs, based primarily on the math he offered to buttress the American position: The immediate deaths of 210,000 people, mostly civilians, was horrible in its scope, but the probable loss of more than 1 million American and Japanese lives in the planned invasion was averted. Such an invasion of Japan would have meant deadly hand-to-hand fighting in every city, town, village, farm, street, alley, house, shop and room. U.S. forces would have confronted not only the Japanese military, but also millions of civilians, including children. I have thought a great deal about Truman’s decision, and I share his belief. But this wasn’t the question the Japanese hurled at me during my tour of duty. Rather, they would ask: Would the United States have used the atomic bomb against Nazi Germany, a nation of white Europeans? Chronology provides a partial, if simplistic, answer. The war in Europe ended in May 1945, two months before the first A-bomb was tested in New Mexico. But given the climate of hatred of Nazism, and remembering the devastating Anglo-American air raids, especially the firebombings of Hamburg, Berlin and Dresden, I believe the terrifying nuclear weapon would have been employed against Germany. It’s a question I might have put to Truman himself when, a year after I returned to civilian life, I attended a public luncheon in Kansas City, Missouri, and was seated next to the former president. After the formal niceties ended, Truman asked me many questions about Japan. In a most un-Truman-like moment, he plaintively remarked that, “Of course, Mrs. Truman and I can never visit there because of August 1945.” (Rabbi A. James Rudin is the American Jewish Committee’s senior interreligious adviser and the author of “Pillar of Fire: A Biography of Rabbi Stephen S. Wise,” which was nominated for a 2016 Pulitzer Prize. He can be reached at jamesrudin.com. The views expressed in this commentary do not necessarily reflect those of Religion News Service.) Faith Judaism Opinion Catholic worker who broke into naval base to protest nuclear weapons sentenced Catholic priest is sentenced to time served after 2018 break-in at nuclear naval base Ardeth Platte, Dominican nun dedicated to no-nukes cause, dies at 84 In death, as in life, Ruth Bader Ginsburg balanced being American and Jewish Healing Black-Jewish and Muslim-Jewish divides	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line709
__label__cc	0.746814	0.253186	湾水振動におよぼす防波堤の効果利用統計を見る ji0412006.pdf (1.01MB) [ 24 downloads ] Effects of a Breakwater on the Oscillations of Bay Water 梶浦欣二郎 Kajiura Kinjiro The effects of a large breakwater with a constricted opening on the oscillations of bay water as a whole are examined on the basis of a very simple one-dimensional mathematical model. The bay is separated into two parts by a breakwater with a narrow opening and the dynamical condition at the opening of the breakwater is assumed to follow the wellknown relationship in hydraulics between the volume flux through the opening and the difference of water levels across the breakwater. Several different cases such as tidal oscillations, invasion of tsunamis, and storm surges are considered and the theoretical results are compared with those of model experiments as far as possible. It appears that a simple theoretical model presented here can explain with satisfaction the observed change of wave height at the head of the bay with respect to the change of the period of forcing functions and / or the area of the opening, as long as the opening is small. Thus, the most important factor in this kind of phenomena should be the following non-dimensional parameter: B ; for tidal oscillations, η*/K; for tsunamis and storm surges. For details, see § 4 and § 3 respectively. The amplitude and phase changes of the tidal oscillation inside the bay can be estimated as a function of B from Fig. 2. The effect of a breakwater on invading tsunamis of the solitary type is shown in Fig. 9. The effectiveness of a breakwater on storm surges is seen in Figs. 10-15. From these figures it is evident that the period of the oscillating water body in relation to the incoming wave period or the given period of external forces seems to be the decisive factor in determining the effectiveness of the barrier, in addition to the geometry of the bay, the area of the opening and the wave amplitude. The present theory is applicable to the cases where the opening is sufficiently small so that the non- linear effects predominate in the motion of water near the opening.	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line711
__label__cc	0.679076	0.320924	Internalization of IL-2 by an IL-2-dependent murine T cell lymphoma expressing no detectable cell surface receptors for IL-2 H C O'Neill, A Jaworowski Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review A murine Radiation leukemia virus-induced T cell lymphoma, 5C2, which is dependent on interleukin-2 (IL-2) for proliferation has been analyzed for interleukin-2 receptor (IL-2R) expression. Using fluorescence-activated cell sorter and electron microscopic analysis together with antibody specific for the known p55 chain of the murine IL-2R, no evidence has been obtained to suggest that these cells express detectable numbers of receptors with high affinity for IL-2. However, two different antibodies with specificity for the p55 chain of the IL-2R have been shown to inhibit 5C2 proliferation. An analysis of 125I-IL-2 binding has precluded a cell surface receptor density of greater than 80 molecules per cell. A temperature-dependent, nonspecific uptake of 125I-IL-2 has been described for 5C2. Uptake is saturated at 8.5 nM 125I-IL-2 with equilibrium being established within 60 min. When incubated at 37 degrees C in the presence of 400 pM 125I-IL-2, a maximum of approximately 2,000 molecules are internalized within 40 min. Uptake of other iodinated proteins by 5C2 was not observed. This property is unique to 5C2 and not to the control C6VL/1 cell line. Intracellular vesicles have also been found in 5C2 cells by electron microscopy which stain positively with gold-conjugated antibody specific for the p55 chain of the IL-2R. 5C2 appears to exhibit unique IL-2 regulatory characteristics. Fingerprint Dive into the research topics of 'Internalization of IL-2 by an IL-2-dependent murine T cell lymphoma expressing no detectable cell surface receptors for IL-2'. Together they form a unique fingerprint. T-Cell Lymphoma Medicine & Life Sciences Cell Surface Receptors Medicine & Life Sciences Interleukin-2 Medicine & Life Sciences Interleukin-2 Receptors Medicine & Life Sciences Radiation Leukemia Virus Medicine & Life Sciences Antibody Specificity Medicine & Life Sciences O'Neill, H. C., & Jaworowski, A. (1988). Internalization of IL-2 by an IL-2-dependent murine T cell lymphoma expressing no detectable cell surface receptors for IL-2. Leukemia, 2(6), 388-393. O'Neill, H C ; Jaworowski, A. / Internalization of IL-2 by an IL-2-dependent murine T cell lymphoma expressing no detectable cell surface receptors for IL-2. In: Leukemia. 1988 ; Vol. 2, No. 6. pp. 388-393. @article{5e95e0692e2e477aad8b4b5dc45ea99f, title = "Internalization of IL-2 by an IL-2-dependent murine T cell lymphoma expressing no detectable cell surface receptors for IL-2", abstract = "A murine Radiation leukemia virus-induced T cell lymphoma, 5C2, which is dependent on interleukin-2 (IL-2) for proliferation has been analyzed for interleukin-2 receptor (IL-2R) expression. Using fluorescence-activated cell sorter and electron microscopic analysis together with antibody specific for the known p55 chain of the murine IL-2R, no evidence has been obtained to suggest that these cells express detectable numbers of receptors with high affinity for IL-2. However, two different antibodies with specificity for the p55 chain of the IL-2R have been shown to inhibit 5C2 proliferation. An analysis of 125I-IL-2 binding has precluded a cell surface receptor density of greater than 80 molecules per cell. A temperature-dependent, nonspecific uptake of 125I-IL-2 has been described for 5C2. Uptake is saturated at 8.5 nM 125I-IL-2 with equilibrium being established within 60 min. When incubated at 37 degrees C in the presence of 400 pM 125I-IL-2, a maximum of approximately 2,000 molecules are internalized within 40 min. Uptake of other iodinated proteins by 5C2 was not observed. This property is unique to 5C2 and not to the control C6VL/1 cell line. Intracellular vesicles have also been found in 5C2 cells by electron microscopy which stain positively with gold-conjugated antibody specific for the p55 chain of the IL-2R. 5C2 appears to exhibit unique IL-2 regulatory characteristics.", author = "O'Neill, {H C} and A Jaworowski", journal = "Leukemia", O'Neill, HC & Jaworowski, A 1988, 'Internalization of IL-2 by an IL-2-dependent murine T cell lymphoma expressing no detectable cell surface receptors for IL-2', Leukemia, vol. 2, no. 6, pp. 388-393. Internalization of IL-2 by an IL-2-dependent murine T cell lymphoma expressing no detectable cell surface receptors for IL-2. / O'Neill, H C; Jaworowski, A. In: Leukemia, Vol. 2, No. 6, 06.1988, p. 388-393. T1 - Internalization of IL-2 by an IL-2-dependent murine T cell lymphoma expressing no detectable cell surface receptors for IL-2 AU - O'Neill, H C AU - Jaworowski, A N2 - A murine Radiation leukemia virus-induced T cell lymphoma, 5C2, which is dependent on interleukin-2 (IL-2) for proliferation has been analyzed for interleukin-2 receptor (IL-2R) expression. Using fluorescence-activated cell sorter and electron microscopic analysis together with antibody specific for the known p55 chain of the murine IL-2R, no evidence has been obtained to suggest that these cells express detectable numbers of receptors with high affinity for IL-2. However, two different antibodies with specificity for the p55 chain of the IL-2R have been shown to inhibit 5C2 proliferation. An analysis of 125I-IL-2 binding has precluded a cell surface receptor density of greater than 80 molecules per cell. A temperature-dependent, nonspecific uptake of 125I-IL-2 has been described for 5C2. Uptake is saturated at 8.5 nM 125I-IL-2 with equilibrium being established within 60 min. When incubated at 37 degrees C in the presence of 400 pM 125I-IL-2, a maximum of approximately 2,000 molecules are internalized within 40 min. Uptake of other iodinated proteins by 5C2 was not observed. This property is unique to 5C2 and not to the control C6VL/1 cell line. Intracellular vesicles have also been found in 5C2 cells by electron microscopy which stain positively with gold-conjugated antibody specific for the p55 chain of the IL-2R. 5C2 appears to exhibit unique IL-2 regulatory characteristics. AB - A murine Radiation leukemia virus-induced T cell lymphoma, 5C2, which is dependent on interleukin-2 (IL-2) for proliferation has been analyzed for interleukin-2 receptor (IL-2R) expression. Using fluorescence-activated cell sorter and electron microscopic analysis together with antibody specific for the known p55 chain of the murine IL-2R, no evidence has been obtained to suggest that these cells express detectable numbers of receptors with high affinity for IL-2. However, two different antibodies with specificity for the p55 chain of the IL-2R have been shown to inhibit 5C2 proliferation. An analysis of 125I-IL-2 binding has precluded a cell surface receptor density of greater than 80 molecules per cell. A temperature-dependent, nonspecific uptake of 125I-IL-2 has been described for 5C2. Uptake is saturated at 8.5 nM 125I-IL-2 with equilibrium being established within 60 min. When incubated at 37 degrees C in the presence of 400 pM 125I-IL-2, a maximum of approximately 2,000 molecules are internalized within 40 min. Uptake of other iodinated proteins by 5C2 was not observed. This property is unique to 5C2 and not to the control C6VL/1 cell line. Intracellular vesicles have also been found in 5C2 cells by electron microscopy which stain positively with gold-conjugated antibody specific for the p55 chain of the IL-2R. 5C2 appears to exhibit unique IL-2 regulatory characteristics. JO - Leukemia JF - Leukemia O'Neill HC, Jaworowski A. Internalization of IL-2 by an IL-2-dependent murine T cell lymphoma expressing no detectable cell surface receptors for IL-2. Leukemia. 1988 Jun;2(6):388-393. Bond University Research Portal data protection policy Bond University Research Portal contact form	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line713
__label__cc	0.71016	0.28984	Following the Levellers / Elliot Vernon Gary De Krey is a leading historian of mid-to-late 17th-century London. His two monographs on the City: London and the Restoration and A Fractured Society capture the complexity, dynamics and interiority of London politics in ways that have often stumped the best of historians. The Common Freedom of the People: John Lilburne and the English Revolution / Michael Braddick Pauline Gregg’s Freeborn John was previously the most recent full biographical work on John Lilburne. Published in 1961, Gregg’s work was extremely close to H. N. Brailsford’s seminal The Levellers and the English Revolution; the two works standing for decades as the cornerstones to Leveller historiography. The Oxford Handbook of English Law and Literature, 1500-1700 / ed. Lorna Hutson Between 1500 and 1700, the period of Edmund Spenser and William Shakespeare, of John Selden and Edward Coke, English law and literature flourished. Yet, these two worlds did not exist separately from each other. Carnal Knowledge: Regulating Sex in England, 1470–1600 / Martin Ingram Martin Ingram’s 1987 book Church Courts, Sex and Marriage in England, 1570–1640 is celebrated for many reasons.(1) Not least, it is recognised for its importance in rescuing ecclesiastical courts from previous unfavourable assessments that branded them corrupt and inefficient. Henry VII’s New Men and the Making of Tudor England / Steven Gunn As Professor Gunn observes in his foreword, this book has been a long time coming: first mooted in fact in 1985 (a very suitable date). This has had two significant consequences which I shall discuss sequentially. Political Society in the British Isles, c. 1200-1500 (3) Apply Political Society in the British Isles, c. 1200-1500 filter Women, Property, and Law (1) Apply Women, Property, and Law filter	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line716
__label__wiki	0.94794	0.94794	The Revolution Trilogy, by Rick Atkinson The Epic Story of the American Revolution The Revolution Trilogy / Rick Atkinson Website Navigation Maps & Timeline Illustrations & Video The War for America, Lexington to Princeton, 1775-1777 Volume One of the Revolution Trilogy More about the Book Bonus Illustrations & Photos © Rob Shenk/Mt. Vernon Reviews of The British Are Coming “To say that Atkinson can tell a story is like saying Sinatra can sing…. Historians of the American Revolution take note. Atkinson is coming. He brings with him a Tolstoyan view of war; that is, he presumes war can be understood only by recovering the experience of ordinary men and women caught in the crucible of orchestrated violence beyond their control or comprehension…. It is as if Ken Burns somehow gained access to a time machine, traveled back to the Revolutionary era, then captured historical scenes on film as they were happening…. The story he tells is designed to rescue the American Revolution from the sentimental stereotypes and bring it to life as an ugly, savage, often barbaric war…. A powerful new voice has been added to the dialogue about our origins as a people and a nation. It is difficult to imagine any reader putting this beguiling book down without a smile and a tear.” —Joseph J. Ellis, The New York Times Book Review “Mr. Atkinson’s book…is chock full of momentous events and larger-than-life characters. Perfect material for a storyteller as masterly as Mr. Atkinson…. Mr. Atkinson commands great powers of description…. On center stage are the battlefields, [which] are documented in stellar prose and 24 exquisite maps.… The narrative is the stuff of novels, [but] Mr. Atkinson’s facts are drawn from a wealth of manuscript and printed sources. He quotes aptly and with acumen…. Mr. Atkinson weaves it all together seamlessly, bringing us with him. Pithy character sketches—reminiscent of 18th-century historians David Hume and Edward Gibbon, both of whom Mr. Atkinson cites—bring the dead to life.” “[Atkinson has a] felicity for turning history into literature…. One lesson of The British Are Coming is the history-shaping power of individuals exercising their agency together: the volition of those who shouldered muskets in opposition to an empire…. The more that Americans are reminded by Atkinson and other supreme practitioners of the historians’ craft that their nation was not made by flimsy people, the less likely it is to be flimsy.” —George F. Will, The Washington Post “Atkinson…wastes no time reminding us of his considerable narrative talents…. His knowledge of military affairs shines in his reading of the sources…. For sheer dramatic intensity, swinging from the American catastrophes at Quebec and Fort Washington to the resounding and surprising successes at Trenton and Princeton, all told in a way equally deeply informed about British planning and responses, there are few better places to turn.” “An epic tale, epically told. Atkinson excels at deftly summarizing personalities…. He moves effortlessly from the plans of commanders to the campfires of troops. The extraordinary scholarship involved—his meticulous endnotes cover 133 pages—is testament to a historian at the very top of his game…. The writing [is] incisive, humane, humorous, and often scintillating…. Anyone reading The British Are Coming will finish it looking forward impatiently to the next two. The trilogy looks fair to become the standard account of the war that brought the American Republic into being.” —Andrew Roberts, Claremont Review of Books “The British Are Coming is an exquisite masterpiece of history by one of the nation’s foremost writers and historians. There is a newness, eloquence, and immediacy in Atkinson’s telling that surpasses any previous Revolutionary War narrative; it conveys to the reader a sense of discovering the American Revolution for the very first time, in all of its sheer drama. This volume embraces the lived experience of the war’s early years with all of its complexities, ironies, triumphs, and tragedies…This volume is, in short, a work to be reckoned with and one that will powerfully inform broader conversations on the importance and continued relevance of our national origins.” —2020 George Washington Book Prize “One of the best books written on the American War for Independence…. The reader finishes this volume uncertain of how either side can win this war, but very much wanting Atkinson to continue its telling.” —Robert J. Allison, The Journal of Military History “[Atkinson’s] account promises to be as detailed a military history of the war as we will see in our lifetimes upon its completion…. Atkinson makes good use of information from letters and journals to give his reader a sense of what it would have been like to walk in the shoes of both the war’s illustrious and lesser known participants…. Atkinson’s accounts of battles are among the most lucid I’ve read…. Readers who enjoy richly detailed military history will be greatly anticipating his second volume.” —Journal of the American Revolution “Atkinson takes his time, but there’s delight in all that detail…. Atkinson is a superb researcher, but more importantly a sublime writer. On occasion I reread sentences simply to feast on their elegance…. This is volume one of a planned trilogy. Atkinson will be a superb guide through the terrible years of killing ahead.” —The Times (London) “The British Are Coming [is] a sweeping narrative which captures the spirit and the savagery of the times. Based on exhaustive research on both sides of the Atlantic, Atkinson displays a mastery of the English language as well as military tactics which puts him in a class of his own as a writer.” —Lionel Barber, Editor, Financial Times “Rick Atkinson is emerging as America’s most talented military historian…. The British Are Coming is history written in a grand style and manner. It leaves one anxiously awaiting the next two volumes.” —New York Journal of Books “This first installment in Pulitzer-winning historian Atkinson’s new trilogy is a sweeping yet gritty American Revolutionary epic. With granular detail and refreshingly unfamiliar characterizations—an uncertain George Washington, a thoughtful King George III, a valiant Benedict Arnold—he makes an oft-told national origin story new again.” —Publishers Weekly (One of the 10 best books of 2019) “This balanced, elegantly written, and massively researched volume is the first in a projected trilogy about the Revolutionary War…. Combining apt quotation (largely from correspondence) with flowing and precise original language, Atkinson describes military encounters that, though often unbearably grim, are evoked in vivid and image-laden terms…. Aided by fine and numerous maps, this is superb military and diplomatic history and represents storytelling on a grand scale.” “Atkinson (The Guns at Last Light, etc.) is a longtime master of the set piece: soldiers move into place, usually not quite understanding why, and are put into motion against each other to bloody result…. A sturdy, swift-moving contribution to the popular literature of the American Revolution.” —Kirkus (starred review) “This book is, in a word, fantastic. It offers all the qualities that we have come to expect from the author: deep and wide research, vivid detail, a blend of voices from common soldiers to commanders, blazing characterizations of the leading personalities within the conflict and a narrative that flows like a good novel…. The British Are Coming is a superb ode to the grit and everyday heroism that eventually won the war.” —BookPage (starred review) Sign up for news about Rick Atkinson and the Revolution Trilogy Country Canada United Kingdom United States Other Sorry, you cannot enter at this time. Sign up for the Rick Atkinson author alerts. Privacy Notice. Sign up for the Rick Atkinson author alerts from Macmillan Publishers with updates and other information about Macmillan Publishers’ books, products and services that may be of interest to you. You can withdraw your consent at any time. See Macmillan Privacy Notice. Contact Us. View Illustrations of the key events of The Revolutionary War. © 2021 Henry Holt and Co. - Terms of Use \| Privacy Policy \| Ads and Cookies	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line717
__label__cc	0.626219	0.373781	Rural Ruminations OpEd pieces by a retired CIA station chief. « Go-it-alone woes beset America Next Object Lesson: Afghanistan » Destruction Of The Political Center In America October 23, 2008 by Haviland Smith [Originally published in the Randolph Herald.] Back in the years following the Second World War, many European countries were seriously politically divided between the right and the left. In many respects, that was the result of the essentially favorable view of the Soviet Union held by the left in those years. Even though the Stalinist purges had already taken the lives of tens of millions Soviet citizens, that fact was not widely known or admitted in European leftist circles. Because most of the left wing, or Socialist, parties had their philosophical roots in Marxism, the Soviet Union represented for them a branch of Marxism with which they could identify, a little bit of their heaven on earth, as it were, even though there was little in reality that connected the two. It would take decades for the Socialist left in Europe to understand and then admit that Marxism-Leninism was nothing more than a crude and repressive perversion of their beloved socialism. Ultimately, that came about as a result of heavy-handed methods used by the Soviets to keep their empire together. East Germany, Hungary and Czechoslovakia were the obvious manifestations of Soviet imperialism that helped the political left in Europe to change its view of Marxism-Leninism. During that changeover in Western Europe, a mild political anarchy prevailed, which led directly to economic uncertainty. In England, for example, the Labor (Marxist, socialist) Party would win a national election. They would then spend their entire time in office nationalizing as much of basic industry as possible. When the Conservative (capitalist, free enterprise) Party subsequently came to power it would undertake the denationalization of as much of the newly nationalized economy as was possible in the time allotted them. If you were a businessman in England at the time, what were you to do? The parties were so radicalized and the voting public so polarized that there was no way to know what would work economically. There was no stability in the economy or markets, and that did not create an economy that was conducive to national economic growth. At the same time, the United States was the polar opposite. Republicans and Democrats were not that far apart in either their political or economic philosophies. As a result, there was a level of predictably in this country that created the perfect environment for economic growth, and we had that in spades. That harmony began to come unstuck with the passage of the Civil Rights Act in 1964, which led to a realignment of our political landscape. Where the Republican Party previously had been socially liberal and fiscally conservative, the Act, so strongly supported by the Democrats, almost forced southern Democrats to look for another party. They tried the Independent approach for a while, but in the end, the Dixiecrats (Southern Democrats), who had never been socially liberal, moved into the Republican Party and turned it, as we now see, into a socially conservative, some would say intolerant, but economically spendthrift party. In 40 short years, we have seen total role reversal. The real importance of this change in our political landscape has been the marginalization of the political center. Before 1964, the center, whether Republican or Democrat, had run the country. Today, however, America—to its detriment— is in the hands, or at the mercy of, the right or the left, not the center. We see the result in the sub-prime meltdown. It followed 12 years of Republican domination of the Congress, featuring a fiercely partisan laissez-faire approach to economic regulation, an approach which speeded up the required conditions for our economic problems. Now we see the Democrats beginning to assert their ideological positions in reaction to the proposed Republican solution, as proffered by Secretary Paulson. During the deliberations on the financial rescue legislation, both parties trotted out much of their ideological hardware. Democrats insisted on reforming pay for top executives, gaining equity in bailed-out companies and permitting judges to rewrite mortgages. Republicans have called for the suspension of the capital gains tax and an additional, permanent tax cut as a way to create capital. That has led to a “compromise” bill that, while carrying out the $700-billion intent of the Bush administration, contains pork from all political persuasions. That is not to say that this fat does not represent valid political issues. They are, however, not mainly economic issues. This shows clearly, at a time when speed may be the only thing that can save us from further disaster, that the old ideological political imperatives persevere even at a time when bipartisanship should be mandatory. Forty years ago, that would have come to us naturally. Today, after forty years of political warfare and the virtual destruction of the political center, we seem not to know how to do it. Given the often petty bickering of both Republicans and Democrats, it may well be time to seriously consider a third party, if for no other reason than, for the sake of the nation, we need to move our political structure back toward the center. Haviland Smith is a former long-time resident of Brookfield who now lives in Williston. Posted in United States \| TRUMP AT WAR WITH AMERICA WHERE IS THE WORLD HEADED? Democratic socialism and the coming election foreign policy (104) Insurgency (3) Israel/Palestine (27) Military Polilcy (8) Haviland Smith: VPT Profile The Impact of the U.S. Invasion and Occupation of Iraq 5,405 pages viewed	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line722
__label__cc	0.550081	0.449919	Conservation and restoration actions in a Dry Forest ecosystem in the Santa Rosa Watershed, Colombia Corporación Ambiental y Forestal del Pacífico (CORFOPAL) Colombia (San José del Salado, Dagua Municipality, Cauca Valley Department) This project demonstrated that through the implementation of Landscape Management Tools it´s possible to improve the well-being and promote more sustainable livelihoods in a rural community, that faces the consequences of inadequate use of land and biodiversity. We implemented Landscape Management Tools such as isolation of natural cover relicts, enrichment of conservation areas, improvement of pastures, and reconversion activities to sustainable productive systems (silvopastoril systems). Additionally, we carried out participatory workshops about biopreparates, restoration and conservation, and organic fertilizers; we established conservation agreements with land owners, and installed a mist-catchment system to secure the water provision for the silvopastoril system. We accomplished the expansion of 3.4 ha for strict conservation of the protective forest, and capacity building in the local community to sustain the implementations in the long term. We were able to share the results of this project in a national conference on Restoration Ecology, and produced divulgation material in the form of brochures. Sustainable production, ecosystem services, conservation, restoration, productive landscape Sebastián Orjuela, Andrés Quintero, Sara Rodríguez (CORFOPAL) http://corfopal.org/en-curso/#1466174489261-9c3c8588-ee0d One of the main environmental threats for Colombia (and the world) is the irrational use of natural resources, which leads to the degradation of ecosystems and the loss of biodiversity. In response to this issue, CORFOPAL was founded as an environmental NGO 18 years ago, and has since worked for the integral management of the environment, as a fundamental element for human development and survival. Our main goals include the promotion of new private and public protected areas, and the achievement of balance between nature and human needs, through sustainable productive systems that guarantee the conservation of biodiversity and the offer of ecosystem services for the maintenance and improvement of human well-being. Through the implementation of management plans, integration of scientific and traditional knowledges, and the establishment of a participatory process that engages the local communities and builds capacity, we aim to empower the community and secure the future sustainability of our projects. One of the most threatened ecosystems in the world is the Tropical Dry Forest (TDF) (WWF 2013), which in Colombia is in a critical fragmentation and detriment status, due to landscape transformation and changes in the use of land that have taken place in the last decades. This ecosystem used to cover over 9 million ha, of which now remain about 8%; this means that more than 90% of the TDF in our country has been cut. Out of this remaining 8%, less than 4% belongs to natural TDF; and 5% corresponds to remainders with some degree of intervention (Pizano y García 2014). In Cauca Valley department, Colombia, the TDF ecosystem has an area of 7627.5 ha, out of which 804.1 ha are in an original state (without intervention) (CVC-FUNAGUA 2009). In this regard, the fragmentation and transformation processes are more evident in mountainous tropical regions where there is a great diversity of habitats in relatively small areas, and especially in rural landscapes that have been modified by human activity into a mosaic of productive systems and isolated fragments of natural habitats. In response to these issues since 2015 we have been working in the project “Conservation and Restoration actions in the Dry Forest Ecosystem of the Santa Rosa watershed as an intervention strategy in favor of biodiversity, ecosystem services and sustainable production”. These actions were previously agreed upon with the properties’ owners, and were designed taking into account the available information about the history of disturbances and the original ecosystems. This intending to initiate, reinitiate, or accelerate the processes that give place to the restoration of a healthy ecosystem, characteristic of the area. The former enables the integration of conservation and restoration efforts and the traditional productive activities of the area, as well as facilitate the adoption of new technologies and tools through a participatory approach that benefits from the knowledge of local producer and combines ethnologic, agricultural and ecological methodologies (Altieri 2004). Socioeconomic, environmental characteristics of the area The study area of the project was the Santa Rosa watershed (SRW) basin and the TDF associated to it (Figure 1). The SRW has an approximate area of 292.5 ha and 2.6 km length, of which only 35% has forest cover; the remaining 65% corresponds to pastures and shrublands. The main problem in this area is the loss of natural cover of the natural forest and the ecosystem services it provides, due to the expansion of the agricultural frontier, the promotion of clean crops, and cattle-raising. An important part of the SRW goes through two Natural Reserves of the Civil Society (NRCS): Carare I and Carare II, which are private protected areas that conserves the TDF located within its limits, and a neighboring property where there used to be pastures for cattle (called Canaan). In these properties is where the project was carried out. The areas are located in the surroundings of San José del Salado village, which, along with the Dagua city people, is the main community affected by the loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services in the territory and the main beneficiaries by the outcomes of this project. Figure 1. Location of the Santa Rosa Watershed (SRW) basin, shown in blue The community that’s near the project area is the San José del Salado village, and the land owners of properties neighboring the reserves and Canaan. This village is in the rural area of the Dagua municipality, where the main human populations in the area is present. Dagua is located at 828 m, has a mean temperature of 25 °C and it’s characterized by abundant summits, where three ecosystems (the TDF, tropical wet forest and subxerophytic forest) merge and give place to the many basins and micro-basins of the region. The Dagua municipality has 923 km2 of surface and more than 36000 inhabitants. According to the Territorial Order Basic Plan and the Municipal Educational Plan of 2008-2011, about 35.3% of the population is in a poverty situation, and the unemployment rate is 20%. The San José del Salado village is the closest settlement to the project area, it has 19502 ha and approximately 400 inhabitants. The main threats for the village were i) the loss of soil resources and in turn of their productive capacity, ii) biodiversity loss, iii) loss of environmental services generated by ecosystems and its associated biodiversity (i.e. seed dispersion, pollination, plague control), and iv) the reduction of the amount and quality of water available for the community. The main productive activities in the region are agriculture, cattle raising, poultry farming, pisciculture, mining, and tourism. These activities are benefited by the diversity of climates that are present in the wider region. In the case of Dagua, the main economic activity is agriculture, specially the pineapple crops that present a high production and quality. Other crops are tomato, cacao, banana, coffee, papaya and citrus fruit. Objective and rationale The main objective of the project was to implement conservation, restoration and sustainable production actions in the Dry Forest ecosystem of the San José del Salado Village, as determined in the Management Plans for the NRCS and surrounding properties in the SRW, that lead to the improvement of the environmental and ecosystem services offer and quality in the territory. To accomplish this, several actions were taken that benefited the conservation, restoration and sustainable use of the TDF in an approximate total area of 86 ha, in three properties located in the SRW (two of which are NRCS). We worked looking for four fundamental outcomes: 1) the isolation of remaining TDF patches (1.1 km), 2) the extension of the protective forest fringe (1 ha), 3) the reconversion of ranchers’ productive systems (1 ha), and 4) the community empowerment (4 workshops and 1 brochure). This project demonstrated that through the implementation of Landscape Management Tools it´s possible to improve the well-being and promote more sustainable livelihoods in a rural community, that faces the consequences of inadequate use of land and biodiversity. The activities that we carried out can be summarized in Table 1, that includes the measure units, the intended outcome and the reached outcome. Table 1. Activities carried out during the project, initial goals and obtained results: We implemented the planned activities in four stages. The first one consisted in the consolidation of the diagnostic and base line information available for the three properties, focusing in the areas surrounding the SRW. We identified the climatic, geographic and hydrologic characteristics of the watershed, as well as the biological and ecological components. We also described the social component, taking into account the traditional economic activities, the productive systems present in the three plots, the infrastructure, and the services (water, gas, electricity) available in the plots, and in San José del Salado. During stage two, we socialized the project with the community of San José del Salado and owners of neighboring properties, a space where we managed to strengthen the community process by laying out and analyzing the proposed objectives and activities for the project. The participants were then invited to assist to the training workshops that would follow, and we introduced briefly the topics that those workshops would approach. Figure 2. Temporary plant nursery installed It was also during the second phase that we defined the Landscape Management Tools (LMT) that we would use in the next stages. We considered the characteristics of the plots we would intervene, such as productive activities present, and the type of natural cover we found. We carried out activities related to the plot’s restoration, such as the identification of the observed alternative states, which were analyzed to find a pattern of natural succession, from less developed composition and structure states to a state of greater structural complexity, identified as the target status for the zones with greater interventions (most degraded). Additionally, we made de design, protocol, and establishment of the temporary nursery for the plants (Figure 2), as well as the design of the silvopastoril reconversion system, and a watering system for the pastures and the cattle. We defined the isolation of the remainders of natural cover, and planted native species for enriching the most affected areas by the farming activities. In this phase also took place the theoretical-practical workshops about conservation, ecologic restoration of riparian forests with native flora (Figure 3), and about biopreparates and organic fertilizers. Figure 3. Instructor during conservation and restoration workshop The third stage was when we implemented the designed LMT, the reconversion of cattle raising productive systems to silvopastoril systems, we installed fences to isolate the patches of natural cover (Figure 4), and we established the watering system. These implementations were made in previously defined areas, with the help of the land owners and through an exercise of social cartography. The activities for recuperating each type of cover were defined, which consisted in the nucleation and planting in the borders and the inside. Also, we performed the theoretical-practical workshop called “Protein banks and multinutritional blocks”, and we defined the conservation agreements with private land owners. As a complementary strategy for the watering system, we designed a mist catcher (Figure 5) for capturing the water vapor in the environment and that way provide the necessary water for the plots in the highest part. The ecological restoration began in this stage, enriching the defined areas through plantings that involved the community members. Figure 4. Isolation of forest patches for conservation and restoration The fourth and last part of the project consisted in the consolidation of the results, compiling all the performed activities and the implementations made. In summary, the project resulted in the isolation of natural cover remainders, the extension of protective areas of the dry forest through the enrichment of those zones with native species, the implementation of reconversion actions into sustainable productive systems (silvopastoril system), and the training in ecological restoration and sustainable production practices of community members associated to the SRW and the TDF of the San José del Salado Village. Figure 5. Mist-catcher net installed in the reserve Canaan and the Cofopal team with Mr. Humberto Dominguez (right) Taking into account that the Satoyama Initiative envisions societies in harmony with nature that include human communities that develop and maintain socio-economic activities in line with natural processes, our project is an example of a co-management system and of the consolidation on conserving diverse ecosystem services and values, because allows the involvement of the community and the owners of the reserve in the conservation and restoration process of the TDF, but also in the implementation of sustainable productive systems, contributing to sustainable socio-economies and improved community resilience. Also, trough the empowerment of the community we were able to improve the relationship with community members, and to integrate local traditions into the design of the conservation and restoration tools. Results and lessons learned With this project we achieved the expansion of 3.4 ha for strict conservation of the protective forest of the SRW, adding up to a total of 66.9 ha in conservation. We installed about 492 m of mixed fences which are a significant input to the connectivity of the landscape, besides being a support system for the silvopastoril areas. The species that were planted will strengthen the biological corridors between existing patches of the three properties. The success of the project was greatly determined by the representative community participation in the proposed activities, the exchange of knowledges we accomplished between local people and experts, and the accompaniment of government institutions such as the Mayoralty. We learned that it is essential that the people who intervene in a territory have clarity about the range that the policies, concepts and projects can have. This in order to avoid making mistakes in the planning and the implementation of actions in the territory, and to be able to define the right priorities and focus resources on the relevant activities. Also, it is necessary to involve younger generations in the process, such as students and new inhabitants (that are commonly disengaged because they aren’t familiar with the territory). If it was possible to involve young adults and children, the empowerment of the community over the territory would be enhanced, and could become permanent. There is still a need to get a deeper understanding of the culture and traditions of the territory, in order to determine better strategies to build a participatory management of the environment and ecosystem services. We identified a loss of interest in the country life from the new generations, who also ignore the importance of ecosystem’s conservation, planting techniques, the use of medicinal plants, and the farming labor. It’s essential to have a property planning that incorporates sustainable production and ecosystem conservation. We need to strengthen the communities’ capacities in order to guarantee the future sustainability of the projects. It’s fundamental to recover traditional knowledges about the productive systems and nature care, that promotes biodiversity conservation in productive landscapes. Altieri, M. A. (2004), Linking ecologists and traditional farmers in the search for sustainable agriculture. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, 2: 35–42. doi:10.1890/1540-9295(2004)002[0035:LEATFI]2.0.CO;2 Corporación Autónoma Regional Del Valle Del Cauca (CVC) y Fundación Agua Viva (FUNAGUA). 2010. “Aunar esfuerzos técnicos y económicos para realizar el análisis preliminar de la representatividad ecosistémica, a través de la recopilación, clasificación y ajuste de información primaria y secundaria con rectificaciones de campo del mapa de ecosistemas de Colombia, para la jurisdicción del Valle del Cauca”. 243 pp. PIZANO, C. & GARCÍA, H., 2014.– El Bosque Seco Tropical en Colombia: 349 pp. Instituto de Investigación de Recursos Biológicos Alexander von Humboldt (IAvH), Bogotá D.C. 2013. Tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests. South America: in the Cauca Valley of western Colombia. [http://www.worldwildlife.org/ecoregions/nt0207 Orjuela-Salazar, Sebastian et al. In press. ACCIONES DE CONSERVACIÓN Y RESTAURACIÓN PARTICIPATIVA EN EL BOSQUE SECO TROPICAL DE LA MICROCUENCA SANTA ROSA – DAGUA‚ VALLE DEL CAUCA. Revista Biota. Sebastián Orjuela: Biologist with expertise in biological characterizations, Ecology, Mammalogy, Environmental Education and Skills development, formulation and implementation of research projects. More than 5 years working in planning and declaration of protected areas in the Valle del Cauca in the framework of the Departmental System of Protected Areas. Andrés Quintero Angel: Biologist with experience in the study of Reptiles, medium and large mammals, and conservation work with ethnic communities. Current research includes the effects of fragmentation and landscape transformation on Wildlife in the Neotropics. Sara Rodríguez: Biologist with studies from the Pontificia Universidad Javeriana of Cali, with emphasis on conservation biology. Has been working with CORFOPAL since 2016, in the project presented in this case study.	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line723
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__label__wiki	0.78525	0.78525	15 July 2019 / SF News / Jay Barmann Sonoma County Man Gets Three Life Sentences For 2004 Jenner Beach Murders, Fratricide Confessed killer Shaun Michael Gallon, 40, was sentenced Monday to three consecutive life terms for the 2004 killing of a young couple on a camping trip, and the 2017 murder of his brother. Gallon pleaded no contest to the three murders on the eve of his trial last month, and Sonoma County Superior Court Judge Robert LaForge sentenced him today following a two-and-a-half-hour hearing, as the Associated Press reports. The resolution to the case comes nearly 15 years after the first two murders, and over two years after Gallon first entered police custody. "It’s crystal clear to me you deserve to spend the rest of your life in prison and then some," LaForge said, according to the Santa Rosa Press-Democrat. In attendance at the hearing was the mother of Lindsay Cutshall, who was fatally shot along with her fiancé Jason Allen while they were asleep in sleeping bags on Fish Head Beach in Jenner on August 18, 2004. Cutshall's mother showed the judge the wedding dress her daughter never got to wear, and read aloud from a letter written by Allen's parents. The murder of the young Christian couple, who were 22 and 26 years old at the time, respectively, made national headlines because of the seeming randomness of it — the pair were on a three-day sightseeing tour of the California Coast after finishing work at a Christian white-water rafting camp in El Dorado County, and they had no connection to Gallon at all. The case went cold due to lack of evidence, even though Gallon had been a person of interest in the case 15 years ago. To this day, Gallon's motive in the dual homicide remains unknown. Sonoma County Public Defender Kathleen Pozzi previously told the Santa Rosa Press-Democrat that Gallon most definitely suffers from mental illness, but further details about the case or his confession have not been made public since no trial ever took place. Gallon had previous run-ins with the law, including spending time in jail for a 2009 case in which he shot a man with a homemade bow and arrow. Just two months before the murders of Cutshall and Allen, Gallon was implicated in a bombing incident in Monte Rio that injured one woman. His motive in the latter case was reportedly to retaliate against a man he'd gotten into a fight with in a Guerneville bar, though the bomb injured the man's wife instead. Gallon's social media presence, as SFist noted before, was filled with survivalist content and pictures of weapons, include a spear that he had fashioned himself. He confessed to the 2004 killings while under questioning for the killing of his brother, Shamus Gallon, in March 2017. Both brothers lived with their mother in Forestville. San Francisco's First Homicide of 2021 Is Man Shot In Tenderloin Arrest Made In July 4th Shooting That Killed Six-Year-Old San Francisco Boy Friday Morning Constitutional: Protesters In SF Call For Trump's Removal Facebook Faces Uphill Battle In Washington For Its Libra Crypto Project It's not looking like it will be an easy road for Facebook in Washington with its launch of Libra, now that they've decided to move into FinTech in a year in which distrust of Facebook is at an all-time high. Juul CEO Full-On Apologizes For Teen Vaping As Vape Ban Ballot Fight Heats Up The San Francisco-based e-cigarette giant might have just taken a hit in their attempt to undo the local vape ban, as their CEO goes deer-in-the-headlights under tough questioning from CNBC. Jay Barmann Jay C. Barmann is a fiction writer and web editor who's lived in San Francisco for 19 years.	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line736
__label__wiki	0.89523	0.89523	British Boy Who Came to Singapore for Aggressive Cancer Finally Heads Home “We had to take the risk, and it paid off. It’s a miracle," Oscar's mum said. Oscar Saxelby-Lee, a six-year-old British boy finally heads home to the UK after a successful experimental treatment for aggressive cancer in Singapore where he emerged cancer-free for about six months. His family flew home on the night of Thursday (25 June). It has been a life-changing experience for them, considering that prior to Oscar’s treatment in Singapore, UK doctors said he only had months left to live. Oscar was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia in December 2018. It is said to start in the bone marrow and invades the blood rapidly. Facebook screengrab/Hand in Hand for Oscar Olivia and Jamie, Oscar’s parents, were said to have learned of the news just three days after celebrating Christmas in 2018, according to reports. Despite rounds of intensive chemotherapy—which forced him into isolation—radiotherapy, to stem cell transplants, which doctors thought would be the cure, the cancer cells continued to multiply. He was described as a “non-responder” to the treatments which also left him “weak and tired”. Experimental Treatment was Last Hope UK doctors said to Oscar’s parents that they have exhausted all treatment options in the UK, leaving only palliative care to help reduce Oscar’s suffering and improve the quality of life. Oscar’s last hope came when doctors from the National University of Singapore (NUS) responded to the family’s call with a new experimental treatment. The family raised £500,000 (S$863,000) within weeks to fund Oscar’s treatment, and flew to Singapore in mid November last year. His cancer cells had multiplied by 100 times in just two months, bringing the cancer count to about 1 per cent. Apart from Oscar, only one other child in the world received this treatment. Even so, it was not guaranteed that the treatment would work. “There was every doubt it wasn’t going to work. This treatment wasn’t even at trial level – it’s compassionate,” Oscar’s mum Olivia explained in an interview with CNA. He had spent 10 months in isolation in hospital by the time he arrived in Singapore. In addition, he also lost a massive amount of weight, faced difficulties in walking and developed bruises on his legs due to strain from walking. Oscar’s cancer cells were at 7 per cent when he was ready to start treatment on Christmas Eve last year. “We had to take the risk, and it paid off” By mid-January, Oscar was rid of all cancer cells in his blood. However, he was said to have suffered from serious side effects from the four rounds of chemotherapy, radiotherapy, isolation, two stem cell transplants and experimental treatment. Oscar’s immune system also took a severe hit, with ulcers and sores appearing in his mouth as well as bouts of vomiting and diarrhoea. He also suffered from brain damage and lost all of his speech, and developed osteopenia—a condition where bone mass is lost and bones become brittle. However, the damage was reversible according to doctors, with medication prescribed to Oscar. His parents have also provided help in the process, exercising Oscar’s legs and aiding his movement around the house. While Oscar struggled to walk and still suffers from tremors, he is said to begin walking again without assistance. Still, the little warrior was said to have maintained a smile on his face, despite the trauma and obstacles faced at such a young age. “We had to take the risk, and it paid off. It’s a miracle. The team at NUH are just phenomenal, and they are so special to us now,” said Olivia. Oscar is said to fly back in about six months’ time for a check-up to make sure he has remained in remission. Once in the UK, he will go for regular checkups at Birmingham Children’s Hospital, near his home in Worcester. Lead image via Facebook screengrab/Hand in Hand for Oscar ALSO READ: “Don’t worry. I’m here”: Brother Holds Nervous Sister’s Hand While Ordering Food at Hawker Centre Jia Ling singapore bone marrow transplant 5-year-old Boy with COVID-19 Saves 7-year-old Sister's Life as Bone Marrow Donor Heart transplant in Singapore: Parents to meet mum who received daughter's heart 'You can choose to let go if you want to': Benjamin Tan's Mum Still In A Coma After 5 Months	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line737
__label__wiki	0.631055	0.631055	Costumes From 2018 Oscar-Nominated Films Are On Display At FIDM By Malia Wooten • February 7, 2019 You’ve seen them on the big screen, now you can see them up close and in person! It’s been a Los Angeles tradition for the film industry to display character costumes just before the Oscars award show. This year, over two dozen costumes are displayed as part of an exhibit called The Art of Motion Picture Costume Design at the Fashion Institute of Design And Merchandising Museum (FIDM). Out of the 25 ensembles on display, five films have been nominated for this year’s Best Costume Design including Mary Popping Returns, The Ballad of Buster Scruggs, and Black Panther. Oscar nominee Ruth Carter, of the superhero fantasy, said that the film had her in more meetings than she’s ever been in for a movie while creating outfits for an imaginary world that had never been seen before. A lot of the time, the thing that helps complete an actor’s quest of developing a character is the moment when they put on the costume. The exhibit is free to the public through the 12 of April. If you want to scope out the pieces nominated for the 91st Academy Award Ceremony, be sure to sneak a peek before Sunday, February 24 at 5p. Location: 919 S Grand Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90015. See it on Google maps. Tags: dtla, fashion, films, movies, museums, oscars	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line739
__label__wiki	0.726532	0.726532	Essays & Criticism Weekly Bestsellers The Troubled Man (Kurt Wallander #10) Author(s): Henning Mankell ;Laurie Thompson (Translator) The much-anticipated return of Henning Mankell's brilliant, brooding detective, Kurt Wallander. On a winter day in 2008, Håkan von Enke, a retired high-ranking naval officer, vanishes during his daily walk in a forest near Stockholm. The investigation into his disappearance falls under the jurisdiction of the Stockholm police. It has nothing to do with Wallander--officially. But von Enke is his daughter's future father-in-law. And so, with his inimitable disregard for normal procedure, Wallander is soon interfering in matters that are not his responsibility, making promises he won't keep, telling lies when it suits him--and getting results. But the results hint at elaborate Cold War espionage activities that seem inextricably confounding, even to Wallander, who, in any case, is troubled in more personal ways as well. Negligent of his health, he's become convinced that, having turned sixty, he is on the threshold of senility. Desperate to live up to the hope that a new granddaughter represents, he is continually haunted by his past. And looking toward the future with profound uncertainty, he will have no choice but to come face-to-face with his most intractable adversary: himself. The first new Wallander novel for a decade, and the final instalment in the bestselling series from the godfather of Swedish crime. "It's an unforgettable finale . . . As satisfying for its emotional depth as its suspense . . . A gripping mystery." People Henning Mankell has become a worldwide phenomenon with his crime writing, gripping thrillers and atmospheric novels set in Africa. His prizewinning and critically acclaimed Inspector Wallander Mysteries are currently dominating bestseller lists all over the globe. His books have been translated into over forty languages and made into numerous international film and television adaptations: most recently the BAFTA-award-winning BBC television series Wallander, starring Kenneth Branagh. Mankell devotes much of his free time to working with Aids charities in Africa, where he is also director of the Teatro Avenida in Maputo. In 2008, the University of St Andrews conferred Henning Mankell with an honorary degree of Doctor of Letters in recognition of his major contribution to literature and to the practical exercise of conscience. Imprint : Vintage Availability date : April 2012 Dewey classification : 839.73/74 Author : Henning Mankell ;Laurie Thompson (Translator) MATILDA BOOKSHOP 1/8 Mt Barker Rd Stirling 5152 \| Phone 08 8339 3931 books@matildabookshop.com.au \| Terms & Conditions \| ABN: 18 171 315 511	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line740
__label__wiki	0.568709	0.568709	Alex Kidd in Miracle World 2 Feb 13, 2017 13:34:31 GMT Andy, Stan, and 12 more like this It's finally here! After 2 years of development, I have finally finished my unofficial sequel to the greatest SMS game ever. Ladies and gentleman, I present Alex Kidd in Miracle World 2 First off, I'd like to mention everyone involved in the creation of this game. Calindro: Created KiddEd and provided invaluable coding support Playgeneration: Created a lot of the game's graphics and produced physical copies of the game Nicole Marie T: Composed all new original music for the game Maxim: Provided invaluable coding support and implemented new features W Lene Chaves: Designed the spectacular cover art So we have put together a small batch of physical copies of the game. Naturally, some copies are going to those involved in creating and supporting the game, but that still leaves copies left over. To make sure these copies go to loving homes, I have decided that all the people who recently contributed towards the site's upkeep costs (you know who you are) are given the opportunity to own one. All I ask is that you cover the cost of postage (I've covered packaging). If you're interested, please send me a PM and we can get something sorted Last Edit: May 16, 2017 22:36:09 GMT by ian Oh you tease! Post by gallos_11 on Feb 13, 2017 21:47:18 GMT Did you make it yourself? Honestly, as long as it´s not official licensed, I think it´s cheeky to call it AKIMW 2. The 2 should be removed. The artwork is pretty nice, though. Feb 13, 2017 21:47:18 GMT gallos_11 said: Myself and a few others have been working on it for a while. I'll be sure to post full credits soon Feb 14, 2017 12:33:57 GMT @gordman said: Seeing as it's meant to be a direct sequel to the first game, I'm not sure what else to call it. I don't think having a '2' is an issue. Glad you like the artwork Professor Playor Post by rupert on Feb 15, 2017 23:15:42 GMT I'm looking forward to this one Photos of my collection and other stuff my collection list my site (not updated for many years and now looks really crap on mobiles): www.segacollect.com Post by Stan on Feb 15, 2017 23:50:54 GMT OH SHEISS WTFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF. Seeing as it's meant to be a direct sequel to the first game, I'm not sure what else to call it. I don't think having a '2' is an issue. A name like ´Return to Miracle World´ (the name of the other game that was made) would fit better. To make it an official sequel without permission seems to be very wrong to me. Post by ShadowAngel on Feb 17, 2017 22:21:39 GMT First of all: Damn, wow, can't wait to see what it will be Feb 16, 2017 9:49:17 GMT @gordman said: I would agree with this but mostly because calling and advertising it with a title that sounds like something official can get you easily into legal troubles i fear. Segas isn't exactly unknown to throw a hissyfit about fan games, just remember how they acted about Streets of Rage Remake... Post by flatapex on Feb 17, 2017 23:58:13 GMT Or the Dreamcast junkyard book.... Sega would throw a hissy fit over the colour of the sky being too close to the blue of their logo Alex Kidd in Miracle World 2 Feb 18, 2017 4:06:09 GMT dezanuebe, wolfticket, and 3 more like this Post by Stan on Feb 18, 2017 4:06:09 GMT I really don't think they're going to care about a game made at production cost for a bunch of weirdos who play a dead system... Feb 18, 2017 4:06:09 GMT Stan said: Plus, Alex is used in the Sega Superstars series as a playable character. So it´s not the case that Sega doesn´t gives a damn about him. I understand Ian, because he wants to make it ´perfect´, but a different name that fits to the game´s story would be better KnightWarrior Post by KnightWarrior on Feb 19, 2017 6:13:02 GMT Sega is up in arms people doing Sonic Hacks Nintendo does shut down fan made games but those games reach a huge pc gamer audience.Nintendo didn't shut down the release of donkey kong jr on c64 and no trouble yet for super mario world....they don't bother with small fanbase or 20+ year old systems.If your going to try and sell the game you can expect a C&D letter quite fast though. Last Edit: Feb 19, 2017 16:17:34 GMT by omegamax	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line741
__label__wiki	0.516826	0.516826	Max Wertheimer Co-founder of Gestalt psychology Max Wertheimer (Prague, 15 April 1880 – New Rochelle, New York, 12 October 1943) was a psychologist who was one of the three founders of Gestalt psychology, with Kurt Koffka and Wolfgang Köhler. From 1929 to 1933, Wertheimer was a professor at the University of Frankfurt. When Adolf Hitler became Chancellor of the Third Reich in 1933, it became apparent to Wertheimer that he must leave Germany. In the end, he accepted an offer to teach at The New School in New York. In New York he continued to investigate problem-solving, or what he preferred to call “productive thinking".[1] The relationship between the book and his earlier work was this: all the problems in the book except one could be solved by considering geometric diagrams. In other words, they were partly visual in essence, and could be represented and partly solved visually. That thread ran through much of the gestalt work. Wertheimer completed the book (his only book) in late September 1943, and died just three weeks later of a heart attack. Wertheimer was buried in Beechwood Cemetery in New Rochelle, New York. Phi phenomenonEdit In the phi phenomenon, a sequence of images causes us a movement sensation. This is not the actual set-up used by Wertheimer, but the idea is similar. The phi phenomenon is an optical illusion described by Wertheimer in 1912, in which the persistence of vision was exploited by the cinema film, applied by Hugo Münsterberg in 1916. This optical illusion is based in the principle that the human eye is capable of perceiving movement from pieces of information, for example, a succession of images. In other words, from a slideshow of a group of frozen images at a certain speed of images per second, we observe constant movement. King, D. Brett & Wertheimer, Michael 2007. Max Wertheimer and Gestalt theory. Transaction. ISBN 9781412807180 ↑ Wertheimer, Max [1945] 1959. Productive thinking. Harper & Row, enlarged edition. Retrieved from "https://simple.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Max_Wertheimer&oldid=7210756" This page was last changed on 12 December 2020, at 10:45.	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line746
__label__cc	0.697938	0.302062	ASX:STO Santos (ASX:STO) Takes On Some Risk With Its Use Of Debt The external fund manager backed by Berkshire Hathaway's Charlie Munger, Li Lu, makes no bones about it when he says 'The biggest investment risk is not the volatility of prices, but whether you will suffer a permanent loss of capital.' So it seems the smart money knows that debt - which is usually involved in bankruptcies - is a very important factor, when you assess how risky a company is. Importantly, Santos Limited (ASX:STO) does carry debt. But the more important question is: how much risk is that debt creating? When Is Debt Dangerous? Debt is a tool to help businesses grow, but if a business is incapable of paying off its lenders, then it exists at their mercy. If things get really bad, the lenders can take control of the business. However, a more frequent (but still costly) occurrence is where a company must issue shares at bargain-basement prices, permanently diluting shareholders, just to shore up its balance sheet. Of course, the upside of debt is that it often represents cheap capital, especially when it replaces dilution in a company with the ability to reinvest at high rates of return. The first thing to do when considering how much debt a business uses is to look at its cash and debt together. Check out our latest analysis for Santos What Is Santos's Net Debt? You can click the graphic below for the historical numbers, but it shows that as of June 2020 Santos had US$4.66b of debt, an increase on US$4.25b, over one year. However, it also had US$1.29b in cash, and so its net debt is US$3.37b. ASX:STO Debt to Equity History September 16th 2020 How Healthy Is Santos's Balance Sheet? We can see from the most recent balance sheet that Santos had liabilities of US$1.13b falling due within a year, and liabilities of US$9.03b due beyond that. Offsetting these obligations, it had cash of US$1.29b as well as receivables valued at US$540.0m due within 12 months. So its liabilities outweigh the sum of its cash and (near-term) receivables by US$8.3b. When you consider that this deficiency exceeds the company's US$7.74b market capitalization, you might well be inclined to review the balance sheet intently. In the scenario where the company had to clean up its balance sheet quickly, it seems likely shareholders would suffer extensive dilution. In order to size up a company's debt relative to its earnings, we calculate its net debt divided by its earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) and its earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) divided by its interest expense (its interest cover). The advantage of this approach is that we take into account both the absolute quantum of debt (with net debt to EBITDA) and the actual interest expenses associated with that debt (with its interest cover ratio). Santos has net debt worth 1.7 times EBITDA, which isn't too much, but its interest cover looks a bit on the low side, with EBIT at only 4.3 times the interest expense. It seems that the business incurs large depreciation and amortisation charges, so maybe its debt load is heavier than it would first appear, since EBITDA is arguably a generous measure of earnings. Shareholders should be aware that Santos's EBIT was down 40% last year. If that decline continues then paying off debt will be harder than selling foie gras at a vegan convention. The balance sheet is clearly the area to focus on when you are analysing debt. But it is future earnings, more than anything, that will determine Santos's ability to maintain a healthy balance sheet going forward. So if you're focused on the future you can check out this free report showing analyst profit forecasts. Finally, a business needs free cash flow to pay off debt; accounting profits just don't cut it. So the logical step is to look at the proportion of that EBIT that is matched by actual free cash flow. Over the last three years, Santos actually produced more free cash flow than EBIT. That sort of strong cash generation warms our hearts like a puppy in a bumblebee suit. Mulling over Santos's attempt at (not) growing its EBIT, we're certainly not enthusiastic. But at least it's pretty decent at converting EBIT to free cash flow; that's encouraging. Once we consider all the factors above, together, it seems to us that Santos's debt is making it a bit risky. Some people like that sort of risk, but we're mindful of the potential pitfalls, so we'd probably prefer it carry less debt. Given our hesitation about the stock, it would be good to know if Santos insiders have sold any shares recently. You click here to find out if insiders have sold recently. If you're interested in investing in businesses that can grow profits without the burden of debt, then check out this free list of growing businesses that have net cash on the balance sheet. When trading Santos or any other investment, use the platform considered by many to be the Professional's Gateway to the Worlds Market, Interactive Brokers. You get the lowest-cost* trading on stocks, options, futures, forex, bonds and funds worldwide from a single integrated account. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. *Interactive Brokers Rated Lowest Cost Broker by StockBrokers.com Annual Online Review 2020 Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com. Discounted cash flow calculation for every stock Simply Wall St does a detailed discounted cash flow calculation every 6 hours for every stock on the market, so if you want to find the intrinsic value of any company just search here. It’s FREE. Simply Wall St is a financial technology startup focused on providing unbiased, high-quality research coverage on every listed company in the world. Our research team consists of equity analysts with a public, market-beating track record. Learn more about the team behind Simply Wall St. Simply Wall Street Pty Ltd 24 Kippax St, Sydney Simply Wall St News Simply Wall Street Pty Ltd (ACN 600 056 611), is a Corporate Authorised Representative (Authorised Representative Number: 467183) of Sanlam Private Wealth Pty Ltd (AFSL No. 337927). Any advice contained in this website is general advice only and has been prepared without considering your objectives, financial situation or needs. You should not rely on any advice and/or information contained in this website and before making any investment decision we recommend that you consider whether it is appropriate for your situation and seek appropriate financial, taxation and legal advice. Please read our Financial Services Guide before deciding whether to obtain financial services from us.	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line748
__label__cc	0.643464	0.356536	Foundation Launch Announcement At Temple and The Ecology Consultancy’s first Annual reception held on 1st November 2018, Mark Southwood stated: “I am absolutely delighted to be able to announce the arrival of the Foundation – to build on a legacy inspired by nature. I am passionate about delivering meaningful change for a sustainable future. There is much to do and it is about action not simply words and good intentions. I have full confidence that through the judicious use of limited funds to bring forward ideas, active partnerships and collaboration across professional boundaries in tandem with communities we can deliver against these high ideals. The commitment to an open platform and the deployment of Foundation Leads and Ambassadors – recognised industry leaders (experts) – will enable the good ideas to be shared with others and implemented as widely as possible”. Southwood Foundation, a charitable company limited by guarantee, registered in England and Wales, company number 11668136, registered charity number 1186090, whose registered office is at 21 Perrymount Road, Haywards Heath, West Sussex, RH16 3TP Made by Eighth Day	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line749
__label__cc	0.638853	0.361147	The non-recovering recovery David McNally, author of Global Slump: The Economics and Politics of Crisis and Resistance, analyzes the latest signs that the world economic crisis is far from over. THE STRUT of confidence is gone, and the jitters are back. A flurry of dreadful statistics at the end of April made sure of that. On April 26 came the news that the British economy grew a mere 0.5 percent in the first quarter of 2011. Coming on the heels of a contraction by that amount in the previous quarter, one commentator was prompted to declare that "the UK is teetering on the brink of a doubledip recession."[1] Forty-eight hours later, the Commerce Department revealed that the U.S. economy had slowed to a crawl, recording a meager 1.8 percent growth rate in the first quarter, down from over 3 percent at the close of 2010. A day later, word arrived that the Canadian economy had shrunk in February, and that the official rate of unemployment in Spain had jumped to 21.3 percent--and the youth jobless rate to a staggering 40 percent. Oh, and did I mention Greece? That country's government, having imposed draconian cuts to public spending only to watch the economy shrivel by nearly 5 percent last year, discovered that it would have to offer a 23.5 percent rate of interest on its two-year bonds if it wanted to raise funds in money markets. Bond yields at such extraordinary rates can only mean that the financial sharks smell a Greek debt default coming, which seems an inescapable conclusion. All of which returns us to an obvious deduction, even if it is resisted by most mainstream economists: This is no more a normal economic recovery than the Great Recession of 2008-9 was an ordinary downturn. Instead, we are in the midst of a much more complex period--one of deep recessions, shallow upturns, high unemployment, government debt crises, renewed recessions and an ongoing era of austerity--which I have characterized as a global slump.[2] OF COURSE, there was no reason to expect a normal recovery in light of what preceded it. The Great Recession of 2008-9, after all, was the deepest and longest downturn experienced by global capitalism since the catastrophic slump of 1929-32. The 30 large economies that comprise the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) underwent a 6 percent contraction in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) with jobless rates jumping two-thirds higher on average. World industrial output fell 13 percent; international trade dropped by 20 percent; and global stock markets plunged 50 percent. The largest wave of bank failures in 80 years shook the financial system. All of this should have indicated that, rather than an ordinary recession, we were dealing with a systemic crisis, one that announced the end of the neoliberal phase of capitalist expansion. And recovering from such an event will be very difficult indeed. As of mid-2011, for instance, well into the "recovery," annual economic growth in the U.S. and the more robust parts of Europe was in the 2.5 to 3 percent range--about half the rate we would expect based on past business cycles. Even during the revival in the middle of the Great Depression, the U.S. economy grew much more dramatically: by almost 8 percent in both 1934 and 1935 and by a stunning 14 percent in 1936. Yet so low are rates of expansion today that they are barely making a dent in unemployment. In fact, in some part of Europe, like Ireland, Greece and Spain, joblessness is on the rise. In the United States, as the graph at the right shows, employment is still more than 5 percent short of its pre-recession level. Across the entire period, since the Great Depression, there has never been a "recovery" that produced jobs at so anemic a rate as what we are seeing at the moment. The big reason for the failure of jobs to return is that while profits have recovered, business investment has not. In one major economy after another, corporations are hoarding cash rather than investing it. This is obviously true in European centers, like Germany and Britain, as it is in the U.S. But it is also the case in states like Canada, which escaped the worst effects of the financial crisis and whose economy has been buoyed by rising prices (and export demand) for raw materials. Business investment in new equipment and machinery in Canada was at just 5.5 percent of GDP in early 2011, compared to 7.7 percent in 2000, or to just under 7 percent in 2005.[3] As for the United States, business fixed investment remained about 15 percent below pre-recession levels in late 2010, more than a year into "recovery."[4] Put simply, the rise in profits is not translating into new capital accumulation on any meaningful scale. Instead, corporations in the U.S. and elsewhere are simply hoarding cash, holding on to it in larger amounts than at any time in the last 60 years. By the beginning of 2011, in fact, non-financial firms in the U.S. had at least $2 trillion in cash and checking deposits, an extremely sharp increase in their holdings of liquid assets, as the next figure at right illustrates.[5] Source: Federal Reserve Board/Haver Analytics It does not take rocket science to discern why investment is so lackluster. First, capacity utilization--the share of existing productive capacity used by business--remains well below historic averages. Secondly, businesses know that with depressed consumer spending, the withdrawal of stimulus and the turn to austerity (deep cuts in public spending), economic demand will take big hits. Consumers and governments will be spending less, not more, in the months and years ahead. And so, rather than invest, businesses are holding on to their profits, or engaging in speculative activity (in oil, gold, food futures, etc.), unable to see what in the economic picture would justify large expenditures on new plants and equipment. Even in China, where some manufacturers are building plants, the economy is slowing down as the government there tries to deflate asset bubbles and bring down inflation. MEANWHILE, AUSTERITY measures--deep cuts to public spending and layoffs of public-sector workers in order to rein in government debt--are driving a number of major economies back into recession or, what is effectively the same thing, into zero-growth scenarios. After having been hit by multibillion-dollar cuts, for instance, Ireland's Department of Finance now estimates its economy will expand by a miniscule 0.75 percent this year, less than half the rate predicted only a few months ago. Unemployment, at just 4.4 percent prior to the crisis, continues to soar, having hit an official rate of 14.7 percent. The British economy, as we have seen, is limping along at a worse pace than Ireland. Then there is ailing Greece, where unemployment figures have risen for seven straight months, topping 15 percent officially, a huge jump from just a year ago. Big surprise that Greek retail sales have plummeted 10 percent in the past year--during the "recovery" phase of the business cycle, let us recall. Meanwhile, Spain, also frantically implementing austerity, has seen the biggest drop in retail sales in two years, while four out of every 10 young people cannot find work, according to official data that seriously understate the real scale of the jobs crisis.[6] In short, austerity is kicking the feet out from under an already feeble recovery. This has prompted a variety of Keynesians to claim that austerity and the removal of stimulus are simply products of the delusional outlook of crazed right-wingers. To be sure, there is something crazed about the deficit-cutters. But from a capitalist standpoint, they are not entirely wrong. Having to finance deficits by raising cash in financial markets, governments must pay a rate of interest determined by calculations as to the probability that they might default on their payments. That's why Greece is paying nearly 25 percent on its two-year bonds. And that is something very real, a genuine financial reality, not just the ideological madness of right-wing nuts. Of course, the right will attempt to exploit such moments to pursue an aggressive political program of attacks on unions and public spending, something I'll return to in a future article. Very real pressure from global markets compels governments to implement austerity even though this is damaging to the economy. Here we are reminded that capital's primary concern is not, and has never been, with the "economy," but with profits and the stability of the system. If those are best achieved in ways that damage jobs and incomes for the majority, so be it. This is why austerity fits the logic of capital even if it means economic stagnation and mounting unemployment. In addition to serving as a reminder that the interests of capital have nothing to do with economic growth and well-being, it also underlines why the only economics and politics capable of effectively resisting are anti-capitalist ones. Only sustained processes of political education, mobilization and resistance will determine whether this insight will become widespread in a context of austerity and global slump. Meanwhile, in downtown Athens these days, as darkness descends, buses full of riot police take up positions near the city center. Knowing that austerity means suffering for the majority, our rulers rightly fear that this majority might at any time pour into the streets. Whether the mass protest they fear will reach the scale required to defeat the austerity agenda is the burning political question of our moment. 1. Business economist John Hawksworth, quoted by Philip Aldrick, "Britain 'on the edge of a double dip recession'," Telegraph, April 27, 2011. 2. See my Global Slump: The Economics and Politics of Crisis and Resistance (Oakland: PM Press, 2011). 3. Karen Howlett, "Corporate Tax Cuts Don't Spur Growth," Globe and Mail, April 6, 2011. 4. Robert Sadowski, "A Cash Buildup and Business Investment," Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, January 10, 2011. 5. This figure is taken from Sadowski. See also Justin Lahart, "Companies Cling to Cash," Wall Street Journal, December 10, 2010. 6. On Greece and Spain, see Phillip Inman, "Greek and Spanish Economies Falter Ahead of Expected Rise in Interest Rates," Guardian, April 29, 2011. First published at DavidMcNally.org. Interview: David McNally Are we headed for another crisis? A veteran socialist and author discusses the prospects of a new economic downturn — and argues for the urgency of building the left. Tom Bramble Will Trump dump Europe? Before his summit with Putin grabbed the headlines, Trump’s Europe visit laid bare growing U.S. conflicts with longstanding allies. Are we living for The City? A book by a former British banking insider seeks to deepen the Marxist analysis of the financial system and modern imperialism. What is to be done with the banks? A group of leading left-wing intellectuals and activists make the case for placing the banks at the service of people instead of profit. Joe Sabatini How the ruling class rules The Panama Papers offer a glimpse into the methods used by the rich to maintain their wealth and power over the rest of us. The charter school charade At a fancy gala thrown by the Harlem Success Academy, I heard charter school supporters use the legacy of civil rights struggles to sell privatization. Lance Selfa How the 1 percent rules We know the 1 percent runs Wall Street and Corporate America, but their control extends into the supposedly democratic political system as well. The real animals are in the White House Trump’s anti-immigrant hate is disgusting — but it’s beyond sobering that his actual immigration policies are so easily confused with Barack Obama’s. The myth of the “Rust Belt reactionaries” The U.S. is strewn with the wreckage of neoliberalism, including across the Midwest, where its victims are blamed for Trump's victory last fall. Annie Levin The American tradition of refusing refugees Donald Trump's ban on Muslim refugees is part of a shameful history that includes U.S. government policies to block European Jews fleeing the Nazis.	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line763
__label__cc	0.6903	0.3097	Plenary Indulgences have been granted His excellency, Bishop Joe Vásquez announces that the Apostolic Penitentiary has granted plenary indulgences for the following: Pilgrimage to the Traveling Statue of Our Lady of Fatima ( December 6-10, 2017); Participation in the Diocese of Austin’s Consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary ( December 10, 2017); and for the 70 th Anniversary of the Diocese of Austin (November 15, 2017, through November 15, 2018). Information on how each of these indulgences can be received follows: What is an indulgence? An indulgence is an act of faith by which a person may obtain release from the temporal punishment associated with sins committed, either for oneself or on behalf of another (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1471). Indulgence:: Pilgrimage to the Traveling Statue of Our Lady of Fatima In observance of the close of the centennial year of Our Lady of Fatima, a plenary indulgence may be received. For able-bodied Catholics: Make a pilgrimage. Make a journey to one of the five diocesan churches on the day when the touring statue of Our Lady of Fatima will be present: St. Luke the Evangelist in Temple on December 6; St. Helen in Georgetown on December 7; St. Mary Cathedral in Austin on December 8; St. Thomas Aquinas in College Station on December 9; St. John the Evangelist in Marble Falls on December 10. Traveling to a pilgrimage site to view and venerate the statue is an expression of one’s deep desire for true conversion. A pilgrimage is a spiritual journey to a sacred place which has a spiritual goal or objective. The pilgrimage is a reminder of our journey as disciples with the Lord to our eternal destination with God. For the elderly, confined, ill or those otherwise unable to make a pilgrimage: Offer their sufferings to the Lord living with faith and joyful hope this moment of trial; OR they may also receive the plenary indulgence by completing a Corporal Work of Mercy or Spiritual Work of Mercy, especially prayers for the souls in purgatory. In addition to the above, the faithful must: Have no attachment to sin (even venial) one may make an act of the will to love God and despise sin. Go to confession. Receive Communion while reflecting on God’s mercy, preferably within Mass. Make a profession of faith (Nicene Creed or Apostles’ Creed). Pray for the pope and for his intentions, which may be satisfied by praying one Our Father and one Hail Mary. It is appropriate that the sacramental confession especially Communion and the prayer for the pope’s intentions take place on the same day of the pilgrimage, but it is not necessary. The sacramental rites and prayers may be carried out over several days (about three weeks) and at a place other than the pilgrimage site. A plenary indulgence may be gained only once each day. Indulgence:: Participation in the Consecration of the Diocese In observance of the consecration of the Diocese of Austin to the Immaculate Heart of Mary a plenary indulgence may be received. For able-bodied Catholics Who participate in their parish Mass on December 10 (or the anticipatory Mass on December 9) where, united with Bishop Vásquez, the priests of the diocese will pray the Prayer of Consecration. For the elderly, confined, ill or those otherwise unable to participate in Mass: Indulgence: For the 70th Anniversary of the Diocese of Austin In observance of the 70th anniversary of the establishment of the diocese a plenary indulgence may be received. Make a pilgrimage to St. Mary Cathedral in Austin before November 15, 2018. Traveling to a pilgrimage site is an expression of one’s deep desire for true conversion. A pilgrimage is a spiritual journey to a sacred place which has a spiritual goal or objective. The pilgrimage is a reminder of our journey as disciples with the Lord to our eternal destination with God. OR they may also receive the plenary indulgence by completing a Corporal Work of Mercy or Spiritual Work of Mercy, especially prayers for the souls in purgatory	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line764
__label__wiki	0.851997	0.851997	The Pakistan Jinnah would have wanted Over the decades so much has been written and discussed about exactly what sort of a country the founder of Pakistan, Muhammad Ali Jinnah, envisioned. One of the reasons why this debate is still raging is because its founder passed away just a year after the country’s inception in 1947. In the decades that followed Jinnah’s demise, numerous theories and claims have been aired by historians, intellectuals, politicians and dictators about what Jinnah wanted Pakistan to evolve into. One side has insisted that he wanted a progressive Muslim-majority state where the state would devise and then infuse into the society a modern, democratic spirit of Muslim nationalism, but where matters of faith and the state would be kept separate. The other side suggests that though the founder was largely ‘Westernised’ in habit, he eventually grew into a leader who strived for a separate Muslim country which could then be evolved through legislation into becoming an ‘Islamic state’. The study of the meeting minutes of Pakistan’s first cabinet, and the ethnic and religious makeup of its members can help us to understand what Jinnah envisioned for the country Both sides liberally dig out and air assorted quotes attributed to Jinnah in this regard. And the truth is, apart from certain sayings of the founder which have been clearly concocted, many quotes do strengthen the arguments of both sides! This is the other reason why this debate has continued to mushroom without reaching any consensual conclusion. Nevertheless, the response to the question, ‘what kind of a Pakistan Jinnah was envisioning’, may more convincingly be found well outside complex intellectual debates on the issue and certainly, away from the awkward agitprop battles which, too, continue to rage between the two point of views. For example, an answer can be extracted by simply studying the make-up and mindset of the country’s first ever federal cabinet. In her book, The Federal Cabinet of Pakistan, professor of history, Naumana Kiran Imran, provides the names of the men who constituted Pakistan’s first federal cabinet. More interestingly, she uses the archived minutes of meetings of this cabinet to explain what these men were discussing during the very first days of the country. She informs that Section 17 of Pakistan’s interim Constitution, which was framed and adopted by the country’s first Constituent Assembly, gave the powers of appointing the cabinet to Pakistan’s governor-general, Muhammad Ali Jinnah. Thus, the country’s first cabinet (headed by Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan) was entirely picked and constituted by Jinnah. Formed on Aug 15, 1947, the cabinet initially had eight ministers. Names of two of these ministers stand out in the much polarised Pakistan of today: Zafarullah Khan (minister of foreign affairs & commonwealth relations), and Jogendra Nath Mandal (minister of law). Khan was a member of the Ahmadiyya community which, 27 years later in 1974, and on the demands of the religious parties, was outlawed as a Muslim sect by the populist regime of Z.A. Bhutto. A highly respected diplomat, Khan has been an often-discussed man by Pakistani historians, not only because he was from the Ahmadiyya community, but also because he was one of Jinnah’s closest colleagues. In the early 1940s, when Jinnah was trying to form a broad-based collation to bolster the fortunes of the All India Muslim League (AIML), he was asked by some of his potential non-AIML allies to declare the Ahmadis as non-Muslim. In May 1944, during a press conference in Kashmir, Jinnah said to the gathered pressmen, “who am I to call a person non-Muslim who calls himself a Muslim …” It is now a well-documented fact that Jinnah insisted on Khan becoming the country’s first foreign minister. The case of the other stand-out minister in the first cabinet has, however, largely been forgotten. Mandal was a Hindu from Bengal. He belonged to the scheduled caste of Hindus in India and had joined Jinnah’s AIML believing that in Pakistan, his caste would be able to flourish more than they would in an India dominated by higher caste Hindus. Mandal became a member of the AIML in 1943 and mustered support for the party among East Bengal’s scheduled castes in the important 1945 general, and then the 1946 provincial elections in India. On Aug 11, 1947, when Pakistan’s first Constituent Assembly chose Jinnah as governor-general of the new country, Jinnah asked Mandal to preside over the assembly’s inaugural session. Renowned scholar, Ayesha Jalal, and historian, Dr Mubarak Ali, have both maintained that Jinnah did this to physically manifest a portion of the speech which he (Jinnah) delivered in that session, and in which he declared: “ … you will find that in course of time [in Pakistan] Hindus would cease to be Hindus and Muslims would cease to be Muslims; not in the religious sense, because that is the personal faith of each individual, but in the political sense as citizens of the State.” Mandal was gradually isolated after Jinnah’s demise in 1948, and in 1950 he wrote a long letter of resignation to Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan. In it he bemoaned that Jinnah’s vision was being undermined by the politicians and bureaucrats, and that the scheduled caste Hindus who had followed his (Mandal’s) lead to become Pakistanis were not being treated any better than they were in India. Mandal migrated to India in 1950 and died there in 1968. So what was the country’s first federal cabinet discussing? Prof. Imran, in her book, sifts through the minutes of the cabinet meetings to inform that much was discussed about the importance of giving the governor-general (Jinnah) extraordinary powers; but also set “the ideal of developing Pakistan as a democracy based on the British model”. Economics, too, was an important subject in the meetings and ideas were discussed to provide Pakistan a sustainable economy through the creation of industry, banks and economic boards. It was, however, well understood by the cabinet that Pakistan was an agrarian economy. In an October 1947 meeting, cabinet members decided that Pakistan was “not bound for explanations to any other country” regarding its response to Indian accusations (regarding Kashmir). In fact, the Kashmir issue was frequently discussed by the cabinet. Prof. Imran’s interpretation of these cabinet meetings suggests that the cabinet saw Jinnah as a benevolent figurehead who needed to be sufficiently empowered as the final decision maker. However, cabinet members also saw Jinnah as a man who had conceived a country built on Muslim nationalism, but one that was to be driven by a pluralistic code of governance and statehood with all of its ethnicities and religious groups made part of the nation-building process. Ironically, Prof. Imran also mentions that even the very first cabinet had divisions. There was tension between a “Punjabi group” and a “Bengal group”. The study of the minutes of the meetings of the first cabinet, and the ethnic and religious nature of its members, can be an effective tool to understand exactly what was on the minds of the founders of Pakistan right after the country’s creation. It can provide an interesting glimpse into the initial contradictions, as well as the nobility of purpose, behind the men who were the first to try making sense of a unique nationalistic emergence in South Asia called Pakistan. http://www.dawn.com/news/1259568 Previous PostThe fault in our starNext PostAhmadiyya Mosque in Indonesia targeted in a late-night attack	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line765
__label__wiki	0.956964	0.956964	Daily Archives: November 16th, 2013 Could Kevin Love become the NBA’s first 30-15 player in 40 years? By Jerry Tapp on November 16, 2013 \| 1 Comment Kevin Love (Photo credit: Wikipedia) With 28 points and 10 rebounds, Minnesota Timberwolves power forward Kevin Love last night had the 20oth double-double of his career in his team’s 117-113 loss to the Denver Nuggets. Since coming into the NBA in 2008-09 out of UCLA, Love has the third most double-doubles in the league behind Dwight Howard (290) and David Lee (241). But Love’s play this season, averaging 27.2 points and 13.8 rebounds per game after 10 games, raises the question: Could Love average 30 points and 15 rebounds in an NBA season? Through the first 10 games, Love has reached 30 points and 15 rebounds in the same game three times. Only one other player, Nikola Vucevic has one 30-15 game this season in the NBA. Love now has 21 games in his career where he scored 30 or more points and collected 15 or more boards in the same contest. Since 2008-09, that is the second most in the league behind Howard. Here’s a look at the players who have had the most 30-15 games since 2008-09. 30-15 games since 2008-09, Player(s) 23: Dwight Howard 21: Kevin Love 13: Zach Randolph 8: Chris Bosh 5: Al Jefferson, David Lee 4: Tim Duncan, Kevin Durant, Blake Griffin, Dirk Nowitzki Scoring 30 or more points in a game with 15 or more rebounds is one thing… averaging 30-15 for the season in quite an accomplishment. In fact, the last player to average 30-15 in an NBA season was 40 years ago when Bob McAdoo averaged 30.6 points and 15.1 rebounds per game during the 1973-74 season. Since then the closest player to achieve this milestone was Moses Malone in 1981-82 when he averaged 31.1 points and 14.7 boards. Even if we drop the parameters down a bit to averaging 27 points and 13 rebounds a game in a season, there are just a few players who have achieved those numbers. Through the first 10 games of this season, Love would make the list. Can he keep up this pace and finish at 27-13? If Love ended the season averaging 27-13, he would become only the 11th player in NBA history to reach these numbers. Following are the 10 players who averaged 27 points-13 rebounds in an NBA season (listed in parenthesis are the number of seasons with 27-13). Wilt Chamberlain (8), Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (7), Bob Pettit (5), Elgin Baylor (4), Elvin Hayes (3), Walt Bellamy (2), Moses Malone (2), Bob McAdoo (2), Shaquille O’Neal (2), Bob Pettit (1). The last player to reach 27-13 in a season was Shaq in 1999-2000 when he averaged 29.7 points and 13.6 rebounds per contest. Pretty impressive company if Love should retain his early-season numbers… other than O’Neal, who will eventually be elected, the other nine players are all members of the Hall of Fame. Posted in: Basketball	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line766
__label__wiki	0.595959	0.595959	S.S. Keewatin The world's last Edwardian passenger steamship. The Ship: S.S. Keewatin S.S. Keewatin is the world’s last British-built, Edwardian-era passenger steamship. Constructed in 1907, 5 years prior to Titanic, and to similar standards but on a smaller scale, Keewatin exemplifies the culture which dominated the dawn of the twentieth century. Of some 3800 similar liners built between 1900 and 1920, Keewatin is the sole survivor. Her Operator: “Friends of Keewatin” (us) The “Friends of Keewatin” is the popular name for The RJ and Diane Peterson Keewatin Foundation, a registered Canadian charity (81676 3536 RR 0001) named for the Michigan couple who saved the S.S. Keewatin from the wreckers in 1967. The Friends leases the S.S. Keewatin and the dock and bay at which she resides from their owners, and operates her as an historical attraction. To preserve and protect the S.S. Keewatin, an historical artifact from the dawn of the 20’th century, and to tell the story of her contribution to securing Confederation as a member of the Upper Great Lakes Fleet. “Friends of Keewatin” operates the S.S. Keewatin as an historical attraction, conducting guided tours of the ship, her fixtures, and displays of her artifacts, in return for admission. We are seasonal: we traditionally open the Thursday prior-to Victoria Day, and close on Thanksgiving Day. We also welcome donations, and pursue applicable government grants. Friends of Keewatin is headed by a Chief Executive Officer working with a small Board of Management as a “brains trust”. The CEO is also President, and the Board of Management is comprised primarily of a Management Team which works with the coordination of a General Manager to operate the S.S. Keewatin as an historical attraction. Friends of Keewatin is comprised of Volunteers. Those few who are also employees are paid nominally, and currently include one full-time, one part-time, and two temporary / part-time managers. Some services are contracted out. The backbone of Friends of Keewatin is unpaid volunteers: at the end of the 2017 season active volunteers numbered in excess of seventy. You’ll find the charity registration of the RJ and Diane Peterson Keewatin Foundation on the Canada Revenue Agency website, including financial reporting. Location: 311 Talbot St., Port McNicoll, ON L0K 1R0 Postal Mail: PO Box 189, Port McNicoll, ON L0K 1R0 Website: https://www.sskeewatin.com Email: info@sskeewatin.com Destination Ontario The state of our project: SS Keewatin – Updated Valuation Report 2018: Click Here SS Keewatin – Declaration of Authenticity 2018: Click Here The RJ and Diane Peterson Keewatin Foundation is a history management and marketing organization responsible for the care, operation and promotion of a beloved Canadian artifact. Our Canadian icon has its roots in Georgian Bay area of the Great Lakes, County of North Simcoe and Province of Ontario as well as the greater country as a whole. We are linked to Scotland in the United Kingdom and Michigan in the United States. Our mission is to promote participation and passion for the S.S. Keewatin, to provide entertainment and education and ensure this Century plus year old Edwardian vessel has long term viability while always being responsible and respectful of Keewatin’s heritage and taking fiscal responsibility for her preservation and continued operation . To be recognized as a role model charitable organization in terms of governance, sponsor-ship and financial strength and to offer the ultimate marine based historic entertainment experience by which all similar venues are measured. To be the creator and custodian of generations of dreams and memories that will be enhanced by expanding Keewatin into a “living facility” run by a dedicated volunteer community for the benefit of all. To provide the local community with a venue for celebration and various events that will reinforce the values and traditions of the Heart of Georgian Bay as an historic area. S.S. KEEWATIN ● 311 Talbot St., Port McNicoll, ON L0K 1R0 CANADA ● (705) 534-3767 Operated by The RJ and Diane Peterson Keewatin Foundation. One of many Great Daytrips in the Heart of Georgian Bay. Friends of Keewatin © 2021. All Rights Reserved.	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line769
__label__wiki	0.803027	0.803027	Natural Resources in Zimbabwe Categories: Natural resources Essay, Pages 8 (2063 words) Inequality with regards to natural resources in Zimbabwe has always been an issue as the select few were previously owners of vast of the natural resources. One such resource is land, which has always been a source of political conflict since colonisation, both within indigenous black communities and, especially, between white settlers and the black rural communities. Colonial policies gave a minority of white farmers’ ownership of large areas of arable commercial land, while a majority of black families lived in overcrowded, arid communal areas. Get a verified expert to help you with Natural Resources in Zimbabwe It is therefore not surprising that when Zimbabwe gained independence, redistribution of the land to the black majority was one of the top priorities of the government. In this paper, the writer will endeavor to look at how the land reform programme has impacted on economic development of the country. Both the negative and positive effects will be looked at and recommendations given. Boyce et al (2005) define land reform as the reallocation of rights to establish a more equitable distribution of farmland, which is a powerful strategy for promoting both economic development and environmental quality. In addition, Banerjee (1999) opts for a simple definition, stating that it is the distribution of land to the rural poor like was the case in Zimbabwe. For purposes of this paper land reform will be defined as the reallocation of land from the minority to the majority of the people who had been previously allocated poor infertile or no land at all. Thomas (2015) postulated that economic development are those activities that lead to greater resource productivity, a wider range of real choice for consumers and producers, and broader clientele participation in policy formulation. Allan Brooks Economic development is work to align human and natural resources of their community to match both global and regional markets, and they can strive to create new jobs that fit both the people and the place.” (Blakely and Bradshaw 2002). In this paper, economic development is understood to mean the process by which a nation improves the economic well-being of its people. Theoretical Framework Conflict Theory, developed by Karl Marx, contends that due to society’s never-ending competition for resources it will always be in a state of conflict. The implication of this theory is that those in possession of wealth and resources will protect and hoard those resources, while those without will do whatever they can to obtain them. This is a true reflection of why the Chimurenga was fought in Zimbabwe. Fertile land belonged to the minority of the whites while the black majority were allocated little non fertile land. This resulted in the blacks doing what they could in a bid to try and have the land. This dynamic means there is a constant struggle between the rich and the poor. It is this struggle that led to the fast track land reform programme by the Zimbabwean government, so as to try and remedy the imbalance. The process was a noble one, however, it has had certain implications towards economic development. According to (Mazingi and Kamidza 2011), land has been a source of political conflict in Zimbabwe since 1890 to date due to distribution inequity. For example, the white minority who comprised 3% of the population controlled 75% of the economically viable land, whilst the black majority only had the remaining overcrowded, scattered and unfertile land at their disposal (Mabaye 2005). Hill and Katarere (2002) points out that the white minority occupied the best agro-ecological regions in Zimbabwe. In 1980, The Lancaster House Agreement marked the first effort to distribute land more equitably, and contained provisions on land acquisition which protected farm owners. It established that the government would not engage in compulsory land acquisition, as land distribution was intended to take place under a principle of “willing buyer, willing seller”, whereby the government would pay promptly adequate compensation for property. It is therefore not surprising that progress under this first phase of reform was slow, and the number of families resettled by the end of 2000 still fell short of the 1980 targets. This was due to the fact that no one was willing to just give up their fertile land as the land could only be bought by the government from those who wanted to dispose of it. It is clear that those who owned the land were not willing to dispose of it as they were benefiting a lot. During the 1990s, less than 1 million hectares of land (2.47 million acres) was acquired and fewer than 20,000 families were resettled. Similarly, much of the land acquired during this time was of poor quality, according to Human Rights Watch, only 19 percent of the almost 3.5 million hectares (8.65 million acres) of resettled land was considered prime, or farmable. The very few farmers who decided to sell disposed of infertile land and the fertile land continued to be under the ownership of the minority. This situation fuelled discontent amongst the majority and resulted in the initiation of the second phase of the Land Redistribution and Resettlement programme in the form of the Fast Track Land Reform Programme (FTLRP), which started in 2000. The Fast Track Land Reform Programme (FTLRP) resulted in the creation of a number of small, medium and large scale farms. Furthermore, ownership was transferred from the minority white farmers to new indigenous farmers ( Chamunogwa 2012). This paper seeks to look at how the fast track land reform programme impacted on economic development in Zimbabwe. Benefits of the Fast Track Land Reform Programme Sachikonye (2003) contends that most of the resettled farmers were former employees of the commercial white farmers. This implies that the redistributive agrarian reform helped free peasant part-time labour and farm compound labour from the economic compulsion to provide cheap labour to the Commercial farmers ensure that the land residency and land use rights of farm labour are detached from the provision of labour, effectively abolishing the exploitation of farm workers. This effectively empowered the beneficiaries of the land reform as they no longer relied of meager salaries but were their own bosses as they were now in a position to till the land for their own betterment. Since the majority of the populace had been resettled and were earning more than what they earned from the white farmers, this meant that they had been economically empowered and no longer lived on the mercy of the select few. Many beneficiaries say land reform helped achieve what the liberation war was meant to bring (Sadomba 2008). The scope of sovereignty and self-determination in such areas is considered to have been enlarged for some, who refer to the reforms in terms of regaining territorial autonomy. The resettled farmers now had land to their names, which is what many had fought for in the liberation struggle but continued to suffer under the white minority even after independence. This sense of autonomy and self determination meant the increase in productivity of the resettled farmers, thus the improvement in their standard of life. This also meant economic liberation for the farmers whose standard of living improved drastically. Negative effects of the fast track land reform programme. Richardson (2004) contends that in 1999 -2000 commercial farmers planted 200,000 hectares of farmland, in 2000 -2001 it was 90,000 hectares, and by 2001 -2002 it was only 50,000 hectares, bringing about a 50%-90% contraction. A significant drop in agricultural production and food availability have been the order of the day after the fast track land programme. This has negatively affected the economic stability of the country. As a result of this decline, Zimbabwe lost its status as the bread basket of Africa Zikhali (2008) acknowledges that the fast track land reform programme replaced mostly experienced farmers with inexperienced farmers who were subsistence oriented, and in Richardson (2004)’s view lacked the knowledge of running a commercial farm as many farms were simply left fallow or the wrong types of inputs were used. Sharing the same view, Dabale et al (2014) also claims that the necessary extension services required were limited due to capacity challenges faced by the country. The end result was that vast land was left unused and therefore impacting negatively on productivity. The very little that was cultivated yielded little due to the fact that wrong inputs had been used, thus the decrease in productivity. This impacted negatively on the economic development of the country as agriculture which was the backbone of the country was no longer in a position to produce enough for the people, let alone for exports.. Furthermore, the immediate consequence of the fast track land reform programme was an exodus of white farmers from their properties and the loss of jobs and livelihoods for thousands of farm workers (Sachikonye, 2003). Prior to land reform, an estimated 320,000 to 350,000 farm workers were employed on commercial farms owned by about 4,500 white farmers with dependents numbering between 1.8 and 2 million, constituting nearly 20 per cent of the country’s population (Sachikonye, 2003). The exact figures on the numbers of ex-farm-workers displaced remains contentious, although Commercial Farmers Union (2003) estimated them to be around 200 000 permanent workers, with an additional number of seasonal workers having lost their working opportunities. In addition to the loss of jobs and incomes, farm workers, who even before the advent of the fast track land reform programme were mostly vulnerable as a result of their meager salaries also lost access to basic social services, subsidized food and shelter in some of the cases (Sachikonye 2003). Consequently, thousands of them had their source of livelihoods withdrawn (Richardson, 2004), and constituted only about 5% of the total land beneficiaries from the fast track land reform programme, whilst the rest were completely marginalized from land access (Moyo, 2004). Most of these resettled former farm workers who had lost their jobs were not in a position to realize an income that was even above the meager one that they were accustomed to when they were workers. This resulted in the deterioration of their standard of living and an increased level of poverty within the people. This put a further strain on the economy which was already strained, thus an adverse impact on the economy. Sachikonye (2003) points out that it had been commercial farmers who were recognized as being among the most productive farmers in the world, holding world records in yields and advanced conservation techniques. The reduction in yields from farming also meant that the country could no longer export much as it couldn’t sustain its people. This resulted in a decline In the realization of foreign currency hence the negative impact on economic development. From the above, it is clear that the land reform programme’s impact was more negative than positive. Therefore, to address the negatives, the writer recommends that the government must invest in infrastructural development for farmers in Zimbabwe. Most of the farms are hard to reach due to dilapidated roads hence the farmers find it difficult to easily reach markets. Bad roads also lead to quicker depreciation of their assets like delivery trucks, thus inhibiting their progress in development. Most of the farm produce are perishables that should reach markets expediently, however, the bad roads results in the failure to do so. Furthermore, the government must invest in the economically active population who will be able to put the investments into good use. Most of the land is lying idle due to the fact that most of the elderly beneficiaries are overwhelmed by the work that needs to be done. It is also recommended that the government financing and input programs should ensure that the economically active are the first to benefit because this group of farmers is eager to start its own farm businesses and have the energy to manage. Further to that, the government should ensure that one is allocated what they can manage not allocate land on the basis of who one is. Lastly, the government should invest in educating farmers to ensure that they establish and grow successful farm operations that will positively contribute to agricultural development in Zimbabwe sustainably. This is so because, as discussed above, most of the poor yields being experienced are due to the improper use of inputs by farmers. The fast track land reform programme has negatively impacted on economic development more than it has positively done so. It is thus clear that if positive impacts are to be realized, certain issues have to be addressed. The government is to take stock and look at how productivity can be increased by the current landowners and also ensure full and not partial economic empowerment of same. Natural Resources in Zimbabwe. (2019, Dec 20). Retrieved from http://studymoose.com/natural-resources-in-zimbabwe-essay The causes for the failure of White Revolution Pages: 20 (5865 words) Evidence of China's involvement with Africa dates as early as in Pages: 6 (1699 words) Problem encounter by the fast food chain or restaurants Pages: 38 (11352 words) Social Class and Straification Pages: 143 (42827 words) Advanced Accounting by Guerrero Pages: 7 (2032 words) Physical Planning in Kenya Pages: 31 (9198 words) Industrial Democracy in Zimbabwe Pages: 6 (1686 words) Enviromental Isses Pages: 104 (31076 words)	cc/2021-04/en_head_0039.json.gz/line770

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