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Iowa Gov. Branstad Attacks ‘Shadowy’ Bloggers Exposing Pink Slime, Says Asking About Industry Cash Is A ‘Smear’
posted at 12:30 pm by Zaid Jilani
Pink slime, the ammonia-treated filler substance made with beef scraps, was once reserved for dog food before corrupted regulators changed the rules. Many Americans are demanding that the U.S. Department of Agriculture force food dealers to reveal which products include pink slime. But the beef industry’s lobbyists are fighting back, as my colleague Lee Fang explained.
One outspoken advocate for pink slime is Iowa Governor Terry Branstad (R). In an interview with Marketplace this morning, Branstad said there was a “vicious smear campaign” against pink slime run by “shadowy” social media. When asked about the $180,000 in campaign contributions he’s gotten from the beef industry over the past couple years, he simply wrote it off as a smear:
Hobson: Now I can’t see you in person, but I hear you’re wearing a “Dude, it’s beef” t-shirt?
Branstad: That’s right, given to me by Lt. Gov. Sheehy from Nebraska when we had the big meeting out there with BPI and went through and showed that it’s a very good, clean, USDA-approved process that provides this lean, finely textured beef. This is a very positive campaign to get the truth out, and to counter the vicious smear campaign that’s been conducted.
Hobson: Well who’s running this “vicious smear campaign?”
Branstad: You know, you’ve got a celebrity chef; you’ve got some folks that have traditionally been against the consumption of meat. We’ve asked the agriculture committee in Congress to look into it and see if they can find out more. But a lot of this has been done, kind of a shadowy thing using the social network to get that out there. […]
Hobson: Now, some people are going to hear you say this and say, “Wait a minute — Gov. Branstad is just sticking up for an industry that’s important to his state and that donated $180,000 to his campaign over the last two years.” How do you respond to that?
Branstad: Well, that’s what happens when you confront people with the facts, they tend to attack the people that are delivering the message. I as governor certainly am going to fight for jobs in my state, and I believe in agriculture and I believe in the beef industry. We are fighting back with the truth and with scientific evidence, and the only thing they’ll do is personally attack and use smear tactics. That tells you a lot about the character of the people conducting the smear campaign, doesn’t it?
Listen to the interview with Branstad:
It’s telling that Branstad simply disregards questions about his campaign’s funders as part of a “smear campaign.” The governor has a responsibility to approach the address the issue and not simply seek to tar the people pointing out inconvenient facts about pink slime.
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Richmond Tennis Association | Barnes Supports Game Behind, In Front of Scenes
Barnes Supports Game Behind, In Front of Scenes
RICHMOND– Growing up in Baytown, Texas, Bill Barnes enjoyed playing baseball in high school. He picked up tennis before his move to Richmond in 1986.
Barnes has enjoyed success in the U.S. Tennis Association’s rated divisions, but he is best known as the leading sponsor of the McDonald’s Mid-Atlantic Open Clay Court Championships held every July at Salisbury Country Club.
The junior circuit gives kids a chance to compete in one-day tournaments in different clubs around town.
Barnes, 68, owns 11 McDonald’s restaurants in Richmond.
For all of his contributions, Barnes is being inducted into the Richmond Tennis Hall of Fame during a gala celebration and dinner at the Westwood Club on Oct. 28. Tickets are now on sale at richmondtennis.org.
Barne’s long-time friend John DePew said Barnes is enthusiastic about tennis.
“He thinks out of the box,” said DePew. “He has a lot of passion for tennis…he’s a real promoter of the game.”
After taking lessons from high school players in Baytown, Barnes kept improving. He became a 4.5 player under the tutelage of Junie Chatman, a pro at Briarwood (now acac).
Barnes recalls playing at the old Robious Sports and Fitness Club (now Midlothian Athletic Club) when he first got here.
“Playing next to me was Ward Hamilton, Jimmy Milley, Tom Hood and John DePew,” he said. “As things worked out over time, I became good friends with all those guys.”
Barnes captained and played on three U.S.T.A rated teams that won national championships at the 4.5 level. The first came in 1993 and then back-to-back titles in 2000-2001.
Barnes said his team began practice early.
“We would start in October by building our team for the next year,” said Barnes. “A lot of people don’t start until December or January, so we always had a head start on getting the good players.”
The McDonald’s Virginia State Clay Court Championships moved from acac to Salisbury Country Club in 1999, but it wasn’t until 2006 that Barnes and tournament director Scott Steinour decided to make it a stronger event.
It became the McDonald’s Mid-Atlantic Open Clay Court Championships and prize money was increased substantially.
That attracted players who competed on the minor pro circuit, as well as the area’s top pros and collegians.
“After two or three years at Salisbury, Scott and I talked about it,” said Barnes. “My goal was to have a tournament at the prize-money level of the CVITT.”
Barnes referred to the Central Virginia Invitational Tennis Tournament held at the Oakwood CC in Lynchburg since 1960.
The club agreed to allow the tournament to expand its draws while increasing prize money, and gradually the event has become the premier tournament in the area.
Sponsors increased from 10 to the present level of 60. Prize money is now $30,000, with the men’s and women’s winners taking home $7,500 each.
In the next year, Barnes said he would like to see total prize money increase so the winners would receive $10,000.
Along the way, Salisbury has improved its tennis facilities, adding lighting to eight of its courts, improving the landscaping and – the coup de grace — putting in an $80,000 skybox between the two show courts and four other main courts that allows sponsors to mingle, eat and sip beverages.
“The tournament has brought a lot of assets to the club,” said Steinour, the director of tennis at Salisbury. “The skybox, the lit courts. A lot of other amenities that Salisbury has benefited from, due to the tournament.”
Barnes said he likes making friends through tennis.
“It really gives you a good feeling … to know people appreciate having this type of event [clay courts] in Richmond,” said Barnes.
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Home » Long Bright River: A Novel (Hardcover)
Long Bright River: A Novel (Hardcover)
By Liz Moore
Available from warehouse in 1-5 business days
Kobo eBook (January 7th, 2020): $13.99
While on retreat in the North Carolina mountains, my book of choice was a mystery, Long Bright River by Liz Moore. The opioid crisis is a big player in this story of a policewoman, Mickey, searching for her sister Kacey through the seamy side of Philadelphia. Women are being murdered there, and the suspects are many, including some of the supposed good guys. The complexity and complications of the sisters’ relationship deepen throughout the book. There were several twists and turns I didn’t see coming, especially the identification of the murderer. It was a great book to read voraciously as the rain, wind and cold drove us indoors for a good part of the week.
— Mamie
“This story’s power comes not just from its beautiful writing but the reality of its characters and the incisive nature of its setting. Liz Moore has created a masterpiece that exposes the opioid epidemic in Philadelphia, highlighting the vulnerability of its victims and the sheer scope of suffering it causes. From the first page, when the murder mystery begins, readers will suffer and rejoice with the novel’s oh-so-human characters. The power of this story is a fire that will linger for a long time.”
— Hilary Kotecki, The Doylestown & Lahaska Bookshops, Doylestown, PA
Winter 2020 Reading Group Indie Next List
“Long Bright River begins with a list, a very long list, of people from the Kensington neighborhood of Philadelphia who have overdosed on opioids. The list is compiled by Mickey, a police officer who grew up in the neighborhood. On the list are both of her parents, and Mickey wonders when her beloved sister Kacey will be added. This is a very powerful story of addiction, family, and the hope for recovery and redemption.”
— Nancy Baenen, Arcadia Books, Spring Green, WI
ONE OF BARACK OBAMA'S FAVORITE BOOKS OF THE YEAR
NAMED A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR BY NPR, PARADE, REAL SIMPLE, and BUZZFEED
A GOOD MORNING AMERICA BOOK CLUB PICK
"[Moore’s] careful balance of the hard-bitten with the heartfelt is what elevates Long Bright River from entertaining page-turner to a book that makes you want to call someone you love.” – The New York Times Book Review
"This is police procedural and a thriller par excellence, one in which the city of Philadelphia itself is a character (think Boston and Mystic River). But it’s also a literary tale narrated by a strong woman with a richly drawn personal life – powerful and genre-defying.” – People
"A thoughtful, powerful novel by a writer who displays enormous compassion for her characters. Long Bright River is an outstanding crime novel… I absolutely loved it."
—Paula Hawkins, #1 New York Times-bestselling author of The Girl on the Train
Two sisters travel the same streets, though their lives couldn't be more different. Then one of them goes missing.
In a Philadelphia neighborhood rocked by the opioid crisis, two once-inseparable sisters find themselves at odds. One, Kacey, lives on the streets in the vise of addiction. The other, Mickey, walks those same blocks on her police beat. They don't speak anymore, but Mickey never stops worrying about her sibling.
Then Kacey disappears, suddenly, at the same time that a mysterious string of murders begins in Mickey's district, and Mickey becomes dangerously obsessed with finding the culprit--and her sister--before it's too late.
Alternating its present-day mystery with the story of the sisters' childhood and adolescence, Long Bright River is at once heart-pounding and heart-wrenching: a gripping suspense novel that is also a moving story of sisters, addiction, and the formidable ties that persist between place, family, and fate.
Liz Moore is the author of the acclaimed novels Heft and The Unseen World. A winner of the 2014–2015 Rome Prize in Literature, she lives in Philadelphia.
"An instant sensation and the January pick for Good Morning America’s book club."
"Navigates assuredly between the plot twists and big reveals. . . . Long Bright River is equal parts literary and thrilling."
"Tough, tense and twisty - but tender, human and deeply affecting, too ... I don't have a sister, but when I finished the book I called my brother, just to hear his voice."
"Satisfyingly, the characters’ interior lives are as important as the mysteries that propel the action."
—NYT Editor’s Choice
"Long Bright River— a book that has garnered much pre-publication buzz — nervously twists, turns and subverts readers’ expectations till its very last pages. Simultaneously, it also manages to grow into something else: a sweeping, elegiac novel about a blighted city.”
"Alternating its present-day mystery with the story of the sisters' childhood and adolescence, Long Bright River is at once heart-pounding and heart-wrenching: a gripping suspense novel that is also a moving story of sisters, addiction, and the formidable ties that persist between place, family, and fate.”
"Truly, this is a great literary novel about a city in the age of opioids and two sisters navigating their past. And in the tradition of many great literary thrillers, I promise you, you will not see the end coming."
"Powerful."
"Moore’s observations are informed and compassionate… One of loveliest things about Long Bright River is that it’s not a literary glorification of addiction."
"Thoughtfully explores the power of nature versus nurture, the pull of addiction, and, and the lengths we go to for family."
"An exquisite novel that dug its fingers into my heart and has refused to let go…I finished this novel shaken, both by its sheer emotional resonance and also because of how clear and familiar so much of what Moore describes feels to me.
"Pulsating with breathtaking suspense and boundless compassion, Long Bright River is the kind of genre-defying novel that, once the final chapters close, you instantly implore people to read. Topical yet timeless, its page-turning narrative wrestles with the fissures and wreckage that addiction can inflict on a family—and a city. Liz Moore is a force, and Long Bright River should be on top of everyone's to-read list come January.”
"A propulsive thriller and a poignant family saga.”
"Deftly plotted with strong, vivid characters, Liz Moore's outstanding Long Bright River works as solid crime fiction and an intense family thriller."
"Liz Moore’s Long Bright River is the perfect literary page-turner. It’s a brilliantly plotted crime novel, yes, but it’s also a story about the complicated push and pull of family, and how much of our childhood traumas we carry forward through our lives. Anyone with a mother, a father, a brother, or a sister – anyone with a heart, for that matter – will love this book, as I did."
—Mary Beth Keane, New York Times bestselling author of Ask Again, Yes
"Liz Moore’s Long Bright River is a riveting portrait of so many things—of grief, of sisterhood, of a neighborhood in despair. Moore makes you care about the people that society too often abandons and, in doing so, pulls off a hat trick of epic storytelling that is stigma-busting, love-rendering, and page-turning to the last word."
— Beth Macy, New York Times-bestselling author of Dopesick: Dealers, Doctors, and the Drug Company That Addicted America
"A superlative crime novel. Set against the backdrop of Philadelphia’s opioid crisis, this is not just a gripping mystery but a thoughtful, powerful novel by a writer who displays enormous compassion for her characters. Long Bright River is an outstanding crime novel, bringing to mind the best of Dennis Lehane or David Simon. I found myself eking out the final pages because I didn’t want it to end. I absolutely loved it."
"Long Bright River is a remarkable, profoundly moving novel about the ties that bind and the irrevocable wounds of childhood. It’s also a riveting mystery, perfectly paced. I loved every page of it."
—Dennis Lehane, New York Times-bestselling author of Since We Fell
"Both sweeping and unbearably intimate, a riveting crime novel and a character-rich study of a city and its battered heart. And, in the way that Dennis Lehane anatomizes and explores his Boston, or Tana French her Dublin, Moore brings Philadelphia to vivid, wrenching life. Not to be missed."
—Megan Abbott, author of You Will Know Me
"It was excellent."
—Jami Attenberg, author of All This Could be Yours
"Impossible to put down, impossible to forget."
—Library Journal (*starred review)
"One of the pleasures of this deeply moving, absolutely page-turning novel is the way Moore, in both the present and in flashbacks to Mickey and Kacey’s childhood and teen years, slowly peels back layer after layer, revealing the old-boy’s network in the Philadelphia police force, the depths of Mickey’s loneliness, and the way the city of Philadelphia, particularly Kensington, is woven into this story, for good or ill. Give this to readers who like character-driven crime novels with a strong sense of place."
—Booklist (* starred review)
"Smartly crafted. . .Filled with strong characters and a layered plot, this will please fans of both genre and literary fiction."
Publisher: Riverhead Books
Publication Date: January 7th, 2020
Fiction / Thrillers
Fiction / Family Life / Siblings
Paperback (December 1st, 2020): $17.00
Paperback, Large Print (January 14th, 2020): $28.00
CD-Audio (January 7th, 2020): $45.00
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Home » Reader Meet Writer: Kristin Harmel (online)
Reader Meet Writer: Kristin Harmel (online)
Inspired by an astonishing true story from World War II, a young woman with a talent for forgery helps hundreds of Jewish children flee the Nazis in this unforgettable historical novel from the international bestselling author of the “epic and heart-wrenching World War II tale” (Alyson Noel, #1 New York Times bestselling author) The Winemaker’s Wife.
Kristin Harmel is the international bestselling author of a dozen novels including The Book of Lost Names, The Winemaker's Wife, The Room on Rue Amélie, and The Sweetness of Forgetting. Her work has been featured in People, Woman's Day, Men's Health, and Ladies' Home Journal, among many other media outlets. She lives in Orlando, Florida.
Tuesday, July 21, 2020 - 5:00pm to 5:45pm
The Book of Lost Names (Hardcover)
By Kristin Harmel
Published: Gallery Books - July 21st, 2020
INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
Inspired by an astonishing true story from World War II, a young woman with a talent for forgery helps hundreds of Jewish children flee the Nazis in this unforgettable historical novel from the New York Times bestselling author of the “epic and heart-wrenching World War II tale” (Alyson Noel, #1 New York Times<
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‘At 6 p.m., life stops’: Europe uses curfews to fight virus
FILE - In this Dec. 15, 2020 file photo, a man pushes his bicycle along a row of closed restaurants in Montmartre, during the new imposed curfew in Paris. Trying to fend off the need for a third nationwide lockdown that would further dent Europe’s second-largest economy and put more jobs in danger, France is instead opting for creeping curfews. (AP Photo/Michel Euler, File)
By JOHN LEICESTER and SYLVIE CORBETAssociated Press
PARIS —
As the wan winter sun sets over France’s Champagne region, the countdown clock kicks in.
Laborers stop pruning the vines as the light fades at about 4:30 p.m., leaving them 90 minutes to come in from the cold, change out of their work clothes, hop in their cars and zoom home before a 6 p.m. coronavirus curfew.
Forget about any after-work socializing with friends, after-school clubs for children or doing any evening shopping beyond quick trips for essentials. Police on patrol demand valid reasons from people seen out and about. For those without them, the threat of mounting fines for curfew-breakers is increasingly making life outside of the weekends all work and no play.
“At 6 p.m., life stops,” says Champagne producer Alexandre Prat.
Trying to fend off the need for a third nationwide lockdown that would further dent Europe’s second-largest economy and put more jobs in danger, France is instead opting for creeping curfews. Big chunks of eastern France, including most of its regions that border Belgium, Germany, Switzerland and Italy, are living under 6 p.m.-to-6 a.m. restrictions on movement. At 12 hours, the curfew is the longest anywhere in the European Union’s 27 nations.
Starting Saturday, the rest of France will follow suit. The prime minister announced Thursday an extension of the 6 p.m.-to-6 a.m. curfew to cover the whole country, including zones where the nightly deadline for getting home hadn’t started until 8 p.m.
French shops will have to close at 6 p.m. Outdoor activities will stop, with the exception of quick walks for pets. Workers will need employers’ notes to commute or move around for work after curfew.
Those who have lived with the longer curfew for the past couple of weeks say it’s often bad for business and for what remained of their anemic social lives during the pandemic.
Until a couple of weeks ago, the nightly curfew didn’t kick in until 8 p.m. in Prat’s region, the Marne. Customers still stopped to buy bottles of his family’s bubbly wines on their way home, he said. But when the cut-off time was advanced to 6 p.m. to slow viral infections, the drinkers disappeared.
“Now we have no one,” Prat said.
The village where retiree Jerome Brunault lives alone in the Burgundy wine region is also in one of zones already shutting down at 6 p.m. The 67-year-old says his solitude weighs more heavily without the opportunity for early evening drinks, nibbles and chats with friends, the so-called “apero” get-togethers so beloved by the French that were hurried but still feasible when curfew started two hours later.
“With the 6 p.m. curfew, we cannot go to see friends for a drink anymore,” Brunault said. “I now spend my days not talking to anyone except for the baker and some people by phone.”
By extending the 6 p.m. curfew nationwide, for at least 15 days, the government aims to limit infections in the country that has seen over 69,000 known virus deaths. It also wants to slow the spread of a particularly contagious virus variant that has swept across neighboring Britain, where new infections and virus deaths have soared.
An earlier curfew combats virus transmission “precisely because it serves to limit social interactions that people can have at the end of the day, for example in private homes,” French government spokesman Gabriel Attal says.
Curfews elsewhere in Europe all start later and often finish earlier.
The curfew in Italy runs from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m., as does the Friday night to Sunday morning curfew in Latvia. Regions of Belgium that speak French have a 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew while in Belgium’s Dutch-speaking region, the hours are midnight to 5 a.m.
People out between 8 p.m. and 5 a.m. in Hungary must be able to show police written proof from their employers that they are either working or commuting.
There are no curfews in Bulgaria, Croatia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Ireland, Lithuania, Malta, Sweden, Poland or the Netherlands, although the Dutch government is thinking about whether imposing a curfew would slow new COVID-19 cases.
In France, critics of the 6 p.m. curfew say the earlier time actually crams people together more after work, when they pile onto public transportation, clog roads and shop for groceries in a narrow rush-hour window before they must be home.
Women’s rugby coach Felicie Guinot says negotiating rush-hour traffic in Marseille has become a nightmare. The city in southern France is among the places where the more contagious virus variant has started to flare.
“It’s a scramble so everyone can be home by 6 p.m.,” Guinot said.
In historic Besançon, the fortressed city that was the hometown of “Les Misérables” author Victor Hugo, music store owner Jean-Charles Valley says the 6 p.m. deadline means people no longer drop by after work to play with the guitars and other instruments that he sells. Instead, they rush home.
“People are completely demoralized,” Valley said.
In Dijon, the French city known for its pungent mustard, working mother of two Celine Bourdin says her life has narrowed to “dropping kids at school and going to work, then going back home, helping kids with homework and preparing dinner.”
But even that cycle is better than a repeat of France’s lockdown at the start of the pandemic, when schools also closed, Bourdin says.
“If my children don’t go to school, it means I cannot work anymore,” she said. “It was terribly difficult to be all stuck almost 24 hours a day in the house.”
Leicester reported from Le Pecq, France. AP journalists across Europe contributed.
Follow AP’s pandemic coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic, https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-vaccine and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak
Top headlines by email, weekday mornings
Get top headlines from the Union-Tribune in your inbox weekday mornings, including top news, local, sports, business, entertainment and opinion.
JOHN LEICESTER and SYLVIE CORBET
A city government in eastern China says the coronavirus was found on ice cream produced there, prompting a recall of cartons from the same batch
North Korean parliament to convene to approve Kim’s agenda
North Korea’s rubber-stamp parliament is scheduled to convene to pass decisions made by a major ruling party meeting where leader Kim Jong Un vowed maximum efforts to expand his nuclear weapons program in face of what he described as U.S. hostility
Indonesian rescuers have retrieved more bodies from the rubble of homes and buildings toppled by a 6.2 magnitude earthquake, raising the death toll to 56
More than 125 people have been arrested so far on charges related to the violent insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, where a Capitol police officer and four others were killed
The spokesman for Republican U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert has quit less than two weeks after she was sworn into office, saying he was prompted to by the insurrection at the nation’s Capitol
Guatemalan soldiers have blocked part of a caravan of as many as 9,000 Honduran migrants not far from where they entered the country in a bid to reach the U.S. border
Winning numbers drawn for $640 million Powerball
Lottery players’ second chance to win really big this weekend has come with Saturday’s drawing for a $640 million Powerball top prize
The Buffalo Bills advanced to their first AFC championship game in 26 yards after Taron Johnson scored on a 101-yard interception return to seal a 17-3 win over the Baltimore Ravens
Ravens’ season ends with Jackson in locker room, 17-3 loss
A season in which the Baltimore Ravens overcame a long list of obstacles to reach the playoffs ended with their star quarterback stuck in the locker room during the fourth quarter and the rest of the team shuffling off the field to join him after a disheartening 17-3 loss to the Bills
Cameron Thomas scored 25 points, Trendon Watford had 23 points, seven rebounds and five assists, and LSU rallied to beat South Carolina 85-80 on Saturday night
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Women&Civil society
War&Conflicts
COUNTRIES, Migration, Tunisia, Women&Civil society, WORDS
Lost at sea? Tunisian mothers mourn their disappeared
By Sara Manisera
| Published on The New Arab | 27 April 2017 |
As the Jasmine revolution blossomed in 2011, many young Tunisians left for Europe in search of a better life, never to be seen, or heard from again.
On the road that leads north from Tunis to the costal town of Bizerte, Ouirtami sang a love song about a sensual woman and the passion of her lover who left for unknown lands.
“In Tunisia there are many songs of migration,” she said with a wistful smile.
“Because there are many who departed and never came back.”
Ouirtami’s husband left for Italy on March 29, 2011 with five other men from the small eastern village of Sidi Mansour, one of the shortest crossing points to the Italian island of Lampedusa just 186 kilometres away, between Tunisia and the island in Sicily.
For many who dreamed of Europe, had breathed the air of the 2011 revolution, wanted a better job and a new life, the distance is unimportant. But for Ouirtami and many like her, she’s had no news from her husband since the day he left.
“We are poor,” Ouirtami said matter-of-factly.
“My husband wanted to find a job and earn more money for our children, because they want to wear branded shoes, buy a new phone and all the things that young people look for,” she said dryly.
On December 17 2010, the self-immolation of Mohamed Bouazizi – a vegetable vendor and sole breadwinner for his family of seven – ignited national protests that led to the ousting of Tunisian President Zine El-Abidine Ben Ali and his regime weeks later.
The very system of borders breeds dangerous alternatives
The president officially resigned on January 14, 2011, after 28 days of protest, putting an end to his 23-year-long rule.
An intense campaign of civil resistance with street demonstrations made up the Tunisian uprising that became known as the Jasmine Revolution.
In that period of transition and chaos, police brutally repressed protests and tens of thousands of Tunisians embarked on journeys across the Mediterranean.
In this context, 29,685 Tunisian migrants were recorded entering Italy “irregularly” in 2011, according to the report by the Special Rapporteur François Crépeau, on migrants’ rights.
The majority of the crossings took place in the Spring of 2011, at the peak of the revolution when Tunisian police forces were otherwise occupied and coastal control was relatively weak.
Fthia holds a photograph of her son who disappeared in May 2011 – [Arianna Pagani]
Names not numbers
Nabil, Walid, Wissem, Hamza, Ghassem, Samah, Housemdine are just seven of the 504 people who are still missing.
Most of their mothers and wives never heard from them again, but others say they have recognised their missing,
“If he is dead, I will accept it. This is the will of God but the most important thing is to know what has happened [to him]. We don’t want anything – money or help – only the truth,” Souad Rouahi said with stubborn conviction as she sat in her son’s room, holding his clothes and the last photo of him in her hands. Today, years later, they are seeking the truth.
“They have to tell us where are our sons are. Today, with the technology, we can know if our children are alive or dead,” she said with determination.
Inside the bright living room of a simple house in Bizerte, Rouahi stand with two other mothers of those missing.
Together they cook couscous and others regional dishes and together they smile, despite the tragedy that they suffered. Both their sons left Tunisia the same night, April 29 2011, and both disappeared.
“They left without saying anything. We woke up in the morning and they were gone,” Faouzia Mrzaguia, the mother of Hamza, explained.
“They were, like the other young people, curious with the desire to know and travel.”
The Jamila’s disappeared on April 29, 2011 – [Arianna Pagani]
Over the next six years, the Tunisian families of those missing joined together, protested in front of the Italian Embassy and both the Social Affairs and the Interior Ministries asking for a truth and bilateral commission to investigate the fate of their missing family members.
They also founded several groups, including the Association for Research and the Disappeared, Supervision of Tunisian Prisoners to the Foreigner, La Terre Pour Tous (Land for All) and Mères des Disparus (Mothers of Missing).
Together they collect information, data and fingerprints to create a dossier detailing the names and the stories of all the men reported missing.
“It’s a huge pain not having a body to cry [over]. We see our children only in these portraits,” Mrzaguia said, clutching the photo of her son Hamza.
I would like to burn down this border because this system of visas forces our children to travel in makeshift boats’ – Mrzaguia, Tunisian mother
“I would like to burn down this border because this system of visas forces our children to travel in makeshift boats,” she said.
The associations have also partnered with Libera, an Italian anti-mafia association and started a joint-initiative called “Mediterranean Memory” that aims to raise awareness about those who have disappeared crossing the Mediterranean and the importance of naming them.
“We couldn’t ignore the voices of the victims who we are used to seeing every day in the news, detached from their stories and lands. They are not numbers, each of them has a story and a name,” Monica Usai, project manager of Libera International sector, explained.
Observers also noted that the gatherings of women were a significant step.
“This movement is a revolution and is revolutionary at the same time because they ask Europe to report on what happened and be accountable,” Federica Sossi, a professor at the University of Bergamo and expert of migration and memory, explained.
“On one side there is Europe, which spends large amounts of money on the security and control of the Mediterranean, and then on the other side there is a movement demanding for this knowledge to [be used to] determine where their loved ones are.”
Faozia has been desperately searching for news of her son who left in April 2011 for Italy – [Arianna Pagani]
On the road from Bizerte to El Aliyah village the landscape changes as the city opens up to expanses of olive groves and green, lush meadows.
The dirt roads throng with mules carrying branches and freshly harvested artichokes. Two women sit close to a small, smouldering fire, their hands rough from years of working the land.
“I’m the mother of Housemdine Jlili, who disappeared on May 5, 2011. Two days before his birthday, he would be nineteen,” one of the woman, named Ftiah, recalled.
“All I ask is compassion and the help to know what happened to our children. If my son is dead, at least tell me because my soul can finally find peace and calm.”
The son of Ftiah wasn’t poor or illiterate. He had an education, a job and a decent life in Tunisia but still she said he always dreamed of traveling to Europe. He was one of the millions around the world who cannot exercise the right to free movement because of the nationality in their passport.
‘Governments have the duty to investigate and tell the families what happened to their loved ones’ – Imed Soltani, founder of Land for all
Imed Soltani, founder of the Land for all association pointed out that “when you don’t have legal means to travel and it is almost impossible to get a visa, the only alternative is to pay a trafficker or smuggler.”
Soltani explained that the very system of borders breeds the dangerous alternatives.
“This smuggler is the product of the system and of the protectionism of borders that cause this demand for illegal [systems]. So, governments have the duty to investigate and tell the families what happened to their loved ones.”
For the last two years, the Tunisian government has run a small commission, but a constantly shifting political situation after the revolution hampered work.
On February 23 2017, the Tunisian commission met with Vittorio Piscitelli, Special Commissioner of the Italian Government for Missing Persons, and agreed to create a mixed technical and scientific commission charged with collating the information gathered by the two governments.
However, the mothers are not satisfied.
They say it excluded them and their lawyers from the process and they claimed the Tunisian state’s records of the missing were “lax”.
What they continue to ask for is a replacement that includes experts and the families of the victims.
“We are not accusing Italy. We accuse the European governments that have closed their borders. We call for a bilateral commission with our lawyers and representatives to investigate,” Rouahi said.
“We also ask the exhumation of the unnamed bodies buried in Lampedusa in order to give a name to those men buried in your land without them.”
https://www.alaraby.co.uk/english/society/2017/4/27/lost-at-sea-tunisian-mothers-mourn-their-disappeared
italy, mediterranean, migrants, missing, smuggling, tunis, tunisia, women
Copyright © 2020 Sara Manisera. All Rights Reserved.
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An exceptionally rich cultural experience, with visits to Mexico’s colonial cities, artisans’ towns and breathtaking Mayan ruins vying for your attention alongside tours to massive ancient pyramids and a spectacular train journey through the Copper Canyon. Mexico City, big and sprawling, is not everybody’s favourite city. But there’s no question that this is a truly fabulous centre for pre-Hispanic and colonial art and is the base for trips to Taxco, the Pyramids of the Moon and Sun, and the Shrine of Guadalupe. You could easily spend many days visiting the museums and galleries in and around the city. The lure of the handicrafts, artwork and music bring visitors back to Mexico time and again. Beyond the city are Mexico’s magical beaches, some splendid resorts, the many beautiful colonial cities and fascinating archaeological sites.
DURATION: 15 Days / 14 Nights
STARTING: Mexico City, Mexico
FINISHING: Riviera Maya, Mexico
Days 1-3: Mexico City
Arrive Mexico City, set in a highland basin surrounded by towering mountains, Mexico City is like a vast living museum covering 3,000 years of human cultural achievement.
Explore the city on a full day tour visiting the main plaza (Zocalo) built over an Aztec temple complex, the National Palace with the famed mural paintings by Diego Rivera, and the Metropolitan Cathedral, the largest church in Latin America. Also see the beautiful Palace of Fine Arts, noted for its murals and stain glass. Continue to the Museum of Anthropology, with a collection of pre-Hispanic art representing the most important of the Mexican cultures, including those of the Aztec, Zapotec, Mixtec, Toltec and Mayan civilisations.
Spend the following day with your personal local guide to Teotihuacan and Sun and Moon Pyramids. The ancient ruins of Teotihuacan, often referred to as the City of the Gods preserves the remains one of the most important civilizations of Mesoamerica. Walk along the ‘Avenue of the Dead’ to the Pyramid of the Sun, the third largest pyramid in the world. Also see the smaller Pyramid of the Moon and the impressive Temple of Quetzalcoatl. On the way back to your hotel head to the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe, the most visited religious site in Latin America.
Days 4-6: Oaxaca
Fly to Oaxaca, an attractive and colourful city. The streets in the historic centre are lined with superb examples of Spanish colonial architecture.
Spend a full day with your local guide exploring the UNESCO World Heritage site of Monte Albán, one of Mexico’s most spectacular archaeological sites with wonderful 360-degree views over the city, valleys and distant mountains.
Embark on the Tule Tree & Mitla excursion which takes you to the Mesoamerican site of Mitla featuring exquisite architecture and stone mosaics. Continue to the ancient Tule tree, approximately 2,000 years old and claimed to be one of the largest trees on earth.
Days 7-8: San Cristobal
Fly to Tuxtla Gutierrez, where you will be transferred to the port and taken on a boat trip down the Grijalva River to see the impressive Sumidero Canyon. Continue to the highland colonial town of San Cristobal de las Casas, with its cobbled streets, red-tiled roofs and opulent churches.
Start the following day with a guided walking tour to the colourful market and the colonial centre before driving to the surrounding indigenous villages each with their own distinct style of custom, regional dress and of worship. Spend the night in San Cristobal.
Days 9-10: Palenque
Drive to Palenque via Tonina, a pre-Columbian archaeological site and ruined city of the Maya civilization located in what is now the Mexican state of Chiapas.
Visit the ruins of Palenque, situated on the fringe of the Chiapas jungle. The fascinating Mayan ruins you see here today date from the empire’s peak in the 7th century and represent only a small percentage of the spectacular complex of palaces, temples and terraces still to be excavated.
Days 11-12: Merida
Drive to Villahermosa and fly to Merida, the capital city of Yucatan State, and known as the ‘White City’ because of the extensive use of white limestone. It is a lively and friendly city and on most evenings there are Mariachi bands playing and other cultural events taking place at the various plazas around the city.
Tour to ancient Mayan ruins of Uxmal, one of the first sights to be seen as you enter the ruins is the House of the Fortune-teller, a magnificent oval temple standing 39m high. Visit the Nuns’ Quadrangle, the House of Governers and the House of the Turtles before continuing on to the smaller ruined city of Kabah, the most important regional city after Uxmal.
Days 13-14: Chichen Itza and Riviera Maya
Drive from Merida to Chichen Itza, the most spectacular Mayan ceremonial centres. Admire the Temple of Kukulcan, the Red Jaguar Throne, the Temple of Tigers, the Ball Court and the Observatory. After the tour continue by road to the Riviera Maya, a stretch of Caribbean coastline on Mexico’s northeastern Yucatan Peninsula.
Spend the following day at leisure at the Riviera Maya.
Day 15: Cancun
Transfer from your hotel to Cancun Airport. This is where your tour ends. You may wish to add on some additional time in Cancun or visit Central America.
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Sochi stripped of Bobsleigh & Skeleton World Championships
FILE PHOTO © Murad Sezer © Reuters
The Russian city of Sochi will not host February’s International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation (IBSF) World Championships, says an IBSF press release.
Press release: IBSF decided to move the IBSF World Championships 2017 https://t.co/jgpuha0wZj
— IBSF (@IBSFsliding) December 13, 2016
"The IBSF decided to move the IBSF World Championships 2017 from Sochi, Russia, to another location which will be determined in the coming days," the federation said in a statement on its website."The IBSF Executive Committee felt that during this difficult time it is prudent not to organize such an event in Russia."
This decision has been made “to allow athletes and coaches from all nations to participate in a competition that focuses on sport rather than accusations and discussions – whether justified or not,” the statement reads.
It also mentions that the Russian Bobsleigh Federation (RFB) “has put a great effort in the preparation of the World Championships,” but stresses that the “current climate would make it nearly impossible to appreciate it.”
In a statement, RFB said it was "ready to accept this sacrifice, for the sake of proving our compliance."
The news follows statements from several national federations looking to boycott the event over the Russian doping scandal, including the United States, the UK, Latvia and South Korea.
READ MORE: US athletes plan to boycott Russian-hosted World Championships
The IBSF decision comes after Canadian lawyer Richard McLaren last week released the second part of a World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) report, which made further claims that Russia operated a state-sponsored doping program for its athletes between 2011 and 2015 – including over the period of the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics.
McLaren report claims 1,000 Russian athletes benefited from ‘doping conspiracy,’ gives no names
The report claimed that over 1,000 Russian athletes and parathletes benefited from an alleged plot to conceal positive doping tests. However, the names of the athletes were not provided in the report.
The decision to move the championships is politicized, Vladimir Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov told RT.
“This a very unfortunate development. And we are sure that this is highly politicized decision. It is based on an allegation that simply does not have a real basis,” Peskov said.
“And definitely Russia will continue, through its authorities in charge of sports and other bodies, to protect its interests in a legal way.”
“There is a special independent commission in Russia, headed by Mr. Smirnov, which is working on the national plan of improving the system of anti-doping activities. But of course, decisions like that, that is something we disapprove of, and we disagree with. We have always been against mixing up sports and politics.”
The bobsled and skeleton world championships were scheduled to be hosted in Sochi from February 13 to 26, 2017.
“There is no point to dispute [the decision], because the rights to host the tournament are given by the International Federation (IBSF),” Dmitry Svishchev, a member of the State Committee for Physical Culture, Sport and Youth Politics, told TASS.
“Now [the Russian Bobsleigh Federation] can demand compensation. The organizers spent money, time and effort, and all of that has to be paid for. But the fact itself – it’s really sad, it may become the sign and a precedent for other [international] federations, which can follow this example."
Vitaly Smirnov, who heads Russia's newly-created anti-doping commission, says that similar decisions to move competitions from Russia could "follow in a range of other sports."
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Courtney Ruckman
Diamond Edge's Photography
Praised for her “arresting vocalism” by the Spokesman Review, Entertainment News, NW says “you cannot help but fall in love with Courtney Ruckman…her voice quality was superb…her solos were magnificent.” In upcoming engagements, she joins the Nashville Opera Young Artist Program as Frasquita (Carmen) and creates the role of Jessie (Masquerade) in the world premiere of Paterson’s Three Way. She will reprise the role with American Opera Projects for its New York City premiere.
In recent engagements, she presented recitals in the Caramoor Festival’s “Holiday Tea Musicales” series. Her program included the world premiere of Images de Noël by Alan Theisen. Additionally, she joined Opera Coeur d’Alene as First Lady (Die Zauberflöte) and covered Marzelline (Fidelio) as a Caramoor Bel Canto Young Artist. In concert, she returned to the Portland Chamber Orchestra as the soprano soloist in Handel’s Messiah.
During the 2014-2015 season she was a member of the Central City Opera Studio Artists Program, performing selected scenes and a featured recital. She made her role debut as Pamina (Die Zauberflöte) with Pacific Northwest Opera and debuted with the Portland Chamber Orchestra in performances of Judas Maccabaeus (Handel). Having an aptitude for new music, she covered the Youth in the world premiere of After Life (Cipullo) with Music of Remembrance.
Highlights from previous seasons include role debuts as Gilda (Rigoletto) with Pacific Northwest Opera, Sophie (Werther) with Vashon Opera, Héro (Béatrice et Bénédict) with the Puget Sound Concert Opera, and Maria (The Sound of Music) with Opera Idaho. In concert, she performed Mozart’s Exsultate, Jubilate with the Skagit Symphony.
A 2014 Northwest Region finalist of the Metropolitan National Council Auditions, Ms. Ruckman also received encouragement awards in the 2012 district competition and the 2016 Partners for the Arts, Inc. Vocal Competition.
Nashville Opera
In review: Carmen at Nashville Opera
In review: Three Way
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International - New Year Blues
By Diana Lodderhose2008-01-11T00:00:00+00:00
An absence of big-hitting new releases explains the 22.2% week-on-week drop in the international top 40 this weekend, with all four new entrants failing to enter the top 30.
In its second week, Russian sequel The Irony Of Fate 2 was the strongest non-US performer. The second instalment of the cult comedy, from Timur Bekmambetov (Night Watch, Day Watch), was up 61% at the weekend after expanding to Lithuania and Latvia, and took $9.2m across 912 screens. It jumped two places to number eight in its third weekend and enjoyed a $10,025 screen average, the third-highest of the weekend. Distributed through Twentieth Century Fox, it has grossed more than $35m to date.
German cinema continues to flex its muscles, with three films generating more than $8m at the weekend, accounting for 4.2% of the top 40 revenue. Til Schweiger's Keinohrhasen stole the highest screen average at the weekend at a whopping $11,422. But the rom-com fell a modest 16% to number nine with a $6.5m weekend take from 565 screens. It has $23.7m after three weekends and is released through Warner Bros.
Dodo flies in
Thilo Rothkirch's family animation Kleiner Dodo was the weekend's highest new entry, at number 31 with a $1.3m three-day gross. It played on 553 screens for a $2,360 screen average and, like Keinohrhasen, is distributed by Warner Bros.
Meanwhile, Constantin Film's Warum Manner Nicht Zuhoren Und Frauen Schlecht Einparken held firm in its sixth weekend, with a $1.1m take from 406 screens. The satire has generated nearly $12m to date.
Brazilian drama Meu Nome Nao E Johnny opened at number 34 this weekend, taking $1.1m from 103 screens in its home territory. The film, distributed through Sony Pictures Releasing International, boasted the second-highest screen average this weekend at $10,742 per screen. Directed by Mauro Lima (Deus Jr), it is based on the true story of a Brazilian cocaine dealer in the 1990s.
Korean romantic comedy Gidarida Michyeo, released through Cinema Service and directed by Ryu Seung-Jin, opened at number 35 with a $1.1m take across 248 screens in its home territory. And Polish comedy Jeszcze Raz opened to number 39 with a $966,652 take from just 118 screens in Poland, for a $8,192 screen average. It is distributed by Monolith Films.
Meanwhile, Chinese cinema continues to enjoy robust box office. Chinese civil war drama The Assembly dropped 25% but remained in the top 15 with a $3.8m take from 561 screens. The film has generated $27.5m after three weekends on release. And Media Asia's period epic The Warlords remained within the top 20 with a $2.1m take in its fourth weekend. The Jet Li starrer played across 589 screens for a $3,497 screen average. It has generated $35.3m to date.
British talent
British films also fared well this weekend - Ealing Studios production St Trinian's fell a modest 18% in its third weekend, with a near $3m take from 386 screens for a $7,611 screen average. The schoolgirl comedy, which stars a host of British talent including new Bond girl Gemma Arterton, has generated more than $15m to date in the UK alone. It is released in the territory through Entertainment Film Distributors.
And Ken Loach's It's A Free World re-entered the chart at number 32 after opening in France. It generated $1.2m and has a $2.4m international tally to date.
Elsewhere, Indian film Welcome, from Studio 18, is closing in on the $20m mark, making it actor Akshay Kumar's biggest international grosser, while Warner Bros' I Am Legend holds the top spot with a $30.5m take in its fourth weekend.
The top 40 international films generated $208.8m from 49,452 screens for the period January 4-6.
ANALYSIS: INTERNATIONAL BOX-OFFICE - WEEKEND JANUARY 4-6
(Last 3-day
week) Film (origin) gross $ Scrs Cume $ Terr
1 (1) I Am Legend (US) $30,510,549 3,492 $167,974,516 33
2 (3) National Treasure: Book Of Secrets (US) $20,270,920 4,270 $102,081,957 33
3 (2) The Golden Compass (US-UK) $20,176,338 6,154 $233,851,042 49
4 (7) Alvin And The Chipmunks (US) $15,826,736 4,201 $63,423,418 46
5 (4) Enchanted (US) $14,443,538 4,712 $137,958,295 34
6 (5) Bee Movie (US) $14,336,478 4,820 $131,971,522 49
7 (6) Aliens Vs Predator: Requiem (US) $12,541,885 3,263 $35,436,463 33
8 (10) The Irony Of Fate 2 (Rus) $9,153,211 913 $35,099,144 5
9 (8) Keinohrhasen (Ger) $6,453,727 565 $23,743,515 3
10 (25) P.S. I Love You (US) $5,992,614 982 $11,853,575 8
11 (9) American Gangster (US) $5,524,503 1,607 $72,482,109 31
12 (13) The Assembly (Chi) $3,830,163 561 $27,455,208 2
13 (11) The Fox And The Child (Fr) $3,816,771 1,094 $17,398,208 6
14 (*) Halloween (US) $3,049,923 484 $16,891,017 2
15 (17) St Trinian's (UK) $2,937,809 386 $15,189,646 1
16 (14) Una Moglie Bellissima (It) $2,846,495 498 $29,589,994 2
17 (26) Hitman (UK-Fr-US) $2,657,294 1,096 $52,188,979 7
18 (12) Natale In Crociera (It) $2,459,939 449 $36,773,534 2
19 (11) The Warlords (HK) $2,059,655 589 $35,275,458 5
20 (16) Welcome (Ind) $2,251,904 698 $19,550,333 13
21 (18) Arn ... Knight Templar (Swe-Ger-Nor-Den-Fin-UK) $2,016,109 271 $10,637,157 2
22 (36) A Tale Of Mari And Three Puppies (Jap) $1,951,773 333 $20,836,548 1
23 (24) Eastern Promises (UK-Can-US) $1,859,198 458 $30,710,891 14
24 (21) Atonement (UK-Fr-US) $1,770,976 300 $38,481,151 14
25 (43) The Darjeeling Limited (US) $1,754,014 352 $6,452,265 11
26 (22) Elizabeth: The Golden Age (UK-Fr-US) $1,703,578 770 $44,656,316 29
27 (20) Love In The Time Of Cholera (Col-US) $1,672,913 796 $11,004,032 5
28 (28) Lions For Lambs (US) $1,506,981 248 $39,195,106 5
29 (19) Mr Magorium's Wonder Emporium (US) $1,326,863 1,418 $23,603,595 14
30 (23) Taare Zameen Par (Ind) $1,309,599 323 $10,389,309 11
31 New Kleiner Dodo (Ger) $1,305,008 553 $1,458,209 2
32 (*) It's A Free World (UK-It-Ger-Sp) $1,195,118 122 $2,391,062 2
33 (32) Gone Baby Gone (US) $1,147,315 164 $5,159,193 5
34 New Meu Nome Nao E Johnny (Bra) $1,106,412 103 $1,106,412 1
35 New Gidarida Michyeo (S Kor) $1,102,942 248 $2,277,281 1
36 (29) Warum Manner Nicht Zuhoren (Ger) $1,075,335 406 $11,996,501 3
37 (45) We Own The Night (US) $1,025,150 634 $11,530,365 7
38 (40) The Kite Runner (US) $967,507 203 $2,585,762 2
39 New Jeszcze Raz (Pol) $966,652 118 $1,136,947 1
40 (31) Beowulf (US) $927,511 798 $108,766,271 36
* Re-entry (c) Screen International, compiled by Leonard Klady
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World Bank approves cash assistance to crisis-struck Lebanon
SARAH EL DEEB, Associated Press
FILE - In this, July 19, 2020 file photo, a homeless woman sleeps on a bench on the Mediterranean Sea corniche in Beirut, Lebanon. The World Bank has approved a $246 million loan to Lebanon to provide emergency cash assistance to nearly 800,000 Lebanese reeling under the country’s compounded economic and health crises. The World Bank said in a statement late Tuesday, Jan. 12, 2021, that the loan would also support the development of a national social safety net in Lebanon.Hassan Ammar/AP
BEIRUT (AP) — The World Bank approved a $246 million loan to Lebanon to provide emergency cash assistance to nearly 800,000 Lebanese reeling under the country’s compounded economic and health crises.
The World Bank said in a statement late Tuesday the loan would also support the development of a national social safety net in Lebanon, which was struggling with a financial crisis before the pandemic struck, driving nearly half the population of the small country of 6 million into poverty. Over 1 million refugees from Syria live in Lebanon.
The economic crisis has led to a projected 19.2% decline in gross domestic product, triple-digit inflation and is pushing 1.7 million people below the poverty line. Some 22% of the population is expected to fall into extreme poverty.
International donors have been dispensing direct humanitarian assistance to Lebanon. But in the absence of major structural reforms, talks with the International Monetary Fund that began last summer have failed to produce a rescue package for the cash-strapped government.
The deepening crisis has depleted foreign reserves in the import-dependent country and sent the local currency tumbling, losing nearly 80% of its value before the dollar. The government is discussing ways to lift subsidies from some basic goods and has already increased the price of flour and bread.
Meanwhile, a surge in coronavirus infections — rates have been hovering at around 4,000 new cases a day in recent days — and a strained health care system have added to the concerns. A massive explosion last summer at the Beirut Port ravaged the city, killing over 200 people and injuring thousands.
“The consequences of these repeated shocks on the economic well-being of households is far-reaching and potentially disastrous”, said World Bank Regional Director Saroj Kumar Jha.
The significant portion of the loan — nearly $200 million — will go toward providing cash assistance to around 786,000 individuals through a pre-paid electronic card. With a turbulent exchange rate and a thriving black market, the World Bank said it will dispense the assistance in local currency, using a conversion rate for the loan funds calculated at 1.6 times the one set by the Central Bank for the U.S. dollar.
The conversion rate would be subject to change if there were major fluctuations in the currency value, the World Bank said. But the rate raised questions among activists who said converting the loan at 6,240 Lebanese pounds to the dollar — or about 40% less than the black market rate — would benefit the banks, which are short on foreign currency.
The loan also includes school fees for some 87,000 children between ages 13 and 18. It will also help Lebanon develop a social registry to determine who would need assistance in the future.
Lebanon has not had a census since 1932, when Christians were a majority. The country has a delicate sectarian balance and now the nation of 5 million is believed to be equally split between Christians, Sunnis and Shiites.
On Wednesday, the parliament's health committee prepared a draft law to allow for importing coronavirus vaccines from Pfizer and BioNTech. The law, expected to be passed by parliament this Friday, aims to reassure international companies that they will not be responsible in case of side effects for the vaccines.
Lebanon's health minister had said the first batch of vaccines is expected in February.
SARAH EL DEEB
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Quiet please: A PGA with no fans and the new normal for golf
Posted: Aug 6, 2020 / 06:32 PM CDT / Updated: Aug 6, 2020 / 06:32 PM CDT
To those overserved boors who insist on screaming ”Mashed Potatoes!” every time Dustin Johnson or Brooks Koepka unloads with their driver, we have one simple request for you.
Please come back.
For this week at the PGA championship, the same goes for every lunkhead who snapped a photo in the middle of a backswing, every 50-year-old who crowded out a kid in an autograph line, every scampering porta-potty seeker who incurred the wrath of an over-officious caddie.
When golf returned eight weeks ago from its coronavirus-inflicted hiatus, we were grateful. Grateful simply to have something new, and live, to watch. Someone to cheer for. Or against. Only problem: There was hardly any cheering. And, as Rory McIlroy put it about midway through a largely silent, largely joyless, very sanitized restart to the 2020 season: ”Every tournament has felt the same.”
Now the stakes are higher. It’s the PGA. The year’s first major under the pandemic-shuffled schedule. Players are making their way around the grounds of Harding Park in San Francisco in virtual silence. And, true to McIlroy’s word, except for the marine layer, a few more stocking caps, that neck gaiter Tiger Woods is wearing and the live shots of players getting ready for their rounds in the parking lot, this one looks the same as they all have this year: empty, silent, sterile.
”You miss the positivity, the energy,” said Martin Kaymer, whose round of 4-under 66 put him within one of the lead after the morning action Thursday. ”But you have to create it somehow yourself.”
The day began with the usual pomp of the opening-tee introductions. ”Now on the tee, please welcome, from Dallas, Texas, Scottie Scheffler.” The starter used a microphone. Why?
Some things never change. Woods still draws the biggest crowds. But it was only reporters and cameramen following him around the course, this time. And Koepka, in search of his third straight PGA title, still plays under the radar. Of course, this week, he’s not the only one not being seen.
”That’s the way it’s going to be for the foreseeable future, unfortunately,” McIlroy said.
The PGA trimmed its roster of volunteers from around 3,500 to fewer than 300 for a tournament that was supposed to take place in May but is now taking place in August. There is no need for crowd control, for shuttle buses, for people taking your credit card at the merchandise tent, which has been converted into what might just be the largest player’s locker room in golf history.
”I’ve played in tournaments where there’s nobody around so it’s kind of normal for me,” said Jeff Hart, one of the 20 club pros in the field this week. ”But it was odd, and it was just — you didn’t even feel like you were at a major championship.”
About halfway through the day, journeyman Bud Cauley made a snaking, 70-foot putt for a birdie that pulled him within one shot of the lead. It was so quiet out there, you could hear the ball hit the bottom of the cup. Adam Hadwin started his afternoon by jarring the ball off the stick and into the hole on No. 1 for an eagle. He received warm applause from the 20-or-so volunteers, staff and scorers surrounding the green.
But if you’re inside the gates, you are among the lucky few who have undergone and passed COVID tests and been deemed essential to make this tournament run.
”We’re going to celebrate what we’ve got,” PGA of America CEO Seth Waugh said about the week’s eerily silent arrangement.
Not all fans were taking `no’ for an answer.
Jason Day, whose 65 gave him the lead after the morning rounds were complete, spotted fans peering through a hole cut through a blue tarp that walled off the 12th tee box from the outside. That’s as close as they’ll get this week.
”I actually miss playing in front of fans because you obviously work off that, especially in a major championship.,” Day said.
This week, though, instead of fans surrounding the tee boxes, there are a hand-sanitizer dispensers. And instead of roars echoing through the cypress trees, it’s the quiet congratulations of a fellow playing partner: ”Nice shot. Great putt. Good one.”
But no ”You Da Man.” No ”Baba Booey!”. No ”Get in the hole!” for a putt that has barely started rolling off a player’s putter.
Is that good? Or bad?
”It’s just different,” Woods said. ”That’s probably the only way to say it. This is what we’re going to have to get used to in the near future, and for probably for a while.”
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Inspired Cooking: Creating Dishes from Art
Paul Liebrandt, Chef and Owner, The Elm
2. Project Assignment: Create a Painting-Inspired Dish
3. In the Restaurant: Finding Inspiration
4. At Green Market: Discovering Ingredients
5. In the Kitchen: Prepping Ingredients
6. Creating the Dish
7. Hungry for More?
32 students are watching this class
Get a glimpse into Chef Paul Liebrandt’s creative process for creating dishes for his Michelin-rated restaurants. In this 45-minute class, you’ll follow along as Paul concocts a dish inspired by the paintings of Monet, using the colors and textures to inform ingredient selection, preparation technique, and final presentation. You will then create a dish of your own that evokes the essence of a favorite painting. What artist will you channel with your inner chef?
Create a dish inspired by a painting
Teodora Lazarevich 14 likes
Alyssa Demirjian 10 likes
Chef and Owner, The Elm
Chef Paul Liebrandt's food melds the tradition of classical cuisine with a contemporary, personal approach to ingredients and technique and a uniquely graphic visual style.
As a teenager growing up in London, England, Liebrandt cooked for some the world's most esteemed restaurants and chefs including Marco Pierre White at his Michelin three-star restaurant, Raymond Blanc at Le Manor Aux Quat' Saisons in Oxford, and Jean-Georges Vongerichten at the London outpost of Vong. He traces his ...
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1. Introduction: My name is Paul Liebrandt. I'm a chef, and today, we're going to be doing a class on creativity and inspiration from the point of view of a visual painting, and making that and transferring that into an actual dish based on what we see and how we translate that into what we eat. A few characteristics I would say that work with anything that we do creative when it comes to food part, for me, the emotion and the feeling and the story that we're telling is the most important part. So more like jazz in a way, it's a lot of spontaneity. I started in London because I'm British, and I was brought up in London, and I worked in London at a lot of very good places. Then, about 14 years ago, I decided to take a trip to New York, and I fell in love with New York, and I didn't leave. I've opened up several restaurants. Notable, Atlas was my first restaurant at 24. I had a restaurant called Corton for the past six years, which is a two Michelin-starred restaurant. This is another one that I opened called The Elm, which is in Brooklyn. Today, we're going to be taking on a journey with what we do here. The class project today that we're going to be doing is we're going to be looking at fine art, and taking inspiration from fine art, and looking at the visual aspects of something that we can take, meld with the season that we're in right now, and be able to take raw ingredients, have the spontaneity and the conceptual idea on how to take those ingredients and transform them into something which is very representative and also the right sensibility of what we saw in the picture. Food is something which you use all your six senses in. So it's not so much a cooking demo. It's more of the journey from the visual aspect of looking at something, and how do we get from that point A to point C with the final dish that you are going to eat and try. How did we get there? Craft, art, visual, and transforming that into what we have in here into something that is tangible, and delicious, and beautiful on the plate. 2. Project Assignment: Create a Painting-Inspired Dish: The picture that I've chosen as the inspiration for this dish is one of Monet's Water Lilies. It's a stunning painting, well, series of paintings. The kaleidoscope I think is a good word to use of the colors, and just the general overall picture really evokes for me the green market, evokes for me the time of year that we're in. I think that we can take that inspiration and we can really replicate something, which has the sensibility of it. We're not going to try and reproduce it, because nobody wants to eat water lilies. We're going to take that idea and that feel of the graphic nature, I think is a good word, of detail of the different shades and colors that tend to kind of blend into one nice palette, as it were. We're going to take that idea, and we're going to look at the green market. I'm going to take ingredients that I feel that we can use, and that we can identify, that will blend well to get the same sensibility, that when you look at the final dish, is a plethora of a palette of color and texture. All right so, we have our inspiration, we know what we're looking for. We're going to head to the green market and find some wonderful ingredients with which we can then transform this idea into a beautiful dish. 3. In the Restaurant: Finding Inspiration: With cooking, it's an evolving thing. I really do like to think of it as very much like a designer would design. As far as you like a particular designer, you trust what they do, you like the aesthetic, you like the feel, the fit, the whole package you like it. So, as far as the food world goes, it's the same thing when you look at a chef. What I try and do is every project that I do, I don't approach it as the same menu and the same dishes. I tried to give a feeling and a story for each spot and each menu that we do in each place as well as throughout the course of the year, it's own narrative, its own feel is stand alone. So, year-to-year, it's not completely different but I don't tend to take the summer menu that we did last year and do it this year and the winter, and just keep going and add a dish here and there. We do like to try and do the whole thing. So, that as a customer, does that sense of discovery when you come in. But there's still a point of reference and recognition where you feel like okay, I feel comfortable, I know where I am but he's coming up with new discoveries. So, for me that's an important way to approach the menu. So, as far as dishes go, we don't have a standard set of dishes that we roll out year after year. A few that I would say, one that that I did 15 years ago, very simple. It was Apple wasabi sorbet. Fresh, green apple juice, fresh Japanese wasabi made into a sorbet. It was a savory sorbet so it wasn't sweet. So, you had a very defined beautiful smell and that first crisp clean flavor of green apple, a Granny Smith apple the flavor of that, with beautiful taught and spiciness of green wasabi, fresh root wasabi. We would serve that as a palate cleanser and season it with some molten salt, and this infused beautiful French olive oil that we were using at the time. It's a very simple thing in itself, it's very simple but the impact with regards to flavor, temperature, texture it's more than the sum of its parts. So, it really is one of those ones that everybody was surprised. You can physically see them well, in a way where they just didn't expect it because that's the idea of telling that story, the idea was green. Different shades of green, the taste of green. Another I would say dish that we like very much beautifully cooked fresh live dungeness crabs, just very gently shredded meat made into just a nice little ball of crab meat. Then I would make a very fine galette out of white beer, and crab consomme, so the bones make crab consomme and flavor it with this very nice white Japanese beer. We would make a little disk like this very fine of the galette which has the aroma of the beer and the taste of the crap, and just imprint like press flowers some little flowers and little hubs are green and red and orange,just some beautiful beautiful colors and then just drape it. So, it just hang beautiful like a table cloth over the crab. So, the story that brought me to that point was when I was a young trainee cook in London, pop-culture there in the summer was everybody could sit outside and you have a pint of beer. I remember when I was 18, that kind of time maybe a bit younger, but technically I'm not allowed to say that am I. Sitting outside in the summer and you have this beautiful English Girls, and beautiful flowery summer dresses sitting having a beer and just thinking one day and just reminiscing. Thinking well, it's a good emotion, again it's a story, it's what most good dishes they come from that point of view is, is something that's personal. It was my albeit very personal interpretation of saying, "This is me sitting outside, with this beautiful little dish that evokes memories for me, when I was a young teenager sitting outside in the summer training, working with crab for the first time, my first time talking to girls, my first time becoming a man whilst learning how to cook." This is the dish that I thought would be a beautiful interpretation of that. So again, it's a point of spontaneity and reference and emotion that comes into play there with thinking of how to create a dish. Taking the knowledge that you have how to make the gallete, how to prepare the crab. Then combining all of it and obviously it stands on its own as a dish because it has to be. Because I'm not going to go tell that story to every customer but for me, that's where it comes from. For the customer when they eat it that's not obviously for them but they can eat the dish. It's crab, beer the flowers, the beautiful [inaudible] flower. It all just melts together as this beautiful evocation of early summer spring which is right around the time when we do it. I think the difference for me with the conception of cooking is an art or craft. I think it's both. For me the point of view that I have is if you're an artist, I can create a beautiful meal for you today. Tomorrow I don't have to. Because it's art, because it's there, it's done and for me, it's very important to make sure that there's a consistency to what we do, because that's what the craft comes into it. Doing this cooking for living is extremely hard and every single day that you cook professionally, people come to eat your food and there has to be a standard and a consistency in what you do. Therefore, just because we have a great service today and we put out some beautiful dishes today, and their artistic and yes, yes, yes, that doesn't mean that tomorrow we can take the foot off the gas pedal. It's very important to understand the balance though because it too often it's either one or the other and then, if it's all craft that's very good and that works. But I think that the artistic part is also very important. It's very important but if it's too much art and then the craft tends to suffer, it has to be both, I think is the answer. For this particular dish that were doing, was looking more at landscape, and looking more at nature and looking more at traditional style of art not more than not at all. So for me, that sets a tone of exactly what we're going to be doing as far as from a food point of view. So, we're looking at gardens and landscapes as nature, so it's green. So automatically, that leaves me towards more of a vegetables and fruits. That to me is very different as if I was to look at maybe a piece of art from maybe the Renaissance where it's more bold block colors, there's a lot darker. It's a lot more, it's less pastel. That would for me be more meat but that's me, that's the way I look at it. So, it's really in the eye of the beholder. As a student looking at a piece of art and saying, "What does this feeling evoke for me?" It really is up to you because everybody's different. So, right now we have beautiful tomatoes and corn and herbs and things which are abundant right now. If we do this dish where more towards December, January. Obviously, we're looking more at root vegetables, we're looking more at a hardier style of eating but the concept remains the same, it's just our approach of how we position the ingredients changes. So, it really depends on how you want to eat, what time of year it is, what the local produce delivers and where you live because every culture is slightly different. 4. At Green Market: Discovering Ingredients: Today, we are at the Union Square Greenmarket in the history Union Square. This is the largest farmer's market in New York City and this is where all the farms from upstate New York had somebody come down and they come down four times a week and they sell whatever is seasonal. We're going to do something which is based with the spirit of Monet, the waterlilies to be exact. One of those many series that he did, Monet was a real inspiration I feel for this dish where the landscape and the colors and almost like a collage of touch and feel with the blending of the colors with the ingredients that we have here today is something that we can achieve and really execute a beautiful, beautiful late summer dish in the spirit of Monet. Food is very seasonal as with most things and it's very important to make sure that you work with nature as it were. We're in September right now. I will be using ingredients especially vegetables and fruits and hubs that are in season now. So therefore, we're going to use no protein, we're going to use purely vegetables and hubs and fruits and flowers so that we have a light feel to the dish. So again it's choosing the right ingredients for the right kind of dish with in essence a story that you want to tell when you create a dish. Whoever's eating the dish, you want to give them that story, whether it be a sandwich, whether it be something a little more complicated like we're going to do today, that's about what you want to present on the plate. So we're going to have a look at the farmer's markets today and we're going to see what we have to work with. This to me is where the spontaneity start. This is to me where we have our starting point of what we're going to do with the dish that we're going to do. So we'll look around, we have this beautiful heirloom tomatoes. We have these beautiful eggplants, all different kinds of eggplants. We have obviously the Italian eggplants here. We have white eggplants. We have the Japanese eggplants over here. We have pickles. We have white pickles, all different kinds. We have most beautiful tiny delicate little baby watermelons here, yellow watermelons. We have lovely cantaloupes here. We have some lovely is a beautiful, beautiful, beautiful white corn here that we have. This is really where it comes through and what I'm thinking right now is I'm thinking about when I look at that corn, how's it going to taste? What's the texture going to be? I know the time a year and I know where this grows, where there's more water, where it's rained and recently which was just going to be more sugar in it. We're looking at the size of them. We're looking at how big they are. We're looking at the variety. When we're looking at the Monet, and we're looking at the waterlilies especially, it's all green obviously. Now for me, this time a year, if you see the herbs here, we have just incredible amount of variety. This is one of my favorites. This is lemon balm, or melisse as it's known in French. Really, really fragrant, really green beautiful, great aroma. We're also looking at these beautiful potted herbs, this beautiful rosemary over here. We have some beautiful fresh growing little peppers over here. So really great. These are really nice to pickle and there have been a little sugar to them so we'd like to do like that spicy pickle, sweet style with these baby growing little peppers that you see behind me here, something that we wouldn't normally do with them but they work very, very well, really, really nicely. It kind of complements the sweetness of the tomato, the juiciness of the watermelon, and the beautiful aromatic eggplant. So again it's a kaleidoscope of flavors and textures and colors that we're looking for. Look at the color. Look what I'm talking about here. When I see that, I see the Rothko painting. So spontaneity is really dictated especially for me by the working ingredients by which we're going to do. We start with an idea. We have a concept and then the ingredient takes us in the different directions to be spontaneous. Spontaneity. We have a lot of lovely beautiful ingredients here. We're going to go off and we're going to create this Monet-inspired cascade of late summer goodness. 5. In the Kitchen: Prepping Ingredients: Okay, so, we're back from the green market. We've selected a beautiful array of ingredients that we saw today. We've very simply just taken each individual ingredient, we've looked at what that ingredient is, and we've cut it, and we've shaped it in a way where it's going to be complementary to meld well with everything else so that you get one nice continuous dish. As far as cooking techniques, boiling, steaming, roasting, frying, that really is a function of depending on the dish or what you want to do with it. Obviously, every ingredient reacts very differently depending on what you do to it. So, if you steam a piece of fish, or you fry it, you're going to get a very different result, but that really is up to you and depending on what you want. Today, we're actually doing a very, very light glaze, actually. We're not roasting, because we're not going to get anything that hot. So, we're going to keep the natural essence of the vegetable with the vegetable. So, we're not doing anything too aggressive, we're doing a very light handed cooking today. But, a piece of beef would taste very different if you poach it, as opposed to when you roast it, so it really depends on what you want, and what dish at the end result that you want. That is how cooking knowledge and application of that knowledge really works. So, here we have some lovely herbs and flowers. Some beautiful haricot vert, we have some of the pickled cucumber. These are some lovely little Mirabelle plums and some cherry tomatoes that we were looking at earlier on today. There's some lovely zucchini here, some beautiful pickled cherries, some yellow bordeaux carrots. We have some marble potatoes. We have some lovely watermelon radish. We have some breakfast radish, and we have some french radishes here. Some poblano pepper that we were looking at earlier on as well. Again, just very generally shape so that we have a nice delicate taste once it's cooked. There's some pear here. This is some kale. We have a little bit of the shredded lime radish over here. We're going to take all of this, so we're going to cook it very gently in some salted butter. We're going to compliment that with a lovely risotto, which we have over here. Which we're going to take a little bit of corn, which we saw today. This is the yellow corn as opposed to the white corn that we were looking at, and we're going to just take that and we're going to very, very gently just make a beautiful, beautiful risotto. The risotto rice that we're using is actually an aged risotto rice called acquerello rice which adds a lot of depth of flavor. It's aged for about five years. It's a very hard rice to get, and it has a beautiful nutty, complex flavor to the beautiful vegetables and herbs and flowers that we have here. In terms of cooking, you always start with the best ingredients you can find. So, from a palette point of view, the roles with which these different vegetables and fruits are going to serve, really is what we're looking for as far as the play goes. So, some are pickled, some are raw like these tomatoes, some already cooked because it would take too long to cook them like these beautiful pearl sweet silver onions here. Each one is complementary, so we have something that's very spicy, something that's very neutral to balance off. We have something that's very pickled, and something that's a little sweeter, for example, these lovely plums are nice and sweet, that meld while with the pickled cherries that we have here. So, each one is a nice counterbalance. The risotto part is the fat that is going to tie everything together and it's going to add a nice platform with which these vegetables are going to really speak their voice. But each one has its own character, and the trick is to look at each one and decide what you want to do with each particular vegetable. For this particular preparation, I wouldn't have everything pickled because it would be too much. I wouldn't have everything non pickled because that would obviously be a little bit too flat. We need a little high and low notes. It's the same as composing music, you have peaks and drops, so you need to be able to take something and have it on a high note and something on a low note. So, we're going to start this dish by making the risotto because that's going to take the longest to cook. We're going to take a little bit of butter and we're going to just melt that in the pan. We're going to take some lovely torpedo shallots right here. We're going to put these in, these have been diced very finely so that they cook nice and evenly. We're going to put a tiny, tiny pinch of salt. The salt helps to bring out the water in the vegetable so it doesn't burn. We're going to take a little touch of this rice this is the acquerello rice. This is the rice that's been age right now. So, this is looking really quite nice. I'm looking at the shallots, they're nice and even. I take some right here I can see, I can smell that they already quite nicely cooked. We're going to take a little touch of rice, not too much, like so, and we're going to just generally stir this in very gently so as not to beat up the rice. I'm going to take some of this beautiful [inaudible] stock, this is a garlic and leek stock. It's been brought up to a boil. I'm going to put just a little bit right here, just on top like this and we're going to just turn the heat down very gently. We're just going to simmer this. This generally takes about eighteen to twenty minutes to cook, so we're going to let this cook very gently on the side like so. Rice has now been cooking for twenty minutes very gently. The way that I will always check is I squeeze it, like so. I can see the very inside. That's very, very lightly al dente, but just right. So, what we're going to do is we're going to take this off, I'm going to add some raw corn to this. This is the yellow corn. I'm going to just stir this in very gently, like so. Take a little touch of butter, like so, and I'm going to just gently monte that in. I'm going to put a pinch of salt in here. I'm going to just let that sit. We want this to be quite nice and creamy, and just ever so gentle on the palate. Work well with the vegetables. 6. Creating the Dish: The process of cooking, as a chef point of view, when you start you generally learn dishes and techniques that other chefs have done, and you apply that in your own cooking. Now, the challenge then is to take what you've learnt and build on that, and develop your own voice in terms of the cuisine and gastronomy and take that, then you develop your own style and your own, I guess, lineage of what you do, and then have the other young cooks take it from there and pass the baton on as it were. That takes time. I mean, decades. Ask any great chef, it's not something which is learned over one, two or three years, it takes years, years and years of practice and of refining, and you never stop. It's something which you have to be born in here to enjoy doing it and to want to do it, because as I said before, the art and the craft there's a middle ground there. So, what we do is we have taken a lot of these basic techniques that I learned 20 plus years ago when I started cooking, and I still use the same technique but then as we have learned to do other different things, developed our own techniques and feel for the voice of what we do, we build on those and develop them. So that really is what we're doing here in regards to the dish that we're doing today. So, this technique we call shimmies which is short cover. We shimmies the pan with the butter, we cover it with the butter. So now, we just turn everything in the butter as we put it in. We're going to take the beautiful apron here. These beautiful pieces of zucchini. We're not going to put the red beetroot in because that's going to make everything go pink. So, I'm going to start with putting in the beautiful, golden and the pink beet first. We're going to warm this up at the very end. So as you can see we're starting with all of the more textured items here. So here we have some beautiful pink rose potatoes, we have some lovely small purple Peruvian potatoes. These are some baby little fingerling potatoes. Again, all very simply done. Radishes from the market. We have some breakfast and we have some French radish here. These little pink radishes. We have some lovely cauliflower florets. Then ever so gently just mix these beautiful vegetables. Some small little onions here, and some pickle little rams here, which we pickled earlier in the spring. Again, acidity, depth of flavor. Now, we can start to add in some of these beautiful poblano peppers. We're going to go over here and we're going to just give the rossato a nice stir and as you can see it's definitely tightened up, which is exactly what we want it to do. So now we're going to plate the beautiful vegetables that we've just cooked. The idea for this is looking at those water lilies and taking those layers of depth and color, and looking at what we want to see in the foreground and what we want to see in the background as the same idea as when you eat something. What's going to be on the very top of the dish, the middle and the bottom? We're building on layers of flavor. So for this particular one we're going to start with the cooked vegetables on the very base, then we're going to finish with the leafy herbs and flowers on the very top. Same way that you would look at a painting. You have the green that pops first, then you have the beautiful moss and the pastel colors that seem to be deeper back in the painting. It's the same thing with this and it's the same thing on the pollard as well. So, we're going to start with a little touch of spicy tomato vinaigrette, with those beautiful heirloom tomatoes that we saw at the market. The dill flowers that we saw at the market. The red ribbon sorrel. Some lovely Thai basil. Lemon balm that we were looking up at the market. Purslane. Then we have some lovely flowers here. These lovely pansies here. We're going to put little deposits of this rossato and corn, like so. Now, we're going to finish the dish with this lovely herbs and flowers. So here we have our beautiful collagge, different tastes and textures. If you look at it and when you eat it, you'll get the same feel that you're not eating one particular thing. Every mouthful is completely different, because everything on there is meant to be taken in a different context. It's not one repetitive flavor or texture. So you can find a new discovery with every single inch of the dish as well as the canvas with which Manet painted the beautiful waterlilies on. So again, it's the sensibility in the spirit of the painting, not necessarily the exact replica of the painting. So, thank you very much for watching and I look forward to seeing what inspirations, and spontaneity, and beautiful dishes that you'll be inspired by this to come up with for yourself. Remember, the only limits that we put upon ourselves with cooking is what's in here. There are no limits. So please, take and enjoy. 7. Hungry for More?:
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Apple Watch Series 5 revealed, available September 2019
Apple Watch Series 5 was revealed at the Apple Special Event and will be available September 2019, with orders starting today.
Bill Lavoy
The Apple Watch Series 5 was revealed today during the Apple Special Event. The Series 5 can be ordered starting today and will be available in stores on September 19, 2019.
The Apple Watch Series 5 was among the highlights of the Apple Special Event today. This latest iteration of the Apple Watch was introduced with a batch of new features, including the Apple Hearing Study, Apple Women’s Health Study, and Apple Heart and Movement Study, all within the Apple Research App. These features were announced to be launching within the U.S. in 2019, but other countries were not given a date for inclusion with these services.
Apple Watch Series 5 will also feature an Always-On Retina Display, LTPO Display, all-day battery life with up to 18 hours of use, and a new built in compass. The always-on feature will allow users to check their watch without raising their wrist or tapping the display, useful during workouts.
Series 5 of the Apple Watch will continue to build on safety features introduced by previous iterations. The EKG is back of course, and new to the Apple Watch will be International Emergency Calling, making it easy to contact emergency services in over 100 countries.
New features and improved services from the past will run on WatchOS 6, and Apple Watch Series 5 will be available in a variety of materials with a wide selection of bands. Included in this will be the first ever titanium models.
GPS models of the Apple Watch Series 5 will start at $399 USD, and cellular models will have a starting price point of $499 USD. The Apple Watch Series 5 can be ordered today, and will be available in stores on September 20, 2019.
Bill, who is also known as Rumpo, is a lifelong gamer and Toronto Maple Leafs fan. He is known for his guide writing and, unsettlingly enough, enjoys grinding out in-depth collectible articles. Tweet him @RumpoPlays if you have a question or comment about one of his guides.
Bill Lavoy posted a new article, Apple Watch Series 5 revealed, available September 2019
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"It all began when (...)" is a phrase we often use to explain the how and why of our present circumstances. If the "blank" was a medical crisis, such as a stroke, a fall, or a heart attack, our path has taken an unexpected turn.
Many Accidental Safaris begin in a hospital emergency room. Our sudden arrival sets into motion a series of rapid-fire actions and decisions that can mean the difference between life and death. Importantly, some of these decisions can also save, or cost, us thousands of dollars.
Inside the emergency room, the physician will order the tests he/she feels is necessary to determine or confirm our condition. If the tests indicate a serious problem, we will be admitted to the hospital as a "patient" for treatment. If the test results are negative, we will be sent home.
What happens when the test results are inconclusive, but suggest that there may be an underlying undiagnosed issue? If the hospital has sent us home and we collapse soon afterward from that "unknown something connected to the test that showed a little something was going on", the hospital could be liable for not taking additional measures to avert the ensuing siren and flashing lights.
Test results with "gray areas" present a serious quandary for hospitals, which must maintain a balance between compassionate care and financial stability. In order to admit us as a "patient", they must be able to check enough of the required boxes on the Admittance Form to satisfy Medicare's admission requirements.* Medicare controls how much the hospital gets paid for the services it provides and the sad reality is that hospitals must consider that Medicare might not pay and, even worse, that a Medicare audit could suggest that the hospital is guilty of Medicare fraud.
Faced with this conundrum, the safest option for the hospital is to place us in a hospital room, "under observation." Sadly, this will NOT be the best option for us! Whether we are admitted as a "patient" or placed in a room "under observation" will determine who will pay for our future treatment. If we are admitted to the hospital as a "patient" for three full days, and are subsequently moved to a rehabilitation facility, Medicare will pay 100% of the cost of the first 20 days of rehab, where costs can easily exceed $500.00 per day. Medicare will also pay all but the first $157.00 per day for the following 80 days in rehab. (Also, most Medicare supplemental health insurance plans will cover the first $157.00 per day if Medicare is paying the back end.)
If, however, we are in the hospital "under observation" for those same three days and then move to a rehab center, Medicare will NOT pay for the costs of our rehabilitative care. The hospital is required to inform us in writing that we are in the hospital "under observation" and not technically a "patient" based on a Medicare law passed in 2016. (A New York Times article on August 6th, 2016 entitled "New Medicare Law To Notify Patients of Loophole in Nursing Home Coverage" featured the story of an 85 year old woman placed in a hospital for six days of "observation" after a fall, followed by nearly five months in a nursing home for rehabilitation and skilled nursing care. The total cost of rehab exceeded $40,000 but because she had never been formally admitted to the hospital as a "patient", Medicare would not pay.)
An Accidental Safari often begins in the emergency room, and the dangers there are as perilous as those in a jungle. Let's take the steps to prepare to meet whatever challenges may come around the next turn in the road.
*(Medicare is the primary health insurance for most Americans over the age of 65 or who have been on Social Security Disability for more than two years.)
** This is just one of the issues covered in Richard C. Tizzano's new book, "Accidental Safari," a guide for navigating the challenges that come with aging. Order your invaluable copy today for only $14.95 on Amazon.com
#accidentalsafari #medicare #rehabilitation #rehab #emergencyrooom #observation #admitted
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/ Meet Dr. Walter
James M. Walter, DDS, MD
Dr. Walter, a native of Iowa, came to North Carolina as a Morehead Fellow to do his residency at UNC, Chapel Hill in 1975. During his residency, his area of research involved post-surgical neurologic alteration in the face, for which he was awarded an M.S. degree. He began practice in Winston-Salem in 1979 and started the Elkin office that year as the first Oral/Maxillofacial Surgeon in that community. His solo practice began in 1982. His career has also included board positions with North Carolina Services for Dentistry, Medical Security Insurance Company, and the Dental Foundation of North Carolina, where he served as President in 1996. Reconstructive surgery is a special interest, including maxillofacial reconstruction and dental implant reconstruction.
He is a member of the hospital staffs at Forsyth Memorial, Medical Park, Hawthorne Surgical, and Hugh Chatham Memorial Hospitals.
University of North Carolina, School of Dentistry, Chapel Hill, NC
Master of Science Degree, Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, 1978
Residency, Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, 1978
Morehead Fellow in Dentistry 1975-1978
University of Iowa, College of Dentistry; Iowa City, IA
Doctor of Dental Surgery, 1975
University of Iowa, College of Liberal Arts; Iowa City, IA
Bachelor of Arts Degree, 1972
Fellow of the American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons (AAOMS)
Member, North Carolina Society of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons (NCSOMS)
Member, American Dental Association (ADA)
Member, North Carolina Dental Society (NCDS)
Member, Forsyth County Dental Society
Member, Blue Ridge Dental Society
Member, Omicron Kappa Upsilon, Mu Chapter, Dental Honorary Fraternity
With an oral examination and x-rays of the mouth, Drs. Walter or Ringeman can evaluate the position of the wisdom teeth and predict if there are present or [...]
Do not disturb the wound. Avoid rinsing, spitting, or touching the wound on the day of surgery.
The maxillary sinuses are behind your cheeks and on top of the upper teeth. These sinuses are empty, air-filled spaces.
A small amount of bleeding is to be expected following the operation. If bleeding occurs, place a gauze pad directly over the bleeding socket and apply biting pressure for 30 minutes. If bleeding continues, bite on a moistened black tea bag for thirty minutes.
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Homepress releaseMeeting Mark Zuckerberg and Abby's Facebook Friends Day Experience
Meeting Mark Zuckerberg and Abby's Facebook Friends Day Experience
Last January 31, 2016, fellow Filipino Abby Asistio flew to San Francisco and had the wonderful opportunity of being chosen as one of the eighteen invited by Facebook on their 12th Anniversary Friends Day celebration with California-based Alopecia awareness advocate, Rachel Regal. Alopecia is an autoimmune condition which results in partial or total head and body hair loss. Abby Asistio have had it since she was four while Rachel just developed it sometime in 2012, the same year she discovered that her 10-year-old daughter, Eliana, had it, too. Six inspiring stories were picked by Facebook among its 1.64 billion users and Abby’s friends were all amazed when theye’ve found out that Abby’s Alopecia story was one of them. Imagine that!
Abby and Rachel met each other through the double A hand sign campaign that Abby started in 2012, and They've been "connected" since then. Last year, Facebook Stories featured how these two were able to build a friendship, as well as campaign for disease awareness through Facebook! And last February 1st, Abby and Rachel had the chance to tour FB headquarters in Menlo Park, San Francisco, meet and chat with the people behind Facebook (Founder & CEO Mark Zuckerberg, COO Sheryl Sandberg, CPO Chris Cox, and a whole lot of awesome people), get crazy cool gadgets and have one of the best experiences of their lives.
Abby recounted that it was such a surreal feeling to be in the same room as the creator of Facebook, Mark Zuckerberg. Mark Z was wearing his trademark look (jeans, sneakers, shirt and a big smile on his face), and had such a friendly, approachable aura and demeanor about him. Not at all intimidating! He shared stories about how the company started, its mission-vision, the ups and downs that come along, and their future plans. Those invited also had the chance to ask him questions. When Mark Z was asked about achieving success and life’s “impossibilities”. He said, “There’s a difference between impossible and things taking a really long time. Even if you’re not going to be able to do something in a short time period, if you care about something, you want to see the world to move into that direction… So the best thing to do is just get started and not be discouraged. It’s tough because this stuff is hard, or else people would’ve already done it.”
Abby Asistio got the chance to ask a question to one of the world’s 50 most powerful, successful women in business, Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg. Aside from Alopecia awareness, Abby is also an active Real Beauty advocate with girls and women struggling with various insecurities, being so consumed by the world’s unrealistic and sometimes superficial standards of beauty. So Abby asked Sheryl about her perception of it. Sheryl said that beauty is just like success and that no one could really define it for you. We are all unique. We have different stories, dreams and desires. We should explore our own inner and outer beauty, believe and embrace that we are beautiful, and never allow anyone to tell us otherwise.
Mark capped off his talk by sharing their company philosophy with everyone present. Though already having over 1 billion subscribers, there are still 7 billion people all over the world without access to all the meaningful connections and information that Facebook brings. One thing that the company stands by is that “things are always 1% completed”. It keeps them grounded, reminding them that there is always so much work, growth and progress to be done, and so many people to reach out to and help.
Everything about the Facebook trip was overwhelming and inspiring according to Abby. More than anything, it reminded her about “responsibility”. We are all given our own platforms, in this case “accounts and connections”, to make a dent in this world. It is up to us to become complacent and take these vehicles for granted, or maximize the opportunities and use them to make a positive impact in this generation. Abby is grateful that Facebook has become a medium for her to communicate disease awareness and touch people beyond the confines of her tiny room and her country. Abby is also glad that she and Rachel are two out of millions of people choosing to recognize the importance of social media in contributing to making this world a better place, and actually doing something about it.
Truly, God plans the best adventures and creates the most beautiful surprises. Abby knows that she wouldn't have been handpicked for this if it weren't for Him, as well as the countless individuals who have cared and showed support for my advocacy. Abby would like to leave a positive thought to everyone that we should really take the time to search for and identify our “purpose” – that one unique, very specific calling that is the result of our talents, dreams, desires, passions and experiences. Once you find it, be faithful to it no matter how long or difficult the journey towards its fulfillment may be. You’ll never know where it could lead to, how far it could go and how large it could grow. Abby is also thankful that her campaign continues to spread and reach new heights and she is particularly grateful to Facebook for giving her this opportunity and to Novuhair, Nature's Answer to Hair Loss (www.novuhair.com), for always being so supportive of her advocacy and endeavors. Abby is proud and honored to have represented the Philippines and the Alopecia community in this once-in-a-lifetime, international event.
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Let's connect and be friends!
advocacy beauty novuhair press release
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Lady Wolverines advance to state championship match
The Truckee volleyball team will vie for a state championship on Saturday after rolling Moapa Valley in straight sets to open the Class 3A state tournament at Bishop Manogue High School.
The Wolverines set the tone early on in the semifinal round on Friday and will now have a chance to cap off an undefeated run through the Class 3A with a state title.
Truckee’s offense overpowered the smaller Moapa Valley lineup during the semifinal contest, leading to a three-set victory (25-16, 15-7, 25-15).
“I knew we could get over the block,” said Head Coach Erika Murphy on the Wolverines’ win.
Truckee will now face the No. 1 seed from the Southern League, Boulder City, for the state championship. The Eagles defeated South Tahoe, 3-1, in the semifinals.
The championship match is scheduled for noon on Saturday at Bishop Manogue High School.
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"Learning a language enriches the curriculum. It provides excitement, enjoyment and challenge for children and teachers, helping to create enthusiastic learners and to develop positive attitudes to language learning throughout life. The natural links between languages and other areas of the curriculum can enhance the overall teaching and learning experience. The skills, knowledge and understanding gained can make a major contribution to the development of children’s oracy and literacy and to their understanding of their own culture/s and those of others.”
The Key Stage 2 Framework for Languages (DfES 2005)
At Southborough C of E Primary School we believe that the learning of a foreign language provides a valuable educational, social and cultural experience for our pupils. It helps them to develop communication skills including key skills of speaking and listening and extends their knowledge of how language works. Learning another language gives children a new perspective on the world, encouraging them to understand their own cultures and those of others.
Southborough provides age-appropriate Primary Languages learning opportunities for all children throughout the school. The focus language taught in our school is French from Year 3 to Year 5 and then Spanish in Year 6.
The aims of Primary Languages teaching at Southborough are to:
foster an interest in language learning by introducing children to other languages in a way that is enjoyable and accessible to all pupils;
stimulate and encourage children’s curiosity about language and creativity in experimenting with it;
support oracy and literacy, and in particular develop speaking and listening skills;
help children develop their awareness of cultural similarities and differences;
lay the foundations for future language study by pupils;
provide an added perspective on first language teaching and learning;
give an extra dimension to teaching and learning across the curriculum.
The children will learn to:
listen carefully and recognise sounds and combinations of sounds which are similar to, or different from, those of English;
understand and respond with increasing competence, accuracy and confidence in a range of situations;
join in songs, rhymes, raps and stories which enable them to practise the sounds of the language in an enjoyable and non-threatening way;
take part in conversations at an appropriate level, reacting to instructions and questions and expressing opinions and feelings;
memorise and recite short texts, and prepare and give a talk on a familiar subject confidently and with regard for the audience.
remember grapheme-phoneme correspondences and vocabulary directly taught and reinforced through word games and similar activities;
read stories and rhymes for enjoyment and to gain awareness of the structure of the written language;
read, copy and write independently familiar words and simple phrases in context e.g. classroom items, display labels, weather chart, date;
write sentences and short texts independently and from memory.
describe the life of children in the countries where the language is spoken;
identify similarities and differences in everyday life, social conventions, traditional stories and celebrations;
recognise how symbols, products and objects can represent the culture of a country, and how aspects of the culture of different countries become incorporated in the daily life of others;
recognise and mistrust stereotypes, and understand and respect cultural diversity.
At Southborough C of E Primary School we make learning French fun by singing songs, playing games and hearing and reading stories. We use the EuroStars French programme and other online resources to enhance teaching and learning. Children are taught specific skills, concepts and vocabulary in weekly lessons.
Assessment and Recording
French learning is recorded in children’s folders and should typically evidence all four stages (Speaking, Listening, Reading and Writing). Children are aware of their targets and self-assess their learning as well the teachers. Year 6 children record their Spanish learning in exercise books.
Primary Languages teaching at Southborough C of E Primary School is fully inclusive. No child is excluded by reason of a learning difficulty, or because they have English as an additional language. Experience has indeed shown that such children can derive particular benefit from taking part in Primary Languages learning activities in which they may be less disadvantaged than in other areas of the curriculum.
Language learning activities are planned in such a way as to encourage the full and active participation of all pupils. Work is differentiated as appropriate to the needs of individual children. Pairs and groups for collaborative work may be made up in different ways, depending on the task.
Spiritual, Moral, Social and Cultural Development and British Values
In learning about another language, it is necessary to be aware of “difference” in a positive way. To know that there are other ways to live and behave which are valid, despite not being the same as the one that the child knows at home. It gives an opportunity for insight and debate into why things are not always as one has grown up to believe, but arise from sociological differences. At the same time, recognising that there are certain basic, fundamental truths that are common to our humanity, such as the need for honesty, trust and mutual respect in order for us all to live together in harmony.
Collaborative work in Primary Languages develops mutual respect for the differing opinions, beliefs and abilities of others. In addition, children learn to appreciate the value of similarities and differences and learn to show tolerance. A variety of experiences teaches them to appreciate that all people – and their views – are equally important.
Primary Languages provides a basis for teaching and learning about other cultures, and this is incorporated into many areas of the curriculum including personal and social education and citizenship, geography, religious education, design and technology, music, art and dance. Efforts are made to ensure that teaching material across the curriculum includes a ‘flavour’ of the countries where the focus language is spoken.
The five fundamental British values of democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty, mutual respect for and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs and for those without faith are interwoven into the teaching of Primary Languages, in particular how it relates to the intercultural understanding elements of the language and culture and its similarities/differences to life in Britain.
Spanish in Year 6 and our Cultural Exchange Visit to Madrid
Our Spanish school links with Real Colegio Alfonso Xii in El Escorial and Parque de Lisboa in Alcorcon give us fantastic opportunities to introduce Spanish in Year 6. All pupils participate in a pen pal scheme to help discover more about their Spanish peers and life in and around Madrid, together with putting their new found linguistic skills into practice. Spanish teaching and learning is delivered by our Spanish speaking specialist, Mrs Heller, who ensures that all children have conversational Spanish by the end of Year 6 and feel confident to read and write basic Spanish, not to mention making sure that they can confidently purchase their obligatory ice creams on the Spanish trip!
Year 6 pupils and staff fly to Madrid during the summer term. Pupils are not only motivated by the opportunity to meet their pen pals and spend time with them but they also experience being immersed in the language and culture. These exchange visits and regular correspondence allow children to form a bond with their penpals in Spain, many of which continue long after pupils have left primary school.
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Low bail sets anti-abuse fight back
By the editorial - 12 November 2019 - 09:11
Had the man been denied or granted a steep bail amount, that would have also shown the public that our justice system is in touch with the sentiments of the society, the writer says.
The release of an attempted rape accused on a R500 bail is a letdown of the fight against sexual and gender-based violence.
The man, who allegedly assaulted and tried to rape his 91-year-old mother two weeks ago, was granted bail by the Protea magistrate's court yesterday.
As part of his bail conditions, the man will be living with his wife at an alternative address, and he was warned not to contact the elderly woman until the matter has been finalised.
The 53-year-old was also ordered to contact the local police station and a relative when he wants to pick up his personal belongings from his mother's house.
The court is within its rights to grant whatever bail amount it deems fit for a suspect, however, in a country that faces a scourge of gender-based violence like ours, we expected the court to make it harder for the alleged abuser to leave prison.
Not so long ago, President Cyril Ramaphosa promised that laws will be amended to ensure that no bail was granted to alleged rapists and killers of women and children.
We understand that Ramaphosa's plan is still being implemented, we just wish the court had used this case to send a strong message to abusers or would-be offenders.
Bail after bid to rape his own mom
The family of a 91-year-old woman who was allegedly almost raped by her son has expressed outrage that the man was granted bail yesterday.
This would have shown them that courts are serious about dealing with gender-based violence.
Had this man been denied or granted a steep bail amount, that would have also shown the public that our justice system is in touch with the sentiments of the society that has had enough women being raped and killed.
The 91-year-old alleges that she has been physically and verbally abused by her son for many years. She told Sowetan that she had even obtained a protection order against him, but later withdrew it after a relative begged her to forgive him.
This was more reason for the court to keep this man in jail. There is record in court that he is not being accused of violence for the first time.
For now, our hope is that the president's action plan, which includes legislative reforms that will ensure perpetrators are denied bail and spend their lives in prison, would be implemented sooner for women and children to be safe.
Man accused of trying to rape his mother (91) to apply for bail
The 53-year-old man accused of assaulting and attempting to rape his 91-year-old mother is expected to apply for bail on Monday. The matter was ...
Man in bail bid for attempted rape of his 91-year-old mother
A 53-year-old man accused of assaulting and almost raping his 91-year-old mother is expected to apply for bail on Monday.
Mom (91) evades rape by her son
A 91-year-old woman broke down as she told of the abuse she suffered allegedly in the hands of her son, who also attempted to rape her.
Rape accused remanded as state seeks confirmation his wife would accommodate him
KZN man sentenced to life in prison for rape of elderly woman
Somber Women's Month as one elderly woman killed, another raped
Elderly pair tied, beaten and raped in Limpopo
Granny raped and bludgeoned to death
Two young men arrested for allegedly raping 75-year-old woman
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Share this Story: Baseball skipper Lasorda dies
Baseball skipper Lasorda dies
Before throwing out the ceremonial first pitch, Los Angeles Dodgers legend Tommy Lasorda acknowledges the crowd before Italy takes on Venezuela in the first round of the World Baseball Classic on March 8, 2006 at The Ballpark at Disney in Kissimmee, Florida. (Photo by Doug Benc/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES — Tommy Lasorda, the colorful and cantankerous longtime manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers who led the team to four National League pennants and two World Series championships in the 1970s and ’80s, has died. He was 93.
Lasorda, who spent more than 70 years in the Dodgers organization, suffered a sudden cardiopulmonary arrest at home Thursday night and was taken to a hospital where he was pronounced dead a short time later, the team said in a statement on Friday.
Baseball skipper Lasorda dies Back to video
“In a franchise that has celebrated such great legends of the game, no one who wore the uniform embodied the Dodger spirit as much as Tommy Lasorda,” Dodgers chief executive Stan Kasten said in a news release.
“A tireless spokesman for baseball, his dedication to the sport and the team he loved was unmatched. He was a champion who at critical moments seemingly willed his teams to victory.
“The Dodgers and their fans will miss him terribly. Tommy is quite simply irreplaceable and unforgettable.”
Lasorda’s connection with the Dodgers dated back to 1949, when he was drafted as a pitcher while the storied National League club was still based in New York City’s Brooklyn borough.
But Lasorda’s tenure in the dugouts far outshone his playing career and he eventually became one of the team’s most enduring and widely recognized figures.
“Tommy Lasorda was one of the finest managers our game has ever known. He loved life as a Dodger,” MLB Commissioner Robert Manfred said in a statement. “His passion, success, charisma and sense of humor turned him into an international celebrity, a stature that he used to grow our sport.”
BIG WINS, HUMOROUS QUIPS
Fans most remembered him for delivering big wins during his two decades as manager, starting nearly 20 years after then-owner Walter O’Malley moved the team to Los Angeles as part of Major League Baseball’s expansion to the West Coast in ’50s.
Lasorda’s longevity and wit put him in the pantheon of such legendary longtime baseball managers as Casey Stengel and Yogi Berra, whose verbal prowess made them media darlings. As manager, he compiled a 1,599-1,439 regular-season record, leading the Dodgers to World Series victories in 1981 and 1988.
Sportswriters could count on Lasorda to pepper interviews with humorous quips. One of his best known was describing “three types of baseball players: those who make it happen, those who watch it happen and those who wonder what happened.”
He stepped down as manager in 1996 after suffering a mild heart attack.
“I felt that even though the doctors had given me a clean bill of health, that for me to get into uniform again, as excitable as I am, I could not go down there and not be the way I’ve always been,” he said in announcing his retirement.
But Lasorda, who was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1997, returned to the dugouts to manage the U.S. baseball squad to a gold medal at the 2000 Sydney Olympics.
Lasorda also parlayed his blustery persona and burly profile into a side career as a television pitchman for SlimFast-brand diet shakes and other weight-loss products during the 1980s and ’90s. But his affable image in TV ads contrasted sharply with a more combative side.
His pugnacity was infamously caught on tape when Lasorda unleashed a profanity-laced tirade at a radio reporter when asked about a decisive string of three home runs blasted that day by Chicago Cubs slugger Dave Kingman during a 15-inning defeat of the Dodgers in 1978.
BRIEF BIG-LEAGUE PLAYER CAREER
Born in Norristown, Pennsylvania, to Italian immigrants, Lasorda got his start in professional baseball at age 18. He signed as an undrafted free agent with the Philadelphia Phillies in 1945, joining their “farm” club system, then serving two years in the U.S. Army.
The left-handed pitcher returned to minor league baseball in upstate New York in 1948 with the Schenectady Blue Jays, gaining notice for a 25-strikeout performance. In 1949, the Dodgers drafted him from the Phillies.
Lasorda made his major league debut on Aug. 5, 1954, with the Dodgers, playing in Brooklyn for two seasons before being traded to the Kansas City Athletics to pitch for a season.
He was sent down to the minors again and retired from pro ball as a player in 1960. He served as a Dodgers talent scout for the next five years.
Lasorda went on to manage a number of Dodgers minor league clubs until 1973, when he returned to the majors as third-base coach. The Dodgers named him manager in September 1976, upon the retirement of 23-year veteran Walter Alston.
After retiring as manager in 1996, Lasorda held various executive posts, including vice president and special advisor, developing the club’s minor league teams, making public appearances and serving as a goodwill ambassador overseas.
Asked when he retired from managing how he wished to be remembered, Lasorda answered: “On my tombstone I would like, ‘Dodger Stadium was his address, but every ballpark was his home.'”
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KEVIN HARVICK – 2019 Martinsville I Race Advance
Kevin Harvick will have Mobil 1 as his primary sponsor for Sunday’s Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race Sunday at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway. It will be the first of nine races Harvick will be sponsored by Mobil 1, which has a long history of great success in auto racing.
For 2019, the No. 4 Mobil 1 Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) has switched to a black base color conveying power, strength and sophistication. And one of Harvick’s SHR teammates will have a car that looks very similar this weekend.
Harvick and SHR’s Clint Bowyer will each sport a Mobil 1 paint scheme at Martinsville. Mobil 1 isn’t just the world’s leading synthetic motor oil brand, it also provides the entire SHR organization with leading lubricant technology, ensuring that all SHR Mustangs have a competitive edge over the competition on the track. In its 17th consecutive season as the “Official Motor Oil of NASCAR,” Mobil 1 is used by more than 50 percent of teams throughout NASCAR’s top three series.
The No. 4 Mobil 1 Ford Mustang was driven to victory lane twice last year, one as a co-primary sponsor in August at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn, and as a full primary in October at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth. But the lubricants Mobil 1 provided helped Harvick to all eight of his 2018 wins, plus a victory in the prestigious NASCAR All-Star Race.
Harvick is hoping for another victory in this week’s Martinsville 500. He has one win, five top-threes, 17 top-10s and has led a total of 628 laps in his 35 career NASCAR Cup Series starts at the flat half-mile, paperclip-shaped oval. His average start there is 14.3, his average finish is 15.3, and he has a lap-completion rate of 98.0 percent – 17,196 of the 17,539 laps available.
It’s been eight years since he won a Cup Series race at Martinsville, and he would like another grandfather clock, which is awarded to the winner of each race.
But he has won in other divisions. Harvick has made the most of his one and only NASCAR Xfinity Series start at Martinsville Speedway. He started sixth in the Goody’s 250 on July 22, 2006, and went on to lead 149 of 250 laps en route to a victory. In NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series competition, he has three wins, seven top-five finishes and nine top-10s in 17 starts.
He’s back in black this week at Martinsville. And he’s hoping to score a huge win.
KEVIN HARVICK, Driver of the No. 4 Mobil 1 Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing:
Mobil 1 is your sponsor this week. Talk about the company’s involvement.
“Mobil 1 is technical partner, not just a sponsor. Their technology under the hood of the No. 4 Ford gives our cars an advantage over other teams. They are a huge reason we won eight races and the All-Star Race last year. The Mobil 1 guys work just as hard for us as we do for them. They provide us with an advantage over the other teams and they are always at the racetrack and race shop looking over the engine oil, chassis lubricants, gear oil and even power steering fluid to make sure we have the best technology available.”
Does winning a grandfather clock mean more to you than other trophies?]
“The clock at Martinsville in pretty unique. I think, as you look at the clock and the history that comes with the clock and being represented by that particular trophy, it’s something that I like. I think some of the racetracks have boring and stale trophies and, when you go to Martinsville, they’re cool clocks that represent who Martinsville is. When you go to the Daytona 500 and win the Harley J. Earl Trophy, it represents who Daytona is. When you go to some tracks and have a Plexiglas and sticker trophy, well maybe that represents some of the racetracks that we go to and some of them are the same.”
Where do you want to be at Martinsville to help you avoid trouble on the racetrack?
“I think the best position to be in at any racetrack is in the lead. You want to be in control of the race and try to get yourself in a position to where you can have a good, clean restart and have as much clear track – especially at Martinsville – just for the fact that there is so much pushing and shoving on the restarts to get to the bottom lane that you want to try to be as far forward as possible.”
When you think of Martinsville, what comes to mind?
“Some guys just have a knack for Martinsville. There are some weekends when I show up and I feel good about where I’m at and some weekends I just feel like I’ve never been there before. You look at this little bitty racetrack and you think it would be so simple, and you go out there and it becomes so hard.”
Author Ashlyn SiskePosted on March 20, 2019 March 27, 2019 Categories Pre-Race Reports
ARIC ALMIROLA – 2019 Martinsville I Race Advance
ARIC ALMIROLA – 2019 Martinsville I Race Report
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EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030
Without Survival, we Indians would be dead
We try to catch people if they are poaching
We are ready to lay down our lives to save our sacred mountain
If we can’t stay, the jungle can’t survive
Baiga India
We are Survival, the global movement for tribal peoples’ rights. We’re the only organization that champions tribal peoples around the world. We help them defend their lives, protect their lands and determine their own futures.
We exist to prevent the annihilation of tribal peoples and to give them a platform to speak to the world so they can bear witness to the genocidal violence, slavery and racism they face on a daily basis. By lobbying the powerful we help defend the lives, lands and futures of people who should have the same rights as other contemporary societies.
A world where tribal peoples are respected as contemporary societies and their human rights protected.
We were founded in 1969 by a group of people appalled by the genocide of Amazon Indians detailed in a Sunday Times exposé.
For several years, we had little or no income and were run by volunteers. We published information about tribal peoples’ problems, supported projects in their communities, and lobbied for their rights in international forums like the UN.
But quickly it became apparent that the only way to ensure the continued survival of tribal peoples was also to catalyse a groundswell of public opinion in their favour.
That’s ultimately how all progressive movements foster lasting change, from stopping the slave trade two centuries ago, to destroying South African apartheid.
From our humble beginnings, our thousands of supporters around the world elevated our struggle to a global movement, with hundreds of concrete successes in the field.
The movement has radically altered the outlook for tribal peoples in many parts of the world.
Survival International works as a unified organization, operating in seven languages across six country offices which all have charitable/nonprofit status.
The international secretariat is based in London and its board of trustees govern the entire movement. Regional offices are managed by their own boards.
Our board members bring expertise in many different fields to Survival’s work, from indigenous rights to journalism, via accountancy and the law, to name but a few.
In order to preserve our integrity and independence, we refuse all money from national governments, the principal violators of tribal peoples’ rights. We also do not accept donations from any company that abuses tribal peoples’ rights or is likely to do so.
Very unusually for an international NGO, Survival is funded almost entirely by the general public. Our merchandise and a few trusts and foundations also contribute to our work. That’s what guarantees our powerful and independent voice. Some indigenous organizations also donate to our work.
Many of our staff remain anonymous for their own safety. This also makes it harder for governments to block our access to tribal peoples.
Staff includes regional experts with direct experience of, and contacts in, hundreds of tribal communities and organizations. Our director is Stephen Corry.
We don’t have offices where tribal peoples live. This means we are never pressed to change our work in order to protect our staff from threats they might receive.
We aren’t controlled by tribal peoples themselves because we are primarily a movement opposing crimes that stem from our own society. We also have supporters in countries where tribes live, including some tribal individuals themselves.
Since Survival started in 1969 hundreds of thousands of people in over one hundred countries around the world have supported our campaigns. Here are just some of the public figures who have contributed to our work.
Davi Yanomami
Doris Pilkington Garimara
Sir Mark Rylance
His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama
Claude Levi Strauss
Laurens Van Der Post
Sir Quentin Blake
Explore Survival projects
Tribal conservationists
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Fine Dining & Catering
360˚ Virtual Tour
(323) 978-0005 BOOKING INQUIRIES
Living Legends Foundation Hosts Awards Gala At Taglyan For 6th Year In A Row
Originally published October 9, 2019
On October 4th, 2019, the Living Legends Foundation celebrated the most talented individuals in the music and entertainment industry at their 23rd Living Legends Annual Award Gala, hosted at Taglyan. It was a stunning evening.
Image: Koi Sojer/Snap’N U Photos
This is the sixth year in a row that the Living Legend Foundation has held this event with us, and we are very excited and proud to be a part of their ceremony.
Event chairpersons for the gala were husband-and-wife team Ray Chew and Vivian Scott Chew of Chew Entertainment, and DeDe McGuire, host of radio show DeDe in the Morning, served as the event’s MC. Special guest appearances included award winners Cathy Hughes, Kelly Rowland, Bobby Brown, Israel Houghton, YoYo, and Freda Payne, among others.
Attendees also enjoyed a special performance by Tito Jackson, who sang his new solo single, “One Way Street”.
Image: vimeo.com/euweb
Honorees for the 23rd Annual Award Gala included:
Dyana Williams, co-founder of Black Music Month and CEO at Influence Entertainment (Lifetime Achievement Award)
Sidney Miller, Black Radio Exclusive founder and publisher (A.D. Washington Chairman’s Award)
Maurice White, eOne Entertainment Group vice president (Music Label Executive Award)
Sheila Coates, founder and creator of Be Your Own Brand (Entrepreneur Award)
Dedra N. Tate, president and CEO of Unlimited Contacts (Mike Bernardo Executive Award)
Hymen Childs, Service Broadcast Group owner and operator (Broadcast Icon Award)
Karen Lee, W&W Public Relations senior VP (Media Executive Award)
Phil Thornton, senior vice president/general manager at RCA Inspiration (Gospel Music Executive Award)
Frank Ski, WVEE Atlanta personality and journalist (Jerry Boulding Radio Executive Award)
Steve Hegwood, Core Communications president and CEO (Jerry Boulding Radio Executive Award)
Founded by veteran music executive Ray Harris, the Living Legends Foundation raises funds to provide financial assistance to industry pioneers who have found themselves in need. “Many former music industry employees worked during a time when 401Ks and retirement packages were not available—and even today, in this era of downsizing and mergers, the industry’s lack of long-term career stability has become more commonplace.” (eurweb.com) The foundation also raises funds for scholarships for college students who are seeking careers within the industry.
Presenter Kelly Rowland with Honoree Phil Thornton | Image: Koi Sojer/Snap’N U Photos
The Living Legends Foundation’s executive team is currently headed up by chairman David Linton and president Varnell Johnson.
Our team at Taglyan is always happy to host this outstanding and exciting event, especially after so many years of working together. If you’re planning an upcoming gala of your own, or any other type of event, please feel free to contact us for availability and information.
Honoree Sheila Coates and Ray Harris, founder of the LLF | Image: Koi Sojer/Snap ‘N U Photos
22nd Annual Living Legends Awards Show Held At Taglyan
Pat Shields, “Hurricane” Dave Smith, and Cynthia Johnson were among this year’s honorees at the 22nd annual Living Legends Foundation Award show held at Taglyan on October 5th, 2018.
Image: Maury Phillip
The evening was held to not only honor those who have made progress in the entertainment industry, but to also help raise proceeds to help future entrepreneurs that need help to make their dreams happen within this industry and others.
A post shared by Kenny Mahone (@kenny.mahone) on Oct 5, 2018 at 9:20pm PDT
David C. Linton, Chairman of the Living Legends Foundation, told the LA Sentinal that this year’s event was perhaps the best in the foundation’s history. He went on to tell the Sentinel that “the attendance surpassed previous years and included people not only from radio and records, but all areas of entertainment. It is a testament to the achievements of the honorees as well as the great work by the organization. I would like to thank all of our sponsors, board members, volunteers, and everyone who came out to make this event a record-setting year.”
Paying tribute to the honorees this year was famed R&B singer Kenny Lattimore, lead vocalist for The O’Jays Eddie Levert, and lead vocalist for the soul group Tower of Power, Lenny Williams.
The red carpet event included world-class catering and a cocktail hour as the attendees celebrated the distinguished guests for the evening.
The awards show also paid tribute to the late Aretha Franklin with performances by recording artist Margo Thunder, the award-winning recording artist and writer Reggie Calloway, Williams, and Lattimore.
Award winners from Living Legends Foundation’s 22nd Annual Awards Show. Image: Eurweb.com
The Living Legends Foundation seeks to preserve the legacy of those who have helped shape the broadcast and recording industry in America. Those contributors that may receive less attention than others deserve to have their contributions recognized, which is exactly what the foundation seeks to promote. The foundation offers mentoring and educational opportunities for those who need assistance in their industry. This is part of a strategy to expand the efforts of the foundation.
The event was a huge success, as attendees from various industries were able to come together to celebrate those who have made great contributions over the years. From musical performances to memorable speeches, this event brought the community together to honor those who have paved the way for others.
Honorees Celebrated At The Living Legends Foundation’s 21st Awards Gala At Taglyan
Taglyan was once again proud to host the Living Legends Foundation’s Awards Show and Dinner gala on October 5th, 2017. We have hosted this fabulous event two years in a row, and we’re honored to be part of this special occasion for a third year.
The event was hosted by veteran broadcasting and media personality Rolonda Watts, with entertainment by Grammy award-winning singer/songwriter Siedah Garrett, as well as Sheléa, who was hand-picked by Quincy Jones.
Although it was the third year for Taglyan to help celebrate this event, it was actually the 21st Awards Show and Dinner for the esteemed 26-year-old Living Legends Foundation, which recognizes and honors individuals who the Foundation believes to have set themselves apart by being outstanding mentors, trailblazers, pioneers, or trendsetters in the music industry.
This year’s honorees included:
Larry Jackson, Head of Original Music Content of Apple Music (Digital Music Executive Award)
Ray Chew and Vivian Scott Chew, partners at Chew Entertainment (Creative Visionary Award)
Steve Crumbley, senior vice president of programming manager of Apex Media Charleston (Jerry Boulding Radio Executive Award)
Don Jackson, founder of Central City Productions (Broadcast Icon Award)
Varnell Johnson, CEO of Junes Entertainment and LLF President (Chairman’s Award)
Morace Landy, chief marketing strategist of Empire Distribution (Music Label Executive Award)
Tyrone “Fly Ty” Williams, chairman of the Board of Brooklyn United and former chairman & CEO of Cold Chillin’ Records (Hip-Hop Visionary Award)
“I’ve been asked to be honored many times in my career, but this is the only time that I’ve accepted,” Tyrone “Fly Ty” Williams said in an interview, “But when I got the call from the Living Legends Foundation, saying they wanted to honor me with the Hip-Hop Visionary Award honor, I greatly accepted and began to reflect on how difficult it was to bring hip-hop to the world.”
Similarly, Morace Landy said of his award, “I have awards kind of around the house—I don’t put up a lot. But this one means a lot, so I want to put it up in the studio.”
The Living Legends Foundation’s 21st Awards Show and Dinner gala was a hugely successful evening. The world-class accommodations and amenities provided by our team at Taglyan served as the perfect setting for the Living Legends Foundation’s annual red-carpet event, and the evening was a memorable experience for everyone in attendance.
Music Legends Honored At Living Legends Foundation’s 20th Awards Dinner & Gala
Image: Steven S. Williams
On October 6th, the Living Legends Foundation held its 25thAnniversary and 20th Awards Dinner and Gala at Taglyan Complex, bringing together a wealth of big names in the music and radio industries to honor some of the business’ most influential figures.
Founded in 1991, the Living Legends Foundation was created to honor trailblazers, trendsetters, and iconic individuals in the worlds of music and radio. As the organization’s website notes, the Living Legends Foundation is, “dedicated to recognizing those members of the entertainment industry whose efforts and contributions have paved the way for many in the entertainment industry, especially, minorities and women.”
This year’s Living Legends Foundation honorees included:
Miller London, CEO of Russell Street Entertainment/CEG Music and LLF board member (Chairman’s Award)
Tony Gray, founder and president of Gray Communications (Jerry Boulding Radio Executive Award)
Sheila Eldridge, CEO of Miles Ahead Entertainment (Entrepreneur Award)
Regina Jones, founder and editor of SOUL newspaper (Legacy Award in celebration of SOUL newspaper’s 50th anniversary)
Jamie Foster Brown, founder of Sister 2 Sister magazine (Media Executive Award)
Larry Khan, Senior Vice President of Urban Promotion at Interscope Records (Music Label Executive Award)
Herb Trawick, creator, executive producer, and co-host of Pensado’s Place (Creative Visionary Award)
Ray Harris, founder of the Living Legends Foundation (special award by foundation chairman David C. Linton)
The gala was hosted by radio personality “Jammin” Jay Michaels of San Diego’s Magic 92.3, with performances by American Idol winner and Motown recording artist La’Porsha Renae, R&B artist and songwriter Guordan Banks, and jazz saxophonist Rob White. The event was filled with celebrities and famous faces such as comedian/television host Loni Love, journalist Rolanda Watts, actor Ro Brooks, and musicians like Angelo Moore and Freda Payne among many more.
Ray Harris and David Linton
By all accounts, the Living Legends Foundation’s 25th Anniversary and 20th Annual Awards Gala and Dinner was a huge success. Taglyan Complex’s world-class accommodations provided the perfect backdrop for the foundation’s annual gathering of music industry heavyweights and entertainment superstars, honoring some of the best and brightest the industry has to offer.
Living Legends Honors Industry Greats at Taglyan Complex
On October 9th, 2015, Taglyan Complex welcomed many of the music industry’s most influential executives, publishers, recording artists, and radio DJs for the 19th annual Living Legends Foundations awards ceremony. Hosted by well-known radio personality “Jammin’” Jay Michaels and co-chaired by Brenda Andrews and Jon Platt, the new CEO of Warner Chappell, the awards show featured electric performances by Motown recording artist Stacy Barthe, Hidden Beach’s Angie Fisher, and Reed Shannon of Motown The Musical. Pat Shields served as event committee chairperson of the event.
Before a star-studded audience which included Robert “Kool” Bell of Kool & The Gang, Ro Brooks from television’s The Haves and the Have Nots, actress Paula Newsone of NCIS, and news anchor Rolonda Watts, Living Legends recognized music’s most important individuals.
Among others, honorees included:
Ruben Rodriguez, CEO of Ruben Rodriguez Entertainment (Lifetime Achievement Award)
Kendall Minter, CEO of Minter & Associates (Chairman’s Award)
Troy Carter, CEO and founder of Atom Factory (Entrepreneur Award)
Radio Personality Jerry Boulding (better known as “Big Boy” on L.A.’s Real 92.3)
Jeffrey Harleston, general counsel and executive vice president of Universal Music Group (Music Label Executive Award)
About The Living Legends Foundation
Founded in Los Angeles in 1991 by Ray Harris and Jerry Boulding, The Living Legends Foundation (LLF) honors the trailblazers, trendsetters, teachers and mentors in the music and radio industry, especially those who have helped pave the way for minorities and women in the entertainment industry. The Living Legends Foundation also recognizes many of the industry’s “unsung heroes” such as executives and producers, and provides financial assistance to those honorees who have fallen on hard times. Since its creation, the LLF has provided nearly $100,000 in assistance.
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Details About the talk
A few years ago, with my colleague, Emmanuelle Charpentier, I invented a new technology for editing genomes. It's called CRISPR-Cas9. The CRISPR technology allows scientists to make changes to the DNA in cells that could allow us to cure genetic disease.
You might be interested to know that the CRISPR technology came about through a basic research project that was aimed at discovering how bacteria fight viral infections. Bacteria have to deal with viruses in their environment, and we can think about a viral infection like a ticking time bomb — a bacterium has only a few minutes to defuse the bomb before it gets destroyed. So, many bacteria have in their cells an adaptive immune system called CRISPR, that allows them to detect viral DNA and destroy it.
Part of the CRISPR system is a protein called Cas9, that's able to seek out, cut and eventually degrade viral DNA in a specific way. And it was through our research to understand the activity of this protein, Cas9, that we realized that we could harness its function as a genetic engineering technology — a way for scientists to delete or insert specific bits of DNA into cells with incredible precision — that would offer opportunities to do things that really haven't been possible in the past.
The CRISPR technology has already been used to change the DNA in the cells of mice and monkeys, other organisms as well. Chinese scientists showed recently that they could even use the CRISPR technology to change genes in human embryos. And scientists in Philadelphia showed they could use CRISPR to remove the DNA of an integrated HIV virus from infected human cells.
The opportunity to do this kind of genome editing also raises various ethical issues that we have to consider, because this technology can be employed not only in adult cells, but also in the embryos of organisms, including our own species. And so, together with my colleagues, I've called for a global conversation about the technology that I co-invented, so that we can consider all of the ethical and societal implications of a technology like this.
What I want to do now is tell you what the CRISPR technology is, what it can do, where we are today and why I think we need to take a prudent path forward in the way that we employ this technology.
When viruses infect a cell, they inject their DNA. And in a bacterium, the CRISPR system allows that DNA to be plucked out of the virus, and inserted in little bits into the chromosome — the DNA of the bacterium. And these integrated bits of viral DNA get inserted at a site called CRISPR. CRISPR stands for clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats. (Laughter)
A big mouthful — you can see why we use the acronym CRISPR. It's a mechanism that allows cells to record, over time, the viruses they have been exposed to. And importantly, those bits of DNA are passed on to the cells' progeny, so cells are protected from viruses not only in one generation, but over many generations of cells. This allows the cells to keep a record of infection, and as my colleague, Blake Wiedenheft, likes to say, the CRISPR locus is effectively a genetic vaccination card in cells. Once those bits of DNA have been inserted into the bacterial chromosome, the cell then makes a little copy of a molecule called RNA, which is orange in this picture, that is an exact replicate of the viral DNA. RNA is a chemical cousin of DNA, and it allows interaction with DNA molecules that have a matching sequence.
So those little bits of RNA from the CRISPR locus associate — they bind — to protein called Cas9, which is white in the picture, and form a complex that functions like a sentinel in the cell. It searches through all of the DNA in the cell, to find sites that match the sequences in the bound RNAs. And when those sites are found — as you can see here, the blue molecule is DNA — this complex associates with that DNA and allows the Cas9 cleaver to cut up the viral DNA. It makes a very precise break. So we can think of the Cas9 RNA sentinel complex like a pair of scissors that can cut DNA — it makes a double-stranded break in the DNA helix. And importantly, this complex is programmable, so it can be programmed to recognize particular DNA sequences, and make a break in the DNA at that site.
As I'm going to tell you now, we recognized that that activity could be harnessed for genome engineering, to allow cells to make a very precise change to the DNA at the site where this break was introduced. That's sort of analogous to the way that we use a word-processing program to fix a typo in a document.
The reason we envisioned using the CRISPR system for genome engineering is because cells have the ability to detect broken DNA and repair it. So when a plant or an animal cell detects a double-stranded break in its DNA, it can fix that break, either by pasting together the ends of the broken DNA with a little, tiny change in the sequence of that position, or it can repair the break by integrating a new piece of DNA at the site of the cut. So if we have a way to introduce double-stranded breaks into DNA at precise places, we can trigger cells to repair those breaks, by either the disruption or incorporation of new genetic information. So if we were able to program the CRISPR technology to make a break in DNA at the position at or near a mutation causing cystic fibrosis, for example, we could trigger cells to repair that mutation.
Genome engineering is actually not new, it's been in development since the 1970s. We've had technologies for sequencing DNA, for copying DNA, and even for manipulating DNA. And these technologies were very promising, but the problem was that they were either inefficient, or they were difficult enough to use that most scientists had not adopted them for use in their own laboratories, or certainly for many clinical applications. So, the opportunity to take a technology like CRISPR and utilize it has appeal, because of its relative simplicity. We can think of older genome engineering technologies as similar to having to rewire your computer each time you want to run a new piece of software, whereas the CRISPR technology is like software for the genome, we can program it easily, using these little bits of RNA.
So once a double-stranded break is made in DNA, we can induce repair, and thereby potentially achieve astounding things, like being able to correct mutations that cause sickle cell anemia or cause Huntington's Disease. I actually think that the first applications of the CRISPR technology are going to happen in the blood, where it's relatively easier to deliver this tool into cells, compared to solid tissues.
Right now, a lot of the work that's going on applies to animal models of human disease, such as mice. The technology is being used to make very precise changes that allow us to study the way that these changes in the cell's DNA affect either a tissue or, in this case, an entire organism.
Now in this example, the CRISPR technology was used to disrupt a gene by making a tiny change in the DNA in a gene that is responsible for the black coat color of these mice. Imagine that these white mice differ from their pigmented litter-mates by just a tiny change at one gene in the entire genome, and they're otherwise completely normal. And when we sequence the DNA from these animals, we find that the change in the DNA has occurred at exactly the place where we induced it, using the CRISPR technology.
Additional experiments are going on in other animals that are useful for creating models for human disease, such as monkeys. And here we find that we can use these systems to test the application of this technology in particular tissues, for example, figuring out how to deliver the CRISPR tool into cells. We also want to understand better how to control the way that DNA is repaired after it's cut, and also to figure out how to control and limit any kind of off-target, or unintended effects of using the technology.
I think that we will see clinical application of this technology, certainly in adults, within the next 10 years. I think that it's likely that we will see clinical trials and possibly even approved therapies within that time, which is a very exciting thing to think about. And because of the excitement around this technology, there's a lot of interest in start-up companies that have been founded to commercialize the CRISPR technology, and lots of venture capitalists that have been investing in these companies.
But we have to also consider that the CRISPR technology can be used for things like enhancement. Imagine that we could try to engineer humans that have enhanced properties, such as stronger bones, or less susceptibility to cardiovascular disease or even to have properties that we would consider maybe to be desirable, like a different eye color or to be taller, things like that. "Designer humans," if you will. Right now, the genetic information to understand what types of genes would give rise to these traits is mostly not known. But it's important to know that the CRISPR technology gives us a tool to make such changes, once that knowledge becomes available.
This raises a number of ethical questions that we have to carefully consider, and this is why I and my colleagues have called for a global pause in any clinical application of the CRISPR technology in human embryos, to give us time to really consider all of the various implications of doing so. And actually, there is an important precedent for such a pause from the 1970s, when scientists got together to call for a moratorium on the use of molecular cloning, until the safety of that technology could be tested carefully and validated.
So, genome-engineered humans are not with us yet, but this is no longer science fiction. Genome-engineered animals and plants are happening right now. And this puts in front of all of us a huge responsibility, to consider carefully both the unintended consequences as well as the intended impacts of a scientific breakthrough.
(Applause ends)
Bruno Giussani: Jennifer, this is a technology with huge consequences, as you pointed out. Your attitude about asking for a pause or a moratorium or a quarantine is incredibly responsible. There are, of course, the therapeutic results of this, but then there are the un-therapeutic ones and they seem to be the ones gaining traction, particularly in the media. This is one of the latest issues of The Economist — "Editing humanity." It's all about genetic enhancement, it's not about therapeutics. What kind of reactions did you get back in March from your colleagues in the science world, when you asked or suggested that we should actually pause this for a moment and think about it?
Jennifer Doudna: My colleagues were actually, I think, delighted to have the opportunity to discuss this openly. It's interesting that as I talk to people, my scientific colleagues as well as others, there's a wide variety of viewpoints about this. So clearly it's a topic that needs careful consideration and discussion.
BG: There's a big meeting happening in December that you and your colleagues are calling, together with the National Academy of Sciences and others, what do you hope will come out of the meeting, practically?
JD: Well, I hope that we can air the views of many different individuals and stakeholders who want to think about how to use this technology responsibly. It may not be possible to come up with a consensus point of view, but I think we should at least understand what all the issues are as we go forward.
BG: Now, colleagues of yours, like George Church, for example, at Harvard, they say, "Yeah, ethical issues basically are just a question of safety. We test and test and test again, in animals and in labs, and then once we feel it's safe enough, we move on to humans." So that's kind of the other school of thought, that we should actually use this opportunity and really go for it. Is there a possible split happening in the science community about this? I mean, are we going to see some people holding back because they have ethical concerns, and some others just going forward because some countries under-regulate or don't regulate at all?
JD: Well, I think with any new technology, especially something like this, there are going to be a variety of viewpoints, and I think that's perfectly understandable. I think that in the end, this technology will be used for human genome engineering, but I think to do that without careful consideration and discussion of the risks and potential complications would not be responsible.
BG: There are a lot of technologies and other fields of science that are developing exponentially, pretty much like yours. I'm thinking about artificial intelligence, autonomous robots and so on. No one seems — aside from autonomous warfare robots — nobody seems to have launched a similar discussion in those fields, in calling for a moratorium. Do you think that your discussion may serve as a blueprint for other fields?
JD: Well, I think it's hard for scientists to get out of the laboratory. Speaking for myself, it's a little bit uncomfortable to do that. But I do think that being involved in the genesis of this really puts me and my colleagues in a position of responsibility. And I would say that I certainly hope that other technologies will be considered in the same way, just as we would want to consider something that could have implications in other fields besides biology.
BG: Jennifer, thanks for coming to TED.
JD: Thank you.
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‘Truth & Justice’ Podcast Offers $20,000 Reward for Info in Controversial Houston Murder Case
Bob Ruff is working on his fifth Texas case in fewer than four years, this time hoping to prove the innocence of Sandra Melgar in the killing of her husband, Jaime Melgar.
Michael Hall
https://www.texasmonthly.com/news/truth-justice-podcast-offers-20000-reward-for-info-in-controversial-houston-murder-case/
Loren Elliott/Getty
A Michigan podcaster is back in Texas, trying to free an inmate he swears was wrongly convicted. This is the fifth Texas case in three and a half years that the podcaster, Bob Ruff of Bridgman, Michigan, has investigated. In that time Ruff has found new evidence in cold cases, helped obtain attorneys for forgotten men, and even helped bring one man home to his family.
In this latest case, Ruff, 40, and his Truth & Justice podcast are putting up a reward of $20,000 for information leading to the arrest of the killer of Jaime Melgar, who was found stabbed 31 times and beaten to death in his Houston home on December 22, 2012. Melgar’s wife, Sandra, 53, was found tied up in a closet that had been secured on the outside by a chair crammed under the doorknob; Sandra, who suffers from epilepsy, said she remembered nothing about the attack. The house had been ransacked, and jewelry, prescription drugs, and electronics gear stolen. Though there was no physical evidence tying Sandra to the crime—she had no blood on her hands, or even cuts—law enforcement saw her as the main suspect. She was indicted a year and a half later and prosecutors took her to trial in August 2017; she was found guilty by a Houston jury and given 27 years. Ruff says the jury mistakenly bought a circumstantial case. “I believe wholeheartedly that Sandra is innocent,” he says.
Four years ago Ruff was a fireman in rural southwestern Michigan. But he fell in love with the true-crime podcast Serial, which reinvestigated a 1999 Maryland murder, and decided to start his own podcast about the case. Ruff interviewed people close to the case and asked listeners for their help in figuring out the mystery. Ruff, who has a deep, booming voice, began picking up thousands of listeners, drawn by his passionate observations and theories as well as the idea that they could be part of the investigation. In late 2015, Ruff renamed his podcast Truth & Justice, quit his job, became a full-time podcaster, and began looking for cases to investigate.
He didn’t set out to do mostly Texas cases; in fact, he spent a whole season on the West Memphis Three. But in 2016 he got an email from a young woman in Ohio about her uncle in a Texas prison who she swore was innocent of the two robberies in Tyler he had been convicted of. Ruff looked into it, and through the podcast helped the inmate, Kenny Snow, get a new pro bono attorney. That investigation led to one involving Edward Ates, who was convicted of murder in Tyler in 1998. Ruff’s crowd-sourcing of that investigation involved amateur photo experts, a serologist, and TV star Jon Cryer, ultimately raising the Truth & Justice listenership to more than 150,000 an episode. Ruff’s work on the case persuaded the Innocence Project of Texas to get involved. IPTX got Ates a parole attorney, and—against all odds—the inmate was set free last September. After that, IPTX worked with Ruff on two other Texas cases, including one in which, through his vast social media network of listeners, he was able to find new witnesses in a murder case, including a man who said he actually saw it.
Last spring Ruff began looking into the Melgar murder after hearing about it from the sister-in-law of the couple’s daughter, who was certain her mother hadn’t killed her father. As with many of the other cases, Ruff was astounded at how not only was there no physical evidence, there was no discernible motive for Sandra to kill her husband. “There was nothing there,” he said. As he had done in previous shows, Ruff brought in outside experts. One, FBI profiler Jim Clemente, theorized that this was a home invasion gone terribly wrong; that Jaime had probably fought back against the invaders and been murdered. In November, 20/20 featured Ruff’s work on the case, and a month later, Kathleen Zellner, the lawyer who represents Steve Avery in Netflix’s Making a Murderer, announced she was taking on Sandra Melgar’s case.
Recently, Ruff found evidence of a similar Houston home invasion committed nine months before the Melgar murder, which got him thinking that the actual killers and their gang might still be out there. So, he began collecting money for a reward fund for information. It quickly grew, and now the Truth & Justice podcast is offering $20,000 for help solving the murder. Anyone with such knowledge can email [email protected] or call (269) 224-2833. “We believe there are several people out there with information that can right this horrible injustice,” said Ruff, whose instincts in such matters have so far proven to be sound.
Crowdsourcing Justice By Michael Hall
Joe Exotic: A Dark Journey Into the World of a Man Gone Wild By Leif Reigstad
Ed Ates Wants His Name Back By Michael Hall
Texas Border Patrol Agent Allegedly Murdered Woman and Her One-Year Old Son By Leif Reigstad
On Texas Time: Laci Mosley, Comedian and Host of the Popular ‘Scam Goddess’ Podcast By Cat Cardenas
Russian Hackers Thrust Texas Company SolarWinds Into the Spotlight By Omar L. Gallaga
Tom Brown’s Body, Chapter 8: The Remains By Skip Hollandsworth
“Something Has To Change” By Tyler Hicks
Greg Abbott’s Politics Create a Vaccine Stampede By R.G. Ratcliffe
These Texas Congressmen Fought off the Mob. Then They Voted With Trump. By Jonathan Tilove
No, Austin Won’t Become Silicon Valley 2.0 By Michael Agresta
The Year in Texas, in Photos: Scenes From the Pandemic, Protests, and Everyday Life in 2020 By Texas Monthly
Tags: Crime, Criminal Justice, Media, Bob Ruff, jaime melgar, Murder, sandra melgar
Behind Nancy Pelosi’s Power Brooch Is an 86-Year-Old Texan Jeweler By Maria Recio
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A Car Fit for a President
Jay Lauf
After Giuseppe Zangara attempted to assassinate Franklin D. Roosevelt, Lincoln was asked to build the first customized presidential state car, and they delivered the "Sunshine Special."
It was based on five pages of specifications given to Lincoln by the Secret Service. It was a Series K convertible with security features such as armor plating, bulletproof glass and tires, and a special two-way radio.
After 11 years of service, the "Sunshine Special" retired in 1950 and was replaced by a Cosmopolitan. It too was specially fitted for the then president, Harry S. Truman.
The presidential Cosmopolitan went to the next level. It was adorned with gold-plated passenger compartment accessories, a built-in humidor, and even writing sets. Truman's limo was a part of a fleet of nine cars, all of which included special elongated seven-passenger bodies mounted on a reinforced Cosmopolitan frame.
Nearly every American president has ridden in a Lincoln since 1923, making it truly an iconic car.
To learn more about this luxury brand, view the Lincoln Custom Gallery, which takes you through the company's fascinating history to its present day innovations.
Truman rides a specially fitted 1950 Lincoln Cosmopolitan
Jay Lauf is a 23-year veteran of the publishing industry with stints on both the editorial and business sides at newspapers, trade and consumer magazines, and websites. Prior to joining The Atlantic in 2008 as VP/Publisher, he was the publisher of Wired magazine.
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Public editor: The Globe exposed thalidomiders’ problems decades ago
Mercédes Benegbi, left, with playmate Silvie Maillot, was 10 years old when The Globe and Mail published a series of stories on the problems of thalidomide victims in 1973.
Sylvia Stead
Published December 2, 2014 Updated December 2, 2014
Many readers have written to the letters editor, to editor-in-chief David Walmsley and to me to thank The Globe and Mail for its special series on the thalidomiders who are suffering terrible pain and pressing for compensation from the federal government.
On Monday night, the House of Commons voted unanimously, a rare event, to provide full support to the survivors, while in the gallery the victims wept with relief and happiness.
Earlier in the day, I heard from a former colleague, Ottawa writer Hugh Winsor, who reminded me that this was not the first time that The Globe had exposed the problems of the thalidomiders, then children and now adults.
Above you can see a photograph of Mercédes Benegbi, now the executive director of the Thalidomide Victims Association of Canada and at that time a smiling 10-year-old writing in her work book. The headline then was: "Thalidomide: After 10 years many Canadian victims have yet to receive any compensation."
Talks were going on at that time in a New Jersey court to settle what compensation should be awarded to the victims.
In his front-page story in March, 1973, Mr. Winsor wrote that "the fact that some children will receive substantial compensation, others have received nothing and others have agreed to accept what by any standards must be inadequate amounts, has been due largely to chance.
"It also points to the success of the drug companies involved in keeping the whole compensation process … in a blanket of secrecy. It also points to the failure of any public agency or government to intercede on the children's behalf."
Mr. Winsor noted in an e-mail to me on Monday that the Globe series in 1973 eventually prodded the then Liberal government to do something for the the thalidomide victims. "In a very Canadian story, the issue turned on the differences between Quebec's Code Civil and the common law applicable to the rest of the country. Most of the victims in the rest of the country got some damage award in the courts from the Delaware-based Richardson-Merrell drug company, but the Quebec victims had missed their window in the Code Civil. Although he couldn't do anything about the law, Marc Lalonde, who was then the minister of health and welfare, was so upset about the unfairness to the Quebec victims that the federal government brought huge pressure on Richardson-Merrell to pay compensation along the scale of those payments made in the rest of the country."
There was a second compensation deal in 1991 that Perrin Beatty, then health minister, recently described as "as generous" as possible.
And online on Monday, Brian Forbes, a founding member of the original Thalidomide Task Force, noted that Ottawa made a firm commitment to the victims 50 years ago.
If you missed it on Saturday, I wrote about the power of journalism and how one week of coverage saw action from Ottawa.
Public editor: Rinelle’s photo published with permission
Public editor: Yes to Ghomeshi coverage; no to pictures
Public editor: The problem with Ezra Levant’s complaint
Follow Sylvia Stead on Twitter @SylviaStead
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India, U.S. looking at training South East Asian nations in U.N. peacekeeping
China significantly scaling up its troop contribution for the missions
Global presence: Indian peacekeepers in DR Congo. | Photo Credit: AFP
With China significantly scaling up its troop contribution for United Nations Peace Keeping (UNPK) missions, India and the U.S. are looking to undertake training of military personnel for the missions from South East Asian countries on the lines of the ongoing initiative for African countries.
“The U.S. is keen on undertaking joint training of South East Asian countries in the U.N. peacekeeping and discussions are under way,” an official source said on Friday. India has consistently been among the top troop contributing nations to the U.N. and is the fifth largest with 5,424 personnel in eight countries. The U.S. on the other hand has never contributed ground troops but contributes 27% of the U.N. peace keeping budget.
In 2016, India and the U.S. began a joint annual initiative “UN Peacekeeping Course for African Partners” to build and enhance the capacity of African troop and police-contributing countries to participate in the U.N. and regional peacekeeping operations. While this is going on, the U.S. is keen on a similar initiative for South East Asian nations like Vietnam and others, the source said.
Also read | The India-U.S. defence partnership is deepening
China is significantly expanding its troop contribution to the U.N. in addition to the funding, said a second source. “It currently has over 2,500 troops in various U.N. missions and has committed another 8,000 troops as standby,” the source said. Once implemented, it will make China the largest provider of troops to the UNPK.
China presently contributes 12% of the U.N. regular general budget and 15% of the peace keeping budget. India’s contribution to the regular budget is 0.83% and 0.16% of the peacekeeping budget.
India has so far participated in 51 of the 71 missions and contributed over 2 lakh personnel. It has troop deployment in Lebanon, Golan Heights, Congo and South Sudan in addition to staff officers in other missions. India has also set up two field hospitals in South Sudan and one in Congo.
Also read | Biden administration will place high priority on strengthening Indo-US relationship, says policy paper
Since 2018, India has co-opted a contingent from Kazakhstan at the mission in Lebanon. There are 120 Kazakh soldiers in the battalion of over 800 soldiers who have now been asked to set up their own mission as they have gained experience, the first officer said. Bhutan too has expressed interest in joining a U.N. mission within the Indian contingent. “We have offered them [Bhutan] to join the mission in South Sudan but they want to be part of the mission in Lebanon. But we already have Kazakh contingent there. We are discussing that,” he said.
Indian troops are much sought after in U.N. missions. “We have around 5,500 troops in eight countries of Africa and West Asia. They work tirelessly to maintain peace in conflict zones. Their contribution has been applauded by all and Indian troops are most sought after,” said a Major General MK Katiyar, Additional Director General Staff Duties, after addressing an Indian battalion set to leave for South Sudan end of this month. During the COVID pandemic, the field hospitals there have done great job, he said.
The first batch of 200 personnel from the contingent to South Sudan is scheduled to leave on November 27. As part of COVID precautions, all personnel going for U.N. missions are being tested for COVID by Reverse Transcription - Polymerase Chain Reaction(RT-PCR) method 21 days before departure and then quarantined. A second test is conducted 72 hours before departure and only those testing negative go on deployment.
Printable version | Jan 17, 2021 10:10:49 AM | https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/india-us-looking-at-training-south-east-asian-nations-in-un-peacekeeping/article33102175.ece
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Memorial Hermann Broadway at the Hobby Center / Sarofim Hall
CATS, the record-breaking musical spectacular by Andrew Lloyd Webber that has captivated audiences in over 30 countries and 15 languages, is now on tour across North America!
Audiences and critics alike are rediscovering this beloved musical with breathtaking music, including one of the most treasured songs in musical theater—"Memory”. Winner of 7 Tony Awards® including BEST MUSICAL, CATS tells the story of one magical night when an extraordinary tribe of cats gathers for its annual ball to rejoice and decide which cat will be reborn. The original score by Andrew Lloyd Webber (The Phantom of the Opera, School of Rock, Sunset Boulevard), original scenic and costume design by John Napier (Les Misérables), all-new lighting design by Natasha Katz (Aladdin), all-new sound design by Mick Potter, new choreography by Andy Blankenbuehler (Hamilton) based on the original choreography by Gillian Lynne (Phantom) and direction by Trevor Nunn (Les Misérables) make this production a new CATS for a new generation!
Open Captioned Performance: Saturday, October 26, 2:00pm
Audio Described Performance: Sunday, October 27, 2:00pm
Memorial Hermann Broadway at the Hobby Center
Oct 22 - 27, 2019, Sarofim Hall
Nov 12 - Nov 24, 2019, Sarofim Hall
Jan 7 - 12, 2020, Sarofim Hall
Jan 28 - Feb 2, 2020, Sarofim Hall
Feb 7 - 9, 2020, Sarofim Hall
Mar 3 - Mar 8, 2020, Sarofim Hall
March 24 - 29, 2020, Sarofim Hall
Jun 2 - Jun 7, 2020, Sarofim Hall
Jun 30 - Aug 9, 2020, Sarofim Hall
Tickets start at $35.00 (plus additional fees)
Oct 22, 2019 at 7:30pm
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David and Victoria Beckham Celebrate 20 Years of Marriage: Their Love Story and Relationship Timeline
TOPICS:celebrity marriagesDavid BeckhamVictoria Beckham
NEW YORK, NY - MAY 05: David Beckham (L) and Victoria Beckham attend the "Charles James: Beyond Fashion" Costume Institute Gala at the Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 5, 2014 in New York City. (Photo by Mike Coppola/Getty Images)
Some celebrity spouses were made to last, like Victoria and David Beckham. The genetically-blessed, high-profile couple is celebrating 20 years of marriage on July 4, 2019, two decades after they exchanged vows and married in an elegant wedding at the Luttrellstown Castle near Dublin in 1999.
Hard as it may be to believe, there was a time before either of the Beckhams was inexorably linked to the other. The now-inseparable pair first met at a charity soccer match back in 1997, and announced their engagement less than a year later in January 1998. David, fans will remember, once declared, upon watching Victoria’s music videos with the Spice Girls, that he was going to make her his wife one day. Victoria, for her part, actually “didn’t know who he was,” she said during an episode of American Idol.
Here, The Knot takes an in-depth look back at Becks and Posh’s love story, which now includes four beautiful children, a fashion empire, and an athletic legacy that will no doubt last as long as their marriage.
The pair got hitched at the Luttrellstown Castle near Dublin on July 4, 1999; she wore a strapless Vera Wang gown and accessorized her look with a gold crown by jeweller Slim Barrett. He wore a bespoke white suit with a white vest to boot. There were gold thrones involved, and their son, 4-month-old Brooklyn, was their ring bearer. Following the ceremony, they changed into matching purple outfits for the reception, because of course. (Earlier in the year, they made headlines in matching leather outfits at a Versace party in London.)
Posh Goes Solo
In October 2001, Victoria released her self-titled debut album, Victoria Beckham, and David supported her through the inevitable backlash. “People never believed the solo singing career, and it wasn’t the real me — I was a little bit lost at the time,” she told Harper’s Bazaar in 2009. “I don’t mind making mistakes. I just can’t live with anyone else’s mistakes.”
(photo credit: Shutterstock)
Another Family Addition
A year later, however, Victoria found herself shifting back toward another role: mom to Brooklyn, now three, and their newborn son Romeo James, who was born on September 1, 2002. A little over one year after that, the family up and moved to Madrid after David is drafted to Real Madrid, and the family of four sets down roots there.
A Third Child
On February 20, 2005, Victoria gives birth to the couple’s third son, Cruz David Beckham, and the family pivots yet again to focus on the opening of the David Beckham Academy in Beverly Hills, Calif., a foreshadowing for the family’s eventual move to Los Angeles after David is transferred to the LA Galaxy in 2007.
Victoria Pivots Her Career
The multi-hyphenate decides to go full-force toward her interest in fashion and debuts her first line at New York Fashion Week in September 2008, simultaneously launching the Beckham Signature fragrance collection at Macy’s in New York that same fall. Fittingly, the superstar couple attended their first-ever Met Gala earlier that year, dressing to fit the theme of Superheroes: Fashion and Fantasy.
The Couple Who Rules Fashion
Following the launch of Victoria’s fashion line, she and David are named the new models/spokespeople for Emporio Armani Underwear’s 2009/2010 season, and in April 2011, they are among the A-list celebrities who are invited to celebrate Prince William and Kate Middleton’s wedding at Buckingham Palace. That July, they welcome their fourth child and first daughter, Harper Seven Beckham.
David Retires From Soccer
The couple, who had been married for nearly 14 years at this point, undergo yet another major change: in May 2013, David announced that he was planning to retire from soccer. In a statement at the time, he said: “Nothing will ever completely replace playing the game I love. However, I feel like I”m starting a new adventure and I’m genuinely excited about what lies ahead. I’m fortunate to have been given many opportunities throughout my career and now I feel it’s my time to give back.” A proud Victoria stands by her man.
A Family Cover Story
Victoria is selected as a guest editor-in-chief for the 2013 holiday issue of Vogue Paris, and she and David pose for the cover in scintillating images that remind the world that it is possible to be together for more than a decade and still feel passionately, hopelessly in love with the other person.
Fifteen Years of Marriage
David and Victoria celebrate 15 years of blissful marriage to one another, and usually stoic Victoria even posts a sappy Instagram tribute to her husband. “15 beautiful years. We feel so blessed and thank you all for your love and support over the years. Such a special day for us all x vb 🙏,” she captioned a throwback photo of the couple embracing at their wedding back in 1999.
LOS ANGELES, CA – APRIL 16: (L-R) Brooklyn Beckham, Cruz Beckham, Victoria Beckham, Romeo Beckham, Harper Beckham, David Beckham, editor-in-chief of American Vogue Anna Wintour and Julia Gorden attend the Burberry “London in Los Angeles” event at Griffith Observatory on April 16, 2015 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Jeff Vespa/Getty Images for Burberry)
A Vow Renewal
In a tell-all interview with BBC Radio in early 2017, David revealed he had renewed his vows with his wife somewhere along the lines of their marriage. The two made an effort to be reminded of their lifelong commitment to each other–and their growing family. “We have renewed our vows since [the wedding],” David said. “It was a lot more private with only six people there in our house.”
Sixteen With Their Four Little Ones
The couple celebrated their anniversary the following year, in 2015, with their four kids. “Happy anniversary, I love u so much x I’m so proud of our beautiful family x,” Victoria captioned a shot of the couple and their four young ones dressed to the nines.
His Side of the Love Story
In the same interview with BBC Radio, Beckham speculated about what allows his relationship dynamic to work with his wife–despite much public scrutiny. “We were brought up with the right values,” the former Manchester United player noted. “Of course, you make mistakes over the years. We all know marriage is difficult at times, and it’s about working through it. Whenever we’ve come up against tough times, we know each other better than anybody knows us. We have an amazing life which we are very respectful of. We are also private people.”
Her Side of the Love Story
“I think that he’s my soul mate. We complement each other,” the former Spice Girl told Savannah Guthrie in March 2017. “He’s the most incredible husband, fantastic father. He inspires me every day. Not just seeing him with the children and how he treats me. It just works. We’re lucky to have each other.”
When it comes to the kids, she also explained how they split tasks and take responsibility. “It is a juggling act constantly,” Victoria added on Friday. “I’m lucky that David is the most fantastic father and husband, and he’s great. We’re very equal at home, and we’re a really, really good team.”
Another Royal Wedding
This time, it’s the much-anticipated nuptials between Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, on May 19, 2018. That same year, they celebrate 19 years of marriage, making it all somehow look easy and effortless. Is it just us, or are the Beckhams aging in reverse?
Former England footballer David Beckham (R) arrives with his wife Victoria for the wedding ceremony of Britain’s Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and US actress Meghan Markle at St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle, in Windsor, on May 19, 2018. (Photo by Gareth Fuller / POOL / AFP) (Photo credit should read GARETH FULLER/AFP/Getty Images)
A Career Milestone
The entire family is in attendance at her show at London Fashion Week, and British Vogue gets in on the action by offering the family a beautiful spread in its October issue. “Proud of mummy x 10 years and what an amazing way to celebrate in London 🇬🇧 .. We are so proud of you @victoriabeckham ♥️,” David captioned a sweet shot of the kids sitting front row.
In January 2019, Victoria celebrated the launch of the Reebok x Victoria Beckham collection, fusing her and David’s love for sports and fashion in one fell swoop. A proud David attended the launch and beamed all night.
Stay Together
The Beckhams kick off the summer with their kids by traveling to Miami for some quality family time, then to Seville, Spain. “Truly the best daddy in the world x we love u so much x kisses @davidbeckham x,” she captioned an adorable photo of David with the kids. This is clearly a love story that never ends.
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Ex-town hall chief who resigned at booking of Roy "Chubby" Brown halts case against council
By Alex Metcalfe
A FORMER town hall chief who resigned in protest at the booking of comic Roy “Chubby” Brown will no longer continue her employment case against a Teesside council.
Lorna Fulton stood down as programming manager at Middlesbrough Town Hall in 2019 after the controversial comedian was welcomed back to the venue.
It is understood an employment tribunal between Ms Fulton and Middlesbrough Council – which was due to go ahead on Friday – has now been pulled from the listings.
In a post now deleted on social media, the former Town Hall chief said she was pleased the hearing was no longer going ahead and thanked her legal team.
Officials from the Employment Tribunal offices, in Newcastle, confirmed the case had been pulled “out of the list”.
Middlesbrough Council has declined to comment on the matter.
In 2019, Middlesbrough Mayor Andy Preston scrapped an “unwritten policy” which apparently said the Grangetown-born comic couldn’t perform at the town hall.
In the past, the comedian’s management team has claimed he was banned from the Town Hall – something Middlesbrough Council denied.
It’s understood the original decision not to book Chubby was informed by an official programming policy – thought to have been agreed by council officers and politicians when Ms Fulton took on the programming role in 2018.
Ms Fulton stood down in response to the booking of Chubby.
And it is understood she and her family suffered threats of violence and a slew of vitriol in the wake of her decision.
Cllr Matt Storey, Labour group leader, said he was ashamed a staff member had been subjected to “appalling sickening” abuse and threats for voicing concerns about the performer’s material.
He added: “We must ensure that Middlesbrough Council is a safe and welcoming environment for all who work there.
“I hope that lessons will be learned from this episode so that the council is seen as an inclusive and fair employer both inside and outside the Town Hall.”
Chubby Brown has come under fire in the past – and has faced accusations his material is racist, sexist and homophobic.
On the announcement of his return to the Town Hall, the Teesside-born comic said he was “absolutely delighted” – adding: “I have to tell people I’m not a racist, I’m not a homophobic, I’m not sexist, I’m a jokist.
“All I do is tell jokes.”
Middlesbrough’s Labour group has called on the council and Mr Preston to apologise to Ms Fulton for the distress she and her family had suffered.
When it came to Chubby Brown performing, Mr Preston said he was a “popular and controversial performer”.
The mayor added: “I personally don’t like his brand of comedy but lots of people do.
“I don’t believe it should be up to me, or anyone else, to decide which specific controversial comedians should be banned from Middlesbrough and which should be welcomed.
“If it’s agreed that we should ban controversial comedians then I’m fine with that – but we need to decide as a town, not have people with middle class values imposing their will on everybody else.”
Mr Preston also condemned the abuse Ms Fulton had suffered.
“It’s appalling that anyone should be subjected to such horrible abuse,” he added.
“No one deserves that.”
Roy Chubby Brown is booked to perform at Middlesbrough Town Hall on Saturday, June 26.
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MetCollects Episode 12 / 2020
MetCollects is an online feature that highlights works of art new to the Museum's collection through the fresh eyes of photographers and the enthusiastic voices of leading scholars and artists. Discover a new work each month.
This exceptionally rare and enigmatically beautiful war mask is one of only two known examples from Tibet. The mask is subtly forged in iron to represent a human or divine visage, boldly damascened in gold with flame-like tendrils for eyebrows, around the mouth, and framing the face. Damascening is a specialized metalworking technique that involves scoring the iron surface with a series of fine, crosshatched lines and then burnishing silver or gold wire into the crosshatching to create vivid designs. It was brought to a very high level of refinement in the 15th century by Tibetan and Sino-Tibetan craftsmen for embellishing both secular and religious ironwork. As an additional decorative flourish, the eye openings of the mask are rimmed with narrow strips of copper alloy. The mouth opening is framed with a damascened gold line that forms a thin upper and lower lip. The areas of undecorated iron on the front have patches of bright metal, particularly at the cheeks and forehead, with the remainder showing a darker old patina. It is difficult to know if the original surface was intended to look like silvery steel or to be dark in order to contrast better with the gold ornament. There are three pairs of small holes, one at the top center edge and two at either side, probably for laces or straps to hold the mask in place. The interior surface is plain, undecorated iron.
This mask has already become one of the signature pieces of The Met’s world-famous collection of arms and armor from Tibet. War masks made of metal (usually iron or copper alloys) and intended specifically as armor existed in many cultures for nearly 2,000 years, from Roman Britain in the 1st century A.D. to Japan up to the end of the Edo period in the late 19th century. They were probably introduced in Tibet by the Mongols in the 14th or 15th century and were used in Central Asia and West Asia until at least the 16th century. While many types of Tibetan dance and ritual masks exist, this promised gift is the only known example of a decorated iron war mask from Tibet. The other war mask in the Met collection, although equally rare and important, is intentionally plain in its design and virtually without decoration. Like some of the other unique pieces from Tibet in the collection of arms and armor, these masks probably survived because they were preserved for centuries in a Buddhist monastery or shrine as offerings to guardian deities.
The Met’s collection of Tibetan arms and armor began with about seventy-five examples bequeathed to the Museum in 1935. By the early 1990s, many previously unknown and unprecedented types of Tibetan armor, swords, saddles, stirrups, and archery equipment were appearing on the art market. Over the past twenty-five years, with the support of the Museum and many generous donors to focus on this fascinating and new area of research and collecting, we were able to acquire about 175 more pieces, making it the finest, most extensive, and thoroughly published collection of Tibetan arm and armor in the world today.
Donald J. La Rocca
The Great Homes and Gardens Lecture Series
Call for Entries for the Portrait Gallery's 2022 Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition (now thru Jan 29)
The Metropolitan Museum of Art and Verizon Launch Interactive Virtual Art Experience
Congratulations and a gratitude | Standbibliothek Köln
Explore Hillwood from Home: Weekly Highlights | 08.01.2021
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Lamp - Tiffany - Bat Shade
Image Note: Image from Sotheby's
Manufacturer Tiffany
Short Description Bat Shade
Primary Stylistic Element Irregular Border
TS Catalog ID 1184
Colors Blue and Orange
Category Table Lamp
Image Credit Link Link
Long Description: The lamp displays six bats on concave sides with wings extending towards the aperture and bat heads hanging below the rim. The background is blue with one two pentacles decorating the space between bats. The deep orange textured glass shows great detail on the naturalistic quality of the bats. The curving rim and hanging head of the bat classifies this lamp as a shade with an irregular border.
Dimensions: 17" Diameter
References: Neustadt 231
History: Louis Comfort Tiffany (1848-1933) was born into the family known for their famous jewelry firm, Tiffany & Co. However, Tiffany decided to study art and began his artistic career when he was twenty, focusing on painting. After studying abroad in Paris, Spain, and other parts of Europe, Tiffany returned to New York to continue his art in oils and water colors. These years of his life dedicated to art served as a basis for his next exploration in interior decorating and architecture. Tiffany started his own firm in 1881, Louis C. Tiffany & Associated Artists, which was the first of several agencies and partnerships he formed. He designed and decorated elaborate churches, theaters, houses and apartments including the Madison Square Theatre, the Church of the Divine Paternity, and the houses of Mark Twain, the Vanderbilts, and the Havemeyers. Tiffany eventually broke from the current Victorian Rococo style and developed his own Art Nouveau style after travelling to Europe. Tiffany focused on colorful designs based on free-flowing natural objects which led to his fascination in refractive effects.
Tiffany formed the Tiffany Glass Company which was absorbed in 1892 by the Tiffany Glass and Decorating Company which operated until 1900 when the Tiffany Studios emerged. Tiffany acquired patents on iridescent glass in 1881 and Favrile Glass in 1894. Tiffany's polychromatic glass allowed him to transform paintings into glass mosaics with lifelike tones. Tiffany's glass windows decorate a myriad of distinguished churches, theaters, and homes including the Russell Sage Memorial and the Tiffany Chapel. The remaining glass fragments from these windows and mosaics resulted in Tiffany's colored glass lamp shades. The first lamp shades made of Tiffany's glass appeared on the market in 1895. In addition to the leaded glass lamp shades made entirely of small glass pieces, other Tiffany shades were made from a single piece of glass blown into the desired shape. Tiffany Studios also manufactured decorative metal objects including trays, candlesticks, clocks, and similar pieces.
Tiffany used his experience in interior decorating, architecture, and landscaping on his estate, Laurelton Hall. This elaborate property consisted of a mansion with a chapel, studio, and art gallery surrounded by lavish waterfalls, stables, and gardens over 500 acres. After serving as Tiffany's estimated two million residence and focal point for his publicity, it unfortunately burnt down in 1935, two years after Tiffany passed away. Even after an original dispute with his father over his career choice in the arts, Tiffany successfully became known for his own creative designs. As the era of Art Nouveau faded, Tiffany's creations remain a cornerstone in the history of American art.
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Lee Jewitt signs new contract with Castleford Tigers
Aaron Bower 16/07/2014
Castleford Tigers’ prop Lee Jewitt has signed a two-year contract extension to keep him at The Mend-A-Hose Jungle until at least the end of the 2016 First Utility Super League season.
The 27-year-old, who was released by Salford last season, moved to Castleford from French side Limoux, having previously played at Wigan Warriors. He has made seven appearances this season.
Jewitt said: “Castleford Tigers has come a long way in the past 12 months. This is the best club I have ever been at by far, and I am really impressed with the set up and the way we play. I am really enjoying my time here.
“I am looking forward to the semi-final, but for me it is more of a team thing at the moment. We are building every week and aiming for the play offs now that it is coming to the business end of the season.
“It is the best club ever when you are out there – the fans are incredible and they just do not stop singing – and you can always hear them and it lifts the boys. The club as a whole is outstanding, it has got a lot of history and it is a real honour to get to pull on the shirt.”
Head Coach Daryl Powell was equally pleased to secure the signature of Jewitt. “Lee Jewitt has fitted so well into the way we do things, and I am really pleased he has decided to take up our offer of a two-year contract.
“His profile, of a quality person and player, is exactly the way we are going at Castleford. Lee is a tough defender with a great go-forward game with the ball, and I look forward to him becoming a real enforcer within our pack.”
What do you think about this story? Discuss this, and many other Rugby League topics, on or free fans’ forum. Want more Rugby League news and features? Subscribe to the online version of League Express newspaper and Rugby League World magazine. You can also connect with Total Rugby League on the social media platform of your choice.
Tagged Castleford Tigers, Lee Jewitt
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Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve
Home » Destinations » Maps + Places To Go
Map & Details
From summit to sea, Glacier Bay offers limitless opportunities for adventure and inspiration
Lofty mountain peaks, ice-sculptured fjords, an abundance of marine wildlife and, most of all, massive tidewater glaciers, have made Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve one of Alaska's most spectacular settings and a must-stop for every cruise ship sailing north through Southeast Alaska. The 3.3 million acre park is indeed an icy wilderness.
In 1794 a survey crew described what is now called Glacier Bay as a five-mile indent in a glacier that stretched “as far as the eye could distinguish.” In 1879 when scientist/naturalist John Muir visited the area, he found the ice had retreated more than 30 miles, creating an actual bay. The glacier has continued to recede at a rapid rate.
Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve was named a national monument in 1925. In 1980, the area became a national park and preserve, and 2.7 million acres received wilderness designation. In 1986, the park became a biosphere reserve, and the area was named a world heritage site in 1992.
Today, glaciers still cover 27 percent of the Park. There are more than 50 named glaciers of which seven are active tidewater glaciers that calve icebergs into the sea. Encircling the park to the west is the Fairweather Range, the highest coastal mountains in the world at 15,000 feet.
As marine waters make up nearly one-fifth of the park, Glacier Bay is rich with marine life, including the endangered humpback whale, orcas, threatened Stellar sea lions, harbor seals, sea otters and porpoises. In addition to marine mammals, Glacier Bay is home to a large bear population, both brown and black, as well as the blue glacier bear, a rare color phase of the black. Moose, wolves, Sitka blacktail deer, mountain goats and bald eagle also thrive in the park.
More than 90 percent of the park's visitors arrive on cruise ships, which swing through the vast bay but never stop. The rest pass through either the village of Gustavus or the park headquarters of Bartlett Cove for a variety of adventures. Most of the activities in the park are water-focused with the most popular being boat tours, kayaking, river rafting, fishing, glacier viewing and whale watching. The park's 10 miles of maintained trails is limited to Bartlett Cove but Glacier Bay offers an excellent opportunity for people who have experience on the water but not necessarily as kayakers. Kayakers are often dropped off in the well-protected arms and inlets deep in the bay where they paddle past glaciers and camp along the shoreline on their own or as part of a guided kayaking tour.
Map Scroll/Pan
Bartlett Cove is the park headquarters and includes a lodge and restaurant, a campground, kayak rentals and the tour boat dock. Also at Bartlett Cove is the seasonal Visitor Information Station for Boaters and Campers (907-697-2627) and the Glacier Bay Visitor Center (907-697-2661). The cove lies within the Glacier Bay Park but is still 40 miles south of the nearest glacier and many visitors join one-day cruises up the bay to see the ice and marine wildlife.
Almost 10 miles away and connected to Bartlett Cove by road is the service center of Gustavus. The rural community is spread out and has no downtown but it does have an airstrip left over from WWII that can handle commercial jets from Juneau as well as a dozen lodges, inns and bed and breakfasts, a handful of restaurants and outfitters and charter captains who arrange whale watching excursions, fishing trips, mountaineering expeditions and guided kayaking tours.
There are no entrance fees in Glacier Bay National Park. A free permit is required to stay at the National Park Service campground in Bartlett Cove and for wilderness camping in the park's backcountry. A permit and administrative charge is required to raft the Alsek River and its major tributary.
Gustavus is accessible by air or passenger ferry. Alaska Airlines provides daily jet service from Seattle and Anchorage to Juneau with connections via a number of carriers to Gustavus. The Gustavus airport is 10 miles by road from park headquarters at Bartlett Cove. Several air taxi companies provide small-plane flights year-round from several southeast Alaska towns to Gustavus. A passenger ferry operates between Juneau and Gustavus/Bartlett Cove on a limited schedule.
For information on the park, including lists of outfitters, charter boats and air taxi services that operate in the park contact the Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Headquarters (907-697-2230). There is also a Yakutat Ranger District office (907-784-3295) that is open year round and a good source of information on rafting the Tatshenshini and Alsek Rivers, mountaineering, hunting, and other activities relating to Dry Bay. Visit the Gustavus community page for accommodations and tourism services in the community.
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Military Motivation
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Home ARMY Rangers What is an Army Ranger
What is an Army Ranger
Army Rangers vs Navy Seals
Rangers Lead The Way
So what is an Army Ranger? The Army ranger unit is Americas go to force to get things done in a strategic stealthy manner. They are a low profile unit with a big impact. They are the Army’s elite. They are ready to strike anywhere in the planet in 18 hours our less. To be a ranger it takes a special type of man. Not everyone can be a Ranger. The Ranger selection and assessment program (RASP) is an 8 week grueling program designed to weed out the week. To be one of the elite you must go through hell to make it.
The Army 75th Ranger regimen consists 3500 special operation soldiers. These elite men stand ready to be deployed at a moments notice to for special missions. They average about 2500 raids a year. To be a Ranger you must have split second thinking and extreme focus. Rangers deal with extreme hostile environments and conditions. Rangers must be physically ready to handle situations that require endurance and conditioning.
US Army Ranger School
If you are thinking of becoming one of the elite you must make it through Ranger school know as the ranger assessment and selection program otherwise known as RASP. Ranger school is designed every soldiers breaking point. Ranger school is 8 weeks of grueling hell. A soldier must be able to overcome adversity and remain focused on the problem. You must be a team player to make it through. Working as a team is critical to success. The job demands physical hardship a soldier must push through and remained focused and not panic. When a soldier panics that’s when they get hurt. Ranger school is meant to test all of these aspects. Physical, mental, and the born inbred instinct to survive and handle extreme conditions. When a soldier decides to go through ranger school they will learn about themselves and what they are capable of. It take a very special person to be a Army Ranger.
The soldiers that make it through ranger school can see combat as in as little as two weeks. So it is imperative that soldiers understand what they are preparing for. A soldier must be mentally ready to handle anything that is thrown his or her way.
US Ranger History
U.S. Army Rangers – Most Elite Army Unit in the World (Special Forces Documentary) The United States Army Rangers are an elite military formation of the United States Army, that serve in designated U.S. Army Ranger units or are graduates from the U.S. Army Ranger School. The term ranger has been in use unofficially in a military context since the early 17th century. The first military company officially commissioned as rangers were English soldiers fighting in King Philip’s War (1676) and from there the term came into common official use in the French and Indian Wars. There have been American military companies officially called Rangers since the American Revolution. The 75th Ranger Regiment is an elite airborne light infantry combat formation within the United States Army Special Operations Command (USASOC). The six battalions of the modern Rangers have been deployed in wars in Korea, Vietnam, Afghanistan, and Iraq, and saw action in several conflicts, such as those in Panama and Grenada. The Ranger Regiment traces its lineage to three of six battalions raised in World War II, and to the 5307th Composite Unit (Provisional)—known as “Merrill’s Marauders”, and then reflagged as the 475th Infantry, then later as the 75th Infantry. The Ranger Training Brigade (RTB)—headquartered at Fort Benning—is an organization under the U.S. Army’s Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC) and is separate from the 75th Ranger Regiment. It has been in service in various forms since World War II. The Ranger Training Brigade administrates Ranger School, the satisfactory completion of which is required to become Ranger qualified and to wear the Ranger Tab.
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U.S. News & World Report: Michigan Medicine ranked No. 11 in the U.S. and best in Michigan
Media Contact: Jina Sawani 734 764-2220
Five specialties in adult hospitals ranked in national top 10; nationally recognized for multiple services
Medical_Campus_Aerial.jpg
Michigan Medicine’s adult hospitals were ranked best in Michigan and 11th in the nation by U.S. News & World Report “Best Hospitals” rankings for 2020-21. This distinguished honor reflects excellence in patient care.
Michigan Medicine, the academic medical center of the University of Michigan, also had five medical specialties ranked in the nation’s top 10 and was ranked No. 1 in the state of Michigan.
The organization was also given the USNWR Honor Roll distinction, marking it as one of 20 U.S. hospitals that deliver the highest quality of care across a variety of specialties, procedures and conditions.
“At Michigan Medicine, our commitment is to our patients, first and foremost,” said Marschall Runge, M.D., Ph.D., executive vice president for medical affairs at the University of Michigan, chief executive officer of Michigan Medicine and dean of the U-M Medical School. “This honor is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our incredible team of health care providers.”
"Consistently ranking among the nation’s top hospitals is something that reflects not only on our quality and safety but also on the commitment of our physicians, nurses and other team members to providing the best care,” said David Spahlinger, M.D., president of the University of Michigan Health System and executive vice dean for clinical affairs of the U-M Medical School.
Five Michigan Medicine specialty areas rank in the top 10 in the country:
Diabetes & Endocrinology (#10)
Gastroenterology & GI Surgery (#8)
Ophthalmology (#8)
Pulmonology (#8)
Urology (#10)
Michigan Medicine also received national rankings in:
Cancer (#38)
Cardiology & Heart Surgery (#14)
Ear, Nose & Throat (#12)
Gynecology (#39)
Nephrology (#17)
Neurology & Neurosurgery (#15)
Orthopedics (#29)
Michigan Medicine also was recognized as high performing in Rehabilitation and Rheumatology.
“Our national ranking is truly an honor,” said Jeffrey Desmond, M.D., chief medical officer of Michigan Medicine. “I’m so proud of our collaborative teams, all across the board, for their dedication to providing the highest quality of care to all of our valued patients.”
The U.S. News & World Report “Best Hospitals” methodologies in most areas of care are based on a combination of reputation surveys and objective measures such as risk-adjusted survival and readmission rates, volume, patient experience, patient safety and quality of nursing, among other care-related indicators.
In June, Michigan Medicine also received USNWR recognition for C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital, which was the only children’s hospital in Michigan nationally ranked in all 10 pediatric specialties evaluated in the 2020-2021 Best Children’s Hospitals rankings. The institution was recognized among the nation’s best in cardiology and heart surgery, nephrology, orthopedics, neurology and neurosurgery, gastroenterology and GI surgery, cancer, neonatology, pulmonology, urology and diabetes and endocrinology.
To learn more about other U-M clinical care honors, visit https://www.uofmhealth.org/about-umhs/honors-awards.
For detailed data about the safety and quality of care at U-M, far beyond what is available from rating agencies, visit www.uofmhealth.org/quality-safety.
About Michigan Medicine: At Michigan Medicine, we advance health to serve Michigan and the world. We pursue excellence every day in our three hospitals, 125 clinics and home care operations that handle more than 2.3 million outpatient visits a year, as well as educate the next generation of physicians, health professionals and scientists in our U-M Medical School.
Michigan Medicine includes the top ranked U-M Medical School and the University of Michigan Health System, which includes the C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital, Von Voigtlander Women’s Hospital, University Hospital, the Frankel Cardiovascular Center and the Rogel Cancer Center. Michigan Medicine’s adult hospitals were ranked no. 11 in the nation by U.S. News and World Report in 2020-21 and C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital was the only children’s hospital in Michigan nationally ranked in all 10 pediatric specialties analyzed by U.S. News and World Report for 2020-21. The U-M Medical School is one of the nation's biomedical research powerhouses, with total research funding of more than $500 million.
NOTICE: Except where otherwise noted, all articles are published under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 license. You are free to copy, distribute, adapt, transmit, or make commercial use of this work as long as you attribute Michigan Medicine as the original creator and include a link to this article.
Media Inquiries: 734-764-2220 8 a.m.-5 p.m. ET
734-936-4000 after hours, weekends, and holidays (ask for the PR person on call) MichMedmedia@med.umich.edu for embargoed news, videos & more
U-M Health Blogs
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10 hours ago | Brazil: COVID-hit Amazonas state receives more emergency supplies
1 day ago | Trump prohíbe negociar tecnologías con Venezuela y otros regímenes ligados al terrorismo
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Home Electric crisis
Zulia’s Electrical Apartheid | Caracas Chronicles
TOPICS:Photo
Posted By: Francisco Rincón 11 months ago
Photo: EFE, retrieved.
For Sara, the day begins at 6:00 in the morning and ends at 7:00 in the evening. The other eleven hours are hell.
Where she lives, San Francisco in Zulia state, the Corporación Eléctrica Nacional (CORPOELEC) rations electricity without a fixed schedule. Ever since the general blackout on March 7th, 2019, the power outages have spiked in the region. In areas where electricity is rationed for at least twelve hours a day, people have spent 4,248 hours in the dark. That’s about 177 days.
At least three times since 2019, governor Omar Prieto and Willy Casanova, mayor of Maracaibo, have said that the rationing would be cut down. But the population continues to suffer the consequences of corruption, the use of non-professional and qualified personnel, and indolence. And if they protest, the answer is repression, like in Ciudad Ojeda on August 1st, 2019: agents of the Policía Municipal de Lagunillas and the National Guard arrested five people because they were demanding electricity. They were let go, but four were charged with obstructing public roads and resisting the authority, so they are on probation.
Even the capacity to feed themselves becomes a problem for many families because they only use electric stoves.
Sara’s life, as well as for tens of thousands of Zulians, is reduced to the minimum. Without power, the possibilities for reading, being informed, sleep, entertainment, internet and work, fall apart. Even the capacity to feed themselves becomes a problem for many families because they only use electric stoves. They’re forced to use wood or go to sleep hungry. In some areas, rationing has been cut down to half, but the consequences still take their toll. “Children cry because of the heat. It’s hard to tell them that we don’t have cold water. We don’t know if it’s rationing or a blackout. Every time the power returns, we shout.”
The human right to hygiene is also violated when the water pumps can’t be turned on. “We see how water is wasted through the many leaks on the streets while we don’t have power for our own water pumps. We feel impotent because sometimes we can’t even bathe the children,” says José Sánchez, a resident of northern Maracaibo.
The deprivation of electrical service imposed by the Venezuelan state influences all areas of daily life; sometimes it’s easier to communicate with relatives, partners or friends who are abroad than with those in Venezuela. Daily tasks like sending e-mails, wire transfers, or calling family members abroad can take hours, sometimes you must go to another place where the phone signal is stronger and have internet access. This reality makes you walk for kilometers or even use your car, which exposes you to crime. For women, it also makes them more vulnerable to all sorts of abuse.
There’s a small group of privileged folks in Zulia, who have power generators and their income is in dollars, so they can afford the electricity the state is unable to provide.
The disaster affects your daily dynamics, depending on the time of the outage, the whole day changes.
Power rationing and outages, the fuel scarcity and the non-compliance of the time schedules for the gas stations (until midnight) sentence those without dollars or pesos to long lines at the gas stations, for periods that go from three hours to three days, depending on the situation, area and municipality.
Those without easy access to fuel have to skip class or aren’t able to generate income for their family, they use small amounts of water and food, and because of the minimum hygiene conditions, they’re also exposed to pollution (for spending the night next to gas stations).
Manuel Vivas, a sociologist graduated from the Zulia University (LUZ), points out that “inequality is expanding and it has new expressions: people who live in areas with fewer power outages, that can afford power generators for their homes, and people who don’t… Truth is that, after March of 2019, Venezuela and especially Zulia, have found a way to cope with the meaning of not having electricity in the XXI century. You have inequalities typical of other time periods.”
The disaster affects your daily dynamics, depending on the time of the outage, the whole day changes. When there’s electricity, time “flies” so the pressure and stress take their toll. “Each minute is worth gold because what we used to do during the day we now have to do in just a couple of hours,” claims Inés López, a pensioner who tries to make dinner in a hurry before the daily punishment.
Although solidarity is frequent, wrongful desires blossom against peers.
The rationing isn’t uniform and its distribution is a complete mystery. While in some areas it goes on for six to twelve hours, areas nearby stay fine unless there’s a complete blackout. Although solidarity is frequent, wrongful desires blossom against peers. “I won’t deny that I sometimes wish that they have their electricity taken away too,” a young engineer says, “it ain’t fair that we don’t have it and some do.”
“Some areas are priority for the authorities,” Vivas adds. “I think there are clear interests in the middle, but the fact is that everything is handled in an irresponsible way and the citizens are reacting to the frustration for something that is their right to have. This conflict between neighbors is also another way of social control. In the dark, people get angry at their neighbors when in fact none of them are responsible for what happens.”
The families that more often suffer the effects of rationing and blackouts are more likely to have conflict within their homes. Many have left the state. Although a lot of neighbors go outside for a chat while power is gone, the exhaustion and frustration affect many citizens who prefer to stay in. Everything piles up, everything is delayed. This crisis has changed Zulia.
“At night, it’s almost impossible to sleep,” Vivas says. “We open the windows and get the mosquitoes and gnats. We’re drenched in sweat and the sheets stick to each other.”
Raúl Puche, a psychologist and director of the Fundación Rehabilitarte, points out that in the middle of the rationing and blackouts, anxiety rules. “It has significantly influenced the spirit and mood of the people, especially at night. Not having a good night’s sleep can significantly affect your physical and mental welfare. Most people don’t have the means to cope with this in an effective way; others create a kind of resilience. More than having ill wishes against their neighbors, what people really want is for the rationing to stop, or at least have it equalized. That we all have access to electricity. That’s part of the frustration, the toll it takes and the pain of having to survive long periods of time in the dark.”
Caracas Chronicles is 100% reader-supported. Support independent Venezuelan journalism by making a donation.
This post was originally posted on Caracas Chronicles – View Original Article
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Rachel Dolezal, former NAACP leader who posed as a black woman, accused of welfare fraud
Rachel Dolezal, the former Washington state NAACP president thrust into the spotlight after media revealed she was a white woman posing as black, is facing welfare fraud charges.
Dolezal, who legally changed her name to Nkechi Diallo in 2016, could face up to 15 years in prison after authorities say she received thousands of dollars in public assistance. She’s accused of welfare fraud, perjury and false verification for public assistance, TV station KHQ reports.
Court documents obtained by KHQ show the mother who identifies as “transracial” illegally received $8,747 in food assistance and $100 in childcare assistance from August 2015 through November 2017.
In February of 2017, she talked about how she was living on food stamps in an interview with The Guardian, saying the only work she's been offered was in reality TV and pornography. At that time, she said she was worried about becoming homeless. She has two biological sons.
The following month, she published a book, In Full Color: Finding My Place in a Black and White World, causing Washington State Department of Social and Health Services to become skeptical of her income reports of less than $500 a month.
More:Rachel Dolezal: I was ‘too black’ for my husband
Bank records indicated she had deposited about $83,924 into her bank account in several monthly installments between August 2015 and September 2017, without reporting the income to the DSHS, according to court documents.
During a television interview in November 2015, Dolezal acknowledged being born to white parents, but also said she identifies as black. Amid the controversy of her racial identity she stepped down as president of the Spokane, Wash., branch of the NAACP.
More:Netflix's 'The Rachel Divide' is complicated look at 'transracial' activist Rachel Dolezal
More:Netflix' Rachel Dolezal documentary looks positively painful
The former civil rights activist and African studies teacher changed her name to help with job searches but continues to use Dolezal for her public persona.
Last month, Netflix premiered a documentary about her life titled The Rachel Divide.
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Meghan McCain challenges O'Rourke on comment comparing Trump rally to Nazi Nuremberg rally
WASHINGTON – Former Rep. Beto O'Rourke, a 2020 Democratic presidential candidate, stood by comparing President Donald Trump's recent North Carolina rally to a "Nuremberg rally" -- under questioning from Meghan McCain on The View -- adding that those who partook in the "send her back" chants should be held responsible.
O'Rourke criticized the president for his racist comments calling on four congresswomen of color to "go back" to their countries. The four progressive Democrats, Reps., Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts, Ilhan Omar of Minnesota and Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, have condemned Trump's language as racist.
All four congresswomen, who are colloquially known as the "Squad," are U.S. citizens and three were born in the U.S. Omar immigrated to the United States from Somalia over 20 years ago and is a naturalized citizen.
"Asking four women of color to 'go back' to their own country, and then connect it with everything else that he's doing -- the press as the enemy of the people. There is only one path that that will take us down," O'Rourke said during an appearance on The View Tuesday.
Poll:Many Americans have never heard of 'the Squad' and many don't see them favorably
More:Trump employs familiar tactic in attacks on 'Squad': Distract and shift spotlight using racial rhetoric
Trump has continued to bash the four congresswomen and repeatedly denied that his comments are racist. During a North Carolina rally last Wednesday, chants of "send her back" broke out while Trump was criticizing Omar. Trump initially denounced the chant, but has since called those at his rally "patriots."
On Monday, O'Rourke said he believes Trump is a racist and that the North Carolina rally was an "impromptu Nuremberg rally," which was an annual rally for the Nazi Party.
"What we saw in North Carolina last week was almost an impromptu Nuremberg rally, inciting hatred and, ultimately, I think implicit in that, is violence against people based on the color of their skin, based on their religion, based on their difference from the majority of Americans," he told ABC News.
However, View co-host Meghan McCain challenged O'Rourke on his comments comparing Trump's rally to a Nazi rally.
“You’re talking about Trump supporters, comparing them to Nazis in Nuremberg, that sounds extreme to me as well," she said. "When Democrats come on here and wax poetic about extremism—I’m not saying Trump isn’t doing it, but you’re calling everybody who was in that North Carolina rally a Nazi."
"From my standpoint, it seems like the left is pretty extreme as well," she added.
McCain, a conservative and daughter of the late GOP Sen. John McCain, is a frequent and longtime critic of the president.
Although O'Rourke said he did not call "everyone" who was at Trump's rally a Nazi, he did say those who chanted should take responsibility for their actions.
“We all have accountability for our actions and everyone who shouted to send them back is responsible for that as well," he said to cheers from the studio audience at The View.
McCain quickly responded asking about the people in the rally that didn't chant.
More:NAACP calls for Trump's impeachment saying he's 'unfit to serve as the president'
More:Trump says he'll win Minnesota in 2020 because of Rep. Ilhan Omar
“You’re going to have to win over some of these people that voted for Obama and then voted for Trump again," she said. “You have to understand how it looks for people in the middle, thinking that maybe I don’t agree with everything that the left is saying so automatically you’re Nazis?”
“I don't care who you voted for last time,” O’Rourke responded to McCain. “I don’t care if you’re a Trump supporter or a Republican. You’re an American first before you are anything else and I call you to this country’s greatness.”
Hillary Clinton, the Democratic nominee in the 2016 election, labeled half of Trump's supporters as "deplorable" during the last presidential cycle. Trump's campaign seized on Clinton's characterization of his supporters and repeatedly criticized her for it. In her 2017 book "What Happened," Clinton said that the incident was one of the factors behind her loss to Trump.
On Twitter, Trump's 2020 campaign criticized O'Rourke's Nuremberg comparison, saying that it's a ploy to align himself with the "Squad" of the four progressive Democratic congresswomen Trump has been feuding with for more than a week.
"Beto O’Rourke campaigned for president in Mexico, dissed the American flag as a damaging symbol, and now smears thousands of patriotic Americans as Nazis," Trump War Room, which is managed by the president's reelection campaign, wrote in a tweet. "He wants to be part of The Squad so badly, but they will never let him in!"
O'Rourke replied, saying that he still believes that Trump is a racist and chanting "send them back" is also racist.
"I will not apologize for saying so," he wrote in a tweet. "But I believe Americans—Democrats and Republicans alike—are ready to rise above Trump's bigotry. And I believe, together, we will."
Like what you’re reading?:Download the USA TODAY app for more
Impeachment hearing: Aide who raised concerns about Trump's Ukraine call to testify Key takeaways from Holmes and Hale's impeachment inquiry testimonies Donald Trump's doctor says president was not evaluated for 'urgent or acute' illness
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International Food Standards
Established by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO) in 1963, the Codex Alimentarius, or “Food Code,” is the preeminent international food standards-setting body that protects the health of consumers and ensure fair practices in the food trade through the establishment of voluntary international standards, guidelines, and codes of practices.
U.S. Codex Program
The U.S. Codex Program is an interagency partnership that engages stakeholders in advancing science-based food standards to protect the health of consumers and ensure fair practices in the food trade.
Several federal agencies participate in the U.S. Codex Program through providing senior staff and executive delegates to represent the United States on many Codex committees, and the United States also chairs some committees. These Delegates to Codex committees (PDF, 396 KB) are primarily employed by regulatory agencies that set U.S. domestic food standards. Other U.S. agency officials participate in vital policy, coordination, and information dissemination activities relevant to their agency missions and interests.
Codex At-a-Glance (PDF, 339 KB)
2019-2023 Strategic Plan (PDF, 1.3 MB)
Codex Organizational Resources
Codex Videos
Two senior-level interagency Steering Committees (PDF, 169 KB) guide the program’s work and direction.
The U.S. Codex Office (USCO), housed in USDA’s Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs, acts as the national focal point for the U.S. Codex Program. Its mission is to engage stakeholders in the development and advancement of science-based food standards for the benefit of the United States and the worldwide community. USCO manages the planning, policy development, support, and coordination for U.S. involvement in Codex, and develops strategies to accomplish U.S. objectives.
Codex News and Announcements: Sign up for regularly updated announcements and news highlighting activities in Codex.
Codex News Archives: Visit the archives for recent announcements and news.
Delegate Reports: After every Codex Committee and Commission meeting, the U.S. Codex Program reports on outcomes of each session from a U.S. perspective.
Federal Register Notices and Public Meetings: These Notices describe Codex activities prior to public meetings and the annual Codex Alimentarius Commission meeting. Public meetings precede each international Codex session to inform those interested in Codex activities and to take public comment.
Contact the U.S. Codex Office at uscodex@usda.gov.
Subscribe to Receive News from the U.S. Codex Office
The Codex Alimentarius Commission and Subsidiary Bodies
The Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC), which convenes annually, bases its work on recommendations from its subsidiary bodies (committees and task forces), informed by expert advice that FAO and WHO scientific bodies provide. Today, the CAC is composed of 188 Member Countries, one Member Organization, and more than 200 intergovernmental and international non-governmental observer organizations. The CAC accomplishes its work through 10 currently active General Subject Committees, six to eight Commodity Committees, one Task Force, six Regional Coordinating Committees, and all of their supportive physical and electronic working groups (PWGs and EWGs). The Codex Executive Committee assists and advises the CAC on the management of Codex, including agenda-setting, strategic planning, critical review and funding for Codex Alimentarius.
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USDA Invests $23 Million in High-Speed Broadband in Rural New Mexico
New Opportunities for e-Connectivity for more than 2,200 New Mexico Households
WASHINGTON, May 5, 2020 – U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue today announced during a virtual press conference that USDA is investing $23 million for three recipients in New Mexico to provide broadband service in unserved and underserved rural areas. These investments are part of USDA’s round one investments made through the ReConnect Pilot Program.
“The need for rural broadband has never been more apparent than it is now – as our nation manages the Coronavirus national emergency. Access to telehealth services, remote learning for school children, and remote business operations all require access to broadband,” said Secretary Perdue. “I am so proud of our rural communities who have been working day in and day out, just like they always do, producing the food and fiber America depends on. We need them more than ever during these trying times and expanding access to this critical infrastructure will help ensure rural America prospers for years to come.”
USDA is investing $23 million in ReConnect Program funding for three recipients in New Mexico to provide broadband service to more than 2,200 rural New Mexico households across 17 counties.
Pueblo of Acoma will invest a $942,955 grant to help provide fixed wireless broadband. Currently, the area completely lacks sufficient access to broadband service. Providing broadband will fuel long-term economic development and job opportunities in the service area, which includes 771 households spread over 22 square miles in Cibola County.
Penasco Valley Telephone Cooperative Inc. will use a $3.1 million grant to deploy a fiber broadband network. The service area includes 659 households spread over 363 square miles in Lincoln, Otero, Chaves, and Eddy counties.
E.N.M.R. Telephone Cooperative will use a $19.2 million grant to help build a fiber-to-the-premises (FTTP) network serving farms, businesses and critical community facilities in rural areas in New Mexico. The service area includes 789 households and three critical community facilities spread over 13 counties and 4,292 square miles.
In March 2018, Congress provided $600 million to USDA to expand broadband infrastructure and services in rural America. On Dec. 13, 2018, Secretary Perdue announced the rules of the program, called “ReConnect,” including how the loans and grants will be awarded to help build broadband infrastructure in rural America. USDA received 146 applications between May 31, 2019, and July 12, 2019, requesting $1.4 billion in funding across all three ReConnect Program funding products: 100 percent loan, 100 percent grant, and loan-grant combinations.
On April 20, 2020, USDA announce the Department has received 172 applications for $1.57 billion in round two of the ReConnect Program. The second round will enable USDA to implement innovative new solutions to rural connectivity by leveraging financial options with our partners and continue the success of the first round of funding. The application window for round two closed April 15.
USDA received 11 round one ReConnect Program applications that are eligible for the $100 million Congress allocated to the program through the CARES Act.
To learn more about ReConnect Program eligibility, technical assistance and recent announcements, visit www.usda.gov/reconnect.
USDA is reviewing applications and announcing approved projects on a rolling basis. Additional investments in all three categories will be made in the coming weeks.
USDA Rural Development provides loans and grants to help expand economic opportunities and create jobs in rural areas. This assistance supports infrastructure improvements; business development; housing; community facilities such as schools, public safety and health care; and high-speed internet access in rural areas. For more information, visit www.rd.usda.gov.
If you’d like to subscribe to USDA Rural Development updates, visit our GovDelivery subscriber page.
USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender.
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Varian Provides an Update on Expected Impact From COVID-19 | Varian
Varian Provides an Update on Expected Impact From COVID-19
PALO ALTO, Calif., March 9, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Varian (NYSE: VAR) today announced that the COVID-19 outbreak will negatively impact the company's operating results.
Across the company's Asia-Pacific geographies, healthcare resources are being prioritized for the treatment and management of the outbreak. Consequently, the company is experiencing delays in hardware and software installations and acceptance, as well as in the delivery of interventional oncology procedures. While no orders have been cancelled, the company expects revenues to be negatively impacted and, as of today, estimates second quarter of fiscal 2020 revenues to be in the range of $800 million to $825 million.
While uncertainty remains around the duration, severity and geographic scope of the COVID-19 outbreak, the company preliminarily estimates 7 to 9 percent revenue growth for fiscal year 2020. The company's outlook could shift if the dynamics of the outbreak change materially.
"We are closely monitoring this fluid situation and our priority is protecting our employees, supporting our customers, and making sure patients have access to our cancer-fighting technologies," said Dow Wilson, President and Chief Executive Officer. "Our long-term fundamentals remain strong and we are continuing with planned investments to drive long-term growth and profitability for our shareholders."
The company will provide further updates to guidance, including earnings and cash flow from operations, during the second quarter of fiscal 2020 earnings call based on information available at that time.
Varian will hold a teleconference on March 9 at 8:00am Eastern Time to discuss the expected impact from COVID-19. To access the call, dial 1-877-869-3847 inside the U.S. and 1-201-689-8261 outside the U.S. The replay can be accessed by dialing 1-877-660-6853 from inside the U.S. or 1-201-612-7415 from outside the U.S. and entering conference ID 13700120. The teleconference replay will be available through 12:00 p.m. Eastern Time, Wednesday, March 11, 2020.
About Varian
At Varian, we envision a world without fear of cancer. For more than 70 years, we have developed, built and delivered innovative cancer care technologies and solutions for our clinical partners around the globe to help them treat millions of patients each year. With an Intelligent Cancer Care approach, we are harnessing advanced technologies like artificial intelligence, machine learning and data analytics to enhance cancer treatment and expand access to care. Our 10,000 employees across 70 locations keep the patient and our clinical partners at the center of our thinking as we power new victories in cancer care. Because, for cancer patients everywhere, their fight is our fight. For more information, visit http://www.varian.com and follow @VarianMedSys on Twitter.
Except for historical information, this news release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Statements concerning industry or market outlook, including the potential impact of COVID-19 on revenues, the strength of our long-term fundamentals, and the expected continuation of planned investments; and any statements using the terms "could," "believe," "expect," "promising," "outlook," "should," "well-positioned," "will" or similar statements are forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties that could cause the company's actual results to differ materially from those anticipated. Such risks and uncertainties include our ability to achieve expected synergies from acquisitions; risks associated with integrating recent acquisitions; global economic conditions and changes to trends for cancer treatment regionally; currency exchange rates and tax rates; the impact of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act; the impact of the Affordable Health Care for America Act (including excise taxes on medical devices) and any further healthcare reforms (including changes to Medicare and Medicaid), and/or changes in third-party reimbursement levels; recent and potential future tariffs or a global trade war; demand for and delays in delivery of the company's products; the company's ability to develop, commercialize and deploy new products; the company's ability to meet Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and other regulatory requirements, regulations or procedures; changes in regulatory environments; risks associated with the company providing financing for the construction and start-up operations of particle therapy centers, challenges associated with commercializing the company's proton solutions business; challenges to public tender awards and the loss of such awards or other orders; the effect of adverse publicity; the company's reliance on sole or limited-source suppliers; the company's ability to maintain or increase margins; the impact of competitive products and pricing; the potential loss of key distributors or key personnel; challenges related to entering into new business lines; the impact of the COVID-19 virus; and the other risks listed from time to time in the company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which by this reference are incorporated herein. The company assumes no obligation to update or revise the forward-looking statements in this release because of new information, future events, or otherwise.
Anshul Maheshwari
Vice President, Treasury and Investor Relations
investors@varian.com
SOURCE Varian
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Not later than the end of the third quarter every year the three largest shareholders or groups of shareholders in terms of the number of votes they hold shall be given the opportunity to appoint a member to the Election Committee. The Board Chairman shall be a member of the Election Committee.
The names of the committee's members are to be publicly announced not later than six months prior to the Annual General Meeting.
The composition of the Nominating Committee for the 2021 Annual General Meeting was made public on October 28, 2020:
Niels Jacobsen, appointed by William Demant Invest A/S
Patrik Tigerschiöld, appointed by Bure Equity AB
Wendy Wang, appointed by Morgan Stanley Investment Management Inc.
Jón Sigurdsson, Chairman of the Board
The appointments have been made in accordance with the instructions regarding principles for the appointment of the company election committee which were determined at the Annual General Meeting of Vitrolife on June 15, 2020.
The Election Committee shall prepare and present proposals for resolution by the Annual General Meeting regarding:
election of a Chairman of the meeting,
decision on the number of Board members,
election of and decision on remuneration to the Board Chairman and other members of the Board,
election of and decision on remuneration to the auditor and deputy auditor (when appropriate),
election of and decision on remuneration to the members of the Board regarding any special - committees as the Annual General Meeting may decide to appoint,
process of appointing a new Election Committee.
Shareholders who wish to have an item considered at a General Meeting can submit a request to the Board to this effect. Such a request for an item to be considered is to be sent to Vitrolife AB (publ), Att: Chairman of the Board, Box 9080, SE-400 92 Gothenburg, Sweden, and must have been received by the Board no later than seven weeks before the General Meeting, or otherwise in such good time that the matter, where necessary, can be included in the notice to attend the General Meeting.
Establishment of Election Committee for AGM 2021
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Private Members Business – World Tuberculosis Day
Private Members Business – World…
I would like to associate myself with this debate about tuberculosis. There is no doubt about it; it is a very serious infectious disease, which, despite the availability of effective treatment, remains a major global health problem. Although it is preventable, TB remains a problem through much of the world, mostly in developing countries. In 2010 the World Health Organisation estimated there were over 1.5 million current TB cases and 8.8 million new cases coming forward.
Being parochial as I am, I would like to focus on tuberculosis and the risks that we face here in Australia. The northern boundary of my electorate of Leichhardt is only a couple of kilometres from the mainland of Papua New Guinea, and Western Province in Papua New Guinea is seriously afflicted by this disease. Tuberculosis now consumes 13 per cent of all hospital bed days, second only to obstetric cases, and is the cause of 11 per cent of all deaths in Western Province. Currently, more people in Papua New Guinea contract tuberculosis than become infected with HIV. If the condition remains untreated, a person with infectious tuberculosis of the lungs potentially infects an extra 10 to 15 people every year.
Regrettably there is a disproportionately large incidence of tuberculosis in children in Papua New Guinea; almost 30 per cent of reported tuberculosis cases are within the age group of birth to 14 years. Such high levels of tuberculosis diagnosed in children indicates active transmission of tuberculosis within communities. There is also increasing evidence of a new strain of drug resistant tuberculosis. Only the other day, a social worker at Cairns hospital asked me if I could assist in the repatriation of a young lass, Violet Ausi, who has been at the Cairns Base Hospital now for a number of years while she was treated for drug resistant tuberculosis. Unfortunately her mother had already passed away; she was being cared for by an aunt. She is 12 years of age and been away from her village for almost three years. She has only just managed to get clearance.
A little while before that, it was a gentleman from the Western Province, Aniba Petru. I had to organise a function for him. He had lost three of his children and his wife to the disease. In an effort to save his 13-year-old daughter, he took an 8½ hour dinghy voyage to Saibai Island and was transferred to Cairns. Unfortunately, his daughter died two weeks later of tuberculosis. He ended up in there for four months, being treated for the disease. He had no resources to be able to take his daughter home. She had been kept in a mortuary for 4½ months. Through the very generous support of individuals within my community, I was able to raise money for him to take his daughter home and give her a decent burial.
This is the real human face of the disease, and it is becoming more and more prolific in our area. I think it is critically important. Recently there was a government decision to not continue to fund the tuberculosis clinics in the Torres Strait. I am working very closely with the minister for health at the moment in the hope that we can reinstate and reverse that decision.
Recognition needs to go to people like Dr Graham Simpson, Dr Leslie Everard, Professor Ian Wronski and Julian Waring. These are people at the front line. These are the people out there, trying to sort this problem out, trying to provide the services that are needed. We certainly need a lot more in the way of funding if we are going to take on this challenge. If we do not deal with the problem on our front doorstep, unfortunately, because of the contagious nature of the disease, it will certainly spread further into our community.
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Tourism and Marine Operators
Star of the Sea Christmas
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Trump: 'Our country is full'
President Donald Trump greets people after he arrived on Air Force One at Naval Air Facility El Centro, in El Centro, Calif., Friday April 5, 2019. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin) more >
By Stephen Dinan - The Washington Times - Friday, April 5, 2019
President Trump said Friday that the U.S. is “full” and cannot accept any more illegal immigrants or even asylum-seekers.
Visiting the border in California, Mr. Trump said migrants still heading toward the U.S. should give up and go home.
“Our country is full,” he said. “Turn around. That’s the way it is.”
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Morrison pledges $537m for aged care in response to royal commission
Aged care royal commission
By Rob Harris
Updated November 25, 2019 — 11.46am first published at 9.44am
More than 10,000 new packages to allow elderly Australians to remain in their home for longer will be rolled out from December 1 as the Morrison government moves to address damning revelations in the scandal-prone aged care sector.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Monday promised $537 million to increase home care packages, reduce the use of chemical restraints and get younger people out of residential aged care as recommended in the aged care royal commission's interim report.
Mr Morrison said the commission was a "very uncomfortable" exercise for all Australians that revealed disturbing scandals involving the treatment of vulnerable older people.
"I want to assure all Australians that we will deal with these issues as you would if you were standing in my shoes today," Mr Morrison said. "I know quite precisely the sorts of things that you are thinking about at the moment when it comes to the treatment of your loved ones in aged care."
The new measures include providing better medication management and dementia training for nursing home staff, and introducing new targets to remove younger people with disabilities from residential facilities.
The additional 10,000 home care packages, at a cost of $496.3 million, will be for level three and four packages, which provide a high level of care.
Earlier this year, the Department of Health told the commission it would take $2 billion to $2.5 billion extra each year to provide access to everyone on the home care waiting list at the level of care they needed.
Leading Age Services Australia, the national peak body representing providers of residential care, home care and retirement living said the announcement was a "missed opportunity".
LASA chief executive Sean Rooney said it was critical not to neglect the severe financial pressures threatening the quality and viability of many residential care services.
"The extra 10,000 high-level home care packages will be welcome news for some but with 120,000 people currently on the queue, many others will be left disappointed in the lead-up to Christmas," Mr Rooney said.
NDIS Minister Stuart Robert, Health Minister Greg Hunt, and Minister for Aged Care and Senior Australians Richard Colbeck joined the Prime Minister in making the funding announcement. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen
"The government also needs to set out a plan to bring the home care package wait time down to less than 90 days rather than just announcing another one-off injection of new packages."
The interim report, released on October 31, called for a fundamental overhaul of the aged care system and the way it is designed, funded and regulated. It said there was "widespread over-prescribing, often without clear consent, of drugs which sedate residents, rendering them drowsy and unresponsive to visiting family".
About $25.5 million will be directed to improve medication management programs to reduce the use of medication as a chemical restraint on aged care residents and at home. Doctors will be required to apply for additional approval if the anti-psychotic medication risperidone is to be prescribed beyond an initial 12-week period.
The government's response also includes $10 million for dementia training and support for aged care workers and providers, and $4.7 million to help meet new targets to remove younger people with disabilities from residential aged care.
Opposition ageing and seniors spokeswoman Julie Collins said the response was "miserly" and the government had "fallen at the first hurdle".
She said the additional home care packages were "just a drop in the ocean", saying 16,000 older Australians had died last year while waiting for home care.
"Today's announcement falls well short of what is required but it is true to form for the Prime Minister," Ms Collins said.
"The question for the Prime Minister and his government today is: Will older Australians desperately waiting for care get their home package any sooner?"
Mr Morrison said almost every Australian family, including his own, wanted to be assured their loved ones were going to get the care they deserved later in life.
"I have a very deep understanding of the difficult decisions that you're having to make, the conversations you're having to have with the partners, husbands, wives of those loved ones going into care, other siblings," he said.
"I want the response of our government to have the same level of deep care and responsibility."
The final royal commission report is due on November 12, 2020.
Rob Harris is the National Affairs Editor for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, based at Parliament House in Canberra
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Two women, man charged with murder in Norfolk teen Asia Cowell’s death
by: WAVY Web Staff
Posted: Dec 2, 2020 / 12:56 PM EST / Updated: Dec 4, 2020 / 09:33 AM EST
NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY) — Police have charged three people with murder in connection to the death of Asia Cowell, a Norfolk teen found dead in Newport News in September after she was reported missing.
Newport News police announced Wednesday they arrested 30-year-old Crystal Ashley Rudy Albritton, of 7400 block of W. Kenmore Drive in Norfolk, around 9:40 a.m. Wednesday at NNPD headquarters. She’s been charged with first-degree murder, abduction by force, use of a firearm in the commission of a felony, criminal solicitation and conspiracy to commit a felony.
Crystal Ashley Rudy Albritton
Police say petitions were secured against the other suspect, an 18-year-old female who was a juvenile at the time of Cowell’s death. She’s been charged with first-degree murder, abduction by force, use of a firearm in the commission of a felony and conspiracy to commit a felony.
On Friday, police announced another suspect had been charged with murder, 38-year-old Devin Aris Albritton, also of the 7400 block of W. Kenmore Drive. He was arrested at Newport News Police Headquarters on Thursday and charged with one count of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit felony.
Devin Aris Albritton
Cowell’s family has asked for privacy, but issued a statement about the arrests:
“We are very pleased and overjoyed to hear the news regarding the arrest of several suspects in our dear Asia Cowell’s case. We would like to thank the diligent and hard-working law enforcement officials of the Newport News Police Department and the Norfolk Police Department. We would also like to thank the Hampton Roads community and beyond for all the prayers and outpouring of support we have received over the past several months. All of you are very much appreciated.”
Newport News Police Chief Steve Drew issued a press release thanking his detectives and everyone involved in bringing some closure for the Cowell family. “They have worked tirelessly alongside Norfolk Police detectives to exhaust all leads and find those responsible. Thank you to Chief Boone with Norfolk Police and our partners at the Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office for their assistance in this investigation.”
Newport News Police said Cowell was found dead near the woods in the area of Warwick Boulevard and Fort Eustis Boulevard on September 23. She was last seen in Norfolk on September 7.
Previous: Norfolk family pleads for justice after body of 17-year-old girl found in Newport News
Previous: Case of Norfolk teen found dead in Newport News being investigated as homicide; family holds vigil
“I am thankful for the unwavering determination for justice that the women and men of NNPD and NPD have devoted to this case,” said Norfolk Police Chief Larry D. Boone. “Asia’s murder struck me emotionally. As a father, I couldn’t imagine the pain the Cowell Family has gone through these past few months. I hope that these arrests will help start the healing process in the midst of their suffering and that the family knows we will continue to support them.”
by Madison Pearman / Jan 16, 2021
VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) -- A local fishing charter captain is facing charges in connection to the attack on the Capitol last week, according to paperwork filed in federal court.
On Friday, January 15, three charges were filed against Jake Hiles with Matador Charters, a Virginia Beach charter fishing company.
A man was arrested Saturday Edenton, North Carolina and charged with indecent liberties with a child.
On January 13, police responded to the 300 block of N. Oakum Street in reference to a sexual offense.
Suffolk man gets suspended license, fined following fatal 2017 head-on crash
NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (WAVY) — A Suffolk man had his license suspended and fined following a crash that killed another man back in 2017.
Kirk Jones, of Suffolk, was previously indicted July 2018 by a grand jury on charges of involuntary manslaughter and misdemeanor reckless driving in connection to the Nov. 27, 2017, crash near the intersection of Jefferson Avenue and Ivy Farms Road.
VA Sen. Amanda Chase says she’ll move to censure Sen. Louise Lucas for Portsmouth Confederate monument involvement
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President Obama: America Is 'Stronger And More Respected' Today
During a year-end news conference at the White House on Friday, President Obama warned Russia, whom U.S. intelligence is accusing of interfering in the presidential election, "We can do stuff to you." (Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images)
President Obama said Friday he is leaving behind a more prosperous and safe country than the one he inherited from his predecessor.
"Almost every country on Earth sees America as stronger and more respected today than it was eight years ago," the president said at a White House news conference on Friday before the Obama family's departure to Hawaii for its annual holiday vacation.
Obama ticked off a list of his economic milestones including lower unemployment, income growth, a tripling of the stock market and access to health care for 20 million Americans since he took office in 2009.
On the foreign policy front, the president said he de-escalated the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and worked to forge new relationships with Iran and Cuba, as well as the Paris climate deal to combat man-made climate change.
Obama also said he is committed to ensuring a smooth transition for President-elect Donald Trump. "I think they would be the first to acknowledge that we have done everything we can to make sure that they are successful, as I promised, and that will continue."
The president described his interactions with Trump as "cordial" and said he will "always make myself available to him just as previous presidents made themselves available to me as issues come up."
The president and Trump have very different views on the realities and motives of Russian efforts to influence the 2016 election. Trump has downplayed the Russian hacks and questioned the intelligence analysis of the Central Intelligence Agency that the Russians intervened to help Trump win the election.
Obama side-stepped attempts to criticize Trump. Instead, he said he has "great confidence" in U.S. intelligence and their conclusions about Russia's influence. The president has ordered a report from U.S. intelligence agencies on the matter by Jan. 20, his last day in office.
"Not much happens in Russia without Vladmir Putin," Obama added, although he declined to explicitly state that he believes Putin ordered the hacking. "Last I checked, there's not a lot of debate and democratic deliberation."
Obama reiterated that Russians were responsible for the hacks of Democratic Party emails but that they did not affect voting machines or the election outcome. "This was not some elaborate, complicated espionage scheme," Obama said, though he did chastise the media for exhaustive coverage of Clinton campaign manager John Podesta's emails.
Obama ducked when asked if the hacking cost Hillary Clinton the election. "I'm going to let all the political pundits in this town have a long discussion about what happened in the election. It was a fascinating election."
He also warned that cybersecurity will remain a national security threat for the U.S. government and businesses.
"Our goal continues to be to send a clear message to Russia, or others, not to do this to us, because we can do stuff to you," he said. "But it is also important for us to do that in a thoughtful, methodical way. Some of it we do publicly, some of it we will do in a way they know, but not everybody will."
Looking to his post-White House life, Obama said he will work to grow the Democratic Party. "The thing we have to spend the most time on because it's the thing we have the most control over is: How do we make sure we are showing up in places where I think Democratic policies are needed, where they are helping, where they are making a difference."
He praised Labor Secretary Tom Perez, who is running to chair the Democratic National Committee. "He is tireless; he is wicked smart," Obama said, although he stopped shy of endorsing him in the DNC race.
On Syria, Obama spoke at length about his administration's hands-off approach to the civil war there. "My first priority has to be, what's the right thing to do for America," he said, in reference to his decision not to commit ground troops to Syria — an act that would have required authorization from Congress.
On China, Obama was forgiving of Trump's decision to speak by phone with the president of Taiwan. He said new presidents have the prerogative to examine the way things have been done in the past, and if they want to change them. But he cautioned to move deliberately and thoughtfully with China because Taiwan is at "the heart of the conception as a nation."
The news conference was the last one for 2016. Asked on the way out whether he would have another before leaving office, Obama responded: "I don't know, I'll have to reflect on that."
Obama On Russian Hacking: 'We Need To Take Action. And We Will'
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Alaska Native tribes sue Feds over Ambler Road decision
In this Aug. 1, 2014 photo provided by the National Park Service are male caribou antlers in the Oolah Valley, likely the result of a grizzly kill as he migrated south for the winter at the Arctic National Park and Preserve in Alaska. The nation's northernmost national park says its new management plan will have to consider the effects of a new industrial road to the mining district of Ambler, the first road that would be constructed within its Maryland-sized boundaries. (AP Photo/National Park Service, Cadence Cook) (KTUU)
By Grant Robinson
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) - This week, a half dozen individual Alaska Native tribal councils and a tribal consortium filed a lawsuit over the federal government’s authorization to build the 211-mile Ambler Road.
The project aims to connect the Dalton Highway to the Ambler Mining District in Northwest Alaska. The state-owned Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority is behind the project.
Earlier this year the Bureau of Land Management completed the final environmental review for the project. Then in July, a Joint Record of Decision green lighted the development.
The lawsuit claims that federal agencies violated multiple laws, including a portion of the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act that addresses impacts to subsistence use.
“It has certain provisions in there to protect subsistence needs. And there is analysis that the federal agencies are required to go through when such a development goes through and is going to impact the subsistence needs of our villages,” Natasha Singh, General Counsel for Tanana Chiefs Conference said. “We believe that that process and analysis did not adhere to ANILCA 810.”
In addition to the Tanana Chiefs Conference, other plaintiffs in the lawsuit are Alatna Village Council, Allakaket Tribal Council, Evansville Tribal Council, Huslia Tribal Council, Tanana Tribal Council and Native Village of Kobuk Traditional Council.
Singh says that the input the tribes provided throughout the process was not adequately considered in the permitting process.
“A major concern is fishing, making sure fishing resources are protected. If you go into the plans of the project, it’s just basically a line on a map. There are no specifics in the plan of where the road is going to be. That means there’s no plans for bridges. There’s no plans for culverts. No plans for what that infrastructure even is going to look like and how that is potentially going to either harm or protect the fish resources,” Singh said. “And you’ll see in other states they’ve had to completely replace culverts that were actually harming the ability of fish species to spawn. We specifically raised that concern in probably every single tribal comment, and still yet there are no specific plans on how to protect fish species.”
Singh says that if the road is going to be built, the government agencies responsible for permitting should demonstrate that it will not harm subsistence resources. The plan outlined in the Record of Decision does not do that, she says.
“We’re asking the federal agencies to go back to the drawing board, follow the law they’re required to follow, and address the concerns as we laid out,” Singh said.
In a statement, a spokesperson for the Bureau of Land Management said the agencies stand by the environmental review used to make the decision on the project.
“During the course of this analysis, the BLM held over 35 public meetings in affected communities along the route throughout this three-year process. Our commonsense actions are lawful and based on the best available science. The Department will continue to implement President Trump’s agenda to create more American jobs, protect the safety of American workers, support domestic energy production and conserve our environment. We are confident the Courts will agree,” the statement said.
Alaska National Guard to provide assistance for presidential inauguration
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Facts about Andreas Vesalius
Andreas Vesalius died at 49 years old
Birthplace: Brussels, Belgium
Best known as: 16th-century Belgian anatomist who wrote The Structure of the Human Body
De Humani Corporis Fabrica
Ambitious project to show his famous work online
More details from the Catholic Encyclopedia
Vesalius's Renaissance Anatomy Lessons
Biographical sketch and samples from his famous work
Vesalius in Zante
Edith Wharton's biographically-based poem
Andreas Vesalius Biography
The Belgian anatomist Andreas Vesalius was among the first to dissect cadavers and accurately depict human anatomy. He studied in Louvain and Paris, but spent much of his career in Italy, lecturing in Padua, Basel, Pisa and Bologna. His seven-volume text De Humani Corporis Fabrica (The Structure of the Human Body), published in 1543, began the modern science of anatomy. His descriptions and the skilled illustrations of Jan Stephen van Calcar (once a student with Titian) overturned medical traditions based on the 2nd-century theories of Galen. The furor caused by his books led Vesalius to give up research and accept a position as royal physician to Holy Roman Emperor Charles V (and, later, to his son Philip II of Spain). The Inquisition condemned Vesalius to death for dissecting a human body, but his connections to royalty helped knock the sentence down to a forced pilgrimage to Jerusalem in 1564. On his return voyage his ship was damaged at sea and he died near Zante (Zakynthos), off the coast of Greece.
One of the famous stories about Vesalius is that he proved men and women have the same number of ribs, heresy to those who believed the Old Testament story of Eve being created from one of Adam‘s ribs.
Something in Common with Andreas Vesalius
Capricorn Scientists (5)
Capricorn Brainiacs (13)
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BIS warns of sudden end to “uneasy” financial calm
Nick Beams
The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) has warned that what it calls the “uneasy calm” which has settled over international financial markets following the turbulence of August and September could erupt into new turmoil as deeper economic forces come to the surface.
The signs are already in evidence. The Financial Times has reported that the corporate bond market has been hit by “rate fears” as the US Federal Reserve seems set to lift its base interest rate for the first time in a decade at its meeting later this month. At the same time, an article in the Wall Street Journal said the stock market was “missing the warning from junk.”
It said high-yielding, or junk, bonds were heading for their first annual loss since the financial crisis of 2008, reflecting concerns among investors that the US economic expansion of the past six years and the stock-market boom were on “borrowed time.”
The BIS warnings came in its quarterly review issued on Sunday. The head of the banks economic department, Claudio Borio, said calm had reigned over financial markets in the past two months, as stock markets recorded their strongest one-month rally for some years in October. It appeared that the previous turbulence was more like a brief summer storm, rather than autumn thunder heralding a long winter. However, the outlook could change rapidly.
“Very much in evidence, once more, has been the contrast between the hectic rhythm of markets and the slow motion of the deeper economic forces that really matter,” he said.
Borio was referring to the slowing of global economic growth, particularly in emerging markets which have played such an important role in sustaining world output in the period since 2010. The leading economic indicators pointed to weakness ahead, with Brazil and Russia already in the throes of a “severe recession,” while activity in China has shown little sign of strengthening.
Besides lower growth, the financial vulnerabilities of emerging markets had not gone away. “The stock of dollar-denominated debt, which has roughly doubled since early 2009 to over $3 trillion is still there,” he noted, warning that in terms of the domestic currencies concerned debt had increased because of the appreciation in value of the US dollar. That tendency will continue with an expected increase in the Fed base interest rate later this month likely to send the dollar higher.
In conditions where there is a divergence between US and European monetary policy—as the Fed moves towards tightening and the European Central Bank is reducing rates—there could be a sudden increase in the demand for the US currency. Borio pointed out that even with hedging to take account of currency movements, there was a premium being charged on those wishing to borrow in dollars.
While funding continued to be made available, the present situation indicates “potential market dislocation” which “may call into question how smoothly US dollar funding conditions will adjust in the event of an increase in US onshore interest rates.”
There could also be dislocation in the US as well, with the review noting that, while it had fallen since August, margin debt—incurred when investors borrow money to buy shares and then have to pay a margin on their debt if the price falls—still remained “within reach of the previous record highs seen in the run-up to the dotcom bust more than 10 years ago.”
In “extraordinary conditions,” where interest rates remain “exceptionally low,” Borio said it was not surprising to find that markets were unusually sensitive to central bankers’ every word and deed. The latest example of that sensitivity came last week when the announcements by ECB president Mario Draghi on the next stage of European quantitative easing were much less than had been anticipated on the basis of his remarks in November.
Financial Times commentator Gavyn Davies said that as far as one-day shocks went the impact was “very dramatic” with the 4.5 percent reversal in the dollar-euro exchange rate the largest since 2009, and the combined drop in equities, bonds and currency movement being described as the most severe since 1999. In a subsequent speech, Davies noted, Draghi had sought to upgrade the significance of the new round of QE, reflecting concern about the “extreme market reaction.”
Focusing on the “clear tension” between the market’s behaviour and underlying conditions, Borio said at the conclusion of his remarks that at some point it would have to be resolved, and suddenly. “Markets can remain calm for much longer than we think. Until they no longer can,” he said.
Perhaps he had in mind Marx’s remark in Capital that economic laws assert themselves in the same way gravity does when a house falls about our ears.
In any event, there are growing signs that the house of finance is looking increasingly unstable and a relatively small tremor, in the form of a 0.25 percent increase in the Fed’s base rate, could cause major problems.
Reporting on the rate fears in corporate bond markets, the Financial Times noted that concerns over the impact of a possible US rate rise increase on more vulnerable borrowers had been “exacerbated by rising indebtedness and shrinking revenues among companies,” fuelling concerns that “the profitable ‘credit cycle’ that has reigned since the financial crisis is coming to an end.”
“People are going to be carried out on stretchers,” a senior bond manager at a California-based asset management firm told the newspaper. It was “not good,” he said, “when earnings are coming down, leverage is high and interest rates are going up.”
The Swiss bank UBS has estimated that as much as $1 trillion of US junk bonds and loans could be in the danger zone as borrowing conditions tighten. Many of the problems were in the energy sector—due to falling prices—but the bank said the problems extended more widely.
In a UBS note, strategist Matthew Mush wrote: “It is our humble belief that the consensus at the Fed does not fully understand the magnitude of the problems in corporate credit markets and the unintended consequences of their policy actions.”
So far this year there have been 102 global defaults, the highest since 2009, with 63 of these in the United States.
The financial agency Moody’s has reported that the number of companies on its “distressed list” rose by 5 percent in November to 239, representing a 37 percent jump over last year.
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The Hidden Gems of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. by camryn pressley
Most people know the basic life of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s life but there some are hidden gems. His parents had always told him that he was equal to everyone, teaching him to become an activist. His time in Simsbury, CT working at the Cullman Brothers’ tobacco farm in the summers of 1944 and 1947 developed his interest in his calling to minister and his involvement in the Civil Rights Movement. During the summers at 8 a.m., the Morehouse students would attend church services and Dr. King viewed himself as a religious leader. These visits opened his eyes to the world of no segregation. In a note to his father, he wrote, “The white people here are very nice. We go to any place we want and sit any where we want.” Going back to Atlanta, GA affected Dr. King mentally. “[The] separation did something to my sense of dignity and self-respect.”
Dr. King became involved in the Civil Rights Movement when he was chosen to be the president of the Montgomery Improvement Association (MIA). The MIA was where Dr. King began his work with the Montgomery Bus Boycott. He was chosen because he was new to the world of the Civil Rights Movement and according to Rosa Parks, “...he hadn’t been there long enough to make any strong friends or enemies.” Once Dr. King reached new heights in the leadership of the Civil Rights Movement, he played pool to reach out to the members of the Black community who did not come to church to hear his messages.
During his lifetime, Dr. King was arrested 29 times for his Civil Rights activities, gave 2,500 speeches, wrote five books and published numerous articles, and traveled more than six million miles. He won a Congressional Gold Medal, a Medal of Freedom, and a Grammy in 1971 for Best Spoken Word Album for “Why I Oppose the War in Vietnam”.
The unknown hidden gems of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s life show that even though it takes one some time to find their purpose in life, once you find it you will shine. The legacy of this great orator, activist, and leader lives in the hearts and minds of all activists and visionaries who want this country to be a better place for Black lives.
Learning... ACCIDENTAL OR INTENTIONAl? by hannah williams
We learn every day, most of the time without even knowing it. We learn new traffic patterns, new phrases, new song lyrics, new recipes, and new things about ourselves! These are examples of "accidental learning" - we don't typically jot down all of the left and right turns of a new route, or study every single phrase we hear each day, or stare at all the words of a song, or try to memorize a new recipe we enjoy or ask ourselves prying questions to see what we can reveal. Instead, we stumble upon these pieces of knowledge! If you drive to that new coffee shop enough, you'll know the route there by heart. If you hear a phrase that someone repeatedly uses, you'll unknowingly integrate it into your own speech. If you listen to a song you like over and over again, you will sing along to all the words without ever even reading the lyrics. And if you cook your mom's famous potato soup enough every winter, you will eventually be dancing around the kitchen throwing ingredients into a pot without a second glance at a recipe card. Like I said, we learn every single day!
But how many things do we learn intentionally? Think of the last thing that you sat down and truly focused on - whether you read articles, watched YouTube videos, attended formal lectures or courses, bought books, asked someone to teach you, or played around by trial and error... How long ago was that? What was it? Do you remember?
For your own edification, I challenge you to try to learn something new before the end of the year! You can start small...or you can think big!
Here is a list of ideas to get those learning wheels a'turnin':
How to change a tire
How to play an instrument
How to sew/knit/crochet
How to snowboard/ski/skateboard/rollerblade/etc.
How to build your savings account
How to speak a different language
How the human brain works – learning science
How different organs function
How to grill/cook/bake
How to make mixed drinks
How to play a new sport (or understand it when a game is on TV)
How to make Starbucks-quality coffee drinks
How to do a new hairstyle
How to draw/paint/sculpt
How to take gallery-worthy photos
How to woodwork
How to write poems/songs/stories/skits
How to self-defend for safety
How to dance
How to tell great jokes
How to do CPR
How to do your own taxes
There are so many things to learn!
Learning is easier when we develop the right habits to facilitate lifelong learning, such as:
Reading daily (books, articles, blogs, devotionals, etc.)
Attending courses, seminars, and/or lectures (you would be surprised how much you can absorb from YouTube!)
Seeking opportunities to grow (be curious, get involved, ask questions!)
Taking care of your body (exercising, drinking water, and eating healthy help our brains take in and store new knowledge!)
Having diverse passions (Remember: if you love it, it is not weird, and you should chase it ruthlessly)
Loving to make progress (tracking goals, checking boxes, celebrating successes)
Challenging yourself with specific goals
Believing it's never too late - Learning Mindset
Having a positive attitude
Venturing out of your comfort zone
Never settling down (It is better to wear out rather that rust out!)
And always remember we are all always learning - so be patient, try to understand, and give people grace as they find their way!
What kind of learner are you? Go forth and learn something new!
Health Equity Considerations & Racial & Ethnic Minority Groups from the cdc
Long-standing systemic health and social inequities have put many people from racial and ethnic minority groups at increased risk of getting sick and dying from COVID-19. The term “racial and ethnic minority groups” includes people of color with a wide variety of backgrounds and experiences. But some experiences are common to many people within these groups, and social determinants of health have historically prevented them from having fair opportunities for economic, physical, and emotional health.
There is increasing evidence that some racial and ethnic minority groups are being disproportionately affected by COVID-19.Inequities in the social determinants of health, such as poverty and healthcare access, affecting these groups are interrelated and influence a wide range of health and quality-of-life outcomes and risks. To achieve health equity, barriers must be removed so that everyone has a fair opportunity to be as healthy as possible.
Factors that contribute to increased risk
Discrimination: Unfortunately, discrimination exists in systems meant to protect well-being or health. Examples of such systems include health care, housing, education, criminal justice, and finance. Discrimination, which includes racism, can lead to chronic and toxic stress and shapes social and economic factors that put some people from racial and ethnic minority groups at increased risk for COVID-19.
Healthcare access and utilization: People from some racial and ethnic minority groups are more likely to be uninsured than non-Hispanic whites. Healthcare access can also be limited for these groups by many other factors, such as lack of transportation, child care, or ability to take time off of work; communication and language barriers; cultural differences between patients and providers; and historical and current discrimination in healthcare systems. Some people from racial and ethnic minority groups may hesitate to seek care because they distrust the government and healthcare systems responsible for inequities in treatment and historical events such as the Tuskegee Study of Untreated Syphilis in the African American Male and sterilization without people’s permission.
Occupation: People from some racial and ethnic minority groups are disproportionately represented in essential work settings such as healthcare facilities, farms, factories, grocery stores, and public transportation. Some people who work in these settings have more chances to be exposed to the virus that causes COVID-19 due to several factors, such as close contact with the public or other workers, not being able to work from home, and not having paid sick days.
Educational, income, and wealth gaps: Inequities in access to high-quality education for some racial and ethnic minority groups can lead to lower high school completion rates and barriers to college entrance. This may limit future job options and lead to lower paying or less stable jobs. People with limited job options likely have less flexibility to leave jobs that may put them at a higher risk of exposure to the virus that causes COVID-19. People in these situations often cannot afford to miss work, even if they’re sick, because they do not have enough money saved up for essential items like food and other important living needs.
Housing: Some people from racial and ethnic minority groups live in crowded conditions that make it more challenging to follow prevention strategies. In some cultures, it is common for family members of many generations to live in one household. In addition, growing and disproportionate unemployment rates for some racial and ethnic minority groups during the COVID-19 pandemic may lead to greater risk of eviction and homelessness or sharing of housing.
These factors and others are associated with more COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations, and deaths in areas where racial and ethnic minority groups live, learn, work, play, and worship. They have also contributed to higher rates of some medical conditions that increase one’s risk of severe illness from COVID-19. In addition, community strategies to slow the spread of COVID-19 may cause unintentional harm, such as lost wages, reduced access to services, and increased stress, for some racial and ethnic minority groups.
The COVID-19 pandemic may change some of the ways we connect and support each other. As individuals and communities respond to COVID-19 recommendations and circumstances (e.g., school closures, workplace closures, social distancing), there are often unintended negative impacts on emotional well-being such as loss of social connectedness and support. Shared faith, family, and cultural bonds are common sources of social support. Finding ways to maintain support and connection, even when physically apart, can empower and encourage individuals and communities to protect themselves, care for those who become sick, keep kids healthy, and better cope with stress.
Community- and faith-based organizations, employers, healthcare systems and providers, public health agencies, policy makers, and others all have a part in helping to promote fair access to health. To prevent the spread of COVID-19, we must work together to ensure that people have resources to maintain and manage their physical and mental health, including easy access to information, affordable testing, and medical and mental health care. We need programs and practices that fit the communities where racial and minority groups live, learn, work, play, and worship.
Data on COVID-19 and Race and EthnicityCDC resources
CDC COVID Data Tracker
COVID-NET: A Weekly Summary of U.S. COVID-19 Hospitalization Data
COVIDView: A Weekly Surveillance Summary of U.S. COVID-19 Activity
The COVID Tracking Project’s The COVID Racial Data Tracker
Emory University’s COVID-19 Health Equity Interactive Dashboard
CDC - "Health Equity Considerations & Racial & Ethnic Minority Groups" with sources: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/health-equity/race-ethnicity.html
CDC - Coronavirus Disease website: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-nCoV/index.html
Diabetes and its affect on the african-american community by Dr. Angela Oglesby-Cherry
Diabetes is one of the most serious health problems that affect the African American community. Type 2 diabetes is the most common form of diabetes. The pancreas is essential to convert food into fuel for the body. The pancreas helps digest food and regulate blood sugar. Insulin is produced by the pancreas to help regulate blood sugar. In Type 2 diabetes the body builds up resistance to insulin and the pancreas needs to produce more until it may stop producing insulin. Therefore glucose builds up in the blood. If the glucose is high in the blood it may cause increased thirst, nausea, extreme fatigue, blurry vision, tingling or numbness in your hands/feet, and increased urination.
African Americans are 3 times more likely to develop Type 2 diabetes than European whites. Risk factors include being overweight or obese, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, family history, and cigarette smoking.
Here are ways to help prevent or improve the management of diabetes:
Get screened – ask your physician to be screened
Change our diets – avoid fried foods, decrease intake of bread and pasta, and decrease salt and intake
Watch your sugar intake – eliminate sweet tea and sodas and drink more water to start
Exercise – You can prevent diabetes by losing just 5-7% of your body weight. Try to exercise 30 minutes a day. Take the stairs and park farther away from the store to start.
Don’t smoke or quit smoking – Smokers are 30-40% more likely to develop diabetes
Introducing the Mary E. Donaldson 2020 Scholarship
The History of the National Pan-Hellenic Council by Hannah Davis
On May 10, 1930, on the campus of Howard University, in Washington DC, the National Pan-Hellenic Council was formed as a permanent organization with the following charter members: Omega Psi Phi and Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternities, and Alpha Kappa Alpha, Delta Sigma Theta and Zeta Phi Beta Sororities. The purpose and mission of the organization in 1930 was “Unanimity of thought and action as far as possible in the conduct of Greek letter collegiate fraternities and sororities, and to consider problems of mutual interest to its member organizations.” In 1931, Alpha Phi Alpha and Phi Beta Sigma Fraternities joined the Council. Early in 1937, the organization was incorporated under the laws of the State of Illinois and became known as The National Pan-Hellenic Council, Incorporated.
Soon thereafter, Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority joined The National Pan-Hellenic Council, Incorporated. Iota Phi Theta Fraternity completed the list of member organizations in 1997. The National Pan-Hellenic Council, Inc. consists of 9 predominately African American Greek letter organizations known as the Divine 9.
Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.
Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc.
Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.
Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc.
Iota Phi Theta Fraternity, Inc.
Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc.
Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc.
Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc.
Fostering cooperative actions of its members in dealing with matters of mutual concern, the NPHC continues to raise community awareness and action through educational, economic, and cultural service activities. West Virginia University is proud to have seven active chapters of the nine international organizations of NPHC (Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. (chartered in 1984), Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. chartered in 1969), Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. (chartered in 1973), Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. chartered in 1983), Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc. (chartered in 1987) , and Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc. (chartered in 1993). The Council promotes academic excellence, unity, service within the community, and strong bonds of brotherhood and sisterhood. The National Pan-Hellenic Council fosters brotherhood and sisterhood, unity, promotion of academic excellence, and an emphasis on service not only on West Virginia University’s campus but in the surrounding community as well.
I’M NOT CRAZY, BUT… (bipolar disorder) BY DR. MELISSA ALBERT
I’m not crazy, but…
Sometimes I feel like it. There are times when I feel fine. But there are times when I definitely am not. It’s like my mind is on fire. The thoughts are constant. They run over each other and I can’t keep them straight. Other people can’t follow or keep up with what I’m talking about. I feel like I can tackle gigantic projects, all by myself. And other weird things happen. I buy things I don’t need. Not one pair of shoes but maybe seven. Sometimes not even the size I wear. I obviously didn’t need them, but can’t stop myself. I get so impulsive. I’ll do just about anything, try just about anything, sometimes resulting in life-changing badness.
When you are feeling like this, it could be mania. Just about everyone knows what depression is. At some point, everyone experiences sadness, so depression is not hard to imagine as really bad sadness. A lot of people have heard about Bipolar Disorder, but few actually know what it is. It’s often thought that if you have mood swings or anger outbursts, then you must be Bipolar.
Bipolar is more than a mood swing!
Bipolar disorder is an illness of mood that can have episodes of depression with the other side being mania. People don’t seek help when they are manic. They seek help when they crash. Most of the time mania feels great, ecstatic, otherworldly. All of your sensations are heightened. Colors more vivid, urges unstoppable. The desire to spend, to use, to seek all pleasure, despite the risk.
Bipolar Buzzwords
Distractibility: cannot keep focus on any one thing, constant shifting attention.
Insomnia: the decreased need for sleep, can’t sleep for days, or at full energy after only an hour or two of sleep.
Grandiosity: feeling like the king/queen of the world, unrealistic power.
Flight of ideas: racing thoughts, constant flow of random thoughts.
Activity/ Agitation: super creative and starting many tasks that go unfinished.
Speech: pressured speech, increased talking that is very difficult to stop.
Thoughtlessness: increased risky behaviors (driving 100 mph, indiscriminate sex, stealing, spending excessive amounts of money in the thousands).
How can I help myself?
The single most important thing is to protect your sleep. Just because you can go without sleep, doesn’t mean you should. Don’t stay up all night playing games or watching movies because you can. Sleep deprivation can trigger a manic episode.
Build a support system. Family or friends who know you well enough to recognize when you’re spending too much or when your behavior becomes erratic.
Other things you can do that don’t involve a co-pay:
Exercise, it helps just about everything
When should I reach out for help?
When you have spells of depression.
When you notice dangerous risky behaviors.
When mania interferes with work, relationships and/ or safety.
When you suddenly become paranoid.
When you experience hallucinations.
What help looks like:
Counseling. It is more than talking about your problems like you do to your friends. Counselors are your thinking trainers. They can help you recognize danger signs and risky habits.
Medicine (prescription). Medicine can help even out the ups and downs.
Hospitalization. A short stay to help protect you from yourself and stop the mania.
Put the salt down, get sun when it shines, fish oil is your friend.
Missy, MD
Get out to vote 2! by Karen P. Williams
The 2020 election is upon us! The country is in crisis and our opportunity to vote for new leadership is in our hands. With the recent passing of the Honorable Ruth Bader-Ginsberg, continual oppressive decisions, and the current state of the union, concern increases. Together, we must organize and carefully prepare ourselves to not only vote, but to help inform and arm others with the knowledge needed to make sound decisions around voting. We can empower, engage, and excite our communities about voting. Call your friends, family, church members, and make sure that they are registered to vote. The last day to register to vote in West Virginia is October 13th. Visit the Secretary of State's website at https://sos.wv.gov/elections/Pages/GoVoteWV.aspx and click on Elections to register online. On this site, citizens can verify their registration status. All you need is the person's name and birthdate to submit. The site will let you know whether you are active, your county/ precinct/ and your congressional district. For ease, you will also find the printable Application for Absentee Voting (https://sos.wv.gov/FormSearch/Elections/Voter/Absentee%20Ballot%20Application.pdf). Make copies and hand them out to your church members, coworkers, friends, and neighbors. By any means necessary, Get Out to Vote, and empower others to do the same. The county clerks began mailing ballots on September 18th. To support the people that you ask to fill out the form, ask them their plan and help them execute that plan. Mail in your ballot, drop it off, or be traditional and vote in person. No matter how you plan to do it, just do it. We have 36 days before the General Election. Stay tuned and continue to engage others.
West Virginia Online Voter Registration Website: www.ovr.sos.wv.gov
October 13, 2020 (post received by Oct. 16th) - Voter Registration Deadline
October 28, 2020 - Eligible voters may apply for a General Election ballot by mail.
October 21 – October 31, 2020 - Early Voting at the county courthouse, annex or designated community voting location during normal business hours and Saturdays 9AM to 5PM.
October 28, 2020 - Deadline for Absentee by Mail Application.
November 2, 2020 - Deadline to hand-deliver Absentee Ballot to County Clerk’s office.
November 3, 2020 (General Election Day) - Polls open 6:30 AM to 7: 30 PM and absentee ballots must be postmarked.
November 9, 2020 - Absentee Ballot postmarked by Election Day accepted if received by start of Canvass.
Please feel free to contact me with additional GOTV suggestions or activities at 304-543-0248 or jkwms53@gmail.com . Let’s change history with our votes!
A BRIEF SURVEY OF BLACK-AMERICANS IN MCDOWELL COUNTY, WEST VIRGINIA By James Williams
McDowell County is the most Southern County in West Virginia, bordering southwest Virginia. Blacks began migrating into the County when railroads came to the County, on or about 1895. The railroads provided mass transportation of coal to eastern and mid western parts of the nation. This new industry created jobs requiring hard labor coupled with low skills. Because of the lack of suitable housing, coal companies built houses for its employees. The grouping of these houses was called “coal camps”.
The population increased rapidly, going from 7,300 in 1896 to over 98,000 in 1950.
The Black population increased greatly during this period; and its Black population was the highest of any County in the State.
Along with the influx of Black miners, Black professionals soon followed to serve the community. They included Medical Doctors, Nurses, Dentists, Pharmacists, School Teachers and School Administrators. This professional class served the entire population, except of course, the educational sector.
Coal mining soon became the main industry, employing thousands of employees, with close to 35% being Black. The coal companies were segregated and several mines’ production staff were nearly all Black. It should be noted that these mines were duly recognized as being more efficient than other mines.
Black policy makers were included in all phases of civic life, including the union representing the coal miners.
The County once boasted 4 separate Black High Schools, more than any other County in the State. Its graduates have distinguished themselves in various professions throughout the nation and exhibit great pride in their home County, affectionately referred to as “The Patch”.
Also included in the Black migration were gamblers, women of ill repute and others of similar ilk. A small area, approximately 6/7 acres, commonly called “Cinder Bottom” was where the above-named, engaged in their individual professions.
Coal is no longer “King” and the population has sunken below 18,000 and is ranked among the poorest counties in the nation.
How to Protect Yourself and Your Older Loved Ones from Elder Financial Abuse by mvb bank
People ages 50 and older control more than 70 percent of the country’s wealth, so fraudsters are finding new ways to target retiring baby boomers and the growing number of older Americans. This type of crime called elder financial abuse is on the rise and is estimated to have cost victims at least $2.9 billion last year alone.
Elder financial abuse is a crime that deprives older adults of their resources and ultimately their independence. Anyone who sees signs of theft, fraud, misuse of a person’s assets or credit or use of undue influence to gain control of an older person’s money or property should be on the alert. Those are signs of possible exploitation. Older Americans that may have disabilities or rely on others for help can be susceptible to scams and other fraud. Advances in technology can also make it difficult for seniors to know who to trust and what's safe.
Tips for Seniors
Despite these threats, taking simple steps to safeguard personal information and being aware of warning signs can protect aging men and women from financial abuse.
Plan ahead to protect your assets and to ensure your wishes are followed. Talk to someone at your financial institution, an attorney, or financial advisor about the best options for you.
Shred receipts, bank statements and unused credit card offers before throwing them away.
Carefully choose a trustworthy person to act as your agent in all estate-planning matters.
Lock up your checkbook, account statements and other sensitive information when others will be in your home.
Order copies of your credit report once a year to ensure accuracy.
Never give personal information, including Social Security Number, account number or other financial information to anyone over the phone unless you initiated the call and the other party is trusted.
Never pay a fee or taxes to collect sweepstakes or lottery “winnings.”
Never rush into a financial decision. Ask for details in writing and get a second opinion.
Consult with a financial advisor or attorney before signing any document you don’t understand.
Get to know your banker and build a relationship with the people who handle your finances. They can look out for any suspicious activity related to your account.
Check references and credentials before hiring anyone. Don’t allow workers to have access to information about your finances.
Pay with checks and credit cards instead of cash to keep a paper trail.
Feel free to say “no.” After all, it’s your money.
You have the right not to be threatened or intimidated. If you think someone close to you is trying to take control of your finances, call your local Adult Protective Services or tell someone at your bank.
Trust your instincts. Exploiters and abusers often are very skilled. They can be charming and forceful in their effort to convince you to give up control of your finances. Don’t be fooled—if something doesn’t feel right, it may not be right. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
What Should You Do If You Are a Victim of Financial Abuse?
Talk to a trusted family member who has your best interests at heart, or to your clergy.
Talk to your attorney, doctor or an officer at your bank.
Contact Adult Protective Services in your state or your local police for help.
Tips for Family and Friends of Seniors
The key to spotting financial abuse is a change in a person’s established financial patterns. Watch out for these “red flags”:
Unusual activity in an older person’s bank accounts, including large, frequent or unexplained withdrawals.
ATM withdrawals by an older person who has never used a debit or ATM card.
Changing from a basic account to one that offers more complicated services the customer does not fully understand or need.
Withdrawals from bank accounts or transfers between accounts the customer cannot explain.
New “best friends” accompanying an older person to the bank.
Sudden non-sufficient fund activity or unpaid bills.
Closing CDs or accounts without regard to penalties.
Uncharacteristic attempts to wire large sums of money.
Suspicious signatures on checks, or outright forgery.
Confusion, fear or lack of awareness on the part of an older customer.
Refusal to make eye contact, shame or reluctance to talk about the problem.
Checks written as “loans” or “gifts.”
Bank statements that no longer go to the customer’s home.
New powers of attorney the older person does not understand.
A caretaker, relative or friend who suddenly begins conducting financial transactions on behalf of an older person without proper documentation.
Altered wills and trusts.
Loss of property.
What Should You Do If You Suspect Financial Abuse?
Talk to elderly friends or loved ones if you see any of the signs mentioned here. Try to determine what specifically is happening with their financial situation, such as a new person “helping” them with money management, or a relative using cards or credit without their permission.
Report the elder financial abuse to their bank and enlist their banker’s help to stop it and prevent its recurrence.
Contact Adult Protective Services in your town or state for help.
Report all instances of elder financial abuse to your local police—if fraud is involved, they should investigate.
Never give your Social Security number, account numbers or other personal financial information over the phone unless you initiated the call.
This article content created by the American Bankers Association is provided by MVB Bank. More information about Safe Banking for Seniors and other financial tips for consumers can be found on the ABA website: https://www.aba.com/advocacy/community-programs/consumer-resources. If you would like more information from your local bankers on this or other topics, please email Amy Baker, VP, Corporate Communications & Marketing, at abaker@mvbbanking.com or visit www.mvbbanking.com.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2020 West Virginia Black Heritage Festival has been canceled but that doesn't mean we're taking a break!
Back to Black is our newest blog, used to showcase our community's talented Black writers, activists, and allies! Every week, we'll be publishing two brand new stories - one "For the Culture," on topics like Black history, lifestyle, and heritage, as well as one "For your Toolbox," on life skills, health, and spiritual growth to uplift the community!
© WVBHF | COPYRIGHT 2017 | ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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The Best Of Culture Club
Culture Club was a popular 1980s pop group, perhaps most noticeable for their gender-bending frontman George O'Dowd, known by his stage name Boy George. The other members of the band were Roy Hay on guitars and keyboards, Mikey Craig playing bass and Jon Moss (ex Damned, London, Adam and the Ants) on drums. Their first album, 1982's Kissing to Be Clever, became a major international hit, spawning the hit singles "Do You Really Want to Hurt Me" (which went 'all the way' in the BBC-Charts in late...
Culture Club was a popular 1980s pop group, perhaps most noticeable for their gender-bending frontman George O'Dowd, known by his stage name Boy George. The other members of the band were Roy Hay on guitars and keyboards, Mikey Craig playing bass and Jon Moss (ex Damned, London, Adam and the Ants) on drums.
Their first album, 1982's Kissing to Be Clever, became a major international hit, spawning the hit singles "Do You Really Want to Hurt Me" (which went 'all the way' in the BBC-Charts in late 1982), "Time (Clock of the Heart)", and "I'll Tumble 4 Ya". Unique in his eccentric manner of dress and androgynous look, Boy George became a worldwide celebrity.
Their second album, 1983's Colour By Numbers also did extremely well, giving the band its second number one hit in the UK with "Karma Chameleon." Karma Chameleon reached No.1 in many countries and they even starred in UK's Top of the Pops in September 1983. However, trouble was brewing within the Culture Club camp. Unknown to the public, George was having an affair with drummer Jon Moss. The affair (which lasted over four years) was often problematic and the pressure to hide the relationship started to take its toll.
The band also started to lose its place musically. Their next album, 1984's Waking Up With the House on Fire was a major disappointment. Though the band gained a small comeback with 1986's From Luxury to Heartache (thanks to the hit "Move Away"), both George's and Jon's fights created much tension, eventually leading to the breakup of the band. Around this time, George also became addicted to heroin, which created a frenzy with the tabloids. Eventually, George would let go of the habit and begin his solo career. A minor hit from the "Hiding Out" soundtrack called "Live My Life" peaked at U.S. #40. While George scored several hits in Europe and finally hit the U.S. top 20 with 1992's "The Crying Game", he was never able to reach the success he achieved with Culture Club.
In 1998, the band put their issues aside and decided to do a reunion tour. Kicked off with a performance on VH1 Storytellers, the tour was a major success. Shortly after, Culture Club recorded a new album titled Don't Mind If I Do. Though never released in the U.S., the first single, "I Just Wanna Be Loved" (UK #4), was featured on a compilation based around the Storytellers performance.
The band went on to tour for a few more years. Recently, however, Culture Club has been inactive, largely due to Boy George's concentration on his successful career as a DJ. In late 2006, Culture Club announced a reunion - albeit, without Boy George as lead singer. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.
Time (Clock of the Heart)
Cm, F, Gm, C, D, Dm, A#, D#, G#, Fm, D#m, C#, A#m, F#
Mistake No. 3
D, G, C, Bm, E, A, C#m, F#, F#m, Em, A#
The Medal Song
A, Bm, E, D, B, C#m, F#m
Cm, F, Gm, C, Dm, A#, D#, Fm, D#m, C#, A#m, G#, F#
Learn to play guitar, bass or keyboard
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Showdown between Seahawks and Packers to highlight Carroll’s 10-year anniversary in Seattle
by: Aaron Levine
Posted: Jan 6, 2020 / 12:05 PM EST / Updated: Jan 6, 2020 / 12:05 PM EST
SEATTLE, Wash. (Q13Fox.com) — Next Sunday marks the 10-year anniversary of the day Pete Carroll was introduced as Seahawks head coach.
Said Carroll that day, “I love setting our standards so high that maybe it doesn’t even seem feasible. That’s okay with me.”
Which means Carroll is perfectly fine with the lofty expectations set by fans – some, more realistic than others.
Pick apart the last ten seasons all you’d like – believe me, I have – and I’ve cringed at some of the forgettable moments that could’ve – should’ve – gone the Seahawks way. But there’s not a single team in the NFC that has more playoff appearances in the last ten years than Seattle. The eight postseason opportunities since 2010 is second only to New England, who’s made it every single year.
And there’s something you will always get with Carroll and the teams he coaches: Spirit. Enthusiasm. Optimism. And, most of all, Belief and Guts. The result of which has been an exceptional decade in this franchise’s history – and something we saw again today.
For all that was made about the Eagles injuries, the Seahawks were close to the top of the league in games missed due to injury this season. Take a look at the list of players who missed today, along with the 11 key players on injured reserve, another two on the suspended list, and tell me it’s not incredible that this team has reached the divisional round again.
Combine that with four divisional titles (two inches from a fifth) and a Super Bowl title (one yard from a second) and you have a consistently competitive and thriving organization.
Indulge me for a minute and imagine that we were sitting here in January 2030 looking back at the decade that was. And imagine the Mariners having made the playoffs eight of those ten years, with two World Series appearances including one World Championship. Then imagine a portion of that fanbase not feeling satisfied with their longtime manager, whoever that might be, who had led the organization to unprecedented success.
We have been spoiled. We continue to be spoiled. The Seahawks went 11-5 this year against the toughest schedule in the league. They went 7-1 on the road in the regular season for the first time ever. And they almost always gave themselves a chance to win.
And that’s because Carroll’s teams overachieve. They often win games they shouldn’t win. It’s a direct product of the culture that’s been built, of the leaders on this team, and the convictions that come straight from the top.
The point is this: Like any coach, Carroll has his faults. We acknowledge the questionable in-game decisions, clock and game management gaffes. They happen, and much to our chagrin, they will undoubtedly happen again. But if dealing with weekly frustrations is the cost of doing business for the overall work of the past decade, I’m still of the opinion that it’s a small price to pay.
On that day ten years ago, Carroll put it simply: “I hope we can do things better here than it’s ever been done before.”
The record shows: He’s lived up to that word. And has no intention of stopping any time soon.
The preceeding text is commentary from Aaron Levine who works as the sports director at Q13 Fox in Seattle.
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Burleigh meaning
bûr'lē
1st Baron Burghley.
"ALEXANDER HUGH BRUCE, BALFOUR OF BURLEIGH Loth (or 6TH) Baron (1849-1921), British politician, was born at Kennet, Alloa, Jan.
He was educated at Loretto, Eton and Oriel College, Oxford, and in 1869 was restored by Act of Parliament to the barony of Balfour of Burleigh, to which he was entitled by his descent from the 5th baron, who was attainted after the Jacobite rebellion of 1715.
The capacity of existing sources, however, was deemed sufficient by a Royal Commission under Lord Balfour of Burleigh in 1893, and this opinion was endorsed by a further Commission under Lord Llandaff.
Most of those studies of home-life in England, which formed so highly popular a section of Tennyson's work - such as "The Gardener's Daughter," "Walking to the Mail," and "The Lord of Burleigh" - were now first issued, and, in what we have grown to consider a much higher order, "Locksley Hall," "Ulysses," and "Sir Galahad."
He delighted to move among the people, and yet found time to meet with a society of antiquaries, of which Raleigh, Sidney, Burleigh, Arundel, the Herberts, Saville, Stow and Camden were members.
Words near burleigh in the Dictionary
burlaps
burlaw
burled
burler
burlers
burlesqued
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Current, Essays
Rita Letendre: Toronto Public Art by Adam Lauder
YYZ, May 11, 2018 18 min read
This text by Adam Lauder was published alongside RITA LETENDRE‘S YYretroZpective exhibition, Toronto Public Art.
Rita Letendre
Toronto Public Art
By Adam Lauder
For years, Rita Letendre’s public art cut radiant vectors across Toronto’s urban grid. After decades living in Montréal and California, the artist had relocated to Toronto in November 1969.[1] Through a combination of public and private commissions for monumental murals and large-scale canvases, she quickly made her mark on the notoriously generic public spaces of her adoptive hometown.[2] By the decade’s close, her signature “arrow” paintings—iridescent, hard-edge abstractions—were a daily sight for thousands of Torontonians. Yet through a combination of misadventure and neglect, Letendre’s once ubiquitous and cherished public art works began to disappear, beginning with Sunrise(1971), her dazzling, seven-floor mural for Ryerson’s Neill-Wycik residence, which was permanently obscured when an adjacent 25-story residential tower was erected in 1978,[3] leaving only a 10-inch gap between the two buildings.
The titular sunrise of Letendre’s luminous mural may be a nod to her Indigenous heritage, her mother being of Abenaki/Québécois ancestry. “Dawn is special to the Wabanaki [a Confederacy of five northeastern nations including the Abenaki],” notes scholar and tribal member Jeanne Morningstar Kent, “because we are the ‘People of the Dawnland’,” where sunlight first reaches North America each morning.[4] Other Toronto-area public art works by Letendre, notably Tecumseth (1972) and Irowakan(1977), likewise gesture toward this personal history. Duane Linklater, a contemporary artist of Omaskêko Cree heritage whose projects excavate subterranean narratives of Indigenous presence and resilience, has recently interpreted the disappearance of Letendre’s public art as a symptom of Indigenous peoples’ historic dispossession.[5] Yet the artist is wary of being pigeonholed, or misrepresented by non-Indigenous commentators.[6] When asked about her identity, she has responded evasively “I am myself, Rita.”[7]
Wanda Nanibush, Curator, Indigenous Art at the Art Gallery of Ontario, has argued persuasively for recovering Letendre’s Indigenous roots, tracing the artist’s high-contrast palette and recurring arrow and wedge motifs to “a long Indigenous lineage of abstraction.”[8] Notably, Letendre’s hard-edge paintings radiate an “endless dualism”[9] reminiscent of the symmetrical foundations of Abenaki art.[10] Interpreted through an Indigenous lens, Letendre’s signature arrow motif might symbolize “direction.”[11]
The artist’s explosive vectors are every bit the trajectories of a dawning space age as they are the enduring signposts of non-Cartesian terrestrial wayfinding practices: “[With the arrow paintings] I was influenced by going to the moon, going into space,” she recalls in a new video interview recorded for the exhibition that this text accompanies, adding that “When we started going into space, I got so excited.”[12] This celestial orientation aligns Letendre’s arrow paintings with a broader “1960s ‘cosmic’ zeitgeist” associated with the experimental films of Michael Snow and the visionary media speculations of Marshall McLuhan, thus situating Letendre as an important precursor of more recent Indigenous futurisms.[13] If 1960s’ artists’ cosmic aspirations were symptomatic of a generational quest for identity, the “one-way trip” described by Letendre’s ballistic abstractions anticipate the unilateral orientation of the artist theorized by contemporary non-philosopher François Laruelle, whose “non-aesthetics” rejects the specular politics of representation.[14] Laruelle instead postulates a conjugation of disparate materials resonant with Letendre’s circumvention of categories.
Fittingly, forSunforce (1965), her first outdoor mural, Letendre employed an epoxy paint reserved, until then, “mainly for spacecraft engines.”[15] Her choice of a non-traditional medium may have been influenced by the mural’s locale: California State University, Long Beach being situated at the centre of a then burgeoning aerospace industry.[16] Fortuitously (as it turned out), neither epoxy nor the formidable scale of the 7 x 6-metre Sunforce would support the impastoed facture that had been a trademark of Letendre’s foregoing abstractions, forcing a technical breakthrough that cleared a path for the crisp edges and uniform paint application of the subsequent arrow paintings.[17]
Letendre was invited to produce Sunforcein conjunction with the 1965 California International Sculpture Symposium, a ground-breaking event whose artist-industry partnerships cleared a path for the Los Angeles County Museum of Art’s renowned Art & Technology Program, whose contributors were likewise chosen by curator Maurice Tuchman. It may have been the participation of Kosso, Letendre’s sculptor husband, that first brought her into Tuchman’s sphere, but she shared the curator’s fascination with science and technology: “If I had not been a painter,” she reflects, “I would have been a scientist”; adding, “if I had had money to go to university.”[18] Growing up in an impoverished family of seven on the outskirts of Drummondville, Québec, a university education was, however, sadly out of the question.[19]
Perhaps the artist’s attraction to new media and techniques—from epoxy paint to computer aided design and drafting software—can be traced to her father’s work as an auto mechanic. (Letendre recalls that her father, who was of Mohawk/Québécois ancestry, “wanted to be French.”)[20] Whatever the case may be, an accident in her father’s auto shop proved life-altering: mangling one of her fingers, and sending the young Letendre to stay with her maternal grandparents for a period of convalescence that ended up lasting several years.[21] (This injury also prevented her from studying piano, thereby forcing the artist to channel her lifelong passion for music into her painting.) Letendre recalls a subsequent childhood incident, while picking strawberries at her grandmother’s home, as decisive in shaping her worldview:
I was with my mother picking strawberries in a field in the country, and a storm started, and it became [a] thunder[storm]. It was not far away from my grandmother’s home, and so we went to my grandmother’s home. And I was terrified. And grandmother show[ed] me the beauty of it: instead of being afraid, to admire and love it. And I think she was certainly one of the most important thing[s] in my life. Never be afraid. See thing[s] as they are.[22]
This dramatic event ignited a tireless inquiry into the nature of things that may account for the more prominent sense of structure evident in Letendre’s early paintings compared to those of fellow second-generation Automatistes (followers of the revolutionary non-figurative painter and anti-clerical pamphleteer, Paul-Émile Borduas). It was Letendre’s keen plastic sense that brought her to the attention of Rodolphe de Repentigny, the chief theorist of the rival Plasticien movement, who signed his own canvases under the nom de plumeJauran. De Repentigny was an early and eloquent champion of the emerging painter. Yet today the artist is quick to distance herself from his geometric Neo-Plasticism, with its roots in the austere modernism of Piet Mondrian: “I reinterpret[ed] geometry … I’m using structure, but not geometry.”[23] As Anne-Marie Ninacs emphasizes, Letendre “remained faithful to the teachings of Paul-Émile Borduas,”[24] an ardent proponent of “spontan[eity],”[25] even if she soon broke with his gesturalist technique.
Art historian Sandra Paikowsky notes that the artist’s production of the late 1950s was emblematic of the new spirit of “pluralism” which pervaded the post-Automatiste generation;[26] but Letendre’s synthesis of Automatiste gesturalism and Plasticien form was always singular.[27] Her early disrespect for limiting labels set the stage for an exploration of Zen philosophy, whose kōans—cryptic exchanges between master and student intended to provoke satori, or enlightenment—explode the dualistic constraints of conventional logic. Zennist non-duality may have offered Letendre a framework for negotiating her lived experience of cultural hybridity, as she explored aerospace imagery and materials in parallel with her Indigenous cultural inheritance.[28]
Rejecting static symmetry, Letendre’s arrows define a non-dual “parallelism”[29] that explodes the parallel postulate undergirding Euclidean space. Like certain cut-out paintings by Jackson Pollock, the dazzling iridescence of Letendre’s arrows stages a liberatory “tearing” of the modernist grid.[30] The vibratory rays of her hard-edge paintings recall Borduas’s relentless pursuit of “the infinity of everything.”[31]
Two of Letendre’s most significant public art works—Sunforceand Joy, her 1978 skylight for Glencairn subway station in Toronto—suggest analogies with the “gateless gate” invoked by Paul Reps’s classic anthology of Zen parables, Zen Flesh, Zen Bones (1957), as a metaphor for the kōan as a gateway to enlightenment requiring active audience participation.[32] Writing in reference to Sunforce, which is sited on an elevated crosswalk between buildings on the Long Beach campus of the California State University, Letendre has commented that,
I chose the wall over the passageway because I want people walking in and out of my painting. It must not be static—it must be dynamic with action and an interaction that continues in the mind of the spectator.[33]
Joywould revisit the interactive dynamics of Sunforceto reimagine the fluid space of transitanimated by the earlier mural on an even grander scale. At 54 by 6.4 metres, the majestic Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) subway station skylight—her only publicly funded commission—has been justifiably likened to a “cathedral.”[34] The winning entry in a 1975 open competition, Joy’s 318 individual panels of airbrushed tempered glass were installedbetween 1976 and 1977.[35] If, as Wanda Nanibush observes, Letendre’s adoption of the airbrush in 1971 supported her production of “mature colour field abstraction[s],”[36] Joy’s luminous, spray-painted canopy actualized the American colour field painter Jules Olitski’s seemingly implausible ambition “to spray colour in the air and have it remain there.”[37]
Like Sunforce, Joy defined a vibrant public space of “continuous action” that was also a powerful testament to the enduring presence, resilience and creativity of Indigenous people.[38] But after years of neglect that resulted in extensive weather damage, Letendre insisted that the ruined skylight be de-installed in the early 1990s.[39] Joy thereby joined a growing roster of public art works by Letendre that had either been de-installed, destroyed or obscured: from Upward Dream (1980)—commissioned by Omnitown Developments in response to the public outcry sparked by the corporation’s occlusion of Sunrise, only to be removed in turn when the masonry of the eastern wall of the Neill-Wycik tower on which it was painted prove faulty—to Urtu (1972), which graced the Davenport Road office of Dr. Stanley Horowitz until it was painted over in the 1990s.[40] The current whereabouts of other public paintings—including the six-metre-wide Now (1971), commissioned by Greenwin Corporation for its Berkshire House residential and office complex at Eglinton and Yonge—remain unknown at the time of writing.[41] The monumental (3.1 x 15.6-metre) 1974 canvas Irowakan, originally installed in the lower banking floor of the Royal Bank Plaza in Toronto’s financial district, fared slightly better: after being transferred to Royal Bank’s Montréal office at Place Ville-Marie in 1985, it was acquired by the Joliette Art Museum in 2004.[42]
Rita Letendre: Toronto Public Art is the first exhibition focused on Letendre’s public art in Toronto. It reunites the recently-restored Sunrise II (1972)—an imposing sequel to the obscured Neill-Wycik mural, originally installed in the lobby of Greenwin Square on Bloor Street—with Ixtepec (1977), the basis for Letendre’s forthcoming reinterpretation of her 1978 skylight for Glencairn subway station, which is slated for completion in 2019.[43] Supplementary documents include plans for both the original and forthcoming Glencairn projects, as well as a new video interview with the now 90-year-old artist. The exhibition temporarily reactivates the publicness of Letendre’s Toronto public art as a speculative space of remembrance, reconciliation and futurity.
ADAM LAUDERis a SSHRC Postdoctoral Fellow at York University in Toronto. He obtained a Ph.D. from The Department of History of Art at the University of Toronto in Fall 2016. He is currently researching Canadian information art in the 1970s. Since 2009, he has curated and co-curated exhibitions for a variety of museum and university art gallery venues. He has also contributed articles to scholarly journals including Amodern, Art Documentation, Canadian Journal of Communication, Future Anterior, Imaginations, Journal of Canadian Studies, Technoetic Arts, The Journal of Canadian Art History, TOPIA and Visual Resources as well as features and shorter texts to magazines including Art Handler, Border Crossings, C, Canadian Art, e-flux, Flash Art, Hunter and Cook and Millions. He edited H& IT ON (YYZBOOKS, 2012), featuring original art by ground-breaking information artist IAIN BAXTER&, and is the author of chapters appearing in Finding McLuhan (2015), The Logic of Nature, The Romance of Space (2010) as well as Byproduct: On the Excess of Embedded Art Practices(YYZBOOKS, 2010).
Adam Lauder would like to acknowledge the support of the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.
RITA LETENDREwas born of Abenaki and Quebecois parents in Drummondville in 1928 and has lived in Toronto since late 1969. Her painting career began in Montreal in the 1950s, when she associated with Quebec’s prominent abstract artist groups Les Automatistes and Les Plasticiens. Often the sole female artist in their group shows, she broke away from their approach to painting, finding it restrictive. Seeking to express the full energy of life and harness in her powerful gestures an intense spiritual force, Letendre worked with various materials including oils, pastels, and acrylics, using her hands, palette knife, brushes and uniquely the airbrush, which she began using in 1971. She received the Order of Canada in 2005, has completed commissions across Canada and the United States, and has been exhibited nationally and internationally.
[1] Georgiana Uhlyarik, “Letendre in Toronto,” in Rita Letendre: Fire & Light, eds. Wanda Nanibush and Georgiana Uhlyarik (Toronto: Art Gallery of Ontario, 2017), 86.
[2] See Luis Jacob, “The Ward, Toronto: A Blank Space,” Canadian Art32, no. 4 (2016): 90-91.
[3] See Gunda Lambton, Stealing the Show: Seven Women Artists in Canadian Public Art(Montréal: McGill-Queen’s University Press, 1994), 56.
[4] Jeanne Morningstar Kent, The Visual Language of Wabanaki Art (Charleston, SC: The History Press, 2014), 49. “[C]alled Wabanaki (People of the Dawn) by their inland neighbors, for each morning the first sunlight on the continent belonged to them. And they belonged to it, for they believed that Kisuhs, the great Sky Fire, was the ultimate spirit-power in a world in which everything was imbued with a sacred force.” Bunny McBride, Women of the Dawn (Lincoln, NE: University of Nebraska Press, 1999), 7.
[5] See Linklater qtd. in Adam Lauder, “‘The World Must Have Poetry’: Rita Letendre’s Public Art Interventions,” Canadian Art 32, no. 4 (2016): 116.
[6] See “Painter Rita Letendre on her Work in 1969,” Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, December 28, 1969, http://www.cbc.ca/player/play/896872003631.
[7] Letendre qtd. in Lambton, Stealing the Show, 51.
[8] Wanda Nanibush, “Rita Letendre: Fire & Light,” in Rita Letendre: Fire & Light, eds. Wanda Nanibush and Georgiana Uhlyarik (Toronto: Art Gallery of Ontario, 2017), 20.
[9] Letendre qtd. in Sandra Paikowsky, “Rita Letendre,” in Rita Letendre: The Montréal Years 1953-1963 (Montréal: Concordia Art Gallery, 1989), 30.
[10] “To guarantee symmetry in our designs, thin pieces of birch bark were folded several times and then bitten, creating small punctured holes. … Folding the bark in this way is similar to the way people create cut-paper snowflakes.” Kent, The Visual Language of Wabanaki Art, 24-25. The “acute black ray” that anchors many of Letendre’s arrow paintings recalls the “dark surface” of “spring-peeled birch bark” or “black broadcloth” of woodland clothing that serve as supports for much Abenaki expression. Anne-Marie Ninacs, “The Teaching of Life,” in Rita Letendre: Aux couleurs du jour (Québec, QC: Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec, 2003), 134; Kent, The Visual Language of Wabanaki Art, 40, 27.
[11] Kent, The Visual Language of Wabanaki Art, 47.
[12] Rita Letendre, “Rita Letendre,” video interview by Adam Lauder, July 13, 2017. “The force of life is marvelous to me. We see the same force in the sea, the sun, all around us. It is the same strength that makes human beings dream—to want to go to the moon—to accomplish the impossible.” Letendre qtd. in Elise Emery, “‘Sunforce,’ 1965,” Press Telegram (Long Beach), July 21, 1965, n. pag.
[13] David Tomas, Vertov, Snow, Farocki: Machine Vision and the Posthuman (New York; London: Bloomsbury, 2013), 118.
[14] Ninacs, “The Teaching of Life,” 136; François Laruelle,Photo-Fiction: A Non-Standard Aesthetics, trans. Drew S. Burk(Minneapolis: Univocal, 2012), 1.
[15] Lambton, Stealing the Show, 55.
[16] See Diana Burgess Fuller and Daniela Salvioni, eds.,Art, Women, California 1950-2000: Parallels and Intersections (Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 2002); Rachel Rivenc, Made in Los Angeles: Materials, Processes, and the Birth of West Coast Minimalism(Los Angeles: Getty Conservation Institute, 2016).
[17] Anne-Marie Ninacs also attributes the mutations in Letendre’s practice that led to the arrows to the artist’s association with the Tamarind printmaking workshop upon arriving in California. See Ninacs, “The Teaching of Life,” 134; see also Lambton, Stealing the Show, 55.
[18] “Science always fascinated me,” Letendre continues; “knowledge of the world, knowledge of life, the way life evolved. … If I had been from a rich family, and going to school and university, I don’t know if I would have been a painter: maybe I would have been, but I would certainly want to be a scientist also.” Letendre, “Rita Letendre.”
[19] See Paikowsky, “Rita Letendre,” 6.
[20] Letendre, “Rita Letendre.”
[21] See Lambton, Stealing the Show, 51.
[22] This memory bears some striking similarities to a Zennist parable annotated, according to Anne-Marie Ninacs, in Letendre’s well-used copy of Reps’s anthology Zen Flesh, Zen Bones:
A man travelling across a field encountered a tiger. He fled, the tiger after him. Coming to a precipice, he caught hold of the root of a wild vine and swung himself down over the edge. The tiger sniffed at him from above. Trembling, the man looked down to where, far below, another tiger was waiting to eat him. Only the vine sustained him. Two mice, one white and one black, little by little started to gnaw away the vine. The man saw a luscious strawberry near him. Grasping the vine with one hand, he plucked the strawberry with the other. How sweet it tasted!
Muju, “A Parable,” in Zen Flesh, Zen Bones: A Collection of Zen and pre-Zen Writings, ed. Paul Reps and Nyogen Senzaki (Harmondsworth, UK: Penguin, 1957), 32. See also Ninacs, “The Teaching of Life,” 137.
[23] Letendre, “Rita Letendre.” “While Letendre herself did not subscribe to de Stijl flatness, the tempering of illusionistic space was certainly important for attaining harmonious colour juxtapositions and her increased use of white provided a new type of spatial field.” Paikowsky, “Rita Letendre,” 15.
[24] Ninacs, “The Teaching of Life,” 136.
[25] Paul-Émile Borduas, “Refus Global,” in Refus global et autres écrits: essais, ed. André-G. Bourassa and Gilles Lapointe (Montréal: l’Hexagone, 1997), 72.
[26] Paikowsky, “Rita Letendre,” 19.
[27] In fact, it is arguably Letendre’s colourism, and the interactivity of works such as Sunforceand Joy, rather than her occasional deployment of geometry, that aligns her work with a generation of “post-Plasticiens” who “pursue[d] new colour-based, dynamic ways of engaging the viewer,” notably Guido Molinari and Claude Tousignant. Roald Nasgaard, “The Plasticiens and Beyond,” in The Plasticiens and Beyond: Montreal, 1955-1970 (Markham, ON: Varley Art Gallery of Markham; Québec, QC: Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec, 2013), 14.
[28] Paikowsky dates the beginnings of Letendre’s investigation of her Indigenous heritage to 1961: “It was at this time that Letendre became more interested in her own aboriginal Indian origins which she has said was prompted by her new interest in Mexican and Pre-Columbian art.” Paikowsky, “Rita Letendre,” 29. It is important to note that Abenaki art itself manifests a longstanding condition of hybridity: “Because of the reciprocal influences,” notes Kent, “there is difficulty in drawing a line between designs copied from European work.” Kent, The Visual Language of Wabanaki Art, 40. “Nuns … taught our young women embroidery, and we taught them beading. The result was a blending of cultural designs.” Ibid, 22.
[29] Letendre qtd. in Paikowsky, “Rita Letendre,” 30.
[30] Hal Foster, Prosthetic Gods(Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 2004), 282; see also Adam Lauder, “Rita Letendre: Confronting the Grid,” Millions, no. 2 (2013): 32-27. “Rays and radiations appeared. She mixed her colours with powder of mother of pearl in order to intensify the iridescence of the shafts of light radiating across the whole surface of her canvases.” Gilles Hénaultqtd. in Rita Letendre(Palm Springs, CA: Palm Springs Desert Museum, 1974), n. pag.
[31] Borduas qtd. in Ninacs, “The Teaching of life,” 132. “Letendre’s contrasts of deep, cool blues with radiant red and orange have an expansive quality of the infinite that cannot be contained.” Nanibush, “Rita Letendre,” 18.
[32] See Paul Reps and Nyogen Senzaki, “The Gateless Gate,” in Zen Flesh, Zen Bones: A Collection of Zen and pre-Zen Writings, ed. Paul Reps and Nyogen Senzaki (Harmondsworth, UK: Penguin, 1957), 89-131.
[33] Letendre qtd. in Emery, “‘Sunforce,’” n. pag.
[34] See Lambton: Stealing the Show, 50, 61; Jeanne Parkin qtd. in Lambton, Stealing the Show, 60.
[35] Lambton: Stealing the Show, 61.
[36] Nanibush, “Rita Letendre,” 18; see also Ninacs, “The Teaching of Life,” 135.
[37] Kenworth Moffett, “The Sculpture of Jules Olitski,” The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin 27, no. 8 (1969): 367.
[39] “Procurement Authorization: Glencairn Skylight Replacement, Contract A11-5,” Toronto Transit Commission, July 12, 2017, https://www.ttc.ca/About_the_TTC/
Commission_reports_and_information/Commission_meetings/2017/July_12/Reports/7_Procurement_Authorization_Glencairn_Skylight_Replacement_C.pdf.
[40] See Uhlyarik, “Letendre in Toronto,” 98.
[41] See Uhlyarik, “Letendre in Toronto,” 96. Other Toronto area public art works by Letendre that are currently missing in action include two commissions by J.D.S. Investments: the 1972 Tecumseth, originally installed at the Sheridan Mall in Pickering, and a series of paintings installed at 1000 Finch Avenue West. See Lambton: Stealing the Show, 57.
[42] See Lambton: Stealing the Show, 59; Uhlyarik, “Letendre in Toronto,” 104.
[43] “Glencairn Station – Skylight Replacement: August 2017 to March 2019,” Toronto Transit Commission, 2017, https://www.ttc.ca/Service_Advisories/Construction/
Glencairn_skylights.jsp.
The Spectral Ledger by Steven Cottingham
Elicser Elliott: YYZ Lending Library
Close Encounters by Deborah Kirk
YYZ, May 8, 2014 1 min read
Veils Can Be Lenses, Cocoons Homes by Rachel Anne Farquharson
The false prophecies of the false idols in the flesh by Stphanie Bertrand
YYZ, May 17, 2011 7 min read
Structures for the Expanded Plane By Emma Healey
YYZ, January 16, 2020 8 min read
Sandy Plotnikoff – VVHAT @ YYZ by Amy Lam
YYZ, February 26, 2016 6 min read
The Consciousness of the Lake by Ana Barajas
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LIME to create history- First to bring 4G mobile technology to the Caribbean
David Shaw, Chief Executive Officer of LIME
ZIZ Newsroom…May 18, 2011 – The Caribbean region will soon be classified among some of the world’s leading economies with the introduction of LIME’s cutting edge fourth generation (4G) mobile technology, set to revolutionise its mobile networks across the Caribbean and once again, distinguish the company as the first to introduce this technology to its customers throughout the region.
To coincide with the observance of World Telecommunications Day on May 17, the telecommunications and entertainment company used the platform of a glitzy launch at the Ritz Carlton Hotel in Grand Cayman to announce a US$80M investment to finance major improvements to its regional mobile networks. The network upgrade will enable LIME’s customers to access blazing fast Internet and numerous sophisticated data services on their wireless devices.
The new technology will be introduced in Grand Cayman this summer, then gradually rolled-out across the rest of the region. The network improvement programme builds on LIME’s outstanding 140 year history in the Caribbean where the company has been the leader in technology innovation. LIME was the first to introduce groundbreaking services including, telex messaging, telephone, mobile phones, the internet, Mobile TV and now, 4G.
Over the next 18 months, LIME’s existing mobile networks will be upgraded from 2G technology to EDGE in all markets, except Jamaica, where a 3G upgrade was completed earlier this year. In numerous locations within the selected markets, LIME will be deploying 4G technology which will catapult its Caribbean networks into the realm of those in some of the world’s largest economies. 4G will also serve as a platform for LIME’s future network development as the protocols are fully compatible with the Long Term Evolution (LTE) technology that will power mobile networks in the future.
David Shaw, Chief Executive Officer of LIME, said: “Our business has operated in the Caribbean for the past 140 years. We introduced the first telephone connections, the first Internet connections, the first mobile service and the first mobile TV service. Now we’re spearheading the 4G revolution, enabling our customers to work, play and stay in constant contact while on the go.”
With 4G, LIME’s mobile subscribers will have the power to instantly send and receive large files such as videos, music, graphics and photos from enabled wireless devices including mobile phones, tablets, laptops and netbooks. LIME’s customers will also be able to enjoy real-time online activities including video streaming, online gaming and social networking while on-the-go all at the same time as making a phone call.
Mr David Lake, General Manager LIME St. Kitts & Nevis said: “People of all ages, especially the young, want to be online all the time and need fast, affordable mobile data service that enable them to do all the things they can now do with a fixed internet connection while on the go. Our mobile 4G network will ensure that LIME can satisfy customer needs as the insatiable demand for mobile internet service grows.”
Mr Lake added: “The experience for customers moving from 2G services, to both EDGE and 4G will be like going from riding a bicycle to driving a Ferrari; you will feel the difference immediately. This is a massive step forward for mobile service in the Caribbean and LIME is pleased to drive the proliferation of advanced technology in the region.”
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More work to be done to tackle problem of domestic abuse
St. Kitts and Nevis’ Permanent Representative to the United Nations, His Excellency Delano Bart at the United Nations in New York (UN Photo)
ST. KITTS, FEBRUARY 8TH 2011(CUOPM) – More work is being done to eliminate domestic violence, but legislation alone cannot solve the problems that exist nor can one legislate morality.
“There is recognition that there is need for social transformation on an even deeper level that necessitates not only an examination of the root causes of this resident evil but also a cultural re-education on building healthy relationships between families and the sexes. The Government is willing to buttress the law with supporting infrastructure to facilitate the most effective forms of implementation. However, we reiterate that a lack of resources has sometimes stymied the benefits that could fully accrue in all cases,” said Permanent Representative to the United Nations, His Excellency Delano Bart, Q.C..
Addressing the Tenth Session of the Human Rights Council, in Switzerland, the Kittitian diplomat noted that St Kitts and Nevis is aware that although many women occupy senior positions in society where more than 50% of households are managed by single mothers, the problem of domestic violence against women persists.
He said the Department of Gender Affairs continues its intense programme of public awareness on the issue of domestic violence including training of frontline workers such as police, counselors, nurses and others in key areas including dealing with victims.
The Department has also organized a series of activities (including a 16 day campaign from November 25th -The International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women to December 10th – the International Human Rights Day).
“The level of commitment of the Government in this area has resulted in increased support for victims and the opening of a Legal Aid Clinic to give assistance to disadvantaged women and their children. The Department of Gender Affairs has also established an office and training centre which offers instruction on an ongoing basis in income-generating skills training for low income women,” said Ambassador Bart.
He told the Committee that the Department of Gender Affairs has implemented a batterers’ intervention programme.
There has been ongoing consultation between the Department and the Police on the establishment of a special unit with trained officers to deal with children and victims of gender based violence.
“National review and consultations on multi-sectoral responses to gender based violence were conducted and resulted in the production in April 2010 of a Multi-Sectoral National Action Plan on Sexual and Gender Based Violence. Implementation of this plan is intended to ensure enhanced coordinated responses,” said the Federation’s chief UN spokesman.
The Government enacted legislation such as the Domestic Violence Act to promote and protect the rights of all women. The provisions of said Act seek to safeguard the rights of women, to provide redress for the social ill of domestic violence including sexual abuse as well as to employ effective systemic responses to the indignities that some of our women have been subjected to abuse.
The Federation is a State Party to the Inter-American Convention on the Prevention, Punishment and Eradication of Violence Against Women “Convention of Belem do Para”, Inter-American Convention on the Granting of Civil Rights to Women and the Inter-American Convention on the Granting of Political Rights to Women.
St. Kitts and Nevis is also signatory to the United Nations Declaration for the Elimination of Violence Against Women (1993), The Beijing Platform for Action, (1995), the Millennium Declaration (2000), and the U. N. Security Council Regulation 1325 (2000), on Women Peace and Security, (2000).
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Pakistani teenage activist Malala to visit Trinidad
PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad (CMC) – Seventeen year old Pakistani activist, Malala Yousafzai will visit the twin island republic on July 31.
This was confirmed on Monday in a news release from the Ministry of Tertiary Education and Skills Training.
Malala gained worldwide attention in 2012, when a Taliban gunman, who opposed the teenager’s advocacy for women’s rights to education, entered the school bus in which she was travelling and shot her in the head.
She survived the attack and went on to continue her advocacy work, most recently campaigning for the release of more than 200 schoolgirls kidnapped by Nigerian terrorist group Boko Haram.
Malala has received numerous awards for her work as an activist, including the National Youth Peace Prize, the Mother Teresa Memorial Award for Social Justice and International Prize for Equality and Non-Discrimination among others.
Her birthday, July 12, has been named “Malala Day”.
Praising Malala’s initiative, Tertiary Education Minister Fazal Karim said, “We in Trinidad and Tobago are extremely fortunate to live in a country where all of our citizens are offered universal, free access to education from the pre-school to tertiary levels and as such we can be seen as a model of what this young lady is advocating for, across the world.”
A news release from the University of Trinidad and Tobago (UTT) confirmed that Malala will be hosted by the institution in celebration of its tenth anniversary.
“She is a transformative voice in this generation—an advocate for the rights of girls in all countries and cultures to be able to access quality education,” the release stated.
Family Gathering of 35 Bumps Up COVID Numbers for USVI
Republic Bank EC Birthday Celebrations End On A Kind Note
St Lucia Opposition Pleased With Protest
Antigua And Barbuda Re-Elected To Head Regional Telecoms Body
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Scope Miami Beach Pavilion
1000 Ocean Drive, at 10th St.
dal 2/12/2013 al 7/12/2013
wed-sun 11am-8pm
James Hall
Scope Miami Beach Pavilion, Miami Beach
Welcoming 100 international exhibitors and 15 breeder program galleries, the fair also features a wide range of curated projects, sponsor programs and platinum VIP tours. This year, Scope and VH1 are teaming up to host 'Art + Music + Beach' to celebrate the convergence of the music and art worlds in a series of curatorial on-air, online and on-site collaborations at Scope's new location in the heart of South Beach, Miami.
With over 65 art shows spanning more than a decade, SCOPE is the largest and most global art fair in the world, celebrated as the premier showcase for international emerging contemporary art and multi-disciplinary creative programming. Renowned for its uncanny ability to forecast new visual trends that are embraced globally, SCOPE Art Shows in Miami, Basel, New York, London and the Hamptons have garnered extensive critical acclaim, with sales of over $700 Million and attendance of over 900,000 visitors.
Celebrating its 13th year in Miami, SCOPE attracts 40,000 visitors over the course of 6 days. With an emphasis on activating the careers of emerging artists, attendees to SCOPE are seasoned tastemakers looking for new discovery. Our audience is a diverse crowd of stylish innovators, all of whom define our cultural landscape across a variety of creative disciplines.
SCOPE taps into the cultural psyche to present only the most pioneering work across multiple creative disciplines. With over a decade of critically acclaimed art fairs and non-profit initiatives that extend beyond the ordinary in contemporary art.
SCOPE ART SHOW CELEBRATES NEW LOCATION ON THE
SANDS OF MIAMI BEACH
It is with tremendous enthusiasm that SCOPE announces its new location on the sands of Miami Beach. Situated on the most highly visible location in Miami, SCOPE Miami Beach’s 70,000 sq. ft. pavilion will feature an outdoor beach lounge and stunning views of the ocean, nestled amongst the iconic architecture of Ocean Drive at 10th Street. Working closely with the City of Miami Beach, SCOPE will contribute the cultural landscape of this vibrant neighborhood with an extraordinary presentation of emerging contemporary art.
Welcoming 100 International Exhibitors and 15 Breeder Program galleries, SCOPE Miami Beach will also feature a wide range of curated projects, sponsor programs and Platinum VIP tours. With an emphasis on activating emerging galleries and artists, attendees to SCOPE are seasoned collectors, curators and tastemakers looking for new discovery. SCOPE Miami Beach opens on Tuesday, December 3, to welcome VIPs and Press at its First View benefit, and will run December 4 - 8, 2013.
For the second year in a row, SCOPE – the preeminent launching pad for emerging contemporary art – continues its collaboration with VH1, which through its own You Oughta Know initiative has helped launch some of music's hottest artists. This year, SCOPE and VH1 are teaming up to host ART + MUSIC + BEACH to celebrate the convergence of the music and art worlds in a series of curatorial on-air, online and on-site collaborations at SCOPE's new location in the heart of South Beach, Miami.
The VH1 Indoor Lounge within the SCOPE pavilion will expose SCOPE Miami attendees to a series of activations designed to celebrate the crossover between art and music, and will be open to all for the duration of the event – December 3-8, 2013. On Friday, December 6, VH1 will also host the Official VH1 + SCOPE Party, featuring a performance by one of today's hottest artists on the music scene.
With over 65 art fairs spanning more than a decade, SCOPE is the largest and most global art fair in the world, celebrated as the premier showcase for international emerging contemporary art and multi-disciplinary creative programming. Renowned for its uncanny ability to forecast new visual trends that are embraced globally, SCOPE Art Shows in Miami, Basel, New York, London and the Hamptons have garnered extensive critical acclaim, with sales of over $500 million and attendance of over 700,000 visitors.
VH1 delivers the ultimate mash-up of music, pop culture and nostalgia for adults who still want to have fun. VH1 is available in 99 million households in the U.S. VH1 also has an array of digital channels and services including VH1 Classic, VH1 Soul, VH1Mobile and VH1.com and @VH1, the hub for all things music and pop culture. VH1 is a unit of Viacom Inc., one of the world’s leading creators of programming and content across all media platforms. For more information, go to www.vh1press.com, VH1.com, or the VH1 Facebook page. Follow us on Twitter @VH1PR.
Image courtesy: Yellow Peril Gallery
and Marketing
pr@scope-art.com
Platinum Preview Gala
MON | DEC 02 | 5:00PM-8:00PM
Invitation or Platinum VIP card for entry
(or $150 donation at the door)
Proceeds benefit the Mourning Family Foundation
TUES | DEC 03 | 1:00PM - 9:00PM
For VIP and Press
(or $100 donation at door)
1000 Ocean Drive, at 10th St. - Miami Beach, FL 33139
WED | DEC 04 | 11:00AM - 8:00PM
THUR | DEC 05 | 11:00AM - 8:00PM
FRI | DEC 06 | 11:00AM - 8:00PM
SAT | DEC 07 | 11:00AM - 8:00PM
SUN | DEC 08 | 11:00AM - 8:00PM
General | Wed-Sun | $25
Student | Wed-Sun | $15
Free for Platinum VIP card holders
Free for VIP cardholders
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CD of the Day, 5/30/08: Heap-Oddball
It's kind of appropriate that I'm posting this review on a Friday, as NYC's Heap are the perfect weekend band: loud, energetic and hooky. I first took notice of Heap a few years back with their debut release On The Cheap, and the followup may be even better. Fans of Cheap Trick, The Replacements and The Figgs should be all over this one.
"Explode Tonight" is a fitting title for the album opener, and this 'Mats-style rocker does not disappoint. "When They'll Be Gone" follows, and it rocks in the style of Keith Richards' numbers with the Stones ("Before They Make Me Run" comes to mind here), and the raucous title track gets the album off to a great 3-for-3 start. "Like Water" takes a sonic left turn, showing the band's versatility on a wonderful country-rock number that would be at home on a Reckless Kelly or Steve Earle album. Other highlights include the boogie rock of "Running with Roosevelt Colson", the Americana of "I Always Go Too Far" and the pure power pop of "Start Lying". This one needs to go to top of your heap.
CD Baby | MySpace
NOTE: Simultaneously with Oddball, Heap has put out a live album that really captures their energy and serves as a de facto best-of the first two discs.
Labels: Heap
Midweek Roundup.
Shakermaker-Shakermaker. Given that the band is apparently named after an Oasis song, you might expect brash, Beatles-influenced BritPop from this Chapel Hill, NC combo. If so, you would be wrong. Instead, this is high-quality melodic indie pop, kind of a southern-fried version of The Pernice Brothers. Opener "Frenchie" and its tastefully placed "whoa-hos" draw you in, and the jaunty "All Over Town" yields the Pernice comparisons, reminiscent of tracks like "One Foot In The Grave" and "Working Girls". The real standout here is "Sunday Ladies", a true pop triumph that veers from Shins-ish indie pop, to the Beatlesque, to music hall and back again all in the space of a few minutes. Really good stuff that may not jump out at you at first, but bears repeated listens.
The Shimshaws-Ear to the Wire. I missed this brother act's debut disc, Subcutaneous (an oversight I'll have to remedy) from a few years back, but color me impressed with the followup. The Shimshaws are Colorado-by-way-of-DC's Scott & Todd McCombs, and their sound is vintage heartland-infused power pop a la The Gin Blossoms, Tom Petty and AbPow favorites Red Guitar. There's a bit of Matthew Sweet in the opener "Never Fly", and "Ocean City" has that driving guitar "Runnin' Down a Dream" feel. They have a facility for the slower numbers as well - "Ordinary Days" and "Cannonball" are as good as anything on the disc, including the Beatles-by-way-of-Oasis-ish "Once Again". Fine album, but I still have no idea what a Shimshaw is. (By the way, if you go to their official site, they're releasing a new non-album track every month for free download.)
The 99th Floor-Eclectic Guitar. Boy, that album title has been out there a long time waiting to be used, and leave it to a Norwegian band to claim it. Nevertheless, this isn't the type of Scandinavian power pop we're accustomed to from The Merrymakers et al; it has a more rocking edge to it. In fact it owes more to bands like Supergrass and The Stereophonics in tracks like "Headspin" and "Cool Is Dead". Meanwhile, leadoff track "He Will Get to Call You Sweet Things Now" incorporates some tough R&B for a Jam-like sound and "Trampoline" is jangly bliss. So they earn the "eclectic" in the album title, and despite the differing styles, it's all good.
Labels: Shakermaker, The 99th Floor, The Shimshaws
CD of the Day, 5/27/08: Shake Some Action!-Sunny Days Ahead
Theyyyyy're back. James Hall & Co. have brought us Sunny Days Ahead, the long-awaited (OK not that long - the first one came out about 16-17 months ago) followup to Shake Some Action's eponymous debut which placed at #27 on last year's Top 100. All of the things that made the debut great are here again on Sunny Days Ahead: the retro late 70s-early 80s sound that nevertheless doesn't seem dated, the Rickenbackers, the great tunes, and of course Hall's vocals, which fit the material and the sound perfectly.
But there a few differences. There is a bit of a harder edge to the tunes, evident right off the bat in the Kinks-ish "Get It Together" and "Looking for Someone", the former of which has a "You Really Got Me" vibe to it. In fact, "You Don't Care", which appears about midway through the disc, rocks harder and louder than anything on the first disc. Which is not to say that all the amps are turned up to 11 - "Hurry Up" and "I Don't Want to Talk About" have a great Merseyside jangle to them, while "Draw The Line" displays a real swagger. Meanwhile, "Curtain Call" has just that sort of Nuggets-style feel to it that Green Day captures on their Foxboro Hot Tubs release.
So while Sunny Days Ahead might be a semi-ironic title for a band that hails from Seattle, it's an apt descripton for power pop fans who take the time to pick this one up.
Labels: Shake Some Action
Holiday Weekend Roundup.
3 discs for a holiday weekend - at least in the US, where Monday is Memorial Day:
Vic Kingsley-These Frequencies. Vic Kingsley is a Miami band that takes its name from the stage name of its frontman, Vic Garcia, and These Frequencies is a quality debut that fuses power pop, indie rock, alternative rock and BritPop. Fans of The Crayons, The Churchills, Supergrass and Oasis will eat this one up. Opener "Last Satellite" is a potential hit in the making, as is "Undercover", possibly the disc's best track. Other standouts include the anthemic "You Are" and the power ballad "Singing It Out Loud". It's nice to see Miami's good for more than Latin music.
Felix Van Dijk-Tumbling Years. Those of you who enjoyed last year's Steve Robinson disc (like me) will definitely want to check out this debut release from actor-turned-musician Felix Van Dijk, a winning combination of pop and folky pop with a British sensibility. Notable is that none other than Paul McCartney added a chord or two to "This Lullaby", the kind of heartfelt ballad with which Sir Paul is more than familiar. But with or without a Macca contribution, this album stands on its own with quality tracks like the uptempo "Barefoot In The Sand", the breezy "Heart of Your World" and the wonderful ballad "Forever In My Heart". If your tastes run in this subgenre at all, you'll love this disc.
The Rationales-The Going and the Gone. Longtime readers of this blog know I have a soft spot for bands that bridge the divide between power pop and alt-country, and this Boston band has done just that on their debut EP. "No Guarantees" is the track that hooked me in, and it manages to fit influences as varied as Wilco, The Old 97s and Big Star into its 2:14 running time, and it reminds me as well of Signal Hill Transmission, another similar band who I've championed here at AbPow. Also worth the price of admission are the instantly catchy "Far Away", the jangly "Cliche" and the pedal steel-drenched closer "Ruby Covered Halo". If this sounds like it's up your alley, it would be downright ir-Rationale to pass on this EP.
Posted by Steve at 12:37 PM No comments:
Labels: Felix Van Dijk, The Rationales, Vic Kingsley
Monday Roundup.
Only Makebelieve-Message from a Mockingbird. This Ohio band's debut album was four years in the making, and it most definitely sounds it - a sprawling, densely-produced soundscape that will immediately appeal to those who prefer the "artier" side of pop and power pop. Bruce Brodeen mentioned XTC, late-period Tears for Fears and Roger Joseph Manning Jr. as touchstones for this disc, and to that I'd add hints of The Foreign Films ("Fly So High", "Rayna's Smile"), Pale Hollow ("Backstab", the most straight-ahead track on the disc and perhaps the best) and Eldorado-era ELO ("Spending My Life"). Definitely a disc that warrants repeated listenings.
CD Baby | MySpace | eMusic
Adam Marsland-Daylight Kissing Night (Greatest Hits). SoCal's Adam Marsland has been burning the power pop flame for over a decade now, and he's earned the right to put out a best-of collection. So if you haven't kept up with the catalog of this idiosyncratic popster, this is your big chance. To commemorate the occasion he's re-recorded several tracks, including the leadoff track "My Kickass Life", quite possibly the quintessential Adam Marsland song in that it perfectly marries his literate, witty and sardonic lyrical gifts with a killer melody. Beyond that - let's just say you can't go wrong with the other 19 tracks either. A kickass compilation.
Amazon (at a bargain $6.49) | MySpace (worth checking for the list of "likes" and "influences" alone)
Grenadier-Grenadier. OK, this Illinois band has thrown down the critical gauntlet with this passage on their CD Baby page:
Lord knows you could play "spot the influences" all day with Grenadier, and you'd be right--Elvis Costello? The Sweet? Weezer's 'Blue Album'? wha? But it's a fool's errand (or music critic's bibliography). Yes, Grenadier can't help but acknowledge great music past but somehow they always make more than pastiche or homage.
Way to pre-empt me, guys! Anyway, this isn't a typical power pop disc - it has enough rough edges to qualify as indie rock, and at times it reminds me of Guided by Voices with a longer attention span. (Whoops, there I go again). The Elvis C "influence" is most profoundly felt with "Tolerance", complete with Costello-style vocals.
Labels: Adam Marsland, eMusic, Grenadier, Only Makebelieve
Weekend Freebie.
Adam Merrin is back with a full-length disc, and best of all it's free. For those unfamiliar, Merrin mans the keyboards for The 88, and released a quality EP last March (Have One) which drove a lot of traffic to this site after "Still Alright" was featured on Grey's Anatomy. The full-length is titled (so cleverly) Have Another One, and last.fm has it free for download. The EP was excellent, and you can't beat the price for the full-length.
Posted by Steve at 10:02 PM 1 comment:
Labels: Adam Merrin, mp3s
CD of the Day, 5/16/08: Pugwash-Eleven Modern Antiquities
This is a bit of me putting the horse behind the cart - you may recall the latest from Pugwash (a/k/a Thomas Walsh) was #8 on my first quarter best-of list before I had even mentioned it on this site. And Jollity, his previous release, was my #13 disc of 2005. Moreover, odds are if you're reading this blog you already know about this release. Nevertheless, it's so good it deserves a proper review. Eleven Modern Antiquities is a worthy followup to Jollity, and all of the things that made that disc great are present here, perhaps even more so. For example, Jollity had one track co-written with XTC's Andy Partridge; this one has two ("My Genius" and "At The Sea"). Fellow XTC member Dave Gregory is back to play on several tracks; Eric Matthews contributes flugelhorn on "At The Sea", and Nelson Bragg figures into just about every track as well. Plus Michael Penn shows up for a guitar solo on "Limerance". Power pop doesn't get any better than this on paper, and thankfully the songs are the equal of the luminaries on board. Standouts include "Take Me Away", for which I've helpfully appended a video at the end of this post (and on which Jason Falkner adds guitar); "Here", the kind of stately ballad that McCartney and Partridge (and now we can add Walsh) are so expert at; the poptastic "It's So Fine", and "Your Friend", Antiquities' answer to Jollity's Brian Wilson-influenced "It's Nice to be Nice". As I said in so many words about Jollity, XTC may be gone now, but as long as Walsh keeps putting out great discs like this, you won't miss a beat.
Not Lame | MySpace
Labels: Pugwash
CD of the Day, 5/13/08: Tim Lee 3-Good2b3
May is turning out to be roots-rock month here at Absolute Powerpop. On the heels of last week's featured Brewery Records releases, here's one of the leading lights of the subgenre, Mr. Tim Lee and his latest. Lee, one-half of the semi-legendary and criminally overlooked The Windbreakers (along with Bobby Sutliff), has carved out a distinguished solo career and here he's released Good2b3, his first full-length as the Tim Lee 3, a band comprised of Lee, his wife Susan Bauer Lee (who wrote and sings on many of the tracks), and Rodney C. Cash.
The melodic rocker "'Til The Roof Caves In" kicks off the proceedings and features a blistering guitar solo from Lee. "Saving Gracie" follows with a purer power pop sound, recalling The Smithereens and featuring a vocal turn from Mrs. Lee. Meanwhile, "Chronic Liar" is a Windbreakers-style jangler that she wrote, and if you look up "roots rock song" in the dictionary, "Mile-Long Midway" would (or at least should) be there, replete with its references to corn dogs and KISS T-shirts. I'd say Good2b3 is Good2pickup as well.
Labels: Tim Lee, Tim Lee 3
Orchid Highway gets a US release tomorrow.
Rainbow Quartz has picked up last year's most excellent (#39 on the year-end list) Orchid Highway disc for US distribution and it hits the street tomorrow. What this means is that aside from being available from more outlets, it should also finally show up on eMusic, iTunes and all of the other online download sites. So if the import price scared you off last year, your moment is now here.
UPDATE: Here's the eMusic link for the disc. Also, eMu has added (and RQ has released) Now, the latest from Spanish psych-poppers The Gurus.
Labels: eMusic, The Gurus, The Orchid Highway
Friday Roundup.
The Brixton Riot-Sudden Fiction. Although the name might call to mind the classic Clash tune "Guns of Brixton", this New Jersey band's debut EP is more reminiscent of The Replacements and fellow Jerseyites The Smithereens. The former is definitely in influence on the opener "Battle of the Band", which recalls "Talent Show" and "Deal With the Devil" brings to mind "Can't Hardly Wait" (and by the way, here's a video of them covering that 'Mats classic in concert). Meanwhile, the insistent bassline of "The Single Life" is mod-rock for the new century, and "(There's) Something In The Air" is a midtempo number based on The Shining. Really good stuff, and here's looking forward to a full-length.
Cinderpop-A Lesson In Science. This is the followup to this Vancouver band's fine 2005 debut, Their Skies Are Beautiful, and they have another indie pop success on their hands. Although you'll hear some Shins and Spoon in the music, they have a purer pop sensibility than most indie poppers; in fact they're more like a cross between the Shins and Sloan. Highlights include "Bumblebee", which marries a typical indie pop sound with a heavenly pop chorus; "Speechless", which has a touch of McCartney; and my personal favorite "Cinnamon Winter", about as pure as pop gets.
Mikal Blue-Gold. Speaking of pure pop, here's Californian Mikal Gold with a disc that has an unabashedly 80's mainstream pop sound. There's a fine line between cheesy and sublime when you get into this subgenre of music, and like the Chris Murphy disc from a couple of years ago that I enjoyed, Mikal Blue manages to just stay on the right side of this divide with an assortment of tunes whose hooks will bury their way into your head. The title track is Exhibit A for this assertion, while "Heaven" and "Never Gonna Stay" make fine Exhibits B & C. And "Pepper" is an absolute pop gem with a nice touch of the Beatlesque.
Kool Kat | MySpace
Labels: Cinderpop, Mikal Gold, The Brixton Riot
Brewing up some good music.
Most of you are familiar with Walter Clevenger, perhaps the pre-eminent roots-rockin' power popper around these days, but many of you may now know he also has his own label, Brewery Records. Brewery puts out a few discs a year, but they're generally always winners, like 2006's Sugar Mountain and Tickets releases. Walter and Brewery are back now with two new releases from The General Store and Kingsizemaybe.
The General Store is Tam Johnstone, son of Elton John guitarist Davey Johnstone, and Local Honey, his debut 2002 disc on the Not Lame imprint, is one of the classics of the decade, especially if you're a fan of laid-back west coast country-inflected pop. Mountain Rescue, six years in the making, proves that Johnstone isn't suffering from the sophomore jinx. From the "Already Gone"-ish opener "Early Morning Fuzz" to the Jayhawks-like "Come Around" to the Brian Wilson-on-acid sound of "Girls From The Mall" to the rollicking "Desert Weathered Hiway", it's like getting the real new Eagles album without having to go to Wal-Mart and wading through 2 CDs of a mixed bag.
The other new Brewery release is the self-titled debut of Kingsizemaybe. While The General Store has some country influence, Kingsizemaybe is closer to straight-up alt-country. The band is a bit of a supergroup, including ex-Continental Drifter Gary Eaton (who is the nominal frontman), and the ubiquitous Robbie Rist (the former TV child star turned power pop producer and session man). Highlights here include "The Treasure of Love", kind of like the Old 97s meet The Waco Brothers; the Band-influenced "Big Maybe", which could serve as their theme song; and the wonderful ballad "The Beautiful North", which reminds me of Reckless Kelly. No maybes about this one; while it may not be power pop, it's great listening if you like alt-country.
Labels: Brewery Records, Kingsizemaybe, The General Store, Walter Clevenger
Bryan Scary.
I'm tempted to merely say "what he said" and link to this fairly scathing review of Bryan Scary & The Shredding Tears' Flight of the Knife, which is in today's Pop Matters. That site has been generally sympathetic to power pop (unlike, ahem, this site), so I don't see the review as emblematic of any hostility to the genre on their part.
Now I wouldn't go so far as the reviewer and give it 3 out of 10, but he does hit on why I wasn't bowled over by the disc - it's just too damned busy. Listening to at times is like watching a Michael Bay movie after drinking 6 cups of coffee. I don't remember the exact quote from legendary rock critic Robert Christgau, but in essence he said that rap took songcraft and isolated its essential element, the hook, to the point where rap was all hook and no song. In a way Scary has done likewise here, taking the essential element of bands like Jellyfish, Queen et al (the quirk? the baroque? I'm not sure what exactly to call it) and elevated it over the songs themselves. Scary is a wonderfully talented musician and I'm just a guy with a computer, so keep that in mind here, but that's the way I see it (or more accurately, hear it).
Posted by Steve at 11:20 AM 8 comments:
Labels: Bryan Scary
CD of the Day, 5/6/08: Craig Marshall-Point of View
It's always good to see new releases from dependable power pop artists, and proof of that fact comes courtesy of none other than Craig Marshall, whose Popular Crimes and Before The Fadeaway established the Austinite as someone worth giving a listen. Now he's back with his third disc, Point of View, and fans of artists like Jim Boggia, Richard X. Heyman and fellow Texans Fastball will definitely want to give it a spin.
"Difficult" might be one of his best tracks yet. It's a hooky and melodic number as they go, and then around the two-minute mark we get a nice piano break and some Beatlesque harmonies before the chorus fadeout. Other standouts include the British Invasion-inspired "I Know What It's Like", the roots-rocking "When You Come Back Down", and the gorgeously melodic "Paper Cut", which almost sounds like a Brian Wilson version of Badfinger's "Day After Day". Also of note is "One Face In The Crowd", which is where the Fastball comparison comes in.
I'm already looking forward to album #4.
Labels: Craig Marshall
Monday freebie.
We've always enjoyed Arthur Yoria around these parts, so I'm happy to report that he has a new single for free download at his site, titled "The Libyans". (Maybe it will settle how we spell Muammar's last name - is it al-Gadhafi, al-Khadafi, al-Qaddafi or something else entirely?).
Anyway, there's more. I'll turn the mic over to Arthur:
as you may already know, i'm going to be releasing a digital single every 2 weeks for the next 6 months starting may 4th, 2008. then i'm going to let you guys vote on the 10 tunes that will make up my new record.
Using my advanced mathematical ability, I figure 6 months=26 weeks, 26/2=13, so that means we'll have 13 tracks to consider. (Maybe 12 if he goes bimonthly rather than biweekly, or just quits after 12).
Posted by Steve at 10:35 AM No comments:
Labels: Arthur Yoria, mp3s
Friday Freebie.
Early last year, I featured Later, the impressive debut from then 19-year-old John Krueger which came in at #90 on my year-end top 125. He's just released a followup, titled Rock & Rhyme, and the best part is that it's free for download from his official site. I haven't listened to it yet, but if it's anything like the first, fans of the Bens (Folds, Kweller, Lee) will dig it big-time. If you want to sample before downloading, or end up liking it so much you want the CD, it can be found at the Baby.
Labels: John Krueger
CD of the Day, 5/27/08: Shake Some Action!-Sunny D...
CD of the Day, 5/16/08: Pugwash-Eleven Modern Anti...
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Page 4, 21st May 1954
Page 4, 21st May 1954 — Co-partnership Oils All the Wheels
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Organisations: Civil Service Catholic Guild in London
People: Glen Abbey, Rory Barnes, Desmond Morton, David Cashman
Locations: Dublin
Catholics In Politics Dividends
Page 2 from 25th July 1952
Labour Needs A More Christian Policy
Page 1 from 10th June 1955
Industrial Democracy
Difficulties Of Industrial Co-operation
Page 4 from 2nd May 1952
The Pope's Letter
Co-partnership Oils All the Wheels
Keywords: Games, Mutualism, Trade Unions, Types Of Companies, Structure, Business, Exalted, Cooperative, Socialism, Labor
D. CRYAN tells of an
experiment at Tallaght
ECAUSE of the anguish o f seething industrial unrest, one comes with all the greater gladness -on instances of Christian fraternity in industry. In the factory of C. & R. Barnes in the windswept district of Tallaght, Co. Dublin, 160 workers go about their daily tasks in conditions of tranquil industrial harmony.
Until 1950 there was little to distinguish this factory engaged in the manufacture of Orchid ladies' underwear and Glen Abbey men's knitwear from any other factory of its type. Then, at a meeting in the factory on May 17 of that year the workers were told of what was in effect a new deal in industry. They were invited to become "co-partners in industry." The brother-owners-Rory and Colm Barnes-having given much thought to the co-partnership scheme practised in England by Messrs. Taylors, of Batley, had decided to apply similar principles to their factory at Tallaght.
Due to workers FROM the workers' point of view, the new scheme had much to recommend it-not the least, of course, being the profit-sharing principle.
After the setting up of a workers' council for the settlement of all matters of employeremployee relationship, the details of the profit-sharing w ere announced.
Prior to this, however, the
owner-brothers stressed that the profit-sharing did not represent alnis-giving, did not represent paternalism, did not represent a cover-up for inadequate wages. It represented something due to the workers as employees in industry over and above their weekly wage. It amounted, in the mind of the brothers, almost to a right-a right in social justice. And in this factory in Tallaght that May evening, was put into effect the wish of Pope Pius XI when he said: "We deem it advisable that the wages contract should be modified somewhat by a contract of profit-sharing . . . In this way, wage earners and other employees participate in the ownership or the management, or in some way share in the profits." Distributed amongst the workers that first year was the sum of f1,350, of which each worker received a sum in accordance with his or her earnings for the year. For every year an employee was with the firm, an additional 2+ per cent. was added to his earnings, the greatest that could be added being 25 per cent.
Shares and cash AT that meeting too the workers were given the opportunity of investing in the firm at the very attractive interest rate of 6 per cent. This could be done by taking one's portion of 11111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111 The exalted and the humble THE dinner of the Civil Service Catholic Guild in London on Saturday was a very impressive affair. Sitting myself at the high table, as a guest of the Grand Master, Sir Desmond Morton, K.C.B., my eyes (unaccustomed to such dignities) kept roving to members, some of them very highly placed indeed in the country's administration, sitting in the many lower-placed seats. It was not so much a case of the Gospel moral of "the humble being exalted and ,the exalted being humbled," as of the humility of the exalted and the wonder of the ordinary citizen finding himself raised to a status to which he could have no claim. The chief guest was Mgr. David Cashman, Secretary to the Apostolic Delegation, and he too confessed that he was much more accustomed to hearing speeches from the exalted than to speaking himself. But the general mix-up of normal precedences lent a most happy Catholic atmosphere to the occasion for we were there as fellow Christians, not as potential criminals in the face of directors of public prosecutions, or taxpayers in the face of Treasury officials.
Sir Desmond Morton THE meeting, however, had its sorrowful aspect in the news of the retirement of Sir Desmond Morton as Grand Master. Sir Desmond who was Personal Assistant to the Prime Minister during the war and who has held many other very high posts at home and abroad (apart from having been a Treasury Under Secretary) now devotes much of his time to what might be called valuable help behind the scenes to Catholic and other enterprises. There is a limit to what time will allow of such jobs, and the Grand Mastership lies open to some distinguished successor. The Guild is a strong body, with about 2,500 members and over 20 branches through the country, and as speakers noted during the speeches there is a certain parallel between the dedication of the Clergy to the things of God and the dedication of Catholic Civil Servants to the things of Cesar within the law of God. Keeping the wheels turning sweetly, whether in Church or State, is not always a thankful job, but it is a very necessary one, demanding rare qualities of absolute dedication, incorruptibility and refusing to ride one's own ideological and political hobby-horses and saving the people from the errors of those who more easily get into the headlines.
the share-out in the form of workers' shares, or one could have part cash, part shares.
Lately, however, the system has undergone the slight alteration of requiring the worker to invest half of his profit-share due in the business, at unchanged rate of interest.
After taxation and salaries had been taken care of, the remainder -reserve and profit-share allocation-was divided into 60 per cent. reserves and 40 per cent. profitshare. The owners claimed in support of this allocation that a reasonably large apportion to the reserve fund was a necessity, for it bore losses and provided for expansion.
The sales rose
AFTER the first year under the changed scheme it was found that sales had risen by 48.7 per cent. and that the number employed had also risen.
Graphs showing the progressive trend made their appearance in the factory's departments. The jump in profits bore out eloquently the contention of the Barnes's that "co-partnership is a powerful incentive to workers. Output goes up and production benefits."
Here in this fine factory, the workers have been given the opportunity to share in the prosperity that they are in part instrumental in creating; an opportunity to know more of the affairs of the company, and a partnership with capital and management. All of which confer on the worker an adequate sense of the dignity of his position in industry.
Losses avoided
HE question is asked: T
"What is the position when there is no profit on the year's trading or when there is an actual loss?"
The answer is that the reserve fund is there to sustain losses. The history of co-partnership is one of gain rather than loss. No employer
Mr. Rory Barnes has a tale to tell of a scheme of co-partnership similar to that in operation in his own factory, and it is an encouraging one. The employees, faced with the prospects of a certain loss on the year's trading, decided to work overtime for as long as circumstances demanded-but without pay.
This is a fine example of the spirit that prevails in places where the ideals of co-partnership are faithfully adhered to on both sides -for "Capital and Labour are necessary to each other."
The attitude of the brothers towards trade unions is, as one might expect, one of close co-operation. All the workers in the factory are urged to join a union and are encouraged to become loyal and steadfast members.
'Family personality ACRUCIFIX in every department of the factory adds wonderfully to the general atmosphere of fraternalism under Christian inspiration. The workers sing at their jobs.
During Mary's Year, special homage is being paid to Our Lady. An altar has been erected in the factory to her who is the Mother of Workers. On Church holy days the factory is closed.
Ireland has no more fervent advocates of the "co-partnership in industry" ideal than these two brothers. They recommend it to all employers and proclaim its merits in articles and lectures.
They know the problems of the scheme, too, and are full of sympathy for those employers who, though aware of the worth of the scheme, are full of misgivings. The aim of the Barnes brothers is to give to the worker the sense of "belongiri; in the firm." They have askfd: "Is it too much to expect that a family personality be given to a commercial or industrial group?"
"This family concept of the group," they say, "would confer on the worker a sense of security and breathe a certain warmth of human feeling which is not contrary to the maintenance of discipline but rather a recognising of the dignity of the individual."
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Retirees begin raising funds to support appeal of ruling
A group of Lawrence Livermore Laboratory retirees plans to appeal a superior court judge's ruling that rejected their effort to force the University of California into taking them back into UC medical care programs.
The UC Livermore Lab Retirees Group has raised about $16,000, or almost one-third of the $50,000 it needs to get the appeal underway, said Joe Requa, head of the group.
The Group filed suit last August after more than a year of informal efforts failed to restore UC group medical coverage. That coverage had been ended in 2008 when a for-profit contractor took over Laboratory management from the University.
Attorneys for the Retirees Group argued that the University was obligated to honor an implicit contract to continue providing the benefits, but Judge Frank Roesch ruled in May that they had failed to demonstrate any such contract.
The Retirees Group then conducted an online survey of members. While the survey is not yet complete, returns to date suggest that "everyone seems to be in favor" of appealing, Requa said.
A key legal question for the appeal is the timing and outcome of an implied contract lawsuit now in California Supreme Court over medical benefits for Orange County employees. The suit was filed in federal court, which referred it to the state to determine California law governing implied contracts.
If the ruling favors Orange County employees, who want to maintain medical coverage in the face of budget-driven cuts, the appeals case for the Livermore retirees may be strengthened, the group's attorneys believe. The Livermore appeal must be filed by August 8 to keep the retirees' case alive. After that, Roesch's decision would be final and the Orange County decision would have no impact.
In an email to retirees earlier this month, Requa said that the appeal might take a year to resolve. The case will not involve submitting new material but will be based on the argument that the judge committed an error by taking an "exceptionally narrow view" of implied contracts. Thus the ruling on the Orange County suit, expected in the next six months, may be in time to influence the appeals court.
To Jay Davis, a former associate director at the Lawrence Laboratory and one of the plaintiffs in the retiree suit, the appeal is worth the effort because of concerns about the future.
With no more Lab employees retiring from the University system, the number of UC-Lab retirees can only decline, leaving a diminishing, aging and unprotected pool at the mercy of benefits decisions made by new contractors who never worked with the current retirees, he says.
He notes that the University-administered medical benefits system was relatively simple and user-friendly, and still is for UC employees and retirees from the campuses. Now, under the Livermore Lab's for-profit contract, it has become much more complex even for younger, healthier retirees. How well can a much older person, perhaps living far away, perhaps isolated or confused, make it work? he wonders rhetorically.
While he hasn't been hurt financially by the changes to date, "15 or 20 years down the road" the situation is much more dangerous, he says.
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Friday Dance Party: Dream A Little Dream in a Paper Bag
The anniversary of Cass Elliot's death is today, so she is the star of this week's Dance Party. As one of my favorite old-timers, she has graced these pages several times in the past, including one of the more bizarre clips in the history of this series. In fact, the very song which Elliot is singing below appeared here, in a very different context, last year, when I was reminiscing about the little British film, Beautiful Thing.
This particular tune is the biggest hit Cass had as a solo artist (in fact, though it is remembered as her breakout solo hit, the song was recorded with Elliot's group The Mamas and The Papas, with Cass singing the lead. As the release date neared for the single, the group was clearly falling apart, so ABC/Dunhill, the record company in question, gave Cass separate billing on the recording, a move which angered Papa John Phillips and which hastened the group's disintegration). Her rendition of this song, which was written way back in 1931 and recorded by Ozzie Nelson's band and everybody else under the sun, has become the definitive version. And it crosses my mind, and lips, during every performance of The Nerd, in which I have been appearing at Wayside Theatre.
There is a moment in this very silly comedy in which the characters play a parlor game dreamed up by the eponymous nerd. The rules involve shoes, socks, and paper bags, as you can see:
During the game, the contestants are required to stick their fingers in their ears, turn around in circles, and hum. This ain't Noel Coward, folks, but it gets its share of guffaws. The song which I inevitably hum under that paper bag is "Dream a Little Dream of Me." I have a hunch it does not rival the rendition below. We're still playing your music, Cass!
Labels: Dance Party, Nerd Notes, Wayside Theatre
Friday Dance Party: Dream A Little Dream in a Pape...
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Keppel Shipyard Is Awarded Jumboization Contract
Keppel Shipyard, a member of the Keppel Hitachi Zosen Group, has secured a $3.9 million jumboization contract from Baggermaatschappij Boskalis bv (Boskalis), an operating arm of the Royal Boskalis Westminister Group in the Netherlands, to upgrade its Trailing Suction Hopper Dredger, Seaway for enhanced dredging capabilities.
Upon completion, the Seaway will work on several reclamation projects in Singapore and the region.
Keppel Shipyard's scope of work on the Seaway includes the fabrication and installation of a new 105 ft. (32 m), 1,100-ton mid-body section in the ship.
In addition, the dredging and power management systems will undergo extensive modifications to cater to the increase in dredging depth from 115 x 190 ft. (35 to 58 m).
The vessel currently has a length overall of 433 ft. (132 m), a breadth of 72 ft.
(22 m), a depth of 41 ft. (12.5 m) and a hopper capacity of 8,000 cu. m. Following the lengthening, the vessel will measure 164 ft. (58 m) with a hopper capacity of 13,000 cu. m. Seaway was expected to arrive in Keppel Shipyard in late October 2000 for a first quarter 2001 completion. The workscope will be carried out in compliance with the rules and regulations of Classification Society Bureau Veritas and the Netherlands Shipping Inspectorate.
Read Keppel Shipyard Is Awarded Jumboization Contract in Pdf, Flash or Html5 edition of November 2000 Maritime Reporter
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The DOJ’s Baltimore Police Report Contributes to a Hostile Environment for Law Enforcement
As long as police are vilified, more black lives will be lost in high-crime areas.
By Heather Mac Donald — August 11, 2016
Vanita Gupta, left, head of the Justice Department's civil rights division, with Atty. Gen. Loretta Lynch. (Evan Vucci / Associated Press)
In early May 2016, a 90-year-old woman in northwest Baltimore was severely beaten during a home invasion. Police found her barely conscious on the floor, unable to move or call for help. This was the second time in two months that she had been the victim of a burglary. She was hospitalized for three weeks following the beating and died in the hospital. Police concluded that the suspect in the May assault was familiar with the neighborhood.
On May 31, 2016, a 71-year-old woman in northwest Baltimore was raped and robbed in her home. The assailant took jewelry and cash from the victim’s purse, then stole her car and crashed it. A bystander helped the rapist out of the crashed car; the thug fled.
These heinous crimes occurred as Baltimore was experiencing the bloodiest year in its history, measured on a per capita basis. Shootings, homicides, and robberies surged after the April 2015 riots triggered by the accidental death of drug dealer Freddie Gray following an arrest. Nearly two dozen children were killed in 2015. Baltimore’s homicide count matched that of New York City’s, a city 13 and a half times Baltimore’s size.
Unfortunately, such crime merits but a few passing references in the 163-page report on the Baltimore Police Department released yesterday by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ). The Justice Department accuses the Baltimore police of a pattern or practice of violating blacks’ civil rights. Justice’s methodology for reaching that conclusion is by now drearily familiar: Because blacks are stopped and arrested by the Baltimore police at a higher rate than their representation in the Baltimore population, the police are guilty of racial bias.
This use of a population benchmark to analyze police activity is preposterously misguided, given the large disparities in rates of criminal victimization and crime commission. In 2015, more than 90 percent of Balimore’s homicide victims were black, even though blacks are only 63 percent of the city’s population. Though the police department does not report the race of criminals, it is certain that at least 90 percent of homicide and shootings suspects in Baltimore are also black. To expect police activity to match population ratios when crime commission is not evenly spread throughout the population is either disingenuous or disqualifyingly ignorant.
Yet it’s hard to place exclusive blame on assistant attorney general for civil rights, Vanita Gupta, for this travesty of common sense and sound methodology. President Barack Obama routinely blasts the nation’s police for their alleged systemic bias, because blacks are overrepresented in police activity. Just hours before five officers were assassinated in Dallas, Obama was at it again, lambasting the police for the fact that blacks are arrested nationally at twice the rate of whites. Obama was silent as usual about the reality that blacks commit homicide at eight times the rate of whites and Hispanics combined; their robbery and shooting rates are even more disproportionate.
The Justice Department’s latest sally against proactive policing has been ecstatically received by the mainstream media, which have dwelt lovingly on the policing disparities highlighted in the report: 44 percent of the stops made by the Baltimore police between 2010 and 2015 occurred in two small, predominantly black districts containing only 11 percent of the city’s population; blacks accounted for 86 percent of all criminal offenses charged by the police; blacks are arrested for drug possession at five times the rate of whites.
The report claims that the arrest data are particularly skewed for more discretionary types of enforcement, thus allegedly revealing police bias in its most exposed and overt form. Blacks accounted for 87 percent of resisting-arrest charges; 89 percent of charges for making a false statement to an officer; 84 percent of failing-to-obey-an-order charges; 86 percent of hindering or obstruction charges; 83 percent of disorderly conduct arrests; and 88 percent of trespassing-on-posted-property arrests.
In fact, those numbers are not skewed at all compared to blacks’ 86 percent portion of all arrests, which include property and violent crimes. Low-level-misdemeanor enforcement simply tracks felony crime, and is not racially driven.
Never asked in the report is what those numbers represent. What, for example, goes on in those two districts accounting for 44 percent of all stops? Might they contain a vastly disproportionate number of criminal victimizations? Is open-air drug trafficking terrorizing the law-abiding residents there? We never learn. The report presents such data as prima facie evidence of arbitrary, bias-driven policing. But if stops are so concentrated in those two districts, the police are not in fact indiscriminately stopping every black person, but are presumably targeting the highest-crime areas — unless DOJ thinks that cops in those two districts are for some mysterious reason even more racist than those in other districts.
It is simply beyond the ken of the attorneys in DOJ’s Civil Rights Division that perhaps blacks make up 87 percent of resisting-arrest charges because they resist arrest at a higher rate than their population ratios, but consistent with their crime rates. Ed Norris served as deputy commissioner in the New York Police Department and as the Baltimore police commissioner from 2000 to 2002. The “level of violence in the streets here [in Baltimore] and the willingness to fight with the police is much worse than what I experienced in NYC,” he says. “It really does need to be seen to understand what it’s like here.”
The media have endlessly recycled the DOJ finding that between 2010 and 2015, 34 blacks were stopped at least 20 times and seven blacks stopped at least 30 times. One man in his 50s was stopped 30 times in four years, mostly for loitering and trespassing. By contrast, no other person of any other race was stopped more than twelve times in those five years, according to the report.
Might it be relevant to know something about those stop subjects? An infamous gang-banger whose gang is engaged in tit-for-tat retaliatory shootings against rival gangs might easily be stopped four times a year; that only 34 suspects had that stop record in a city with the sixth highest violent-crime rate in the country and a population of 620,000 hardly shows racial bias. Seven blacks were stopped six times a year and one black man stopped seven times a year. What were their criminal histories and behavior on the street? We are not let in on the secret. Until we do, no inference of bias is valid.
The report makes much of drug arrests. The DOJ lawyers trot out the usual national surveys that show that blacks report using drugs at a slightly higher rate than whites (without accounting for frequency of use over the previous month). If blacks in Baltimore are arrested for drug possession at five times the rate of whites, the lawyers conclude, it can only be because the police are vindictively harassing them. But drug enforcement follows community calls for service. The police enforce drug laws where residents ask them to, and that is overwhelmingly in minority areas plagued by open-air drug markets. If residents of white neighborhoods lived in the thrall of the drug trade, they would be demanding enforcement and enforcement would follow. Police bring possession charges as stand-ins for trafficking charges, which members of street drug rings are careful to avoid through a tight choreography of facially lawful transactions.
The report is assiduously blind to, and silent about, the burdens faced by residents of high-crime neighborhoods. It complains about racial and economic segregation, then proceeds as if street behavior and street crime are identical across Baltimore. The authors are shocked by evidence that suggests that “trespassing enforcement is focused on public housing.” One can only conclude that the civil-rights lawyers are unaware of the shootings and muggings that characterize public housing, as well as of the relationship between trespassing and more serious forms of crime. The authors likely do not rely on the police to keep trespassers away from their homes and can count on informal social controls like parents to maintain public order. They are offended by the police practice of trying to disperse large groups of people hanging out. Yet the most frequent complaint made in police–community meetings in high-crime areas concerns just those congregating throngs of youth, because law-abiding residents know from experience that it is out of those knots of loiterers that assaults and shootings emerge. Those same law-abiding residents do not understand why the police can’t simply arrest everyone for loitering or truancy. The report cites a Facebook post from a sergeant as evidence of racism and brutality: “Do not treat criminal[s] like citizens; citizens want that corner cleared.” I have never been to a police–community meeting in the inner city where residents are not begging for the corners to be cleared.
The report contemptuously bandies around the phrase “zero-tolerance policing” to try to stigmatize proactive policing. (That is a phrase used almost exclusively by police critics and almost never by police departments.) But it is the residents of high-crime areas who have zero tolerance for street disorder. Do the police look to make stops following a gang shooting to try to deter retaliation? You bet. And when they back off from proactive policing, crime explodes. After the Freddie Gray riots, drug arrests dropped and shootings soared 75 percent over the course of 2015.
It is unclear how the DOJ lawyers think the police should respond to the high levels of street disorder in high-crime areas. Proactive policing is an attempt to regain control of the streets, on behalf of the law-abiding. If trespass stops and loitering summons are illegitimate, what are the police to do? Yet the report also cites complaints about a lack of police response in “poor, minority areas” and allegations that the police do not take crime seriously there — a calumny. Hard-working detectives could solve every crime in the inner city if they could find witnesses and victims willing to cooperate; they usually can’t. The report faults the police for allegedly leaving black neighborhoods “unguarded” during the Freddie Gray riots — this from the same White House that criticizes the police for an over-aggressive response to the wanton destruction of livelihoods and property.
This ignorant analysis is just one more reckless attack on police legitimacy. On Wednesday, when the media were not trumpeting this latest Obama administration finding of systemic police bias, they were denouncing Donald Trump’s thoughtless sally on Tuesday about Hillary Clinton and the power of Second Amendment advocates to stop her alleged court-packing schemes. Fair enough. But almost no attention was paid to the far more credible threat against police officers in Chicago from gang-bangers hoping to kill more cops in revenge for alleged police racism. While the Baltimore DOJ report is far from an overt invitation to attack officers, it belongs to a mendacious narrative about policing that is contributing to an environment of virulent hatred against cops and that is obstinately blind to the realities of crime. As long as that narrative is dominant, more black lives will be lost, and probably also more blue ones.
— Heather Mac Donald is the Thomas W. Smith Fellow at the Manhattan Institute and the author of The War on Cops, released in June.
RELATED: Freddie Gray Case: The War on Cops … in the Courtroom
EDITORIAL: Justice in Baltimore
RELATED: The Police Shooting Debate: Misleading Arguments Obscure Sobering Truth
Labels: Crime and Punishment, Race
How Global Elites Forsake Their Countrymen
Those in power see people at the bottom as aliens whose bizarre emotions they must try to manage.
Heidenau Mayor Juergen Opitz, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Saxony State Prime Minister Stanislaw Tillich (L to R) arrive for statements after their visit to an asylum seekers accommodation facility, Aug. 26, 2015. (Reuters)
This is about distance, and detachment, and a kind of historic decoupling between the top and the bottom in the West that did not, in more moderate recent times, exist.
Recently I spoke with an acquaintance of Angela Merkel, the German chancellor, and the conversation quickly turned, as conversations about Ms. Merkel now always do, to her decisions on immigration. Last summer when Europe was engulfed with increasing waves of migrants and refugees from Muslim countries, Ms. Merkel, moving unilaterally, announced that Germany would take in an astounding 800,000. Naturally this was taken as an invitation, and more than a million came. The result has been widespread public furor over crime, cultural dissimilation and fears of terrorism. From such a sturdy, grounded character as Ms. Merkel the decision was puzzling—uncharacteristically romantic about people, how they live their lives, and history itself, which is more charnel house than settlement house.
Ms. Merkel’s acquaintance sighed and agreed. It’s one thing to be overwhelmed by an unexpected force, quite another to invite your invaders in! But, the acquaintance said, he believed the chancellor was operating in pursuit of ideals. As the daughter of a Lutheran minister, someone who grew up in East Germany, Ms. Merkel would have natural sympathy for those who feel marginalized and displaced. Moreover she is attempting to provide a kind of counter-statement, in the 21st century, to Germany’s great sin of the 20th. The historical stain of Nazism, the murder and abuse of the minority, will be followed by the moral triumph of open arms toward the dispossessed. That’s what’s driving it, said the acquaintance.
It was as good an explanation as I’d heard. But there was a fundamental problem with the decision that you can see rippling now throughout the West. Ms. Merkel had put the entire burden of a huge cultural change not on herself and those like her but on regular people who live closer to the edge, who do not have the resources to meet the burden, who have no particular protection or money or connections. Ms. Merkel, her cabinet and government, the media and cultural apparatus that lauded her decision were not in the least affected by it and likely never would be.
Nothing in their lives will get worse. The challenge of integrating different cultures, negotiating daily tensions, dealing with crime and extremism and fearfulness on the street—that was put on those with comparatively little, whom I’ve called the unprotected. They were left to struggle, not gradually and over the years but suddenly and in an air of ongoing crisis that shows no signs of ending—because nobody cares about them enough to stop it.
The powerful show no particular sign of worrying about any of this. When the working and middle class pushed back in shocked indignation, the people on top called them “xenophobic,” “narrow-minded,” “racist.” The detached, who made the decisions and bore none of the costs, got to be called “humanist,” “compassionate,” and “hero of human rights.”
And so the great separating incident at Cologne last New Year’s, and the hundreds of sexual assaults by mostly young migrant men who were brought up in societies where women are veiled—who think they should be veiled—and who chose to see women in short skirts and high heels as asking for it.
Cologne of course was followed by other crimes.
The journalist Chris Caldwell reports in the Weekly Standard on Ms. Merkel’s statement a few weeks ago, in which she told Germans that history was asking them to “master the flip side, the shadow side, of all the positive effects of globalization.”
Caldwell: “This was the chancellor’s . . . way of acknowledging that various newcomers to the national household had begun to attack and kill her voters at an alarming rate.” Soon after her remarks, more horrific crimes followed, including in Munich (nine killed in a McDonald’s) Reutlingen (a knife attack) and Ansbach (a suicide bomber).
The larger point is that this is something we are seeing all over, the top detaching itself from the bottom, feeling little loyalty to it or affiliation with it. It is a theme I see working its way throughout the West’s power centers. At its heart it is not only a detachment from, but a lack of interest in, the lives of your countrymen, of those who are not at the table, and who understand that they’ve been abandoned by their leaders’ selfishness and mad virtue-signalling.
On Wall Street, where they used to make statesmen, they now barely make citizens. CEOs are consumed with short-term thinking, stock prices, quarterly profits. They don’t really believe that they have to be involved with “America” now; they see their job as thinking globally and meeting shareholder expectations.
In Silicon Valley the idea of “the national interest” is not much discussed. They adhere to higher, more abstract, more global values. They’re not about America, they’re about . . . well, I suppose they’d say the future.
In Hollywood the wealthy protect their own children from cultural decay, from the sick images they create for all the screens, but they don’t mind if poor, unparented children from broken-up families get those messages and, in the way of things, act on them down the road.
From what I’ve seen of those in power throughout business and politics now, the people of your country are not your countrymen, they’re aliens whose bizarre emotions you must attempt occasionally to anticipate and manage.
In Manhattan, my little island off the continent, I see the children of the global business elite marry each other and settle in London or New York or Mumbai. They send their children to the same schools and are alert to all class markers. And those elites, of Mumbai and Manhattan, do not often identify with, or see a connection to or an obligation toward, the rough, struggling people who live at the bottom in their countries. In fact, they fear them, and often devise ways, when home, of not having their wealth and worldly success fully noticed.
Affluence detaches, power adds distance to experience. I don’t have it fully right in my mind but something big is happening here with this division between the leaders and the led. It is very much a feature of our age. But it is odd that our elites have abandoned or are abandoning the idea that they belong to a country, that they have ties that bring responsibilities, that they should feel loyalty to their people or, at the very least, a grounded respect.
I close with a story that I haven’t seen in the mainstream press. This week the Daily Caller’s Peter Hasson reported that recent Syrian refugees being resettled in Virginia, were sent to the state’s poorest communities. Data from the State Department showed that almost all Virginia’s refugees since October “have been placed in towns with lower incomes and higher poverty rates, hours away from the wealthy suburbs outside of Washington, D.C.” Of 121 refugees, 112 were placed in communities at least 100 miles from the nation’s capital. The suburban counties of Fairfax, Loudoun and Arlington—among the wealthiest in the nation, and home to high concentrations of those who create, and populate, government and the media—have received only nine refugees.
Some of the detachment isn’t unconscious. Some of it is sheer and clever self-protection. At least on some level they can take care of their own.
Labels: Economics, Europe, Politics
Obama, Clinton and the power of mendacity
By CAROLINE B. GLICK
http://www.jpost.com/Opinion/
HOW MUCH more money from the ‘Great Satan’ for Iran? ‘Since the Iranians received their payment, they have taken three more American citizens hostage, as well as several other Westerners,’ notes the author.. (photo credit:REUTERS)
Over the weekend the Iranian regime unexpectedly announced it executed its former nuclear scientist Shahram Amiri. As reports of Amiri’s demise make clear, former secretary of state Hillary Clinton may very well be partially to blame for his death. Amiri spent several months in the US between 2009 and 2010, when he returned to Iran. Then-secretary of state Hillary Clinton claimed at the time that Amiri came to the US willingly.
US government sources told the media that Amiri, who worked on Iran’s nuclear program, was a longstanding US intelligence agent. Amiri, they said, received $5 million for his information. He left the funds in the US when he returned to Iran.
For his part, Amiri claimed he was kidnapped by US officials during a religious pilgrimage to Medina and brought to the US against his will. Amiri alleged that he was tortured during his time in the US, but that he refused to betray his country.
During his time in the US, the regime reportedly threatened to harm Amiri’s young son, who remained behind in Iran with Amiri’s wife. In July 2010, Amiri went to the Iranian interest section of the Pakistani embassy in Washington and asked to be repatriated. Amiri received a hero’s welcome upon arriving in Iran. He was later sentenced to 10 years in prison for traveling to the US.
He had served five years of his sentence when he was charged in a secret trial for espionage, found guilty and hanged.
It is impossible to know what caused the Iranians to suddenly execute Amiri.
But if the Iranians had harbored doubts regarding whether Amiri or Clinton were telling the truth about his arrival in the US, those doubts were dispelled last summer with the publication of Clinton’s emails.
Two of those emails outed Amiri as a US agent. In one, sent to Clinton nine days before Amiri turned himself over to Iranian authorities, Richard Morningstar, a former State Department special envoy informed Clinton, “We have a diplomatic, ‘psychological’ issue, not a legal one. Our friend has to be given a way out. Our person won’t be able to do anything anyway. If he has to leave so be it.”
The second email was sent to Clinton by Jake Sullivan, her deputy chief of staff. Sullivan warned her that Amiri’s decision to turn himself in would embarrass the US. He wrote, “The gentleman… has apparently gone to his country’s interests section because he is unhappy with how much time it has taken to facilitate his departure. This could lead to problematic news stories in the next 24 hours.”
Had Clinton been using a government server, both those communications would have been classified and secured.
According to the FBI, Clinton’s private server was less secure than a Gmail account. According to intelligence experts, there is every reason to believe that Clinton’s email server was hacked by hostile foreign intelligence services.
The best excuse that Clinton was able to come up with to defend her reckless behavior was that she did it for the sake of convenience. In a 2010 email to her senior staff, Clinton explained that the true purpose of the server was to prevent her correspondence from becoming public.
Although deeply significant, Amiri’s execution was “the other Iran story” this week. The main story was Wall Street Journal’s revelation that on January 17, the day the US’s nuclear deal with Iran came into force, the US sent an unmarked cargo plane to Tehran loaded with $400 million in cash.
Five US citizens held hostage by Iran were released that day.
In a press conference last Thursday, Obama dismissed the clear implication that the cash payment was ransom. But his statements were exposed as a lie by former hostage Pastor Saeed Abedini.
Abedini told the media that the hostages waited for hours at the airport before being permitted to board their flight to freedom while the Iranians were waiting for another plane to land.
US law prohibits the payment of ransom for hostages because it is widely acknowledged that paying ransom merely encourages America’s foes to take still more Americans hostage. Since the Iranians received their payment, they have taken three more American citizens hostage, as well as several other Westerners.
Obama’s lies and the plight of the hostages is an additional reminder that critics of his Iran policy were correct to criticize him. A year after Obama agreed to the nuclear deal with the Iranian regime, and six months after it formally entered into force despite the fact that the Iranians never formally accepted its provisions, Iran is more dangerous than it was before.
The hundreds of billions of dollars it has received from sanctions relief have enabled it to vastly expand its support for terrorist organizations and fund and direct insurgencies against US allies. Iran sponsored the overthrow of the Yemini regime. It is the engine behind the war in Syria. It controls the Lebanese government and the Iraqi regime.
Its terrorists are on the ground in Europe. The terrorist who committed the massacre last month in Munich was trained in Iran.
As for the deal’s purported limitations on Iran’s nuclear capabilities, over the past year we learned that Obama lied when he promised the nuclear deal would stem Iran’s nuclear advance. The unprecedented inspections regime he promised was a lie. The one-year nuclear breakout time was a lie. Even the limitations on centrifuge development were a lie.
In defending his miserable agreement with the mullahs last Thursday, Obama continued to lie.
He went so far as to say that Israel now supports the deal. This of course, is also a lie, as both the Defense Ministry and Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu were quick to note.
Obama and Clinton choose lying as a strategy because it works for them. The influential media outlets barely cover their lies. Indeed, they often go out of their way to cover up their misdeeds.
The New York Times for instance, sufficed with a wire story to report that Israel rejected Obama’s claim that it now supports his nuclear deal with Iran.
The Washington Post insisted that Clinton’s email couldn’t possibly have influenced Amiri’s fate because six years ago Clinton had already announced that he was a US agent. As for Clinton’s email server, the New York Times failed to report that Clinton lied last Sunday when she told Fox News the FBI concluded that she had spoken truthfully about its use. She then repeated the lie twice and the New York Times continued to ignore her dissimulation.
The media cover for Clinton and Obama because they care more about advancing the Left’s policy goals than about reporting the dire, dangerous consequences of those policies. That is, they are propagandists rather than journalists.
Over the years, many commentators and observers have argued that Clinton is less dangerous than Obama. Obama they say is an ideologue whereas Clinton is driven by a simple lust for power and, of course, her own convenience. Consequently, she causes damage in little ways – like endangering the lives of US agents – while Obama clears a path for Iran to rise as a regional hegemon and nuclear state.
The problem with this assessment is that it ignores their symbiotic relationship. Clinton has decided that her interests lie with acting like a loyal Democrat and implementing Obama’s policies.
Like Obama, she doesn’t need to worry about the consequences of those policies for the US and the world. Because like Obama, she is sheltered from criticism by a loyal media.
Amiri is dead. Iran is building nuclear plants with Russia. But as the New York Times explained on Monday, “Nobody knows better than President Obama how easy it would be for Donald J. Trump to reverse the policies of the past eight years if he defeats Hillary Clinton this fall.”
Nobody, that is, other than the New York Times, and the Washington Post and CNN and Clinton.
And so they will continue to work together with Obama, to ensure that the public is kept in the dark about the nature of those policies and their horrible consequences for the US and the rest of the world.
Labels: Barack Obama, Bill/Hillary Clinton, Iran
The Real Reason the Mainstream Media Hates Trump
In a much talked about August 7 piece—“Trump Is Testing the Norms of Objectivity in Journalism”—New York Times "mediator" Jim Rutenberg takes the mainstream media out of the closet and publicly declares them in the tank for Trump.
As front page news this is not exactly man bites dog, but he goes further actually to excuse this bias because, after all, Trump is Trump:
If you’re a working journalist and you believe that Donald J. Trump is a demagogue playing to the nation’s worst racist and nationalistic tendencies, that he cozies up to anti-American dictators and that he would be dangerous with control of the United States nuclear codes, how the heck are you supposed to cover him?
How're you supposed to cover a woman whose family foundation helped Putin corner the uranium market? Oh, never mind. Rutenberg's point is that the barbarian Trump has put those Fourth Estate idealists in a quandary as never before. The poor dears always try to be neutral, but The Donald is just too many bridges too far. They just can't be even-handed anymore. (Please stay clear of your computer screen if you start to sputter.)
But the truth is that—although he can be a loudmouthed blowhard with poor impulse control—Trump is not remotely what they say he is: a racist, sexist demagogue. In fact, if you bother to look it up, he was more than a decade ahead of Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton on one of the most "sainted" of all liberal issues—gay marriage. But don't expect to see that covered by Gutenberg, et al.
The real reason the MSM disdains, even loathes, Trump is that he threatens what I call The Big Wink, which means he threatens them.
Qu'est-ce que c'est The Big Wink?
We saw it writ large during the (media pronounced) highly successful Democratic National Convention—the key topic of which, beside the excoriation of Donald Trump, was the rescue of the middle class, a middle class, no one admitted, that has done surpassingly poorly during the Obama administration. Improving the situation of minorities was also, as always, invoked, even though minorities, particularly blacks, have done even more wretchedly over the last eight years.
Unspoken, not surprisingly, was a truly uncomfortable truth—the people who have done best under the Obama administration are the rich. No one said or did anything for eight years as the labor participation rate declined to new lows and stocks rose to new highs. The rich profited at the expense of the poor (somewhat) and the middle class (a lot). The Democrats have become the secret—or not so secret—party of the rich.
The media are, for the most part, those rich people, the most successful of them ensconced well up into the higher reaches of the one percent. They also are people who like to think good of themselves, that they are "doing good." For the older ones, now in control, this comes from their "fight the power" college days, only now they are the power. How do you resolve such a contradiction? By making morally narcissistic pronouncements on behalf of the disadvantaged while privately hoping for, even working for, the status quo.
No more perfect candidate of the status quo has ever come along than Hillary Clinton. She personifies the status quo. Nothing will change under Hillary—for the country or the media. It's all downhill from here.
Her lifetime reputation as a serial liar and crony capitalist only amplifies this. It's hard to believe she really means it when she makes such outrageous proposals as her confiscatory capital gains plan that could cause a Depression. Wink, wink, she's a Wall Street girl—and everybody, especially the media, knows it. She won't do anything the slightest bit extreme.
And they like it that way, even if they don't admit it to themselves. Better for the old 401K and property values in the Meatpacking District. No one really believes Hillary will follow through with those dopey leftwing proposals—not that she has anything else to offer, but that doesn't matter. Nor will she put more than a slight delay in the TPP trade agreement. It's all a Big Wink, designed to fool the Sanders supporters and, of course, the always handy minorities. Power and money are everything.
Donald Trump is a wholly different matter. No one, especially the media, knows what he really intends to do. The media doesn't like this because if there's one thing they don't like, no matter what they profess, it is change. Or loss of control.
No wonder they don't like Donald and seize on his every miscue or aside as if he were the second coming of Attila bent on overrunning our nation and quite possibly the world. (Compare that to how they shrug their shoulders at Hillary's actual misdeeds.) What they hate most of all is the temerity of the vulgar Queens billionaire in exposing the haute bourgeois lifestyle of the Upper West Side for what it is—fake and self-serving. The way things look now, they won't let him survive it.
Roger L. Simon is a prize-winning novelist, Academy Award-nominated screenwriter and co-founder of PJ Media. His book—I Know Best: How Moral Narcissism Is Destroying Our Republic, If It Hasn't Already—is just published by Encounter. You can read an excerpt here. You can see a brief interview about the book with the Wall Street Journal’s Opinion Journal here. You can hear an interview about the book with Mark Levin here. You can order the book here.
Labels: Donald Trump
The Romanovs: fascinating, odd and odious
By Greg King, May 13
https://www.washingtonpost.com/
Greg King’s books include “The Fate of the Romanovs,” “The Court of the Last Tsar,” and the forthcoming “Mayerling.”
In the months before the Russian revolution, the notorious Grigori Rasputin haunted Petrograd’s exclusive Hotel Astoria, clapping along with gypsy bands and dancing wildly. “Like a beast,” he demolished the cook Spiridon’s carefully prepared dishes, grabbing food with “talon-like fingers” as all watched in horror. Rasputin exemplified the imperial regime at its worst: the “mad monk,” a favorite of Czar Nicholas II and his unbalanced wife, Alexandra, corrupted by power and acting his malevolent role in a fatal ménage à trois.
“It was hard to be a tsar,” writes British historian Simon Sebag Montefiore in his erudite and entertaining “The Romanovs: 1613-1918.” Drawing on a wide array of Russian sources, Sebag Montefiore paints an unforgettable portrait of characters fascinating and charismatic, odd and odious. Magnificent palaces, elaborate balls, and a culture that produced Pushkin, Tchaikovsky and Tolstoy existed alongside pogroms, torture and murder (of the last dozen Romanov sovereigns, half were assassinated). Romanovs both capable and insane struggled with what the author calls “the distorting effect of absolute power.” Monarchs over one-sixth of the globe, they played at Western niceties while clinging to Byzantine notions of absolute rule.
An undercurrent of violence and sexual depravity runs through the vibrant narrative, but the poignant stories of two teenage boys open this chronicle. One, Michael, reluctantly takes the chaotic Russian throne in 1613 and founds the dynasty amid dangerous power struggles; the other, Alexei, frail with hemophilia, enters a Siberian cellar in 1918, where Bolshevik bullets will bring the dynasty to its bloody end. Tackling the 20 reigns between these bookends, Sebag Montefiore arranges chapters as connected scenes in a larger drama. Beyond the three sovereigns who have become household names — Peter the Great, Catherine the Great and Nicholas II — are vivid portraits of other Romanovs. The cruel Empress Anna, who dressed courtiers as chickens, clapped as dwarves fought the maimed and presided over hair-pulling contests between her ladies-in-waiting, stands in contrast to Abraham Lincoln’s contemporary Alexander II, who not only ended serfdom and instituted judicial reforms but also carried on a blush-worthy correspondence with mistress Ekaterina Dolgorukaya. He wanted her “four times” a day, “on every piece of furniture” and in “every room.” He married her a month after his wife’s death, only to perish himself nine months later, victim of a nihilist’s bomb.
The dynasty, Sebag Montefiore concedes, produced only two “political geniuses,” Peter the Great and the famous Catherine. Rebelling against the intrigues and backward ideas characterizing Muscovite rule, Peter turned Russia to the West, visiting Europe and building his new capital, St. Petersburg. Western clothing and manners were forced on a reluctant court as Peter dragged Russia into the 18th century. Modernization marked his tumultuous reign, yet Peter couldn’t escape the grotesque: Dwarves and giants paraded through his court; he drunkenly — and lewdly — mocked the Orthodox Church; and he had his own son tortured to death for opposing his reforms. Anatomy fascinated him: He once had a former mistress decapitated, then held up her severed head, kissing the lips before lecturing stunned onlookers about the function of her windpipe.
Catherine the Great had little taste for violence. The former German princess came to Russia and wed Empress Elizabeth’s demented nephew Peter. Her husband played with tin soldiers; Catherine cultivated the real thing, taking lovers from elite regiments. Peter despised Russia; Catherine became conspicuously Russian in all things. Ascending the throne as Peter III, he had so alienated the court and military that most readily supported the coup d’état that left him strangled and crowned his wife. “My glory is spoilt!” Catherine lamented. “Posterity will never forgive me.” But it did, and she went on to enlarge her empire while wrapping it in a veneer of enlightened autocracy. Catherine read Diderot, corresponded with Voltaire and engaged in myriad romances, including a long, volatile relationship with Prince Grigori Potemkin. Through it all, she understood the essential dichotomy of her rule: “One must do things,” Catherine explained, “in such a way that people think they themselves want it to be done.”
The Romanovs who followed successfully repelled Napoleon and exulted in the splendor of their court — until 1894, when Nicholas II came to the throne with his wife, Alexandra. It’s hard to imagine two people more unsuited to their roles. Sentimental nostalgia surrounds them with an uncritical legend focused entirely on their love affair and domestic lives. Yet Sebag Montefiore treats them “as both intimate and political figures . . . without the burden of pungent romance, Soviet disgust or liberal contempt.”
Nicholas II emerges as “the least capable and most narrow-minded” of Romanov sovereigns. Having inherited his father’s virulent anti-Semitism, he witnessed horrific pogroms during his reign, and violence was common: With “careless arrogance,” the czar foolishly propelled Russia into wars and revolutions. Not that Alexandra escapes unscathed. “Obsessive piety [and] sanctimonious prudery,” combined with a belief in her own superiority, drove her to isolate her husband and tie him to a world of petty domestic concerns. Her only son’s hemophilia, inherited through her grandmother Queen Victoria, left the empress ripe for the ministrations of a stunning succession of holy fools, ending with Rasputin.
“It is unlikely,” Sebag Montefiore concludes, “that even Peter or Catherine could have solved the predicaments of revolution and world war faced by Nicholas II.” Perhaps — but they possessed will and vision, two qualities Nicholas II lacked. The storm that swept Russia in 1917 carried away millions in its wake: Only the cagey managed to survive, among them Spiridon, the poor cook who had watched Rasputin dip into his exquisite dishes with dirty fingers. Abandoning the old regime, Spiridon went on to work for Lenin and then Stalin. It’s tempting to ponder the warnings against weakness and the lessons of ruthless power he passed to his grandson Vladimir Putin, who seems intent on restoring Russia’s prestige, resurrecting the lost empire and enshrining himself as a modern czar, every bit as autocratic and ruthless as the fallen Romanovs.
THE ROMANOVS, 1613-1918
By Simon Sebag Montefiore
Knopf. 744 pp. $35
Labels: Books and Things, Russia/Soviet Union
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Korea and the Democrats' Deep Psychological Fear that Trump Is Right
One of the unspoken 'indications' in the medical sense of the ever-metastasizing Trump Derangement Syndrome is that the sufferers have a deep conscious/unconscious fear that Trump is right. What if the man they have excoriated unremittingly as a barbarian-racist-xenophobe-homophobe -misogynist-nitwit turns out to have been on the correct side of a fair number of issues on which they have failed, sometimes miserably, for decades? Talk about personality disintegration — it would be hari-kari meets the Wicked Witch of the West. Well, emotionally anyway.
The current North Korea crisis is a perfect case in point. Susan Rice — has this woman no shame — took to the pages of The New York Times to inveigh against Trump for "bluster" regarding the NORKS. The integrity-challenged former national security adviser was far from alone, however. Virtually all Democrats and their local media minions plus a good swatch of Republicans (including repellently vengeful John McCain) criticized the president for the same thing — using blunt language to counter the crazed dictator in Pyongyang when Trump should have been "diplomatic."
This although almost any grown-up not comatose knows that "diplomatic" language has been employed by the U.S. ad nauseam for that purpose for the last twenty-five years through three administrations with no discernible impact whatsoever. Indeed, "abject failure" would be an accurate characterization of our diplomatic policy vis-a-vis the NORKS. If you view this video of Bill Clinton extolling his administration's "successful," diplomatically-achieved nuclear deal with Pyongyang back in 2006, the word "nitwit" does come to mind, but it's not about Trump. Here's Madeleine Albright in another glorious moment of diplomatic achievement with Kim Jong-un's dad Kim Jong-il laying on the splendor in Pyongyang Stadium before signing some meaningless agreement whose import is known only to Dennis Rodman.
How do you spell hornswoggled?
Of course, George W. Bush didn't do much better and Barack Obama — who evidently hid the North Koreans' development of mini-nuclear warheads for several years from the sensitive ears of the American public, only to leave us in the disastrous situation we are in today — was considerably worse. This is the same Obama who pushed through the still mysterious Iran Deal handing the NORKs' best friends the mullahs enough cash to run rampant in Syria. Soon thereafter Barack reneged on his pledge to prevent the use of chemical weapons by that very country's leader. Sense a pattern?
And yet it's the "blusterous" Trump who is supposed to be the problem. Actually, he's the one left to pick up the pieces of an American reputation in tatters.
Perhaps what we need is a little bluster. It's an old technique and a sound one — good cop/bad cop. It was played out well by Nixon and Kissinger when Henry went to Beijing to negotiate with Mao and Chou. Kissinger threatened to let his "madman back home" (Nixon) loose unless the Chairman cooperated and made a deal. It worked.
Now we have Trump, Tillerson, Mattis and McMaster playing various levels of good cop/bad cop. They are even reportedly working the backchannels in the old diplomatic game. Let's hope they learn from the past and do it better this time. Color me skeptical because without a serious military threat, I doubt the Chinese will listen.
Did I say Chinese? Of course, I did, because they are the true audience for what is going on. Mr. Kim is a whack job sideshow. The Chinese are the ones with the power to do something and stop a conflagration. And, like the Democrats and the Never Trumpers, they may be more afraid of Trump than they let on. Unlike Obama, he has shown he is not afraid to use force — and he did that while having dinner with Xi Jinping. Friday night he is supposed to be having a chat with Xi.
By now we may all know what happened — at least the part the leakers deign to tell us — but we do not know what will happen. The facts on the ground have yet to be revealed.
What has been revealed, however, is the psychology of those attacking Trump on this matter. They fear that they will be revealed as having been fools for the last twenty-five years — and indeed they were.
Roger L. Simon is an award-winning novelist, Academy Award-nominated screenwriter and co-founder of PJ Media. His latest book is I Know Best: How Moral Narcissism Is Destroying Our Republic, If It Hasn't Already. Follow him on Twitter @rogerlsimon.
Labels: Donald Trump, Far East
No, We Don’t Need An Iran-Style Nuclear Deal With North Korea
The fact is, we had an Iran-style nuclear deal with North Korea, and now Kim Jong Un has nuclear weapons. North Korea should be a cautionary tale.
By John Daniel Davidson
http://thefederalist.com/
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has reportedly ordered his missiles be ready within 12 months from December 2016 (Reuters)
News that North Korea has successfully miniaturized a nuclear weapon that can fit onto an intercontinental ballistic missile, as the Washington Post reported Tuesday, has prompted much speculation about what we should do about it and who’s to blame.
One idea floating around is that we need an Iran-style nuclear deal with North Korea—and that if we’d had one, we wouldn’t be debating the merits of nuclear versus conventional war on the Korean peninsula, President Trump wouldn’t be blustering about “fire and fury,” and Pyongyang wouldn’t be publically mulling a ballistic missile strike on Guam.
Middle East scholar Andrew Exum tweeted Tuesday, “It sure ain’t perfect, but you know who North Korea is making look really good right now? The Iran deal.” Last month over at Foreign Policy, Jeffrey Lewis sarcastically noted that, “If you like North Korea’s nuclear-armed ICBM, you are going to love America walking away from the nuclear deal with Iran.”
His point of course is that scuttling the 2015 Iran deal, as Trump has repeatedly promised to do, will lead to another North Korea. By that same logic, striking an Iran-style deal with Pyongyang is the best we can hope for at this point. Robert Litwak, director of international security studies at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars (and the author of a book with the now-seemingly obsolete title, “Preventing North Korea’s Nuclear Breakout”) made precisely this argument back in May: “The template for preventing a North Korean nuclear breakout that could directly threaten the United States is the Iran nuclear agreement.”
The problem is, we had an Iran-style nuclear deal with North Korea, and now North Korea has nuclear weapons.
A Brief History Of North Korea’s Nukes
North Korea signed the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) in 1985, but it had been working on nuclear weapons for years. After ’85, it evaded inspections from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) until, under mounting pressure, it declared in 1993 that it was withdrawing from the treaty. North Korea then began removing fuel rods from its nuclear reactor at Yongbyon, which would yield enough plutonium to make a bomb.
That prompted President Bill Clinton to negotiate what was known as the Agreed Framework, which North Korea and the United States signed in 1994. Basically, it froze Pyongyang’s nuclear program and replaced its plutonium reactor with two light-water reactors. The United States agreed to supply the North with a half-million tons of heavy fuel oil every year for heating and electricity generation.
The Agreed Framework had some striking similarities to the Iran deal: it wasn’t a treaty and therefore didn’t require ratification by the Senate, it was focused almost exclusively on curbing North Korea’s pursuit of a nuclear bomb, and it was to be overseen by an international body.
In theory, the Agreed Framework rendered the Yongbyon reactor harmless for eight years—until the deal collapsed because Pyongyang was caught cheating. In practice, North Korea began developing a secret, underground uranium enrichment program at Kumchangri as early as 1996.
In 2002, when the George W. Bush administration called out North Korea for violating the Agreed Framework, North Korea angrily acknowledged it, then announced it was withdrawing (again) from the NPT. That prompted the six-party talks, in which the United States, China, Russia, Japan, and North and South Korea tried to work out a new agreement. In October 2006, while the six-party talks were still painstakingly underway, North Korea detonated a nuclear bomb. The talks dragged on until April 2009, when North Korea announced it was withdrawing from negotiations, resuming its nuclear program, and kicking nuclear inspectors out of the country.
Making The Same Mistake In Iran We Made In North Korea
So what went wrong? How did North Korea wind up with a nuclear arsenal despite the myriad incentives and decades-long international efforts to prevent them from getting one?
I asked David Albright, the president of the Institute for Science and International Security, and a renowned expert on nuclear proliferation, and he told me the fundamental mistake in the Agreed Framework and the six-party talks was that the United States didn’t insist on robust IAEA inspections of military sites to get to the bottom of North Korea’s nuclear weapons program and ensure they weren’t cheating.
“Once North Korea knew they could get away with it, they began to cheat,” says Albright. “They had no intention of letting the IAEA inspect military sites.”
According to Albright, the big mistake we made in North Korea is the exact same one we’re making in Iran: not letting the IAEA do its job. North Korea expelled the agency and promised it would get to come back, but that never happened. To get North Korea to agree to a deal, the United States never insisted on a robust inspections regime that included allowing the IAEA access to military sites.
That’s exactly what we did in negotiating the Iran deal; IAEA inspections of military sites were excluded to preserve the agreement. Much like the Clinton administration did with Pyongyang in 1995, the Obama administration created a dynamic whereby U.S. negotiators were scared to push for the inspection of military sites out of fear that Tehran would say “no” and the deal would collapse.
“We’re making the same mistake because we’re scared of failure and war,” says Albright, recalling that at the time of the Agreed Framework, U.S. negotiators were casting the IAEA as the villains, saying the agency was going to cause a war. “The United States should have insisted that the IAEA be allowed to do its job.”
It’s hard to overstate the importance of inspections. The six-party talks ultimately fell apart because the Bush administration insisted on robust inspections, and that’s when North Korea walked away.
There’s one other important way the Iran deal mirrors our failed negotiations with North Korea: it’s predicated on a strict timeline that assumes too much. The Iran deal guaranteed a sunset on the arms embargo after five years, inter-continental ballistic missiles after eight years, and certain nuclear conditions after ten years. In a similar way, the Agreed Framework contained a built-in timeline. North Korea would come clean, allow for robust inspections, then get the nuclear reactors that had been promised.
In both cases, the timelines were based on certain assumptions. The belief in 1994 was that North Korea would never actually agree to all the provisions in the deal, but the assumption was that the regime of Kim Jong-il wouldn’t even exist by 1998—North Korea would by then be finished as a hostile communist power. The Obama administration’s assumption was that by the time Iran is capable of going nuclear, it will be reformed by “moderates” like President Hassan Rouhani and be a responsible member of the international community.
None of this is to say we shouldn’t try to negotiate with hostile regimes like Iran and North Korea before resorting to military options, or that Trump should completely walk away from the Iran deal in its entirety. But anyone arguing that North Korea’s nuclear capabilities bolster the case for the Iran deal doesn’t realize the similarities between U.S. efforts in both countries, or the reason our deal with North Korea ultimately fell apart.
“It’s not a model to follow,” says Albright. “The North Korea example of kicking can down the road is recipe for failure.”
John is a senior correspondent for The Federalist. Follow him on Twitter.
Labels: Bill/Hillary Clinton, Far East, Iran
The Shameful Blackout of Thomas, Sowell and Williams
By Larry Elder
https://townhall.com/
Clarence Thomas, who grew up in Savannah, Georgia, was confirmed to the U.S. Supreme Court in 1991. He is the second African American to sit on the high court.
STEVE PETTEWAY / COLLECTION OF THE SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES
Clarence Thomas, one of nine members of the Supreme Court and the second black to ever join the Court, is not in the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, D.C. Asked to explain Thomas' absence, the chief spokeswoman for the Smithsonian said, "The museum's exhibitions are based on themes, not individuals."
Yet the museum plans to add a popular local D.C. television news broadcaster. The museum's founding director, Lonnie Bunch, said the broadcaster "symbolized that it was really important that America was changing and his presence was a symbol of that change." And Thomas, raised in poverty to become only the second black to sit on the Supreme Court, is not "a symbol of that change"?
Left-wing blacks -- and that's the overwhelming majority -- feel that black conservatives like Thomas do not just have different or wrongheaded or illogical views. Thomas' views, to them, damage the black community. Never mind that most Clarence Thomas-haters could not identify a single case Thomas decided with which they disagree.
One line of attack against Thomas goes as follows. Thomas "took advantage" of race-based preferences to get into college and law school, but then "turned his back on those behind" by arguing that such preferences violate the 14th Amendment.
What these critics assert is that but for race-based preferences, Clarence Thomas would likely be working the deep-fryer at McDonald's. Assume, for the moment, that but for race-based preferences, Thomas would not have gotten into the particular schools he attended, College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Massachusetts, and Yale Law School. But in America thousands of colleges and universities, from community colleges to Harvard, accept students of varying abilities with financial assistance readily available. Surely the driven, hardworking, academically oriented Clarence Thomas could have and would have found admission into schools matching his skills and ability.
Economist and author Thomas Sowell was a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University
Here's another problem with race-based preferences. Studies document a disproportionately high college-dropout rate for minority students admitted with lower test scores and grades than their peers selected without preferences. How is this mismatching of value to the "beneficiary" if it leads to a higher dropout rate, with the frustrated student giving up and leaving school in debt? The student often blames his failure to succeed at this high level on unfair, if not racist, professors.
The African-American Museum's discrimination against Thomas provides just one example of the black anti-conservative bigotry. Here's another. Every year, the black monthly magazine Ebony lists its "Power 100," defined as those "who lead, inspire and demonstrate through their individual talents, the very best in Black America." Each year Thomas is conspicuously absent. Apparently, as a sitting black justice on the Supreme Court of the United States, Thomas does not "lead, inspire and demonstrate ... the very best in Black America."
Ebony not only excludes Clarence Thomas but also shuts out prominent conservatives Thomas Sowell and Walter Williams.
As for Sowell, he's only an economist and writer whom playwright David Mamet once called "our greatest contemporary philosopher." Sowell, who never knew his father, was raised by a great-aunt and her two grown daughters. They lived in Harlem, where he was the first in his family to make it past the sixth grade. He left home at 17, served as a Marine in the Korean War, graduated magna cum laude from Harvard, earned a master's degree at Columbia University the next year, followed by a Ph.D. in economics at the University of Chicago.
Sowell, at 87, authored some four dozen books (not counting revised editions) and wrote hundreds of scholarly articles and essays in periodicals and thousands of newspaper columns. In 2015, Forbes magazine said: "It's a scandal that economist Thomas Sowell has not been awarded the Nobel Prize. No one alive has turned out so many insightful, richly researched books." Yet, thanks in part to the Ebony shutout, many blacks have never heard of him.
Walter E. Williams is an economics professor at George Mason University
How does Ebony justify excluding economist and writer Walter Williams, former chairman of the economics department of George Mason University, where he still teaches? Raised by a single mother, he lived in Philadelphia's Richard Allen housing projects. He served as a private in the Army before earning a bachelor's degree at a state university, followed by a master's and a Ph.D. in economics at UCLA. Williams has written a dozen books on economics and race, including the inspirational "Up From the Projects: An Autobiography," and was recently the subject of a documentary about his life.
The exclusion of people like Clarence Thomas, Thomas Sowell and Walter Williams explains why there's no serious discussion in the black community about government dependency; school choice; the damage done by high taxes, excessive regulation and laws like minimum wage; and why blacks should rethink their allegiance to the Democratic Party.
The failure to acknowledge conservative blacks is a failure to engage their ideas, to the detriment of the community. This is not merely an injustice to them: It is an injustice to all Americans.
Labels: Race, Thomas Sowell
TRUMP GOT YOUR TONGUE, MEDIA?
President Trump with Senators Tom Cotton (left) and David Perdue discuss immigration reform, August 2, 2017. (Photo: Andrea Hanks/White House)
The current issue of Newsweek (yes, it's still in business!) has a picture of President Trump sitting in a recliner, with snacks and an iPad in his lap, pointing his TV remote at the viewer, blazoned with the headline, "Lazy Boy."
Liberals only wish.
Last week, the president joined Sens. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) and David Perdue (R-Ga.) to announce legislation that would make seminal changes to our immigration laws for the first time in more than half a century, profoundly affecting the entire country.
The media have chosen not to cover the RAISE Act (Reforming American Immigration for Strong Employment). This bill is their worst nightmare.
Instead of admitting immigrants on the basis of often specious "family" ties, the bill would finally allow us to choose the immigrants we want, based on merit, with points granted for skills, English proficiency, advanced degrees, actual job offers and so on.
Most Americans have no idea that we have zero say about the vast majority of immigrants pouring into our country. Two-thirds of all legal immigrants get in not because we want them -- or even because Mark Zuckerberg wants them -- but under idiotic "family reunification" laws.
The most important provision of the RAISE Act would define "family" the way most Americans think of it: your spouse and minor children.
Unfortunately, that's not how the Third World thinks of "family." In tribal societies, "family" means the whole extended clan -- adult siblings, elderly parents and brothers-in-law, plus all their adult siblings and elderly parents, and so on, ad infinitum.
Entire tribes of immigrants are able to bully their way in and, as legal immigrants, are immediately eligible for a whole panoply of government benefits. Suddenly, there's no money left in the Social Security Trust Fund, and Speaker Paul Ryan is telling Americans they're going to have to cut back.
At some point, American businesses are going to have to be told they can't keep bringing in cheap foreign labor, changing the country and offloading the costs onto the taxpayer. But that's not this discussion. Business owners want cheap workers -- not the disabled parents of cheap workers.
In a sane world, merely introducing such an important bill -- with the imprimatur of a president elected on his immigration stance -- would force the media to finally discuss the subject they have been deliberately hiding from the public.
Has Trump personally endorsed any other legislation like this? He harangued congressional Republicans on Twitter to pass some Obamacare replacement, but he never endorsed a specific bill.
But, you see, there's a reason the media don't want to talk about immigration.
With a full public airing, Americans would finally understand why recent immigrants seem so different from earlier waves, why income inequality is approaching czarist Russia levels, why the suicide rate has skyrocketed among the working class, and why all our government benefits programs are headed toward bankruptcy.
As Stephen Miller, the president's inestimable speechwriter, said, some legislative proposals "can only succeed in the dark of night" and some "can only succeed in the light of day." This is a light-of-day bill.
So, naturally, the media refuse to mention it, except to accuse Miller of being a white nationalist for knowing hate-facts about the Emma Lazarus poem not being part of the original Statue of Liberty. (It's the Statue of Liberty, not Statute of Liberty, media.)
They ignore this bill so they can get on to the important business of Trump's tweets, who's up and who's down in the White House, and Russia, Russia, Russia.
According to my review of Nexis archives, there was only a single question about the RAISE Act on any of the Sunday morning shows: Chris Wallace's last question to his very important Republican guest. Unfortunately, his very important Republican guest was amnesty-supporting nitwit Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina, who sniped about Trump employing foreign guest workers at Mar-a-Lago.
However that may be, guest workers have absolutely nothing to do with the RAISE Act, which, as Miller heroically tried to explain to clueless reporters, concerns only green-card holders, i.e., lawful permanent residents -- not guest workers, not illegal aliens and not a poem Scotch-taped onto Lady Liberty in 1903.
At least the media aren't deluded about the popularity of their position. Discussing immigration is a total loser for them. They know what they want is not supported by anyone.
Low-wage workers don't want hundreds of thousands of low-skilled immigrants being dumped on the country every year. Employers don't want the deadbeat cousins of their cheap workers. Americans on public assistance don't want foreigners competing with them for benefits. Boneheaded Scandinavian communities that welcomed refugees don't want to turn their entire town budgets over to various foreign tribes.
In a recent Numbers USA poll of voters in 10 swing states with vulnerable Democratic senators up for re-election next year, only 22 percent of respondents thought immigrants should be allowed by right to bring in "family" other than spouses and minor children.
Make the senators vote, Mr. President!
Donald Trump was elected president, beating the smartest, most qualified woman in the world, by proposing to put Americans first on immigration. This bill makes good on that promise.
There's a reason the media won't discuss it. If Trump were smart, he'd talk about nothing else.
http://www.nationalreview.com/article/450228/raise-act-immigration-bill-explainer-trump
Labels: Ann Coulter, Border Issues, Donald Trump
Today's Tune: Glen Campbell - These Days
Today's Tune: Glen Campbell - I'm Not Gonna Miss You
Glen Campbell's Alzheimer's battle added a heroic coda to a pop-country star's life
By Randy Lewis
I witnessed up close the ravaging effect that Alzheimer’s disease was having on Glen Campbell in the later years of his life. This was in 2011, when I interviewed him at his Malibu home shortly after he’d gone public with his diagnosis.
At that point, although his short-term memory was failing rapidly, he was in fairly good spirits, and his sense of humor was fully intact.
But even little points he wanted to make turned into a struggle. His brain was no longer responding with the kind of dexterity that his fingers and voice had done in making him a bona fide pop-country star in the 1960s, ’70s and ’80s.
Campbell, whose death at 81 was announced Tuesday, rode a long string of pop hits that began in 1967 with John Hartford’s “Gentle on My Mind” and continued with Jimmy Webb’s “By the Time I Get to Phoenix” and more Webb songs (“Wichita Lineman,” “Galveston”), all of which led to his breakout success as the host of “The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour.”
Yet that day, when I asked how he perceived the effect of this pernicious disease, his response shifted from astutely analytical to frustratingly forgetful.
“I’m fine,” he said at first, as we sat at the counter in his kitchen, his wife, Kim, seated near him. “It’s just sometimes days are better than other ones.”
A moment later, he added, “It hasn’t affected me in any way. In fact, I don’t even know what it is. Who came up with that?”
When Kim reminded him —“Your doctor,” she said — he shot back, “Well, he’s probably wrong.”
In other situations he liked to quip, “I don’t have Alzheimer’s. I have part-timer’s.”
In fact, Campbell had been experiencing the onset of dementia or Alzheimer’s for years before he and Kim chose to let the world in on the news.
At that time, they said they wanted fans to know what he was up against, because he wished to continue performing as long as he could, but didn’t want people thinking he’d relapsed on his sobriety if he forgot lyrics or repeated a joke he’d told a few minutes earlier.
That revelation made me rethink another interview I’d done with him a few years earlier. This one I cited for years as one of the most disappointing of my career.
Then, Campbell had released 2008’s “Meet Glen Campbell,” an excellent album in which he applied his endearing boy-next-door tenor and phenomenal guitar technique to a batch of recent-vintage songs by artists such as Tom Petty, Green Day, Velvet Underground, U2, the Replacements and other left-field (for him) sources.
I’d gotten little other than “yes,” “no” and “I don’t remember/I’m not sure” responses from him. I left the interview wondering why he’d even bothered, since he seemed more focused on getting to the round of golf he said was awaiting him.
In retrospect, I could understand that he was already impaired to an extent. But no one knew that yet — not even him.
In the 2014 documentary “Glen Campbell: I’ll Be Me,” directed by actor-filmmaker James Keach, there’s a scene where Campbell and his wife travel to Washington, D.C., to lobby on behalf of greater federal support for increased Alzheimer’s research funding. The disease figures to affect millions more as the baby boomers move into what are supposed to be “the golden years.”
In an interview with former President Clinton — one of Campbell’s fellow Arkansans — he suggested that despite the millions of records Campbell had sold and all the fans he’d entertained over half a century, his greatest legacy might turn out to be his advocacy for those with Alzheimer’s. Clinton praised the singer and guitarist for using his own difficult experience to put a public face on the cruelly degenerative disease.
A big part of what made Campbell’s journey so unusually compelling is the way that music allowed him to stave off some of the worst effects of Alzheimer’s much longer than many.
That’s because it’s said that music resides in a part of the brain that the disease doesn’t fully invade until its final stages. Thus, even when he was forgetting the names of his children, or little details like what he ate for breakfast, he could still summon lyrics to songs he’d sung hundreds of times over the decades.
Even more impressively, with apparent effortlessness he could still spin out magnificently complex guitar solos requiring highly intricate brain-muscle-nerve communication.
That element of his 2012-13 Goodbye Tour was reassuring to fans who remember the signature guitar style that he honed to perfection as a studio professional working in Los Angeles in the ’60s with other session pros who came to be known as the Wrecking Crew.
His chiseled good looks and down-home Arkansas humor allowed him to emerge from the relative anonymity of studio work to become a TV and recording star through his CBS musical variety show “The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour,” and a long string of pop-country hits such as “Gentle on My Mind,” “By the Time I Get to Phoenix,” “Wichita Lineman,” “Rhinestone Cowboy” and “Southern Nights.”
Throughout his career, like so many celebrities, he also battled substance abuse and found himself more frequently on the cover of supermarket tabloids than Billboard or Rolling Stone in the 1980s and ’90s.
But following a humiliating arrest for “extreme drunken driving” in Arizona in 2004, he got sober and returned to recording, delivering some of his best work since the ’60s and ’70s, beginning with “Meet Glen Campbell” with producer Julian Raymond, who also shepherded “Ghost on the Canvas” and collaborated on writing songs that addressed what Campbell was going through physically, mentally and emotionally.
The poignancy of his slide into Alzheimer’s certainly figured into several industry nominations and awards he received for his 2011 album “Ghost on the Canvas” and for Keach’s documentary, which generated an Academy Award nomination for the song “”I’m Not Gonna Miss You.”
In that number, he sang, “I'm never gonna hold you like I did/Or say ‘I love you’ to the kids/You're never gonna see it in my eyes/It's not gonna hurt me when you cry.” Elton John called it “not only the best song nominated; it’s one of the most beautiful songs of all time.”
When I spoke to Keach about working with Campbell on the project, a work that didn’t flinch from sharing what he was like on some of his bad days, he spoke in admiration of the singer’s bravery in letting others in on what he and his family were going through.
"Here's a guy, an iconic musician, who was faced with having to hang up his guitar, his career is over,” Keach told me. “But instead, he says, ‘I ain’t done yet. I'm going out to show what this disease is’ because he wants to change the conversation. He writes the song with Julian, records it, sometimes a line at a time, sometimes a word at a time, and he wins a Grammy and gets nominated for an Oscar.
“If that ain't a hero,” Keach said. “I don't know what is.”
Glen Campbell, we’re all gonna miss you.
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/music/la-et-ms-glen-campbell-appreciation-obituary-alzheimers-20170808-story.html
Labels: Music, Obituaries
Saying Goodbye to the First Good Ol’ Boy of American Pop
By David Cantwell
http://www.newyorker.com/
Credit: Lisa Lake/Getty Images
Glen Campbell’s “I’m Not Gonna Miss You,” a Best Original Song nominee at this Sunday’s Academy Awards, begins with piano chords that evoke, and then countermand, the pulse-quickening piano that opens the singer’s best-known recording, “Rhinestone Cowboy.” A pop-and-country chart-topper forty years ago this summer, “Rhinestone Cowboy” bemoans the “load of compromises” and other obstacles that stand between people and their star-spangled ambitions. The song’s specific goal is pop celebrity, but the music invites us to insert our own out-of-reach American dreams, and to sing along with a chorus that, obstacles abruptly forgotten, is pure success, all anthem. By contrast, the heavy, exhausted piano that begins “I’m Not Gonna Miss You” is stripped of any brightness or optimism, as Campbell, who in 2011 was given a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease, acknowledges that he will soon be unable to recognize, or even to recall, the people and life he’s loved. Hence the heartbreaking refrain: “I’m not gonna miss you.”
After decades in which he was more likely to gain attention for struggles with alcohol and drug addiction than for his music, and after a period of country-music exile in Branson, Missouri, in the nineties, Campbell began inching toward a late-in-life second act with his 2005 induction into the Country Music Hall of Fame. Three years later, he released a well-regarded comeback album, “Meet Glen Campbell.” A farewell concert tour, documented in the 2014 film “Glen Campbell: I’ll Be Me,” provided him poignant victory laps. “I’m Not Gonna Miss You,” from the soundtrack and co-written by Campbell and his producer Julian Raymond, won a Grammy for Best Country Song earlier this month. It’s a moving coda to a major career—one that many critics have only just begun to fully appreciate.
Glowing takes on Campbell’s genre-bending recording career are more common than they used to be, but they’re belated. In the late sixties and early seventies, Campbell was ubiquitous, frequently guest starring on TV variety series and hosting his own, “The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour,” for four seasons. He acted on the big screen in 1969’s “True Grit” and, less memorably, in 1970’s “Norwood,” and his hit singles were a constant presence on multiple radio formats. He won an armful of Grammys. In 1968, he was the Country Music Association’s Entertainer of the Year.
He was not admired by critics. Campbell’s emergence as a country-pop star coincided with the rise of rock criticism, just then codifying around a clutch of aesthetic rules-of-thumb, now known as “rockism.” These rules include a preference for “authenticity” over artifice and an overriding admiration for rebellion and masculinity. Campbell, who wrote none of his iconic hits, and who favored studio-perfected pop arrangements (with orchestral backing, no less), was typically dismissed as middle-of-the-road by critics—when he wasn’t being ignored altogether. Not one of his albums from that time was reviewed in Rolling Stone, for example, and in the 1979 edition of that magazine’s record guide, the only Campbell albums to receive higher than two (out of five) star rankings were his several greatest-hits collections. Those were awarded three stars.
Most of today’s critical trends are breaking Campbell’s way. The notion that what’s in the middle of the road can be inviting and necessary, rather than inherently inferior to what’s edgy and on the edges, is increasingly accepted as common sense. Crossover country acts are nearly as likely to inspire serious critical discussion as eye rolling. More and more, it is understood that you can’t tell the story of American popular music without Glen Campbell.
Campbell was making significant contributions to that story for years before most listeners had ever heard his name. Born into a musical family outside tiny Delight, Arkansas, in 1937, he moved to Albuquerque to play guitar in an uncle’s country swing band when he just fourteen, and by 1960 had made his way to Los Angeles, where he became an in-demand session guitarist while simultaneously trying to launch a solo career.
If Campbell had arrived in California a few years earlier, he might have tried to make it as a straight country act. If he’d shown up a couple of years later, after the British Invasion, he might have turned rock. Partly because he arrived between these eras, he wound up doing a bit of everything. In 1962, he scored a minor country hit with “Kentucky Means Paradise,” a dobro-driven twanger that he cut with the Green River Boys, a bluegrass group. In 1965, he scored a minor pop hit with “Universal Soldier,” a folk-rock protest song written by Buffy St. Marie. In between, he was a Beach Boy, filling in on tour after Brian Wilson suffered a breakdown and left the road. He was in the house band for the germinal pop TV series “Shindig!” All the while, he was a member in good standing of what became known as the Wrecking Crew, a loose lineup of first-call L.A. session musicians who were the backing band on the 1964 rock-and-soul movie “The T.A.M.I. Show,” and who played, more famously, on hundreds of the decade’s most indelible hits. Campbell played acoustic or electric guitar on records so singular and widely beloved that to name each recording artist in question would be redundant: “He’s a Rebel,” “Strangers in the Night,” “Good Vibrations,” “Everybody Loves Somebody Sometimes,” “Viva Las Vegas,” “You’ve Lost that Lovin’ Feelin’,” “California Dreamin’.”
Campbell’s gift for doing it all and doing it well, so valuable as a session musician, at first proved a stumbling block to clarifying a distinctive sound and image of his own. But his versatility was a problem only until it became his solution. The breakthrough came in 1967, with John Hartford’s “Gentle on My Mind.” Campbell’s version of the song was an arresting synthesis of everything he’d been doing all along: country, folk, and pop rock, plus songwriting that was unmistakably post-Dylan. It wasn’t a smash. But it possessed broad-based appeal—its brand of romantic (and womanizing) individualism and its hurtling acoustic arrangement struck a chord with rockers and middle-of-the-roaders alike—and it stuck around. When it was re-released the following year, it cracked the pop Top 40 and inspired covers by everyone from Elvis Presley and Dean Martin to Aretha Franklin. When Campbell’s CBS variety series débuted, in early 1969, “Gentle on My Mind” was its theme.
By that time, Campbell had released a pair of far more successful singles, “By the Time I Get to Phoenix” and “Wichita Lineman,” followed quickly by a third, “Galveston.” All three songs were written by Jimmy Webb and contained contributions from Campbell’s old Wrecking Crew pals, and all three made more or less simultaneous débuts on the national pop, country, and adult-contemporary charts. That last format was named “easy listening” at the time, but the musical and emotional worlds of these records are anything but—anxious, dissatisfied energy quivers about their every note. Check the nervous-tick lick (from the bassist Carol Kaye) that opens “Wichita Lineman.” Mark the bombing raid (from the drummer Hal Blaine) that concludes “Galveston.” Webb’s characters here are ordinary middle Americans—a husband leaving his wife, a blue-collar guy at work, a young soldier in Vietnam—and they all feel trapped. They are trying or hoping to get somewhere better (with fingers crossed that somewhere better even exists), and fear that they aren’t equipped for the journey.
These and so many other Campbell hits—“Dreams of the Everyday Housewife,” “Where’s the Playground Suzie,” “It’s Only Make Believe,” and “Rhinestone Cowboy,” among others—identify as rural and Southern, but with strong middle-American appeal, hopeful but deeply melancholy. “Sadly Beautiful,” as a Paul Westerberg song from “Meet Glen Campbell” suggested.
The essential thing on all of these recordings is Campbell’s voice. Straight through to his last recordings, Campbell sings with a strong, rangy tenor that manages somehow to be both ordinary and remarkable: even when we’ve listened to that voice for decades, there remains something a bit indistinct about it, but in a way that feels more universal than faceless. On the rare occasions when we know he’s singing about his own life, as on the grim silver lining of “I’m Not Gonna Miss You,” the effect reaches beyond himself toward an anxious American audience—particularly, in this case, toward those baby-boomer fans who have aging parents and who aren’t getting any younger themselves. “I’m Not Gonna Miss You” lets Campbell do once again what, at his best, he’s always done: worry intensely about what his audience is worried about.
Campbell doesn’t twist notes much on that performance. He never has, and throughout his career, when he’s gone for the big finale, he seems to be under-singing, a bit down even when he’s up. Like the bluegrass and country music he grew up loving, and like Roy Orbison and Brian Wilson (two of his vocal heroes), Campbell’s great strength as a singer is his tone. High and lonesome.
We won’t hear his voice again. Tim McGraw has been tapped to sing “I’m Not Gonna Miss You” at the Oscars. But Campbell’s uptown-down-home persona—a broad-smiling, handsome man specializing in decidedly unsmiling songs—established a pop-country type that persists. Campbell is grinning and game, and a little blue. He enjoys big cities but is not entirely at home there. He appreciates Dylan, but he absolutely loves Hank Williams—and he’s content with his choice, most of the time. Before Burt Reynolds became a major film star, before Waylon and Willie crossed over, before “The Dukes of Hazzard,” Garth Brooks, and Blake Shelton, there was the sad and beautiful Glen Campbell, the first good ol’ boy of American pop.
David Cantwell is the author of “Merle Haggard: The Running Kind” and the co-author of “Heartaches by the Number.”
Today's Tune: Glen Campbell - Wichita Lineman
Glen Campbell: a universal voice who defined American manhood
By Michael Hann
https://www.theguardian.com/music/
Glen Campbell may have died after 60 years of making music, recording until well after the onset of Alzheimer’s, but for many people his career boils down to a handful of singles, recorded in a scant few years at the tail end of the 1960s and the start of the 1970s – particularly the three Jimmy Webb songs he had huge hits with: By the Time I Get to Phoenix, Wichita Lineman and Galveston.
But what songs. They are the anchor of his canon, but you would certainly addRhinestone Cowboy, written by Larry Weiss, John Hartford’s Gentle on My Mind, plus a couple of lesser Webb songs, Honey Come Back and Where’s the Playground Susie. After that it’s down to personal taste. He was, really, the perfect artist for the greatest hits album, for the collection that allowed you to cut through the schmaltz and sentiment to the artistry.
Campbell was canny enough to know that the “town cycle” was his ticket to greatness. He reunited with Webb repeatedly down the years – in 1974 he released Reunion: The Songs of Jimmy Webb, with Webb himself playing piano; Webb was the orchestra conductor on the 1977 Royal Festival Hall show that was released as a live album, and whose tracklisting provides a telling insight into Campbell’s musical mind, with showtunes, rock’n’roll standards, Jacques Brel numbers and Beach Boys songs alongside the pop country hits. In 1988 Webb supplied eight songs to the Light Years album, and that year the pair recorded a live duo performance that was finally released on CD in 2012.
But let’s go back to the “town cycle”, because those are the three songs most people will be returning to when they hear the news he has died, not least because they’re songs that ache with loss. Webb’s writing is peerless, of course – he never bettered these three songs – but they wouldn’t be half so good without Campbell’s delivery. Because he wasn’t yet an established part of the MOR firmament, he could still convince as an everyman, and these were very much the songs of an everyman – filled with wistfulness, regret and the truest of all emotions, but the one least frequently expressed in love songs, ambivalence.
By the Time I Get to Phoenix is a staggering achievement for both Webb and Campbell: Webb had written a song about a man whose actions are, in any accounting, poor to the point of awfulness. He has left his partner in the worst possible way – he’s pinned up a note and walked out, and then driven, east along the freeways, to Phoenix, Albuquerque, Oklahoma. He knows she be calling until the phone rings off the wall; he knows she’ll be crying herself to sleep. He just doesn’t care, or not enough – as far as he’s concerned he tried to tell her he didn’t love her, she just never listened. It’s the kind of story you hear in a pub and think, “What a tosser.” Campbell manages to make you empathise with the jilter.
Wichita Lineman might be an even greater achievement, 16 lines that capture an entire existence, without drama or fuss – just a man alone on the vast, empty plains, fixing the overheard telephone wires and letting the passage of his life drift through his mind. The line that gets picked up on is the couplet near the end – “And I need you more than want you / And I want you for all time” – which I hear people hail as the perfect summation of love, but which to me seems something sadder and more profound. It is need, more than want, that defines the narrator’s relationship; if they need their lover more than wanting them, then naturally they will want them for all time. The couplet encompasses the fear that those who have been in relationships do sometimes struggle with: good God, what happens to me if I am left alone? It’s a heartstopping line, and no matter how many thousands of times you hear the song, no matter what it means to you, it does not lose its impact.
The final town song, Galveston, was intended by Webb as a Vietnam protest song. But Campbell didn’t see it that way. In 1965 he had recorded Buffy Saint-Marie’s pacifist song Universal Soldier, and somehow managed to convince himself that he wasn’t singing pacifist lyrics while doing so, insisting at the time that “if you don’t have enough guts to fight for your country, you’re not a man”. Webb had written a song about a man dreaming of escape from war, of a return to a place where no one is shooting; Campbell, by contrast, sang of a man who was at war for the sake of the town he loved, a change subtly made by a minor lyric change. Where Webb wrote “I put down my gun / And dream of Galveston”, Campbell sang “I clean my gun / And dream of Galveston.”
That doesn’t diminish him, or make him less of an everyman. The world does not see the world through the eyes of Hollywood liberals, and Campbell was as true to one half of America – his half – as Webb had been. In those three recordings, Campbell did as much as anyone to capture American manhood at a time of change: insecure, uncertain, committed to nothing, but searching for something more. You’ll be hearing those three songs a lot in the next few days; I doubt you’ll get tired of them. That’s how great they are.
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Remember the cellist who played at the royal wedding?
Ricordanza
Location: Southern New Jersey, USA
Post by Ricordanza » Thu Dec 19, 2019 3:06 pm
Young classical musicians who are lucky enough to achieve instant fame do so by different routes. Some performers burst upon the scene by winning a major competition. Others are given the opportunity to substitute for a more established musician. The young British cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason came to world attention in an entirely unique way: nearly two billion television viewers around the world saw and heard his superb artistry as he played three pieces at the wedding ceremony of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry.
On Tuesday evening, December 17, a much smaller but equally enthralled audience of about 600 people attended a magnificent recital by this 20-year-old cellist and his equally gifted sister, 23-year-old pianist Isata Kanneh-Mason. Because this concert was sold out, we were displaced from our usual seats on the first level of the Perelman Theater in Philadelphia’s Kimmel Center. Nevertheless, from our location in the next-to-last row in the second balcony, the sound and visibility were unimpaired. It was an excellent opportunity to experience the perfect blend of an intelligently selected program and a splendid execution of that program by these two young stars. An added factor in enjoying this concert was that all but one of the program selections represented a first hearing for me.
The evening began with a Beethoven rarity—Twelve Variations on Ein Mädchen oder Weibchen, from Mozart’s opera, “The Magic Flute. It is yet another fascinating example of how Beethoven takes a relatively simple tune and transforms it in the most unexpected and imaginative ways. But unlike the serious and dramatic Diabelli and Eroica Variations, this set preserves the light and comic character of the original source.
Witold Lutoslawski was perhaps the pre-eminent Polish composer of the 20th Century. He is best known for his large-scale orchestral works, such as his Concerto for Orchestra. The short but moving piece performed on this program is entitled Grave and, according to the program notes, was written in memory of Stefan Jarocinski, a musicologist and critic who championed Lutoslawski’s music. From the description, I expected a somber and soulful work, but the piece has some lighter moments to balance the mood.
Samuel Barber’s Cello Sonata, Opus 6, was written while the composer was still a student at Philadelphia’s Curtis Institute of Music. This three-movement work is hard to characterize in style, since it starts out in a more “modernistic” idiom yet, by the third movement, ends up as a neo-romantic work. But a young composer can be forgiven for his stylistic wanderings when the piece is as musically engaging as this one is. Even more than the first two pieces, this was an opportunity to appreciate Sheku’s beautiful tone, impeccable phrasing, and intensity of expression. And like the rest of the program, this piece was a true partnership between cello and piano, not mere accompaniment. Therefore, it gave us another chance to appreciate the pianistic gifts of older sister Isata.
Following intermission, the pair embarked on a work of symphonic scope--the Cello Sonata in G Minor, Opus 19, by Sergei Rachmaninoff. This was the only piece on the program I had heard before, but this performance was a revelation. Sheku’s playing was passionate and poetic. The piano part, unsurprisingly, is rich and technically demanding. Once again, Isata displayed her masterful command of her instrument. Together, they presented a convincing interpretation and met the challenge of holding together this sprawling four-movement work.
After a loud and sustained standing ovation, the pair played one of the most delightful encores I have ever heard: Sheku Kanneh-Mason’s own Variations on Gustav Holst’s Christmas Carol, In the Bleak Midwinter. So, he’s a talented composer as well? Wow. It was a great way to close out one of the most memorable concerts I have heard.
Last edited by Ricordanza on Thu Dec 19, 2019 5:35 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Rach3
Re: Remember the cellist who played at the royal wedding?
Post by Rach3 » Thu Dec 19, 2019 3:43 pm
Many thanks, Henry.
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Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee
F. Scott & Son
British Galleries
tiger (animal)
Victoria, Queen
Prints & Drawings Study Room, level C
Hawick (made)
1887 (made)
F. Scott & Son (supplier)
Colour print from engraved rollers, on paper
Given by the Royal Scottish Museum, Edinburgh
E.791-1970
Prints & Drawings Study Room, level C, case MB2A, shelf DR, box DW3II
In Britain, paper printed with patterns has been used for decorating walls since the 16th century. By the late 19th century wallpapers were widely used by all classes, both in homes and in public buildings.
Historical Associations
This wallpaper was designed to celebrate Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee in 1887, the fiftieth year of her reign. The design shows a portrait of the Queen surrounded by representations of India, Canada, Australia, and the Cape Colony (part of what is now South Africa), which were then part of the British Empire.
Ownership & Use
Wallpapers commemorating important historical events and royal anniversaries were produced in large numbers in the second half of the 19th century. They were intended for the cheaper end of the market. At the time many critics and design reformers condemned pictorial patterns like this as evidence of bad taste and poor design. This wallpaper is a 'sanitary' paper. It was printed with oil-based colours that were not soluble in water, so that the surface was washable. Sanitary wallpapers with commemorative designs would probably have been used in an inn or hotel rather than in an ordinary home.
Portion of wallpaper with a design commemorating Queen Victoria’s Golden Jubilee. Portraits of the Queen are interspersed with vignettes illustrating the people and the wildlife in the outposts of the British Empire on four continents: Australia, Canada, Cape Colony (later South Africa), and India; Colour print from engraved rollers, on paper.
Jubilee - Sanitary Washable Paper-Hangings BV
Stamped on the border Jubilee - Sanitary Washable Paper-Hangings BV.
Height: 66 cm, Width: 56.5 cm
Made in Britain.
Provenance: The stock of F. Scott & Son, 26, High Street Hawick, Roxburghshire.
Portion of wallpaper with a design commemorating Queen Victoria’s Golden Jubilee. Portraits of the Queen are interspersed with vignettes illustrating the people and the wildlife in the outposts of the British Empire on four continents: Australia, Canada, Cape Colony (later South Africa), and India; Colour print from engraved rollers, on paper; From the stock of F. Scott & Son, 26, High Street Hawick, Roxburghshire; Great Britain; 1887.
Oman, Charles C., and Hamilton, Jean. Wallpapers: a history and illustrated catalogue of the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum. London: Sotheby Publications, in association with the Victoria and Albert Museum, 1982.
Saunders, Gill. Wallpaper in Interior Decoration. V&A Publications. London. 2002. pp. 102-103. pl 86.
British Galleries:
This is one of several wallpapers designed to commemorate royal anniversaries. It would have been used in a hotel or pub rather than a private house, and is an indication of how popular the image of Victoria had become by the time of the 1887 Jubilee. The portrait of the Queen is surrounded by representations of the colonies of the British Empire. [27/03/2003]
Elephant; Ostrich; Tiger (animal); Kangaroo; Plants; Flowers; Lion
Black History; British Galleries; Wall coverings; Scotland
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Tonsured Maize God
Like other Mesoamerican peoples, the traditional Mayas recognize in their staple crop, maize, a vital force with which they strongly identify. This is clearly shown by their mythological traditions. According to the 16th-century Popol Vuh, the Hero Twins have maize plants for alter egos and man himself is created from maize. The discovery and opening of the Maize Mountain - the place where the corn seeds are hidden - is still one of the most popular of Mayan tales. In the Classic period (200-900 AD), the maize deity shows aspects of a culture hero.
1 Female and male maize deities
2 Functions of the tonsured maize god
3 Late pre-classic and classic Mayan maize mythology
3.1 Popol Vuh twin myth extension
3.2 Cosmological creation myth
3.3 Seasonal myth
3.4 Gulf Coast maize myth
4 Names and calendar functions
Female and male maize deities
In Mayan oral tradition, maize is usually personified as a woman[1] - like rice in Southeast Asia, or wheat in ancient Greece and Rome. The acquisition of this woman through bridal capture constitutes one of the basic Mayan myths.[2] In contrast to this, the pre-Spanish Mayan aristocracy appears to have primarily conceived of maize as male. The classic period distinguished two male forms: a foliated (leafy) maize god and a tonsured one.[3] The foliated god is present in the so-called maize tree (Temple of the Foliated Cross, Palenque), its cobs being shaped like the deity's head. Whereas the foliated maize god is a one-dimensional vegetation spirit, the tonsured maize god's functions are much more diverse. When performing ritually, the latter typically wears a netted jade skirt and a belt with a large spondylus shell covering the loins. On stelae, it is a queen rather than a king that tends to represent the tonsured maize god. The queen thus appears as a maize goddess, in accordance with the Mayan narrative traditions mentioned above. A male maize deity representing the foliated type and labeled god E is present in the three extant Maya books of undisputed authenticity; the codical god H has been claimed to represent the tonsured maize god.[4]
Functions of the tonsured maize god
Iconographically, various functions can be discerned:
The tonsured maize god personifies precious substances: maize, jade, and cacao. The Popol Vuh has Xquic imploring a "cacao woman," but the classical Mayas preferred to depict the cacao god as male. The tonsured Maize god doubles as a tonsured cacao god, with cacao pods growing from his body.[5] Sometimes the tonsured cacao god's body can be shown as a tree, with his head representing the cacao pod growing on its stem. A classical Mayan vase in the Popol Vuh Museum seems to show a trophy head suspended in such a personified cacao tree.
The tonsured maize god is intrinsically connected to the lightning deities and can therefore evince a lightning ax or torch stuck in the forehead.[6]
In addition to being the deity of maize and cacao, the tonsured maize god is also a patron of dancing [7] and feasting. As a ceremonial dancer, he often carries a specific totemic animal in his back rack.[8]
Along with the howler monkey gods, he is a patron of the scribal arts (see figure 1). In this, as in some other respects, the tonsured maize god is a juvenile form of the upper god, God D (Itzamna).
In his life as in his death and resurrection, the tonsured maize god serves as a model for the king.[7]
In the San Bartolo murals, the maize God is connected to a fifth world tree probably representing the central tree of life; in Palenque, a maize tree serves as such a tree of life.
Late pre-classic and classic Mayan maize mythology
Many classic Mayan paintings, particularly those on vases, testify to the existence of a rich mythology centered on the tonsured maize god. The late pre-classic murals of San Bartolo demonstrate its great antiquity.[9] Several theories, with varying degrees of ethnographic support, have been formulated to account for episodes such as the maize deity's resurrection from a turtle, his canoe voyage, and his transformation into a cacao tree.
Popol Vuh twin myth extension
The tonsured maize god is often accompanied by the hero twins. Following Karl Taube, many scholars (such as Michael D. Coe) believe that the resurrected tonsured maize god of the classic period corresponds to the father of the hero twins in the Popol Vuh and Hun-Hunahpu.[3] However, this generally accepted identification has recently been contested.[4]
Cosmological creation myth
Linda Schele's emphasis on creation has led to a series of interconnected hypotheses all involving the cosmological centrality of the tonsured maize god (or "first father"), to wit: his establishment of the so-called 'three-stone hearth' (assumed to represent a constellation);[10][11] his raising of the world tree;[10] his "dance of creation";[10][7][12] and his stance as an acrobat, which (more or less coinciding with representations of a crocodile tree) seems to evoke the central world tree.[13] The maize god's presence in the San Bartolo arrangement of five world trees has been interpreted as his establishment of the world.[14]
Seasonal myth
Another theory, formulated by Simon Martin,[5] focuses on the tonsured maize god's interaction with an aged jaguar deity of trade, God L. This interaction is related to the hero's transformation into a cacao tree conceived as a "trophy tree." God L is assumed to have presided over the dry season dedicated to long-distance trade, warfare, and the cacao harvest, and the Tonsured Maize God over the wet season and the growth of the maize. The onset of the two seasons is thought to be symbolized by the defeat of the maize deity and of God L, respectively.
Gulf Coast maize myth
In many scenes, an aquatic environment strongly comes to the fore (see fig. 2), most famously in the maize deity's resurrection from the carapace of a turtle that is floating on the waters. Braakhuis[4] pointed out that such an environment also characterizes an important maize myth shared by many ethnic groups (such as Huaxtecs, Totonacs, Nahuas and Zoques) inhabiting Mexico's Gulf Coast. The fact that this myth focuses on a male, rather than a female maize deity, while at the same time establishing an intimate connection between the maize god and the turtle, is adduced in support of the idea that the classic Mayas once formed part of the same narrative tradition. More in particular, the Pre-Classic San Bartolo Mayan maize deity dancing with a turtle drum amidst aquatic deities may have a connection with a Zoque (Popoluca) version of the Gulf Coast myth.[4][7]
Names and calendar functions
Many designations for the pre-Spanish maize god occur in the Book of Chilam Balam of Chumayel. They include ah mun (tender green shoot) [15] and zac uac nal (white six new corn) or uac chuaac nal (six tall new corn).[2] In the wake of Schele, the tonsured maize god (hypothetically equated with Hun-Hunahpu) has often been nicknamed "first father." The classic name of the tonsured maize god, which usually includes the numeral "One", is not known, although various names referring to maize have been suggested, such as "Hun-Nal-Ye" and "Ixim".
The appearance of the tonsured maize god is connected to the base date of the Long Count, 4 Ahau 8 Cumku. Maize is associated with the day Q'an (ripe or ripeness); the head of the foliated maize god serves to denote the number 8. The tonsured maize god is sometimes found associated with the lunar crescent and may therefore have played a role in the divisions of the lunar count; his head seems to occur in glyph C of the Lunar Series (see also Maya moon goddess).
Centeōtl (Aztec god of maize)
Chicomecōātl (Aztec goddess of maize)
Xochipilli (Aztec god of flowers, maize, and the arts)
Template:Maya
Maya religion
Chilam Balam, Maya calendar, Maya maize god, Wayob, Bacabs
Hun Hunahpu
Maize, Popol Vuh, Maya hero twins, Howler Monkey Gods, Vucub-Hunahpu
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Mark meet Larry
Ok, this is kind of long. Go get a cup of coffee.
Amid the anxiety and revelations of the Russia scandal including the Cambridge Analytica story that showed how easy it was to steal 50 million Facebook user profiles, it’s easy to mix up cause and effect. Importantly, Facebook wasn’t hacked or broken into but it was used as it was designed.
This has led some to question whether Facebook as such can exist at all in our pluralistic society while others believe the problem of surreptitious psychographic profiling will blow over once everyone plays by the same rules. After all, others have argued, other entities do the same thing. They point to Google, Amazon and even the traditional print industry as culprits for gathering personal data for analysis and, it should be said, weaponization.
Of course, the issue is manipulating and weaponizing the data. If we can’t trust the data, then we are disassembling one of the pillars of democracy, the acceptance of scientific rationalism. Boiled down, it means facts are facts even if you don’t like them.
If you remember a time before social media when identities were not so readily stolen and you think that reality was good, you might also recoil at the thought that those were the good old days, that things are now permanently different. There is a third option though and there are probably many that seek to balance the benefits of new technology with the protections we’ve grown accustomed to.
This article can’t be all things to all those people but it attempts to find safe harbor in a storm and therefore makes accommodations. If we can’t live with the compromises, perhaps it can at least point out some of the major obstacles to be over come.
It is an article of faith that Facebook’s business model, as well as those of other social networks and search engines, is selling advertising. But it is my contention that this model has run its course. It was effective when the companies were smaller, when their consumers were more innocent to the ways technology can be used for both good and ill purposes. The advertising model was even necessary in a time when the Internet was new and finding people and things was strange.
The advertising business model was a default that data aggregators took on the way to phenomenal profits and who could blame them. The tech sector has a habit of minting money and the founders of social media and search engines were merely the latest in a long line of prolific brainiacs who struck gold. It is hard to believe that any human in a similar situation would act much differently.
The latest dustup that dragged social media into the political spotlight now presents two choices to these businesses. They can hobble their products, which could reduce the amount of data they collect making them less interesting to advertisers, or they can change their business models slightly to prevent unethical use of their networks.
Anytime a new technology reaches market, it has the possibility that it will disrupt the existing order of things. Disruptive innovations have coexisted with Capitalism since its origins in the Industrial Revolution. Disruptive innovation means making thread and then cloth with high-speed mechanical means, making a steam engine powerful and small enough to be mobile, or making a computer that could fit on a sliver of silicon about the size of your thumbnail.
The world changed with each of these disruptive innovations and others, because they immediately made an old order irrelevant and they organized whole economies and even civilizations around new driving forces. The Internet and its children are the latest innovations that have rocked the world. In each, humanity has had to grapple with both the benefits and the deficits of the innovations.
So far, we’ve benefitted enormously from these innovations but recently we discovered their less sanguine side. If history is a guide then regulation in some form is a likely next step. Some leaders in congress have already broached the idea on several occasions but it’s important to get the idea right before pulling the trigger, which is why we need to discuss business models.
Regulation could happen in social media and search but there’s much that the technology companies can do to either avert it or ensure that its mandate is as light and congruent with company interests as possible starting with the prevailing business model.
Although the advertising business model has served many companies well, they’ve morphed into data companies with big responsibilities for safeguarding the data they collect and that’s not something they’re eager for.
The big data gathering companies like Facebook, Amazon, and Google and their competitors, have become data companies first and advertising vendors second and if this understanding had been realized sooner, many data breeches would in all likelihood have been thwarted. Rule One of business is never give away your product, it’s what you charge for because it pays the bills. Applying the rule should be as obvious as encrypting user data in this case. Additionally, no expectant user of the data should be able to access it in its unencrypted form without, of course paying, but more importantly presenting valid credentials and stating a beneficial and productive purpose of the use.
I’ve written before about credentialing and how it’s actually harder to pull permits to remodel your kitchen than it is to advertise any message you want on social media so I won’t perseverate. So let’s turn to encryption.
Security as a business model
Social and search’s business model must turn from advertising to data management, curation, and selling access to it and we live at precisely the moment when these activities are possible on a very large level. This includes encryption and the same form of certification that applies to other professionals from doctors to beauticians and plumbers.
Encryption and its reverse take time and require compute and storage resources which have often cut short discussions involving them because of cost considerations. But new, shall we say disruptive, innovations in computer hardware and software are reigniting the discussion.
In hardware data storage was long accomplished with the hard drives of most computer systems. Data enters and leaves storage on millisecond time scales, which is very fast. However, computer CPUs and memory operate one million times faster at nanosecond speeds. CPU chips spend a lot of time waiting for data to become available even when, as most modern computer systems do, there is memory caching for frequently used data.
Innovative hardware designs now offer solid-state memory devices that replace disks. This memory operates at nanosecond intervals and eliminates the lag time of older mechanical systems. What should we do with all of this newfound speed? One possibility might be to dedicate a small portion of it to encryption. Typical encryption modes on the market right now could be broken but that would take so many years that the resulting data, when finally available, would be useless and encryption is getting better.
Encryption would be a good thing but it wouldn’t solve all problems and securing our information infrastructure so that it operates more at utility grade, requires other changes. Bad software, malware, viruses, Trojan Horses, and the like may still get into systems.
As luck would have it free markets generate inventions faster than they can be adopted. Often a disruptive innovation exists at the nexus of several disruptions that just need one more critical piece. That’s the case with many of the system level inventions that Oracle has brought to market over the last several years. They’ve pioneered important developments in solid state storage, encryption, chip sets that weed out intrusive malware, and a self-patching autonomous database that just hit the market.
All of these things turn out to be essential to safeguarding data which will enable the information revolution to continue burrowing its way into our lives and enriching society. They are also the underpinnings of a new business model that turns big data companies into ethical data providers. They might also continue being social media companies but the data tail would now be wagging the dog.
What do I know? I just read and write a lot. But what I see is an industry about to be regulated and, in my mind, the smart play is for the social media companies to lead the charge to ensure they arrive at something they can live with instead of remaining aloof and having some regulations imposed on them.
There’s a wild west mentality in Silicon Valley in which what isn’t proscribed is encouraged. But we should keep in mind that the west only remained wild until the pioneers arrived and established towns with roads, schools, and churches. The wild bunch might have disliked the idea of settlement, they might have opposed it, but they were quickly in the minority and civilization won. That’s what’s happening in tech today and we all need to seize the moment.
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Yuvraj Krishan on whether Siva-Ganesa fight is Oedipal conflict - chapter 14
Go to Chapter 13 part-2
Pdf of the book is available for free download here.
The purãnic legend of the combat between Siva and Ganesa, resulting in the decapitation of Ganesa’s head and its replacement by the head of an elephant, has been interpreted by Freudian scholars in terms of the Oedipus complex and the castration complex. In this legend Ganesa bars the entry of his father Siva into the chamber of his spouse, Pãrvati, and this leads to a conflict between the father and the son. It is this conflict, which is deemed to represent the hostility of the son towards the father and the libidinal or sexual impulse of the son towards the mother: attraction towards the parent of the opposite sex and antagonism towards the parent of the same sex. Beheading is considered a regular symbol for castration, both in dreams and fantasies: the elephant head (of Ganesa) “is a relic of the conflict in the ritual system between father and son and of the marriage of the son to the mother”.
Another episode in the mythology of Ganesa, in which he loses one of his tusks, is also interpreted as castration.
Goldman elaborates: “The legend of Ganesa . . . is a much clearer example of a story representing the primal oedipal triangle of son, father and mother and the son’s attempts to possess the mother to the exclusion of the father, an attempt that leads to violent conflict and the final symbolic castration of the son”. (For more on the re-interpretation of the Oedipal complex by western scholars in the Indian context, please read page 146 and 147, chapter 14)
At the outset, it is essential to know the significant differences in the legends of Ganesa and Oedipus.
In the legend of Ganesa’s conflict with Siva, the father (Siva) is not killed as in the legend of Oedipus; on the other hand, it is the son (Ganesa) who is beheaded, killed, and later revived with an animal’s head. It is the father who eliminated the son. Thus, there is a reversal of the direction of aggression or desire, from that in the Oedipus legend, from son to father.
As regards to the loss of one tusk, Ganesa loses his tusk in a combat not with his father Siva but with Parasurãma or Balarãma. In some of the paurãnic legends, Ganesa is born ab-initio with an elephant form but with only one tusk. This will be dealt with in greater detail while discussing the paurãnic legends.
We shall first deal with the question whether the concept of oedipal conflict is a valid psychological truth and whether it can be applied to the Siva–Ganesa conflict.
While Freud believed that the oedipal situation is universal, “Most anthropologists now question its universality, since there are many cultures in which it does not appear.” In fact Horney claims that, “it was neither normal nor universal” and that it is “symptomatic of a neurotic behaviour on the part of the parents.” (For more, please read page 148, chapter 14)
In fact, some eminent psychologists have disputed the validity of the Oedipus complex as adumbrated by Freud. Erich Fromm in an analysis of Freud’s concept of the Oedipus complex has explained that the attachment of a man to his mother is not sexual in its nature, that it is a longing for a situation in which the child is protected and has no responsibility to bear—it is a paradisiacal existence for the child under the mother’s protective custody. He emphasizes that sexuality is fickle and is not characterized by great stability. According to Fromm, Freud’s assumption that the child-mother relationship is sexual was his ‘great error’ and is ‘nothing short of absurd’. He further explains the hostile relationship between the father and son as a feature only of a patriarchal society. He goes on to point out that Sophocles had expressed his philosophy or ideas in a trilogy—Oedipus Rex, Oedipus at Colonus, and Antigone which together gives the whole Oedipus myth. Fromm points out: “If we look at the trilogy as a whole we discover that Sophocles is speaking of the conflict between the patriarchal and the earlier matriarchal world”. In other words, Freud built his concept of Oedipus complex on a fragmentary study of Sophocles limited to Oedipus Rex.
Again some Indian psychologists have doubted the relevance of the oedipal conflict in Indian social ethics. As regards the suggestion that the Siva-Ganesa conflict represents more precisely negative oedipal complex because of its variations from the classical concept, positive oedipal complex, it is pointed out that according to modern psychology, in negative oedipal complex, or the Reversed Oedipus complex also known as the Inverted Oedipus complex, the son desires the father and regards the mother as a rival; it is not aware of a new category of libidinal situation in which there is a reversal of the flow of aggression: the father suppresses or eliminates the son and the mother desiring the son.
Further, the Oedipus complex is not a bilateral phenomenon; it is unilateral—the sexual instinct of son or daughter towards the parent of the opposite sex. It is only a stage in the development of infantile sexuality and not a feature of adult sexuality. It sets in at the phallic stage of psycho-sexual development of a child between the ages of three and six so that parents do not suffer from the complex.
Again the substitution of the elephant’s head over the decapitated trunk in the case of Ganesa is not the substitution, symbolic or actual, of the genitalia lost through the attack of a father figure—Ganesa’s genitals were not involved in the conflict with Siva. To identify the elephant’s trunk as a genital, as a phallic nose, a displaced phallus is erroneous. Elephant’s trunk is his proboscis, a sensory organ of the oral region, the nose and not the organ of reproduction.
An analysis of the paurãnic legends as to how Ganesa comes to acquire an elephant’s head shows that the oedipal conflict explanation is based on tenuous evidence. (For more on this, please read page 149 and 150, chapter 14)
It would be evident that there is no unanimity among the purãnas as to how Ganesa came to acquire an elephant’s head. Only in the three purãnas, Siva, Skanda, and Mahãbhãgavata is
there a combat between Ganesa and his father Siva in which Ganesa is beheaded and given an elephant’s head in replacement.
There is thus overwhelming evidence that the legend of combat between Siva and Ganesa leading to the decapitation of the latter’s head and its replacement by an elephant’s head is not a representative paurãnic legend.
Consequently, the explanation of the combat in terms of the oedipal conflict is of severely limited value. More importantly, as has been explained earlier, the Siva–Ganesa combat is radically different from the classic oedipal conflict and it is nothing but semantic jugglery to characterize it as an Indian Oedipus conflict.
The Freudian oedipal situation is said to be enacted in the loss of one of the tusks of Ganesa described as ‘displaced castration’ by modern psychologists. But the paurãnic legends regarding the loss of one tusk do not support the proposition that the loss was due to an oedipal conflict. Firstly, in the legends, Ganesa does not lose his tusk in a combat with Siva. Secondly, the tusk is lost in an entirely different cycle of legends—the combat between Parasurãma and Ganesa when the former tried to enter Siva’s (and not Ganesa’s mother’s) apartment and Ganesa barred his entry (Brahmavaivarta Purãna 3.43), or in the combat between Ganesa and Balarãma (Padma Purãna, Uttarakhanda 277.25.35), or in the combat between Mahotkata and Ganesa in Krtayuga (first time cycle) and the demon Devãntaka when the latter tried to pull out the tusks of Mahotkata after he had assumed the form of an elephant-headed being (Ganesa Purana 2.70.2).
None of the legends ascribe the loss of the tusk to an oedipal conflict between the father (Siva) and the son (Ganesa).
Read entire chapter 14 from page 146 to 151
Go to Chapter 15
Posted by Being DIfferent at 4:09:00 AM No comments:
Labels: Balarama, Ganesha, Oedipus complex, Parasurama, Parvati, puranas, Shiva, Sophocles
The children of colonial psychoanalysis - chapter 13-part 2
Go to Chapter 13 part 1
Phallocentric Circles
Freud seriously questioned humanity’s dependence upon religion, even though he was proud to be ethnically Jewish. One thing he pathologized in religions was the belief in a supreme being. He felt that the concept of religion in the ‘final form’ taken by present-day Christian civilization was fatally flawed. He was highly critical of Christianity and saw it as an expression of infantilism.
Though Freud may have had revulsion to religion, the origins of psychoanalysis are deeply rooted in encounters with Biblical religious traditions. The Bible is among the primary sources where Freud extracted his symbols and myths, and from where all of his patients were situated, upon whom he based his prognoses, Ipso facto, the entire corpus of his knowledge or experiences of religion and spirituality were extracted from within the Judeo-Christian context.
Although much of Freud’s work serves as a critique of religious feelings, psychoanalysis nevertheless employed and carried forward the core themes of the Bible. Judeo-Christian tropes dominate psychoanalytical concepts, as Freud mined Biblical literature to extract analogies for his favorite phobias. The ‘primal scene’. which Freud associated with Original Sin, signifies the experience when a child sees the parents engaging in sex, which means, according to Freudian
psychoanalysis, that the child will be traumatized for the rest of his or her life, or until properly psychoanalyzed.
In Why Freud Was Wrong: Sin, Science and Psychoanalysis, Richard Webster explains how the ‘cryptic Judeo-Christian ethos’ was the very foundation of what was touted to be a scientific theory. Webster notes that Freud misdiagnosed several of his early patients as traumatic hysteria when they were “actually cases of injury-related brain damage and epilepsy”. He called psychoanalysis a “crypto-theological system” which encompassed “a modernized reworking of traditional Judeo-Christian morality, sexual realism, and restraint”.
Its very structure was church-like, in that psychoanalytic treatments in Freudian practice were modeled after the Catholic confessional. The psychoanalyst replaces the priest, who is relatively invisible to the patient just like the priest is not visible during confession. The patient confides the traumas he or she has experienced just like the Catholic confides sins. In so doing, the patient is relieved of a burden, and redeemed into good mental health just like the sinners who confess are saved from their sins. (For more on this, please read page 141, chapter 13)
Freud brought phallic symbolism intimately into our lives. In A Mind of Its Own: A Cultural History of the Penis, David Friedman notes how psychoanalytic interpretations have enduringly placed the penis and associated anxieties at the center of society. Friedman suggests that: “attitudes toward the penis have been instrumental in mapping the course of both Western civilization and world history”. He notes that through the centuries, “the penis has been deified, demonized, secularized, racialized, psychoanalyzed, politicized and, finally, medicalized.” This extreme cultural focus on the phallus, codified (overcoded?) by Freud, brought concepts such as ‘castration anxiety’ and ‘penis envy’ into popular discourse.
Freud had visions of grandeur,and his personality and ideas certainly achieved immortality. He
shared with Karl Marx a belief that religion is an illusion—neither man believed in a soul or life after death.
E.M. Thornton wrote in The Freudian Fallacy:
Freud’s concept of the unconscious must be attributed to his cocaine usage. Death wishes, infantile incestuous desires and perversion are not the pre-occupations of the normal mind. Constantly recurring throughout the drug literature are the same words and phrases used by Freud and his followers to describe his concept of the unconscious mind. In both psychoanalysis and this literature the same metaphors of looking down into an abyss occur.
Sometimes a Saint is Only a Saint
In The Future of an Illusion, Freud portrays religion as a fantasy that fulfills “the oldest, strongest, and most urgent wishes of mankind”. In 1927, Freud sent a copy of his controversial book to his friend Romain Rolland, the renowned French Nobel laureate and humanitarian. Rolland, who was a student of Ramakrishna and Vivekananda, began a thirteen-year correspondence with Freud. (For more on this, please read page 142 and 143, chapter 13)
Women, Infants, Hindus and the Irish
There were many similarities between the writings of these two colonial officers, [Berkeley-Hill and Daly] who were self-educated in what could be called pop psychoanalysis. Hartnack notes that they both had a derogatory style and an exclusive focus on negative content. Both consistently failed to note any achievement or positive aspect of Indian culture. Hartnack elaborates:
Instead, they compared the behaviour of Indians with other dependent people, with women, infants and the Irish, and time and again with European neurotics. They tried to explain group behaviour by attributing it to psychopathological defects of individuals, a procedure quite common in the international psychoanalytical discussion of their time.
Hartnack notes that this work had clear colonial overtones. Several contemporary works use parallel approaches to Indian Studies. Both [Daly and Berkeley-Hill] identified themselves fully with British colonialism. Indians were a threat and had thus to be fought, and resistance had to be smashed not only on a military but also on a cultural level. Unlike Orwell, who left Burma in order not to cope with the dual identity of a colonial bureaucrat by day and a questioning and critical human being by night, Daly and Berkeley-Hill worked to abolish these scruples and contribute to a properly functioning colonial world.
One critic in the Hindu diaspora in the USA, when reading an earlier draft of this chapter, asked “Is Doniger’s anxious eagerness in accepting Kripal’s and White’s astounding theses a symptom of the same colonial mindset?” Hartnack continued:
Contemporary psychoanalytical thought offered Daly and Berkeley-Hill models to legitimize their degradation of, and thus their separation from Indians: If one were not a healthy adult British male, one was in trouble, for all other human beings were looked down upon. They [the Hindus] were in the majority and there was the potential of hysteria, violence, revolution, sexual seduction and other supposedly irrational acts, which would be difficult to control. Therefore, it was the white man’s responsibility to keep them under surveillance, if not behind iron gates. In this context, psychoanalytical investigations offered structures of explanation, the first step toward a mastery of the perceived threat.
Contemporary professional psychologists, such as Alan Roland and Salman Akhtar, distance themselves from and disapprove of this reductionist, infantilizing approach. Some of the caveats and foibles in what has been called the Wendy’s Children genre of scholarship are also found in Freud’s work. The psychoanalytic movement at the turn of the century has been compared to that of a religious cult, disdainful of its critics and hyper-attached to a particular hyperbole. Many
similarities are in evidence.
In The Memory Wars: Freud’s Legacy in Dispute, Frederick Crews, professor emeritus at the University of California at Berkeley, describes the coercion of clients by Freud to fulfill the mission of his institute. As a result of this, and other examinations of Freud’s methodologies,
his data gathering has been shown to have been less than authentic—a charge similar to what has been leveled against some members of the RISA school of thought.
Ninety years ago, the innovative thinkers who challenged Freudianism, such as Wilhelm Reich and Carl Jung, among others, were ex-communicated from the psychoanalytical society. Similarly, in RISA and other associated venues, not much dissent is allowed. (For more, please read 144, chapter 13)
Today a number of scholars rely on applied psychoanalysis to create new and ever more exciting research, even though they are not competent in psychoanalysis. This methodology has found its way into History, Sociology, Anthropology, and Religious Studies, among other disciplines.
Hindu-Americans who question scholarship written about their religion are perceived as invalid, inferior. They are not considered ‘legitimate intellectuals’. Those who write articles on websites such as Sulekha are spoken of as ‘dangerous’, perhaps capable of irrational acts and as Berkeley-Hill also described Indians a hundred years ago, ‘difficult to control’. Some scholars of Hinduism Studies are threatened by this contemporary challenge to their established paradigms. They have furiously begun to psychoanalyze the Hindu diaspora as the first step toward a mastery of the perceived threat. Simultaneously, Hindu-Americans have turned the ‘surveillance’ inside-out, and are gazing back with their own tools—such as the Chakra Hermeneutics described in Chapter 9—to better understand those who control the narrative about Hindu traditions.
Read chapter 13 part 2 from page 140 to 145
Labels: Berkeley-Hill, Christiane Hartnack, Christianity, Daly, E.M. Thornton, Frederick Crews, Freud, Jeffrey Kripal, Jung, Karl Marx, psychoanalysis, Richard Webster, Romain Rolland, Wendy Doniger, Wilhelm Reich
The children of colonial psychoanalysis - chapter 13 part 1
Since Freud first formulated his theories a century ago, practitioners and enthusiasts have considered psychoanalysis to be more than merely a humane therapeutic treatment for psychiatric disorders. Freudian interpretations have been variously applied to entities as diverse as corporations, nations, and religious traditions. In a study of the use of psychoanalysis in colonial India, Christiane Hartnack wrote:
“Beyond healing individuals, [psychoanalysts] also hoped to provide an understanding of complex and threatening cultural phenomena that would be a first step towards the solution of social problems”.
Chapter 18 of this volume describes how non-Whites, or people of color, were often depicted as untamed, innocent children, whom white Americans could benevolently train to become civilized and socialized. During different phases of America’s history, different peoples were identified as the savage de jour, such as Native Americans, Mexicans, Chinese, and Filipinos, including today’s ‘illegal aliens’. By the late nineteenth century, such blatant racism was sugarcoated with an icing of ‘race sciences’. Totem and Taboo: Resemblances Between the Mental Lives of Savages and Neurotics applied psychoanalysis to the fields of archeology, anthropology, and the study of religion. Published by Freud in 1913, it provided yet another quasi-scientific theoretical veneer, lending credibility to such ideas as eugenics.
Freud classified cultures and societies based on developmental schema. Natives or primitives were likened to children through a twofold process. First, different cultures of the world were classified into a hierarchical model of developmental stages of historical and cultural progress. Since Europeans formulated the scale, naturally they placed themselves at the top. Secondly, these societal stages were seen as an externalization of individual, biological development. Therefore, due to their culture’s position on the scale, it was scientifically justified to classify any individual belonging to a non-European culture as being inferior to Whites. This assumption was amplified if the nation or culture of the native had been colonized, because that label came with an automatic and morally convenient justification of being in need of Western tutelage.
In the context of applied psychoanalysis, when Abrahamic monotheism is placed at the apex of religious hierarchy or cultural potential—as it has been for millennia of Eurocentric thinking—then both dharmic thought and the polytheistic lens through which Hinduism is perceived, by many outsiders, become fertile and exotic fields for psychoanalytic searches dredging for pathologies.
Post-modern deconstruction theories have legitimized analyses that dislocate symbols from their sources, making them available for ‘slippery’ meanings that are often antithetical to the tradition and irrelevant to mutually understood referents. (For more on this, please read page 133, chapter 13)
Freud’s theories have been applied to Indic themes since the early twentieth century. Hartnack explains how two British officers in the colonial army, Owen Berkeley-Hill and C.D. Daly, were inspired by reading Freud’s theories in psychoanalytical journals such as Imago and the International Journal of Psychoanalysis. On this basis, they “attempted to analyze and interpret some of those elements of Indian culture, religion, sexuality and politics that they apparently found strange, puzzling, uncanny or even frightening”. Hartnack adds that “psychoanalytical interpretations of Hindu religious rituals” were particularly fascinated by “the imagery of Kali”.
Under the subtitle, Hindu as the White Man’s Burden, Hartnack describes the early use of psychoanalysis in the Indian context. Hartnack mentions Berkeley-Hill’s 1921 essay, The Anal-Erotic Factor in the Religion, Philosophy and Character of the Hindus, published in the
International Journal of Psychoanalysis:
In this work, [Berkeley-Hill] gave a range of examples of what he considered to be a sublimation of, or reaction formations against, anal-erotic impulses among Hindus. According to him, reverence for deities such as Agni, Indra and Surya shows anal-erotic fixations, as these deities are associated with passing enormous amounts of wind. The singing chants of classic Hindu liturgies also appeared to him to be related to the same flatus complex. He further pointed to classic Vedic texts that indicate a preoccupation with control over the sphincter muscles, and discussed hatha yoga in this respect ‘breath exercises are really efforts to direct flatus into a most elaborate quasi-philosophical system’.
In other words, the intention of a Hindu, while chanting mantras, is to pass wind as an expression of reverence for Agni, Indra, or Surya—the hot air presumably being indicative of the nature of Hindu devotion. In this colonial version of the use of applied psychoanalysis in the interpretation of Hinduism, breathing exercises such as pranayama are relegated to elaborate exercises in passing gas. The earliest use of psychoanalysis to interpret Hinduism focused almost exclusively on flatulence, in all its audible forms. Such early psychoanalytical approaches were Eurocentric, phallocentric, and profoundly naïve.
Freud viewed all human possibility through the lenses of the first (anal) and the second (procreative) chakras. In contrast, Indic thought aims to put the focus on higher chakras that represent more elevated or evolved states of consciousness. Moreover, Freud encouraged the
application of these anal-oriented perspectives to entire societies, not just individuals. (For more on Freud’s views, please read page 134 and 135, chapter 13)
The psychoanalytic discipline’s traditional purpose is a methodology through which a trained analyst and his or her paying patient discuss the patient’s problems and work together to ameliorate neuroses by analyzing dreams and childhood experiences. There is a strong, peer enforced, ethical covenant between the two which the psychoanalyst only violates at great professional peril. However, when a psychoanalyst—trained or untrained—embarks on an ethnographic study of an entire social unit or civilization, rather than an individual, he or she is dealing with many layers of abstraction—each one of which can be manipulated at will. Instead of the analyst working with the patient to achieve optimum mental health, the ethnographer simply records data obtained through paid or unpaid native informants and interprets the alien culture based on ad hoc use of psychoanalytic theories. Such imagined data is exemplified by Kripal, and carelessly woven into Courtright’s work on Ganesha. The native informant’s role is not as an equal who should be accorded the dignity of being a partner in the search for understanding. Ultimately, the subject has no role in shaping the context, much less a right to critique the final product of the research. The very idea of such ownership is repugnant to most contemporary researchers.
Susantha Goonatilake in his book, Anthropologizing Sri Lanka: A Eurocentric Misadventure, points out that it is doubtful if any of the informants will read their own ethnographies because they are usually only published in European languages. Hence, the informers do not even get a chance to talk back. Certainly, there is no chance of giving a rejoinder. Ethnographic psychoanalysis may claim to enhance the understanding of non-Western cultures, but in actuality, it simply imposes Eurocentric constructs to describe the Other.
Hinduism as Flatulence
Hartnack’s description of early attempts to use psychoanalysis as a tool to interpret Hinduism exposes stark examples of abusive scholarship:
Berkeley-Hill further claimed that the essence of the notion of atman is that in Brahmanism, the flatus complex masquerades as a metaphysical spirit. What he saw as the excessive ritualism of
Brahmanism is also an indication of classical pedantic-compulsive, anal-erotic components. To prove this point, he gave detailed descriptions of repetitive elements in Brahmanic rituals, for example eighteen rules for answering the call of nature, and nine for cleaning the teeth. Berkeley-Hill also discussed the enormous units of time in Hindu myths, e.g., thousands of golden ages, millions of years within each yuga, and the extremely high numbers associated with deities, such as ten million royal deities. He saw in this propensity to juggle with large arithmetical quantities an expression of the moulding capacities characteristic of early anal activities.
Thus, as explained in Chapter 8, David White’s reduction of Tantra to a weird sex-cult of hypocritical Hindus consuming each other’s sexual fluids is based on the colonial-era psychoanalytical precedents. It is a genuine coin of the colonial regime.
Not surprisingly, quite a few colonialists had serious cases of Kali-phobia. Hartnack wrote:
Daly pointed out that Kali is worshipped as the all-embracing mother, but that she is also considered to be the goddess of death, destruction, fear, night and chaos, as well as the goddess of cholera and of anti- and asocial groups, such as thieves and prostitutes, the symbol of cemeteries, the destroyer of time—in short, the source of all evil. (For more on Daly’s iconographic representation of Kali, please read page 136 and 137, chapter 13)
This image of the Hindu Goddess as a bloodthirsty, phallic being is faithfully echoed to this day. In Caldwell’s description, Kali is “first of all, a phallic being, the mother with a penis . . . she is the bloodied image of the castrating and menstruating (thus castrating) female . . . ”
Of course Caldwell ‘updates’ the thesis by attributing newly fashionable homosexual psychopathologies to Hindus who worship the Goddess. Her stated ambition is to “show that themes of eroticism and aggression in the mythology are male transsexual fantasies reflecting intense preoedipal fixation on the mother’s body and expressing conflicts over primary feminine identity”.
Hindus are thereby classified as a community dominated by obsessive compulsive traits. Hinduism is seen as a societal neurosis, or perhaps a collective pathology exemplified by the Goddess Kali. Among today’s scholars, Doniger brings it home with her sweeping statements to the press about ‘bloodthirsty’ goddesses and ‘inverse ratios’ between worship of the Goddess and the status of women in Hindu society. Describing this strategically implemented use of psychoanalysis from a particularly colonial point of view, Hartnack wrote:
Daly pointed out that, whereas with regard to Ireland, one might understand a favorable identification with a lovely virgin, in India the identification was with the dreadful Kali, which seemed perverse to him. He therefore considered the Hindus’ behaviour to be beyond even the broadest margins of normality and summarized his analysis of revolutionary tendencies with the following words: ‘we have a psychology which differs considerably from the European, its
equivalent with us being found only in pathological cases. They are a race who fail in their rebellion against the father and as a result of this failure adopt a feminine role with feminine character traits. There results, so to speak, a split in the male personality, the aggressive component undergoing repression, which accounts for the childlike and feminine character traits of the Hindu as a whole, and the fact that they thrive only under very firm and kindly administration, but if allowed latitude in their rebellious tendencies are quick to take advantage of it.
Handy political uses of psychology are still uppermost in the minds of many Western researchers in dealing with Indians, as can be seen from Caldwell’s call to psychoanalyze Hindu culture as a whole. For Doniger, too, this overwhelming desire to discredit any political identity for Hindus—leads to her eager approval of David White’s reductionist thesis on Tantra, not because she finds his evidence entirely convincing—she doesn’t—but because of the immense political and civilizational value of degrading uppity Hindus and taking them down a notch or two. Both Daly and Doniger seem to share a common anxiety about putting the Hindus in their proper place, lest their rebellious tendencies threaten the world order and/or academic stability.
Hartnack explains that the dominant view in Europe at the Hartnack explains that the dominant view in Europe at the time was a commonly held theory, derived from Enlightenment thought,
that the “development of the individual is structured according to the development of mankind”. She points out that Freud also adhered to this perspective. Results of this theory were racial sciences, such as eugenics in the nineteenth century, which led to institutional discrimination in America and Europe. (For more on this, please read page 138, chapter 13)
Scholars whose work have recently been critiqued by the diaspora apply this 1920s’ era reasoning to all Hindus, seeing them as stuck in infantilism and incapable of understanding sophisticated jargon.
While defending Kripal’s creative interpretation of homoerotica, Caldwell suggests to her fellow RISA researchers, that they should contextualize the ‘distorted masculinity’ of Hindu culture, and the ‘confused sexuality’ of the Hindu male. She sees this mangling of the male as the catalyst that set off a highly contested, socially emasculated politicized century of dangerous nationalistic posturing. Thus what starts as tentative, poorly evidenced, and speculative research is quickly elevated as a way of making sense of those dangerous Indians and their psychologically corrosive culture.
Regarding the article by Berkeley-Hill, The Anal-Erotic Factor in the Religion, Philosophy and Character of the Hindu, Hartnack states that “Hindus did not receive [the] article enthusiastically [when] the original English version . . . was read at the Indian Psychoanalytical Society. Perhaps what is most discomfiting to the Donigers, Courtrights and other latter-day Berkeley-Hills is that the Indians of today, particularly in the diaspora, are not shy or beaten down. They would rather debate these alleged ‘analyses’, and ask inconvenient questions, than defer them for some future debate.
Hartnack elaborates in terms that could be applied, mutatis mutandis, to the particular school of contemporary scholars under review in this book:
Though some theory is tagged on to it, the essay remains a conglomeration of densely presented images and associations, wild ideas, and racist attributions. Daly freely converted prevalent
psychoanalytical concepts that explained psychopathological defects of individuals into explanations for all those aspects of Indian culture that appear strange to Europeans to substantiate his belief in the European culture’s superiority over Hinduism.
The basic interpretive view of the Judeo-Christian experience is in total contrast to Hinduism. On
the surface, Freudianism may be able to attach a few untenable meanings onto Hindu symbols, but the results are unreliable.
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Labels: applied psychoanalysis, Berkeley-Hill, Christiane Hartnack, Daly, David Gordon White, ethnography, Freud, Hinduism, Jeffrey Kripal, Judeo-Christian, Kali, Susantha Goonatilake, Tantra, Wendy Doniger, Yvette Rosser
Balagangadhara on the biblical underpinnings of 'secular' social sciences - chapter 12
Soon after RISA Lila-1 appeared, Prof. Balagangadhara, from the Department of the Comparative Science of Cultures in Ghent University, Belgium, posted extensive comments on the Sulekha website. Thus began his prominent role as a key scholar in this debate ever since. Below are excerpts from his remarks made in three parts spread over a few days.
To Rajiv Malhotra and all other seekers, by S.N. Balagangadhara
Deservedly, Rajiv’s article has appalled the readers: horror, indignation, anger and bewilderment at the RISA ‘lila’ . . . I want to raise three issues: (a) how to analyze what Rajiv portrays; (b) depending on that, what an adequate response consists of. Before we do either (this is one
of the things I have discovered through my own research during the last two decades), we need to be clear about (c) how we ‘should not’ analyze the situation that Rajiv has sketched. Given that all three (in their general form) have been my obsessions, I have been reflecting on them deeply, seriously and systematically for some time now. I would like to share some of the results of this reflection with you.
Perhaps, it is best to begin in an autobiographical mode. I came to (continental) Europe some 25 years ago, naively thinking that ‘cultural difference’ is something that ‘cosmopolitan’ Indians would not experience: after all, I had studied Natural Sciences in India; knew English rather well; was more familiar with the British and European history than I was with that of India; felt right at home with the Western philosophy … It took me about four years of living in Europe, without relating to any Indian (or even Asian) community because I did not want to land up in an emotional and social ghetto, to realize that I was wrong: ‘cultural differences’ were no fictitious invention of anthropologists; it involved more than being a vegetarian or being barefoot at home when the weather was not too cold. This realization was instrumental in shaping my research project: what makes the Indian culture different from that of the West? Of course, the first fields I went into were Indology and Anthropology. Pretty soon I discovered that neither was of any use. Not only did they fail to provide me with any insights, but they also succeeded in merely enraging me: the kind of rage you feel when you read the analyses of Wendy Doniger or Kripal.
Indology is full of ‘insights’ like those you have read in Rajiv’s article. What has varied over time is the intellectual jargon that clothes these ‘analyses’. (For more on this, please read page 124, chapter 12)
My initial reactions to these discoveries [discussed in preceding paragraphs] parallel the response of many a post on this e-board: horror, rage and a conviction that ‘racism’ is inherent in these writings. Pretty soon, this conviction about ‘racism’ of European authors gave way to doubts: Is it possible to convict all European authors of racism? Are we to assume that, in the last 400
years or so, all writers who wrote on India were racists? If yes, how to understand the powerful impact these writers and their theories have had on the Indian authors and Indian social sciences? If no, why did they say pretty similar things? Is one to say that the ‘respected’ Indian social scientists are no better than brown sahibs? Is Indian social science merely a disguised variant of Indology? So on and so forth.
Today, many of us are familiar with Edward Said and his book ‘Orientalism’. In his wake, many buzzwords like ‘essentialism’, ‘Eurocentrism’ (though interesting, Blaut is not theoretically well equipped), ‘Orientalist discourse’, the ‘us-them dichotomy’ etc. whiz around. I would be the last to detract from the merits of Said’s book: he was one of the earliest writers to have drawn attention to the systematic nature of the Western way of talking about the Orient. Despite this, the concept ‘Orientalism’ is totally inadequate to analyze the situation underlying RISA lila. Surely, the question is: ‘Why is the West Orientalist?’ Said’s plea ends up denying any possibility of understanding cultural differences or indeed why Orientalism came into being, or what sustains it. (For more on this, please read page 125, chapter 12)
What I am saying is that one should not think that Rajiv paints a ‘racist’, or ‘orientalist’ or a ‘eurocentric’ picture. These words obfuscate the deeper issue, one which is more insidious than any of the above three. It might or might not be the case that Wendy and her children are ‘racist’; ditto about their ‘eurocentrism’ or ‘orientalism’. But when you realize that they are not saying anything that has not been said in the last three hundred years (despite their fancy jargon), the question becomes: ‘why does the western culture systematically portray India in these terms?’
To say that Western culture is, in toto, racist or ‘eurocentric’ is to say pretty little: even assuming, counterfactually, that the Western culture is all these things (and that all the Westerners are ‘racist’, etc), why do these attitudes persist, reproduce themselves and infect the Indians? There is a weightier reason not to tread this path. In fact, it has been a typical characteristic of Western writings on other cultures (including India) to characterize the latter using terms that are only appropriate to describe individual psychologies: X culture is stupid, degenerate, and irrational; Y culture is childish, immature, intuitive, feminine, etc. To simply repeat these mantras after them is to achieve very little understanding.
Rajiv says repeatedly that these writings ‘deny agency to the Indian subjects’. I am familiar with this phrase through ‘post-colonial’ writings. This too is a mantra like many of them, without having the desired effect. And why is that? It might appear to make sense if we merely restrict ourselves to Wendy and her Children’s analyses of Ganesha, Shiva or Ramakrishna Paramahamsa. However, it loses all plausibility when we realize that, for instance, social sciences use one and the same ‘epistemology’ to analyze both the West and India and that despite this, their claims about India reproduce the ‘Indological truths.’ (For more on this, please read page 126, chapter 12)
In a way, you could say, we need to do to the West what it has done to us, namely, study it
anthropologically. But how to go about doing this and not simply reproduce what generations of thinkers (from the West) have already said about the West?
It is amusing to use Freud to analyze their Freudian analyses of Indian religions; or use Patanjali’s Chakras to typify their personalities. But at the end of the day, we are still left with the task of studying and understanding why the Western culture talks about us the way it does. Let me just say this: our problems do not either begin or end in religious studies or Indology. They are deeper. Much, much deeper. To tackle RISA lila as a separate phenomenon, i.e., to focus either on Wendy or her ‘parampara’ alone, would be to compound tragedy with conceptual blunder. Not only that. It would prevent us from understanding RISA lila for what it is: a phenomenon that is typical of the Western culture.
In the [above] . . . I drew attention to the fact that Wendy and her Children draw from the existing social sciences, while contributing at the same time to their further ‘development’. In this post, I will elaborate what this statement means, what it implies, and what it says about the ‘Western culture’
1. Not many would challenge the claim that Christianity has been highly influential in the development of the Western culture. We need to take this statement utterly seriously. It means that many things we ‘take for granted’, whether in the West or in India, come from the influence that Christianity has exerted. I claim that Christianity expands in two ways. (This is not just typical of Christianity but of all religions. I will talk only of Christianity because I want to talk about the Western culture.) Both of these have been present ever since the inception of Christianity and have mutually reinforced each other. The first is familiar to all of us: ‘direct conversion.’ People from other cultures and ‘religions’ are explicitly converted to Christianity and thus the community of Christian believers grows.
2. Funnily enough, the second way in which Christianity expands is also familiar to us: the process of secularization. I claim that Christianity ‘secularizes’ itself in the form of, as it were, ‘de-de-Christianized Christianity’. What this word means is: typically Christian doctrines spread wide and deep (beyond the confines of the community of Christian believers) in the society dressed up in ‘secular’ (that is, not in recognizably ‘Christian’) clothes. We need a very small bit of Western history here in order to understand this point better.
Usually, the ‘enlightenment period’, which is identified as ‘the Age of Reason’, is alleged to be the apotheosis (or the ‘high point’) of the process of ‘secularization’: the enlightenment thinkers are supposed to have successfully ‘fought’ against the dominance that religion (i.e. Christianity) had until then exercised over social, political, and economic life. From then on, so goes the standard textbook story, human kind began to look to ‘reason’ instead of, say, the Church in all matters social, civic, political etc. The spirit of scientific thinking, which dominated that age, has continued to gain ascendancy. As heirs to this period, which put a definitive end to all forms of ‘irrational’ subservience, we are proud citizens of the modern day world. We are against all forms of despotism and we are believers in democracy; we believe in the role of reason in social life; we recognize the value of human rights; and we should understand that ‘religion’ is not a matter for state intervention, but a ‘private’ and personal affair of the individual in question. This, as I say, is the standard textbook story.
4. The problem with this story is simply this: the enlightenment thinkers have built their formidable reputation (as opponents of ‘all organized religion’ or even ‘religion’ tout court) by ‘selling’ ideas from Protestant Christianity as though they were ‘neutral’ and ‘rational’. Take for example the claim that ‘religion’ is not a matter for state intervention and that it is a ‘private’ affair of the individual in question. (Indian ‘secularists’ agitatedly jump up and down to ‘defend’ this idea.) Who thought, do you think, that ‘religion’ was not a ‘private’ affair? The Catholic Church, of course. The Protestants [on the other hand] fought a battle with the Catholics on ‘theological’ grounds: they argued that ‘being a Christian believer’ (or what the Christian believes in) is matter between the Maker (i.e. God) and the Individual. It was ‘God’ (i.e. the Christian God), who judged man; and men ‘could not’ judge each other in matters of Christian faith. The Church, they argued, could not mediate between Man and God (according to their interpretation of the Bible); (For more on this, please read page 129, chapter 12)
5. The same story applies with respect to what is enshrined in the UN charter. The doctrine of Human Rights (as we know them today) arose in the Middle Ages, when the Franciscans and the Dominicans fought each other. (Both are religious orders within the Catholic Church.) All theories of human rights we know today were elaborated in this struggle that continued nearly for two hundred years. These were ‘theological’ debates, to understand which one
needs to understand Christian theology.
6. I am not merely making the point that these ideas had their origin in religious contexts. My point is much more than that: I claim that ‘we cannot accept these theories without, at the same time, accepting Christian theology as true.’ What the Western thinkers have done over the centuries (the Enlightenment period is the best known for being the ‘high point’ of this process) is to ‘dress up’ Christian theological ideas (I am blurring the distinction between the divisions within Christianity) in a secular mantle. Not just this or that isolated idea, but theological theories themselves.
7. I am not in the least suggesting that this is some kind of a ‘conspiracy’. I am merely explicating what I mean when I say that Christianity spreads also through the process of ‘secularization’. What has been secularized are whole sets of ideas about Man and Society which I call ‘Biblical themes’. They are Biblical themes because to accept them is to accept the truth of the Bible. Most of our so-called ‘social sciences’ assume the truth of these Biblical themes.
8. I know this sounds unbelievable; but I have started to prove them. I have already shown, for example, that the so-called religious studies presuppose the truth of Christian theology. That is why, when they study the so-called ‘religions’ from other cultures, their results do not fundamentally differ from a theological treatment of the same religions. (For more on this, please read page 130, chapter 12)
9. To begin appreciating the plausibility (if not the truth) of my claim, ask yourselves the following question: why are the so-called ‘social sciences’ different from the natural sciences? I mean to say, why have the social sciences not developed the way natural sciences have? Comparatively speaking, it is not as though the social sciences are starved of funding or personnel. Despite all this, the social sciences are not progressing. Why is this? I put to you that this is what has happened. Most of our so-called social sciences are not ‘sciences’ in any sense of the term: they are merely bad Christian theologies.
10. If this is true, it also helps us understand why both ‘conversion’ and the notion of ‘secularism’ jars Indian sensibilities. Somehow or the other, Nehruvian ‘secularism’ always connotes a denigration of Indian traditions; if you look at the debates in the EPW and SEMINAR and journals like that, one thing is very clear: none of the participants really understands what ‘secularism’ means. In India, ‘secularism’ is counter posed to ‘communalism’ whereas ‘the
secular’, in European languages, has only one contrast—‘the sacred’.
11. To summarize what I have said so far. Christianity spreads in two ways: through conversion and through secularization. The modern day social sciences embody the assumptions of Christian theology, albeit in a ‘secularized’ form. That is why when Wendy and her Children draw upon the resources of the existing social sciences, they are drawing upon Christian theology. In this Christian theology, we are worshippers of the Devil. Our gods are demons (followers of the devil). As such, amongst other things, they are perverts: sexually, morally and intellectually.
This is the insidious process I talked about: the process of secularization of Christian ideas. Let the ‘simplistic’ presentation not lead you to think that the ideas I am proposing are ‘simplistic’. They are not.
Labels: Balagangadhara, Catholic, Christianity, communalism, Edward Said, Eurocentrism, Indology, Jeffrey Kripal, Orientalism, Protestant, Ramakrishna, RISA, Secularism, Sulekha, UNHR Charter, Wendy Doniger
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It's all about power - chapter 10
Deconstructing the psychology of Wendy and her chi...
De-spiritualising tantra - chapter 8-part 2
De-spiritualising tantra-chapter 8-part 1
Challenges to Wendy Doniger's Sanskrit - chapter 7
Stanley Kurtz on Hindu mothers and Hijackers - cha...
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Paul Courtright on Ganesha and Shiva - chapter 5
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Why is "Invading the sacred" an important book?
Intolerance in the name of freedom of expression
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Encyclopedia > Solicitor
Solicitors are generally restricted to countries utilizing the UK based system of common law.
In the English legal system solicitors have traditionally dealt with any legal matter apart from the conducting proceedings in court (advocacy). The other branch of the English legal profession, a barrister, has traditionally carried out that function and advised on complex areas of law. Barristers would not deal with the public direct.
Solicitors in England and Wales are regulated by the Law Society of England and Wales (which wears the hat of both regulator and union) and in order to become a solicitor must have had a qualifying legal education. The most common methods are a normal undergraduate law degree, or a degree in any subject followed by one year cramming law in a course formally called the Common Professional Exam and recently renamed the Postgraduate Diploma in Law. Other routes, for example spending time as a clerk to magistrates, or passing exams set by the Institution of Legal Executives[?] (ILEX) are possible. Up to this point a barrister and solicitor have the same education.
Thereafter they split. Solicitors study a one year course called the Legal Practice Course and then must undertake two years apprenticeship with a solicitor, called the training contract (but still widely referred to as 'articles' as in 'articled clerk' by older members of the profession). Once that is complete, the student becomes a solicitor and is 'admitted to the roll'. The 'roll' is a list of people qualified to be a solicitor and is kept on behalf of the 'Master of the Rolls' whose more important job is that he is the head of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales. Solicitors who are being disciplined by the Law Society can be suspended from the roll or even struck off, which prevents them acting as a solicitor.
Moreover, solicitors must pay the Law Society of England and Wales a practicing fee each year in order to keep practicing. If they do not do this they are 'non-practicing' and may not give legal advice to the public (although they can start practicing again at will, unlike those struck off).
In the UK the strict separation between the duties of solicitor and barrister has been partially broken down and solicitors frequently appear in the lower courts and (subject to passing a test) increasingly appear in the higher courts too (such as the High Court of England and Wales and before the Judicial Committee of the House of Lords). Firms of solicitors now employ their own barristers and solicitor-advocates to do the work, taking it away from the private groups 'sets' or 'chambers' of barristers who formally did the work. Barristers in turn are now directly instructed by certain organisations such as trade unions.
This breakdown is expected to go further in the next few years, with the government pressing the Bar Council (the Barrister's union/regulator) to allow barristers to deal directly with the public. Solicitors are increasingly taking advantage of their increased rights and so it is to be hoped that the old system (never very efficient) will be swept away in the coming years.
The post of solicitor in its modern form dates from the 19th Century which was a time of significant reform in the English Court system. The courts were split between those administering the law of equity and common law and the church courts had far more power. At the time there were a variety of similar jobs, such as advocate, attorney-at-law, proctor, solicitor etc. all of which were entitled to appear before different courts. In the reforms all these posts were swept into one, the solicitor. Accordingly solicitors have a wide power of audience (i.e. they have the right in law to appear on behalf of another and speak on their behalf, even if the individual judges are not keen) and appear before mainstream courts, as well as disciplinary hearings and in courts martial.
... in Italy. At the time of Justinian, he was a Christian and possibly bishop of Croton. In approximately 580, he wrote "De origine actibusque Getarum[?]" (The origin an ...
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Power sharing, conflict resolution, and the logic of pre-emptive defection
Johnson, Chelsea ORCID: 0000-0003-4849-1825 (2020) Power sharing, conflict resolution, and the logic of pre-emptive defection. Journal of Peace Research. ISSN 0022-3433
Identification Number: 10.1177/0022343320924699
Conclusions about the potential for peace via power-sharing are mixed. For some, power-sharing does little to overcome the commitment problem characterizing a transition from conflict, while others argue that such concessions provide signals of parties’ willingness to incur costs. This article develops and tests a new theory, aiming to shed light on the mechanisms through which power-sharing bargains help to overcome the commitment problem. I argue that government parties tend to hold an electoral and military advantage, which heightens incentives for rebel leaders to defect from a settlement prior to conceding their capacity to use violence. Where settlements provide discrete guarantees that offset the risks of electoral defeat and the co-optation of forces, these incentives for pre-emptive defection should be mitigated. I offer a novel disaggregation of provisional power-sharing subtypes, distinguishing between long-term and short-term arrangements. The analysis rests on an original, cross-national dataset of government-and-rebel dyads to negotiated settlements signed between 1975 and 2015 (N = 168). The logistic regression results clearly indicate that power-sharing settlements stipulating ‘consociational’-style reforms are significantly more likely to resolve conflict between settlement dyads, all else equal. Meanwhile, standard conceptualizations of power-sharing, which include transitional coalitions and troop integration, appear unlikely to secure rebel commitment beyond the transition period, which helps to explain the contradictory findings in existing research.
https://journals.sagepub.com/home/jpr
?? SCPP ??
http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/105874
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HOW TO CITE ?
What is Aliens?
yakupkutlu tarafından yayınlandı. 13 Nisan 2018 tarihinde
Invasive marine alien species are organisms that are non-native to an ecosystem, and which may cause economic or environmental harm or adversely affect human health. In particular, they impact adversely upon biodiversity, including decline or elimination of native species – through competition, predation, or transmission of pathogens – and the disruption of local ecosystems and ecosystem functions.
Alien species are also known as exotic, introduced, non-indigenous, or invasive species. As the names imply, these species do not belong to ecosystems in which they are either intentionally or unintentionally placed. They tend to disrupt the ecosystem’s balance by multiplying rapidly. These species are often plants, fishes, mollusks, crustaceans, algae, bacteria or viruses.
A great change in the Mediterranean fauna occurred after the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869, which connected the Red Sea to the Mediterranean Sea. The Suez Canal connects two major water bodies, the Red Sea and the Mediterranean, which differ fundamentally, both faunistically and hydrographically. The Canal, which is 162.5 km in length, 200–300 m in width and 10–15 m in depth, crosses Lake Timsah and the Bitter Lakes on its way to the city of Suez and the Gulf of Suez. The fauna of the Red Sea is of tropical Indo-Pacific origin, while that of the Mediterranean is mainly of temperate Atlantic origin. The Red Sea and Mediterranean Sea were exposed to invasions of organisms from each other, known as the “lessepsian migration”, named after Ferdinand de Lesseps, the French diplomat in charge of the canal construction.
In addition to the lessepsians, many other alien species are transferred into marine ecosystems of the Mediterranean through aquaculture peruses, fishing equipment, aquarium purposes, scientific purposes, fouling ship hulls, ballast water by commercial shipping operations.
← Alien Species Effect
International Next Generation Biometry Workshop and Course
An Intelligent Software for Measurements of Biological Materials: BioMorph
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Everest Satellite High School
The student news site of Everest High School
January 5My Ideal Society
December 22My Land, My Rules
December 22Ideal Society
Blackhawks preseason
Natalie Abramat
Fans and players are eagerly awaiting the arrival of the new hockey season, but are afraid of the consequences the 2017 NHL draft may have caused to the Blackhawks. The Blackhawks have been dealing with a salary cap and because of that, players became available for exchange. The Blackhawks hosted the 2017 NHL draft in Chicago this past summer. Some fan favorites were traded such as, Artemi Panarin, Scott Darling, Marcus Kruger, and Trevor van Riemsdyk.
The Blackhawks may have lost a lot of talented players, but in the end they gained some of their old players back. “The Trades over the summer have been a huge shock, but we believe that it’s for the best interests and reasons.” Chiara Christ (18’)
The Blackhawks were also able to obtain key players like Patrick Sharp, David Kampf, and Anton Forsberg. Unfortunately, Marian Hossa will have to miss this year’s season due to medical complications from the medicine that he is taking for his progressive skin disorder.
“Stan Bowman has made lots of changes this off-season with bringing back fan favorites like Sharp and Saad. Getting our picks at the draft and having our previous picks at the ready will hopefully help Chicago and Rockford get further in the playoffs this year.” Georgie Rodriguez (19’) The Hawks have suffered from some major blows after last season’s playoff. Marian Hossa’s skin condition has slowly been worsening, to the point where he is forced to be put on Medical leave.
Brian Campbell retired, leaving fans upset. Campbell explained to the fans and reports that he had been thinking about it for a while, but at the end of the day, he didn’t know if he could carry on. He also stated that he didn’t want to move to another city after the Blackhawks told him they were changing it up. However, this isn’t the last time we will see Campbell. Campbell will be working with youth hockey initiatives while working on the business side.
The Blackhawks will be playing against the Red Wings, Bruins, and Blue Jackets in the preseason, which consists of six games. Their first game will be on 9/19, at the Nationwide Arena in Columbus, playing against the Blue Jackets.
Would you climb Mount Everest
Yes - it is worth the risk
The life of Kobe Bryant
Lebron MVP season
Belvidere Volleyball Preview
NBA Season Suspended
Baseball Preview
Softball 2020 Preview
North Boys Basketball Falls in Regional Championship
MLB Spring training 2020
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Rabobank taken to court on charges it laundered money for Mexican drug cartels
Posted by Gangsters Inc. on February 4, 2017 at 9:30am
Dutch lawyer Göran Sluiter and his Mexican client Fernando Hernandez filed a criminal complaint in a court in the Netherlands this week against Dutch banking giant the Rabobank for its alleged involvement in laundering money for Mexican drug cartels at one of its subsidiaries in the border city of Calexico in the United States.
According to Sluiter, between 2010 and 2015, the Calexico branch of the Rabobank accepted cash deposits from drug dealers working for Mexican cartels, which it subsequently laundered in its vast international banking system by making it impossible to determine the origin of the sums of money.
In doing so, Sluiter says, the Rabobank supported the drug cartels that are involved in widespread violence, including kidnapping, torture, and murder. “Money laundering kills,” he told Dutch media.
“Mexican citizens are suffering because of the cartels and their crimes,” Sluiter explained. “They are able to commit these crimes because of their enormous wealth. This wealth, these mountains of cash, needs to be put somewhere, needs to be laundered. They do so at banks. And they did this at Rabobank as well. This makes these banks bear responsibility for the crimes these cartels commit.”
Read: Greedy bankers of HSBC working with drug cartels
Sluiter is filing these charges on behalf of his client Fernando Hernandez, who lost his uncle in 2010 after local police handed him over to a drug cartel, after which he was never seen again. Between 150,000 and 200,000 died since 2006 because of the drug wars in Mexico, Hernandez told Dutch reporters. He came to the Netherlands because of the human rights organizations here and saw a possibility to take action against those involved.
“It’s not only about who commits the crimes but also who benefits from them,” he said. “And we believe the Rabobank benefitted from these crimes.”
Asked if he fears for his life, Hernandez showed courage and defiance, saying, “If something happens to me and my family, then I’m right, then we hit a spot, we are on the right path pointing out the relationship between the Rabobank and the cartels. We have chosen to fight. In Mexico, we are tired of just being still and getting killed.”
“We want justice,” Sluiter added.
Read: What's next for "El Chapo" and the Sinaloa Cartel?
The Rabobank refuses to comment on ongoing cases, but did say that the situation had since changed for the better. Its Calexico branch was shut down soon after United States authorities began investigating it.
“There is no reason why the Rabobank and its officials should be treated differently than any other defendant,” Sluiter said, explaining that when someone can’t pay their mortgage or is late on a payment the bank will not be content with the client explaining that was all in the past and that from now on payments will be on time.
With the nefarious influence of money laundering and tax evasion on society becoming clearer every day, the pressure from citizens and law enforcement on banks is increasing. No longer can they hide behind ignorance. It is time that they play by society’s rules.
Jennifer Lopez stars as drug lord Griselda Blanco in new HBO movie
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R. Blair Thomas
Chairman & Chief Executive Officer
R. Blair Thomas is the Chief Executive Officer of EIG, as well as Chairman of the Investment Committee and Executive Committee of EIG. Mr. Thomas is also a member of the Board of Directors and the Investment Committee of FS/EIG Advisor. EIG was formerly part of Trust Company of the West, where Mr. Thomas was a Group Managing Director and a member of the Board of Directors of TCW Asset Management Company. Prior to joining EIG in 1998, Mr. Thomas was a senior investment officer with the Inter-American Development Bank and a project finance attorney at the law firm of Brown & Wood in New York. Mr. Thomas also served on the White House staff of President George H. W. Bush as an advisor on energy and budget policy. Mr. Thomas received a B.A. from the University of Virginia, a J.D. from New York Law School and an L.L.M. from Georgetown University Law Center. Mr. Thomas is also the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Harbour Energy Ltd., Limetree Bay Ventures, and Prumo Logistica S.A. and is a member of the Board of Directors of Chrysaor Holdings Ltd.
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This is fantastic! Had no idea that ex-NBA coach (very successful coach) Don Nelson retired to Hawaii to grow marijuana. He hosts poker games with friends like Willie Nelson and smokes weed every day. Awesome! THIS is how you retire!!
https://www.guampdn.com/story/sport...arijuana-farmer-maui-profiled-hbo/1568729001/
cmvideo75, Feb 22, 2020
https://www.forbes.com/sites/javierhasse/2020/07/12/dr-mechoulam/amp/
Super weed is coming!! Lol
cmvideo75, Jul 13, 2020
Mexico Is on the Verge of Legalizing Weed For 130 Million People
Cannabis activists are worried about who stands to profit from the bill, which promises to create the world's biggest legal market for marijuana.
by Nathaniel Janowitz
An illegal marijuana farmer in Sinaloa, Mexico, where the plant has been cultivated for decades and helps support families. Photo by Deborah Bonello for VICE World News.
MEXICO CITY - Mexico’s Senate passed a controversial bill to legalize both industrial and recreational cannabis on November 19, weeks ahead of a December 15 deadline mandated by the country’s Supreme Court. The landmark cannabis legislation must now clear one final legal hurdle - a vote in the lower house of Congress - before Mexico’s population of roughly 130 million would become the largest legal weed market in the world.
It was a strange sight inside the senate as some Senators tucked handkerchiefs with marijuana leaves in their jacket pockets. One party placed green alarm clocks around the room with the phrase “llegó la hora de regular”, or “Time to Regulate”.
“Without a doubt, this bill is going to be one of the most controversial we have ever had,” said Senator Julio Menchaca Salazar from the Morena party as he addressed the Senate. “But, our obligation is to establish the rules of the game.”
Menchaca has been one of the principal drivers of the current version of the law, which received last minute backroom addendums in the 48 hours prior. For many, when the law was read on the Senate floor it was the first time they learned what changes had been made.
While the bill passed in a landslide vote of 82-18, not all proponents of legalized cannabis are happy about the current version of the bill as it progresses through the Mexican legal system.
In a bizarre publicity stunt on Wednesday, two pro-cannabis Mexican senators, Emilio Álvarez Icaza and Indira Kempis Martinez, held a press conference to announce that they would vote against the law alongside a prominent activist named José Rivera in an outdoor patio of the Senate building.
Rivera stepped to the podium with a tense demeanor and asked for forgiveness from the Jewish community, before comparing prohibition to a “subtle holocaust” over the past hundred years. Then, along with another activist, he put on an oversized coat in an apparent attempt to look like holocaust camp internees. He went on to compare the Mexican government to the Nazis due to the bill’s requirement for certain permits and the continued prohibition of smoking weed in public.
Finally, he fired up a joint on the government patio, which caused the Senate’s official Twitter account to turn off the live feed of the press conference.
His protest reflected a growing dissatisfaction with the bill that has seen numerous revisions over the past weeks and months.
“Mexico has taken a historic step in the right direction, however we are passing a law that does not fully decriminalize the activities related to the plant before regulating it,” said Zara Snapp, a legalization activist and co-founder of the Mexican research and advocacy organization Instituto RIA. She lamented that a number of parts of the law are actually a “restriction on the rights of people,” like the limits on home-grown plants and where people can smoke.
As the bill has been developed, legalization advocates claim it has been transformed to favor wealthy Mexicans and investors who can pay to enter the industry and large foreign marijuana producers who want to sell to the new massive market. They claim it will ultimately leave humble marijuana-cultivating communities, small Mexican-entrepreneurs, and local home aficionados with limited business opportunities.
Snapp specifically pointed to the last-minute modification removing limits on “vertical integration,” which meant companies could only receive a license for one of four aspects of the future cannabis industry: cultivation, transformation, research, and commercialization. Meanwhile, it provided the opportunity for multiple licenses to long-marginalized populations designated by the government to have been affected by prohibition. Now, the addendum opened up the opportunity to receive multiple licenses to everyone, including big businesses.
Before the lower house of congress votes on the bill, activists can still pressure politicians for changes to the law. But, if additional addendums are made, the bill will again need to go through an entirely new vote on the Senate floor - all before the looming December 15 deadline.
“We will continue to push for this to be a better bill until the last moment, and then we will work on the implementation,” she said. “Because we do believe that drug policy reform is one of the crucial steps towards peace building in the country, and if we do it with a social justice focus it will have the impact that we all desire here in our country.”
Fight Genome, Nov 22, 2020
CopperHeart likes this.
Menchaca has been one of the principal drivers of the current version of the law, which received last minute backroom addendums in the 48 hours prior. For many, when the law was read on the Senate floor it was the first time they learned what changes had been made. While the bill passed in a landslide vote of 82-18, not all proponents of legalized cannabis are happy about the current version of the bill as it progresses through the Mexican legal system.
In a bizarre publicity stunt on Wednesday, two pro-cannabis Mexican senators, Emilio Álvarez Icaza and Indira Kempis Martinez, held a press conference to announce that they would vote against the law alongside a prominent activist named José Rivera in an outdoor patio of the Senate building. Rivera stepped to the podium with a tense demeanor and asked for forgiveness from the Jewish community, before comparing prohibition to a “subtle holocaust” over the past hundred years. Then, along with another activist, he put on an oversized coat in an apparent attempt to look like holocaust camp internees. He went on to compare the Mexican government to the Nazis due to the bill’s requirement for certain permits and the continued prohibition of smoking weed in public.
Cannabis Is Officially a Medicine, Following Historic UN Vote
The vote to remove cannabis from Schedule IV of the 1961 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs is set to spark a rise in research and medical access.
by Max Daly London, United Kingdom 2.12.20
Photo: Alberto Ortega / Getty Images
A historic vote at the United Nations today finally recognised the medicinal value of cannabis – a plant that has been used therapeutically for thousands of years.
After a recommendation from experts at the World Health Organisation, the UN’s Commission for Narcotic Drugs voted to remove cannabis from a list of drugs previously judged to have little medical benefit, which also oddly includes heroin. However, it still remains a banned drug for non-medical use under UN law.
The vote to remove cannabis from Schedule IV of the 1961 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs was narrowly won by 27 to 25 votes, with the US and UK voting for the change and Russia heading a bloc of countries – including China, Pakistan and Nigeria – which were against the move. The use of cannabis as a medicine has been traced back thousands of years, from a Chinese list of medicines in 15th century BC, to ancient Egypt and ancient Greece.
The UN decision will add to a growing drive in many countries to increase access to cannabis-based medicines, and could also spark more scientific research into the drug’s long-known medical properties. It could also act as catalyst for more countries to legalise the drug for medicinal use, which has often led to laws on recreational use being reconsidered.
Currently, more than 50 countries worldwide have adopted medicinal cannabis programmes. Canada, Uruguay and 15 US states have legalised recreational use, with Mexico and Luxembourg close to becoming the third and fourth countries to do so.
“This is welcome news for the millions of people who use cannabis for therapeutic purposes, and reflects the reality of the growing market for cannabis-based medicinal products,” said a joint press release from a group of drug reform NGOs.
Anna Fordham, executive director of the International Drug Policy Consortium (IDPC), said the drug’s recognition as a medicine was “long overdue”, but that its continued ban by the UN remains a sticking point.
“The original decision [in 1961] to prohibit cannabis lacked scientific basis and was rooted in colonial prejudice and racism,” said Fordham. “It disregarded the rights and traditions of communities that have been growing and using cannabis for medicinal, therapeutic, religious and cultural purposes for centuries, and has led to millions being criminalised and incarcerated across the globe.”
While the medical uses are now acknowledged, the non-medical use of cannabis remains in the most restrictive Schedule 1, alongside drugs deemed the most risky, such as cocaine and fentanyl.
“There’s been progress today, but we are still dealing with a horribly outdated and broken system,” Steve Rolles from the UK’s Transform Drug Policy Foundation told VICE World News. “It isn’t based on evidence of risk, and is not addressing the political realities of the growing movement for reform. So there’s still an awful long way to go.”
Fight Genome, Dec 2, 2020
CopperHeart and Sedulous like this.
Sedulous OG Heavyweight
Started taking CBD a couple weeks back after having some chronic knee pain for years now that seemed to be getting worse. 1000 mg per dose everyday and it actually seems to be working. For the first week I didn't notice anything. Not affects after taking and no changes but about a month in and there's definitely a difference. I'll probably get more when this runs out.
Sedulous, Dec 2, 2020
cmvideo75, Prince-Vegeta and Fight Genome like this.
Sedulous said: ↑
Oh you'll get more.... and then the next thing you know it's cocaine..... then heroin.... then DEATH! This is the path you have embarked upon.
cmvideo75, Dec 2, 2020
Reckin007, Sedulous and Sapper like this.
Nah, next is shrooms!!
House Approves Decriminalizing Marijuana; Bill To Stall In Senate
The House of Representatives approved decriminalizing marijuana at the federal level on Friday in the first time Congress has acted on the issue.
The vote was largely along party lines – 228-164. Five Republicans and the lone independent member joined Democrats to pass the bill, and six Democrats voted no.
Branded as the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement Act, or MORE Act, the bill removes cannabis from the list of federally controlled substances and facilitates canceling low-level federal convictions and arrests related to marijuana.
The legislation is not expected to pass in the Republican-controlled Senate.
The bill is a way for Democrats to send a message about their outlook on drugs in a nation where more cities and states already have become more accepting. It creates an excise tax on cannabis sales and directs the money to be targeted to communities adversely affected by the so-called war on drugs.
The bill specifically adds incentives for minority-owned businesses to help them enter the cannabis market, which has exploded in recent years given the relaxation in controls in some places within the United States.
https://www.npr.org/2020/12/04/942949288/house-approves-decriminalizing-marijuana-bill-to-stall-in-senate
Prince-Vegeta, Dec 4, 2020
Prince-Vegeta said: ↑
The war on drugs is over, drugs win!
*crowd goes wild*
osubuckeye4, Dec 4, 2020
Not so fast there Ghost Rider! Unfortunately, for all you pot heads out there, I don't think it will pass in the Senate.
Reckin007 OG Heavyweight
I hope it works out for you. I don't smoke a lot anymore but it's nice being able to do it legally. There are some headaches with it (cost, has to be purchased through government) but it's really nice having it so accessible and not having to worry about having it in the house, especially now that we have kids. We can grow 4 plants as well (haven't tried yet but someday).
Reckin007, Dec 4, 2020
abc0331 and Prince-Vegeta like this.
Fight Genome likes this.
U.S. man who was serving 90-year sentence for cannabis released
Kelli Kennedy
Published Wednesday, December 9, 2020 6:34PM EST
FORT LAUDERDALE, FLA. -- While serving a 90-year prison sentence for selling marijuana, Richard DeLisi's wife died, as did his 23-year-old son and both his parents. His adult daughter was in a horrific car accident and suffered a paralyzing stroke as a result. He never met two granddaughters -- a lifetime of missed memories. Yet, 71-year-old DeLisi walked out of a Florida prison Tuesday morning grateful and unresentful as he hugged his tearful family. After serving 31 years, he said he's just eager to restore the lost time. DeLisi was believed to be the longest-serving nonviolent cannabis prisoner, according to the The Last Prisoner Project which championed his release.
DeLisi also finally met his 11-year-old and 1-year-old granddaughters for the first time this week.
"I'm a blessed human being, a survivor," DeLisi said in a phone interview with The Associated Press on Wednesday while he was in the parking lot of his favourite hamburger joint as he watched his granddaughters laugh and bounce a ball.
DeLisi was sentenced to 90 years for marijuana trafficking in 1989 at the age of 40 even though the typical sentence was only 12 to 17 years. He believes he was targeted with the lengthy sentence because the judge mistakenly thought he was part of organized crime because he was an Italian from New York. DeLisi said he had opportunities, but never had any desire for that life. He prefers not to dwell on lost memories and time he'll never get back. He's not angry, and instead takes every opportunity to express gratitude and hope.
"Prison changed me. I never really knew who God was and now I know and it changed the way I talk to people and treat people," said DeLisi, who became a mentor to younger inmates. "For me, being there so long, I was able to take gang members from gangs to gentleman."
When the then-40-year-old hipster with the thick Italian accent first entered prison, he was illiterate, but taught himself how to read and write.
Now, he wants "to make the best of every bit of my time" fighting for the release of other inmates through his organization FreeDeLisi.com.
"The system needs to change and I'm going to try my best to be an activist," he said. Chiara Juster, a former Florida prosecutor who handled the case pro bono for the The Last Prisoner Project, criticized DeLisi's lengthy sentence as "a sick indictment of our nation."
The family has spent over $250,000 on attorneys' fees and over $80,000 on long-distance international collect calls over the past few decades, but it's not money they want back.
Rick DeLisi was only 11-years-old when he sat in the courtroom and said goodbye to his father. Now, he's a successful business owner with a wife and three children living in Amsterdam. He can't wait to bring his father overseas and to their vacation home in Hawaii. Those are the memories his father yearned to create while he was locked up.
"Taking a swim, lay in the sun, oh so many things, eat at Jack's Hamburgers," the father said.
Every moment, even the little ones, are milestones. For years, 43-year-old Rick dreamed of cooking his father breakfast like he did Wednesday morning with heaping platters of eggs, bacon, sausage and biscuits. He burst into tears just watching his dad eat a bagel and drink a bottle of water that didn't come from the prison commissary. But it's bittersweet thinking about the lost time, the waste.
For what, his son asks?
"It's just kind of like torment on your soul for 31 years," he said. "I was kind of robbed of my whole life so I just appreciate that I can witness it, but on the other hand I feel like isn't somebody responsible? Is there somebody that can answer to this?"
Rick DeLisi said his family fell apart after his father's sentence. His mother never recovered. His brother overdosed and died, his sister was in a terrible car accident. Rick fled at the country at 17 to get away from the pain. "I can't believe they did this to my father. I can't believe they did this to my family," the grieving son said, describing the reunion like opening up an old, painful wound.
His voice cracks and his eyes well up with tears as he talks about how grateful he is to finally see his dad.
"There's a feeling of who's responsible for this debt in my mind, and justice," said Rick DeLisi. "I don't mean debt with money. I mean something more valuable. Time. Something you can never get back".
Fight Genome, Dec 10, 2020
CopperHeart OG P4P Great
CopperHeart, Dec 11, 2020
CopperHeart said: ↑
Sapper, Dec 11, 2020
osubuckeye4 likes this.
Is Marijuana Legalization Inevitable in the U.S.?
Every ballot initiative involving the decriminlization or legalization of marijuana passed in 2020. The Democratic controlled house also passed the MORE Act. in December, which would legalize marijuana at the federal level and implement sweeping regulations surrounding the drug in the U.S.
Fight Genome, Jan 5, 2021
Fight Genome said: ↑
Long overdue. I remain skeptical though. They're going to give people 2000 and legal weed? Sheeeeit.
They might run out of weed.
opti, Jan 6, 2021
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This article was last modified on September 11, 2007.
Obama’s Ignorance on Pakistan
Our leadership in America is one that has firm roots in American exceptionalism and ignorance of international law (or, in many cases, a an awareness and complete disregard altogether). George W. Bush’s war in Iraq is a clear example of going against the United Nations and laws of sovereignty. But he’s not unique in this: President Bill Clinton, in the words of the current President Bush, would “fire a $2 million missile at a $10 empty tent and hit a camel in the butt” across country lines. This was likewise illegal, and quite ineffective (setting aside the attack on the Al-Shifa pharmaceutical plant in Sudan, which lead to the deaths of tens of thousands of innocent Sudanese for no reason).
Senator Barack Obama is brilliant, and he is looking at foreign affairs in a light that most “experienced” politicians refuse to do. He calls for restrictions on Cuba to be loosened, he had the foresight to oppose the Iraq War and see the after-effects before the first strike was even launched. But even he makes blunders that could be costly to foreign relations, and one such blunder came in the summer of 2007.
Obama’s Position
On August 1, 2007, Senator Barack Obama delivered a speech on counterterrorism policy at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, a think tank in Washington. He had the following remarks, widely reported in the media:
“I would make our conditions clear: Pakistan must make substantial progress in closing down the training camps, evicting foreign fighters and preventing the Taliban from using Pakistan as a staging area for attacks in Afghanistan … I understand that President Musharraf has his own challenges. But let me make this clear. There are terrorists holed up in those mountains who murdered 3,000 Americans. They are plotting to strike again… If we have actionable intelligence about high-value terrorist targets and President Musharraf will not act, we will.”
Pakistan took issue with Obama on two things: one, he allegedly underestimates the efforts Pakistan is putting in to catch the terrorists. Two, he doesn’t respect Pakistani sovereignty.
Pakistan’s second point is absolutely correct. America has a long history of entering foreign countries (particularly poor or Third World countries who can’t defend themselves) for our own ends. Would we launch a missile into downtown London? Of course not. So why should we in Pakistan, even if it’s in the rural areas? It’s not our right to send missiles into countries without their consent — that’s aggression. Obama’s seeming callousness disturbs me in this way.
In the Democratic primary debate on April 26, 2007, he had said the nuclear weapons option with Iran would not be taken off the table, eliciting an emotional response from Senator Mike Gravel. Seantor Obama made this same claim earlier on February 11 on 60 Minutes when asked about using military force to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons. His words were precisely, “I think we should keep all options on the table.” (Not that Obama is alone. Senator John Edwards spoke similar words in Israel on January 22, 2007: “Iran must know that the world won’t back down… To ensure that Iran never gets nuclear weapons, we need to keep ALL options on the table. Let me reiterate – ALL options must remain on the table.”)
I understand that the reality of global politics suggests you keep “all options” open. But I don’t want a president who keeps it in mind — I want him to use diplomacy until there’s nothing left to do in order to secure our survival. Obama is allegedly a “liberal” (so is Hillary Clinton, allegedly) but when it comes to military strikes, they don’t talk any different than the conservatives when grilled. They want out of Iraq (although not nearly soon enough), but are more than willing to fight elsewhere.
Intervention is illegal regardless of where, and nuclear use never a legitimate option: a first-strike nuclear attack is clearly unacceptable, and there is no justification to launch a counter-strike. As for missile interception, any nuclear missile could be intercepted with a non-nuclear missile, making nuclear weapons essentially senseless to acquire and possess in any situation.
Pakistan’s first point, regarding their anti-terror efforts, is debatable. I don’t know how much Pakistan is or isn’t doing, and I suspect no one else is really positive on this, either. News sources inform me that the government lets the Taliban more or less roam free in the mountainous areas between Pakistan and Afghanistan (including Tora Bora). To some degree, this is certainly true. But the government cannot really be faulted — it’s not Pakistan’s job to hunt these people down for simply being an organization. The Taliban, love them or hate them, are a political assemblage more than they are a terrorist cell. Al-Qaeda, which is only vaguely connected to the Taliban, is a group of terrorists — but they are not the group who killed 3000 Americans like Obama says. Those individuals died on September 11, with the exception of a small handful of agents (such as bin Laden). The alleged terrorists in Pakistan haven’t actually planned or done anything and aren’t a real or imminent threat to America. If Pakistan catches them (preferably with a police unit and not with a tank) that’s great. But assisting American policies that do not benefit Pakistan should not be their top priority if other domestic issues are going on.
In follow-ups interviews, Obama said that “I think it would be a profound mistake for us to use nuclear weapons in any circumstance involving civilians.” This only further muddied the waters. Does this imply that nuclear weapons would be acceptable in non-civilian areas? And if so, how are we to define a “civilian” — as terrorists are generally not state-sponsored, they are by commonly accepted definition civilians (people not within the state military or police forces).
The Views of Others
Following Senator Obama’s claim that if Pakistan doesn’t act then America must, two of his colleagues were quick to chime in with resounding endorsements. Senator Hilary Clinton said much the same thing:
“If we had actionable intelligence that Osama bin Laden or other high-value targets were in Pakistan I would ensure that they were targeted and killed or captured. And that will be my highest priority because they pose the highest threat to America.”
Joe Biden had some concern with Obama’s words, but not his intentions. He felt the way to approach a situation was simply to react (which forces me to wonder: does this imply that Congress is not consulted?). Biden’s words were:
“The way to deal with it is not to announce it, it’s to do it. It’s not something you talk about; as president, it’s something I would do.”
Edwards Repeats Obama
After the Obama criticism from the media — and particularly the bloggers — died down, candidate John Edwards used the same language and received far less of a response. On September 8, 2007, while speaking at a campaign rally at Pace University in New York, he said, “I want to be clear about one thing. If we have actionable intelligence about imminent terrorist activity and the Pakistan Government refuses to act, we will… We ought to use our tremendous tools — diplomacy, arm sales, trade, foreign aid — to get states to shut down terror cells.”
We have discussed much of this already, and I will return to the problem with “arms sales” shortly.
What Else Obama Said
In all fairness to Senator Obama, we should note that the media got it both right and wrong when reporting on his statement. They were absolutely right to call him out for his implication of intervention. But they also did both him and the American public a disservice by omitting key areas of his speech that struck a more moderate and reasoned chord. Obama supporter Omaya Jones of Little Rock, Arkansas points out that the following was also said:
“And Pakistan needs more than F-16s to combat extremism. As the Pakistani government increases investment in secular education to counter radical madrases, my Administration will increase America’s commitment. We must help Pakistan invest in the provinces along the Afghan border, so that the extremists’ program of hate is met with one of hope. And we must not turn a blind eye to elections that are neither free nor fair — our goal is not simply an ally in Pakistan, it is a democratic ally.”
The Pakistan Peanuts Deal
Barack Obama is not the only one to have a Pakistan problem. Even the best-intentioned American leaders have had their share of trouble with Pakistan’s leadership in the past. Most notably, we will recall that President Jimmy Carter was unsure how to effectively handle Pakistan once it became clear they would be a necessary ally in the Cold War, given the Soviet Union’s advancement into Afghanistan.
Relations between America and Pakistan had reached a low point in 1979, after the burning down of a Pakistan-based US Embassy by fundamentalists. Not surprisingly, financial aid was lowered soon after this event. But, as stated, things reversed once the war front approached Pakistan.
The President of Pakistan, General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq, was offered 400 million dollars (some reports say 325 million) by President Carter in early 1980 to help fund the anti-communist Mujahideen in Afghanistan. The funding was to be spread out over the following two years if approved by Congress. On January 17, President Zia called the offer “peanuts”, a clever and condescending pun given Carter’s background as a peanut farmer. The offer was officially rejected by Pakistan on March 5, 1980. Obaid ul Haq reports that Zia “felt that the Carter administration did not fully appreciate the gravity of the situation Pakistan faced”. [Rikhye: 40]
By January 1981, President Ronald Reagan had taken office. Reagan, a much stronger opponent of the Soviet Union (or ,as he called it, the “Evil Empire”), was willing to go the extra mile to stop the spread of so-called communism. Reagan “agreed to provide Pakistan with a $3.2 billion package of economic aid and military sales credit spread over a five year period, 1982 to 1987… In 1987, a second package was agreed upon which extended $4.2 billion in economic and military aid for the next five years, 1987-1992.” [Rikhye: 40]
Students of history, or even observant students of current affairs, know what happened next. Critics of this policy blame Carter and Reagan for the resulting instability of post-Soviet Afghan governments, which led to the rise of Islamic theocracy in the region (the Taliban), and also created many of the current problems with Islamic fundamentalism. Al-Qaeda, as we now know, rose from the ashes of the CIA-trained and Reagan-funded Mujahideen.
In essence, Carter’s and Reagan’s willingness to help Pakistan in the past with arms sales and military aid are the indirect cause of America’s and Obama’s need to confront Pakistan today. Would assisting them militarily today result in a yet another turn-around down the road?
Obama is a bright and promising young politician, but even he makes some slips of the tongue that ought best to be avoided. Intervention is a dangerous and illegal game, and the implementation of nuclear weapons — both actualized or merely discussed — is only problematic. We may recall the tagline of the 1983 film WarGames concerning nuclear war: “Where the only winning move is not to play”.
America must move forward beyond the barbarous policies of intervention and nuclear strikes. Unfortunately, with the current Democratic front-runners being Barack Obama, John Edwards and Hillary Clinton — one of which will likely win the presidency — we have little hope besides more of the same in January 2009.
Rikhye, Indar Jit, editor. Afghanistan, Iran and Iraq: External Involvement and Multilateral Options. International Peace Academy, 1989.
Also try another article under Historical / Biographical, Political
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Istanbul Weekly
News about Istanbul
The coronavirus effect: Germany achieves its 2020 climate targets
ByDeniz Altan
In 2007, under Chancellor Angela Merkel’s leadership, the German government pledged a 40% carbon emissions cut by 2020. According to analysis by Berlin-based think tank Agora Energiewende — which translates to energy transition — last year’s carbon emissions were down by 42.3% over 1990 levels, meaning the country has clearly achieved its stated goal.
According to Agora analysis, Germany emitted 722 million tons of CO2 last year, 82 million tons less than in 2019 — which amounts to a decrease of 10%.
Agora attributes two thirds of the reduction to the coronavirus pandemic: most notably a signifcant drop in energy usage in industry, resulting in a CO2 emissions fall of more than 50 million tons compared to 2019.
Without the crisis, the drop would have been closer to 25 million tons, Agora estimates. In this scenario, Germany would only have achieved a 38% reduction in emissions compared to 1990, and would therefore have missed its target.
For the first time, renewable energy counted for more than 50% of the national electricity grid
“The only real impacts of climate protection in 2020 were in the electricity sector, where CO2 reductions can be traced back to the replacement of coal by gas and renewables,” Patrick Graichen, director of Agora Energiewende, told DW.
Over 50% green electricity in grid
In 2020, the share of green electricity in the German power grid was 50.5%, according to the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems (ISE). In the previous year, this share was 46%. In 2020, wind power alone comprised around 27% of electricity demand, more than lignite (17%) and hard coal (7%) combined. Solar panels accounted for 10% of the German electricity demand, biomass power plants 9% and hydropower 4%.
While wind turbines generated 5% more electricity than in the previous year and solar claimed a 7% share of the mix, electricity generation using lignite (-20%) and hard coal (-28%) both fell significantly. In 2019, the year-over-year decline in coal-fired generation was even steeper in each case, at 22% and 33% respectively.
“Coal-fired power is in deep decline,” Graichen said, adding that the trend will “continue in the coming years.”
He says this is partly down to the expansion of renewable energies and partly the increased price for CO2, which makes coal-fired power more expensive and increasingly unprofitable. In addition to renewables, gas-fired power plants often supply electricity more cheaply.
Agora says this means neighboring countries with gas-fired power plants can produce their own electricity more cheaply, and don’t have to rely on Germany for supply. In 2020, a total of 3% of Germany’s electricity was exported, half the 2019 amount.
Less air traffic saves a lot of CO2
Aviation has so far played a subordinate role in Germany’s climate targets, as only domestic air traffic is counted in the assessment of national emissions. The collapse of the aviation sector has had a positive effect on the climate.
According to Agora, aircraft taking off in Germany in 2019 were equivalent in their emissions impact to 80 million tons of CO2 per year. Preliminary 2020 figures indicate that sales of kerosene in the country fell by 55% compared to the previous year. Sales of diesel and gasoline for cars and trucks fell by 9%, and the associated CO2 reduction is around 14 million tons.
Germany was previously doing well in climate protection, but in previous years slipped back in rankings
On course for Paris climate target?
To meet the 1.5 degree limit, CO2 emissions must now continue to fall significantly and continuously, according to a Wuppertal Institute study.
“Germany has to become CO2-neutral by 2035. Otherwise, it will not be able to make an adequate contribution to achieving the 1.5-degree Celsius target,” says energy and climate researcher Manfred Fischedick, head of the Wuppertal Institute.
“From a technical and economic point of view, this is extremely challenging, but in principle it is quite possible,” he added.
Renewable energy sources are key. Fischedick and his colleagues recommend solar and wind expansion of at least 25 to 30 gigawatts per year. This is almost three to five times faster than growth witnessed in the sector in recent years.
Agora Energiewende says achieving climate neutrality by 2050 will require solar and wind expansion to the tune of 15.5 gigawatts annually in the coming years. “We’d need to kick things up a gear,” Graichen said.
At the moment, the German government’s plans to expand renewable energy are far from where they need to be to meet the Paris climate goals or the EU climate target set for 2030. So far, plans only foresee a total annual wind and solar expansion of around 10 gigawatts.
Graichen also expects greenhouse gases to rise “as soon as the economy picks up again”. In 2021, electricity consumption could also increase more than the growth in renewables.
“For 2021, we therefore expect more emissions in total,” he said. “Only rapid climate policy action can counteract this.”
This article was adapted from German
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By Deniz Altan
Finland: EUR 80 million for recruiting VET teachers and instructors
Jan 17, 2021 Istanbul Weekly
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Abbas Decrees First Palestinian Elections in 15 Years
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Nairobi National Park Tour
Nairobi Animal Orphanage is the oldest animal orphanage in Kenya and set in Nairobi National Park with lush vegetation contrasting against the red dust and clay of the soil. Nairobi National park is at the backdrop of Leleshwa Getaway. With prior arrangements, you can take a safari in Nairobi National park, that boast a variety of wildlife including Lion, cheetah, hyena, jackal, serval, very rare sokoke cats, warthog, ostrich, leopard, various monkeys, baboon, buffalo, Birds: Parrot, guinea fowl and crown crane. Giraffe Centre sanctuary & Nature Walk
Giraffe Centre was established in a bid to save the endangered Rothschild Giraffe, which had lost its natural habitat in Western Kenya to agriculture and there were only 130 left in the wild. A nature trail stretching about 1.5 kilometers meandering through thick bushes and forests begins directly in front of the parking lot at the Giraffe Centre. There are variety of animals that make this forest their home including the giraffes, warthogs, hyenas and times we get leopard.
David Sheldrick Orphanage Tour
This is a for orphaned elephants and rhinos open between 11:00Am and 12:00Pm. If lucky, you will get to bottle feed one of the orphans. The Trust’s expertise on the hand-rearing of wild orphans extends to species other than just the elephants and rhinos. Over the years it has successfully hand-reared and repatriated back into their respective wild communities, orphans from almost all Kenya’s indigenous species. However, the Trust will only undertake the hand rearing of wild orphans that can ultimately be successfully returned to the wild when grown which include all the antelope species from dikdiks to elands, zebra mares ( but not the stallions), Cape buffaloes, warthogs, squirrels, mongooses, civets and genet cats, jackals and birds.
Kitengela Glass Factory Tour
Kitengela Glass is located near Leleshwa Getaway, at the end of a rough road. Despite this, the constant stream of visitors from all over the world never stops. The magical ambience of the place is peppered with sculptures, animals and secret mosaic pathways which lead to niches of busy artisans all transforming recycled glass and scraps of other materials into beautiful artworks, jewellery and home ware.
Karen Blixen Museum Tour
Karen Blixen Museum was once the centre piece of a farm at the foot of the Ngong Hills owned by Danish Author Karen and her Swedish Husband, Baron Bror von Blixen Fincke. Located 10km from the city centre, the Museum belongs to a different time period in the history of Kenya. The farm house gained international fame with the release of the movie ‘Out of Africa’ an Oscar winning film based on Karen’s an autobiography by the same title.The Museum is open to the Public every day (9.30 am to 6pm) including weekends and public holidays. Visitors are encouraged to be at the Museum by 5.30. Guided tours are offered continuously. A museum shop offers handicrafts, posters and postcards, the Movie ‘Out of Africa’, books and other Kenyan souvenirs. The grounds may be rented for wedding receptions, corporate functions and other events.
Leleshwa Getaway
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Un Interlude Musical de Jeff Overturf, Troisieme Mouvement de Sept
Thanks for dropping by for the third movement in my seven day musical interlude and second part of my "Rusty" love song trilogy. For more on "Rusty" click here, and for part one click here.
"The Silver Dollar..." bar, saloon, tavern, what-have-you. There must be one in every part of the western U.S., and I'll bet every one has a "Rusty". This is a Shel Silverstein song about such a not-so-imaginary-place and a not-so-imaginary-woman and the other denizens there. Originally performed by "Dr. Hook and the Medicine Show" brought to you now with my stink on it.
We've all been having fun pointing at "Rusty", but it's important to remember, "Rusty"'s aren't born...they're made. So who's to bless and who's to blame?
Labels: Jeff Overturf, Jeffy Cover Song, Music, Queen of the Silver Dollar, Rusty, Shel Silverstein
Ein Musikalisches Intermezzo von Jeff Overturf, Tag Zwie von Sieben
Thank you for visiting day 2 of my 7 day musical interlude. My theme? "Love songs from different points of view".
I had no idea what a chord I would strike with my drawing of the character "Rusty" in last Sundays post. Both good and bad, it seems everyone I know has known a "Rusty". This one little drawing told everyone everything they needed to know and sparked their own memories. There must be lots of "Rusty"'s out there and as I thought of what love songs they have written for them, I actually came up with three. Here's the first.
This song is written by Chris Wall. A band called Confederate Railroad had a top ten hit with it in 1992, but I actually learned it from The Gonzo Maestro hisself, Jerry Jeff Walker on his "Live from Gruene Hall" album. Here goes.
Y'all can thank/blame Chad Palmer for the suggestion.
I'll see you tomorrow and Saturday for the other two love songs for this wonderfully universal woman.
Thanks "Rusty" for all you do.
Labels: Chris Wall, Jeff Overturf, Jeffy Cover Song, Music, Rusty, Trashy Women
Intermezzo Musicale di Jeff Overturf, Primo Movimento di Sette
I know what you're all thinking out there: "Hey Jeff...why are you singing and playing guitar on here when you're as rhythmically and tonally challenged as you are?"
My answer?: "'Cause I like to!"
You may even be a person who likes to sing and everyone around you cringes at the sounds emanating from you.
My answer?: "To Hell with them!"
Music's a magic thing that makes people feel good. There was a time before mp3's, before CD's, before cassette tapes, vinyl records, 8-track tapes, reel-to-reel tapes, copper cylinders and magnetic wire, when people made their own music on their front porches and back yards.
And everyone had a good time. It was a form of communication.
This post is a love song for everyone who likes to bang on an instrument or sing in the shower. Written by Dan Reeder, it tells us that you should make the most out of the simplest of songs and no one should laugh at you. And what they can do if they do if they object.
"Hey Jeff, why'd you get hoity toity with the post title in Italian?"
My answer?: "Just makin' the most out of a simple song...and you know what you can do."
Now...everybody sing.
Labels: Dan Reeder, Jeff Overturf, Jeffy Cover Song, Music, No One Will Laugh
DICK SPRANG!...no...it's not the punchline to a dirty joke.
Richard W. "Dick" Sprang was born this day in 1915, he would have been 94 years old.
Dick was one of the unsung heroes of the golden age of comic books. He was hired by DC comics in 1941 to act as a ghost penciller for Bob Kane. Bob Kane had sold Batman to DC in 1939, fearing Bob would be drafted into WW II, DC wanted to cover their hinders and ensure someone was in place to keep the feature going in Bob's absence.
There were a slew of ghosts for Bob Kane. Ghost writers, pencillers and inkers, Dick Sprang, Bill Finger, Jerry Robinson, Joe Giella and on and on. Bob had sold the character to DC and signed the contract alone, so only Bob's name ever appeared on the feature.
But Dick stood out (so many dirty jokes here) and readers all could kind of tell that there were different artists involved, and Dick was probably the best of them all.
Dick Sprang's cartoony style really defined the character throughout the 1950's. He had redesigned the Batmobile in 1948 and no one drew The Penguin quite as bizarre as he did. He also did a great expressive job on Batman. Batman's head and face are 2/3's covered by his mask, but Dick made his chin so square, Batman's mouth could really show emotion, and by turning the blank slit of his eye holes into half-moons, his eyes let you know exactly what's going on.
Rather than dilute this man's visual ability down to words, Dick Sprang's work can actually be done greater justice by experiencing it. One of his other achievements was, he was the first artist to draw the Riddler. Below is that very first appearance from Detective Comics #140, 1948.
Dick Sprang's identity was eventually rooted out by the growing comic book fan-dom on the 1960's. He had retired from comics by 1963m but by the end of the decade he was a hot property suddenly again.
He never got to sign a single Batman story he worked on during his heyday, but we knew who he was. He spent his retirement years attending comics gatherings and conventions being fawned over by fans and even drawing recreations of his golden age works. All signed...Dick Sprang.
Sprang passed away in 2000.
Like it says above, "Dick Sprang remembers"...and so do we.
Thanks Dick.
Labels: Batman, Comic Books, Dick Sprang, Riddler, Robin
50th post; More Steve Goodman and the swift hand of the internet!
Wow...you never know who's reading this thing. The solitude of working in cyberspace makes you forget sometimes that you really are connecting with people.
I got a very nice e-mail yesterday from the author of a recent biography on Steve Goodman, thanking me for the post I did on Steve's birthday.
The authors name is Clay Eals and the book is called "Facing the Music". It looks like a very good read and seems very lovingly put together. I'm definitely going to grab myself a copy.
The book is going into it's second printing and was the winner of the 2008 IPPY (Independent Publishers Award) Silver for biography.
Thanks for the kind e-mail Clay. I look forward to reading your book.
Labels: Clay Eals, Steve Goodman
Unsuccessful Television Holiday Specials
From the sketchbook of Jeff Overturf...ideas for poorly received television holiday specials.
Not a very good idea...
Worse idea...
Reaaaaaally bad idea.
Posted by Unca Jeffy at 1:07 PM No comments:
Labels: Holiday, Jeff Overturf, Jeff Overturf cartoons, Rusty, Uncle Jeffy's Sketchbook
Good Morning America...How Are You?
Born this day in 1948, today would have been Steve Goodman's 61st birthday.
Steve was a singer songwriter from Chicago who's most famous song was "The City of New Orleans", a huge hit for Arlo Guthrie. His own stage style was an exuberant ball of energy, who's spontaneity and flare with a guitar (almost an extension of his own body) could electrify an audience to a fever pitch and leave them happy, exhausted and with a satisfied grin...a refractory state very close to post-orgasmic. In the 1970's he would be the opening act for people like Kris Kristofferson in his rock & roll/country/folk/sex symbol heyday and Steve Martin in his monster "wild & crazy" height doing stadium shows. Kristofferson playfully says he eventually stopped hiring Steve because he got tired of reading reviews like, "Kristofferson's show was OK...but MAN, that Steve Goodman is GREAT!".
I'm no idiot, so I'm giving you me singing a Steve Goodman song before I show you Steve himself. I ain't gonna follow him. A smart man wouldn't even put himself in the same post as Steve. OK...maybe I AM an idiot...but, hell, it's my blog.
Here's Steve showing us what a guitar is for. An old song made famous by Al Jolson.
Steve wrote all kinds of songs. Funny songs, sad songs, poignant songs, tragic songs, happy songs. Folk, Country, Blues, Jazz songs. Songs about himself and songs about all of us.
There was always something lacking for me in his studio albums. Too '70's singer-songwriter-overproduced-treacly-sugary-sweet sounding for my ear...but his live stuff...Wow. Always great.
Awwwww hell...here's another...after all, it's his birthday.
Steve was diagnosed with leukemia when he was 11 years old and battled it all his life. He nicknamed himself "Cool Hand Leuk". Another life-long battle was that he was a Chicago Cubs fan. He even wrote the song, "Go, Cubs, Go" which they still play at the end of winning games and that the entire town of Chicago loves to sing along with.
The Cubs were last in the World Series in 1945, three years before Steve was born and in 1984 they made it into the pennant race. They played their first post-season game in 39 years.
Steve was supposed to sing the National Anthem at that game, but he died 8 days before it happened.
He gave them a better song though.
Steve's ashes were sprinkled over Wrigley Field.
Steve was 36 years old when he died. But he packed so much energy, enthusiasm for life and music and smiles on other peoples faces into that short span, you'd need the "jaws of life" to pry it all back out.
We should all try and be this excited and happy about something for just one day.
Let's try it. It would be a good tribute to Steve.
Worst case is, you had a good time for a bit.
Steve met John Prine way back about 1970 in "The Earl of Old Town" in Chicago and they became the tightest of friends from then on. They'd often write and perform together. John Prine describes Steve Goodman as "The guy who makes fun of my guitar playing to my face and brags about my songwriting behind my back.".
A song they'd often do together is John Prine's "Souvenirs" and John still does this to this day, dedicating it to Steve. He often says that "Steve had a way of playing this with me that made it sound like I was playing all the good parts.". The best way to close this is with...
Thanks Steve!
P.S. Check out an addendum to this post here!
Labels: Jeff Overturf, Jeffy Cover Song, John Prine, Music, Steve Goodman, You Never Even Called Me By My Name
One JO's Opinion: Every medium can be a large.
I watched "The Watchmen" movie the other night, and it made me think.
This is NOT a movie revue. Let me just start by saying I thought it was a fine piece of work.
It just made me think of something.
"The Watchmen" movie idea has been volleyed about for over 20 years, not since the comic book of the same name hit the stands, but ever since the 12 issues of same had been collected into a graphic novel and the sales results came in.
It was called "unfilmable" by many and I agreed. The book was so dense with nuance that made the story enjoyable, you could never get it all into an hour and 40 minute movie. But that isn't really the problem.
It was the perfect comic book. It told a story in a way that can only be told with the tools that can only be utilized in this specific art form. A film has different tools. They can replicate things, but they do not perform the same way.
Here in 2009 they did it successfully. Clocking in at over 3 hours and using technical innovations that weren't available or cost-effective 20+ years ago, they pulled it off. It was visually true to the comic and kept the story almost completely intact. If they were going to do a "Watchmen" movie, this was the way to do it. And I'm glad they did, it was fun to watch.
But, as I said, it made me think. Why is a creative work only considered truly successful if it eventually evolves into a film? Why is that the pinnacle of success?
Every creative medium has values intrinsic to only itself, that can't fully be translated into a version in another. A painting can be recreated as a sculpture...but they have different values about them that rise above or below each other.
"The Grapes of Wrath" is in the top 10 of my all-time favorite books. It tells a story in a way that you can only tell in the form John Steinbeck scribed it. It needs the novel's length, it needs the breakdown by chapter. In this case, every third chapter is a commentary, a chapter which puts the reader's mind in the mood and the place it needs to be, as well as making parallels to the characters in the story. It could have been called "unfilmable".
"The Grapes of Wrath" is in my all-time favorite top 50 films. It's got differences from the book. It says a lot of the same things as the book. But John Ford understood that film and novel are two different mediums and have values that can only be translated by it's specific form.
"The Far Side" by Gary Larson is in my top 15 favorite comic strips of all time. And it may just be THE PERFECT comic strip. The gags Larson pulled off in this thing are things that could only be done in this medium.
With The Far Side you almost have to read the caption and view the cartoon simultaneously. Try and describe a Far Side to someone, by the time you describe the action and give the verbiage (or vice verse) it loses too much of it's effect.
The elaborateness of the image and the juxtaposition of the subjects would be too unwieldy (cost and production-wise) to do in film or television to make the brevity of the "quick punch" to seem right or to be as funny.
This is an honorable thing. This is the apex of this medium. It wouldn't be "better" just because it was made into a film. John Steinbeck's work didn't became "better" because it was made into a film...it is a great novel.
Let's stop comparing different creative medium by the monetary gain they provide. Comic strips, films, songs, paintings, sculptures, television, etc. are all valuable on their own.
And made greater for those things which make them their own.
This has been "One JO's Opinion". Jeff Overturf or Jack-Off? You decide...but I'll probably keep having them anyway.
Labels: Comic Books, Comic Strips, Film, Gary Larson, Grapes of Wrath, John Ford, John Steinbeck, One JO's Opinion, The Far Side, Watchmen
Jeff Overturf who? part 7: "Missy"
"Missy" or "The Unquiting Girlfriend".
Another original song by me, the first posted here since "I Love Rachael Ray" and "Singin' Cowboy". Enjoy!
Labels: Jeff Overturf, Jeffy Original Song, Missy, Music
This Idiot Slipped Under My Radar
He stepped in it on July 8th and then splashed it all over himself this week.
Brain Kilmeade
Labels: Smegma Wad of the Week
Today would be Sara Carter's 118th birthday, she was born in 1891. That's her on your left in the pic below with Maybelle Carter and A.P. Carter, The Carter Family.
The Carter Family were the hottest ticket in rural music of the 1930's. They recorded for the RCA Victor label and during the depression, they and Jimmie Rodgers sold more records than anyone else in any kind of music. If it wasn't for the hard work and ramblings of A.P. and the appealing sounds they cut, we would have lost hundreds of years of Irish and English and American folk music. I'll get into more on A.P.'s birthday and Maybelle's too. You can read lots more about The Carter Family on your own. A book I'm particularly fond of is "Will You Miss Me When I'm Gone?" by Mark Zwonitzer and Charles Hirshberg. Their music is still avaliable on CD, you can find them all over the internet too, and a blog I'm watching with bated breath is "Dont' Forget This Blog" a blog by a couple of guys writing and drawing a graphic novel all about our favorite first family of country music. It's definitely worth a read.
A.P. was the mind and researcher (song finder), arranger and writer of the group. He was also in love with his wife Sara.
His drive to do this music was all he had and Sara was his muse that kept him doing it, so when Sara divorced him and decided to retire from music, he stopped too.
Many years after their retirement in the early 40's, the 60's folk revival rediscovered their music. They were voted into the Country Music Hall of Fame. A.P. had already passed away, but Maybelle was still performing with her daughters (Helen, June and Anita) and Sara came out of retirement to accept the award and perform on The Johnny Cash Show (Johnny and June had by this time married).
There doesn't seem to be any film footage of the Carter's performing in their heyday or of A.P. at all. Here's a couple clips though from the 60's, I believe in Johnny Cash's back yard, of Sara and Maybelle. Sara's a bit long in the tooth, and her voice is wavering, but you can really hear the cohesiveness of the Carter harmonies and the way her harpsichord blends so well with Maybelle's guitar.
Here's me doing a Carter Family song too. One A.P. might have sung with Sara in mind...the key line for me being, "All I want is your love, darling...won't you take me back...AGAIN."
Thanks Sara.
Part Two of "The Carter Fold" can be found here.
Labels: A.P. Carter, Carter Family, East Virginia Blues/Greenback Dollar, Jeff Overturf, Jeffy Cover Song, Maybelle Carter, Music, Sara Carter
Jeff Overturf who? part 6: Turf Log-"Moon Walk"
An all new "Turf Log" commemorating the 40th anniversary of the first manned Moon landing.
As always, click the smaller thumbnails to view full size.
See the bread post in question here.
Thank you Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin for risking your keisters to do it. And thank you to all the hundreds and hundreds of men who's hard work made it so.
Posted by Unca Jeffy at 6:44 AM 1 comment:
Labels: Comic Books, Frank Terando, Jeff Overturf, Jeff Overturf cartoons, Jeffy's Angels, Mark Crowley, Moon Walk, Turf Log
Out of the Inkwell...Onto Shockwave Flash Player
Max Fliescher was born today in 1883, he would have been 126 years old.
There's a lot I could tell you about the personal life of Max Fleischer, but since today is Sunday and a good day to sit and watch cartoons, I thought I'd let his work speak for itself. A kind of celebration through appreciation.
The Fleischer's began their work in the early 1920's, making silent cartoons. Most of these were about the adventures of a clown named "Ko-Ko" and his creator, Max. These were surreal stories that seemed to offer a new technical innovation with every cartoon. They invented the "Rotoscope" which allowed them to kind of "trace over" live action. Dave Fleischer would dress in a clown suit, then they would trace a cartoon figure over him. This made for a realistic movement and it's a device still used today occasionally, but the Fleischers themselves soon abandoned strict use of this, as it limited the real magic, the ability of an animator to add personality to the character..and truthfully, allow the character to be a cartoon.
They also experimented with the combination of live action and animation together, and every cartoon seemed to find a new way to innovate, poke fun at the innovation, and comment on the unique art form they were making.
Another first for the Fleischers? They were the first to put sound on film. "The Jazz Singer" with Al Jolson and even "Steamboat Willie" with Mickey Mouse were films shown with recorded accompaniment with a record playing along with the movie. The Fleischers actually printed the sound track right on the film, the way we do it right up to today.
Once sound was here to stay, they made full advantage of it with their "Famous Bouncing Ball" series. Folks in the theater would sing along with a popular song of the day while watching cartoons dramatizing the action.
The music in Fleischer Brothers cartoons was great too. Disney and Warner cartoons had top 40 pop tunes and show-type tunes, which were great...but the Fleischer's were based in New York rather than Hollywood and had access to Broadway performers and the music acts around Harlem. Check this great Betty Boop cartoon featuring the first screen appearance ever by the great Louis Armstrong.
They brought us Popeye and Betty Boop of course, but they also did the first film version of Superman. Coming just 3 years after Superman's first appearance, these cartoons are amazing. Here's the first.
They did more than I can fit into a single post. The first 2-reel cartoon, "Popeye Meets Sindbad the Sailor" a couple of feature length cartoons, "Gulliver's Travels" and "Mr. Bug Goes to Town".
The thing that really separated the Fleischers from other studios of the time is they were true cartoons. While Disney was striving for technical achievements in animation and smooth natural movement, Warner was just feeling it's way through and selling Warner's songs, Paul Terry, Walter Lantz and the rest were just churning out product...Max and Dave were making CARTOONS! Made for laughs, made for making you feel good.
Boop-Oop-A-Doop is all I can say.
Labels: Animation, Betty Boop, Cartoons, Dave Fleischer, Film, Fleischer Brothers, Louis Armstrong, Max Fleischer, Superman
"That Memphis Man"
Happy birthday Lonnie Mack who turns 68 today.
Lonnie Mack is a pioneer of the blues-rock guitar solo, laying down landmark tracks before and influencing the likes of Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, Mike Bloomfield, Duane Allman and the rest. He's from a magical place and time, the Memphis area of the 50's, the true crux of the country where and when all the American styles of music flowed together and met along the Mississippi and were fused by electricity.
In 1959 "the music died" and the first big "pop scare" swept the nation. Buddy Holly was dead, Elvis was in the army, Jerry Lee Lewis was scandalized by a marriage to his underage cousin, Chuck Berry was incarcerated for violating the Mann Act...sheesh. The airwaves were filled by the likes of Fabian, Bobby Vee and Bobby Vinton...ugh. Lonnie Mack and folks like Duane Eddy were trying to be heard, but it wasn't until the British Invasion came along that music was resuscitated.
Lonnie was finally acknowledge in the late 80's by Stevie Ray Vaughan who pointed out just how cool his versions of "Memphis", "Strikes Like Lightning" and "Wham" were and how they laid important ground-work.
Hell, Lonnie may be the only person ever who made "The Flying V" guitar look cool.
Here's a seasoned and recognized 50 year old Lonnie, showing us all what happens when serious music has fun.
Let the music speak for itself. I want a cookie.
Labels: Lonnie Mack, Music
"That's the Way it Is"
Walter Cronkite died tonight at the age of 92.
It seemed strange to me that he could be dead.
It seemed strange to me that news this important...should be announced by someone other than Walter Cronkite himself.
I remember watching him as a kid. He wasn't as cold and hard or scolding sounding as Huntley, Brinkley and the rest. He seemed kind of an affable Uncle. And more so, when things went wrong in the world, he seemed like he would, if not be able to make it all better, he'd protect us from getting hurt.
I remember him in 1972 announcing that we would be calling our troupes home from Vietnam. I kind of knew there was a war on (I was 9) but I wasn't really sure where or with who or even if it was still World War II. I did know that it was wrong for us to be in though. That it was more wrong than war is wrong anyway. And I think I knew it because of the stern way Walter Cronkite announced it, and the relieved way he said our boys were coming home.
I remember in 1974 (I was 11 then) when the most powerful man in the free-world was accused of doing something he shouldn't have been. I think I was a little scared to be in a world where the man who was President would do something he wasn't supposed to be doing. And I felt good knowing people like Walter Cronkite were keeping an eye on guys like that.
I understood what "The Fourth Estate" meant on that day.
I can faintly remember in 1969 seeing him commentating on the live broadcast of man's first step on the moon. I remember being perturbed that it all didn't look as cool as "Star Trek" or "Lost in Space" and finding it annoying that most of what we could see was the guys at Houston Control and the news guys talking about it all. Then when it happened I saw Walter Cronkite cry. I saw a grown man who I knew was responsible and serious and someone in charge (I was 6) wipe tears from his eyes. That was the first time I had ever seen a grown man cry, and in the 40 years since then I think it was the only time I ever saw a man cry that didn't make me feel uncomfortable. But he didn't make me feel uncomfortable. I, even at 6, understood why he broke down. And it could only have been because he had made me understand why, with what he was saying.
I learned what "The Fourth Estate" could mean on that day.
A week or so ago I overheard a TV newscast from the other room and the anchor had to stop in the midst of his/her top story (some important findings on the relevance of what color panties Paris Hilton and Lyndsay Lohan flash on any given day, and how it pertains to disturbances in the Van Allen Belt) to announce with a quavering and breaking voice that his/her childhood idol, a pedophile with scores of other mental disorders, had died of drug related causes. He/she commented that he/she wasn't sure how the world could go on without the "grand" contribution this freak brought to the world. What would we do without a septic-bubble-gum-Pop spewing child molester around? Luckily the anchor composed his/herself in time to throw the show over to the cupcake cooking demo and then come back, orange-spray-on-tan all aglow, to give out the results of the previous nights "Dancing with The Surviving America's Got Talent Idols" and sign off with a wink, a brilliant capped-bleached-toothed smile and a "shout out" to his/her Twitter followers.
I learned how fragile "The Fourth Estate" was.
And now it feels weaker, without a Walter Cronkite to suddenly jump out of retirement and make it all right again.
Rest well Mr. Cronkite. That's the way it is. Good night.
Labels: Television, Walter Cronkite
The Children-Kids and their fine arts Daddy
Lyonel Feininger would have been 138 years old today, he was born in 1871.
It seems odd that after posting for a month and a half that this would be the first newspaper cartoonist's birthday to pop up. And in a way, it's both fitting and not.
Feininger is best known for being a "fine artist" (I take umbrage with this term's exclusive nature) and sculptor, but in 1906, for just about one year, he was a real artist in my book. He was a cartoonist.
The reason I hint at "not" fitting, is because he only did it for a year. His work is often not mentioned among the greats who began the medium and his work is not widely know, even among geeks like me. "Fitting" though because he is responsible for one of the greatest innovation in the medium.
The comic strip "Four-Color Big Bang" began just 10 years earlier when R.F. Outcault first established "Der Yeller Kid" as a regular Sunday supplement feature in Joseph Pulitzer's newspapers. The success of which, soon had many followers: The Katzenjammer Kids, Happy Hooligan, Alphonse & Gaston, And Her Name Was Maude, etc. And no sooner did this new medium sweep the nation, than there were already detractors, preaching moral outrage. Conservative dowagers everywhere expressed complaints that the slapstick nature and low humor of these strips was going to corrupt our youth and demanded them expunged from their family-values newspapers. The Chicago Tribune syndicate tried to appease them.
There was a large contingency of German immigrants around Chicago, including many artists of children's books back in their homeland, so the Tribune contracted a number of them to design Sunday pages for their papers. Most of the artists turned out work that was really beautiful graphically, but were really just an extension of the children's book work that they were known for...with one exception.
Feininger mixed his very stylized and stunning graphic sensibilities to create really stunning full page art (in these days a Sunday comic took up the entire page, not like today's page which is crammed with 5 or 6 or 7 different strips and ads) with a new innovation. He told a serialized story with his continuing characters. This had only been dabbled in once by Outcault in "Hogan's Alley" over a two page story and once by Rudolph Dirks with "The Katzenjammers" over three pages. Feininger told a continuing adventure-humor story which ran the run of the strip. This laid the ground-work for the next 50 years of comics. Flash Gordon, Buck Rogers, Tarzan, Little Abner, Little Orphan Annie, Dick Tracy, Terry and the Pirates, Steve Canyon, Gasoline Alley...all benefited from serializing their stories and making them bigger and grander than the newsprint they were printed on. Even today with Doonesbury and for Better or Worse we see examples of this, thought the newspapers have little space to let the artists do justice to it.
Enough rambling...here's a few pages of "The Kinder-Kids" (literally translated means "The Children-Kids") as they embark on their journey all over the world in the family bath-tub, starting off with a strip announcing the characters.
See how his panel layouts lend a cohesiveness to the page even as the story moves along.
That's just a sampling. Fantagraphics Books put out a complete collection of ALL the strips in one thin volume (it was only a year remember), and you can see the full story there.
Another strip he did was called "Wee Willie Winkie's World" about a child and the was he saw the world around him. Not as buildings, trees and clouds, but all come to life in really amazing anthropomorphous forms. Enjoy!
We'll not often see graphic story-telling like this again. But Feininger's work is forever preserved.
The "Fine" art critics who praise his work usually pretend he was never a cartoonist and seldom (I mean VERY seldom) mention this stuff.
Don't worry. They'll all smoke a turd in Hell for being so narrow-minded and tunnel-visioned.
Thanks Lyonel!
Labels: Comic Strips, Kin-der-Kids, Lyonel Feininger, Wee Willie Winkie's World
Un Interlude Musical de Jeff Overturf, Troisieme M...
Ein Musikalisches Intermezzo von Jeff Overturf, Ta...
Intermezzo Musicale di Jeff Overturf, Primo Movime...
DICK SPRANG!...no...it's not the punchline to a di...
50th post; More Steve Goodman and the swift hand o...
Where has all the smegma gone?....long time passing.
Video Blog experiment
"This machine kills Fascists!"
Jeff Overturf who? part 5: "Froggie Went A Courtin'"
Flat-Land poet
He said, "Let there be LIGHT!" and there were Les ...
Man und Ubermensch...dang...where's my umlaut?
I don't want a pickle...
There ain't nobody here but us chickens!
A Post about Toast
Life is NOT 7th grade algebra!
Jeff Overturf who? part 4: Turf Log-"Kindegarten: ...
Historical Smegma
Jeff Overturf who? part 3: "Singin' Cowboy"
Blues Poet
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SAG-AFTRA / AEA
info@jordanvanvranken.com
www.jordanvanvranken.com
The Savage Agency 323-461-8316
VO: Commercial Talent Agency 818-591-0404
Memphis: The Colors Agency 901-726-9300
The Wolves of Savin Hill
Jordan Van Vranken - Demo Reel
Breaking Glass Pictures' After the Wizard has been released in Taiwan and South Korea. Jordan plays the lead role of Elizabeth/Dorothy in the film, directed by Hugh Gross.
Jordan films the lead role of Cleo in the short film Sugar directed by Jacob Kelly.
Cast as Sarah, Jordan books and will film the AFI short Toni, directed by Rebecca Maddalo.
Jordan books and films the lead role of Margot in the short film Spin the Bottle, directed by Zack Hosseini.
Jordan's short script, “Everything” was selected as a semi-finalist in the 2016 Awareness Film Festival (AFF), to be held in Los Angeles in October.
AFF is organized by Heal One World. Its mission is to inform and inspire audiences through a program of films on ecological, political, health/well being and spiritual topics. The film festival spotlights writers and filmmakers committed to making positive change throughout the world.
The Los Angeles Shorts Fest Film Festival names Jordan's short screenplay, "Everything," as a top 3 winner! Actors conduct the table read live at the festival in downtown LA at the Regal L.A. Live.
The LA Shorts Fest is officially recognized by the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences and is an official qualifying event for the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) short film awards.
http://lashortsfest.com/content.asp?PageID=2
Jordan's Silver Award received from the International Independent Film Awards for her short script, "Everything" is on imdb!
Jordan wins a Young Entertainer Award for her performance in the short film "God Hates Signs," directed by Will Cherry. Jordan plays the role of Angela. The event was held at The Globe Theatre at Universal Studios Hollywood. Here's a clip of Jordan's acceptance speech.
Jordan is nominated for two Young Entertainer Awards at The Globe Theatre at Universal Studios Hollywood March 20th for her performances in the feature film, "The Wolves of Savin Hill," and the short film, "God Hates Signs." Jordan won the YEA Award for her role as Angela in "God Hates Signs," directed by Will Cherry.
Jordan's short screenplay, "Everything," is a Silver Award winner at the International Independent Film Awards.
Jordan is nominated for two Young Entertainer Awards: Best Performance in an Independent or Film Festival - Feature Film for her role as Sara O'Brien in "The Wolves of Savin Hill," directed by John Hill, and Best Young Actress – Short Film for her role as Jenny in "God Hates Signs," directed by Will Cherry.
View the nominations here!
Jordan guest starred as Jasmine on the popular comedy web series "Astrid Clover," starring Allisyn Ashley Arm.
Jordan celebrated the 25th anniversary of Memphis' Ronald McDonald House Radiothon in Memphis, to carry on the legacy of Memphis' legendary disc jockey, the beloved John "Bad Dog" McCormack, October 29th & 30th. The event raised funds for Memphis' Ronald McDonald House for the children who are being treated at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital and their families.
The Wolves of Savin Hill, an Official Selection at the 2015 Action on Film Festival, is nominated for Best Feature Film. Suzanne Willard wins Best Supporting Actress. Jordan plays the supporting role of Sara O'Brien in the thriller, directed by Chris Brinker award winner, John Hill.
Jordan has been working on her craft at Yale University's Conservatory for Actors.
After the Wizard has gone global! The film has been released in the UK, Germany, mainland China, and will be distributed in the former Soviet Union as well as Poland.
You can also catch After the Wizard on the Starz Kids & Family Channel beginning August 5.
After the Wizard was written and directed by Hugh Gross. Jordan plays the lead role of Elizabeth/Dorothy.
The Wolves of Savin Hill wins the feature film Audience Choice Award at the International Filmmakers Showcase Film Festival in Beverly Hills! Jordan plays the supporting role of Sara O'Brien in the indie feature, written and directed by award winning director, John Hill. Check out the link: http://www.theentertainmentcorner.com/2015/07/wolves-win-at-ifs.html
Check out Jordan in Bryan Lanning's new music video, Who Knew, produced and directed by Joseph Levi Productions.
The Wolves of Savin Hill, an Official Selection for the 2015 IFS Film Festival and nominated for AUDIENCE CHOICE AWARD, will screen May 27th, 9:30 pm, Beverly Hills. Purchase tickets here:
http://www.laemmle.com/theaters/4/2015-05-27#get-tickets
The Wolves of Savin Hill is an Official Selection in the 2015 Independent Filmmakers Showcase IFS Film Festival. The 20th Annual IFS Film Festival will be screening films May 26 - June 14 in Beverly Hills and Los Angeles, CA. Jordan plays the supporting role of Sara O'Brien in the film directed by John Hill.
Ventura Blvd magazine covers Jordan's fundraising event!
Jordan's 5th Annual Bowl-a-thon & Music Festival was held January 18th with all proceeds benefitting Ronald McDonald House Charities, specifically Memphis' Ronald McDonald House. Check out these links to the Facebook event page and Look to the Stars' press release:
Jordan Van Vranken To Host Fifth Annual Bowl-A-Thon and Jordan's 5th Annual Bash For Kids With Cancer
LA Talk Radio's Accent On! host Ilona Europa welcomed Jordan as a guest the following week to talk about the event and her favorite charity.
Jordan was the guest speaker at The Actors Fund's Looking Ahead Childhood Cancer Care Packaging & Hair Donation event. She was proud to share her support of Childhood Cancer Awareness, Ronald McDonald House Charities and St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.
Directed by Will Cherry, the short film "God Hates Signs" screens at the Norris Cinema Theater in Los Angeles. Jordan plays the lead role of Angie.
Indie feature film Daylight, an Official Selection at London's Film4 Frightfest, has been released on Amazon.com and the iTunes Store! http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2362036/?ref_=fn_al_tt_2
Jordan voices the character of Young Jenny Borman on the "found" tapes.
"The Wolves of Savin Hill," an Official Selection at The San Diego Film Festival, wins the prestigious Chris Brinker award for Director John Hill. Jordan plays a supporting role as the daughter of Sean O'Brien (Brian Scannell of "Gone Baby Gone" and "The Town"). Check out this link highlighting the news and film trailer.
Recent review of The Wolves of Savin Hill:
"The Wolves of Savin Hill is a movie that delivers -- It's a stylish thriller with a kickass soundtrack and a cast that does some solid work." http://influxmagazine.com/wolves-savin-hill-review/
Jordan books and films the short "God Hates Signs", directed by Will Cherry. The film is a fictionalized story based on true accounts of the controversial Westboro Baptist Church protests and its impact. Jordan plays the lead role of Angie, daughter of leaders in the Westboro mission, who reluctantly obeys her father but feels like a victim of the church's hate.
Jordan sharing her new ASL (American Sign Language) skills:
Jordan plays a supporting role in the thriller The Wolves of Savin Hill, written and directed by John Beaton Hill. Check out the trailer! See more on the Facebook page and imdb.
6 Days On A Raft is nominated for "Best Spiritual Film" at the Burbank International Film Festival! This is WWII Navy Veteran Bill Harrison's story of survival and faith.You can see Jordan in the documentary and the feature film in development.
The Film Festival is scheduled for September 3-7 at AMC's Burbank Town Center Theatres.
Jordan wraps scenes for the thriller "The Wolves of Savin Hill" headed for film festivals later this year. Check out the Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/wolvesofsavinhill
The Columbine Project, directed by Paul Storiale, opens April 5th to rave reviews at The Whitmore-Lindley Theatre in the NoHo Arts District in North Hollywood, CA. The show will run through April 26th recognizing the 15th anniversary of the tragedy. Jordan plays student Crystal Woodman Miller, a Columbine student who was in the library during the horrific event.
Jordan is cast as student Crystal Woodman Miller in The Columbine Project, returning to Los Angeles in honor of the 15th anniversary of the Columbine High School shooting. After its world premiere in April 2009, The Columbine Project was extended twice in Los Angeles. When the play moved to New York in July 2009, the Off-Broadway production was extended three times at the Actors Temple Theatre in Times Square. The Columbine Project earned five Valley Theatre League Artistic Director Achievement Awards.
After the Wizard has been released in German! It is also now available on iTunes!
Check out the trailer for Daylight, world premiere August 23rd at FrightFest London 2013! Can you hear Jordan? She is the voice of young Jenny Borman! http://daylightindiana.com/#x-6
The short film "6 Days on a Raft" was nominated for BEST DOCUMENTARY and screened at The 168 Film Festival in Glendale, CA. Jordan will play the supporting role of "Katie" in the feature film. This is Jordan's 4th 168 Film Project film!
Jordan voices the character of YOUNG JENNY BORMAN in the horror film DAYLIGHT, on its way to FILM4 FrightFest this month, the UK's premiere international fantasy and horror film festival! It was also selected as BEST THRILLER FEATURE at the Motor City Nightmares Horror Expo in Detroit a few months ago!
Jordan books and films a new project with award-winning Director Minh Nguyen. She plays the daughter of a police officer.
Jordan has started work on the documentary and feature film "6 Days on a Raft," the true survival story of WWII Navy veteran, Bill Harrison, whose ship sunk during a typhoon. The film is directed by Tim Lowry. Here is a link to Bill's book: http://www.amazon.com/Six-Days-Raft-Bill-Harrison/dp/1425983685
Jordan wins BEST ACTRESS for her performance in the indie feature AFTER THE WIZARD at the 2013 YOUNG ARTIST AWARDS held May 5th in Studio City, CA. The film was directed by Hugh Gross.
The indie feature film DAYLIGHT will be screened at the Motor City Nightmares Festival April 26-28 in Novi, MI (outside of Detroit). Jordan is the voice of Young Jenny Borman in this horror/thriller.
Jordan has received two nominations for the 2013 Young Artist Awards for BEST PERFORMANCE BY A YOUNG ACTRESS for her lead performances in the indie feature film "After the Wizard" and the short film "Detention." The event will be held in Studio City, CA May 5th.
Jordan will join the Director, Hugh Gross, and fellow cast mates Jermel Nakia (Scarecrow) and Orien Richman (Tin Woodman) for a screening of "After the Wizard" at Oz-Stravaganza in New York next month. Oz-Stravaganza is an annual festival celebrating the work of Chittenango, NY native L. Frank Baum, author of "The Wizard of Oz."
Jordan films indie "Days Full of Night," directed by John Hill. She plays the daughter of Brian Scannell, who can be seen in Ben Affleck's, "The Town."
Toronto fans can catch After the Wizard February 17th on TVO, Ontario's educational broadcaster. Here is a link to TVO's programming page:
http://ww3.tvo.org/schedule/daily/2013-02-17.
Special thanks to all who attended and supported Jordan's 3rd annual Bowl-A-Thon fundraiser!!
Jordan's 3rd Annual Bowl-A-Thon will be held January 20th, a fun fundraising event for the kids being treated at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital and the Memphis Ronald McDonald House. The event will be held at Corbin Bowl in Tarzana, CA. Check out the Facebook event page.
After the Wizard, now available on RedBox, is available via InDemand January 1 (Comcast, Cox & Time Warner), via EchoBridge in February (retailers like Walmart & Target), will air on TVO (Toronto's educational broadcaster) and UK DVD and internet-related rights have been placed. Jordan plays the lead role of Elizabeth/Dorothy in the film.
Jordan books the lead in the animated short film The Rooster, directed by Ryan Chen. She will voice the role of Susan.
After the Wizard will screen in Memphis October 27th to benefit the John "Bad Dog" McCormack Foundation and the Memphis Ronald McDonald House at the Malco Paradiso Theatre. Chris Jarman from 98.1 "The Max" will host the event. Ticket reservations at: afterthewizardreservations@gmail.com
Check out this clip from one of the bonus features on the After the Wizard DVD: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=itRH56RfReE&feature=channel&list=UL
After the Wizard will be available at RedBox October 23rd!
After the Wizard is now available on DVD and online at Blockbuster, Netflix, Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Breaking Glass Pictures.
Reviews are coming in for After the Wizard opening in select theatres August 10th:
"Delightful... imaginative... warm and creative..."
--Edwin L. Carpenter, The Dove Foundation
"The young Miss Van Vranken had a remarkable command of her portrayal of the girl who desires to be Dorothy that there is nothing contrived in her heartfelt performance."
--Douglas MacLean, Home Theatre Info
"The actress who played Elizabeth, Jordan Van Vranken did a wonderful job, I am sure she has a great career ahead of her."
--Susan Simon, Disney Family blog
"Charming... poignant... a fun movie..."
--Ryan Jay & Caroline Hand, Ryan Jay Reviews
"Jordan Van Vranken does a fine job as the aforementioned Elizabeth, 'er Dorothy..."
---Richard Propes, The Independent Critic
"Breaking Glass Pictures has done it again with a great movie that the entire family will enjoy."
---Elaine Hegwood Bowen, Film Monthly
A special screening of After the Wizard was held August 12th at Laemmle's Town Center 5 in Encino, CA for the Jeffrey Foundation.
August 11: Top 10 new movies today in Canada and the United States. Figures are given in United States dollars (USD) and are shown based on total receipts or tickets sold. After the Wizard ranks #7!
http://top-10-list.org/top-10-box-office-movies
The indie feature After The Wizard opens August 10th at The Laemmle Town Center 5 in Encino, CA. Jordan plays the lead role of Elizabeth/Dorothy. Click for dates and showtimes
Jordan performs sketch comedy and improv at The Second City in Hollywood with the comedy troupe Socially Inappropriate July 13th.
Check out this link to a recent interview with the lead cast of After the Wizard!
Jordan is very proud to be included in this list of St. Jude supporters and is already working on her 3rd Annual Bowl-A-Thon to raise money for the Memphis Ronald McDonald House for the kids being treated at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.
After the Wizard made its ways to the 2012 Cannes Film Festival and is being promoted by Breaking Glass Pictures. Jordan plays the lead role of Elizabeth/Dorothy in this indie feature written and directed by Hugh Gross.
Jordan will be presenting at the 33rd annual Young Artist Awards May 6th, held in Studio City, CA. Last year Jordan won the Young Artist Award for BEST ACTRESS in a VOICE OVER role for her performance as Ripley in the Warner Brothers/HD Films' animated series CHADAM.
Breaking Glass Pictures announced it has acquired North American home video and broadcast rights to the family feature "After the Wizard." The deal was struck between Ronna Wallace, CEO of Eastgate Pictures and Breaking Pictures CEO Rich Wolff. Jordan plays the lead role of Elizabeth/Dorothy. View the Press Release.
"Detention" will screen at Universal Studios in Hollywood April 20th. Jordan plays the lead character in this short film by Gian Marco Heilmann - a teen goth girl who saves the life of her teacher while in detention.
The film "Different Worlds" has been shortlisted to be screened at the National Centre for the Performing Arts on May 19th in Mumbai, India as part of the WorldKids International Film Festival. Jordan plays the lead role of Hannah in the short film directed by Hiro Hasegawa.
Jordan is scheduled to film a guest role on the web series "Up in Arms" April 22nd. She will be writing sketch comedy and performing improv for the episode that spoofs cooking shows and The Hunger Games film.
Jordan begins filming the web series "A Day in the Life" as series regular Kayla. The series opens as Kayla is being terrorized by known school bully Jake. "A Day in the Life" will deliver anti-bullying messages as the stories unfold.
Jordan books and films the lead role of Alexandra Callister in the short film written and directed by Gian Marco Heilmann. She'll play a goth teen who saves the life of her teacher while in detention.
"After the Wizard" is selected to screen at the 17th Annual International Family Film Festival at Raleigh Studios in Hollywood March 22nd. Jordan plays the lead role of Elizabeth/Dorothy in this indie feature.
Jordan is in Memphis to join Clear Channel's Rock 103 for the 21st Annual Ronald McDonald House Radiothon. She is on air February 8th & 9th raising money for the kids being treated at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital staying at the Memphis Ronald McDonald House. You can listen and watch live via stickam at: http://www.stickam.com/mcdonaldhouse
Jordan hosts her 2nd Annual a Bowl-A-Thon for Cancer Kids fundraiser January 15th. She will announce her donation on air during the 21st Annual Ronald McDonald House Radiothon in Memphis February 8th & 9th. (link to press release)
Jordan books the role of Kayla - a series regular in the new web series A Day In The Life. Filming begins next month!
Jordan is back in the booth -- completing voice over and ADR for the short film "Cyberbullied," directed by Doug Cembellin. The project will be submitted to film festivals in early 2012.
Jordan books and records voice over/ADR for a documentary film on the topic of cyber bullying. Film will be submitted to film festivals in early 2012!
Jordan books the voice over role of young Jenny Borman...the voice for the lead character in the indie feature DAYLIGHT, directed by David McCracken and produced by Josh Riedford.
Jordan books the lead in the short film, "Joan's Day Out," written and directed by Ellen Houlihan. The story is about a grandmother's "escape" from her nursing home to get her daughter and granddaughter's life back on track. Rehearsals and table read start soon!
The short film "Different Worlds," directed by Hiro Hasegawa, was accepted into the WorldKids International Film Festival in India -- an annual event with ongoing year round film festival screenings in schools. Jordan plays the lead role of Hannah in the film. As part of their endeavor to impart value based education through quality cinema, the WorldKids Foundation has held the traveling WorldKids International Film Festival in the cities of Mumbai, Delhi and Indore to receive an unprecedented response of over one hundred thousand children and young adults.
"After the Wizard" plays on multiple screens in Kansas; private screenings held in Los Angeles! Jordan plays the lead role of Elizabeth/Dorothy in the indie feature written and directed by Hugh Gross.
Jordan attends the Rolling Stones Teen Choice Awards After Party in Hollywood!
The animated film "We the Divided" is scheduled to air on MNETAmerica in the show SHORT NOTICE on July 12th @ 5pm PST. Rerunning: 7/13 @ 10am, 7/16 @ 5pm, 7/20 @ 11am, 7/23 @ 6pm. Jordan voices the character of young Mia.
Jordan attends World Premiere of After the Wizard in Kingman, Kansas – one of the four Kansas cities where the project was filmed, at the historic Kingman Theatre. After the Wizard was written and directed by Hugh Gross and stars Orien Richman as the Tin Woodman, Jermel Nakia as the Scarecrow, and Jordan in the role of Elizabeth/Dorothy. A screening in Los Angeles will be held next month.
Watch for Jordan in the feature film, "Bad Teacher" premiering June 24th. She has a fun scene with Cameron Diaz as "Crying Girl!"
Jordan is working with Emmy Award winning sound mixer Steve Tibbo on post production ADR/voice over for "After the Wizard." The world premiere of the film will be held next month in Kansas, one of the several locations the project filmed.
World premiere of the indie feature "After the Wizard" is scheduled for July 2nd - Jordan plays the lead role of Elizabeth/Dorothy.
Jordan is recognized April 30th at the 2011 CARE (Child Actor Recognition Event) Awards at The Globe Theatre, Universal Studios Hollywood. Award recipients were honored for their professional work, educational achievements and community service. Jordan also won a CARE Award in 2010 and 2009.
Jordan is recognized April 30th at the CARE (Child Actor Recognition Event) Awards at the Globe Theatre at Universal Studios Hollywood! She is one of the child actors recognized for her professional acting, as well as her academics, training and community service. The City of Los Angeles declares April 30th Child Actor Appreciation Day!
Jordan reads the roles of Sacha and Lulu in a table read for "59 Rows of Teeth," a drama set in New Orleans written by W. Peter Iliff.
Jordan performs live comedy and improv at The Second City in Hollywood April 21st!
The short film "My Education" screens at "New Filmmakers of Los Angeles" at Sunset Gower Studios in Hollywood April 20th. Jordan provides ADR for the film directed by Iris Helfer.
Jordan's episode of Big Time Rush, "Big Time Girls Group" airs on Nickelodeon April 9th.
Jes Hudak's "Another Day" Music Video played at the Hollyshorts Monthly Film Festival Screening April 8th; Jordan plays the daughter of a homeless family man in the video.
Jordan wins the Young Artist Award for BEST ACTRESS in a VOICE OVER role for the character of Ripley in the Warner Brothers/HD Films' animated series CHADAM, also starring Katey Sagal. She dedicated her award to her mentor, Memphis legendary radio disc jockey John "Bad Dog" McCormack who passed away a few days earlier from a battle with leukemia. The 32nd Annual Young Artist Awards was held March 13th in Studio City, CA. Jordan was recognized last year for BEST PERFORMANCE for a GUEST STARRING ACTRESS in a television series for her performance in Criminal Minds. Check out the story on CNBC!
Jordan is nominated for a Young Artist Award for her performance as Ripley in the Warner Brothers/HD Films animated series "CHADAM." The 32nd annual awards ceremony will be held next month in Studio City, CA. Jordan was recognized at last year's event for her performance in "Criminal Minds."
Jordan will be honored at the 2011 CARE (Child Actor Recognition Event) Awards. This event honors child actors not only for their professional work, but also for their training, education, community service and charitable activities. This year's event will be held at the Globe Theatre at Universal Studios Hollywood.
Jordan is on the air in Memphis, TN for the 20th Annual ROCK 103 Ronald McDonald House Radiothon February 10th and 11th. The Memphis Ronald McDonald House provides a home for the young patients treated at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital and their families.
Jordan hosts her Inaugural Bowl-A-Thon to raise funds for the Ronald McDonald House in Memphis and the kids at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. A great event and a great cause!
Jordan participates in table read for "Days Full of Night" written by John B. Hill and David Cooley. She reads the role of Sara, the daughter of troubled Sean O'Brien, read by talented actor Brian Scannell (of "The Town" and "Gone Baby Gone").
Jordan returns to Kingman, KS to attend a screening of the indie feature "After the Wizard" and ride in the annual Christmas parade with the local children who played orphans in the film. Jordan plays the lead role of Elizabeth in the film, directed by Hugh Gross.
Jordan books an episode of "Big Time Rush" on Nickelodeon! She had a great time filming at Paramount Studios.
Catch Jordan doing comedy with the Bangarang Sketch Comedy team. The funny web series begins airing this month. Jordan filmed a series of sketches including "Birthday Wish" and "3-D TV."
The short film "Wurm" premieres at the Ojai Film Festival; Jordan plays a supporting role.
Jordan books and films role in Columbia Pictures film "Bad Teacher" with Cameron Diaz.
The short film, "WURM," directed by Jack Major, screens at the Brooks Institute in Ventura, CA. Jordan plays the role of a mean, goth girl leading a group of punk boys.
Jordan films sketch comedy as Suzie with the Bangarang Comedy team. Web series begins next month!
Filming wraps for the indie feature "After the Wizard." Director Hugh Gross commented, "It's an absolute pleasure to work with Jordan. She is very talented, extremely intelligent and courageous. Given the time and resource limitations we were constantly battling, I can't even imagine how things would have turned out if Jordan hadn't done so much and done it so well to be prepared. Jordan is a fine young person and actress."
More voice-over! Jordan completes ADR for the festival bound film "An Education." She voices the role of Rachel (in addition to the role of Bella) for the series "Cyber Relationship."
WE THE DIVIDED, the animated film directed by Ryan Chen, is part of the official selection for the 2010 Berkeley Film & Video Festival. The screening will be September 24, 25 & 26 at the Landmark Shattuck Cinemas Multiplex in Downtown Berkeley, CA. Jordan is the voice of Young Mia.
The animated short film "We the Divided" has been accepted into the 16th annual Temecula Valley International Film & Music Festival set to occur, Sept. 15-19, 2010. Jordan is the voice of young Mia.
Filming continues for the indie feature film, "After the Wizard" this month in Los Angeles. Jordan plays the lead role of Elizabeth, an 11-year old Kansas orphan. The film is directed by Hugh Gross.
Jordan completes ADR for the short film, "Wurm" directed by Jack Major.
The Warner Brothers/HD Films' animated series "CHADAM" is now available on iTunes. Jordan provides the voice and motion of Ripley, Chadam's best friend.
Jordan books and records the voice of Bella for the web series "Cyber Relationship."
Jordan performs at The Second City in Hollywood....comedy, improv and musical theatre!
Warner Brothers and HD Films announced the premiere of the animated series CHADAM on The WB.com June 15th. Jordan voices the character of Ripley, Chadam's best friend. The series stars Katey Sagal, Wilmer Valderrama, Jeffrey Combs, Sig Haig, Carl Weathers....and more!
Animation and machinima fans will enjoy "Chadam," an action-horror-adventure story from cutting-edge artist Alex Pardee and producer Jace Hall, created using the Unreal Engine 3, the gaming technology behind hit videogame titles "Gears of War" and "BioShock." A resident of Cardboard City, Chadam must learn to use his hidden powers to free the city's residents from the violent zombie-like pallid. Episodes 1-5 premiere Tuesday, June 15, with the remaining episodes 6-10 launching Tuesday, June 22.
Jordan records scratch tracks for animated feature "Losopolis"; she voices the lead character, Kyra, directed by Tom Walsh at EnterAktion Studios.
Jordan books a voice over commercial for Conn's! The spot is a Father's Day promotion and will run regionally in Conn store markets.
Jordan books a supporting role in the short film, Wurm! She's looking forward to playing the sole mean girl in a group of punk boys! Filming begins next month.
A screening of the animated film, "We the Divided" will be held May 6th at the Directors Guild of America. Jordan voices the character of young Mia. Check out the trailer under the "Voice Over Samples" tab.
Jordan begins filming in Los Angeles, Topeka and Kingman, Kansas for the independent feature film, After the Wizard. Jordan plays the lead role of Elizabeth Haskens. The film is written and directed by Hugh Gross.
Jordan books and films a supporting role in the film "TwiHarder," a spoof on the Twilight movie series. Giorgio Caridi directs.
Jordan is recognized at the 31st Annual Young Artist Awards April 11th for her performance in Criminal Minds. The red carpet event is held at the Beverly Garland in Studio City, CA.
Jordan is recognized at the 2010 CARE Awards held at the Globe Theatre inside Universal Studios, Hollywood.
Jordan books the lead in an independent feature film! Filming begins next month and will shoot on location in three cities.
Jordan has been nominated for a Young Artist Award for her performance in Criminal Minds. These awards recognize the performance of young artists under the age of 18 in television, motion pictures, theater and music. The 31st annual event will be held at the Beverly Garland in Studio City, CA April 11th.
Here's the list of nominees! You'll find Jordan's name under: BEST PERFORMANCE IN A TV SERIES; Guest Starring Young Actress
Jordan will be "on the air" in Memphis fundraising for the Ronald McDonald House that provides housing for the patients and families of St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. The annual 28-hour Rock 103/Ronald McDonald House Radiothon will be broadcast live on the internet.
Jordan will be recognized at the 2010 CARE Awards.....a red carpet event held at the Globe Theatre inside Universal Studios, Hollywood. The CARE (Child Actor Recognition Event) Awards honor child actors for their positive contributions to the entertainment industry.
Reads role of Elizabeth Haskens at table read for "After the Wizard," by Hugh Gross.
Jordan is back "in the booth" this month doing ADR and additional voice work for CHADAM, Warner Brothers'/HD Films' animated series. Jordan voices the character of Ripley, Chadam's best friend.
Jordan's episode of Criminal Minds Dec 16th drew the show's largest audience since its season premiere in September, helping CBS win the overall ratings race for the night. According to Nielsen's estimates, it was the top-rated program of the evening, with 14.6 million viewers tuned in!
Watch Jordan on the December 16th episode of Criminal Minds on CBS. She plays Jenny Schrader, who is kidnapped by her ex-con father played by Lee Tergesen.
Catch Jordan on the December 10th episode of Moises Rules on Disney XD!
Festival bound short films, "Boysenberry Pie" and "Sugar" screen this month. Jordan plays the lead roles of Emily (Boysenberry Pie, directed by Miguel Gonzalez) and Lucy (Sugar, directed by Eric Martin).
"Another Day" by Jes Hudak wins Pop Single of the Year at the LA Music Awards. Jordan is in the music video, filmed earlier this year with Jes.
Jordan books the role of Jenny, who is kidnapped by her ex-con father in an episode of "Criminal Minds."
Jordan books a commercial for Cartoon Network's video game Fusion Fall; films later this month.
Films episode of "Men of a Certain Age," new Ray Romano series on TNT. Jordan plays the role of a 7th grade student.
Books role of a September 11 grounded passenger in the ensemble film "The Space Between" starring Academy Award nominee Melissa Leo, Brad William Henke and Anna Sophia Robb.
"We the Divided," an animated short film directed by Ryan Chen has been submitted to 8 major festivals. Jordan voices the character of young Mia.
Jordan books the role of Emily in the festival bound short film, Boysenberry Pie. Filming to begin later this month.
Jordan books and films Disney's "Moises Rules!" with Hannah Montana's Moises Arias.
Jordan books "Disposable Routines," a multimedia installation by documentary film makers Janine Stengel of Germany, and Beatriz Barragon Horn of Mexico. The presentation explores the consumption and disposable routines of contemporary society stressing the individual's importance to global efforts. "Disposable Routines" will exhibit at the Cella Gallery in North Hollywood. Jordan will participate in filming and presenting at the Opening Reception of the exhibit.
Directed by Oscar Curioso, filming for the television pilot "InCybers" begins this month. Jordan plays the role of series regular, Miss Bin.
Jordan attends The Second City bootcamp, hailed as the "Ivy League of Comedy," working on improvisation, sketch comedy and musical theatre.
A brand new trailer for CHADAM debuted at Comic Con 2009 in San Diego at the Warner Bros Booth! CHADAM is an upcoming animated series created by ALEX PARDEE, and staring Jeffrey Combs (Re-Animator), Katey Sagal (Futurama), Carl Weathers (Predator), and Sid Haig (Devil's Rejects). Jordan voices the character of Ripley, Chadam's best friend.
Jordan books the role of Sasha for the project "Oregon Trails," a music video from the comedy team Picard Maneuver for their song "Oregon Trails" based on the popular 90's computer game. Filming begins next month.
Jordan books the role of Cynthia in the short film, "The Age of Innocence," a serious, festival bound short film about child suicide awareness. Filming begins in Glendale, CA this month.
Jordan films music video for the hit song "Another Day" by Jes Hudak, a Soulsticks Production directed by Edber Mamisao. The video is inspired by the film "Broken" based on a true story and is to be released worldwide this year on MTV, VH1 and other cable networks.
Jordan booked the role of Miss Bin for the television pilot of "InCybers," a live action, groundbreaking TV series adapted from the original animation screenplay. "InCybers" is a high-tech adventure filled with fun and fantasy about the colonies of itsy bitsy electrons named "InCybers" that live inside computers, cell phones and other electrical devices; Miss Bin is a series regular. Filming begins next month.
Jordan completes ADR (automated/automatic dialogue replacement) for "Sugar" - a project Jordan filmed in March, directed by Eric Martin. She plays the lead role of "Lucy."
The Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN) will air Dual Revelation on their stations world wide. An agreement with TBN to give them non-exclusive broadcast rights to air Dual Revelation has been signed – not just for one airing, but for as many times as the network wishes. The world television broadcast premiere for Dual Revelation is set for Thursday May 21st at 11pm (pacific time). Jordan plays the lead role of Megan. Check out the official listing.
"Chadam" behind-the-scenes video released announcing secret names behind the voices of this new animated series including Katey Sagal, Carl Weathers, Sid Haig, and others. Jordan voices the character of Ripley.
Jordan books the lead role of Miriam in feature film, "Gospel Adventures," directed by Kacee DeMasi and award winning producer Gilda Davies. Film will air on cable and be released on DVD.
Jordan films festival bound SAG comedy short, "Spring Sing," directed by Greg Auerbach. Film was shot in 4K-HD on the RED Camera.
Books and films commercial for Breakdown Services to air on VCN (Virtual Channel Network).
Jordan will be "on air" in Memphis, participating in the Rock 103/Ronald McDonald House Radiothon to raise awareness and funds for the house that provides a home for the patients being treated at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital and their families. The 28-hour event will be broadcast March 12th and 13th.
Jordan will be recognized at the 2009 CARE Awards! The CARE (Child Actor Recognition Event) Awards honor child actors for their positive contributions to the entertainment industry. It's a red carpet event held at the Globe Theatre inside Universal Studios, Hollywood. Honorees are selected using a point system based on professional acting work, academics, union membership, training, a written essay, and community service.
Director Eric Martin casts Jordan to play the lead role of Lucy in his short film, "Sugar." Filming will begin next month.
Directed by James Whitmore Jr., Jordan films the role of a soccer player, a victim of a terrorist attack in Los Angeles, on the 20th Century Fox tv series, "The Unit."
Wraps granddaughter role in Alright Entertainment's television episodic, "Calling All Angels," shot on the same set as Tim Allen's "Christmas with the Kranks." Hope to see this air on the TLC Network in 2009.
Books and films role of kid captured by villains in Peter Kazanjian's short, "Wild West."
Filmed the role of Lucy in the short film "Ghosts" by European Director Susana Casares for film festival submission.
The docudrama "Dual Revelations" is released and available for purchase. Jordan plays the lead role of Megan.
"Different Worlds" premieres on the Warner Brothers lot. Jordan plays the lead role of Hannah in this short film by Hiro Hasegawa.
"Chadam" premieres at Comic-Con in San Diego. Jordan voices the role of Ripley and does the motion capture for the character in this original animated series by Warner Brothers and HD Films.
"Rarely have I met such a strong actor who has such a strong and impressive character."
Cherin Perelman, Beverly Hills Casting
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Washington, DC, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, St. Louis, Mo., US Army Aviation Systems Command, Aviation R&T Activity, Springfield, Va., For sale by the National Technical Information Service, 1990
The event Washington, DC, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, St. Louis, Mo., US Army Aviation Systems Command, Aviation R&T Activity, Springfield, Va., For sale by the National Technical Information Service, 1990 represents a publication, printing, distribution, issue, release or production of resources found in Indiana State Library.
The Resource Washington, DC, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, St. Louis, Mo., US Army Aviation Systems Command, Aviation R&T Activity, Springfield, Va., For sale by the National Technical Information Service, 1990
For sale by the National Technical Information Service
US Army Aviation Systems Command, Aviation R&T Activity
trueSt. Louis, Mo.
trueSpringfield, Va.
trueWashington, DC
4 Items that share the ProviderEvent Washington, DC, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, St. Louis, Mo., US Army Aviation Systems Command, Aviation R&T Activity, Springfield, Va., For sale by the National Technical Information Service, 1990
Comparison of drop size distributions from two droplet sizing systems, John R. Oldenburg and Robert F. Ide
Dynamics of multistage gear transmission with effects of gearbox vibrations, F.K. Choy ... [et al.], (microform)
Gear noise, vibration, and diagnostic studies at NASA Lewis Research Center, James J. Zakrajsek ... [et al.], (microform)
Transmission research activities at NASA Lewis Research Center, D.G. Lewicki
Context of Washington, DC, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, St. Louis, Mo., US Army Aviation Systems Command, Aviation R&T Activity, Springfield, Va., For sale by the National Technical Information Service, 1990
<div class="citation" vocab="http://schema.org/"><i class="fa fa-external-link-square fa-fw"></i> Data from <span resource="http://link.library.in.gov/resource/BV3r8kOTDIM/" typeof="PublicationEvent http://bibfra.me/vocab/lite/ProviderEvent"><span property="name http://bibfra.me/vocab/lite/label"><a href="http://link.library.in.gov/resource/BV3r8kOTDIM/">Washington, DC, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, St. Louis, Mo., US Army Aviation Systems Command, Aviation R&T Activity, Springfield, Va., For sale by the National Technical Information Service, 1990</a></span> - <span property="potentialAction" typeOf="OrganizeAction"><span property="agent" typeof="LibrarySystem http://library.link/vocab/LibrarySystem" resource="http://link.library.in.gov/"><span property="name http://bibfra.me/vocab/lite/label"><a property="url" href="http://link.library.in.gov/">Indiana State Library</a></span></span></span></span></div>
Data Citation of the ProviderEvent Washington, DC, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, St. Louis, Mo., US Army Aviation Systems Command, Aviation R&T Activity, Springfield, Va., For sale by the National Technical Information Service, 1990
http://link.library.in.gov/resource/BV3r8kOTDIM/
http://library.link/resource/BV3r8kOTDIM/
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Blog Indie Psychedelic R&B Reviews
Emawk Latest EP “Pilot” Review
by Madison Hunt
It’s the story of the in between. Being able to accept the vulnerability of being human, to only endure the aftermath of the inevitable.
Rising New York Artist, Emawk, released his latest EP, Pilot, an acute story featuring only two songs. It’s little in stature, but massive in production.
Pilot starts off with a mesh of psychedelic sounds, gradually into one word, “Facts.” Which is particular because to the generic ear, it may be hard to articulate. Especially with his elevated level of thinking, his lyrics sometimes challenge the listener to encompass the meaning.
His production behind his lyrics is also sometimes distracting to really encapsulate his words, but in the midst of all the sound his message gradually reveals itself.
linkinbio.
A post shared by emawk (@emawk8) on Jul 9, 2020 at 5:35am PDT
It’s the story of a person in the midst of someone finding the falsehoods of life. In the midst of falling into life, but challenged by past experiences. It describes a person fighting the urge to continue, because of the pain that’s inevitable in stages of life.
“I’m trying to be open, but I’ve never been more afraid.”
With his latest release his artistry continues to thrive, even being out of the music scene for over a year. He’s reached audiences by combining R&B, indie, and soul.
Emawk doesn’t have to do much to encapsulate the essence of using the beat to drive the lyrics.
It’s honest to see a man’s perspective of pain, and for him to depict it so well speaks volumes. But that’s what’s so unique about, he’s never had to produce numerous singles or a tracklist to get his message across.
His other song, ATLANTIC, has a more mellow vibe. With the strings of an electric guitar accompanied by his echo of lyrics, “I’ll go visit in the summer,” picture a man of growth. Creating boundaries based on his learning of who he is, and what life has yet to show him.
It’s only two songs, little in stature, but so much depth behind the message. As Emawk grows into his abilities, his music will continue to create pictures that some are still trying to find within their music. His absence, created a more intuitive sense of self that is depicted perfectly within his latest EP.
Madison Hunt
Madison Hunt is an aspiring music journalist from Washington DC. Her love for music started at a young age, having played the percussion since the fourth grade, music has always been a huge part of her life. She has an extensive resume writing for local publications within the metropolitan area. Her hopes are to highlight the potential of the DMV music market, as well as, create impactful stories surrounding the progression of the music industry. She specializes in covering neo-soul events and musicians. Some of her favorite musicians include Lauryn Hill, India Arie, SZA, John Legend, Musiq Soulchild, and more.
alternativeATLANTICEMAWKEP Reviewmusicnew yorkPILOTPSYCHEDELICR&Breview
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Speeches at Conference in Barth
September 8, 2001:
Helga Radau (Germany): "Behind Barbed Wire at Barth”
“How much remembrance, how many memories can a society stand?” – This issue was raised in a study by Zygmunt Baumann. There, he also discusses whether the last century has to be remembered as “the century of camps” from the point of history.
In Nazi-Germany, there were at least 16 different categories of camps, leading to the legitimate term of “campism”. Among these categories were the “prisoners of war”-camps.
Germany, then, was organized in 17 regional army administration areas with an overall number of 47 camps for POW-officers (“Kriegsgefangenen-Offizierslager” or in short OFLAGs) and 80 POW-camps for “ordinary” POWs (“Kriegsgefangenen-Mannschaftsstammlager” or STALAGs).
In addition, there were also camps for handling the distribution of POWs (“Durchgangslager” or DULAGs), for returning soldiers (“Heimkehrerlager”, HEILAGs), internment camps (“Internierungslager”, ILAGs) and a few air force and navy camps (“STALAGs / OFLAGs LUFT” or “MARLAG”).
On the national level, especially for those areas far away from the frontlines (in German dubbed “Heimatkreisgebiet”), General Hermann Reineke of the Supreme Command of the Armed Forces (“Oberkommando der Wehrmacht”, OKW) was responsible for the administration of the POW-camps, distribution etc. through the Armed Forces General Office (“Allgemeines Wehrmachtsamt”, AWA). In combat areas and behind the frontline, the Supreme Command of the Army (“Oberkommando des Heeres”, OKH) was in charge of the business.
The increasing number of POWs lead to the introduction of a special task force within the Armed Forces General Office (AWA), which from 1942 was called “Head Office for Prisoner of War Administration” (“Chef des Kriegsgefangenenwesens”). In July 1943, the Fuehrer (Adolf Hitler) ordered the introduction of another office in charge, the General Inspector of the Prisoner of War Administration (“Generalinspekteur des Kriegsgefangenenwesens”, KGW) within the Supreme Command of the Armed Forces (OKW). It only remained in place until 1 October 1944 and its main purpose was to quell the increasing number of escapes of prisoners of war.
Following an order of Hitler on 25 September 1944 the KGW was handed over to the Reichsfuehrer of the SS (RFSS), Heinrich Himmler, since he was the official commander of the reserve forces. The most important point in favour for this change of responsibility from the armed forces to the SS was the unsuccessful attempt to kill Hitler on 20 July 1944 (which was organized and staged by several high ranking army officials), another was the spectacular mass escape of 80 officers from STALAG LUFT III – among them a group of former inmates of STALAG LUFT I!
The name of the city of Barth has become a synonym for imprisonment, forced labour, continuous hunger, illness, terror and painful death for thousands of women, men, and even children. Between 1935 until the end of WW II, the picturesque Western-Pomeranian town developed into a garrison with airfield, air defense school, and a site of the weapons industry.
In 1938, a branch factory of the Walter Bachmann airplane factory of Ribnitz was established here. The following year saw the building of the ammunition factory in Barth’s town forest. The Pomeranian Industry Works, a company owned by the Reich and which in the years to come would exploit the labour of thousands of forced labourers and soviet POWs, established the production of chemical weapons, plate mines, and grenades. The workers were held in barracks not far from STALAG LUFT I.
When, in 1942, the RAF flew bomb raids against Rostock, in which the Heinkelwerke Rostock (an airplane factory) were severely damaged, a set of branches was introduced all over Mecklenburg and Western Pomerania, including the biggest one of them right on the territory of the Barth airfield. Eight hangars were converted into production lines in the autumn of 1943, and 6 air force barracks were converted into a concentration camp.
Due to the lack of success of the “Blitzkrieg”-strategy, it became increasingly important to increase the production of the weapons industry. From then on, not only forced labourers and POWs but also inmates from the concentration camp were taken on. Between November 1943 and 30 April 1945, there were approximately 6 to 7 thousand male and female prisoners from more than 20 nations in the Barth concentration camp. Among them were hundreds of European Jews, Sinti and Roma (dubbed “Zigeuner”, gypsies). There are estimates that state the number of those who did not survive the camp as being 2000. Until today, however, there are no detailed figures, no exact knowledge about the number and location of forced labour camps in and around Barth. Nonetheless, it can be estimated that the population of Barth (then around 15.000) was easily surpassed by the number of forced labourers, concentration camp inmates and prisoners of war.
In order to protect this obviously important site from allied air raids, the first STALAG for captured members of the air forces of the allies, RAF and Commonwealth Air Forces, was opened on 7 July 1940 right next to the air defense school. This was a violation of the Geneva Convention of 1929 about the treatment of prisoners of war.
STALAG LUFT I was the biggest camp in Barth, comprising about 10,000 inmates. Until April 1942, officers and NCOs of the RAF were imprisoned in two separate units within the camp. Between October 1942 and November 1943, 1,200 NCOs only were taken into the camp. They were deported to STALAG LUFT VI at Heydekrug in Eastern Pomerania in November 1943.
From then on, STALAG LUFT I was a camp only for officers, which had to be extended several times. On 30 April 1945, it finally consisted of four part camps with approximately 2,000 officers of the RAF and Commonwealth Air Forces, including 200 to 300 NCOs and other ranks serving as officers hands, plus 8,000 members of the US Air Force. Their treatment in the camp by the Germans is seen as generally “correct”.
The administrative and logistic command structure of STALAG LUFT I was the “Kommandantur”. It was headed by the “Kommandant”, his deputy and his second in command plus a defence officer.
The “Kommandants” of the camp were:
18 March 1940 to 14 June 1940 Colonel Hartwig von Winckler
14 June 1940 to 6 May 1941 Major Roland von Oertzen
6 May 1941 to April 1942 Major Burckhardt
October 1942 to end of 1944 Colonel Scherer
January 1945 to 30 April 1945 Colonel Warnstedt
The heads of the defense section were Major August von Miller zu Aichholz (October 1942 to end of December 1944) and Major Henke (January 1945 to 30 April 1945).
Responsible for guarding the POWs and manning the watch towers was mainly the so called staff company (“Stabskompanie”); the pendulum guard between the towers and the responsibility for guarding the POWs outside the camp was with the “Landesschützen”, a unit, that comprised able men who were not seen as fit for the frontline due to their age or the state of their health. What kept the organization of the camp working, however, was mainly the more or less forced work input of POWs. They had to work in several areas, such as the sick bay, different workshops, the preparation of the meals, the transport of red-cross parcels or religious affairs for the other POWs.
For the “dirty” and more tiring jobs inside and outside the camp Soviet POWs were used. They lived in barracks in the German area of the camp. According to the Nazi’s racial ideology, they were seen as “carriers of the Bolshevism” and the “outmost attention, greatest care and maximum distrust” was ordered when in contact with them. Their guards had to react at the slightest bit of opposition or disobedience, and to do this with reckless brutality and force.
In addition to comments from former Western POWs, their existence is documented through photographs and entries of a member of the defense section: Heinrich Haslob wrote in his diary in January 1942 that “1,000 Russians have arrived.” His pictures show groups and individual POWs in a bad physical state, wearing wooden clogs instead of shoes.
Funeral lists of St. Mary, the church at Barth, list a number of cases of typical reasons for the deaths, which also point to starvation: general weakness, total exhaustion, weakness, tuberculosis etc.
However, there are no lists stating the places of origin or previous stations in the camp-system. In addition, their later fate, after the Red Army had liberated the camp, is unclear. Nevertheless, it can be supposed that many of them ended in Stalinist forced labour camps since they were seen as traitors by Stalin and his supporters.
For their western inmates the main gate of the camp opened finally on 1 May 1945. After the disappearance of the Germans during the night, STALAG LUFT I went into the hands of the camp officers in charge, first to mention are Colonel Hubert Zemke (USAF) and Group Captain Cecil Weir (RAF).
Contact with the Red Army units was established, the area around Barth was patrolled, and, while doing so, the concentration camp on the site of the airfield was discovered, hiding hundreds of starving, dead, dying and severely ill prisoners. The majority of the prisoners had been sent on a death march towards Rostock by the SS on 30 April 1945.
During the night of 2 May 1945 and in the presence of American and British officers from STALAG LUFT I the town of Barth agreed on an unconditional surrender to a representative of the Red Army, whose troops moved into Barth that day at 10 o’clock.
It took several days, until 12 May 1945, before “Operation Revival” started. Headed by Brigade General William Gross, Commanding Officer of the 1st Air Division of the 8th US Air Force, thousands of happy former camp inmates were flown out to France and Britain with B-17 and B-24 bombers.
Only then STALAG LUFT I did no longer exist.
However, it has not been forgotten, and never will be.
Alfred Jenner (Britain): "Tribute to Dixie Deans of Stalag Luft"
You will all remember the expressions “new kriegies” and “old kriegies”. Well, you’re looking at a really old one. Old in years like the rest of you, but even older in kriegie terms of endurance vile. And just to prove it---here’s my identity tag, number funf, funf, funf, Stalag Luft. Incidentally, the last time I wore this I was in the company of an old comrade of yours---the late General Andy Low at a “2nd Us Air Division" reunion in my native city of Norwich.
But before I go any further let me assure our German friends here today that the memories I am about to recall are not meant to be derogatory of them: its just that that’s how I remember the events of sixty years ago.
It’s, of course, because I’m an old kriegie that I at once detected an error in you conference literature, which stated that Stalag Luft 1 opened in 1943. In fact it opened in 1940 and had already been going for a year when I arrived in April 1941.
Those of you who were there later when Luft 1 held thousands of kriegies may be surprised to hear that the Barth camp was designed to cope with only a few hundred because the Germans never expected thousands of us, especially all those from the USA.
What they did expect was that Britain would give up after France capitulated in May 1940. Even so, a year later with Britain obviously determined to fight on, there were still fewer than 1000 at Barth such was the low level of air activity over Germany. Half were in the officers` compound and half in the NCO`s.
They were a cosmopolitan lot. Most did come from the British Isles, but quite a number were from other European air forces already defeated by the Germans…French, Poles, Dutch, Norwegians, soon to be joined by Yugoslavs in their sky blue uniforms when that country fell, but never any Russian airmen.
Those from the Royal Air Force were an equally mixed lot, including as they did Canadians, Australians, New Zealanders, South Africans (white of course in those days), Rhodesians, one rear gunner from the Polynesian island of Tonga with the oh-so-British name of Perowne, and, I believe, one or two Americans in the officers’ compound who couldn’t wait to get into the fray.
In both compounds this diverse company of high-spirited young men, all convinced that they were the best airmen in the world, gradually settled down to a new kind of war designed to make life as difficult as possible for their German captors.
You all know how that was pursued so I won’t waste time on the details. But you might be interested to learn that in the NCO’s compound of that time it was all successfully achieved as a result of the Royal Air Force equivalent of an American presidential election!
Against all the rules and traditions of the British armed forces those RAF sergeants decided early in 1941 that the senior -ranking prisoner, who correctly had assumed the leadership, was not really up to the job. So, a democratic election was organised with three candidates, ballot paper, tellers, the lot and, as result, an ordinary sergeant was elected by large majority.
He was sergeant pilot “Dixie” Deans who turned out not to be ordinary at all. In fact he was to become one of the true heroes of the camps. Dixie was accepted as camp leader by he Germans and remained in command for the next four years in whatever camp we were moved to, gaining the confidence and respect of all kriegies, including the Americans who began to arrive in large numbers in due course.
"Dixie Deans"
His nickname “Dixie”, by the way, had nothing to do with that fabulous part of America. It is just that Dixie happened to be a good footballer at a time when the Babe Ruth of the British game was another Dixie Deans.
For at least two years there were no Americans in the NCO’s compound at Barth, but important, unwritten, ground rules were being worked out between the captured and the captors. These were to be greatly to the advantage of all air force kriegies, including all who were to come later.
They all have much for which to thank this German-speaking Scottish airman who even then was beginning to feel the effects of the multiple sclerosis which was to cripple him after the war and to lead to his premature death. Dixie’s great achievement was based on gaining the respect of the Germans by his patent honesty, courage and ability to command the unquestioned loyalty of the young men who came under his leadership---and care, and all this at a time when we were clearly losing the war on all fronts.
Though he was in charge, Dixie suffered all the discomforts of ordinary POWs, but he did the Germans the courtesy of always appearing on parade impeccably dressed in collar and tie and with his greatcoat fastened at the neck, regulation style.
At the twice-daily appells he could call an otherwise unruly mob of up to a thousand untidy-looking men to attention and dismiss them in correct parade ground fashion. We would never have done that for the Germans.
Dixie was also the man who took all the flak from them if we misbehaved, which was often. He had to act as our advocate and to protect us from any extreme reaction in the wake of some of the mischief we got up to.
He was equally at home in the company of the visiting Swiss and Swedish representatives of the Protecting Powers, and never overawed by the occasional visit of high-ranking German officers. But he was not at ease with the Gestapo when they arrived to turn our camp over at Heydekrug on the Lithuanian border. He clearly didn’t like them and managed to imply that the terror they could undoubtedly invoke amongst so many defenseless people did not apply to the kriegies, many of whom were by that time from America.
It was at Heydekrug that I believe he staved off another massacre after the murder of the fifty RAF officers after the Great Escape from Sagan in Silesia in the Spring of 1944. It was a supreme example of the courage he showed in handling the Germans at times of extreme tension.
There was always something ominous about the parade that morning. Unusually, several machine guns had been brought into the compound and lined up on us. As the German commandant made his devastating announcement about the deaths of all those the officers, many of whom we knew well, we could also hear his machine gunners cocking their weapons against a roar of rage from the paraded POWs.
It was a tense moment … anything could have happened. Then, Dixie stepped forward, ordered us not to provoke the Germans, and probably saved the day.
It was at Heydekrug too, that the Germans decided that the British and the Americans were getting too close, so on the old principle of divide and rule. the rapidly increasing numbers of men from the States were moved into a separate compound, fenced off from us by barbed wire.
This was a blow for all as we had been getting on with each other so well, broadening our horizons immeasurably by being able to rub shoulders everyday. There was an even greater penalty for the Americans, however, because the only secret radio (the Canary as we called it) was hidden in the British compound.
It was to take some time for the Americans to become equipped with a secret radio of their own, but in order to keep up morale it was important for them to be as equally well-informed as the British.
The problem was solved ---with the help of the Germans! Dixie had succeeded in convincing them that they should encourage the organisation of educational classes in a whole range of subjects. They agreed, probably on the assumption that it would help keep us from other mischief-making activities.
As a newspaper reporter before the war I taught shorthand in the camp and it was not difficult to persuade the interpreters to carry a daily “lesson” in Pitman`s over to the American compound to keep that lively lot quiet as well.
The Germans never cottoned on to the fact that the daily transcription lesson was in fact the previous night’s BBC news bulletin. Eventually the Americans got their own canary---don’t ask me how, though ours had a valve stamped Deutsch Kriegsmarine. Thereafter life became that much duller for me.
Dixie’s full part on the field of deception was only revealed long after the war when many of us found out for the first time that he had been at the heart of the espionage and other undercover activities behind the wire. The Intelligence Service in England had successfully smuggled in a code for him to use. As a result some of his letters home to his wife, Mollie, did not fully express the affection he undoubtedly felt for her.
Dixie’s last year as camp leader brought us even closer to our American comrades. By this time we were all together again in a huge, old-established camp at Fallingbostle on Luneburg Heath to which we had been moved in a panic as the Russians neared Heydekrug.
Fallingbostle was an entirely different kettle of fish. To start with it was guarded not by the familiar Luftwaffe, but German Army, tough troops resting from fighting on the Eastern Front. They were in no mood to put up with much from the likes of us buoyed up as we were by the knowledge that we were now clearly winning the war.
As the Allied bombing campaign smashed up the country’s transport system, there was a desperate shortage in the camp of everything--food, clothing, books, you name it and we hadn’t got it. Yet I can never remember any friction between the Americans and ourselves. On the contrary we had visual evidence every day, which increased our admiration.
This is not a part of my tribute to Dixie but for years I have been longing to say something to an audience of American veterans. While at Fallingbostle we had the great privilege of watching American airmen in action as their big waves of Liberators and Forts, escorted by long-range fighters, flew in daylight, day after day, across the region to their targets.
We would watch in anguish as scores of German fighters, including the unbelievably fast early jets, tore into the formations with canons and rockets roaring. Every now and then one of the big bombers would drop out of the formation, often in flames. Sometimes parachutes would emerge before the stricken machine hit the ground…sometimes not.
As we watched the rest of the wing would then close up the gaps in the huge formation, and without faltering, would fly on into the indescribable wall of anti-aircraft fire over the target.
As airmen ourselves we knew better than most what this demanded of the young Americans in those vulnerable machines. We marveled too, at their motivation. We had always had the incentive of fighting an enemy who had been mercilessly bombing our own homes and loved ones. Those Americans had no such spur.
I have never forgotten that experience and never will. Nor will I forget their incredible generosity. Starvation is the sternest test of the quality of unselfishness. And we were all starving by February 1945 when the Allied bombing campaign had crippled the infrastructure of Germany.
Somehow a truckload of Chesterfield cigarettes earmarked for the sole use of the Americans arrived at what was left of Fallingbostle station. We all thought: ”The lucky so-and-so’s” for Virginia cigarettes were as good as currency.
To our astonishment---and eternal gratitude---the Americans decided to share their good fortune with the lot of us, amounting, if I remember rightly, to 200 each. Shortly after we were all marched out to live off the land for a month on whatever we could beg, borrow, steal or barter. The value of that great example of unselfishness on the part of the Americans is incalculable.
No wonder in later life I was so pleased to be able to pay of a little of my debt to them as a governor of the 2nd USAF Division Memorial Library for the 7000 Americans who lost their lives flying from bases around my city of Norwich.
And now a last word about Dixie and that desperate month-long march at the end of the war along roads and lanes crowded with despairing civilian refugees, displaced persons, POWs and retreating German troops. We went about 100 miles and all the time Dixie kept up with us. The Germans provided him with a bicycle to enable him to keep in touch with the various columns as they wound their was deeper into Germany, often in the front line between the Allies and the retreating enemy. His greatest moment came after a tragic episode when our column of 300 men was attacked by four rocket-firing Typhoons of the Royal Air Force. After helping to bury the thirty killed and seeing to the needs of another thirty wounded the Germans allowed him to pass through their lines to alert the British commander to the danger to us.
To the commander’s astonishment Dixie insisted on leaving the safety of the British lines to return to his men on those dangerous roads. No doubt about it---without Sgt. Deans hope for many would have faded. Eventually most of us got home, but a lifetime later his example is still held in the highest esteem by all who were fortunate enough to come under his care.
One last thought about Dixie---I’m sure he would have applauded the spirit which has brought us all together today in a country most wished we would never see again when the war ended. I think I can assure you Helga that he would have been the first to recognize the great act of reconciliation you and your associates have bought about and to which this unique gathering bears witness.
Irwin Stovroff (USA): ”The separation of the Jewish POWs at Stalag Luft 1 in 1945”
Good Morning:
A website created by Mary Smith and her sister Barbara Freer in honor of their father, a fellow Kriegie, was the inspiration for the most extensive story of Stalag Luft I. A letter from a former roommate of mine at the prison camp introduced me to the site, this planned conference and of course to Helga Radau, and after months of anticipation we are here in Barth.
How many of us ever thought we would ever want to, or ever return to Barth? While many of life’s memories may fade away, how could any of us forget that “fateful day”, the day we began our eventual journey to Stalag Luft I – Barth, Germany…. We got up about four in the morning, had breakfast, went to our briefing, suited up in our flying outfits and took off into combat somewhere in enemy territory, and then experiencing the impossible – we got shot up – and then, shot down.
After being shot down, eventual capture, beatings, solitary confinement, and interrogations were our fate. While riding in the box cars we were strafed and bombed by the Allied forces and finally reached the relative safety of Barth and the confines of Stalag Luft I, EXCEPT for about 250 Jewish Air Force officers who at a later date were segregated with death sentence to follow.
While we all shared the Guard Houses, the Guards, the Dogs, Inspections, Roll Calls, the Food or lack of it. NOTHING could compare to the feeling of helplessness that came over us when the madman Hitler issued this order. In early February, 1945 the segregation began using different methods in each Compound.
I was in Compound 2 with my co-pilot Bill Manierre, my navigator, Jack Bertoli, when my name was called to remain in formation during roll call when others were dismissed. Major Cy Manierre, a brother to my co-pilot was adjutant in Compound 3 and had told his brother that we would be moved from the camp at sometime on a death sentence because of being Jews.
To this day, I believe that strength and sheer guts of our leader, Col. Zemke and Col. Spicer who we understood told the Commandant that this was a violation of the Geneva Convention, that a protest would be filed and given to the International Inspectors were what saved us. In addition, the action by the Nazi’s was a crime against American Officers and they were being persecuted for their religious beliefs. Col. Zemke told the Germans they would be held personally responsible for war crimes when the war was over.
The following is my story and other Jewish Officers:
Irwin Stovroff: “I was marched out of my compound to the segregated barracks in North I, Block I, Room 13 which was next to a munitions dump. There was a minimum of fourteen men per room. We were allowed to eat in the central mess hall with others until it burned down, but most of our time was spent in a segregated area. The element of not knowing the next move that would be made placed a tremendous amount of pressure on all Jewish prisoners. One can only hope that innocent human beings will never again have their lives wasted behind barbed wire. Time is, after all the only thing in life that is irreplaceable. Rather than fading into the diffusive wake of time, the voices from captivity – loud or soft, happy or sad, strong or weak – will continue to find a special place in the American experience.”
Paul Kaufman: “Rumors of the separation and murder of the Jewish POWs circulated for days. I met Col. Zemke coming back from North 3 and I stopped to discuss the problems. He advised that he was working on the problem. Several days later, at about 10 PM, the Germans entered my barracks (block seven) and came directly to my room. The officer in charge was not a Luftwaffe – red stripe down his pants – he was a captain. He had two guards with him and one, Paul Schubert had my picture. He held a lantern to my face and said, “Raus – come with us.” I made a quick good bye to my roommates and followed them outside the camp to an empty field where there were three more guards and a large drum in which they had built a fire. I was told to stand away near a boulder and I waited for the inevitable, however, much to my surprise, other POWs started to arrive and by morning there were several hundred. At daybreak, we were marched back into the camp and escorted to block 11 where we remained until the liberation.”
Max Kateff: “After being in camp for about four months, Hitler ordered all Jews to be killed. Other Jewish American Officers and I were forced from our barracks and separated from the camp in preparation for their final solution. A senior American officer was able to prevent this from happening. This is something I will never forget.”
Aaron Kuptsow: “One morning, in early February, at roll call, they called out a bunch of our names and told us to remain after dismissal. After the others left, we were marched through the camp to another barracks and were told that was our new home. I was in a room with 13 others - and after talking for a few minutes, we realized that we were all Jewish. All other rooms were checked and they were also Jewish and realized that this was a Jewish barracks. Our barracks was in a distant corner of the camp surrounded by barbed wire and isolated. Rumors started to spread that, during one night, we would probably be marched out and sent to death camps and no one would know. A decision was made to notify the Geneva Convention of our situation through our camp American top officers (Col. Zemke and Lt. Col. Gabreski - both of these were "Ace Pilots" and our highest ranking officers). The process could take months, but there was nothing else we could do.”
In conclusion, I want to thank Helga Radau for this conference and the opportunity to tell of the segregation of Stalag Luft I. A fact that has never been acknowledged or in any books in print about our camp.
Let me finish with… The important thing to remember is that the liberties we so cherish are never free. They are bestowed upon us in the hope that we will act responsibly. Speaking against injustice and hatred is the rent all of us must pay in order to live in a better world. As Simon Wiesenthal said, “Freedom is not a gift from heaven one must fight for it everyday.”
Vasily Bezugly (Russia): "My Deployment at Barth in May 1945”
Ladies and gentlemen! Friends!
I am an ordinary Russian soldier who took part in freeing of American and British pilot prisoners of war of the camp “Schtalag-Luft-1” on the 2nd May, 1945.
I was a member of 133rd Guards regiment of the 44th infantry division of Guards.
I was born on January the 29th, 1926 in Ukraine. When the war began I was 15. I volunteered the army in 1943. Since 1944 during WWII I was a mortar man. I took part in the heroic battles in Ukraine and Poland, stormed Gdansk, crossed the river Oder southern of Stettin (Szecin), Barth.
On March 1945 our regiment was near Gdansk. The allies airplanes were flying over. We heard the motor noise and saw the photo flash cartridges.
Exploding aircraft bombs were shaking the ground in our trenches. Then the battles became less intense. Many towns and districts surrendered without any resistance.
The quick advancement was demanded. We went forward having no rest – tanks, motorcars, carts.
Near Barth a scout group under my regimental comrade’s Nicolai Kuevda command met some scouts from “Schtalag-Luft-1” camp. The soldiers of our regiment got the information about it.
Early in the morning on May the 2nd, 1945 we entered the camp. The soldiers were fraternizing with the released prisoners, shaking hands, embracing, exchanging memorable souvenirs (for example, buttons, stars). I heard the exclamations: “America and Russia – very good!”
We were treated to bars of chocolate from Red Cross cardboard boxes. We sang together the famous Russian song “Katiusha”.
Americans gave us their addresses and invited us to see them in the USA. One of them who was 10-15 older than I gave me his address.
The interpreter told me that the soldier wanted me to write a letter to him and he would invite me and my family to the USA after the war.
I was only 19, didn’t pay much attention to it and lost the address. I can hardly remember his name now. It sounded like Tommy or Bobby.
On that day in Barth a civil German photographer took our pictures. It was the first war photo of me. This photo is my precious relic. I have been keeping it since that time.
The battles resumed and we kept defense on the fringe of Barth. I didn’t communicate with the prisoners any more. My regimental comrade Nicolai Shramov worked with 3 interpreters from the POW’s number for a week. They composed the prisoner’s lists of names for Moscow.
The pilot prisoners of war must remember that procedure. Perhaps, they remembered Nicolai Shramov, too. I have his photo on me.
After the war in summer 1945 we were located in Grunberg? Then in Neuhammer.
On April, 1946 I went to Moscow where I was my former commander Vladimir Borisov’s driver.
In 1949 I entered Kiev military training school.
I met Borisov only in 30 years in 1979 in Baranovitchi (Belorussia) on 44th infantry division of Guards war-veterans meeting.
Thanks to Internet and my grandson Andrej’s efforts after 55 years I could correspond with the former “Schtalag-Luft-1” camp prisoners.
I would like to thank one of the former prisoners, chairman of American prisoners of war organization in Baton Rouge, state Louisiana – Donald Menard. Unfortunately he couldn’t come. He sent me a documentary videotape. On the tape the released prisoners are living for America. The tape moved me to tears. In on of the frames I recognized my comrade – general Borisov. And again get to the years of my difficult youth.
Now I live in Ryazan. I have two daughters and 2 grandsons. I am a pensioner now.
As it saw from aforesaid I didn’t make nothing heroic at front. Such soldiers at our regiment under command of Guards colonel Zhovanik were nearly 3 thousand man a stuff.
I am an ordinary Russian soldier, participant of those unforgettable historic events of the end of WWII.
Barth became for me those happy place, were I took part at the freeing of allies – American and British POW’s. And where I met a long waited Victory.
I thank my fate for being alive and was not mourned by my parents. I told about it to my children and grandsons for saving at the memory past experiences and make a contribution in affair of the fortification of a friendship and cooperation between our countries.
I would like to thank my German friends – the chairman of the Society-patrons of Centers of Documentation and Meeting work Zigrid Getch for the beautiful opportunity to meet at Barth with my youth, to the archivist Helga Radau, to the secretary Elke Engelmann, to my American friends – Mary Smith and Barbara Freer for creation of the site in honor of the camp and to all ex-POW’s who wrote me.
Let there be eternal peace over the world!
Thanks for the attention, veteran Vasily Bezugly.
After his speech Vasily Bezugly presented the following gifts
to the ex-POWs and their families:
Reproductions of his medals:
#1 - It is a special medal "To the participant of WWII of 1941-1945". It was given to all of the Russian veterans of the Great Patriotic War in honour of the 55th anniversary of the Great Victory.
#2 - Here is a medal in honour of the 60th anniversary of the Ryazan high car military school. It is the place where I worked till the beginning of 90's as a civil specialist - as a ventilator repair man.
#3 - This is a special Komsomol medal. I was a member of a Komsomol, when I met a Victory at Barth, during the liberation. You can see it on the one of my first pictures of the war at Barth
This is a memory button of the military division that Vasily was with when he waged war during WWII and helped to liberate the POWs at Stalag Luft I. The 44th Guardian Shooting Division. He had the buttons made to present to the POWs and it reads - "Barth, May, the 2nd, 1945" and - "Ryazan, 2001". Ryazan is Vasily's hometown in Russia.
A Russian chocolate bar - Vasily said the first time he ever tasted chocolate was when the newly liberated POWs gave him one of the "D" bars from their Red Cross parcels so he wanted to return the favor and give chocolate back to the POWs.
This is a two sided laminated document. On one side is a special message (click on photo to enlarge and read) to the POWs from Vasily along with photos of Ryazan (his hometown) and his personal contact information in Russia.
The other side traces his combat route during WWII (The Great Patriotic War), which ends in Victory at Barth. Photos of Vasily as a 19 year old soldier and a photo of his commander, Gen. Borisov.
George Lesko (USA) : Colonel H. R. Spicer's Defiant Speech
Col. Henry Russell Spicer was the Commander of the 357th Fighter Group based in England and he flew the P-51 Mustang on 14 missions. He had destroyed 3 German aircraft before flak damage on March 3, 1944 forced him to parachute into the near freezing waters of the English Channel. Rescue boats and aircraft failed to locate him.
Spicer drifted for 2 days in a one-man boat before reaching Cherbourg, France and because of exposure and frostbite he was unable to walk. This was a condition that would plague him all his life. He was found by German soldiers and taken to Oberursel, Germany for medical treatment and interrogation. Hans Scharff, a master Luftwaffe interrogator who spoke excellent English said Spicer was an expert at avoiding or circumventing his questions. After the war Scharff went tot the United States and became a citizen.
Upon arrival at Stalag Luft I in Barth, Germany sometime in the spring of 1944, Colonel Spicer became the senior officer of North Compound 2. He was a hearty man with a long handlebar moustache. On a very cold and bitter morning in late October or early November, during a roll call that usually took no more than 15 minutes, the prisoner count was determined to be incorrect. After some two hours of re-counts, Colonel Spicer told all the POWs to go to their barracks. The prisoners ignored the German guards who made loud and threatening protests as they returned to quarters.
Later, Colonel Spicer summoned all the men of compound 2 to his barracks and he then stood on the top step and talked very loudly so the German guards could hear him say, “Remember, we are still at war with the Germans. They are still our enemies and are doing everything they can to win this war. Recently an officer was put in the cooler on two counts for failure to salute a German officer of lower rank with violates Geneva convention articles.” Stalag Luft I had ordered the saluting of all officers by POWs.
Spicer continued by saying he observed many POWs becoming too friendly with the Germans and loudly said, “Don’t let them fool you around because they are dirty lying sneaks and can’t be trusted.” He further stated that “as an example of the type of enemy we are dealing with, the British were forced to retreat in the Arnheim area (Aachen) and had to leave their wounded in a hospital. The Germans machine-gunned all British wounded in their beds.”
Col. Spicer also related that in Belgium, behind enemy lines, a woman with her baby in her arms was evacuating the battle zone when some captured British prisoners were passing by her. She displayed a “V” for victory sign with her fingers and a German soldier saw her and shot her on the spot. Spicer concluded by saying, “They are a bunch of murderous, no-good liars and if we have to stay here for 15 years to see all the Germans killed, then it will be worth it.”
Much applause following Spicer’s remark and cheers arouse from all the POWs that hear him speak. The German major in charge of the guards was furious. According to a document of protest to the Swiss legation acting as protecting power dated November 4, 1944, Colonel Byerly the senior American Officer, wrote and sent word that approximately one hour after Spicer’s speech to the POWs he was taken before the German commandant and put in solitary confinement. He was then taken to a small cell measuring six by eight fee pending a court-martial.
The charges against Colonel Spicer included “Defaming of German character: and “inciting prisoners to riot”. The German commandant, Oberst Scherer, stated that Colonel Spicer was held in custody for court-martial. We in Stalag Luft I later learned that he had been convicted to serve six months in solitary confinement and then be executed by a firing squad.
Colonel Spicer, prior to his conviction, interviewed new prisoners for current war news and documented German atrocities and then went to great lengths to harass the German guards. This caused very hard feelings between the POWs and their captors, which resulted in frequent roll calls during which guards often, searched the barracks for “illegal possessions”. There were reports of German guards drawing moustaches and more on paintings and sketches POWs had made of a family member or fellow POWs.
Another incident in November of 1944 occurred when German Major Steinhower, who was the lager (camp) officer, demanded that all POWs assemble for an evening roll call in a heavy rain. Colonel Spicer concluded that the order was quite ridiculous and directed that we POWs not comply. Steinhower became irate and threatened force. Spicer responded by saying he had “A couple of machine guns to eliminate the guards.” In the end, the POWs submitted to the roll call.
Captain Mozart Kaufman, who was a POW in North Compound 2 and present when Colonel Spicer made his speech, determined that the speech should be documented and he solicited assistance from other POWs to accurately write down what Spicer had said. He then buried the notes in a coffee can under his barracks. Kaufman later wrote a book on his stay in Stalag Luft I and said, “Colonel Spicer was an excellent example of a good commander – one who kept morale high by challenging the Germans on every occasion.”
While Colonel Spicer was serving the six-month solitary confinement order and awaiting the execution order to be carried out by a firing squad, occasionally some POWs were marched by guards near the cooler where Spicer was held. The often shouted words of encouragement to Spicer and he would call back and say, “Don’t give in to them and keep fighting.” When asked if he needed anything, he always said. “Send me machine guns.”
Ironically, in the end Spicer did evade the firing squad by a single day. As the Soviet troops prepared to overtake Stalag Luft I in late April, all the German guards evacuated during the night leaving the camp unattended. When Spicer was told of this, he would not leave his cell saying, “ I have one more night to make it an even six months, and I am staying here tonight.” When he finally appeared, every POW greeted him enthusiastically. Spicer said, “Seeing and hearing you (POWs) made solitary confinement, worth it.”
It is worth mentioning at this time that the Geneva Convention observed the terms of the Hague Convention of 1907, which did not fully cover prisoners of war. The 1941 change basically stated that no POW could be forced to disclose to captor anything other than his name, rank and serial number. In World War 2, Switzerland and Sweden acted as protecting posers and the International Red Cross at Geneva was the clearinghouse for all POW information. It has been stated that American and British POWs received the best treatment from their German captors and the Polish prisoners, the worst. The USSR however, was not a signor of the 1941 convention.
In conclusion, Henry Russell Spicer retired from the United States Air Force on June 1, 1964 as a Major General with 30 years of service. He died on December 5, 1968 at the relatively young age of 60. In the October 1995 issue of “The Air Force Magazine” C.V. Glines, who was a flying cadet in 1941 with Lt. Spicer as his flight commander, wrote a story entitled, “A Speech Worth Dying For.” General Spicer will always be remembered for his speech that not only brought him a death sentence, but also brought strength and fortitude to his fellow prisoners.
Stephan Scherer (Germany): "My Father was the Commandant of Stalag Luft 1”
My father, Willibald Karl Scherer, was born in Passau on July 13, 1892. He was born into a middle class family of conservative lawyers. His Protestant father moved from Passau to Munich to further his career. He graduated from the Wilhelmsgymnasium.
He joined the cavalry and later was an lookout for enemy planes during World War 1. Between the two world wars, he became involved with Freichor Epp, which was supposed to help with the emancipation of Munich from the communist revolutionary intellectuals and their followers. In WWII worked for the Air Force at an air base and at the end of 1942, was named Commander of the prison system for POWs at Stalag Luft 1. He, along with other officials, was relieved of this position at the end of 1944. A fellow Gestapo employee named Oppermann overheard comments made by my father about the current regime and collected that information along with things he observed and passed them on to higher officials. This led to my father’s dismissal. One blames my father for Anglophilismus and pro-Jewish behavior. I can’t furnish details, but that was the tone of the complaint. The process was to take place in Stettin (name of a town, I think), but then dragged out for weeks, until the jurisdiction for processing the complaint was passed on to Berlin. The war ended before the process could be completed. So my father survived. In February 1946, he emerged from a British POW camp and as he entered our home he threw an old vase to the floor. That was not a good omen. As a former officer he could not find work immediately after the war. During this time, my mother, well-known in the region as a portrait and landscape artist, supported our family. This was a bitter pill for my father to swallow and his pride was hurt. During the time that my parents were separated by the war, they wrote each other loving letters, sometimes 3 letters a day, and sometimes they even spoke to each other on the telephone. As I sorted through the thousands of letters, I often wondered how, with all of his daily activities and responsibilities, my father found the time to write so many letters. When my father returned from the war, the relationship between my parents deteriorated. There were loud fights every day. A terrible memory.
My father was married twice. After the war, my father’s son, Hermann, from his first marriage moved with his mother to America. Hermann later returned to Germany as an American Occupation soldier and met his future wife in Berlin. After his military career, he worked for a computer company in Florida, that developed test simulators for the U.S. army. Hermann Scherer, my half brother died at the young age of 49. He was survived by a daughter and a son who served during the Gulf War. In the meantime, there is a large group of Scherers who have all become American citizens.
In his second marriage, my father married his second cousin, Marie Luise, who had the same last name as my father. That made the formalities of a civil marriage much easier. Marie Luise Scherer studied art in Dresden and Leipzig. An exchange of letters with people from this region continued long after the conclusion of the war with those who survived the war.
I was born in 1942, a few months before my father took over as head of the prison camp in Barth. I have virtually no memories of my father from WWII, since I was too young. Today, if I recall memories of my father from after the war, I see him buried behind a mountain of books: mostly history books, but also fiction and art books. I also remember that he liked to take long walks along the Donau River or hikes through the mountains of Tirol. His greatest love was music and if he had been a civilian, he would have wanted to be a conductor. He played the violin, viola, cello, piano. He had a great ear for music and could play sheet music without prior practice. After the war, my father was 54, so a musical career was no longer possible. Later, as my father was able to find work again, he was happy to become the administrator for Lotto (a national lottery). Later he became responsible for all lottery outlets in the region of Straubing. Even during the war, he was able to answer his musical yearnings. For example, in Barth he, other acquaintances and Pastor Just formed a small chamber music group. Even after the war, back in Straubing and Lower Bavariy, he continued with his chamber music and played everything from Hayden to Mozart to Bartok. His remaining group of friends was very middle class. My mother was more outgoing and she had an incredibly large circle of friends and acquaintances.
From the letters my father wrote to my mother while he was Commander of Stalag Luft 1, it was clear that he tried hard to run a correct and humane camp and that he was concerned for the fate of the prisoners. I also have this impression from letters written by ex-POW’s, for which I am very grateful. However, I also gathered from these letters that the generally good treatment of the prisoners in Stalag Luft 1 was the wish of those higher in command. One should keep the prisoners of war in a good mood, because one would hope that ultimately they would be allies in the war against the much-hated Bolsheviks.
The letters from my father while he was in Barth were all written in the same manner.
The weather had direct consequences on the well-being of my father and the situation in the camp. There was also the mention of specific occasions, for example, visits to the camp by police or trips to visit friends in Barth.
The suggestions and instructions to my mother, encompassed all areas of life. Always a loving closure rule. This was how just about every letter was structured.
As an example, here follows a typical letter from my father to my mother:
3/2/44 in the evening (On the average, my father and mother wrote up to three letters to each other every day)
Dearest Ise!
About the weather; yes, that was a terrible disaster.
The first spring temperatures, tempting you to go outside and work in the garden, and now, after two days, this abrupt weather change! For 24 hours the storm direction has changed from south to west and now a blizzard shaking and howling through the area, and so we are aghast and disgusted about it. Under such circumstances, watching the POWs, in fact, is not possible any longer! Good weather for an escape; will the headcount be correct tomorrow? Within the next two days 300 American officers will arrive simultaneously! This will be a hard job, especially for the assistant to v.Miller, who has to take charge (of the newly arriving prisoners). Yesterday evening a tunnel was discovered, which was already complete to the fence. The guys had poured the scooped out sand into the toilets and sinks and then strongly complained that the new sewage system did not work properly! Now those gentlemen have to do the cleaning up themselves under the supervision of the German workers.
Today you can hardly remain in the rooms facing the west. The whole day long I sat in my office wearing the coat to my raingear. My feet feel like icicles, and I will be glad to get in my bed. The curtains are dancing in the room, as if the windows were open!
But now my dearest, I want to thank you for two dear letters of the 26th and 27th, (and the nice van Gogh postcard) and the letter with the brown wool mending material. Today Else (a helper at Stalag Luft I ?) showed me a blue uniform shirt, that cannot be repaired. I will send it to you, if I get a chance, by post; pieces of it may be useful for making summer shirts for (son) Stephan; recently I had to present a shirt of the same quality in Straubing.
How are things with you? Again you report about being worn out, as you have done recently! So the symptoms of your illness have not yet been expelled from your body. Maybe you should try a mineral water cure at home? I wonder what doctor can give you the best advice and where you can get x- rayed? Hopefully you will get over this. Will Agnes (her older sister, resident of the city of Bremen, now there in Straubing visiting my mother) be leaving soon?
Now about (her brother) Stephan: Hopefully you will receive official documents concerning him. Actually, he could be useful to me as a civilian translator. I'm trying hard to locate translators. Presently I have put in a request for 9 people such as he from the translator's school in Bonn-H (....?), where their school is located.
That Straubing, and the surrounding area, is fed up with the refugee situation, I can understand; even so it may be unlikely that people from Vienna will be evacuated that far.
We don't have any fears here and are living as if in the deepest peace. Our foot soldier have no idea how nice they have it here. What will our comrades in the east have to suffer right now! -
Very soon now I shall retreat from this day and therefore close (this letter) with a heartfelt good night for you and (son) Stephan.
With deep love,
Your's Willi
PS. - Say "Hello" to Agnes as well
Click here for photo of Colonel Willibald Scherer
Mary Smith and Barbara Freer (USA): ”Why we created a web site for our father and other kriegies.”:
Thank you we are so happy to be with you today on this special occasion.
Helga asked that we tell you a little about our website "Stalag Luft I Online". We initially built the site two years ago from information we had gathered while researching our father’s WWII experiences.
The site has grown from a small 3-page tribute to him and his crew to a 67-page site containing detailed information about Stalag Luft I including 28 individual prisoner of war (POW) stories, photos, poetry and original artwork. We have pages devoted to the liberation of the camp by the Russians and the airlift and evacuation of the POWs by the 8th Air Force. We also have a page devoted to a German guard and intelligence officer at the camp known as Henry the butcher. Other pages provide listings of books written on Stalag Luft I, videos on POWs, information on applying for the POW medal and the benefits and entitlements provided by the US government for POWs and their widows.
We became interested in Stalag Luft I when we decided to apply for our father’s Prisoner of War Medal. After receiving the application form we learned we would have to supply proof that he was a POW with the completed application. The US government had no complete listing of WWII POWs and to make matters even worse, we learned that there had been a fire in 1973 that had destroyed 16 to 18 million Army and Air Force official military personnel files and no duplicate copies or microfilm existed. Since he had passed away many years earlier, we had to search for the required proof on our own.
Growing up there were signs of Stalag Luft I in our home. A search of our bookcases would reveal 2 books on the subject, Ross Greening’s "Not As Briefed", a book full of colorful drawings he made while in the camp and Morris Roy’s "Behind Barbed Wire" which contained stories, photos and drawings along with a listing of the POWs and their hometowns by compound. An aerial photo of the camp hung in our family room for several years beside a photo of Dad in his military uniform. And if you looked hard enough, as children often do -- in a drawer, you would find a metal swastika that Dad had gotten by climbing up the flagpole at Stalag Luft I after liberation. As children growing up we were intrigued and tried to get him to tell us about his POW experience but he like most preferred not to discuss it. He would quickly try to change the subject whenever we asked about it.
He was an only child so there were no siblings that we could turn to with our questions. Mother had not known him during this time. They had met several years after he returned from the war and he had not told her much about his experience either. After our grandparents died she was cleaning out their house and found Dad’s Honorable Discharge from the Army, his Dulag Luft photo ID card and a few old newspaper clippings reporting him as missing in action and later as a prisoner of war at Stalag Luft I. With this as our only proof, we applied for the medal and waited. A couple of years passed and we heard nothing. We decided to try and find someone that had been on the plane with him or had known him in the POW camp in hopes of being able to provide additional proof of his POW status..
His Honorable Discharge indicated that he had been in the 600th Bomb Squadron. With this information we searched the Internet and learned that it was part of the 398th Bomb Group. We found their website and emailed the webmaster asking for assistance in locating anyone that had been on the plane with him when he was shot down on November 26, 1944. Shortly after this we received a reply that listed all the men that were on the plane with him and the current addresses for 4 of them.
With this we wrote to the four asked if they remembered our father and would they be willing to share any information they have about him and/or their experiences of that day. They all 4 responded warmly offering their memories and assistance, although only one had known him prior to the morning of the flight and he had been sent to a different POW camp, Stalag Luft 4. The other three that did not know him had all been sent to the same POW camp, Stalag Luft I, but did not know him in the camp. One of the crew had an email address and we became very close to him, corresponding on almost a weekly basis, with him sending us his story of the crash and life at Stalag Luft I in installments over a period of a few weeks. When his installments ended with the liberation of the camp and the airlift, we were hooked.
It seems the more we learned the more we wanted to know.
With the stories and photos we had received from the crewmembers we built a small 3 page website as a tribute to Dad and his crew, mostly to preserve this information for our family members. Our interest in Stalag Luft I, and the POW experience, continued to grow and we began to search for more information. We began to visit museums, search Air Force archives and even attend POW and Bomb Group reunions, including last year’s conference in Barth. Everywhere we went we learned more and accumulated more information. Within a year what started out as a quick and easy way to share information with our family and friends grew to the 67-page site we have today. We have had over 150,000 visitors to our site since we began counting a year and a half ago. We are currently averaging 350 visitors a day. They come from all over the world. We have counted visitors from 112 different countries, including Zimbabwe, Cuba, China, Egypt, Peru, Nepal, Venezuela, India, Australia and Singapore to name a few.
We have a guestbook where we invite our visitors to leave comments. We had no idea that the site would appeal to such a diverse group of people of all ages but it does. The visitors identify themselves as sons or daughters of POWs, widows, teachers, students, military service buddies, former POWs and everyday citizens. From the everyday citizens there is a message of thank you to the POWs for all they endured to secure our freedoms we enjoy today. The sons and daughters generally are searching for information about the things their father never told them, many of whom are now deceased or died during the war. They are looking for anyone who might have known their father. The teachers and students are studying or teaching history and they thank the POWs who have shared their personal experiences and enabled them to better understand the human aspect of war. The military service buddies are often looking for answers to what happened to a buddy that went missing many years ago. And the former POWs are sometimes looking for a specific friend from the POW camp or they are looking for anyone else that was in the same camp that can relate to the common experience they shared.
We have put a lot of time and energy into building the site, but it has truly been a labor of love. The kind comments and letters of thanks from our visitors make it worth every minute of work we have put into it. Our proudest moments come from learning that we have helped others out there find answers to long unanswered questions.
There are some wonderful heart warming and amazing stories about the connections that have been made thru our website.
One of the first outside contributions to our site came from a daughter of a kriegie who had died in 1963. She was 15 when he passed away and she had recently found his YMCA diary with a listing of his roommates. We built a page for him and added the listing of his roommate’s names. His daughter was hoping to one day find someone that may have known him in the camp. Within a matter of a few months we had made contact with 12 of his former roommates or their families, including his best friend in the camp. Most of the roomies had not been in contact with each other for the last 56 years. They are thrilled to be in contact again and are planning on attending a roommate reunion in Philadelphia next month.
Another kriegie whose story and roommates are listed on our site wrote to tell us of an email he received from the son of one of his former roommates. The son’s father had been killed shortly after the war and the son had no memories of his father. The kriegie sent the son his phone number and they called and talked for several hours with him sharing his memories of the man and their experiences at Stalag Luft I with the son.
We have also gotten emails from kriegies thanking us and telling us that they found a former roommate in our guestbook and emailed them and they are in contact once again.
We recently posted the story of a kriegie who had been reunited with some of his crew thanks to a German man who as a young boy had witnessed the crash of his plane. As an adult the German man began extensive research into the crash and the events of that day. This researcher contacted the kriegie and provided him with the actual photos taken of the crashed plane on the ground. He also provided the name and a photo of the pilot, a Luftwaffe “Ace”, that had shot them down. The kriegie said he was glad to have been shot down by an ace and not an amateur!
Ten days after we added the kriegie’s story and photos to our site he received an email from a woman living in Chicago, (his former hometown). The woman explained that she had always been interested in history and was visiting our site and randomly reading some of the POW stories when she ran across his story and began to read it. She said as she was reading his story her heart went out to him just as it had for all the other men and women she had been reading about. She said as she continued reading she saw a picture and knew instantly who it was, explaining that she didn’t see the caption right away. She said she thought she was losing it for a minute, then she read the caption which confirmed what she thought she was seeing. The man that had shot down the kriegie was her grandfather. She was staring at the same photo of him that they had in their family photo album. She explained that her father was from Germany but had moved to America when he was 18 to find work. He met and married her mother and they lived in Chicago. She said he had brought a family photo album with him from Germany, which contained a photo of his father (her grandfather) in his military uniform along with some newspaper articles, which were in German so she couldn’t read them. She had been told her grandfather was a war hero and not much more was said about him other than he had died when her father was 9, shortly after the war had ended. She said her dad had never talked about his father and she was pretty sure up till now that he never would have until today. She said she hoped she was not upsetting the kriegie by contacting him and explained that many lives were affected by this one event and it just so happens that effects carry over generations. She said she feels the pain her father must feel and that is why she hopes the kriegie can understand why she wanted to contact him.
The kriegie immediately replied to her and put her in contact with the other surviving crew members. They have developed a friendly relationship and plan on visiting each other soon. Old wounds are healing and friendships forming. The granddaughter became interested in learning more about her grandfather and put together a notebook filled with information she received from the German researcher and from the Internet, which she proudly displayed at her daughter’s recent graduation party. She advised it was the hit of the party.
But by far our favorite website connection story occurred when our friend and Stalag Luft I kriegie George Lesko was found on our website by his long lost son. George was separated and divorced from the son’s mother before the child was born. George had no idea that the marriage had produced a child for several decades. George and the son have been able to positively confirm thru a DNA test that they are indeed father and son and are now very happy and in constant communication.
In conclusion we would like to invite you to visit our site and read the fascinating stories. Some will make you laugh and some will make you cry. In reading these you are struck by the incredible and horrific experiences of so many in the war and the common exhibition of tremendous personal valor. They are the stories of brave young men who defeated their fear and then defeated the cause of their fear. We believe all the Stalag Luft I kriegies are heroes and survivors and we are proud to share their stories with the world. As one son of a POW who wrote to us said, "We cannot ever fill the shoes left us. We can truly try. Perhaps we will come close to earning the honor of being the children of heroes."
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To Photos of 2001 Conference
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1962: Los Angeles Metropolitan Transit Authority holds a press event and groundbreaking ceremony at Wilshire Boulevard and Linden Drive in Beverly Hills for the subway portion of its proposed Backbone Route.
Groundbreaking ceremonies at the other end of the proposed subway in downtown Los Angeles 11 days earlier featured the governor and other dignitaries.
The Backbone Route project was never constructed, however, because no local, state or federal funding mechanism for public transit system construction yet existed.
LAMTA had hoped to get some federal funding for civil defense to build subway stations that would serve as fallout shelters.
More information on the groundbreaking can be found in the February, 1962 issue of The Emblem, the Metropolitan Transit Authority’s employee news magazine, and the complete story of the Backbone Route and plans for its nuclear fallout shelters, large-capacity helicopters and a Beverly Hills subway can be found in this Primary Resources blog post.
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USAHSCTL And MCAC Form Partnership For College League
MINNESOTA – The Minnesota College Athletic Conference (MCAC) has teamed up with the League to offer a new sanctioned sport – Clay Target – to begin in Fall 2018.
Trap shooting is the shooting sport of choice for the MCAC’s Clay Target offering, in which a team of 5 take turns shooting at clay targets traveling at over 40mph. Students will compete ‘virtually’ by shooting at their local shooting range and uploading their scores to the League for tracking.
Clay Target is fully Title IX compliant with both male and female athletes competing on the same team. Additionally it’s an ‘adaptive’ sport, which allows students with physical disabilities to take part.
The League is assisting the MCAC to craft the Clay Target Sports Code to help form the program, and will provide leadership, administration, and interactive support. A 6-week fall season will start in late-August and conclude with the MCAC Clay Target Championship in mid-October.
As a part of their status as a varsity sport within the Conference, participating Minnesota College Athletic Conference colleges will require student athletes to complete a minimum number of enrollment credits and meet GPA standards to participate on a team.
“With the success of the USAHSCTL, we have always envisioned the League growing to provide shooting sport programs for colleges,” said League Vice-President John Nelson. “Our partnership with the MCAC is just the first of an exciting new path of post-secondary education and activity opportunities for graduating high school student athletes that have enjoyed the Clay Target League for so many years.”
MCAC Executive Director Peter Watkins notes that Clay Target offers a chance to engage a new population for the athletic departments of colleges. “It allows schools to expand their ‘brand’ and school pride to a whole new population in and around their communities.” Watkins said. “Clay Target student athletes and their families are connecting with the school, buying sweatshirts, coming onto campus more often, and learning about the education options at the colleges, much like we see in other sport populations.”
The USA High School Clay Target League is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization and the independent provider of shooting sports as an extracurricular co-ed and adaptive activity for high schools and students in grades 6 through 12. The organization’s priorities are safety, fun, and marksmanship – in that order. Nationwide, nearly 22,000 student athletes representing over 800 school-approved teams participate in the League.
The Minnesota College Athletic Conference is comprised of over 20 public, two-year Community and Technical Colleges across the state of Minnesota, North Dakota, and Wisconsin, and is committed to providing an engaging and supportive environment for success of our student athletes and competition among member institutions.
Visit http://usaclaytarget.com | Contact: John Nelson at 612-490-1388 | Email: jnelson@usaclaytarget [ dot ] com
Visit the MCAC’s website at http://www.mcacsports.org
College Clay Target, College Shooting Program, College Trapshooting, MCAC, MCAC Clay Target
High School Clay Target League teams continue to multiply in Michigan
COUNTRY ARTIST LUCAS HOGE TO PERFORM AT NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP!
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Joe Schmo 4 has to be a wedding-themed competitive reality show of some kind
Posted by MGK Published in The Internets, TV
My weekly TV column is up at Torontoist.
it’s my own fault for installing WordPress (March 2nd, 2018)
Mastodon, Twitter, and you (or not you) (November 16th, 2017)
Video stores were better than Netflix (October 21st, 2017)
Why I keep being concerned about the rise of streaming services (October 18th, 2017)
Don’t Blame PC, Blame Poe (September 16th, 2016)
7 users responded in this post
William Kendall said on January 7th, 2013 at 3:36 pm
There’s actually a show called Joe Schmo? Shows you how much attention I pay to television…
And Lorenzo Lamas is still alive?
ScienceGiant said on January 7th, 2013 at 4:24 pm
I read this entry for Connections on Wikipedia. Then I re-read it again. And I reread it a third time before posting it here, because it seems so simply unbelievable given the state of programming on TLC:
Connections is a ten-episode documentary television series created, written and presented by science historian James Burke…It took an interdisciplinary approach to the history of science and invention and demonstrated how various discoveries, scientific achievements, and historical world events were built from one another successively in an interconnected way to bring about particular aspects of modern technology…
Years later the success in syndication led to two sequels, Connections² (1994) and Connections³ (1997), both for TLC.
both for TLC.
It boggles the mind.
Eli Balin said on January 7th, 2013 at 5:51 pm
TLC also ran Burke’s later series, “The Day the Universe Changed”.
At the same time, the US version of the Bravo channel was showing art films, opera, and The South Bank Show, rather than what appears to be several different though nearly identical showcases for roving gangs of professional clothing insulters.
Mitchell Hundred said on January 7th, 2013 at 6:36 pm
The concept of the People’s Choice Awards confuses me. Movies that are really popular already get a reward for that: it’s called money. What’s some meaningless statue next to that?
Jason said on January 7th, 2013 at 7:11 pm
William Kendall . . . hells yes. And if you got Time Warner, the second season is “On Demand.” Because it was filmed soon after the original edition, host Ralph Garman had to wear prosthetics and put on a British accent. Also, format twists would come via a falcon named Montecore swooping in and landing on Garman’s arm. It was awesome . . . especially when they showed behind-the-scenes footage of Montecore slamming into a door. Great times.
The Crazed Spruce said on January 7th, 2013 at 9:00 pm
The first season of “The Joe Schmo Show” was pure awesome in a bottle. It helped that the “schmo” they picked, Matt Kennedy Gould, was pretty much perfectly cast. (And that one of the fake contestants was played by a pre-SNL Kristin Wiig.) The second season wasn’t quite as good, but it was still quite enjoyable. (One of my all-time favourite moments was when the female “schmo” figured out what was going on in a talking head, with the caption under her name changing from “thinks it’s all real” to “probably thinks it’s real” and so on, all the way up to “we’re screwed”. And it did inflict Jonathan Torrens on the American public, a partial payback for that whole “acid rain” business….) So yeah, I’m looking forward to “The Joe Schmo Show” coming back. I’m acutally surprised it took this long to bring it back. (Okay, not that surprised. Casting the schmo must’ve been a bitch.)
Eric S. Smith said on January 7th, 2013 at 9:07 pm
Back when TLC was showing Connections and The Day the Universe Changed, it was also showing The Secret Life of Machines. Basically a golden age.
The first episode of Connections has a certain atemporal eeriness today: there’s James Burke, standing in front of the World Trade Center, telling us that about 10 years ago an event occurred in New York that gave everyone a startling reminder of how vulnerable they were…
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Miryam's Theater Musings
Theater articles of all sorts, from previews and interviews to reviews of productions, and occasional musings about more meta aspects of theater production or administration.
Home Books Published by Miryam ▼
If You Love Jane Austen and Musicals Or Maybe Even Just Musicals, See What's Opening at Taproot!
Cayman Ilika (and Nick DeSantis) and Matthew Posner in Persuasion (Erik Stuhaug)
(World Premiere musical)
Taproot Theatre
July 12 to August 19, 2017
Taproot Theatre is undertaking a brand new effort for their company, but one that is already looking to pay off solid dividends. Friday night, they will open a world premiere musical in their “summer musical” spot. Tickets are already getting difficult to buy on select popular dates!
Why? It seems a whole lot of people like Jane Austen stories and the fact that local musical-writers Chris Jeffries (music and lyrics) and Harold Taw (book) have chosen to musicalize her novel, Persuasion, is making a lot of folks very excited.
Persuasion is Austen’s last book, published just after she died in 1817, and is the moodiest of her canon. Her heroine begins the book as a kind of “past her prime” older sister who had been persuaded (see the word, here, suggesting the title of the book and musical?) to dump a suitor, Wentworth, at the usual marriageable age of 19, because her godmother Lady Russell convinced her that he was not an appropriate alliance and it would haunt her and her children to be brought socially low by the match. However, ever since, she has regretted her choice.
Of course, Wentworth left for “the war” and became a captain and also wealthy and is now a much more eligible match. Eight years later, he arrives home again. But she is convinced that he could not possibly want to have anything to do with her.
Don’t mistake this for a drama, though. It’s got a happy ending, and a lot of funny bits.
Jeffries and Taw used the somewhat somber and moody premise to introduce the first moments of their piece. Jeffries says, in an interview with both, “This book is hard to stage. But that’s one of the reasons we wanted to do it: because it’s a good challenge.”
Taw adds, “As a craftsperson, Austen is unparalleled. The novel is moody but there’s still incredible precision with structure. That was fun. It’s biting and funny and dark. She wrote in 1816 (contemporaneously). It felt like ‘right now,’ to us. I like this because of the darkness. I like dark subject matter.”
Jeffries says, “The roots of comedy are in ancient agrarian celebrations of winter turning into spring – the goddess that loses her love and then he comes back to her. One of the oldest stories every told. Anne (Elliot, the main character) is in the middle of premature winter, early frost. By the end, it’s like midsummer night and she’s in full bloom. And the crops are gonna be fine. It’s that elemental of a story.
“(When we started working on the musical,) I felt the big emotions needed big music and I was excited to write big music but I had no idea what wheelhouse the music should live in. My starting point of reference was the gorgeous folk ballads of the British Isles. The music that introduces the two main characters was inspired by the mode and feel of old folk songs to express their heartbreak and longing, and to help link them as kindred ‘old souls.’ But they sing in other styles too. I love ballads, but a musical score needs variety and effervescence. Luckily there's also plenty that's energetic and buoyant in English and Celtic music and dance - from Elizabethan music to fizzy operetta.”
Taw agrees. “What kind music world would it live in? I didn’t see it as “period music” or putting a novel on stage. It had to be reborn as a musical, a different art form. That darkness, nostalgia, regret, fragility of life that Austen wrote about, she was looking at the world differently, internally. Anne’s thoughts instead of lots of dialogue. And looking at the seasons. It takes place autumn to spring.
“Austen never depicts them young; you just know that they were once young. Now, Anne has wasted away. You see the reflection on the meaning of life.”
Asked about some nuts and bolts of the process they went through, Jeffries describes, “I was pretty clear from the beginning what the song moments were, but what worked for actual songs in those moments was not clear. There are places where we decided (after we wrote a song), this doesn’t need to be sung after all. And it was a matter of the right song for that particular moment. What kind of song was before it? How long did we wait between songs?”
Taw says, “We had a strong agreement about the peak places where songs were needed. Always in service of the story. Very character oriented and story oriented. When things didn’t work, it was because it didn’t get at the things we were shooting for.”
Jeffries and Taw give an example of a song they feel reflects a pivotal moment in the show. Taw says, “The first version was a Lady Russell song.” Jeffries says, “It was a quartet for a long time. Now it’s a long solo with interludes because (another character) is the one we needed to hear from.” Taw says, “That was a kind of breakthrough in character development.”
They describe that the main characters go through a journey of rediscovering each other at a new period in their lives. Jeffries says, “Austen tells you that they’re soul mates. They share a depth the other characters don’t reach. You buy it as a reader, but on stage we need to see that they’re recalibrating their views of their relationship. They thaw over time.
“Their relationship is better now because they’ve grown up. They’ve learned not to take it for granted because they know how hard it is to live without it."
Taw says, “The novel was criticized because Austen says, at the end, if two young people want to be together, no one should stop them. People thought that was a terrible moral. It’s embracing the uncertainty.”
Jeffries gets philosophical. “It doesn’t have to be a person. It could be a vocation or a passion. Something you’re ‘persuaded’ to set aside that that you realize you don’t want to live without and don’t have to. This story could be taken as a metaphor for having had something precious in your life that you set aside or gave up on because you told yourself that other things were a priority. But you always missed it. I hope this story says that it’s not too late to find that precious thing again, and be all the richer for having survived without it.
Taw adds, “Or having suffered. In Persuasion, you get the sense that they are more worthy of each other because all was lost.”
They’ve already received feedback that is giving them hope that a wide range of audiences will enjoy the production. Jeffries says, “There’s a self-selecting audience that thinks they’ll love it and a self-selecting audience that thinks they’ll hate it. We hope we will surprise a lot of people in the second category and they’ll end up having a great experience.”
Taw says, “The Texas workshop (we did) had a lot of high schoolers in the audience, which were not our target audience and I heard a lot of them say they didn’t expect to enjoy this. ‘I thought I was going to hate this!’ but didn’t. High schoolers had a perception of what seeing an Austen show meant. They were surprised how much they liked it!”
Jeffries sums it up. “Austen scholars love it, and so do high schoolers. I feel like we did our job!”
For information and tickets, go to www.taproottheatre.org or call 206-781-9707.
Miryam Gordon at 7/13/2017 06:34:00 PM
This is a moderated comment section. Any comment can be deleted if the moderator feels that basic civility standards are not being met. Disagreements, however, if respectfully stated, are certainly welcome. Just keep the discussion intelligent and relatively kind.
Miryam Gordon
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palmm.digital.flvc.org
PALMM Collections » United States Virgin Islands History and Culture
United States Virgin Islands Library
United States Virgin Islands Library: .
Digital Library of the Caribbean (dLOC), author
, translator
On July 17 2004, the University of the Virgin Islands Library became one of the ten founding partners that officially established the Digital Library of the Caribbean (dLOC) at a Planning Committee at a meeting held in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Materials are drawn from the Universities libraries' collections and include items that enhance access to sources of information on Virgin Islands' history and culture for scholars, students, historians, and researchers in the territory and abroad. Collections include Funeral Booklets developed for memorial services detailing life and family history of the deceased; photographs documenting events in political and social life of Virgin Islanders; Research Reports from the University of the Virgin Islands, commentaries written by local ecologist Olasee Davis to highlighting environmental, historical, and cultural issues, University research reports and papers and the Project Introspection materials - developed by the Virgin Islands' Department of Education to document and explain history and customs. A National Leadership digitization grant was awarded in 2000 by the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) partnering with the Virgin Islands Division of Libraries, Archives & Museums (DLAM). Today, UVI's contributions to dLOC include over 1300 items, all sources of information on Virgin Islands' history and culture.
, (doi), http://purl.fcla.edu/fcla/usvi (uri)
http://purl.fcla.edu/fcla/usvi
Many of the digital resources were created from public domain materials - that is, materials not protected by copyright. However, in many other cases the materials are still within copyright and the owners have only granted permissions for Internet Distribution. Moral, cultural heritage, and other rights may be present in addition to copyright. Copyright laws vary by country and type of material, so the information here cannot address the complexity of the law. Users are responsible for respecting all copyright restrictions. Fair Use is explicitly supported and encouraged for materials. As with all uses within Fair Use, proper citation/attribution should be included. Proper attribution should include sufficient information for someone else to identify and locate the resource (e.g.; title and permanent link) and to identify the source institution (listed in the "citation" tab). Before using any materials for uses other than those expressly permitted by Fair Use, please contact us, http://dloc.com/contact.
, author
This service is a partnership between Florida Virtual Campus, Florida Academic Library Services Cooperative and the
State University System of Florida & Florida College System.
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Second US federal execution set for Tuesday morning
By Kate Randall
Juan Raul Garza, a 44-year-old Mexican-American, will die by lethal injection at the federal penitentiary in Terre Haute, Indiana at 7 a.m. Central Daylight Time on June 19. Garza was convicted of three drug-related murders in 1993. His execution is to follow by only eight days the state killing of Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh, the first federal prisoner put to death in 38 years.
Although 38 US states have sent 718 people to their deaths since the US Supreme Court reinstated the death penalty in 1977, no federal inmate had been executed since 1963 until McVeigh’s execution on June 11.
On Monday, the US Supreme Court rejected without comment an appeal filed on Garza’s behalf. The motion argued that the trial judge had erred in his instructions to the jury in the sentencing phase of Garza’s case, incorrectly stating that Garza might be paroled in 20 years if he were not given a death sentence.
The high court also rejected another motion requesting a stay on the grounds that Garza’s execution would violate the charter of the Organization of American States (OAS), to which the US is a signatory. An OAS commission held in April that Garza’s execution would violate the treaty because testimony given by US Customs agents at his sentencing concerning alleged criminal activity in Mexico could not be rebutted by the defense.
US Attorney General John Ashcroft and Solicitor General Theodore Olson both urged the Supreme Court to reject Garza’s request for a stay of execution. Olson argued that Garza had long ago lost his right to question what the jury should have been told. Last week, the Justice Department filed a 30-page refutation of Garza’s request for a stay, including the claim that his execution would violate international treaties. Garza’s attorneys said the Justice Department’s position is that the US government’s view of how the treaties apply to the case is “so incontestably right that Mr. Garza should be killed before being heard to argue a contrary interpretation.”
Garza also called on President Bush to commute his sentence to life in prison without parole on the grounds that application of the death penalty in the US is racially biased. The president turned down Garza’s clemency request.
Last month, Attorney General Ashcroft delayed Timothy McVeigh’s execution for less than a month after it was revealed that the FBI withheld more than 3,000 pages of documents from the defense. The trial judge and federal appeals court refused a request by McVeigh’s attorneys to stay the execution in order to give the defense time to fully study the new evidence.
The McVeigh execution opened the way for execution dates to be set for 19 other inmates on federal death row. Juan Garza had been scheduled to die last December 12, but then-President Clinton delayed his execution pending the results of a Justice Department study into whether the federal death penalty is administered disproportionately against minorities.
Five days before McVeigh’s execution, Ashcroft issued a report by the Justice Department asserting that federal death penalty procedures were not racially biased. The report said the high proportion of black and Hispanic federal death row inmates was due to the fact that a disproportionate number of minorities were involved in drug trafficking.
Juan Garza was convicted and sentenced to death in August 1993 in Texas for committing one drug-related murder and ordering two others. He was part of a marijuana smuggling ring in Brownsville, Texas and was prosecuted under provisions of the federal Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988, which allows the death penalty for certain drug-related offenses.
Garza fled to Mexico in 1992 to evade prosecution, and was returned to the US by Mexican law enforcement officials seven months later. But the Mexican government says it never received a formal request for Garza’s deportation to the United States. Mexican official Rodolfo Quilantan commented, “Mexico would have refused to extradite Mr. Garza until the United States furnished assurances that the death penalty would not be imposed, or, if imposed, would not be executed, against Mr. Garza.”
In their appeal for clemency to President Bush on Monday, Garza’s attorneys claimed that Garza was prosecuted and convicted in the capital case because he is Hispanic. They asserted that if he were a white Mafia boss from the Northeast he would not have been sentenced to death, pointing to such cases as Anthony Spero in New York City, who received a life sentence last April for similar crimes.
Three other federal death row inmates—Richard Tipton, Cory Johnson and James H. Roane, Jr, all African-Americans—were prosecuted and sentenced under the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988. They were convicted for their participation in a series of drug-related murders in Richmond, Virginia.
Twenty federal inmates have been sentenced to death under the Federal Death Penalty Act of 1994, which was signed into law by Clinton. These inmates included Timothy McVeigh, as well as four men whose death sentences were overturned, but are awaiting resentencing.
The 1994 act added additional circumstances for which the death penalty could be applied. These include killing in the course of another serious offense, a prior criminal history of serious violent offenses, homicide involving planning and premeditation, multiple killings, or endangering the lives of others during the commission of a crime. Non-homicide offenses, such as treason and espionage, are also included.
Prosecutors must get the approval of the US attorney general before seeking the death penalty in a federal case. Former Attorney General Janet Reno personally authorized all of the cases prosecuted under the 1994 Federal Death Penalty Act. Another Clinton administration measure, the Anti-terrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996, severely restricts the ability of death row inmates to appeal their sentences.
Of the 19 federal inmates presently facing death sentences , including Garza, 14 are African-American, 2 are white and 3 are Hispanic, including 2 Colombian nationals. Minority prisoners make up a higher proportion of federal inmates sentenced to death than on the death rows of any of the 38 states that impose the death penalty. According to the Death Penalty Information Center, of the more than 3,700 prisoners on state death rows, 46 percent are white and 43 percent are black.
Not only are federal death row inmates disproportionately minority, but the geographic location of a crime largely determines whether prosecutors will seek the death penalty. Thirteen of the current federal prisoners sentenced to death were prosecuted for crimes committed in just three states—Texas, Virginia and Missouri. These three states alone have carried out 379 of the 719 executions since the Supreme Court reinstated the death penalty. None of the condemned federal inmates come from states that bar the death penalty, although prosecutors in these states can seek the death penalty for federal crimes.
Inside the COVID-19 outbreak at Lakepointe nursing home in Clinton Township, Michigan
Biden “recovery” plan will fail to relieve social misery or stop pandemic death
CAMI autoworkers should reject Unifor’s attempt to reopen contract with GM Canada!
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Keynote Address at the Official Inauguration of all Achievements related to Flood Protection and Drainage Improvement Phase II, Improvement Project in
Phnom Penh, September 16th, 2010
- Your Venerable Samdech Preah Moha Somethea Tepdei NGUN NGET, Head of Monks,
- Your Venerable Monks,
- Your Excellency Masafumi Kuroki, Japan’s Ambassador to Cambodia,
- Mr. Yasujiro Suzuki, Director of JICA in Cambodia,
- Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen and all the compatriots,
Today it is my privilege and pleasure to be here to inaugurate all achievements of the Stage II Flood Protection and Sewage System Improvement Project in Phnom Penh which is one of many grants provided by the Government of Japan. I would like to congratulate Venerable Samdech Preah Somethea Thepdei, Venerable Monks, Excellencies, Oknhas, ladies and gentlemen and especially Phnom Penh residents who will enjoy the enormous benefit from what being inaugurated today.
Along with this, I would like to convey my profound thanks, through Excellency Ambassador Masafumi Kuroki and Mr. Yasujiro Suzuki, to the people and Government of Japan for providing grants to restore and build Phnom Penh Municipality. Along with this, I would like to praise the Municipality of Phnom Penh and all related institutions for the concerted effort that results in what we see today.
According to Excellency Kep Chuk Tema, the governor of Phnom Penh, stage one flood protection and sewage upgrade project was successfully implemented and inaugurated on September 29, 2004. The first stage of the project has rescued the southern and southwestern part of Phnom Penh including a part of Khan Odor Meanchey, Chamkamorn, and Toulkork from the possible threat of flooding of the Mekong river system and helped reduce the flood level of the rainy season. Today, we are inaugurating new achievements of the second Stage of the Project i.e. flood protection and sewage system improvement in Phnom Penh Municipality under the grant of the Japanese government, which took place since 17th September 2007, with a value of approximately 2,182,307,000 Japanese Yen, equivalent to around 19,022,900 US Dollars. Under this project we have repaired the 70-meter long Tonle Sap River bank in front of Chaktomuk Conference Hall and the 260-meter long river bank between road No. 106 and road No. 130. Moreover, with the grant we also upgraded the sewage capacity of Central and Kandal Market, Royal Palace, National Museum, Wat Phnom, constructed water pumping station and underground reservoir at Psar Chas and Kandal Market, Preah Komlung and Chaktomuk, and have laid out drainage pipe along key boulevards, riverside and Sisowat Boulevard. Through this, I would like to support the request for implementing Stage III of the project to reduce flood level in Beung Tra Bek area of the Southern part of Phnom Penh.
Phnom Penh city has undergone history of sweetness and bitterness including misery and happiness, once a ghost city now turned into a paradise that is lively, fresh, secured and safe. Phnom Penh used to be the city that was formed and abandoned, then reselected as the capital city, between Preahbat Punheayat era from 1435 to 1865 after then there was no more relocation. Specifically, from 1435 to 1497, the Royal Palace was situated in Phnom Penh, then moved to Angkor city, then from Angkor city to Pusat, from Pusat to Boribo, from Boribo to Udong, and eventually moved back to Phnom Penh in 1865. Phnom Penh city used to be deemed as the Pearl of Asia and has made a lot progress in term economic and social development. Phnom Penh is situated on the intersection of the Mekong River and Basac River resides by about 2 million people and possesses huge development potential and is the key source of economic growth. Indeed, Cambodians and foreigners can clearly witness Cambodian development when they come to visit Phnom Penh. The surge in new buildings, vehicles, and various goods reveal the improvement and progress of Cambodia’s society, economic, culture and art to become a modern society in the modern world. In this regard, at present as well as in the future we have to continue working together to develop the capital so that it will become a pivotal source for economic growth and represent the sophistication of the Cambodia’s society in modern time.
Truly, Phnom Penh capital city is a center that has a great potential for the development of the country, and has a very important role to play for supporting economic growth if it has been continuously and sustainably revived, built and developed. Nowadays although Phnom Penh capital city has already made many achievements we still observe that there are many other tasks that we need to continue our efforts to revive, build and develop. The priority areas include traffic jams, residential planning, environmental protection, flood protection and sewage system renovation. Floods and environmental pollution in Phnom Penh are caused by nature as well human activities; and that requires planning for flood protection and sewage system renovation, as well as the understanding and caution about natural phenomena and active participation of citizens in reviving, building and developing Phnom Penh capital.
I understand that we have to be highly attentive on all these issues as floods and sewage system can negatively impact the beauty of the city, environment, hygiene and living quality of our people. Based on my observations, most Cambodian families, particularly the poor ones in Phnom Penh capital are living in new areas or areas that have no proper physical infrastructure especially the sewage system. As a result, the waste dumping in such areas causes flooding, contaminates the water, emits foul odor and becomes a source of diseases.
Moreover, I have also observed that even at places with proper sewage system, street flooding still takes place, especially when there are heavy rain. There are many reasons causing street flooding in Phnom Penh capital, such as heavy rain making some sewages unable to timely absorb the flood water; while some other sewages are filled with wastes clotting the water flow. Furthermore, waste dumping into the sewage system, the increasingly shallow sewages, and the lack of vehicles and equipment to pump water from sewages are also factors causing street flooding in the city. In this regard, I would like to request the Phnom Penh municipality to impose and implement necessary measures, to revive the sewage system, to provide vehicles and sewage water pumping equipment and widely educate people to effectively participate in flood protection in the city.
In partticular, we have to also pay further attention to the damage of the river bank to prevent the water from flooding Phnom Penh capital city because it will not only cause the flood but also cast negative impact on the production, supply, consumption of goods and services, and the settlement of people, who live around the river bank. Having river bank made of cement is our desire in order to prevent the flood in various important areas that can receive the threat of river bank collapse and flooding. In this connection, we cannot repair or build the river bank in all parts of the riversides, especially in rural area due to the fact that the flood prevention system would need much finance which is more than the cost of spending to pay for the prevention of flood itself.
The risk and challenge for Phnom Penh city truly require the Royal Government of Cambodia to continue taking measures and prevention with the participation from all related ministries/institutions and our people. The Royal Government has clearly stated that Phnom Penh City Hall is the main player to rebuild and develop Phnom Penh city. Taking this opportunity, I would like to suggest the Phnom Penh City Hall to continue studying in details the flood prevention project and improving the sewage system in Phnom Penh-Phase 3 with highly effective implementation and responsibility. At the same time, the City Hall, Ministry of Information and all relevant ministries/institutions have to highly pay attention to the dissemination, education of people to participate in preventing flood and repairing canals/sewage systems, pipe, especially throwing waste improperly.
The new achievement that we will inaugurate soon is our national achievement which is resulted from the right consideration made by the Royal Government of Cambodia with the efforts of other relevant ministries/institutions, Phnom Penh City Hall, the Government of Japan and all stakeholders. Once Again, I would like to congratulate and highly appreciate the Phnom Penh City Hall and all private companies that have put greatest efforts in renovating and building various achievements, witnessed today. At the same time, I would like to deeply thank the people and Government of Japan for having always assisted Cambodia in rebuilding the country. Along with that, I would like to appeal to all compatriots and all levels of competent authorities to fully participate and cooperation in order to sustainably maintain this achievement for the common interest of our people as well as for the historical legacy of our nation.
At the end, together with the inauguration of achievements of the flood prevention projects and the improvement of sewage system/drainage in the capital city of Phnom Penh-Phase 2, which is the grant from Japan, May I wish the Venerable Monks, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen and all Compatriots the four gems of Buddhist blessing: Longevity, Nobility, Health and Strength.
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Tag Archives: Extremism
Reds, Racism, and Obama
America’s Survival
Professor Gerald Horne, the black scholar who revealed Obama’s personal relationship with Communist Party operative Frank Marshall Davis, is speaking in detail on the record. Professor Horne says that while the relationship is noteworthy and should have been uncovered by the press, there is no evidence that Davis turned Obama “into some sort of Manchurian candidate.” Horne also discusses the Charleston massacre, the killer’s alleged international connections, the history of slavery in the U.S., and whether we need a new Congressional panel to investigate extremism in America, including the Communist Party.
Posted in Constitution, History, Military, Politics, Survival | Tagged America's Survival, Barack Obama, Charleston, Cliff Kincaid, Communism, Communist Party, Confederate Flag, Congress, Constitution, Dylann Roof, Extremism, Frank Marshall Davis, Gerald Horne, History, Murder, Racism, Slavery, South Carolina | 1 Comment
A Russian Link to the Charleston Massacre?
The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), treated by the media as an objective source of information on right-wing “hate” groups, sent an email message to its supporters on Monday declaring evidence that the Charleston church shooter was “connected to [a] worldwide white supremacist movement.” This seemed like a big discovery. After all, the shooter, Dylann Roof, had declared in his alleged manifesto, that “We have no skinheads, no real KKK, no one doing anything but talking on the Internet,” when it came to racist support groups for his planned massacre of black people. The drug-abusing 21-year-old was complaining about a lack of organized support for his views.
Had the SPLC dug up some new evidence? Indeed, where was the evidence that Roof was “connected” to a global plot? SPLC President Richard Cohen informed his supporters in this email begging for financial support that “through his symbols and writings, suspect Dylann Storm Roof has expressed sentiments that are uniting white supremacists across the world—from the United States to Europe to Australia.” His symbols and writings made him part of an international plot? Is this the best the SPLC can do?
Welcome to the world of the Southern Poverty Law Center, the media’s designated “experts” on right-wing extremism. The SPLC “tracks hate groups” is the usual claim in the media. In fact, it helped inspire an actual terrorist attack on the Washington, D.C. offices of the conservative Christian Family Research Council (FRC), after a gay militant discovered the location of the FRC on an SPLC “hate map.” A security guard was wounded before he succeeded in taking down the attacker.
“Thank you [for] supporting this vital fight against hate and extremism,” said Cohen in the fundraising letter exploiting the Roof case. They are desperate to add to their $245.3 million financial endowment.
At the top of the email message was a “DONATE” button. Readers were also told they could become a financial “partner” through a planned gift, or a “friend of the Center” through monthly giving.
On the same day that Cohen inflated the facts in the Roof case in a crass appeal for money, he and his associate, Morris Dees, had written an op-ed for The New York Times including similar exaggerations. The piece, headlined, “White Supremacists Without Borders,” insisted that the “themes” adopted by the killer were “signs of the growing globalization of white nationalism.” The term “globalization” can apply to just about anything on the Internet, since that technology is international in scope. That was good enough for those who procure and place op-eds at The New York Times.
“When we think of the Islamist terrorism of groups like Al Qaeda and the Islamic State, we recognize their international dimension,” said Dees and Cohen. “When it comes to far-right domestic terrorism, we don’t.” Perhaps that is because the “evidence” of Roof’s international connections is thin, if not non-existent. Indeed, as noted, Roof complains in the manifesto about the absence of even local grassroots support for his cause in the supposedly racist enclave of South Carolina.
The only evidence of an international connection, not mentioned by Cohen or Dees, is that several in the media have determined through a simple search on the Internet that Roof’s website was hosted by a Russian server, apparently located in Moscow. At a time of news about Russian and Chinese hackers getting access to federal and other websites in the U.S., this seems mighty interesting and newsworthy. Does this mean that Russian interests had advance knowledge of Roof’s manifesto and murder plans? This seems worthy of follow-up, but is not mentioned by the SPLC in its Times op-ed.
The op-ed ignores the real hard evidence of the international connections of the white supremacist movement in the form of former KKK leader David Duke once traveling to Russia and meeting with Alexander Dugin, a one-time adviser to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s United Russia Party. We reported on this connection back in March of last year. Duke called Dugin “one of the leading intellectuals of Russia’s patriotic movement.” The SPLC is aware of Dugin, having published an article noting that he “has close ties to the Kremlin” and “supports a Eurasian empire made up of Russia and former Soviet republics such as the Ukraine and set against ‘North Atlantic interests.’” But it calls him a “fascist,” rather than a staunch ally of Putin and advocate of Russian imperialism.
The SPLC did report previously on what it termed a “Russian White Nationalist Conference” held in St. Petersburg, Russia, in March of this year, with various foreign groups and individuals in attendance. Strangely, however, there is no evidence that the SPLC seriously investigated a possible Russian connection to any of this in the Dylann Roof case. Instead, it claims a foreign connection through images and themes he invoked, a very weak case to present to the Times’ readers.
Euromaidan Press, a voice for Ukraine’s anti-Russian activists, reported extensively on the St. Petersburg conference, even publishing the names of those attending the event. An article noted “…the prevalence of statements in support of Russia and Putin in particular as the true conservatives that can save the world,” citing “quotes from now infamous speeches of Putin’s in which he talks of the emergence of nationalism and conservatism as a natural expression of Russian patriotism.”
As we have argued in the past, however, Putin’s alleged conservatism is a grand deception, designed to lure conservatives around the world into supporting Russian aggression. Putin has never given up his old KGB and Soviet ways.
In their op-ed, Cohen and Dees said, “Europe has also seen the rise of a powerful, far-right political movement that rejects multiculturalism. The anti-Semitic Jobbik Party in Hungary and the neo-fascist Golden Dawn in Greece are prime examples. In Germany, there has been a series of murders by neo-Nazis. Britain, too, is experiencing an upswing of nationalist, anti-immigrant politics.”
Left unsaid in the case of Greece is that the new left-wing ruling party, Syriza, is pro-Russia and anti-Western, and that Vladimir Putin has promised financial assistance if the European Union balks at another economic bailout.
It turns out that the SPLC has been conned by the Russians in the past. SPLC staffer Mark Potok, described by the group as a “leading expert” on extremism, actually appeared as a guest on Putin’s TV channel, Russia Today. Embarrassed over this fact, the group later published a “Full disclosure” disclaimer, noting that Potok had appeared on an edition of Russia Today’s “CrossTalk” program to discuss the rise of militias in the U.S. The SPLC then belatedly began to take note of the channel’s anti-American propaganda and disinformation campaigns.
Potok, their expert, apparently didn’t understand—or didn’t care—that Russia Today TV was actually linked to Russia and the Russian government. His expertise is clearly lacking about Russian influence operations.
We see similar blindness regarding other threats.
“We know Islamic terrorists are thinking globally, and we confront that threat,” Dees and Cohen declare in their Times op-ed. “We’ve been too slow to realize that white supremacists are doing the same.” The SPLC has been way too slow to investigate the Russian connection to the white supremacists it claims to be so concerned about. There is certainly no evidence of what they have uncovered in that Times op-ed.
As far as Islamic terrorists are concerned, the SPLC turns things around by targeting the critics of radical Islam. A simple search of the group’s website brings forth several stories about the dangers allegedly posed by “Islamophobes,” not the terrorists themselves. Consider the article that begins, “In the weeks following the terrorist attacks in France, major players in the American anti-Muslim movement have unleashed a tirade of bigotry and renewed their energies in attacking the federal government. But not to be left out, prominent anti-immigrant figures and politicians have also joined the show.”
This is typical of how the SPLC operates. The problem is not radical Islam trying to kill Americans or others. Rather, the problem is the people who focus on the threat and want the federal government to protect the American people from the threat. Hence, Pamela Geller, later targeted in a terrorist attack on American soil, was an “Islamophobe,” according to the SPLC and the Council on American-Islamic Relations. The term is usually applied to anyone who suggests taking the threat of Islamic terrorism seriously and takes action against it.
By attempting to orchestrate the coverage of terrorism in such a way as to ignore the threat posed by the terrorists themselves, the SPLC employs the tactic of “partisan tolerance,” meaning that the conservatives who want to protect America and its allies from Islamic terrorists or Russian aggression become the problem. This is why Dylann Roof must be transformed by the SPLC from a drug-abusing loner into a global right-wing terrorist. It is political exploitation of a national tragedy that confuses and misleads the nation.
It’s shocking that the major media continue to take the SPLC seriously. Liberal media bias helps explain, but not justify, this curious state of affairs. Another factor has to be laziness on the part of reporters, who don’t want to take the time to do their own research or work. It’s easier to cite the “experts,” even if they are frauds and con men.
Posted in Constitution, History, Military, Politics, Survival, Terrorism | Tagged AIM, al Qaeda, Britain, Charleston, China, Christians, Cliff Kincaid, Conservatives, Constitution, David Duke, Dylann Roof, Euromaiden Press, Extremism, Golden Dawn, Greece, Hungary, Immigrants, Internet, Islamic State, Islamists, Jihad, Jobbik Party, KGB, KKK, Mark Potok, Media, Morris Dees, Moscow, Murder, Muslims, Nazis, Racism, Richard Cohen, Russia, South Carolina, SPLC, Syriza, Terrorism, Terrorists, The New York Times, Ukraine, United States, Vladimir Putin, White Supremacy | 1 Comment
America’s See-No-Islam Problem Exposed With Boston Jihadism
The Boston Globe published a column in the wake of the shooting of an Islamic State-linked jihadist from Rosindale, Massachusetts that is a quintessential example of why the West is losing to Islamic supremacists.
In “Are Boston terrorism cases a trend?” two Globe authors reach out to several “antiterrorism specialists” and ask why it is that Boston appears to be so “vulnerable to violent extremism.”
Some submit that Boston’s “emergence as an international hub may leave it exposed to strains of radicalized behavior.”
Others find the existence of Boston-based jihadists curious given these jihadists “cannot be traced to one network, and individuals and groups do not appear to be connected.”
One such expert who has written on the Islamic State, J.M. Berger, acknowledges that “There is some degree of social network here that seems to be involved in radical thought.”
Halfway through the Globe article, the reader is left utterly unaware of any link between Boston jihadists and…jihadism. In fact, readers will not find the word “jihadist” in the column.
What readers do see is the lexicon of our see-no-Islam national security establishment, including euphemisms such as “violent extremism,” “homegrown terrorist,” and “radical presence.”
Somewhat closer to the mark are comments of James Forest, director of security studies at the University of Massachusetts Lowell’s Center for Terrorism and Security Studies, who says: “The ideology that motivates these kind of attacks, there are no geographical boundaries.”
What this “ideology” is, the reader is left to guess.
Usamma Rahim was wielding a knife when he was shot by Boston police. Rahim had planned to attack “boys in blue” according to his intercepted communications. (Source: WCVB-TV)
Next quoted in the piece is Farah Pandith, the first special representative to Muslim communities in then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s State Department.
Pandith asserts that Muslim millennials are “asking questions that parents aren’t answering. The loudest voices seducing these kids are extremists.”
Pandith notes that “extremism” is not so much a matter of geography as “what’s happening in virtual space around the world.”
As for the “seductive” “extremist” voices and the impact of social networks, of course the young and impressionable can be brainwashed, but what are they being brainwashed in, and who is doing the brainwashing? Should not these millennials and their parents be both rejecting as well as rooting out this ideology from their communities altogether?
Some experts seem to recognize an ideological component to what we have seen in Boston – an Islamic supremacist ideology that can proliferate wherever computers or cell phones are found, that thrives especially in tight-knit Muslim communities in free Western countries — yet they cannot bring themselves to define this ideology.
Credit: Steven Coughlin
Juliette Kayyem, another Obama administration official who served as Assistant Secretary for Intergovernmental Affairs in the Department of Homeland Security, is next given the floor.
Kayyem believes that Boston — which the columnists describe as a “global city that is diverse, tolerant, and welcomes immigrants and students” – is “a breeding ground for the disaffected to either radicalize or hide.”
Kayyem asserts that “We are going to see this kind of radicalization in any urban area globally.”
But do global cities become “breeding grounds[s] for the disaffected to either radicalize or hide” in a vacuum?
Throughout world history, international locales have been free of the scourge of “violent extremism,” a politically correct term used to avoid offending Muslims while simultaneously drawing moral equivalence with and thereby smearing “right-wing” Americans.
One would think that modern, cosmopolitan, liberal urban areas by their very nature would consist of modern, cosmopolitan, liberal people.
Only to the degree to which these global cities invite in people with retrograde views antithetical to these ideals does their diversity and tolerance make them “breeding grounds” for jihadism.
It is hard to fault the piece’s authors for quoting “mainstream” “antiterror experts.” Yet these “experts” all seem to subscribe to the very see-no-Islam philosophy that paralyzes our national security establishment more broadly, rendering us unable to defeat our enemy.
Parenthetically, the idea of an “antiterror” expert should itself draw our ire, given that terror is a tactic, not the name of an ideologically-driven enemy. After all, during the Second World War we didn’t call upon anti-Blitzkrieg experts to define our enemies. We understood and were able to articulate that we were at war with a foe, not a fighting method.
Meanwhile, today there is nary a mention of Islamic religious tenets like jihad, abrogation and taqqiya, nor a discussion of Islam’s ultimate goal to create a global Ummah under which all submit to Shariah law.
This is not an issue of semantics. If we fail to be precise in how we describe our enemy and its ideology, it will defeat us.
How did we get to a point over a decade after Sept. 11, 2001 when columnists writing about Boston jihadists dance on egg shells around the Islamic supremacist ideology that by the jihadists’ own admission animates them?
While Nazism and Communism were political ideologies, jihadists subscribe to a theo-political ideology based in Islam’s core texts and modeled on the behaviors of Muhammad.
This offends the sensibilities of Americans either ignorant of Islam or uncomfortable with the idea that religion could be used to justify the slow motion worldwide slaughter of Jews, Christians, Hindus, infidel Muslims, gays, women, apostates, cartoonists and others.
In the case of the recently killed would-be jihadist Usamma Rahim, a simple set of Google searches regarding Rahim and the Islamic Society of Boston (ISB) might have provided the Globe columnists and the antiterror experts they quote an illuminating fact pattern worth investigating in response to their question, “Is Boston more vulnerable to violent extremism than other parts of the country?”
Below are some of those relevant data points:
Usamma Rahim had been a security guard at the Islamic Society of Boston Cultural Center (ISBCC) in Roxbury, Massachusetts, an affiliate of the Islamic Society of Boston (ISB)
The ISB’s executive director pulled the ISBCC out of President Barack Obama’s own Countering Violent Extremism Summit, essentially deeming the program Islamaphobic
Boston bomber Tamerlan Tsarnaev prayed at the ISB’s Cambridge, Massachusetts mosque
Notwithstanding ISB denials, Tsarnaev had been the latest in a long line of jihadists linked to the organization:
The ISB was founded by Abdul Rahman al-Amoudi, a supporter of Hamas and Hezbollah currently serving a 23 year prison sentence on terrorism charges
ISB’s Cambridge mosque is operated by the Muslim Brotherhood-affiliated Muslim American Society
According to Discover the Networks, among other revelations:
“FBI surveillance documents show that two days before the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, Suhaib Webb, Imam of ISB’s Boston mosque, joined al-Qaeda operative Anwar Awlaki in headlining a fundraiser on behalf of the Atlanta-based Muslim extremist Jamil al-Amin (formerly H. Rap Brown), who had recently murdered two police officers in Georgia.”
“Aafia Siddiqui, who occasionally prayed at ISB’s Cambridge mosque, was arrested in Afghanistan in 2008 while in possession of cyanide canisters and plans to carry out a chemical attack in New York City. Siddiqui subsequently tried to gun down some U.S. military officers and FBI agents, and is now serving an 86-year prison sentence for that offense.”
“Tarek Mehanna, who worshipped at ISB’s Cambridge mosque, received terrorist training in Yemen and plotted to use automatic weapons to inflict mass casualties in a suburban shopping mall just outside of Boston. In 2012 he was sentenced to 17 years in prison for conspiring to aid Al Qaeda.”
“Yasir Qadhi, who lectured at ISB’s Boston mosque in 2009 and again in 2012, advocates replacing American democracy with Sharia Law; characterizes Christians as “filthy” polytheists whose “life and prosperity … holds no value in the state of Jihad”; and accuses Jews of plotting to destroy Muslim peoples and societies. Further, Qadhi is an acolyte of Ali al-Timimi, a Virginia-based Imam who is currently serving life in prison for inciting jihad against U.S. troops in Afghanistan.”
The Boston Globe article is instructive because it represents the very line of thinking and questioning that is mandated in the halls of America’s national security institutions.
It is also instructive — in light of the facts about the ISB — that a see-no-Islam national security stance leads us to ignore the threats hiding in plain sight, to America’s great detriment.
Those who ignore the nature of the Islamic supremacist threat we face are doomed to submit to it.
Posted in Constitution, History, Military, Politics, Religion, Survival, Terrorism | Tagged 9/11, Abdul Rahman al-Amoudi, Afghanistan, al Qaeda, Ali al-Timimi, Anwar Awlaki, Apostates, Barack Obama, Benjamin Weingarten, Boston, Cambridge, Christians, Communism, Cyanide, DHS, Discover The Networks, Extremism, Farah Pandith, FBI, Gays, Hamas, Hezbollah, Hillary Clinton, Hindus, History, Infidels, Intelligence, Islam, Islamic Society of Boston, Islamic State, Islamic Supremacist, J.M. Berger, James Forest, Jamil al-Amin, Jews, Jihad, Juliette Kayyem, Lowell’s Center for Terrorism and Security Studies, Massachusetts, Media, Military, Millennials, Mohammad, Mohammad Cartoons, Mosque, Muslim American Society, Muslims, National Security, Nazis, New York, Pamela Geller, Police, Politics, Shariah Law, Social Networks, State Department, Steven Coughlin, Suhaib Webb, Tamerlan Tsarnaev, Taqiyya, Terroirsm, Terrorists, The Boston Globe, The Muslim Brotherhood, TheBlaze, Theology, Ummah, United States, Usamma Rahim, Virginia, War, Women, Yasir Qadhi, Yemen |
America—You be the Judge
By: Retired Adm. James A. Lyons
President Obama’s adamant refusal to link the barbaric atrocities committed by the Islamic State and affiliated al-Qaeda militias to Islam is an insult to the intelligence of all thinking Americans. His insistence that these atrocities are the result of “violent extremism,” not associated with Islam, lessens his already diminished credibility. The Quran and Islamic Law (Shariah) prove him wrong since there are 109 verses in the Quran that can be considered to sanction violence. Furthermore, chapter 2, verse 106 (on abrogation) makes it clear that the later violent verses take precedence over the earlier, less violent ones.
In February, President Obama hosted a White House Summit on countering “violent extremism.” As it turned out, it was essentially a public relations media event that had nothing substantive to offer in terms of countering the Islamic State’s barbaric acts of terrorism. Instead, it was more of a leftist, progressive agenda sympathetic to “Islamic sensibilities and grievances.” It cited lack of education and job opportunities as part of the root cause that enables IS to attract young Muslims. Mind boggling, particularly when Christians, women, and children are having their heads chopped off and are being buried alive.
If it were to have been a serious summit, you would have expected the Director of the FBI and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff to be full participants. However, they were not invited. Instead, the Muslim Brotherhood (MB) and its front organizations were full participants, including the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) and the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA), both unindicted co-conspirators for funding terrorism from the 2008 Dallas, Texas Holy Land Foundation Trial. Another MB front organization, the Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC), was also represented.
The question must be asked: how can the Obama administration continue to embrace the Muslim Brotherhood when its declared creed, verified by the FBI, is to destroy the United States from within by our own “miserable hands,” and replace our Constitution with Islamic “Seventh Century” Shariah Law?
The MB today, with its deep penetration of all our national security and intelligence agencies, has now been institutionalized. With its carte blanche entry into the White House, it has, in effect, become a defacto cabinet member. All Americans should understand that there is no difference between the Islamic State, al-Qaeda, and the Muslim Brotherhood. Their objectives are all the same, it’s only the methods they use to achieve it that may be different. It is a totalitarian ideology bent on world domination (same as Communism), with Islam the dominant religion and Shariah the law.
The policies of the Obama administration in countering the Islamic jihadists of IS are clearly confusing to our allies. To understand President Obama’s strategy, everything this administration does must be viewed through the prism of his stated objective: to “fundamentally transform America.” This strategy is clear. It is anti-US and anti-Western—but pro-Islam, pro-Iran and pro-Muslim Brotherhood. With his Marxist background, it can be assumed that Obama does not view American power and influence as a force for good in the world. Otherwise, why would he want to fundamentally transform America? Therefore, anything that undercuts US military power and influence is viewed as being “objectively progressive.” President Obama’s refusal to provide legitimate defensive weapons to Ukraine falls under this category. The net result is the emasculation of NATO.
The “leading from behind” strategy announced at the start of the Libyan war, and the unilateral disarmament of our military forces, also fall under this category. A defining moment in the Libyan war was when the Obama administration switched sides in the global war on terror and provided weapons and material support to al-Qaeda and MB-controlled militias. Furthermore, as we now know, the Libyan war was unnecessary since Muammar Gadhafi was prepared to abdicate.
The Middle East today is a disaster area with failed states in Libya, Iraq, Syria, and now Yemen. What’s astonishing is that we are now a de facto partner with the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism, Iran. By so doing, we are enhancing the expansion of Iran’s hegemony throughout the Middle East at the expense of our long term allies—Egypt, Jordan, Israel and Saudi Arabia.
The Obama administration’s precipitous withdrawal from Iraq gave Iran a clear signal that we would not contest their influence over Iraq. It was a foolish, or worse, attempt to obtain a nuclear weapons agreement with the evil Ayatollah Khamenei regime. Today, Iran is already a nuclear threshold state that has sufficient enriched uranium to make 8 to 12 nuclear weapons within a few months. Furthermore, a reliable source has informed me that Iran secretly bought four nuclear weapons from the former Soviet Muslim Republic of Kazakhstan in 1992. They were said to have been transferred to Iran and stored in the Lavizan military site near Tehran.
More recently, it was reported by Jerome Corsi of WorldNetDaily, on 26 February, 2015, that Iran is operating another secret advanced, uranium underground enrichment site northeast of Tehran that was previously unknown to the International Atomic Energy Agency.
With thousands of American lives lost due to Iran’s more than 35 years of aggression against the United States, it is inconceivable that any American administration would agree to enter into such a critical agreement, like the one currently being negotiated with such an evil regime.
When you consider all of the above, as well as the Obama administration’s abuse of power and the many scandals including Benghazi, the IRS, Operation Fast and Furious, Obamacare, and the immigration fiasco, any other administration would be brought up on charges of threatening the security of the United States. America, it’s up to you to influence your representatives to hold President Obama accountable.
Posted in Constitution, History, Military, Politics, Religion, Survival, Terrorism | Tagged Adm. James Lyons, al Qaeda, Amnesty, Ayatollah Khamenei, Barack Obama, Benghazi, CAIR, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Children, Christians, Communism, Constitution, Egypt, Extremism, Fast and Furious, FBI, Holy Land Foundation, IAEA, Illegal Immigration, Intelligence, Iran, Iraq, IRS, Islam, Islamic State, ISNA, Israel, Jerome Corsi, Jihad, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Lavizan, Leftist, Libya, Marxist, Media, Middle East, Military, MPAC, Muammar Gadhafi, Muslim Brotherhood, Muslims, National Security, NATO, Nuclear Weapons, Obamacare, Politics, Progressive, Quran, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Scandals, Sharia Law, Syria, Tehran, Terrorism, Terrorists, Totalitarian, Ukraine, United States, War, White HOuse, WND, Women, Yemen |
President Obama Tries To Distance Muslims From Radical Islamists – Mark Levin Weighs In
Posted in Constitution, History, Military, Politics, Religion, Survival, Terrorism | Tagged al Qaeda, Allah, Barack Obama, Christianity, Crusades, Extremism, Inquisition, ISIS, Islam, Islamic State, Israel, Jews, Jihad, Mark Levin, Mohammad, Muslims, National Prayer Breakfast, Netanyahu, New York City, Politics, Prophet, Quran, Slavery, Ted Cruz, Terrorism, Terrorists | 1 Comment
10 Troubling Aspects of President Obama’s ‘Countering Violent Extremism’ Summit
The White House’s “Countering Violent Extremism” summit is barely underway, yet the message is already clear: the conference is politically correct — and far worse — a charade.
And that is a charitable interpretation.
Its sponsors are engaging in intentional obfuscation (e.g., saying “violent extremism” is the enemy), as well as peddling ineffective and ill-considered policy proposals (more community “empowerment”). The conference will effectively aid and abet America’s increasingly ascendant jihadist foes.
Violent extremism is not an enemy, it’s a euphemism. Terrorism is not an enemy, it’s a tactic.
Reviewing the Obama administration’s summit preview, here are its 10 most disturbing aspects:
1. Contrary to its big government ethos, the Obama administration asserts that national security should be driven by the people, not the state.
(Image source: BuzzFeed)
According to the White House preview [emphasis mine]:
Really at the core of our approach is that the government does not have all the answers in combatting violent extremism. It is, at its core, a bottom-up approach. It puts communities with civic leaders, with religious authorities, with community power brokers, teachers, health providers, et cetera, in the driver’s seat. They know their citizens best. They are the first line of defense to prevent or counter radicalizing forces that can ultimately lead to violence. And so our approach is to really embrace and empower what local communities can do. So we’ve been working with our federal partners and our local partners to put in place this approach over the past couple of years.
Again, this is not about government, especially the federal government. The federal government doesn’t have all the answers. This is about building a comprehensive network to fight back against violent extremism. And we are explicitly recognizing the role that civil society plays, the private sector plays, and that families, et cetera, can play in countering violent extremism.
Who knew the Obama administration had so much respect for and faith in civil society?
Yet of course, this faith turns out to be dangerously misplaced as…
2. The groups the president wants to empower are those who may pose the biggest threat.
As Patrick Poole noted in an extensive report for TheBlaze:
In December 2011, the White House issued the “Strategic Implementation Plan for Empowering Local Partners to Prevent Violent Extremism in the United States” – the local partners, of course, being Islamic organizations, including those cited by the Justice Department as working to aid foreign terrorist organizations. All national security and law enforcement agencies on the federal, state and local level would now have to consult these groups and rely on “local partners” as a matter of policy. And as made clear in Salam al-Marayati’s Los Angeles Times op-ed, Islamic groups complaining about counter-terrorism policies or training would disrupt government efforts to “counter violent extremism” gave them an implicit veto over counter-terrorism policies. [Los Angels Times link added for context]
Why should we care about this 2011 report?
A senior Obama administration official noted in previewing the summit that the report details the very efforts the administration will be hawking during the three-day event.
Local partners such as the Council on American-Islam Relations — an unindicted co-conspirator in the largest Hamas funding trial in history — has advised members of the Muslim community not to work with the FBI, and religious leaders to lawyer up as opposed to working together with law enforcement when it comes to potential jihadists. On the eve of the summit, CAIR is reportedly calling for the Department of Justice to “protect those who act in good faith to prevent violent extremism by engaging with [Muslims] considering it in order to dissuade them.”
A partner of perhaps higher standing is the Islamic Society of Boston (ISB), a group linked to numerous jihadis and jihadi-sympathizers, that is reportedly the primary liaison between the Muslim community and law enforcement in countering violent extremism. The Boston program will be one of the three held up as a success story during the summit, despite the ISB’s Islamic supremacist efforts.
Looking to the heart of Muslim communities, according to the Mapping Sharia project, imams in over 80 percent of 100 randomly surveyed representative mosques in America recommended the study of violence-positive texts. The correlations with these texts are disturbing, as illustrated below:
(Image Source: Sharia Adherence Mosque Survey: Correlations between Sharia Adherence and Violent Dogma in U.S. Mosques)
In Pew’s extensive 2011 report on Muslims in America, 21 percent of those polled indicated there was a great deal or fair amount of “support for extremism among Muslim American;” 19 percent did not indicate that “suicide bombing/other violence against civilians is justified to defend Islam from its enemies;” only 70 percent indicated that they viewed Al Qaeda “very unfavorably.”
As leaked Department of Homeland Security documents reveal, the second highest concentration of people designated as “known or suspected terrorists” by our government reside in Dearborn, Michigan. Dearborn’s population is 96,000, and it has the highest percentage of Arab-Americans of any city in the country.
In light of these figures, and the fact that jihadist groups worldwide claim they are at war with America, having committed over 25,000 attacks in the name of Allah since Sept. 11, 2011, one must ask, what exactly is the rationale behind leaving self-policing to Muslim communities when these are the very places from whence jihadists spring?
Such a policy of course is only baffling if you are of the belief that jihad is an Islamic tenet, and that Islamic supremacist ideology is what animates the vast majority of the world’s “violent extremists.”
But of course…
3. According to the administration there is no profile of a “violent extremist.”
Returning to the transcript:
[I]n the United States there has been violent extremists that come in all sorts of shapes and sizes, and so the agenda for all three days is going to show a wide array of speakers and participants from all backgrounds who combat radicalization, violent extremism and terrorism in its many forms.
…In terms of the phrase “vulnerable community,” I think one is that we want to be clear that the evidence doesn’t show that there’s any particular community, there’s no profile that we can point to say this person is from this community, is going to be radicalized to violence.
4. The administration thinks a key focus should be on non-Muslim terrorist groups — like those in Colombia.
Per the preview:
Q: I’m just wondering, in light of the current events that Andrea Mitchell and others mentioned during this call, almost all of those involves Muslim extremism. And I get that the phrase for this three-day event is “violent extremism.” Might some critics think that you’re avoiding the world “Muslim” as though extremists in the Islamic communities are the focus — or are they not the focus? That’s my question.
SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: …I think obviously we want to be taking into account the current concerns that different countries are facing. But as I think will be clear from the variety of presentations and case studies that are mentioned — to include some of the media that we have organized to help catalyze the discussion that features some of the longer-running terrorist threats that people sometimes forget about in the current context, such as the FARC in Colombia, which is now in negotiations, but has been a designated terrorist organization for some time, responsible for countless acts of violence.
I think we will see through the complexity of the discussion that violent extremism is a broader trend…I think we’ll see in the context of the meeting itself the diversity that reflects the reality of recent history.
5. The administration disavows a link between jihadism — a word it won’t use — and religion.
This image made from a video released Sunday Feb. 15, 2015 by militants in Libya claiming loyalty to the Islamic State group purportedly shows Egyptian Coptic Christians in orange jumpsuits being led along a beach, each accompanied by a masked militant. Later in the video, the men are made to kneel and one militant addresses the camera in English before the men are simultaneously beheaded. The Associated Press could not immediately independently verify the video. (Image source: AP)
Per the administration preview:
SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Let’s be clear. We recognize that violent extremism spans many decades and has taken many forms. But we all agree that the individuals who perpetuated — who perpetrated the terrorist attacks in Paris and elsewhere are calling themselves Muslims and their warped interpretation of Islam is what motivated them to commit these acts. They’re not making any secret of that, and neither are we.
But we are very, very clear that we do not believe that they are representing Islam. There is absolutely no justification for these attacks in any religion, and that’s the view of the vast majority of Muslims who have suffered huge casualties from the likes of folks like ISIL or al Qaeda. So you can call them what you want. We’re calling them terrorists.
6. The administration continues its “mea culpa” campaign, attributing radicalism to economic, social and political disparities — but not religion.
Per the White House preview [emphasis mine]:
The final panel will focus on secure and resilient communities, and it will, in particular, begin by looking at the role of civil society, particularly youth and women preventing violent extremism. It will look at community-police relations and community-security force relations as a critical element of prevention. And it will finally broaden that conversation to address social, economic and political marginalization, including the effects of integration of minority communities.
Based on all we have observed from this White House, do you think that the onus will fall on law enforcement to work on “improving relations” with “violent extremist” communities, or vice-versa? Reports on the Minneapolis countering violent extremism pilot program, one of the three that will be presenting at the summit, indicate that its Somali Muslim community mistrusts law enforcement because it fears being spied upon. Does this give you confidence in cooperation from a neighborhood that has produced over a dozen known jihadists in recent years?
The notion that “marginalization” and poor integration in minority communities is the root cause of jihadism, as echoed by State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf is a canard. Not only are there very wealthy families from the bin Ladens to the Saudi royals who drive jihadism worldwide, but conversely practically every group that has ever succeeded in America came to this country poor and marginalized, yet did not resort to strapping bombs to themselves or chopping off heads.
None of this is even to mention the fact that Muslims, other ethnic and religious minorities and the most important minority, the individual, has at least historically had more freedom and opportunity in America than in any other country in the world. Perhaps the White House wishes this forum to be a vehicle for revisiting Ferguson.
7. The administration wants to rehabilitate and reintegrate violent extremists.
Clearly the recidivism rate for Guantanamo Bay detainees has not sunk in to the collective mind of the public, as the White House continues:
The third session focuses on weakening the legitimacy and the resonance of the brand of violent extremism. So that will include a panel on strategic communications, social media. It will include a discussion of how non-violent religious issues and education can be elevated as a matter of international and local-level concern. And it will look at best practices with regard to rehabilitating and reintegrating violent extremists.
Note that this is also in keeping with the Obama administration’s efforts through Eric Holder’s Justice Department to treat terrorism as a criminal matter.
8. The Obama White House has regularly partnered with and enabled ”violent extremists,” without whom a countering violent extremism summit would not be necessary in the first place.
One of the more unbelievable indications of the Obama administration’s willful lack of self-awareness is that it has regularly partnered with the “violent extremists,” aiders, abetters and sympathizers with whom theoretically this summit is about countering.
The administration is currently negotiating with Iran on its nuclear program — the largest state sponsor of terror in the world.
Several weeks ago the White House met with the Muslim Brotherhood, an organization whose 1991 strategic memorandum on North America called for a “grand Jihad in eliminating and destroying the Western civilization from within and ‘sabotaging’ its miserable house by their hands and the hands of the believers so that it is eliminated and God’s religion is made victorious over all other religions.”
In Libya and Syria we have armed jihadists to our own great detriment.
How can a president who so frequently makes common cause with, and whose interventions overseas have so consistently aided jihadists, have any credibility in countering violent extremism?
9. The summit’s very name tells us how fatally flawed the exercise is.
Little exemplifies better how ill-equipped America is to deal with the threats facing her than the fact that the Obama administration wants us to believe that we are fighting “violent extremism.”
As many have said in recent weeks, if you cannot identify your enemy, you cannot defeat it. By not having the moral clarity, or even worse by exhibiting such cowardice in creating a mushy phrase like “violent extremism,” which not only obscures the enemy from the American people, but allows the Obama administration to associate all sorts of other peoples with jihadists is shameful.
Islamic supremacists are at war with us. It is quite evident we are not at war with them.
10. Finally, the key issues crucial to understanding the nature of, and means of best countering Islamic supremacism are not going to be addressed.
Were the summit actually to identify Islamic supremacism as the enemy, as the Center for Security Policy’s recent Defeat Jihad Summit illustrated, we might examine issues among many others including:
The Islamic doctrine that animates jihadists both Shitte and Sunni, and the goals, tactics and strategies set forth therein
The global funding of the jihadist support architecture
Educational institutions including America’s Middle East studies departments
Media organizations
Other agents of influence
Jihadist infiltration of American political institutions
The undefended borders through which jihadists are surely entering
Legal immigration policies including visas for religious leaders, student visas and immigration from jihadist areas worldwide
Iran’s efforts to infiltrate South America
Radicalization in prisons
We should seriously consider the aforementioned 1991 Muslim Brotherhood memorandum on its mission in North America:
The process of settlement is a “Civilization-Jihadist Process” with all the word means. The Ikhwan [Brotherhood] must understand that their work in America is a kind of grand Jihad in eliminating and destroying the Western civilization from within and “sabotaging” its miserable house by their hands and the hands of the believers so that it is eliminated and God’s religion is made victorious over all other religions. Without this level of understanding, we are not up to this challenge and have not prepared ourselves for Jihad yet. It is a Muslim’s destiny to perform Jihad and work wherever he is and wherever he lands until the final hour comes, and there is no escape from that destiny except for those who chose to slack. But, would the slackers and the Mujahedeen be equal.
…A mission as significant and as huge as the settlement mission needs magnificent and exhausting efforts. With their capabilities, human, financial and scientific resources, the Ikhwan will not be able to carry out this mission alone or away from people and he who believes that is wrong, and God knows best. As for the role of the Ikhwan, it is the initiative, pioneering, leadership, raising the banner and pushing people in that direction. They are then to work to employ, direct and unify Muslims’ efforts and powers for this process. In order to do that, we must possess a mastery of the art of “coalitions”, the art of “absorption” and the principles of “cooperation.”
Posted in Constitution, History, Military, Politics, Religion, Survival, Terrorism | Tagged 9/11, al Qaeda, Allah, America, Arab, Barack Obama, Benjamin Weingarten, CAIR, Center for Security Policy, Christians, Colombia, Coptic, Countering Violent Extremism Summit, Dearborn, DHS, DOJ, Egypt, Eric Holder, Extremism, Ferguson, Government, Guantanamo Bay, Hamas, Immigration, Iran, ISIS, Islam, Islamic Society of Boston, Islamic Supremacism, Israel, Jihad, Jobs, Libya, Mapping Sharia Project, Marie Harf, Media, Michigan, Military, Missouri, Mosques, Muslim Brotherhood, Muslims, National Security, Nukes, Patrick Poole, Police, Politics, Saudi Arabia, Sharia Law, Shiites, Somalia, South America, Sunnis, Syria, Terrorism, Terrorists, TheBlaze, War, White HOuse | 1 Comment
The Betrayal Papers – Part I of V – Under Obama: The U.S. Captured by the Muslim Brotherhood
The Betrayal Papers will trace the influence of the Muslim Brotherhood in the Obama administration’s foreign and domestic policies. The five-part series will present a picture of a conspiracy that is manipulating the American government to the benefit of a totalitarian, genocidal movement that seeks to establish a global Islamic State.
The Muslim Brotherhood is an international political, financial, terrorist and movement whose goal is to establish a global Islamic State (Caliphate).
They have and continue to exert tremendous influence of the American government’s foreign and domestic policies under President Barack Hussein Obama.
The violence in the Middle East and across North Africa is a direct consequence of the Muslim Brotherhood’s effective control over American foreign policy in the region.
They operate through various “civic” front groups, as well as through American institutions who take their money as operational funding (Georgetown University, Brookings Institution).
In America, we have a weak and struggling economy, growing public and private debt and millions are un- and underemployed. While a weaponized IRS targets Tea Party groups and other voices of liberty, and military veterans are labeled as “domestic terrorists” by the Department of Homeland Security, the federal government refuses to secure the southern border. Educational policy now includes the teaching Arabic and visits to mosques for schoolchildren.
Internationally, America is in retreat. The Middle East is in ashes, and in the midst of an ongoing genocide replete with daily horrors, the likes which have not been seen for centuries. Former allies have been abandoned and are embittered. Under the present leadership in the White House and State Department, Israel is considered the aggressor and Hamas the oppressed.
In sum, the world is at its most volatile point since the outbreak of World War II.
If you think that this is a result of something other than an “incompetent,” “stupid,” or “clueless” President, words regularly used by those who sense something is wrong but, can’t quite bring themselves to own up to the ugly truth, you’re not alone.
Millions of Americans are realizing that the Obama administration is not merely “misguided.” It is actually and consciously anti-American, anti-Semitic, anti-Christian, and broadly anti-Western. Yet , the American public does not yet fully appreciate why and how the administration always finds itself square against everything this country is based on – religious freedom, capitalism, and justice under law.
This series of articles will explain the force and mechanics behind Obama’s anti-American global agenda: the Muslim Brotherhood.
Al-Ikhwan al-Muslimoon: The Root of Today’s Islamic Evil
Husseini speaking with Hitler in 1941
Founded in 1928, the Muslim Brotherhood (aka, the Society of Muslim Brothers, or Al-Ikhwan al-Muslimoon in Arabic) is an international movement (some would argue an international conspiracy) that seeks to establish a worldwide Islamic State (or Caliphate). When it was created in the late 1920s, the Brotherhood was a contemporary of the Nazi Party of Germany. Indeed, the leader of the Muslim Brotherhood in Palestine, Amin al-Husseini, is considered by some as the man who catalyzed the Holocaust; for it was only after Husseini visited Hitler in Berlin in 1941 that the systematic extermination of Jews and other minorities began with industrial efficiency.
After the war, despite the insistence by many wartime leaders (Churchill included) that he be brought to justice, Husseini escaped to the Middle East. He lived there until his death in the 1970s, serving as a mentor to a young Yasser Arafat. Husseini and the Nazi Party are the connection points between the Holocaust and today’s Middle Eastern genocide.
The Allies conscious failure to arrest and prosecute Husseini haunts us today.
A Terror Hedge against Stalin and Soviet Russia
At the beginning of the Cold War, working with former Nazis, the American CIA began to court the Muslim Brotherhood as an ally against Soviet Russia. This calculus may have made sense when facing down Josef Stalin, a totalitarian tyrant hell-bent on world domination, but it has proved a costly strategy in the long run.
In the years and decades that followed World War II, the Muslim Brotherhood has evolved into a modern day Nazi International, not unlike the old Comintern (Communist International). It has a vast network of financial and business interests across the world; it has agents, supporters, and apologists within western governments; and it has a support network of “civic” organizations in the West.
These all serve as a cover for its darker and insatiably violent ambitions.
For despite all their intrigue and political gamesmanship, the Muslim Brotherhood is not strictly a political movement, nor a financial cabal. It’s also the mothership of virtually all Islamic terrorist groups operating in the world today, including Al Qaeda, ISIS, Hamas, the Taliban, Boko Haram, and many more. Such groups, all children of the Muslim Brotherhood’s fanatical Islamic ideology, are today ethnically cleansing countries such as Libya, Syria, Iraq, and Nigeria of all traces of Christianity. No less than the President of Egypt, Muslim Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, a devout Muslim, has said as much.
Considering how the Muslim Brotherhood and their terrorist pawns treat fellow Muslims in Egypt, Libya, Syria, and Iraq, butchering them by the bushel including women and children, it should come as no surprise that Egypt and Saudi Arabia have declared the them a “terrorist” organization.
It should also come as no surprise that the United Arab Emirates has designated Muslim Brotherhood front groups operating in the United States “terrorist” entities. In November, the UAE effectively declared that the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) and Muslim-American Society (MAS) were no different than Al Qaeda. Why? It’s because they share a common origin in the Muslim Brotherhood. One could add to this list of domestic terrorist collaborators and enablers the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA), the Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC), and the Muslim Students Association (MSA).
A New HQ in America
Equally alarmingly, all-American institutions such as Georgetown University and the Brookings Institution have accepted so much money from the Muslim Brotherhood government in Qatar, that their political positions are virtually indistinguishable from the Muslim Brotherhood’s domestic front groups!
Yet, the United States government does not see these organizations and their employees as the enemy, as apologists for the worst kinds of barbarity. In fact, the highest profile people from these organizations advise the Obama administration, including the Department of Justice, the Department of Homeland Security, the FBI, and the National Security Council. In January, the Department of State actually welcomed the Muslim Brotherhood to a meeting, and shortly thereafter Egypt exploded in jihadi violence. This is no magical coincidence.
To the detriment of our safety and well-being, the domestic Muslim Brotherhood front groups help dictate counterterrorism policies. It is their influence which leads to the farcical idea, recently expressed by Obama at the National Prayer Breakfast, that the Crusades have something to do with ISIS and the mass murder of innocents in the Middle East today.
These front groups shape our foreign policy, which since the Arab Spring and continuing to this day is on the side of the Muslim Brotherhood.
So-called “moderate Muslims” employed at these front groups have made the country of Qatar, a totalitarian sharia-based society, and an “ATM for terrorists,” the closest ally of the United States under Obama’s Presidency. With enthusiasm from Obama and Eric Holder, they have us emptying Guantanamo Bay of the most vicious killers and sending them to Qatar, with only the vaguest of security assurances.
The remaining four articles will explore the influence of the Muslim Brotherhood on American policy, both foreign and domestic (including in Common Core, Obama’s position on illegal immigration and amnesty, and the hostility of the administration toward police officers). The exposé will also detail the operatives in the government who work to advance the Muslim Brotherhood’s ambitions for a worldwide Caliphate. And it will put into context the mysterious influence that George Soros and Valerie Jarrett have over Barack Hussein Obama, his administration, and the policies that affect every American.
The Betrayal Papers is a collaborative effort by the Coalition of Concerned Citizens, which includes: Andrea Shea King, Dr. Ashraf Ramelah, Benjamin Smith, Brent Parrish, Charles Ortel, William Palumbo, Denise Simon, Dick Manasseri, Gary Kubiak, Gates of Vienna, IQ al Rassooli, Jeff Bayard, Leslie Burt, Marcus Kohan, Mary Fanning, General Paul E. Vallely, Regina Thomson, Scott Smith, Terresa Monroe-Hamilton, Colonel Thomas Snodgrass, Trever Loudon, Wallace Bruschweiler, and William Palumbo.
Also see: Restoring Liberty: Joe Miller
Posted in Constitution, Financial, History, Illegal Immigration, Military, Politics, Religion, Survival, Terrorism | Tagged Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, al Qaeda, Al-Ikhwan al-Muslimoon, Allies, America, Amin al-Husseini, Amnesty, Andrea Shea King, Anti-Semitism, Arab Spring, Ashraf Ramelah, Barack Obama, Benjamin Smith, Boko Haram, Brent Parrish, Brookings Institution, CAIR, Caliphate, Capitalism, Charles Ortel, Children, Christians, CIA, Cold War, Colonel Thomas Snodgrass, Common Core, Communists, Counter Jihad Report, Counterterrorism, Crusades, Debt, Denise Simon, Denver Tea Party, DHS, Dick Manasseri, DOD, DOJ, Domestic Terrorists, Economy, Education, Egypt, Enemies, Eric Holder, Extremism, Family Security Matters, FBI, Founders Code, Gary Kubiak, Gates of Vienna, General Paul E. Vallely, Genocide, George Soros, Georgetown University, Germany, Guantanimo Bay, Hamas, Hitler, Holocaust, Husseini, Illegal Immigration, IQ al Rassooli, Iraq, IRS, ISIS, Islam, Islamo-fascists, ISNA, Israel, Jeff Bayard, Jews, Jihad, Joe Miller, Law, Leslie Burt, Libya, Marcus Kohan, Mary Fanning, MAS, Middle East, Military, Mister Chambers, Mosques, MPAC, MSA, Muslim Brotherhood, Muslims, National Prayer Breakfast, Nazis, New Zeal, Nigeria, NoisyRoom.net, North Africa, NSA, Palestine, Police, Political Illusions Exposed, Qatar, Radical Islam, Regina Thomson, Religion, Right Side News, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Scandals, Scott Smith, Semich 912 Tea Party, Sharia Law, Southern Border, Soviet Union, Stalin, Stand Up America, State Department, Syria, Taliban, Tea Party, Terresa Monroe-Hamilton, Terrorism, Terrorists, The Betrayal Papers, The Radio Patriot, The Right Planet, Totalitarian, Trevor Loudon, UAE, Valerie Jarrett, Veterans, Voice of the Copts, Wallace Bruschweiler, War, White HOuse, William Palumbo, Winston Churchill, World War II, Yasser Arafat | 20 Comments
Retired four-star admiral says the unsayable about Islam and President Obama’s foreign policy strategy
Recently we reported on retired Lt. Gen. and former DIA Chief Mike Flynn’s devastating criticism of the terms of President Obama’s Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF) against ISIS.
Another prominent retired member of America’s armed forces who has emerged as an outspoken opponent of the Obama administration’s foreign policy is four-star admiral James “Ace” Lyons.
During the Center for Security Policy’s recent Defeat Jihad Summit, the naval officer of 36 years, who served most recently as the Commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet, made some simply astounding comments about Islam and President Obama’s foreign policy strategy:
Lyons’ remarks followed a scathing critique of the bipartisan failure of U.S. leaders to deal with the threat of Islamic supremacism, dating back to President Carter.
The Defeat Jihad Summit, held on February 11, was intended to serve as a corrective for the Obama administration’s forthcoming Countering Violent Extremism summit.
The event included prominent counterjihadists such as Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, former Attorney General Michael Mukasey, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, Dutch parliamentarian Geert Wilders and dozens of others.
You can watch full video of the conference here.
(H/T: Gates of Vienna)
Posted in Constitution, History, Military, Politics, Religion, Survival, Terrorism | Tagged Admiral Lyons, AUMF, Barack Obama, Benjamin Weingarten, Bobby Jinal, Carter, Center for Security Policy, Defeat Jihad Summit, Extremism, Foreign Policy, Gates of Vienna, Geert Wilders, ISIS, Islam, Islamic Supremicism, Jihad, Michael Mukasey, Mike Flynn, Military, Muslims, Newt Gingrich, Ted Cruz, Terrorism, Terrorists, TheBlaze, US, War | 1 Comment
Why the West is Losing to Islamic Supremacists
During a recent lecture on the nature of and threat posed by Iran, with whom President Barack Obama’s Chamberlainian negotiations continue apace, an existential question arose: Why does the West remain asleep regarding Islamic Supremacism and the doctrine on which it is based?
I posit that there are three main reasons, which also go a long way towards explaining why we are currently losing to the global jihad: (i) Progressive multiculturalism, moral relativism and materialism; (ii) Profound willful ignorance; and (iii) An inability to cope with the staggering implications of the threat we face.
Since the days of George W. Bush, we have heard the oft-repeated trope that Islam is a religion of peace, and moreover one of the world’s great religions, with the same ethics, values and principles as Judaism and Christianity.
Originally, the Western elite argued that those who killed in the name of Islam were merely misinterpreting and perverting the religion. These, one should note, were the relatively more clear-eyed ones. Others attributed genocidal jihadism to poverty, lack of education or global warming.
Now we have completely severed the jihadist head from the Islamic body (theo)politic, arguing that the barbarians who comprise Islamic State, or as the Obama administration obediently likes to say, Daesh, in spite of the first “I” standing for “Islamic,” are nihilists.
For a people steeped in progressivism for decades, this can be the only reasonable conclusion.
Islamic supremacism does not comport with the belief system of our elites, who assert that all peoples are the same, all religions consist of the same values and beliefs, and that material concerns trump all others, including spiritual or idealist ones.
For those who honestly believe such things — as opposed to the ones who spout platitudes out of political expediency and to gloss over threats they dishonestly claim to have already defeated – throwing up one’s arms and claiming that jihadism stems from an ideology of nothingness is the most coherent of an entirely incoherent set of answers. Even better is to declare that violent extremism is the enemy, so as to smear conservatives while they’re at it.
This pervasive misunderstanding of Islam reflects a profound ignorance, in that it neglects the fact that the Koran and hadith comprise a unique belief system fundamentally different from, and in fact antithetical to the historically Judeo-Christian West.
For those interested, there is a mass of literature from authors such as Dr. Andrew Bostom, Andrew McCarthy, Robert Spencer, Ibn Warraq and Bat Ye’or who lay this out in concrete and copiously sourced terms.
Better yet, look to the texts and words of leading Islamic scholars such as Hassan Al Banna and Sayyid Qutb, prominent modern-day figures like Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi, Ayatollah Khameini, Hassan Nasrallah, and the content being taught at mosques right here in America.
If you would like to ignore the compendium of Islamic doctrine that calls for and compels Muslims to bring about a totalitarian world under which all submit to Allah’s rule, all one has to do is look at states whose governments are based in Shariah law to see Islam in practice.
Theory and practice aside, I am willing to wager that the vast majority of those commenting on Islam in the media and political establishment have never opened up a Koran, let alone heard the word hadith. Of the small percentage who have, invariably you will hear the argument that while parts of the Koran are violent, others are peaceful. Such a view evinces further ignorance however, as it fails to address two essential Islamic concepts: (a) Abrogation and (b) taqiyya.
Abrogation refers to the fact that as the Koran reflects Allah’s divine revealed word, where there are textual contradictions, those passages revealed later must supplant those that preceded it. These later passages are frequently more violent than the earlier peaceful ones.
Taqiyya refers to strategic lying and deception – covering up one’s true intentions so as to defeat one’s enemies. This manifests itself in acts of sabotage, subversion and the propagation of strategic disinformation, not unlike what the Communists did during and after the Cold War.
Others will argue that just as the Koran has violent verses, so too do the Old and New Testaments. But Jews and Christians do not go out and slaughter in the name of their G-d in a modern-day global Crusade like the jihadists are waging. Moreover, the values and principles that flow from these two religious systems have led to the miracle that is Western civilization. The Muslim world on the other hand, especially where Islamic doctrine is followed in its purest form, resembles the seventh century one that preceded it.
Lest you think those who have studied Islam in schools are better off, in America’s universities taqiyya has become an art form. Many of the Middle Eastern departments at our country’s most prestigious academic institutions have been found to put on a “moderate” public face while serving as Trojan horses for anti-Semitism, anti-Zionism and anti-Westernism — all consistent with Islamic doctrine.
This should come as no surprise, as these departments – and even K-12 schools — are often funded by Islamic nations who are the primary backers of Islamic supremacism themselves.
For those able to see past multiculturalism, moral relativism, materialism and actually study Islam in theory and practice, recognizing that the religion at the very least as understood by millions of Muslims is not only incompatible with, but hostile to our very existence, this is a staggering realization. It offends our pluralistic, tolerant sensitivities to think that such a massive, religiously-justified threat could exist. For while similarly savage enemies marched throughout the 20th century, none were tinged with theology, and Communism for its part was explicitly anti-religious.
Moreover, there are uncomfortable practical questions that such a threat raises. Who exactly are we fighting if there are millions of jihadists, aiders, abettors and enablers all over the world? How are we to fight them? What measures can we take to secure the homeland that are both sufficient and consonant with a free society?
Today, the West is clearly not even at the point of asking these questions, which reflects a lack of education on behalf of some, and denial on the part of others. That it is considered a bold act to utter phrases like “Radical Islam,” or “Islamic extremism” or “Islamism,” in the face of now over 25,000 jihadist attacks since Sept. 11, 2001 indicates as much. Imagine what kind of stones it would take to repeat after Turkey’s President Tayyip Erdoğan, that in effect there is no such thing as “moderate Islam” or “Islamism,” and such “descriptions are very ugly…offensive and an insult to our religion…Islam is Islam and that’s it.”
Rather than deal with reality, we figuratively bury our heads in the sand. Meanwhile, savage jihadists lop off and literally bury infidel heads in the sand.
If we are going to turn the tide in a war that we are currently not fighting, it is imperative that a sizable number of Americans wake up. It behooves all men and women of good conscience to educate their fellow citizens, and spark this awakening.
The future of Western civilization depends upon it.
Posted in Constitution, History, Military, Politics, Religion, Survival, Terrorism | Tagged Abrogation, Allah, America, Andrew McCarthy, Anti-Semitism, Anti-Westernism, Anti-Zionism, Ayatollah Khameini, Barack Obama, Bat Ye’or, Benjamin Weingarten, Christianity, Communists, Conservatives, Daesh, Deception, Dr. Andrew Bostom, Education, Elites, Extremism, Genocide, George W. Bush, Hadith, Hassan Al Banna, Hassan Nasrallah, Ibn Warraq, Ignorance, Infidels, ISIS, Islam, Islamic Supremacists, Islamism, Jihad, Judaism, Materialism, Military, Moderate Islam, Mohammad, Moral Relativism, Mosques, Muslims, Politics, Progressive Multiculturalism, Progressives, Quran, Religion of Peace, Robert Spencer, Sabotage, Schools, Shariah Law, Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi, Subversion, Taqiyya, Terrorism, Terrorists, TheBlaze, Totalitarianism, Universities, Violence, War, West |
Response and Defense
Arlene from Israel
My mother used to say, “Enough is enough, and too much is plenty.” Well…we passed the “plenty” mark a long time ago where terrorism and threats by terrorist entities are concerned. But what I see is that the excesses of terrorists are beginning to stiffen backs a bit. In the face of acts that are increasingly obscene, there is a growing recognition that tough stances are necessary. Not nearly enough yet, mind you, but growing.
The most obvious example at the moment of a nation being pushed to a new stance by terrorist excesses is Jordan. As most of my readers undoubtedly know, ISIS has executed a Jordanian pilot by locking him in a cage and burning him alive; this was captured on videotape. Jordan is part of the US-led alliance against ISIS, and their pilot, Lt. Mouath al-Kasaesbeh, was captured when his plane went down over Syria. There are no words for the inhumanity of what was done to him, and the Jordanians are beyond furious. Thus have critics of action against ISIS now joined the chorus of rage.
The first thing Jordan did was to execute (apparently by hanging) two al-Qaeda connected Iraqi prisoners – already convicted and, as I understand it, sentenced to death, but being held long term in prison. Now King Abdullah is quoted as saying:
“We are waging this war to protect our faith, our values and human principles and our war for their sake will be relentless and will hit them in their own ground.”
And a Jordanian government spokesman has spoken about intensifying “efforts to stop extremism and terrorism to undermine, degrade and eventually finish Daesh [the Islamic State].” (Emphasis added)
Rhetoric in part, perhaps, because honor is involved. But a welcome perspective, none the less. And Jordan is already increasing bombing.
Here at home, I’ve noted a number of ways in which the responses of our government seem to me to be increasingly tough. These responses have nothing to do with declarations of war, and may seem relatively minor, but are not. They send an important message regarding our strength, our rights, and our readiness to take action to protect ourselves. Constant vigilance is required on a number of fronts:
Israeli-Arabs who leave Israel – apparently getting into Syria via Turkey – to join ISIS are being tracked and arrested on their return. In ISIS camps they are trained in torture and weapons use. After being interrogated, they are indicted, and, if found guilty sentenced. Although it appears from news reports that sentences remain too lenient, European nations might take a lesson from this practice.
See here, for example:
And speaking of ISIS, seven Arab Israelis were arrested recently for attempting to set up an Islamic State cell in the Nazareth area.
Last month, the Shin Bet and a special police unit, working together, identified and then closed down three Israeli NGOs that were funneling money to activities intended to “inflame tensions on the Temple Mount.”
These groups were established last October by the northern branch of the Islamic Movement in Israel “with the purpose of funding activities meant to disrupt the security of visitors to the Temple Mount and in order to inflame tensions and cause disturbances, while harming the sovereignty of the State of Israel at the site.”
http://www.jpost.com/Arab-Israeli-Conflict/Israel-police-Shin-Bet-close-three-Islamic-charities-for-causing-unrest-on-Temple-Mount-387507
There are groups of Arabs – often women – who have been paid to come up on the Mount and harass Jews both verbally and physically.
Last Saturday night, an IDF unit in the Shomron came upon Palestinian Arabs throwing firebombs at on-coming cars. The army opened fire on them, and one of the Palestinian Arabs was killed.
It is critical to consider the attacks upon cars – whether by firebombs or rocks and bricks, all of which can maim and kill – with utmost seriousness.
This is a very modest response (TOO modest a response, in my opinion). But, as it is a first, it is a step in our asserting ourselves: The Israel Electric Company is now cutting back on service to the PA areas because of the enormous unpaid electric bill. Service will be cut in half for two hours every day.
The organization Im Tirtzu – “if we will it,” from Herzl – is staunchly Zionist, and prepared to expose those who are not. B’Tselem, on the other hand, is an Israeli NGO that poses as a human rights group, but is in fact enormously politicized, and anti-Israel. B’Tselem just released a report, allegedly documenting “war crimes” committed by Israel during our recent war with Hamas, Operation Protective Shield. Their findings will be used by what was at least until this week referred to as the Schabas Commission, which has a UNHRC mandate to “investigate” Israel’s behavior during the war (more on Schabas below).
Now Im Tirtzu has exposed the fact that B’Tselem received funding for this report from Ramallah, from “a Palestinian foundation that, among other things, finances organizations related to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine.”
Says Im Tirtzu: “Israeli citizens and the international community who will read B’Tselem’s report have a right to know that this report does not represent an objective investigation of truth with justice as its guiding principle. Rather, this is the result of a political agenda and the negative attitude toward Israel.”
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/190804#.VM9kvpv9nIV
On Monday, William Schabas – the Canadian legal academic who had been appointed to head the UN Human Rights Council investigation on Israel’s “war crimes” in Gaza this past summer – resigned. He had been exposed:
Turns out that in 2012, he wrote a legal opinion for the PLO and was paid for doing so.
He apparently did not see this as a conflict of interest that would disqualify him. In fact, he declared, all innocence, that “this work in defense of human rights appears to have made me a huge target for malicious attacks.” He assumed the position, he maintained, with full commitment to “act with independence and impartiality. I have fully respected that undertaking.”
As Anne Bayefsky, who directs the Touro College Institute on Human Rights, wrote, “”Yea, right.”
http://www.jpost.com/Arab-Israeli-Conflict/Analysis-The-indelible-stain-on-the-UN-committee-once-chaired-by-William-Schabas-389928
The UNHRC might have scrapped the work of the investigatory commission, but that would have been expecting too much. One day later, Schabas’s successor – former NY judge Mary McGowan Davis – was appointed. Davis, already a member of this commission, had served as well on the Goldstone Commission, the findings of which were subsequently repudiated by Goldstone himself.
As Bayefsky points out (emphasis added):
“Israel’s achievement in this whole affair…is not that it brought to light damning information about Schabas that compelled him to step down.
”Rather, the achievement is that, now that he has stepped down because of incontrovertible evidence of bias, it will be easier for Israel to dismiss the report as completely one-sided and useless when it does come out.
”This incident also provides real-time evidence to those tired of hearing Jerusalem argue that it does not get a fair shake in international organizations, that – indeed – it does not get a fair shake in international organizations.
”…Schabas has lost his credibility, and as a result so has the commission that he chaired, even before the paper it is working on even sees the light of day.”
This is unreal, but not unexpected:
Maj.-Gen. Yoav Mordechai, the Israeli coordinator for government activities in the territories, is in Europe to discuss better relations with the EU. He was scheduled to meet with European Parliament’s Delegation for Relations with Israel, which is responsible for “maintaining and developing Parliament’s contacts and relations with the Knesset.”
The invitation to Parliament members said that his visit presented an “excellent opportunity to carry an open dialogue, as well as raise issues of mutual interest.” But that visit never happened. In the face of objections by left wing members, it was cancelled.
”Portuguese parliamentarian Marisa Matias, from the European United Left–Nordic Green Left grouping, was quoted as saying that ‘giving him [Mordechai] a platform to host a lecture would legitimize his violations of international law and human rights. Rather than giving a warm welcome to those who stand for repression and apartheid, the EU institutions should pressure the Israeli government to abide by the rules of international law and UN resolutions. We must bring to justice those responsible for human rights violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territories.’”
http://www.jpost.com/Arab-Israeli-Conflict/Leftists-in-European-Parliament-torpedo-meeting-with-visiting-IDF-Major-General-390032
What this tells me is that the Legal Grounds Campaign has quite a task to do, to set the record straight. There is no such thing as “the occupied Palestinian territories.” Nor is Israel remotely apartheid. These are terms bandied about for political purposes with less than no respect for truth.
Posted in Arlene from Israel, Authors | Tagged al Qaeda, Anne Bayefsky, Arabs, Army, B’Tselem, Canada, Daesh, Dream Defenders Palestine Delegation, Entrepreneurs, Executions, Extremism, Gaza, Goldstone Commission, Hamas, Human Rights, IDF, Im Tirtzu, Iraq, ISIS, Islam, Islamic Movement in Israel, Israel, Israel Electric Company, Jews, Jihad, Jordan, King Abdullah, Legal Grounds Campaign, Lt. Mouath al-Kasaesbeh, Maj.-Gen. Yoav Mordechai, Marisa Matias, Mary McGowan Davis, Military, Muslims, Nazareth, New York, NGOs, Operation Protective Shield, PLO, Police, Politics, Portugal, Ramallah, Schabas Commission, Shin Bet, Shomron, Syria, Temple Mount, Terrorism, Terrorsts, Torture, Touro College Institute on Human Rights, Turkey, UNHRC, US, War, War Crimes, William Schabas, Zionist |
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Tag Archives: Shimon Peres
Pope Offers the Masses the Opium of Marxism
By: Terresa Monroe-Hamilton
Bolivian President Evo Morales presents Pope Francis with a crucifix incorporating the hammer and sickle symbol during a meeting at the presidential palace in La Paz. Photo: Juan Carlos Usnayo/Agence France-Presse/Getty Images
To my Catholic friends, while I am loathe to criticize that which they hold dear, there comes a time when silence is the wrong answer. When Pope Francis first surfaced, I thought he had the potential to be a great Pope. But with the potential of greatness, also comes the opportunity of infamy. Pope Francis is a Marxist and embodies many, many principles that I stand against, not only as a Constitutional Conservative, but as a Christian. This last week just solidified my uneasiness concerning this Pope.
The Bolivian President, Evo Morales (who Trevor Loudon and I have long contended is a Marxist), presented the Pontiff with a crucifix depicting Jesus nailed to a hammer and sickle, which the Pope returned after a brief examination. What is under contention is what the Pope said when presented with the gift. His comments were pretty much drowned out by a flurry of camera clicks. While some have claimed he expressed irritation, muttering the words “eso no está bien” (“this is not right”), Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi said the Pope more likely said “no sabía eso” (“I didn’t know that”) in bemusement at the origins of the present. Which would make sense as NewsBusters and the Wall Street Journal noted, President Morales also “draped a medallion over [the pope’s] neck that bore the hammer and sickle.”
Communism has murdered well over one hundred million people in the last century alone. Many, many of those were Christians. As Ann Barnhardt put it, “Our Blessed Lord and Savior shown crucified on a hammer and sickle is, by all metrics, worse than Our Lord shown crucified on a swastika.” This constitutes blasphemy for me – Pope or not.
I also disagree that the Pope is being manipulated for ideological reasons. I think he knows full well what he is doing. We seem to have a knee-jerk response now when a leader does something unspeakable, unforgivable or outright evil – he/she didn’t know what they were doing… they were incompetent… or they were being manipulated. Knock it off! These people are not stupid; they are not rubes or babes in the woods who are so easily misled. (That’s not to say that they weren’t misled in very early life, ref. Proverbs 22:6 “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” That is to say, if you can indoctrinate someone in his early youth, you won’t need to sway him later: he’s already in your groove, and his decisions and choices will reflect that, not some imagined confusion of the moment.)
As for the Bolivian government insisting there was no political motive behind the gift and the Communications Minister, Marianela Paco, saying that Morales had thought the “Pope of the poor” would appreciate the gesture… bull crap. It’s the melding of politics and religion into a nightmarish agenda that is apocalyptic in scope and intent.
José Ignacio Munilla, bishop of the Spanish city of San Sebastián, tweeted a picture of the encounter, with the words: “The height of pride is to manipulate God in the service of atheist ideologies.” That is exactly right – on all counts, concerning all parties involved. It’s hard to overstate how important that observation is.
The Pope, after arriving in Bolivia, stopped to pray at the death site of Luis Espinal, a Jesuit murdered by Bolivian paramilitary forces in 1980. Espinal is being painted in press reports as a reformer who stood against the military dictatorship in Bolivia. Pope Francis also reportedly received a medal, bearing a hammer and sickle from Morales that was issued in memory of Espinal’s death.
From PopeWatch:
Father Albo showed a reporter a published photo of a crucified Christ attached to a homemade hammer and sickle, instead of a cross, that Father Espinal kept by his bed.
“He was of the left. This is certain. But he never belonged to any party or pretended to be part of one,” said Father Albo, who said he hopes to present a replica of the hammer and sickle crucifix to the pope.
Father Espinal “gave a lot of importance to the dialogue between Marxists and Christians,” he explained. “It was not pro-Soviet … (it was) the need for the church to be close to the popular sectors. Some understand this, others don’t. To me it is very clear.”
It was said that the Pope wasn’t offended by Morales’ gift. “You can dispute the significance and use of the symbol now, but the origin is from Espinal and the sense of it was about an open dialogue, not about a specific ideology,” Lombardi said. Nope, it was all about ideology. This Argentinian Pope has been roundly criticized by many Marxists for not protecting Leftist priests during the military dictatorship in his country. Since becoming Pope, he has made major strides in bringing Liberation Theology to the fore in the Vatican. Thus, his campaigning for massive social and political change. This is Christianized Marxism. The irony of that term has to be savored. Kind of like “therapeutic cancer.”
Although Liberation Theology has grown into an international and inter-denominational movement, it began as a movement within the Catholic Church in Latin America in the 1950s–1960s. It is purported that Liberation Theology arose principally as a moral reaction to the poverty seen as having been caused by social injustice in that region. But its roots are solidly Marxist. The term was coined in 1971 by the Peruvian priest Gustavo Gutiérrez, who wrote one of the movement’s most famous books, A Theology of Liberation.
Latin American Liberation Theology met opposition from others in the US, who accused it of using “Marxist concepts” and that lead to admonishment by the Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF) in 1984 and 1986. The Vatican disliked certain forms of Latin American Liberation Theology for focusing on institutionalized or systemic sin; and for identifying Catholic Church hierarchy in South America as members of the same privileged class that had long been oppressing indigenous populations.
Pope Francis used his trip to Bolivia, Ecuador and Paraguay to highlight problems faced by indigenous communities and to warn against “all totalitarian, ideological or sectarian schemes.” That sounds very good. However, it started to go off the rails when he urged the downtrodden to change the world economic order, denouncing a “new colonialism” by agencies that impose austerity programs and calling for the poor to have the “sacred rights” of labor, lodging and land. That’s sheer Marxism. And exactly what does he mean by ‘austerity programs?’ You mean the over taxing of the general populace in order that elitists can keep up their glutinous spending sprees? Or do you mean austerity as in cutting spending, sticking to a budget and reducing debts? It certainly makes a difference on how the term is being used here.
His speech was preceded by lengthy remarks from the Left-wing Bolivian President Evo Morales, who wore a jacket adorned with the face of Argentine revolutionary Ernesto “Che” Guevara. Che was executed in Bolivia in 1967 by CIA-backed Bolivian troops. That certainly set the stage for Pope Francis and his speech.
Then the Pope gave a magnanimous and historic speech asking for forgiveness for the sins committed by the Roman Catholic Church in its treatment of Native Americans during what he called the “so-called conquest of America.” This is highly offensive and revisionist – it is skewed history. It’s true that American Indians were slaughtered by evil men and eventually, after a length of time, the colonists took over America. It is also true that Indians slaughtered many of the settlers and in horrific ways. Conquest and war are facts of history by the way, something Europe and the Vatican are very familiar with. It is a human condition that is ongoing and never ending as populations replace each other and wars rage on. He’s apologizing as though the Catholic Church had set out to do those things… it didn’t. Men did those things in the name of governments and in the name of the church. Apologizing for the deeds of men who acted on their own volition, but in your name, is to presume responsibility and control of actions over which the church had neither. The colonists did not set out to ‘conquer’ America either. They fled persecution in Europe and wanted to build new lives for themselves. Conflict came with Native Americans and the rest is history. Yes, evil was done, but that evil was not the totality of the story or our history and it certainly was not one-sided. It is also not something we need to ‘apologize’ for.
Then Pope Francis uttered my favorite quote – he quoted a fourth century bishop and called the unfettered pursuit of money “the dung of the devil,” and said poor countries should not be reduced to being providers of raw material and cheap labor for developed countries. Actually, when I heard the original quote, it said ‘capitalism’ not ‘money.’ While seeking unlimited riches can be a sin, it is not always so and not all wealthy people are guilty of this sin. It is also true that poor countries should not be treated as merely sources of materials and labor, however, those countries also benefit from that part of the economy. Countries are free to prosper and if more lived under free capitalistic governments where free trade was the norm and people were allowed to innovate and work for themselves, then there would be far fewer impoverished countries. But first, you’d have to get rid of the Marxists and dictators. Kind of a conundrum.
For dessert, the Pope repeated some of his encyclical on climate change. That’s Marxism on a global scale and smacks of fascism as well. It’s a twofer. Climate change is a seductive lie wrapped in a green package, but it is rotten from the inside out.
The Pope closes with what sounds to me like the echoes of Barack Obama and communism:
“Let us not be afraid to say it: we want change, real change, structural change,” the pope said, decrying a system that “has imposed the mentality of profit at any price, with no concern for social exclusion or the destruction of nature.“
“This system is by now intolerable: farm workers find it intolerable, laborers find it intolerable, communities find it intolerable, peoples find it intolerable The Earth itself – our sister, Mother Earth, as Saint Francis would say – also finds it intolerable,” he said in an hour-long speech that was interrupted by applause and cheering dozens of times.
And the useful idiots cheered on even when they knew in their heart of hearts that all of the above is nothing more than a call to follow those that would rule over us, using Mother Earth as a handy excuse and targeting for blame the engines of free enterprise, using language meant to equate it with greed, while overlooking the primary source of real greed: corrupt totalitarian governments, born of Marxism.
Pope Francis was not finished by any means concerning ‘colonialism’:
“No actual or established power has the right to deprive peoples of the full exercise of their sovereignty. Whenever they do so, we see the rise of new forms of colonialism which seriously prejudice the possibility of peace and justice,” he said.
“The new colonialism takes on different faces. At times it appears as the anonymous influence of mammon: corporations, loan agencies, certain ‘free trade’ treaties, and the imposition of measures of ‘austerity’ which always tighten the belt of workers and the poor,” he said.
Last week, Francis called on European authorities to keep human dignity at the centre of debate for a solution to the economic crisis in Greece.
He defended labor unions and praised poor people who had formed cooperatives to create jobs where previously “there were only crumbs of an idolatrous economy”.
The Pope even went so far as to praise Bolivia’s social reforms to spread wealth under Morales. That’s wealth redistribution and again, Marxism. But that is only scratching the surface on this Pope – there is oh, so much more to be concerned about when it comes to Pope Francis.
My friend and colleague (and someone I truly admire) Cliff Kincaid has done excellent research into Pope Francis and his doings. Americans need to take note who has the ear of this Pope:
Top Vatican adviser Jeffrey Sachs says that when Pope Francis visits the United States in September, he will directly challenge the “American idea” of God-given rights embodied in the Declaration of Independence.
Sachs, a special advisor to the United Nations and director of the Earth Institute at Columbia University, is a media superstar who can always be counted on to pontificate endlessly on such topics as income inequality and global health. This time, writing in a Catholic publication, he may have gone off his rocker, revealing the real global game plan.
The United States, Sachs writes in the Jesuit publication America, is “a society in thrall” to the idea of unalienable rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. But the “urgent core of Francis’ message” will be to challenge this “American idea” by “proclaiming that the path to happiness lies not solely or mainly through the defense of rights but through the exercise of virtues, most notably justice and charity.”
In these extraordinary comments, which constitute a frontal assault on the American idea of freedom and national sovereignty, Sachs has made it clear that he hopes to enlist the Vatican in a global campaign to increase the power of global or foreign-dominated organizations and movements.
Sachs takes aim at the phrase from America’s founding document, the United States Declaration of Independence, that “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”
These rights sound good, Sachs writes, but they’re not enough to guarantee the outcome the global elites have devised for us. Global government, he suggests, must make us live our lives according to international standards of development.
Sachs is putting forth that the UN should be in charge of all national and individual rights. That we have to sacrifice our individual rights for the greater, collective good. What hive mentality. He’s also for massive global taxation, population control and one world government. “We will need, in the end, to put real resources in support of our hopes,” he wrote. “A global tax on carbon-emitting fossil fuels might be the way to begin. Even a very small tax, less than that which is needed to correct humanity’s climate-deforming overuse of fossil fuels, would finance a greatly enhanced supply of global public goods.” The bill he wants to stick the US with is $845 billion.
The Pope has not only aligned himself with Sachs, but with the UN’s Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon, who told a Catholic Caritas International conference in Rome on May 12th that climate change is “the defining challenge of our time,” and that the solution lies in recognizing that “humankind is part of nature, not separate or above.” The pope’s encyclical on climate change is supposed to help mobilize the governments of the world in this crusade. This spells slavery for the world and an all-powerful tyrannical elite who will ruthlessly rule us through Marxist politics and a one world religion.
Sachs is not alone in his ideas. A short time ago, former President Shimon Peres met with the Pope at the Vatican and proposed that the Pope head up a UN for religions. I kid you not.
Via The Jerusalem Post:
But the main topic of conversation was Peres’s idea to create a UN-like organization he called “the United Religions.”
Peres said the Argentina-born pontiff was the only world figure respected enough to bring an end to the wars raging in the Middle East and elsewhere in the world.
“In the past, most of the wars in the world were motivated by the idea of nationhood,” Peres said. “But today, wars are incited using religion as an excuse.”
Vatican spokesman Fr. Federico Lombardi confirmed to reporters that Peres had pitched his idea for “the United Religions” but said Francis did not commit to it.
“The pope listened, showing his interest, attention, and encouragement,” Lombardi said, adding that the pope pointed to the Pontifical Councils for Interreligious Dialogue and for Justice and Peace as existing agencies “suitable” for supporting interfaith peace initiatives.
The meeting in September was the third one inside of four months. In an interview in the Catholic Magazine Famiglia Cristiana, Peres also called for the Pope to lead the inter-religious organization in order to curb terrorism: “What we need is an organization of United Religions… as the best way to combat terrorists who kill in the name of faith.” I literally cannot believe what I am hearing. This could well be the birth of a one world religion. This looks suspiciously like a move to reclaim the lost glory of the Church, harking back to those centuries when it held sway ’round the world, commanding fealty from kings and nobility. This “progressive” innovation is really a reactionary repackaging of the most sweeping colonialism in history. With one tongue they “condemn” colonialism, while with the other tongue they offer global subservience as the “solution” to the demon du jour.
From Karl Marx:
Religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, and the soul of soulless conditions. It is the opium of the people.
The Pope is offering the masses the opium of Marxism in his stances. The question is, will the world follow him down this path? So many these days just want someone to give them everything and take care of them… they hunger for a leader who will absolve them of their sins and promise them forgiveness and welcome them with open arms. Will people, in the name of peace, usher in a one world order and willingly give up their freedoms? I’m afraid history says they will, but I know Americans, Christians and others will not be assimilated so easily by Marxist musings and flowery articulation. Pontification will only carry you so far – if you follow this pied piper, you will find yourself in the loving embrace of the UN – that Democracy of Dictators – and all that entails.
Posted in American Stuff, Authors, Constitution, Financial, History, Politics, Religion, Survival, Terresa Monroe-Hamilton, Terrorism | Tagged Ann Barnhardt, Argentina, Atheist, Austerity, Ban Ki-moon, Barack Obama, Blasphemy, Bolivia, Capitalism, Catholics, Change, Christianized Marxism, Christians, Cliff Kincaid, Climate Change, Colonialism, Communism, Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Constititutional Conservative, Constitution, Crucifix, Declaration of Independence, Dictators, Economic Justice, Ecuador, Encyclical, Ernesto “Che” Guevara, Evo Morales, Father Albo, Federico Lombardi, Global Warming, Hammer and Sickle, Indians, Jeffrey Sachs, Jesuit, Jesus, Jose Ignacio Munilla, Karl Marx, Latin America, Leftists, Liberation Theology, Luis Espinal, Marxism, Media, Military, Mrianela Paco, Native Americans, One World Government, One World Religion, Paraguay, Politics, Pope Francis, Population Control, Progressives, Religion, San Sebastian, Shimon Peres, Social Justice, South America, Taxation, Terrorism, Trevor Loudon, UN, Unions, United Religions, Vatican, Wealth Redistribution, World Economic Order | 28 Comments
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Kris Kross Amsterdam Release New Single “Gone Is The Night” On Spinnin’ Records
November 28, 2017 By Phoenix Gonzales
Five years into their epic career, Kris Kross Amsterdam are definitely no strangers to smashing genres and breaking streaming records. The Dutch trio is comprised of brothers Sander and Jordy Huisman with MC Yuki Kempees, and together they have created an exciting blend of R&B, hip-hop, trap, and house. Their pioneering tropical R&B hit, “SEX“, raked up 450 million plays on Spotify alone, and 105 million views on YouTube. They have played at some of the most iconic stages all over the world such as Tomorrowland in Belgium, Exit Festival in Serbia, Amsterdam Dance Festival, and numerous clubs in Ibiza. The trio also saw major success as they collaborated with UK popstar Conor Maynard and US hip-hop artist Ty Dolla $ign on the crossover hit track, “Are You Sure?”
Out now on Spinnin’ Records is Kris Kross Amsterdam’s latest release, “Gone Is The Night”. The single features soaring vocals from Jorge Blanco and fuses melodic house and pop, while sticking to their signature R&B feel. Their sound has already won them the support from DJs including David Guetta, NERVO, and Martin Garrix, and we’re positive this one is set to build on that momentum.
Connect with Kris Kross Amsterdam:
https://www.facebook.com/kriskrossamsterdam
https://twitter.com/kriskrossadam
https://soundcloud.com/kriskrossamsterdam
https://www.instagram.com/kriskrossamsterdam
Gone Is The NightKris Kross AmsterdamNew Singlespinnin records
EDM Tracks House Latest Posts Music Pop
Phoenix Gonzales
Writer + Photographer - West Coast based - A heavy bassline is my kind of silence IG: @phoenixxag
Three Reasons Why Lights All Night Should Be Your New Year's Eve Plan
Truesoul Gets Groovy With the Label's First Ever 'Various Artists' EP Featuring Ramon Tapia, OC Verde + Veerus, Marc Marzenit and Ronnie Spiteri
Inukshuk Shines With Debut Ophelia Release, ‘Everbright’ EP
June 21, 2020 By Tori Matthews
Breathe Carolina Returns with ‘Dead’ LP Out Now on Spinnin’ Records
November 15, 2019 By Tori Matthews
December is two days away and so begins the countdown to New Year's Eve. The beginning of a new year and the ending of a pretty...
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special solo and relay 150K (93 mi.) races this year (www.calgarymarathon.com). OUTDOOR ADVENTURE As a huge birthday present to the country, Parks Canada is off ering free admission to all of its national parks, national marine conservation areas and national historic sites throughout 2017. As just three examples of ways to put this to good use: see Canada's highest mountain in Kluane National Park and Reserve in the Yukon, spot beluga whales right from the shore in Saguenay–St. Lawrence Marine Park in Québec, or tour Green Gables Heritage Place—which inspired the setting of the classic children's novel Anne of Green Gables—in Prince Edward Island. The free Discovery Pass is available at www.parkscanada.gc.ca. The Great Trail is also scheduled for completion in 2017. Conceived 25 years ago during Canada's 125 th anniversary celebra- tions, the nation-spanning network of recreational trails will stretch almost 24,000 km (14,913 mi.) and cross every province and territory—there's even a trail across the tip of Baffi n Island in Nunavut ( www.thegreattrail.ca ). ARTISTIC FLAIR In the Peace Liard region of northern British Columbia, artists and other residents are collaborating on a project to celebrate both Canada's big birthday and the 75 th anniversary of the Alaska Highway. They are transform- ing one of the machines used to build the highway into a piece of steampunk art ( www.peaceliardarts.org/special-projects/ public-art-sculpture). A charitable organization called Partners in Art is coordinating LandMarks 2017, June 10 to 25, a series of contemporary art installations in or near national parks, marine conserva- tion areas and historic sites ( www.landmarks 2017.ca ), including Pingo Canadian Landmark in the Northwest Territories and Gros Morne National Park in Newfoundland and Labrador. Another nationwide project, Canada 150 Mosaic, will see the creation of 150 murals in communities across the country, with railroads as the connecting theme ( www. canada150mosaic.com ). The Winnipeg Art Gallery is coordinating ART EXPRESS'D (canada150.wag.ca), in which three shipping containers converted into mo- bile art studios will travel across the country to encourage the public to express their feelings about Canada in art—June to August. AT THE MUSEUMS The Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21 in Halifax began celebrating Canada's big birthday early by developing an exhibition called Canada: Day 1 as a Canada 150 legacy project. Focusing on newcomers' fi rst impressions of their new home, the exhibition has been criss- crossing the country for several years. This year, two versions of it will be on display simultaneously in special recognition of the country's anniversary: one at the Canada Museum of History in Gatineau, Québec from June 2017 to January 2018, and the other at the Halifax museum from April to October 2017 ( www.pier21.ca/canada- day-1-travelling-exhibition-schedule). In Toronto, the Ontario Science Centre is presenting Canada 150: Discovery Way, an installation celebrating Canadian scientifi c achievements. It will run throughout 2017 ( www.ontariosciencecentre.ca/calendar/336 ). ONE OF A KIND Rendez-vous 2017, a regatta of over 40 tall ships, will be visiting more than 30 communities in Ontario, Québec and Atlantic Canada between June 30 and August 20 ( www.rdv2017.com). In Montréal, a $39-million project will see the landmark Jacques Cartier Bridge illuminated with thousands of lights that will change colour for diff erent occasions throughout the year, to celebrate Canada's birthday and the 375 th anniversary of the city's founding. The illuminations start on May 17. Ottawa, the nation's capital, is also hosting a huge range of sesquicentennial events. They include the Sky Lounge, the aforementioned dinner in the sky (July 7 to 22), a multimedia show in a soon-to-open underground transit station (June to September), huge mechanical creatures— La Machine—making their way through the city core from July 22 to 26 and a planned illumination of Chaudière Falls late in the year ( www.ottawa2017.ca ). In spring, 150 communities across the country will bloom with red and white tulips as part of the 150 Celebration Garden program ( www.canadasgardenroute.ca ). Many are small towns and villages, such as Saltcoats, Saskatchewan, and Hillsborough, New Brunswick. Vancouver hosts the second-largest Canada Day bash in the country, outside of Ottawa, and this year the celebrations at Canada Place will go on for three days, with food trucks, fi reworks, a citizenship ceremony and more ( www.canadaplace.ca ). That's just a taste of the events coming up. For more information on Canada 150 projects across the country, please see www.canada.pch.gc.ca/eng/1475163068164; www.canada.pch.gc.ca/eng/1468262573081 NEW YEAR'S EVE, IGNITING OTTAWA 2017 CELEBRATIONS • OTTAWA CELEBRATIONS BUREAU 17
http://www.calgarymarathon.com
http://www.parkscanada.gc.ca
http://www.thegreattrail.ca
http://www.peaceliardarts.org/special-projects/public-art-sculpture
http://2017.ca
http://canada150mosaic.com
http://canada150.wag.ca
http://www.pier21.ca/canada-day-1-travelling-exhibition-schedule
http://www.ontariosciencecentre.ca/calendar/336
http://www.rdv2017.com
http://www.ottawa2017.ca
http://www.canadasgardenroute.ca
http://www.canadaplace.ca
http://www.canada.pch.gc.ca/eng/1475163068164
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cc/2021-04/en_head_0045.json.gz/line4207
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