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__label__wiki	0.871962	0.871962	Contact Subscribe Gifts Renew About The Menu Dining Guide Behind the Page Retire-VA Home Magazine Features Gaila Catron's Pretty Teeth Fraxel Treatment: Bobbie Hawkins Gaila Catron's Pretty Teeth by Andrea Mattioni-Willis Gaila Catron and her twin, Kay were professional gospel singers but neither felt she had a smile to sing about. “For many years I was on a lot of TV shows with my sister,” says Catron, “During those years I had to smile into the camera with yucky looking teeth.” Catron was dissatisfied with her teeth because she had large fillings in her front teeth that were different shades from the rest of the tooth enamel. Those fillings were necessary due to what she calls dental dereliction of duty. “We’re 60 and when we were children there wasn’t chlorine in the water,” says Catron. “Plus Kay and I didn’t take brushing our teeth as seriously as we should have and ate a lot of candy.” “I just wanted to have pretty teeth,” says Catron, “My sister was able to have hers done many years ago and I wasn’t.” The dentist who repaired and beautified Catron’s sister’s teeth was located in Ohio. Catron thought that he was the only dentist who could restore her smile. Then she saw Dr. Paul Henny’s commercial on TV and it piqued her interest. “Something in me said to go see him and let him evaluate me,” says Catron, which she did with sister Kay in tow as a model for what she hoped to look like. Henny listened to Catron’s concerns, examined her teeth and laid out a plan that included Invisalign braces, at-home tooth whitening, crowns on 12 of her top teeth and gum surgery by Dr. Linda Till. Dr. Enrique Silberblatt (Catron’s plastic surgeon), Henny, and Catron agreed to work with The Roanoker during the makeover series and we were off and running. Catron began her tooth restoration journey by wearing the Invisalign braces. This system of clear “aligners” straightens teeth without the need for the traditional wire and bracket braces. Henny considered this a crucial step. “It allowed us to put the teeth in a more ideal position so when we restored them they’d look more natural and be more healthy over time,” says Henny. The Invisalign braces were unobtrusive and hardly affected Catron’s daily routine. “I wore upper and lower Invisalign braces and it only took a few months to straighten my teeth,” says Catron. “They were not uncomfortable and didn’t bother me.” While her teeth were being subtly straightened, Catron also used the at-home whitening trays Henny provided. Her teeth were not only discolored from the fillings of slightly different colors. Past use of antibiotics had led to a grayish tone to her teeth. That type of discoloration responds better to the at-home trays. “Our intention was to boost the lower teeth color up to an acceptable level to Gaila so we could use that color as a reference point in the new upper restorations,” says Henny. The initial steps were completed and Henny was ready to prep and place the six front temporary crowns. While the appointment lasted for more than four hours, not all of the time was spent working in Catron’s mouth. A chunk of the time was spent on the careful crafting of the temporary crowns. “It takes me almost an hour and a half to make the temporary crowns which are all made by hand,” says Henny. The hours flew by for Catron who was numbed by local anesthetic and distracted by the movie, Anna and the King. She watched the movie through virtual reality goggles that Henny provides for patients during long procedures. “It made the time go by very quickly,” says Catron. “Never before had I thought to myself I hoped a dentist wasn’t done too quickly.” By the end of the appointment the change to Catron’s smile was impressive. Her top six teeth had been transformed. The discolorations, and other flaws were gone. In their place was a row of six perfect teeth. Catron’s new look impressed everyone who knew her. “My family, friends and loved ones all noticed and commented very positively,” says Catron. “They were so happy for me.” Catron will still have six more teeth crowned, gum surgery and the final porcelain crowns fashioned in Henny’s office by his in-house ceramist, Ryan Pennington. These crucial steps and the final results will appear in a future issue of The Roanoker. Even though only at the halfway point in her treatment, Catron is thrilled with the positive change to her teeth. “I have had many people comment that they do not look like temporary crowns and that they looked like real teeth,” says Catron. “They look like my teeth only much, much better.” Contact: Dr. Paul Henny, 774-1577 Cost thus far: $5,700 Miss a Recent Issue? Check Our Digital Archives! Digital Edition Index Download Our iOS App! Choose Your Lists: Deals & Giveaways from TheRoanoker.com This Month on TheRoanoker.com You can unsubscribe at any time. Emails serviced by Constant Contact. Free Newcomers Guide Free Retirement Guide	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803202
__label__cc	0.720449	0.279551	The Treasure Chest Arrr! See CONTENTS for links to the 125 chapters of The Monstaville Memoirs plus introductions, conclusions, postscripts and appendices. This treasure trove also includes a collection of articles offering further insights into the themes explored in the trilogy. Namely, managing suffering and conflict (dealing with hostile people if you are nervous, sensitive or shy) and learning not to react ANTRAEUS.COM MONSTAVILLE IS HERE! MotherShip by Sam Wise ___ PLEASE REFRESH PAGE FOR WEB FONTS Monstaville Book I. Chapter 15: Mockingbird Heights Mockingbird Heights “And, so, being young and dipped in folly, I fell in love with melancholy.” - Edgar Allen Poe. I don’t do cold weather. Yes, I’ve tried it thanks and it’s not for me. Everyone has their own way of dealing with the gloomy weather in Britain not to mention the drab industrial concrete, pollution, oppression and poverty (by which I mean that being poor in a cold, Capitalist country is less bearable than equal conditions in a sunny clime, that is, barring extreme poverty of course). We endure it each and every year of our lives. The light fades, energy diminishes, souls withdraw and the good vibrations of Summer are finally quelled along with the once-vibrant roses. The climate alone makes Northern European countries depressing. It’s snow joke! (Mark Twain once observed, “In India, ‘cold weather’ is merely a conventional phrase and has come into use through the necessity of having some way to distinguish between weather which will melt a brass door-knob and weather which will only make it mushy”). Tommy Solomon (Joseph Gordon-Levitt): Huh, it’s freezing out here! Can we go inside now? Dick Solomon (John Lithgow): No, we’re here to experience everything on this planet. Even the uncomfortable parts. Tommy: [Fidgeting, shuffling his ass on the roof] I have some very uncomfortable parts! - 3rd Rock from the Sun (Season 1, Episode 12, ‘Frozen Dick,’ created by Bonnie and Terry Turner, written by Linwood Boomer). The only consistent mood possible for many people living in cold countries is that of depression. Cold weather is contracting and tends to lower one’s energy vibration and increase negativity. Physically and socially we may find ourselves barely coping, never really sufficiently loosened up to open ourselves to life. This contributes for certain to our dutiful, disciplined approach to life, our conformity to the status quo and our meek acceptance of oppressive conditions, forever treading the hamster wheel of drudgery and limitation, perpetuating the cycle of working and complaining. We come out of our shells a little during the summer months (or weeks!) and before we know it the big bad wolf is back and blowing our house down again. It’s downright depressing. I can’t deal with it anyway. I need sunshine and lots of it. The world we create during the summer comes tumbling down in winter and we have to start from scratch again in the spring. Consequently, we never get very ‘high’ and, often, we are convinced that aiming high is such a futile pastime doomed to end in failure and even greater misery and despair that we do not allow ourselves the luxury of contemplating a better quality of life, envisioning a future of fulfilment. Indeed, in our post-feudal so-called democracy we often settle for compensation in terms of materialistic ambitions which basically means that we cling fearfully to the roots of wintry darkness beneath the soil with the trunk of wealth and power concentrated in the hands of the few weighing down on our heads. We have grown so accustomed to the conditions of lack and struggle that we do not even notice that there are no fruits growing on the tree, no love, no joy, no creative power or fulfilment. “Yet still we love the summer because even the slightest rise in temperature causes our kidney and lower abdominal area to relax, and when that happens we stop being so afraid of life and each other. One of the main reasons people in the U.K. tend towards the repressed and reserved, compared to, say the southern Italians, it is because the cooler temperatures of the other three seasons cause our kidney regions to contract which, according to the Taoists, engenders an underlying sense of foreboding and existential fear. Which is exactly why we tend to let go during the summer months.” – barefoot Doctor (Dear Barefoot. Taoist Wisdom for Everyday Living, Atlantic Books, on behalf of Guardian Newspapers Ltd., London, U.K., p.321-322). “In England we don’t say ‘I love you;’ instead we’ve built an entire culture around being repressed where expressing your feelings is extremely frowned upon and I think that’s why we drink so much.” – Supercilious. Being in a negative environment means that we must work harder to feel positive, actively direct our intent and find some way to at least cope. Our inner strength is tested. We might fall down many times but, each time we get up again, no matter how slowly or awkwardly, we are developing more strength. It might not feel or seem as though this is the case at the time but we are deepening our roots, becoming acquainted with our unconscious in order that the tree of human potential can grow to greater conscious heights. You know, people’s will to live, to survive, to compete, to win, to control, to love even, is often so ego-based. Remove the conditional ego and one wonders what is worth living for. Life can indeed seem pointless. “Any moment of great happiness will also be a great moment of sadness.” – Osho (www.oshoquotes.net/category/osho-quotes-on-sadness). And so, I feel, this is what real despair accomplishes: it silences the ego and prompts us to dig deeper and tap into reserves of strength and wisdom within ourselves. This is the domain of the Underworld, Hades, where the ego is indeed dead transformed into a state of greater wholeness). It cannot breathe or function here. Separation simply does not exist. “As Jung says, it is as if the conscious mind volunteers to die in order to bear a new and fruitful life in the unconscious, despite the fears of the unknown and the fear that inevitably arises when a journey with a sense of trust and willingness to take a risk no matter what, and now, once again, he has to take a risk and dare to make that inner journey.” (The Complete Book of Tarot by Juliet Sharman-Burke, Pan Books, London, U.K., 1985, p.79). "Tish and Gomez are not amused. They aren’t putting up with your bullshit today." "In my case, I was not frightened in the least bit at the thought that I might live because I was certain, quite certain, that I was already dead." – Elizabeth Wurtzel (Prozac Nation. Young and Depressed in America: A Memoir, Riverhead Books, New York, U.S., 1995). This is the place that Goths celebrate and not always so morbidly but often quite joyously. A love of death can be a more intense love of life! Sure, because it represents a passion and appreciation for deeper feelings. Those who believe that living wholly in their egos is living fully have yet to suffer sufficiently to see through the veil of illusion. Such a limited identity is doomed and, at the point of actual physical death, it will be too late to wake up from this dream. At least when one experiences a nightmare one wishes to wake up, desperately even! Therefore, perhaps we ought to embrace our suffering and realise that crisis and opportunity really do amount to the same thing. Naturally, however, there is a big difference between being comfortable with the darker emotions and yielding to the “sirens of self-pity that keep drawing you,” as Lazaris eloquently states. The latter suggests losing one’s integrity and spiralling out of control, being at the mercy of the forces of chaos. The former suggests a choice, a willingness to remain open, deep and sensitive, or to acknowledge, accept and even be thankful for these qualities, these gifts, regardless of what may surface from within or without. This is emotional maturity, an initiatory step towards owning all that appears in one’s life. One becomes a kind of ‘cauldron of transformation’: not suppressing these emotions and energies affords one many opportunities to transform and let go of the past. If darkness is part of our world, if sadness and sorrow have yet to be released fully, then goths, at least the ones I admire, are people who face and transform it creatively, whether compassionately or not. They are people of inner strength. They do not fear the unknown. Not being afraid of the dark, they can integrate it. "People living deeply have no fear of death." - Anaïs Nin. “Death sits in the seat next to me. We make a lovely couple.” - Charles Bukowski. “If we are completely honest with ourselves,” says Italian actress Isabella Rossellini, “everyone has a dark side to their personalities.” Owning and embracing one’s darkness, loving and nurturing it, teaches us about ourselves and eventually transforms it into wisdom. This does not make one a negative person at all. It means one is quite balanced and not denying part of oneself. True wholeness is deep and dark; then there’s all the more water for the Sun to illumine as the fishes surface and return to the riverbed. Thus, the river of consciousness is rich with life. In fact, what I perceive is that goths tend to bring out the beauty in darkness – and often the humour too – by turning it into theatre. It is glamorised on the surface but deep down lies an intuitive, loving, playful spirit that has learned to cope with suffering and torment by turning the process into an art form. The person might even be innately sweet and yet enjoy channelling their dark side playfully, thereby exploring their power or their potential for beauty and wisdom in other areas of life and consciousness, enriching and perfecting their souls through such experience. “I am a forest, and a night of dark trees: but he who is not afraid of my darkness, will find banks full of roses under my cypresses.” - Friedrich Nietzsche. Goths are people who love their dark side and that can translate into many individual expressions: all the colours of the rainbow, in fact! Inner light is birthed in the womb of the unconscious as we tap into it. Depth of feeling causes pain and conflict to surface which is a healing process even though we are conditioned to view it as something wholly negative in itself. In this way, we face ourselves and release what we have held onto for too many lifetimes. "Why does the rest of the world put up with the hypocrisy, the need to put a happy face on sorrow, the need to keep on keeping on?...I don’t know the answer, I know only that I can’t. I don't want any more vicissitudes, I don't want any more of this try, try again stuff. I just want out. I’ve had it. I am so tired. I am twenty and I am already exhausted." – Elizabeth Wurtzel (Prozac Nation. Young and Depressed in America: A Memoir, Riverhead Books, New York, U.S., 1995). What I see is fourth dimensional consciousness which is right where I have made my home for most of my life since I am someone who has been making my way through this dimension, moving towards the end of the tunnel to the 5D Light at the end of it. It is here that the battles between good and evil are fought and denial will never serve to release our inner demons. A rich inner life, as well as artistic and cultural depth and substance, means that one is conscious on a deeper level of feeling and consciousness and therefore not a hollow 3D vessel into which others can throw garbage (such as consumer advertising, trashy zines and television programmes). It is a matter of refinement, degrees of quality regarding consciousness. As we also know, the next step, when the purging is complete, is fifth-dimensional Love, Light and Oneness. "The darkness is also a kind of revelation of divinity." - Matthew Fox. Our darkness is the source of our beauty and wisdom. It is what gives our realisation and expression of ourselves as Light meaning and depth, balance and continuity. It relates to the feminine aspect of God, the mysterious Light of the Goddess. We need to keep and integrate the darkness with the Light, take the refined qualities that have resulted from the transformation through suffering, the butterfly through the chrysalis, leave the toxicity behind and take the prize with us, the precious pearl created through inner conflict. We need to balance dark and light, not deny or repress the dark but take its beauty and wisdom with us, carry it forth into the Light. For, it is this experience from which the butterfly’s unique beauty is derived. We let go of the experience but we ascend in our full glory for the entire cosmos to enjoy and admire! Praise is plentiful in the Heavens I shouldn’t wonder. Love me, for I am utterly adorable! Love me as I, too, love and cherish you, for you, too, are infinitely loveable! “Each aesthetic thought you have, or deed you do, increases your consciousness and brings your vibration of love closer to heaven. Indeed, each time you are environmentally wise, or reach positive agreements, or are kind to one another, you are blessing life and your own soul frequency, as well. This results in increased perception and higher consciousness for use in balancing your personality with its soul commitment as a galactic caregiver.” - Jeshua (‘The Christ,’ channelled through Virginia Essene, New Teachings For An Awakening Humanity, Spiritual Education Endeavours Publishing Company, CA., U.S., 1986, updated 1994, p.202). Ancient peoples were more in touch with the fourth dimension, with what might be referred to as ‘Dreamtime’ or the ‘Other World.’ It is etheric in nature but those who enter or reside in that realm (such as the elementals and those humans who are between incarnations in the astral planes) are not fully conscious unless they come from a higher dimension of Light, of formless Reality and pure Being. Some tribal and shamanic traditions have been preserved to this day and, as Terence McKenna explains, it is this realm with which schizophrenics and people on drugs are familiar, albeit it often in a distorted form unless they have received the training and wisdom required to acclimatise to this dimension of expanded consciousness. By transcending the holographic illusion of the third dimension, we lift ourselves out of the ‘box’ and return to a state of wholeness which is both liberating and empowering (precisely what the powers that be seek to prevent us from experiencing). Whilst, in the fourth dimension we may experience various levels of ‘wholeness,’ we are still attached to form. We do not know ourselves as pure Light and love until we enter the fifth dimension, our inner Reality, our multidimensional core. Many of our revolutionaries only go as far as 4D to find solutions because that is ostensibly the next step. It is the series of layers that form a bridge to the worlds of Light. The mystics, however, centre themselves in the transcendental fifth dimension and, having moved deep within to their very core, pay much less attention to this inner realm of phenomena. Our exploration of altered states of consciousness through eroticism and imagination, drug and alcohol use, dancing and playing, and so on, is really a longing to return to God/Goddess. Many of our so-called ‘pastimes’ allow us to relax and open up to the realm in which the soul has never left. “I never really hated the one true God but the God of the people I hated.” - Marilyn Manson (from the song ‘Disposable Teens,’ on the album Holy Wood (In the Shadow of the Valley of Death, 2000). Goths, it might be said, are inside-out, in relation to other people, revealing their emotional and romantic and sexual selves to the world. They wear their darkest depths on the outside instead of whitewashing their shadow. It is not generally a statement just a degree of individual truth and intensity that feels natural to own and share with like minds in some way – without going into intimate detail in public obviously, but, nevertheless, acknowledging, expressing or celebrating that which is hidden from view in most people! What if our physical 3D personalities are the tip of the iceberg and our 4D consciousness is the remainder while the ocean beneath is our vast, multidimensional Self? The ultimate purpose of incarnating in the holographic third dimension is to know the Self and combine the conscious awareness of the ego with the feelings and wholeness of the soul to realise the higher frequency of Light, eternal Being. Coming out of the 3D ‘box,’ ‘out of the ordinary,’ is like hatching from an egg. We exit the darkness and can see and experience more of life, as much as our personal and collective imaginations allow (which also form a shared realm of existence which may also be known as ‘reality’ until it is finally transcended). We might then be perceived as strange to those embryos who remain unconscious of their individual potential as birds but we have, really, become ‘extraordinary’ and gifted individuals. Yet, the chick, whilst it may be considered ‘whole,’ is not complete until it spreads its wings and learns to fly. The Light body can be compared to a set of wings that can carry us high up into the sky from where our perspective of life is closer to that of the Sun. It represents the beginning of our return journey to the Sun as we express and realise more and more of the Light, more and more of the love and creative power, that we are as the Creator. McKenna encapsulates our relationship to fourth-dimensional states of mind and feeling which are not dependent on the material plane brilliantly: “We have no tradition of shamanism. We have no tradition of journeying into these mental worlds. We are terrified of madness. We fear it because the Western mind is a house of cards. And the people who built that house of cards know that and they are terrified of madness. Tim Leary once said, or I gave him credit for saying - he later told me he never said it; whoever said it, this was a brilliant statement - someone once said: ‘LSD is a psychedelic substance which occasionally causes psychotic behaviour in people who have not taken it.’ And, I would bet you that more people have exhibited psychotic behaviour from not taking LSD but just thinking about it than ever exhibited from taking it. Certainly, in my family, I watched my parents both go psychotic from the mere fact that LSD existed. They would never have taken it. There is a great phobia about the mind. The Western mind is very queasy when first principles are questioned. Rarer than corpses in this society are the untreated mad because we can’t come to terms with that. A shaman is someone who swims in the same ocean as a schizophrenic but the shaman has thousands and thousands of years of sanctioned technique and tradition to draw upon. In a traditional society, if you exhibit ‘schizophrenic tendencies,’ you are immediately drawn out of the pack and put under the care and tutelage of master shamans. You are told, ‘You are special. Your abilities are very central to the health of our society. You will cure. You will prophesy. You will guide our society in the most fundamental decisions. Contrast this with a person exhibiting schizophrenic activity in our society who is told: ‘You don’t fit in. You are becoming a problem. You don’t pull your own weight. You are not equal worth to the rest of us. You are sick. You have to go to the hospital. You have to be locked up. You are on a par with the prisoners and lost dogs in our society. So that treatment of schizophrenia makes it incurable. Imagine if you were slightly odd and the solution were to take you and put you, lock you, into a place where everyone was seriously mad. That would drive anyone mad. If you’ve ever been in a mad house, you know that it’s an environment calculated to make you crazy and to keep you crazy. This would never happen in an aboriginal or traditional society...We have gone sick by following a path of untrammelled rationalism, make dominance, attention to the visible surface of things, practicality, bottom-line-ism. We have gone very sick. And the body politic, like any body, when it feels itself to be sick it begins to produce antibodies, or strategies for overcoming the condition of dis-ease. And, the twentieth century is an enormous effort at self-healing: phenomena as diverse as surrealism, body-piercing, psychedelic drug use, sexual permissiveness, jazz, experimental dance, rave culture, tattooing, the list is endless. What do all these things have in common? They represent various styles of rejection of linear values. This society is trying to cure itself by an archaic revival, by a reversion to archaic values. So, when I see people manifesting sexual ambiguity or scarifying themselves, or showing a lot of flesh, or dancing to syncopated music, or getting loaded, or violating ordinary canons of sexual behaviour, I applaud all of this because it’s an impulse to return to what is felt by the body, what is authentic, what is archaic. And, when you tease apart these archaic impulses, at the very centre of all these impulses is the desire to return to a world of magical empowerment of feeling. And, at the centre of that impulse is the shaman, stoned, intoxicated as planet, speaking with the spirit helpers, dancing in the moonlight and visifying and evoking a world of conscious living mystery. That’s what the world is. The world is not an unsolved problem for scientists or sociologists. The world is a living mystery. Our birth, our death, our being in the moment, these are mysteries. They are doorways opening on to unimaginable vistas of self-exploration, empowerment, and hope for the human enterprise. And, our culture has killed that, taken it away from us, made us consumers...we have to get away from that... There is nothing as powerful, as capable of transforming itself and the planet as the human imagination. Let’s not sell it straight. Let’s not whore ourselves to nit wit ideologies. Let’s not give our control over to the least among us. Rather, you know, claim your place in the Sun and go forward into the Light. The tools are there. The path is known. You simply have to turn your back on a culture that has gone sterile and dead and get with the programme of a living world and a re-empowerment of the imagination.” (Excerpt from Terence McKenna’s lecture, ‘Eros and Eschaton,’ in Seattle, 1994). For Goths, feeling takes priority and I have always admired that (I have known many to have been water signs, and usually they have also been vegetarians and vegans like myself) because it is this domain that I am spending a lifetime working on myself. Their defiant otherworldliness is founded on deep passions and romantic imaginations. Romanticism is realism in that it recognises passion and inspiration, energy, emotion, truth, inner reality and nature. Gothic language and costume enhances feeling. They are conducive to feelings that flow as one current, as a whole. Where the darker emotions (and dark secrets) are allowed a natural flow of expression, they may be accompanied by other, lighter feelings, intuitive insights and visions. Where they are shared, and even explored, a deeper, loving union may be experienced. Where there is sensitivity, there is often tremendous compassion both for self and others. Where there is intensity, there is often a great reservoir of creative power. Where there is fantasy, consciousness is fluid and can shift negative, stagnant emotions. Where there is appreciation, love may also emerge. Where sorrow is cherished so may feelings of love release them. Yes, sorrow is sometimes sexy! Malice is not but I have never found there to be more malicious goths than any other group of people. Quite the opposite. They often adhere to Wiccan beliefs which, in our degenerate society, I perceive as a good thing: at least they have an affinity with a wisdom tradition. Feelings are for trusting and, since we are having such difficulty trusting our feelings in the West, I consider many goths to be ‘ahead of the game,’ old souls who need a deeper way of being and living than popular culture and society in general offers. We are deeper than any role or costume, of course, and it's what's in the heart that matters. Yet, I kind of like the idea of being a kind of double agent too: revealing the wisdom and beauty in darkness, which is deeply feminine and continually fascinates me, both to those who shun the darker shades of truth and refuse to face their own inner depths, and to those who are lost in the chaos of darkness because they have not found the torch of the spirit – and of love - to light the way. "The only way you can successfully cross the troubled waters is to keep your focus on the distant shore. For a new energy to form the old energy has to die and as it dies there will be chaos in your life. But when the chaos subsides and you come out of the fire, you will be one with your God. The caterpillar has shed its past and the beautiful butterfly is born." - Gary Bate (Becoming A Christ, Bluelight Publishing, 2003). I have always admired the inner beauty and power, passion and stillness, I detect in many Goths. A fascination for the beauty and mystery of death calls attention to the slow process of transformation that we are all really undergoing. Most of us have been in a chrysalis state for a long series of lifetimes, incarnating with the intention of dying to the ego but then, when we’ve arrived here, forgetting and abandoning the true purpose for which we came. The beauty is there in the petals whether they unfold or not. Knowing the Sun can open the flower but so, too, can knowing the beauty within, even in darkness, carry us inwards to our very essence, to our mysterious, unfathomable, infinite core which is our inner Sun. It is the way of the Goddess. “Beauty comes with dark thoughts,” wrote Anaïs Nin. The inner world of the soul inspires deeper feelings and reflects the beauty and passion of the spirit. Ultimately, eternal Being and universal consciousness are one infinite whole and we are both uniquely individual expressions of our Creator and part of the cosmic Mother. “If you can accept sadness, it is no more sadness. You have brought a new quality to it. You will grow through it. Now it will not be a stone, a rock on the path blocking the way; it will become a step. And remember always: a person who has not known deep sadness is a poor person. He will never have an inner richness. A person who has lived always happy, smiling, shallow, has not entered into the innermost temple of his being. He has missed the innermost shrine.” – Osho (www.oshoquotes.net/category/osho-quotes-on-sadness). Although I am not someone who relishes blood and gore, depth of feeling has always been my home. My passion and intensity are matched by a squeamish oversensitivity. I do, however, adore The Munsters and The Addams Family whose characters actually welcome and thrive on the horrible aspects of life. I find it uplifting to entertain the possibility that the nightmare of human life is in some way worthwhile, beautiful and enjoyable, something to be grateful for even. A great adventure; a mighty joke. Laurel and Hardy inspire me in a similar fashion: everything goes wrong but it is always hilarious (the relationship between my ego and Inner Child over the past decade is reminiscent of such comedy duos, also including Morecombe and Wise and Steptoe and Son: the responsible but often dull or incompetent adult and the playful but often demanding or unworldly ‘child’). “Goth used to be a subclassification of punk. In the early to mid 80s, it emerged as a subculture in its own right, complete with its own graphic art, literature, music and fashion. There is so much diversity within the gothic world that its members strongly resist attempts at definition and labelling. Yet there are stereotypes that linger...Goth unashamedly celebrates the dark recesses of the human psyche. Put the back of your hand on your forehead, and you're there: dark sensuality, sweeping sadness, morbid fascination, forbidden love, the beauty of enduring pain, you get the picture...Many people lead unhappy, unachieved lives. And that's sad. Goth makes depression and angst a lifestyle choice, and that's art...You simply can't maintain a room full of despairing people dressed in black for very long without someone starting a chain of laughter. Once you realise you've gone over the top, there's nothing left to do but laugh. It's a self-deflating culture that delights in self-parody and in ridiculing itself. To put it plainly: it's fun.” (Excerpts from ‘A Goth Primer,’ www.sfgoth.com/primer). Death, as a style, announces the death of the ego, in my view. Yes, sometimes the limited light of the ego is replaced with utter darkness but, more often than not, one finds that a greater flame glows within these deep, sensitive souls. The destruction of form is neutral, like all archetypes and symbols, and depends upon how one perceives or expresses it. As an end in itself destruction is a bloody nightmare which, for me, is a crude, less meaningful penetration to emotional intensity beyond form, such as the brutal lust of a vampire. The whole fascination with taking blood or psychic energy from others and related themes is based, it appears, on a need to feel powerful; as is demonic possession. It is rooted in insecurity. From a more philosophical viewpoint, each individual is their own greatest source of power. So, the transformation from lower to higher energy through letting go of form and feeling more at home in the dark depths of consciousness, where much is unknown, potentially carries us from physical to spiritual reality. It is in those hidden depths that the Light of the spirit is discovered. Vampires are also metaphors for the power of the unconscious and the power of lust to possess us, strip us of our identities and turn us into wretched and diabolical creatures of the night. We are released from ourselves but we become subhuman rather than superhuman although the experience is all part of the evolutionary process as we strive to transcend the ego self. "And those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music.” ‑ Friedrich Nietzsche. “That which you mistake for madness is but an overacuteness of the senses.” – Edgar Allan Poe (The Tell-Tale Heart, 1843). Have you never pondered the fascinating contradiction of a smiling, even exuberantly cheerful and gregarious, Goth? The outer darkness conceals an inner light, a deeper power and beauty, strength and peace, than belongs to the physical world. And, indeed, one so departed from mainstream society might be considered ‘deceased’ for one can hardly get on in a post-patriarchal, capitalist society without a strong ego. Alas, society continues to push people of all shapes and sizes into its square compartments. All form is symbolism. All experience is symbolic of states of consciousness which as, in turn, potentials of Being. The outer garments reflect something within and bring realisation to potentiality. All symbolism appears to be neutral. It is energised by the intent behind it (and those who are unconscious may fall victim to it just as they may also be healed, inspired or uplifted by it, elevated to a higher state of awareness). Our society tends to label and judge people according to how they appear and what they do. This expresses a need to define people in terms of group identity according to what the group perceives as good and desirable, to favour some and stigmatise others. It establishes the norm, enabling shallow-minded people to feel more secure and deny their responsibility to become conscious as individuals. We never have enough information to enable us to fully understand the truth of the reality around us. And there is never only one correct perspective about anything. Knowing this helps me let go of my tendency to label things as good or bad. I suffer least when I can accept reality just as it is. And I benefit most when I open my heart and mind in appreciation. I have to confess, however, to having opened thus through the experience of always feeling different from everyone I have met throughout my life. “Too weird to live; too rare to die”: that’s what chiefly makes me so broadminded! [1]. “Behind all the symbols of phenomena of life in the human world, beneath every movement of the play, there is only Love. The very stage upon which life is lived in this illusion is Love itself, and your heart can perceive this in each and every moment.” - From The Messages from God (channelled through Yael and Doug Powell, 13 June 2011, www.circleoflight.net). The original spirit of Punk expresses a desire for individual freedom, for independence from the oppression of the system (or ‘Shitstem’ as John Lydon is fond of calling it). Anarchy itself is misconstrued by the masses to represent the chaotic freedom which they fear so much as they huddle together for safety’s sake. However, there is no freedom without discipline on the part of the individual. Anarchy is responsible freedom and therefore rejects the System and the control that the authorities wield over humanity (by employing fear and material rewards). Remove the object of rebellion and restore creative power and spiritual awareness and a world of Light will emerge. With awareness comes a natural aspiration to raise one’s frequency and become all that one can be. The fact that some people desire freedom from oppression but have yet to comprehend that violent rebellion only serves to feed their oppressors with more negative energy does not detract from this essential truth. I like the skull and crossbones motif personally and, whenever I have worn it on my clothing, I have found that most people either have no understanding of my intention for doing so or they believe it to be a symbol of evil. Systems are destroyed through information and ideas, which are also the Light which creates true civilisation. For me, the skull and crossbones motif is a symbol of defiance and independence without the sinister marauding that is often associated with it. I’m no loveable rogue like Jack Sparrow! (and I’m not a member of the Nazi ‘Skull and Bones’ secret society that George W. Bush belongs to!). I might be a bit of a self-styled outlaw on the quiet though. When freedom is outlawed, only outlaws will be free,” to quote Tom Robbins. I do believe that symbolism is neutral, as I suggested earlier. Just because the Illuminati have bombarded us with symbols that mean something specific to them in terms of controlling humanity why assume that I read the same meaning into a particular symbol as you? These symbols influence the consciousness of the masses subliminally. They carry a meaning that the elite may want us to see, whether unconsciously or semi-consciously. Yet, with increased awareness and through knowing ourselves more deeply, we can rise above this impressionable state. Hence, this is discouraged in all fields of human experience! Your culture, be it foreign or a superficial resonance with popular culture in the West, may only allow you to perceive that a symbol or set of symbols is ‘good’ and everything else is ‘bad.’ That is the perception of the limited ego which is dependent on someone else’s will, purpose or identity, living to feed their power. Our rulers now employ such sophisticated tools of persuasion that we now believe that we are free when we are not. We conform, through fear, insecurity and ignorance, to what they want for us and what they want us to do. We are like children. This state of extreme duality, even though few are alert to this collective crisis, should be buried along with the Dark Ages. And, indeed, the butterfly is emerging from its cocoon and our universal family, the galactic community of butterflies, is cheering us on. The birth process is painful and yet the time for celebration is oh so near! The silent revolution is well underway and the journey is almost complete. Just one more push…we can do it! “Happiness is always shallow; sadness, always deep. Happiness is like a wave, sadness is like the innermost depth of an ocean. In sadness you remain with yourself, left alone. In happiness you start moving with people, you start sharing. In sadness you close your eyes; you delve deep within yourself. Sadness has a song - a very deep phenomenon is sadness. Accept it. Enjoy it. Taste it without any rejection, and you will see that it brings many gifts to you which no happiness can ever bring.” – Osho (www.oshoquotes.net/category/osho-quotes-on-sadness). The ‘gothic person’ for whom feeling, passion, imagination and consciousness are most important is, to my mind, a deeply feminine individual or, at least, honours or focuses on that part of themselves. The Dark Goddess, symbolised by Lilith in the Bible, but also many other goddesses of wisdom, death and transformation in ancient cultures, has been living in exile for thousands of years, but these layers of magic and mystery are returning to human consciousness. She is the Destroyer of limitations, of blockages, ignorance and all that holds us back. She is the Destroyer of ego separation. It is in the unknown depths of our own consciousness that the jewels of beauty and wisdom reside just as the pearlescent stars shimmer in the night sky. Plumbing these depths enables us to bring out the beauty and wealth of our inner being through deep, compelling feelings. We find perfection in imperfection. We draw out the essence as water from a well dug deep in the ground. The Dark Goddess represents the power of consciousness, of feeling, of Oneness. “Life consists of sadness too. And sadness is also beautiful; it has its own depth, its own delicacy, its own deliciousness, its own taste. A man is poorer if he has not known sadness; he is impoverished, very much impoverished. His laughter will be shallow, his laughter will not have depth, because depth comes only through sadness. A man who knows sadness, if he laughs, his laughter will have depth. His laughter will have something of his sadness too, his laughter will be more colourful.” – Osho (www.oshoquotes.net/category/osho-quotes-on-sadness). Amidst a barrage of inane comments on Goth culture, A.A. Gill observes that, “Goths are acolytes of suicide, grisly death, mascara and children’s fairy stories.” He asks, “Why they should have outlasted all the other more vigorous and attractive movements of the last thirty years is a proper mystery…being a Goth is a cul-de-sac. A dead end for the un-dead.” (The Angry Island, 2005, Weidenfeld & Nicolson, London, U.K., p.99). Well, sensitive individuals are enduring the modern world despite its being run by “insane people for insane objectives,” to quote John Lennon (“I think we're being run by maniacs for maniacal ends,” he added, “and I think I'm liable to be put away as insane for expressing that. That's what's insane about it”). On the one hand, they feel that this is such a hopeless situation that they can’t do anything about it and have little choice but to feel the despair, face the pain and surrender, at least to these inner states, whilst remaining diametrically opposed to the hideous farce that form has become all around them in the external world. On the other hand, facing one’s darkness and delving into the very essence of one’s consciousness in a continuous process of self-transformation is strikingly mature in contrast to a corrupt patriarchal System and the shallow conformity it merrily breeds. The caterpillars fail to see this. They just scoff at the bats in the belfry barricading their bottoms from the bastions of cringing buggery, or ‘civilisaton.’ They condemn the chrysalis phase, the black vinyl body bag hanging silently from a brittle brain as it is bombarded by bullets of brute banality, while many Indigos, with their intensity and depth of feeling, dive head-on into it, more passionately alive than those who believe they are really ‘living.’ As for outlasting other youth movements, people with depth cannot be any other way. Finding a way to express themselves is more a matter of life and death than more transient concerns such as fashion or angst. An affinity with a certain type of appearance and culture can be a lifeline for people who otherwise appear ‘dead to the world.’ Goth culture, or consciousness, also accommodates the broadest range of people so there are always those who feel most at home here, just as the colour black provides an ideal background for photographs of all kinds and all colours. “Goth is not as dark as people think,” explains my Goth friend Angelica. “I am a wiccan born of a wiccan mother…Ignorants called them witches but they laughed. Some ignorants think I am a witch and that makes me laugh as well...poor minds.” Many people still tend to make assumptions about others based on appearance or shallow information and then judge them. Those who cling fearfully to concrete forms in the realm of outer appearances often close their minds to the richness of the heart and soul within. The result is a cheap culture of bland mediocrity and materialism. For, feeling is the very foundation of true being. It is the substance of wholeness and the path to peace as well as the abundance that the universe has to share with each of its children. Pro-lifers tend to be shallow. If you are, or have been, pro-death, chances are you have a special beauty and depth that is very precious and may end up transforming your impurities. It may not be precious in itself but in its power to destroy that which is not real - that is, the false ego identity - and to perfect the pearl of wisdom that you may or may not have discovered as yet. Perhaps, when it is completed, the oyster shell will loosen and you will have more conscious access to it. By having something substantial to transform, your Light may yet prove to be as bright as your dream of darkness your chrysalis state - appeared to lack Light. Indeed, it is the very source of Light (or certainly its offspring). “Deep into that darkness peering, long I stood there, wondering, fearing, doubting, dreaming dreams no mortal ever dared to dream before.” - Edgar Allan Poe. The Dark Goddess is the death of those states of consciousness which we are evolving beyond and need to let go of as we continually evolve. We rise from an unconscious (feminine) base to centre ourselves in a conscious (masculine) hub. And, from there, we expand and grow in increasing self-illumination as we discover and acquaint ourselves with further layers of the mysterious depths beyond our current level of awareness. We are continually unfolding. We may cast a few seeds into the wind and start from scratch in another part of the universe as we explore and develop another part of our consciousness (which is also part of the whole) but that is essentially what we’re doing. We are evolving and contributing to the awareness of the multiverse, the whole, the Goddess. “We spend our whole lives working back to the state of self-acceptance we were naturally born with. For years the questions multiply, and into the secret caverns and dark cellars of the psyche we shove as much doubt, shame, guilt and fear as we can. These failings remain alive, however deep we hide them. All the inner conflicts that we find so hard to reconcile lead back to a shadow self... In a wizard’s eyes we are all jail keepers of our shadow selves. The unconscious mind is the prison where unwanted energies are locked up, not because they have to be but because we have been so imprinted by years of yes and no, good and bad. Having pondered Merlin’s words about being a jail keeper, Arthur went to him and said, ‘I don’t want to be this way. How can I change?’ ‘Nothing easier,’ replied Merlin. ‘Simply see that you are playing both roles, jailer and jailed. If you are both sides of the coin, then neither must be you, for they cancel each other out. Recognise this and be free.’ ‘I don’t know how,’ Arthur protested. ‘How can I find this shadow self you speak of?’ ‘Just listen. Like all prisoners, he is tapping messages on the wall of his cell.’ The shadow self is just another role or identity we carry around, but it isn’t one we show in public. Most of the time the shadow self is too embarrassed or fearful to be presented to the light of day. But there is no doubt that it exists, for each of us has energies we haven’t been able to discharge. For a newborn baby the problem of holding on to ‘bad’ or unhealthy feelings doesn’t exist. The instant you throw something negative into a baby’s environment, it will cry or turn away. This is an extremely healthy reaction, because by expressing itself so freely, a baby can discharge energies that would otherwise cling to it. As we grew up, however, we learned that it isn’t always appropriate to indulge in spontaneous expression. In the name of politeness and tact, or knowing our place, or doing what our parents said, each of us learned to hold on to negative energies.” - Deepak Chopra (The Way of the Wizard. 20 Spiritual Lessons For Creating The Life You Want, Rider, London, U.K., 1995, p.74-75). For society to be truly diverse, it needs to stop forcing people to conform to a one-sided and often egocentric view of the world. Capitalism itself is now dying and the economic crisis is indeed an opportunity to embrace the ‘other world’ - yes that ‘whorified’ part of ourselves which is consciousness itself, light and dark. From this ‘death’ of the old world will rise the phoenix of human creativity and spiritual power and a greater balance will be achieved. It will enable - is enabling - people to be truly themselves and to create a new world which reflects such integrity, authenticity and dignity. This might be considered the rebirth of inspiration. Convention simply isn’t going to cut it any longer since it is always the progeny of a particular system and all systems in our world are now due to be pruned and reorganised, or reconstructed even. Modern societies are arguably more comfortable with foreign cultures and religions than their own cultural depths and extremes. The reason for this is clearly that money is God while the human soul is deemed to have little value. We have become slaves. It’s that simple. By Edgar Allan Poe From childhood’s hour I have not been, As others were - I have not seen, As others saw - I could not bring, My passions from a common spring, From the same source I have not taken My sorrow - I could not awaken My heart to joy at the same tone, And all I lov’d, I lov’d alone - Then, in my childhood…in the dawn Of a most stormy life - was drawn From ev’ry depth of good and ill The mystery which binds me still - From the torrent, or the fountain - From the red cliff of the mountain - From the sun that ‘round me roll’d In its autumn tint of gold - From the lightning in the sky As it pass’d me flying by - From the thunder, and the storm - And the cloud that took the form (When the rest of Heaven was blue) Of a demon in my view. Gothic style could be described as a release from the traditional limitations of linear conventionality, the prison cell of the 3D identity prescribed for each of us through social engineering. Dare to be different. For some people, however, it is a matter of life and death. The black attire of gothic style reveals that the unconscious is on the surface and that the individual is, indeed, ‘inside out.’ Or upside down, like the Hanged Man. The outer ego is being sacrificed so that something of much greater value can be gained, namely the higher self. This is but one platform for inner growth and transformation to proceed. It is, of course, practical to retain or contrive some vestige of worldly normalcy in order to make a living unless one inherits a fortune or is able to achieve financial independence. Capitalism, like all systems in a low-dimensional collective existence, is rigidly homogeneous and those who get by without sacrificing their inner lives completely often do so by dividing themselves into contrasting worldly and personal, social personas. Many, of course, ‘grow out of it,’ say goodbye to their dreams and conform. It is the reflective life of the soul that is at stake here and patriarchal society and its offspring have long declared war on the soul. It is the unspoken ‘fatwah’ no doubt uttered in secret by the banking elite (and those above and below it) which just loves individualistic egos it can easily manipulate and through whom it retains control of modern society. "Those who dream by day are cognizant of many things that escape those who dream only at night.” - Edgar Allan Poe. Well, not really the right time to be analysing either of these subjects as I shed the chrysalis and stretch my wings. There is a certain vagueness to this retrospective view of my darker moments - or ‘periods’ (ho ho) - which did indeed bring out a gothic style and persona from within me, like a shadow I was happy to wear, a cloak, comforting and charming in its own way. Cool to explore another part of myself off and on basically, when more submerged in my unconscious; although more Herman Munster than Dracula! I still appreciate the aesthetic very much, and its richness of meaning. Once experienced as despair, the darkness of the soil which the blossoming flower of the heart knows well and in which its roots remain firmly and permanently planted, now represents strength and wisdom. The lows of the mind which kept the light from shining in our hearts fade from memory as the darkest depths to which we pay ‘no mind.’ Now, as the heart opens, we feel and know the love which is our true essence. The dragonfly emerges from the dark womb of its transformation into new life, into pure awareness, with its wings of multidimensionality. The cocoon, the mould, itself is no longer needed. All that strength and wisdom it derived from the ‘war within’ is now integrated into its very being, its beauty and finesse, its power and freedom to fly. Now, we see the darkness for what it is. Now, we can appreciate its depth and its mysteries and perhaps perceive it as a state of hypnosis through which we awaken to superconsciousness, to the Reality waiting for us at the other end of the tunnel. It is not only the darkness that has helped to transform us in one lifetime, or even many lifetimes. It is the very womb from which all life emerges. It is deep space with its sequined splendour as each star strives to shine its Light of knowing farther and farther to illumine the depths of consciousness. It is the fathomless womb of the Goddess Herself, the endless possibilities that we have yet to experience, the continuing process of evolution as we explore our inner potential in the infinite multiverse. If not God, Love. If not Love, Beauty. If not Beauty, Hope. If not Hope, Death. - Unknown. “Never misunderstand seriousness for sincerity. Sincerity is very playful, never serious. It is true, authentic, but never serious. Sincerity does not have a long face, it is bubbling with joy, radiating with an inner joyousness.” – Osho. 1. Hunter S. Thompson quote from Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, 1971: "He was one of God's own prototypes: a high-powered mutant never even considered for mass-production. Too weird to live, too rare to die." Posted by Antraeus at 10:34 Important topic Did you know that this is the 12th and lowest universe in our multiverse and that it is founded on the energies of fear and suffering which were not resolved in the 11th? Karma & Emotions This e-book explores the opportunity for releasing deep emotional blockages from the past that crisis presents and the notion that this process of self-healing is an essential aspect of spiritual ascension (click the picture for more info & free pdf download) What is, is; how we react is up to us! "Life is 10 percent of what you make it and 90 percent of how you take it." - Irving Berlin. Treasure Archive As I Began to Love Myself Monstaville Book I. Chapter 14 When you do not feel peace, it is because you are ... Terence McKenna What is it really - Enlightenment? Many of you have become aware that the lives you a... The Eternal Love of the Heart Chakra When and How Will Ascension Happen? Arrr! "Only in winter does the pine tree show its true strength." - Confucius “Let your smile change the world, but don't let the world change your smile.” - Unknown Visit my website: Antraeus.com "You cannot climb uphill by thinking downhill thoughts." - Unknown. Antraeus Born on 25 November 1965 and currently living in Yorkshire, England. I write songs and books and have a website that serves as a platform for my work as well as being an Ascension resource. The Treasure Chest displays all chapters of The Monstaville Memoirs trilogy as well as further insights from various sources relating to the themes of these books. The Powerlessness of Now reveals the many ways in which we have given our power away to the Establishment through its web of control. “Someone asked, ‘Why is there suffering?’ [Meher] Baba gave this succinct reply: ‘Suffering is essential for the elimination of the ego, just as it was necessary for you to scrub and scrub in order to wash the stain from my coat.’" - Unkown. "Where there is ruin, there is hope for a treasure" ~ Rumi Let your faith be bigger than your fear! “Strong souls aren't just born. They are built by forging through the most challenging perils in life and still having the ability to shine.“ – Anon. Blog fonts Refresh page for web fonts to appear if you're seeing only Times Roman hideousness. To optimise the browsing experience for mobile blog viewers, Blogger serves a streamlined version of the blog page, which, among other resources, omits web fonts. "Pain is inevitable...but misery is optional. We cannot avoid pain, but we can avoid joy." – Tim Hansel. I mean no copyright infringement by the posting of pictures, videos, etc. on this website. I do not in any way claim the rights of ownership to any of them. They totally remain the property of their respective owners. I have posted them purely for entertainment purposes. All written content, unless otherwise noted as being quotes or articles by other people, has been written and copyrighted by me. You are welcome to share any of my own work providing you include my name as the author, the title of the excerpt, if any, and preferably my website address as well (www.antraeus.com). Thanks “The cave you fear to enter holds the treasure you seek.” - Joseph Campbell. & try this: B-movie title generator "Bear all and do nothing; Hear all and say nothing; Give all and take nothing; Serve all and be nothing." - Sathya Sai Baba. “The most authentic thing about us is our capacity to create, to overcome, to endure, to transform, to love and to be greater than our suffering.” - Ben Okri. Art by Spykeee © Antraeus de Herschia. Powered by Blogger.	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803206
__label__wiki	0.97174	0.97174	R.I.P. Sylvain Sylvain Eddie Van Halen Tribute Concert Bassist Tim Bogert Dies Billy Gibbons' Rhinestone Suit Rush Album Art: The Stories New Black Sabbath Reissues Movies and Culture UCR APP Ultimate Classic Rock RadioUltimate Classic Rock Radio Elvis Costello came out of the U.K. punk scene in the mid-'70s, but he was smarter, sharper and more literate than most of his peers. His versatility helped him adapt and change course several times over the years. He's made pop records, R&B records, classical records, hip-hop records and Americana records. He was born Declan McManus in London, but by the time he released his debut album (recorded with future members of Huey Lewis' News!) in 1977, he had renamed himself in equal bits tribute and arrogance. That combination helped him soar through the decades with pivotal works like 'My Aim Is True,' 'This Year's Model' and 'Imperial Bedroom.' Born: Aug. 25, 1954 Selected Discography: ‘My Aim Is True’ (1977), ‘This Year’s Model’ (1978), ‘Imperial Bedroom’ (1982) Related Artists: Huey Lewis and the News Further Reading: Top 10 Elvis Costello Songs, Looking Back on ‘Get Happy!!,’ Elvis Costello Is Banned From ‘Saturday Night Live’ Elvis Costello Announces 'The Complete Armed Forces' Box Set Collection delves deep into 1979 album, including remastered album, B-sides, demos and concert recordings. Elvis Costello Unveils New Song and Track List for Upcoming Album Listen to "We Are All Cowards Now," the latest preview of his upcoming LP 'Hey Clockface.' Listen to Elvis Costello's New Song, 'Hetty O'Hara Confidential' Single is second in series, with next installment arriving in August. Michael Gallucci Listen to Elvis Costello’s New Song ‘No Flag’ Track was recorded alone in Finland as he wanted anonymity. Watch Graham Nash, Paul Stanley, Elvis Costello Lockdown Shows Artists entertain from home while David Byrne, Robbie Robertson and Ozzy Osbourne react to coronavirus pandemic. Elvis Costello, Tool and Chris Cornell Among 2020 Grammy Winners Rock didn't get much screen time on the TV broadcast, but several notable artists still earned awards. Elvis Costello and the Imposters Announce U.S. Tour Month-long fall road trip is titled ‘Just Trust’ in answer to questions about set lists. Elvis Costello’s Mom Told Him To Accept O.B.E. Honor From Queen He admits he wasn’t going to accept elevation for services to music. Elvis Costello and Blondie Announce Co-Headlining Tour Thirteen-date road trip takes place from July to August. What Bruce Springsteen Taught Elvis Costello About Recording Discussion about album sounds was revelation to English artist. Underrated Elton John Top 100 Classic Rock Songs 2021 Ultimate Classic Rock, Townsquare Media, Inc. All rights reserved.	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803209
__label__cc	0.678834	0.321166	Home Popular Seattle Robotics Company Enables Wireless Drone Charging Seattle Robotics Company Enables Wireless Drone Charging Betsy Lillian Seattle-based WiBotic, a provider of wireless power and battery intelligence solutions for the robotics industry, including for drones, has raised $2.5 million in a seed round. The new investment round, led by Tsing Capital, also includes investments from Comet Labs and Digi Labs, as well as follow-on investments from W Fund, WRF Capital and Wisemont Capital. The new funds will be used primarily to enhance product development and increase sales and marketing activities. WiBotic says its solutions enhance the uptime and working efficiency of robot fleets, which can be charged without human intervention – in turn, enabling them to operate 100% autonomously for long periods of time. “For two-and-a-half years, we have been developing innovative solutions for the robotics industry, and I’m excited that several prestigious new investors are joining our team,” says Ben Waters, CEO and co-founder of WiBotic. The company says its solutions are customizable for specific types of long-term deployments – e.g., delivering medical supplies, conducting offshore oil and gas inspections, and responding to emergency situations. For example, when a drone lands near the WiBotic wireless charging platform, it automatically detects its presence and wirelessly charges the battery – just as quickly, if not more quickly, than a standard plug-in charger, the company claims. The solutions also dynamically monitor real-time battery parameters, such as state of charge and state of battery health, while capturing changes in battery performance over time. Customers can then use the data to develop and implement a battery management plan that optimizes the life of all batteries in a specific fleet. “The robotics industry has an intense need for the wireless power and battery intelligence solutions that WiBotic has built,” notes Michael Li, managing partner of Tsing Capital. “WiBotic has been gaining strong traction in several industries, and we see immense growth potential as the global robotics industry soars.” The company recently moved into a new engineering and testing facility at the University of Washington’s CoMotion Labs incubator program headquarters. WiBotic will be demonstrating prototypes for several new products at AUVSI’s XPONENTIAL in Dallas and has also been selected as a semifinalist at the event’s “Startup Showdown.” uas? uav? wibotic SimActive Introduces New LiDAR Workflow Ouster Releases 32-Channel LiDAR Sensor	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803210
__label__wiki	0.925166	0.925166	All-You-Can-Read Comic Subscription App Coming To Nintendo Switch Coming This November Netflix has had a huge hand in revolutionizing the way people watch TV and movies. Realclear politics writes, “After years of steady growth, the number of... Coming This November Netflix has had a huge hand in revolutionizing the way people watch TV and movies. Realclear politics writes, “After years of steady growth, the number of subscribers to streaming video services like Netflix has topped the number of cable subscribers.” It’s no surprise seeing as Netflix allows you to binge on newly released shows (or let’s be real, The Office for a third or fourth time) and does not interrupt you with constant commercials that waste away your down time (and are unbearably annoying, if you ask me). But how would the old-fashioned sort of comic book collectors feel about a comic streaming service just like Netflix? Going by the name of InkyPen, the new comic subscription service is an app coming to Nintendo Switch in November. It will feature a library of over ten thousand comics at the touch of a button. CEO Ronan Huggard says InkyPen will “bring an all-you-can-read model to the global community. The subscription will cost $8 a month and include graphic novels, manga, and European comics. It will be the first non-game app on Ninetendo Switch’s eShop. For the teens always with that device in hand, it’s a great resource for reading comics in the modern age. Juliana Agrillo September 7, 2018 all-you-can-readcomicEntertainmentgraphicNetflixNintendonovelsRelease DateserviceSubscriptionswitch Microsoft’s New Policy Requires Partners to Provide Paid Family Leave Juliana Agrillo - Sep 7, 2018 White House Officials Deny Writing NYT Op-Ed Ned Hopkins - Sep 7, 2018 Lana Del Rey Teases New ‘Chemtrails Over the Country Club’ Album The Duke and Duchess of Sussex to feature podcast on Spotify The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Prince Harry... Clare Crawley Makes Bachelor Nation History With Unprecedented Season Of “The Bachelorette” Clare Crawley gives her final rose after two weeks The current season of “The Bachelorette” is making TV and... The 2020 People’s Choice Awards To Feature Celebrity Performers And Appearances E! promises a huge night celebrating everything entertainment The E! People’s Choice Awards has a big list of celebrity... New Trailer For “Selena: The Series” Reveals Release Date For Musical Series Netflix will be premiering “Selena: The Series” in December “Selena: The Series” is one of the most anticipated Netflix... The Best Moments From The 72nd Emmy Awards Show ABC celebrates the Emmys in an unprecedented broadcast ABC managed to pull off broadcasting the 72nd Emmy Awards show... Disney Is Still Working Out Details Of How To Proceed With ‘Black Panther’ What will the future of the “Black Panther” franchise? The passing of Chadwick Boseman has crushed the hearts of... 4 Films That Will Bring Nature To Your Home Bring the beauty of nature into your home Explore some of the most beautiful natural environments the world has... ABC Announces Upcoming 2020 “Dancing With The Stars” Cast Including Carole Baskin The star-studded “Dancing with the Star” 2020 cast ABC just announced one of the most-anticipated celebrity cast lineups for... Disney+ To Reboot ‘Three Men and a Baby’ Starring Zac Efron Another classic is coming to the small screen! Disney will remake the beloved 1987 comedy “Three Men and a... AMC Celebrates 100 Years With 15-Cent Movie Tickets Six movie tickets for less than $1 AMC announced they will be reopening 100 US theaters on August 20,... Bindi Irwin And Chandler Powell Share Exciting News In The Cutest Way The Irwin family celebrates Bindi’s big news The newlywed couple, Bindi Irwin and Chandler Powell, just shared some exciting... Celebrating Comedy Actor Lucille Ball On Her Birthday Lucielle Ball was born on this day in 1911 Famed comedy actor, Lucille Ball, was known for her funny... Disney Is Still Working Out Details Of How To Proceed… ABC Announces Upcoming 2020 “Dancing With The Stars” Cast Including… Disney+ To Reboot ‘Three Men and a Baby’ Starring Zac…	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803213
__label__cc	0.533438	0.466562	U2 - When Love Comes To Town When Love Comes To Town lyrics I was a sailor, I was lost at sea I was under the waves Before love rescued me I was a fighter, I could turn on a thread Now I stand accused of the things I've said Love comes to town I'm gonna jump that train When love comes to town I'm gonna catch that flame Maybe I was wrong to ever let you down But I did what I did before love came to town Used to make love under a red sunset I was making promises I was soon to forget She was pale as the lace of her wedding gown But I left her standing before love came to town I ran into a juke joint when I heard a guitar scream The notes were turning blue, I was dazing in a dream As the music played I saw my life turn around That was the day before love came to town When love comes to town I'm gonna jump that train I was there when they crucified my Lord I held the scabbard when the soldier drew his sword I threw the dice when they pierced his side But I've seen love conquer the great divide When love comes to town I'm gonna catch that train » Heartland Forums: When Love Comes To Town Innocence and Experience tour (4) ZOO TV (81) 1987-11-24 Fort Worth, Texas Various Dates (8) 1992-04-21 Tacoma, Washington (5 votes) 1993-07-27 Copenhagen, Denmark (3 votes) 1987-11-24 Fort Worth, Texas (3 votes) 1989-10-08 Melbourne, Australia (2 votes) 2015-05-15 Vancouver, British Columbia (2 votes) "We've made some good music and had a lot of laughs. It's irreplaceable, really. It's positioning on the water has a certain kind of tranquillity even through the chaos of studio recordings. There is a real sense of creative space. I doubt we'll ever find anywhere as special." - Larry on recording at Hanover Quay U2 intended to release No Line on the Horizon in November 2008; after composing 50 to 60 songs, they postponed the release because they wanted to continue writing.	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803214
__label__cc	0.658025	0.341975	All posts tagged "Roanoke Rail Yard Dawgs" Three Returning Players Kickoff Maine Mariners’ Offseason The three re-signed players accounted for 44 of the Mariners' 182 total goals last season, and it's expected that both of... By Griffin Germond Playoff Push Proves Slippery For the Storm MOLINE, Ill. - The Quad City Storm faced two opponents over the span of three days, both being in a close... By Anna Headley Bulls Face Crucial Homestand BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The Birmingham Bulls find themselves in a less than preferred, but familiar situation this weekend. Currently in a... Knoxville Finds A Way Against Roanoke KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - The Knoxville Ice Bears returned to the Knoxville Civic Coliseum ice Saturday night to face off against the... Knoxville Rolls Past Roanoke KNOXVILLE, Tenn.- The Knoxville Ice Bears returned to Knoxville Civic Coliseum Friday night to begin a two-game homestand against the Roanoke... Knoxville Gets Back On Track Against Roanoke KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - The Ice Bears returned to the Civic Coliseum Friday night to play the Roanoke Rail Yard Dawgs. Bulls Blank Dawgs in Lotz Debut BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – It’s often said, “There’s no place like home.” For the Birmingham Bulls this weekend, there wasn't a truer... PHOTOS: Roanoke Rail Yard Dawgs vs. Macon Mayhem – 12/20/19 MACON, Ga. – The Macon Mayhem welcomed the Roanoke Rail Yard Dawgs to the Coliseum for the second time this season on... By Bryan Meeks Roanoke Ends Knoxville’s Win Streak KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - The Ice Bears returned to the Civic Coliseum Friday night to face off with the Roanoke Rail Yard...	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803223
__label__wiki	0.907447	0.907447	Who will emerge victorious? Which is better: The Office UK or The Office US? The Spinoff \| Staff writers It’s an eternal argument: which of the two versions of The Office reigns supreme, the original brutal UK version or its heartfelt US spinoff? The Spinoff staff finally weighs in. Alex Casey, senior writer The Office UK is coded into my DNA unlike any other show. I bought the boxset for a bargain $20 from Whitcoulls in 2005 and I thrashed those DVDs all the way through my high school years. I’m talking curtains closed every weekend, I’m talking special features, I’m talking “BISHOP MUZOREWA”. It was – and still is – a masterpiece, capturing the excruciating truth about human blind spots and casually changing comedy and television forever. David Brent was my hero. I even wrote an embarrassing thing about it in the cave painting days of The Spinoff. But here’s the thing: these days I would much, much rather watch The Office US. Like many, I resisted The Office US for years. I scoffed at it loudly at it whenever I had the chance. I watched the first few episodes and rolled my eyes. I was right. I was smart. It was a shambles of a show, a cheap knock off that lifted the script and lost all the nuance. But then I watched it coast to coast, and I laughed and I cried and I laughed some more. Grinning over nine wondrous seasons, the relationships mutate and evolve far deeper (imagine if Tim and Dawn had a goddamn baby, for example) and there are so many more characters to fall in love with. The Office UK might well be a groundbreaking, genre-defining piece of art, but The Office US is pure sitcom joy that wraps you up tightly and never lets you go – which is what I need over the brutal, crushing truths of The Office UK. God! Think about when Jim and Pam got married! When Meredith got trapped in a rubbish bag with a bat! When Ryan started the fire! IT’S BRITNEY BITCH! I suppose what I’ve mostly realised is this: at the end of hard long day, I’d much rather hang out with Michael Scott than David Brent. Again, unorthodox… sue me. Madeleine Chapman, staff writer Once upon a time I insisted that The Office UK was far superior to The Office US and in fact you shouldn’t even bother watching the US version since it’s not an original. That’s because once upon a time I was a dumb first year uni student who desperately wanted to seem cool and didn’t know how to form my own opinions based off what I actually liked and not what others said I should like. The Office UK is great. I could watch Youtube clips of Ricky Gervais/David Brent dancing and speaking aspirations directly to camera for hours. But I could watch The Office US for days. Because Michael Scott may be annoying and infuriating and sometimes the worst, but David Brent is actually the worst. And you can only laugh at the worst people for so long before it gets a bit grim. I watched Requiem For A Dream one time and thought it was great. But I’ll never watch it again. In the same vein, I know that ‘technically’ The Office UK is more impressive, but I’m happy not watching it again. The Office US has as many laughs, with half the grim realism of terrible people. There are enough terrible people to encounter in real life, I’d rather not encounter them in a comedy TV show. The cast of The Office US – at least before Steve Carrell left. Henry Oliver, music editor I was honestly astounded that some of my colleagues argued on Slack that the US version of The Office was better than the UK version of The Office. Maybe this is what is wrong with the world right now. I guess I’ve been living in a bubble for the last 17 years, assuming that a ground-breaking, no-bad-episode TV show was better than the pretty-good-at-times watered down version of the other show. I need to get out more. But, in case you’re wondering, here’s my argument: The Office UK was both funnier and more discomforting than The Office US, which was a pretty good network sitcom that hammed up the best bits of the UK version. While his recent work (and, well everything about him) is, um, objectively bad, I don’t think it can be denied that Ricky Gervais was a comic revelation, bringing an intensity to uncomfortable comedy, the ripple of which extend over so much contemporary comedy. Steve Carell, on the other hand, actually kind of sucks. His comic annoyingness has a shallowness which made it impossible to sustain over the 200-odd episodes of the show. Same with Rainn Wilson. Dwight Schrute is an easy joke told five times an episode, whereas Mackenzie Crook’s Gareth Keenan is a genus performance that is, yes, hateable, but also nuanced and, ultimately, relatable. Weighing Tim and Dawn against Jim and Pam is where things get interesting. The will-they-won’t-they romance is, like the rest of the show, colder than the loved-up US version. And, of course, I think that’s a good thing. But, to me, Jenna Fischer (Pam) is the best performance about the main four characters of the US-version, so that’s a big plus, while (brace yourself) John Krasinski is actually pretty cheesy and not that good (at anything, movies included). If the the US version has a strong suit, it’s the supporting cast. Mindy Kaling (Kelly), BJ Novak (Ryan), Angela Kinsey (Angela), Phyllis Smith (Phyllis), Craig Robinson (Darryl) are all hilarious. And I’m probably forgetting a bunch. Not Ed Helms (Andy) though. Ed Helms sucks. Not that I don’t love the UK’s supporting cast. I do. Just thinking of the names Keith, Finchy and Trudy crack me up, but given the show’s much shorter run (14 eps compared to 201), there just isn’t as much room for the minor players. At the end of the day, what it comes down to is this: The Office US is a well-above-average network sitcom. But nothing more. Shit, Parks and Recreation did pretty much the same thing just as well (maybe even better). The 14 episodes of the UK version of The Office were and (despite the hundreds of shows it influenced) remain like nothing else we’d seen before. Or since. Disclosures: I have watched all of The Office UK and, I’m pretty sure, all of the The Office US. Some episodes of each multiple times. I will probably never watch either show again. The cast of The Office UK – which will forever feature Ricky Gervais. Don Rowe, staff writer I’ve never seen The Office UK outside brief YouTube best-ofs, but I’ve seen enough of the American version to definitively state there is NOTHING charming about that smug shit Jim. Raise your eyebrows at these hands, doofus. Alex Braae, staff writer The American version of The Office is fine. It’s a perfectly serviceable sitcom, which could have run and run forever. But the original British version was one of those rare moments of culture in which a horrifying glimpse of modern life was brought into being, and then allowed to rest forever. Watching Ricky Gervais torment his employees with cloying sociability was real and true. The lovesick patheticness of Tim, the grotesque misogyny of Finch being rewarded with laughs as it so often is in the real world, the inertia of Dawn, those younger characters whose names I forget who just floated through, unconcerned and above it all – these were more than just archetypes. They were richly drawn human characters who, after watching the show, became impossible not to see in others around you. The Office didn’t just reflect the world of work as it actually existed, it was a modern day Grimm fairytale, a cautionary tale. And it did it all in about seven hours of television, and could call itself a comedy throughout. Sam Brooks, TV and gaming editor Let’s be frank: It’s hard to look at The Office UK in the wake of everything that Ricky Gervais is now; a petulant child and a lazy stand-up comedian who can’t take it even a fraction as hard as he thinks he can give it out. He’s turned from someone who simply played David Brent into someone, it’s now clear, whose worst qualities were filtered the character. The rest of the show absolutely holds up, but unfortunately for the show, Gervais is its centre, and everything about David Brent that makes you uncomfortable as a watcher is doubly, triply true of Gervais. The Office US has no such problem. The problematic part of The Office US is that it falls to shit almost the moment Steve Carrell leaves. Not entirely to shit, as there’s still a lot of fun to be had with James Spader heading up the show, and the emotional core of Jim and Pam remains, but it becomes a different show entirely. It didn’t run out of steam, but it definitely made sure it used up all the gas in the tank, to mix metaphors. Ultimately, I fall on the side of The Office US because of its more accessible heart. There’s heart to The Office UK too, but you need to crawl under a bunch of barbed wire and lava pits to get there, and in our dark times sometimes what you need is a show that wears it’s dorky heart on its sleeve. The verdict: Three for The Office US, two for The Office UK, one for fighting Jim from The Office UK. Our numbers say The Office US is the victor but ultimately, like most things in this world, it’s a taste thing. Go with your soul. The Office US is streaming on Lightbox and The Office UK is on Amazon Prime. The Spinoff’s guide to all the most binge-worthy TV on Neon Partner content- August 15, 2020 Sorry but Shane Jones is Chris Finch from The Office Liam Hehir From the Empire State Building to Craigh na Dun: TV’s most romantic gestures Tara Ward Partner content- February 14, 2018	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803225
__label__wiki	0.810393	0.810393	Breaking Down The New York Knicks' Projected Win Total By Chris Priczak August 22, 2018 7:26 am By Chris Priczak \| August 22, 2018 7:26 am The NBA season is almost upon us and the Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook has released their win projections for the 2018-19 season. The projections has the New York Knicks at the bottom of the rankings with 29.5 wins. The projection has to assume that Kristaps Porzingis will miss a chunk of the season, as he rehabs his ACL injury. The Knicks haven’t released an update on their star center. It usually takes between eight and 12 months to recover from a torn ACL. The Knicks have a roster mixed with young players and former high draft picks who the organization has taken a flier on. Kevin Knox and Frank Ntilikina are expected to take on a significant role and see tons of reps this upcoming season. New York has brought in Mario Hezonja and Noah Vonleh with the hopes they can turn their careers around in the Big Apple. Mitchell Robinson will likely see time in the G League, as he works his way back into game shape and works on his game against NBA-esque competition. New York is projected to finish with the fifth-worst record under the Westgate projections. The NBA will introduce a new draft lottery system in 2019 with the top three teams receiving the same odds at the top pick. The Orlando Magic, who had the fifth-worst record last season, had a 8.8 percent chance of getting the No. 1 selection and a 26.2 percent at staying in the same spot. Those odds have changed under the new lottery system, which would give the fifth-worst team a 10.5 percent at securing the top pick. In a way-too-soon 2019 NBA Mock Draft, Jonathan Wasserman of Bleacher Report has the Knicks selecting Indiana guard Romeo Langford with the No 5 pick. Wasserman describes how Langford’s shot creating ability and effortless scoring prowess could fit in the Big Apple. Next year will mark another key draft for the New York Knicks, who’ll have to capitalize on their next top-10 pick. After adding Kevin Knox and Mitchell Robinson to join Kristaps Porzingis and Frank Ntilikina, the Knicks may want to take a good look at Romeo Langford, a smooth athlete and effortless scorer. He’s a quintessential shooting guard capable of creating and making shots from each level. Langford can come off as overly casual, and he’ll want to demonstrate both playmaking and consistent three-point shooting to maximize his stock. He’ll have a big role and plenty of freedom to fully showcase his exciting offensive arsenal. New York finished last season with a 29-53 record after the team was projected to win 30.5 games by the Westgate SuperBook. Frank Ntilikina, Kevin Knox, Kristaps Porzingis, Mario Hezonja, Mitchell Robinson, New York Knicks, Noah Vonleh, Knicks, Knicks Journal, NBA Knicks' front office torn on pursuing Victor Oladipo trade Knicks no longer pursuing trade for Russell Westbrook? Carmelo Anthony returns to Blazers despite Knicks interest More Knicks	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803226
__label__cc	0.567424	0.432576	UCL students drop human brain on the floor during lab experiment Students sign waivers which require them to be respectful with human body parts Last week a group of girls who were participating in a human brain experiment in a UCL anatomy lab dropped the human brain on the floor during the experiment. Three students in the same lab session have confirmed to The London Tab that they saw the brain dropped and that it seemed to be an accident. One student said: "It was an accident and then I think they may have sort of laughed uncomfortably." The incident happened in a lab for the second year module, Structure and Function of the Nervous System. This comes after a complaint on UCLove which claimed that the students were "joking about" with the brain and laughed when it was dropped. The post read: "To the girl and her friends who were joking around during the human brain practical and ended up dropping a human brain on the floor and laughing about it. Be more respectful, imagine your mother, sibling or friend passed away and gave their body to science and this is how they were treated. "It wasn't funny and I hope in the future you all don't joke about something like this. The practical was a privilege and your actions were disgusting." One student in the same lab experiment, who would prefer to remain anonymous, confirmed that they were able to carry on with the lab and continue using the brain after it had been on the floor. They were very quick to retrieve it and another student came to assist by "massaging" the brain after the drop. They went on that they would be "surprised if they're not banned from the anatomy lab." Another anonymous student said: "The general consensus at the moment seems to be that it appeared accidental because they looked shocked when they saw it had been dropped." When carrying out a lab experiment in the Rockefeller Topographical Anatomy Lab every student is required to sign a form that confirms that they will treat the bodies they are dealing with with respect. There are also further privacy rules around acting with professional conduct when in a lab scenario. The London Tab have approached UCL for comment. Featured image by Robina Weermeijer on Unsplash.	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803228
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__label__cc	0.594419	0.405581	« Belgium’s MFVF announce Dalriada for 2013 line-up Heidevolk w/Support @ Fibbers, York » Sakrileg – Sakrileg Released 2nd October 2013 Raw Black Metal Released via Cursed Records Sakrileg is the debut album from the Austrian black metal band of the same name. Sakrileg was formed back in 2009 and after the release of their demo ‘Demonen’ they became the first band to sign with Cursed Records in 2011. First up is Propaganda which features what appears to be an air-raid alarm instead of an intro. What follows is some Burzum/Xasthur -style raw black metal. There’s no mistaking the howl-like vocals and the unrefined guitar riffs, Sakrileg offers the same eerie feel as the forefathers of the genre. Ein Feldpostbrief is the ultimate grim anthem of despair, the vocals mimic cries of anguish and possibly pain whilst the guitars offer no chance of salvation. This pretty much sets the tone for this rest of the album. If it’s melody and ambiance you’re after then I’d advise you to stay clear of Sakrileg, it will give you a headache. Luckily I don’t mind being subjected to the occasional dose of raw black metal though it’s not something I listen to on a regular basis. Anyway back to the music… In Abschiedsbrief (meiner toten russischen Freundin) the guitars have a drony tinge to their sound and the howling is as prominent as ever. Oddly enough, there’s one part of the song when the howling is dropped, albeit temporarily, in favor of something resembling a semi-growl. Other noteworthy tracks include Verloren, which sees the emphasis shift towards the monotonous guitar riffs giving the song a certain haunting feel, and the eerie instrumental Outroduktion. Overall this is a decent raw black metal album. I’m sure that fans of bands such as Burzum and Xasthur will enjoy it. Iza Raittila This entry was posted on 17th March 2013 at 11:23 am and is filed under Review with tags Raw Black Metal. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803243
__label__wiki	0.506143	0.506143	MISSED OUR WEBINAR? CLICK HERE TO VIEW Our Business is Helping You Master Strategy Learning, Building, Executing Virtual and Live Strategy is the single most important component of success in war, business, and life. Our approach to strategy, the Prometheus Process, draws on each to yield a methodology that produces real results for real people in the real world: Decide Where You Intend To Be Tomorrow (FUTURE PICTURE) Determine Where To apply Your Scarce Resources (CENTERS OF GRAVITY) Know How Much Time You Have To Win (PARALLEL OPERATIONS) Plan In Advance For Success And Failure Alike (EXIT PLANS) Follow Time-Proven Strategic Principles (CARDINAL RULES) The Road to Success Never Outsource Your Strategy! -Plan and Operate in the Open -Use The Prometheus Process To Build Your Strategy -Compress Time -Guard against Information Traps We will work with you and your organization on the ground and virtually to help you succeed through strategy: Help you learn and adopt a strategy methodology across your organization Help you build a Grand Strategy that is understood and supported throughout the organization Help you create a focused strategy for new product lines, new customers, and new initiatives If you are committed to making your organization more successful and more strategic in thought and action, you should adopt and use the strategic approach we invented–the Prometheus Process. organization lEARNING PROGRAMS The success of an organization’s grand strategy is heavily dependent on how well it is understood and supported. Virtual and Live Programs A Grand Strategy is an organization’s full plan to define and achieve success. It details timelines and responsibilities. Individuals and small businesses can become more successful by learning on their own how to develop strategy. Anthony Dina Dell, Inc. “The Prometheus strategic framework is a surprisingly easy and useful method for driving business forward. The team did everything possible to share years of insight in a pragmatic way. There was not a moment lost during the entire academy. Hats off to John for making the theoretical real, sustainable and very energizing.” “A must do! This course is a must for anyone who finds themselves in a leadership position. This set of tools and the process will help ensure the long term success of your company. A company leader will quickly come to realize the importance of long term strategy on your company’s success after day one.” carey “vixen” lohrenz author speaker motivator John A. Warden III Founder/President Is an executive, strategist, planner, author, and motivational speaker whose work has had a worldwide impact in business, in the military, in government, and in education. Vietnam combat pilot, author whose books include The Air Campaign and Winning in FastTime, Air Force Fighter Wing Commander, credited by Norman Schwarzkopf and Colin Powell as the architect of the Desert Storm Air Campaign, Special Assistant to the Vice President of the United States, Commandant of the Air Force’s Command and Staff College, successful business founder – he has capitalized on his studies and experience to create the Prometheus Process, a unique approach to strategy and success applicable wherever competition exists. Since its founding in 1995, Venturist, Incorporated has helped hundreds of companies and organizations around the world improve their business results. Venturist believes that the key to success in any competitive activity, whether war, business, or politics, is strategy. If an organization gets the strategy about right, it will have a high probability of realizing its objectives even if its competitors outmatch it in tactical performance.	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803246
__label__wiki	0.543531	0.543531	Expert comment: Opt-out system for organ donation in England is welcome, but timing is unfortunate Media Centre Services ExpertFile Researchers talking University of Warwick Podcast Industry and Stakeholder Forum(Restricted permissions) Independent External Review England switches to an opt-out system for organ donation today, as the world battles COVID-19. Dr Greg Moorlock, who researches the ethics of organ donation at Warwick Medical School, has commented on the impact that the timing is likely to have. Dr Moorlock says: “Moving to an opt-out system provides a welcome opportunity to increase the number of organ donors. By changing the default position to an assumption that people are in favour of their organs being donated, opt-out systems make it as easy as possible for people to become organ donors if they wish. "Unfortunately, the timing of England’s move to opt-out is likely to significantly compromise both its impact and its ethical underpinnings. A fundamental ethical aspect for any opt-out donation system is that people are informed about the change, so that they are aware that they will potentially become an organ donor unless they register a wish to the contrary. Everybody needs to be informed of the change, so that they can ensure that their organ donor status accurately reflects their wishes. "Unfortunately, the COVID-19 crisis has completely, and understandably, swamped recent news, and massively overshadowed the move to opt-out. We should have been seeing a public awareness campaign over the last few weeks and months, alerting everybody to the changes and promoting discussions about organ donation. Due to COVID-19, however, we have seen very little of this. There is a very real risk that lots of people will not be aware that we have moved to an opt-out system, and may therefore find themselves presumed to be willing organ donors despite this not being the case. This could be extremely detrimental in terms of public trust in the organ donation system, which relies extensively on public goodwill. These issues, coupled with public concerns about ICU rationing, Do No Attempt Resuscitation paperwork, and the fact that transplantation has mostly been suspended during Covid, mean that the timing of the change could not be much worse. Frustratingly, we only get one chance to make this change and yield a positive impact from it, and it appears that this chance is being blown.” Peter Thorley Media Relations Manager (Warwick Medical School and Department of Physics) Email: peter.thorley@warwick.ac.uk Mob: +44 (0) 7824 540863 Telephone Listings CV4 7AL Facebook Twitter YouTube Foursquare Page contact: Web Editor Last revised: Wed 20 May 2020	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803247
__label__cc	0.677116	0.322884	Ten Things to See in Columbus, IN Before You Die Columbus, Indiana was very proud when travel writer Jordan Simon listed Columbus among his “Top 10 Things to See in the U.S. Before You Die.” The city was included in the same list as Times Square, New Orleans, the Grand Canyon, and Yellowstone National Park, so there must be something amazing about this little Hoosier gem. Simon says (heh) in his article: For a small city, Columbus is a major repository of modern architecture, with works by luminaries like Eero Saarinen, Cesar Pelli, and Richard Meier. This destination says design from the get go-you enter the city over a futuristic quadripod bridge. The Visitors’ Center dazzles with work by famed glass artist Dale Chihuly, while Eliel Saarinen’s 1942 First Christian Church (its rectangular windows and brick tower glow like corn in the sun) faces I.M. Pei’s Cleo Rogers Memorial Library (a brick pavilion with long deep recessed windows). In between, Henry Moore’s whimsical massive sculpture, Large Arch, is his tribute to Stonehenge. I am ashamed to admit, I’ve lived in the same state as Columbus almost all my life, and have only been there a handful of times. I’ve admired the design, but never knew it was so rich in architectural history. Columbus has created their own top 10 list of places you have to see in Columbus before you die. Since I only live an hour away, this is a challenge I’m going to have to take them up on. In the meantime, I’m just going to let them tell you what they are (from the Columbus, Indiana Convention and Visitors Bureau): ONE : See 5 National Historic Landmarks. TWO : Take a tour of more than 60 modern marvels via a guided tour, or on your own, with your cell phone. THREE : See two original works by Dale Chihuly – a dazzling, 900-piece yellow neon chandelier and a colorful quilt of plexiglass FOUR : Check out the bridges of Bartholomew County – two sleek modern bridges and a covered bridge in a beautiful park setting. FIVE : Take in some local flavor with culinary experiences ranging from beer-tastings and wine pairings to progressive dinners at multiple restaurants. SIX : Walk the People Trails. It’s an inspiring way to get in those 10,000 steps, while you look to spot the blue herons on the Flatrock River. SEVEN : Drink a Green River at Zaharakos, hear the Orchestrion, and, for a limited time, indulge in some homemade cherry ice cream! EIGHT : Explore the city to find dozens of pieces of large-scale, public art. NINE : Discover little surprises around every corner. One alleyway is filled with colorful neon sculptures. TEN : Find a one-of-a-kind collectible at Indiana’s largest antique mall, which is huge and amazingly well-organized. Now that Spring is upon us, and the weather is getting nice and warm, I’m taking my family down to Bartholomew County in the next few weeks to see these things for myself. I hope to see you there. Photo credit: PNTPhoto (Flickr) Cities & Counties	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803261
__label__cc	0.637749	0.362251	Michael Oh Hong Choon Michael Oh Hong Choon having graduated with double honours in Economics and History from University of Malaya embarked upon a distinguished career as Divisional Director, Malaysian Industrial Development Authority (MIDA) and subsequently moved into private sector in financial services, investment banking and top management in reputable leading Malaysian Corporations viz Hong Leong Group, Malayan United Industries/Banking Group and as Chief Advisor, Asia Pacific to NZI Securities Limited, McKinney Rogers International Ltd, and BHF Bank AG Zurich. Michael Oh currently is a distinguished Vistage Chair and CEO Coach since 2005 having a successful track record of creating the Vistage CEO-19 Group with a diverse group of international CEOs and expatriates and Malaysian CEOs of leading multinational and Malaysian corporations. He is a Certified Master Coach (CMC) by Behavioral Coaching Institute an ICF Certified Coach of Coach Masters Academy and a Certified HRDF Train the Trainer. Besides his coaching credentials, he has served as a Board Director of PLC Companies in Malaysia and Hong Kong including as a Member of the Audit Committee, Nomination Committee and Remuneration Committee. In recognition of his vast experience in corporate governance he was appointed to the Faculty of the Malaysian Alliance of Corporate Directors and elected to the Board. In 1991, he was awarded the Freeman of the City of London, United Kingdom by the Lord Mayor. In all his Chairing, Mentoring and CEO Coaching at mastery level, Michael Oh has been able to incorporate his unbeatable repertoire of CEO proven experiences and skills in the three continents of Asia, Australia and Europe so as to ensure his CEO Members make better decisions, achieve better results and outperform all competition.	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803262
__label__wiki	0.636834	0.636834	Main menu en-GB Support VITARES Course of Bioimaging First VITARES Congress 1st Therapeutic Antibody Workshop Covid-2019, why lethality rate is higher in Wuhan? The Covid-2019 epidemic has long crossed China's borders, infecting over 5000 people in more than 40 countries. Italy is the third country in the world by number of infected, and even deaths continue to increase, but only among elderly people with already compromised clinical conditions. It is still early to draw conclusions, but the first numbers suggest a reassuring fact: the lethality rate of the Coronavirus Sars-Cov-2 in the rest of the world is lower than in Hubei, the epicenter of the epidemic. Why does this geographical discrepancy exist? One possible explanation is that people previously exposed to other viruses in the coronavirus family would be more likely to develop the disease in a serious form. The Sars epidemic of 2003 would have started in Hubei: this would have predisposed part of the population to this new disease. Is it just a flu? When the new Coronavirus started making headlines in early January, the situation in Hubei was already out of control. The epidemic was spreading like wildfire, and the most serious patients had complications such as kidney failure, lymphopenia, myocardial infarction and signs of acute inflammation. In 2003, Sars (Severe Acute respiratory Syndrome), caused by the Sars-Cov virus from the coronavirus family, had produced similar clinical symptoms, although with a much higher lethality rate. The new Coronavirus is less dangerous, but has a higher infectious capacity: the infection was much faster and more widespread. Based on these observations, the WHO (World Health Organization) has declared the international emergency and classified the risk "very high" in China and "high" in the rest of the world. Despite the containment measures, to date there are 46 countries with at least one case of Covid-2019. In Italy about 650 people are infected and 14 died. Numbers and lethality rate We come to the numbers. In February 27th, the total cases are 82,550 and the deaths 2810. On the basis of these data it is possible to calculate the lethality rate, which is the ratio between the number of deaths and the total number of infected people and is equal to 3.4%. But most of the deaths occurred in China and precisely in the epicenter of the epidemic, which is the province of Hubei: 2641 deaths out of 65,596 infected, with a lethality rate of about 4%. But outside China there are "only" 62 deaths out of 5415 infected: the lethality rate, in this case, is 1.1%. In Italy, with 14 victims out of 650 infected, the lethality rate is 2.1%, but the numbers are still small and have little statistical validity. In addition, many mild or asymptomatic cases may not have been diagnosed. Outside Hubei, the lethality rate of Sars-Cov-2 is 4 times lower. Covid-2019 would be much more like a bad flu than the far more serious Sars and Mers, which have a lethality of 9.6% and 35%, respectively. There are various possible explanations for this apparent statistical discrepancy. Hubei was overwhelmed by the first major wave of infections when it was not yet prepared to face the epidemic, and this could at least explain the dramatic increase in deaths in the first period. Another interpretation, according to experts, is that Sars-Cov-2 is adapting to the human being, thus becoming less dangerous. Matter of antibodies The third explanation concerns an antibody-mediated biological mechanism, already documented for the Sars virus in 2005. It is called ADE (Antibody Dependent Enhancement) and depends on the patient's immunological history. If a person has previously been exposed to another virus from the coronavirus family, they may have non-neutralizing antibodies. In other words, these antibodies would not only be ineffective against the new virus, but even, paradoxically, would help it infect the host's cells. Coronaviruses infect cells thanks to a protein called Spike (protein S), which binds to an ACE-2 receptor present on the surface of the human respiratory epithelium. The S protein of each coronavirus is similar, but not identical to all the others. The Sars epidemic would have started precisely from Hubei: the researchers speculate that contact with Sars-Cov - or with other coronaviruses - would have stimulated the production of antibodies that also recognize the Sars-Cov-2 S protein, but are not able to neutralize it. On the contrary, by binding to it, they would cause a change in its conformation which helps the virus to infect the cell. They could even act as "bridges", which at one end bind the host cell and at the other end bind the virus, physically promoting the interaction between the two and therefore the infection. Should we resize the alarm? The extraordinarily high lethality rate in Hubei would therefore be a logical consequence: in this province there may be more people who in the past have come into contact with the Sars virus or with other coronaviruses. Due to the presence of non-neutralizing antibodies, these subjects would be more vulnerable and would be more likely to develop acute inflammation or other types of complications. Researchers still know little about the pathogenesis of Covid-2019- But if the role of ADE was confirmed, it would explain why in the rest of the world the disease has a lethality rate only slightly higher than that of the common flu seasonal. To date, the alert level remains high, especially because Sars-Cov-2 is extremely contagious and there are no effective vaccines or therapies. But at risk are mainly the weakest and oldest subjects or with previous pathologies; in the vast majority of cases the virus heals on its own, without the need for special treatment. Erika Salvatori Source: Microbes and Infections COVID-2019, Wuhan Magazine Latest News Malaria, towards an effective vaccine by 2025 Feline coronavirus: the changing nature of a life-threatening virus On the way towards a genetic vaccine against Lyme disease in dogs Vaccinating wildlife: will it stop the next pandemics? Are genetic vaccines the best strategy against Sars-Cov-2? Reverse zoonoses: sometimes the threat comes from humans Covid-19: how the new Coronavirus mutates and spreads? Covid-19 more contagious than Sars: Why does it spread so fast? Coronavirus, ok to preclinical tests for an Italian vaccine Not only Covid-19: why bats is the perfect host for viruses? Researchers blamed pangolin for Coronavirus transmission to humans Coronavirus, a biotech from Italy is in the race for the vaccine Diphtheria: from horse serum to human antibodies A new gene therapy in the fight against gliomas Crispr, new ally in the fight against cancer Sea otters with measles due to the melting of the glaciers Do small migratory birds have a better immune system? Rotavirus vaccines play a role against cancer Juno, the elephant with cancer treated with electrochemotherapy Super bacteria resistant to antibiotics found in the Arctic and in dolphins For dogs with lung cancer, a hope comes from precision medicine Could faecal transplant save koalas? Penguins, Antarctic sentinels of climate change Combating mosquitoes without insecticides: a job for bacteria Hiv, gene editing eradicates the virus in mice Phage therapy may be better than antibiotics for sea turtles Sex as a defense against transmissible tumors: a new hypothesis Opossum, from models for biomedical research to allies against Lyme disease Phage therapy: a “modern” approach against antibiotic resistance Even dolphins suffer from Alzheimer’s disease Nanobodies from alpacas can fight solid tumors Fecal transplants could help patients on cancer immunotherapy drugs A spiny patient with cancer has benefits from electro-chemotherapy Bi-specific antibodies, like a bridge between cancer and immune system White sharks genome reveals secrets about wound healing and cancer Bat flu viruses use a “universal” key to infect cells CAR-T for dogs: where are we? Rabbit vs myxoma virus: a 70 years neck-and-neck race coming to a turn Crispr-Cas9: an opportunity for CAR-T improvement Wildlife conservation: a challenge for public health The genome of giant tortoises holds secrets against ageing and cancer DNA origami: how to implement vaccine design by nanotechnology Capybaras: the giant gentle rodents that escape cancer with a “super” immune system Edible vaccines: may a plant be better than an injection? Tumor-on-a-chip: a micro-architecture to explore the interaction between cancer and immune cells A virus behind brain tumors in racoons Cancer stem cells may be the next targets of immunotherapy New weapons against an old disease: what has changed in our approach to cancer treatment? From bench to bedside: the tools of translational medicine The paradoxical role of obesity in immunotherapy response Bacteria looking like “submarines” may help to fight cancer Are epithelial cancers a “side effect” of mammalian placenta? Tumour Associated Macrophages reprogrammed via nanoparticles and light Tumours evading CARs…are we ready to fight back? Engineered bacteria are turned into cancer fighters Engineered T cells find a way into the brain to fight glioblastoma Bacterial metabolites “escaping” from the gut…a job for antibodies! Why don’t whales get cancer (more often)? Gene therapy reprograms the tumor microenvironment Insulin: the “kick-start” that boosts the immune system Natural Killer cells, immunotherapy and … epigenetics Resurrecting a dead gene to fight cancer: elephants can do it! Under the sea…the case of contagious cancer in shellfish A personalized vaccine against ovarian cancer A look into the immunological landscape of the tumor: the Tumor Associated Macrophages From California, a wildlife model for carcinogenesis Breaking the "Right" Gene promotes response to CAR-T cell therapy Treating Cancer in the era of Personalized Medicine Can we cure cancer in sea turtles? Keeping an eye on DNA-Based Vaccine Nanobodies: A lesson learned from camels and sharks Oncolytic viruses and immunotherapy: the perfect match CAR-T cell therapy strikes again! The odd case of transmissible tumour Veterinary Immunotherapy and Translational Research VITARES	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803265
__label__wiki	0.91791	0.91791	Mid-Michigan parents weigh in on fall high school sports plan By Elisse Ramey Published: Jul. 17, 2020 at 10:58 PM EDT SAGINAW, Mich. (WJRT) - Friday the Michigan High School Athletic Association announced plans to play sports as scheduled this fall, and parents’ reactions are a mixed bag. Whether the sport is volleyball or cross country 15-year-old Bre Greene is ready to compete again. “I’m not really nervous or scared of COVID. I just know I got to be safe,” Bre Greene said. Her dad, Bry Greene, wants that as well. “I think it’s good as long as they take the proper safety precautions, keep everybody safe,” Greene said. He supports the MHSAA starting fall sports as planned with contingencies in place because of the COVID-19 pandemic. MHSAA says football practice will start August 10 and all other fall sports on August 12. Parents say different sports present different challenges. “Football is more contact. Basketball is more contact. Track & field...the only time you see contact is when you do the relays,” Greene said. “I don’t know how they would be able to practice it as well though with a contact sport of keeping 6ix feet away,” Patricia Sims said. “But I believe from a spiritual aspect...if it’s something great you’re going to do in this life you gonna do it.” Several parents weighed in on ABC12′s Facebook page as well. One person said her son plays winter and spring sports and is aware he may not get the chance to do that this year. Another person said his son has been practicing football for over a month and is excited to play. Greene, who is also the coach of a traveling club track team, says their indoor season would begin in October. This is the second year in a row his team’s hopes have been dashed. Last year they were unable to compete in the USATF National Junior Olympic Track & Field Championships in Sacramento for financial reasons. “This is the second time I had to tell kids we can’t go somewhere, and that’s a hurtful feeling,” Greene said. MHSAA says if COVID-19 prevents them from starting fall sports as scheduled, the next option would be to play lower-risk fall sports and postpone higher risk sports. If they have to stop play all together, then fall sports will be rescheduled. A reconfigured calendar would have Winter sports beginning in November followed by the conclusion of fall and spring seasons that could potentially extend into July of next year. “I’m waiting to see -- coming next month -- how the protocol is going to go and take it from there,” Greene said. Meanwhile, MHSAA is developing COVID-19 related policies for fall sports and will make them available before the start of the season. We asked if the school districts have to participate in the plans presented by its council Friday, and a communications representative for the organization said schools or specific teams can opt out of tournaments or full seasons.	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803277
__label__cc	0.749035	0.250965	Electronic Shutter Technology Market 2018 by Global Key Players, Segmentation, Historical Analysis, Competitive Landscape and Opportunity Assessment for the Period of 2018-2022 “Market Research Future” Market Research Future published a research report on “Global Electronic Shutter Technology Market Research Report- Forecast to 2022” – Market Analysis, Scope, Stake, Progress, Trends and Forecast to 2022. Global Electronic Shutter Technology Market – Overview Camera technology has evolved at a considerable pace in the last few years, with new technology and product features being rolled out consistently. Market Research Future, a firm which specializes in market reports related to semiconductor and electronics sector among others, recently published a report on this market. The market for electronic shutter is expected to develop at an astounding CAGR per cent in the forecast period. Despite availability of the camera features in smartphones, the hand held professional camera segment is still developing gradually with new features being added consistently to improve on the image quality. Electronic shutters have evolved from manual shutters which included leaf and focal plane shutters. Many of the cameras being launched recently, incorporate electronic shutters. They being increasingly demanded for live view and videos. Growing need for image sensors in biometric systems are further fuelling the Electronic Shutter Technology Market. Key Players: Some of the major players in Global Electronic Shutter Technology Market include Sony Corporation (Japan), Himax Imaging Inc. (Taiwan), Galaxy Core Inc. (China), SK Hynix Inc. (South Korea), Omni Vision Technologies Inc. (U.S.), Samsung Semiconductor, Inc. (U.S.), Toshiba corporation (Japan), Canon Inc. (Japan), Panasonic Corporation (Japan) and Apple (U.S.) among others. Get Sample of Report @ https://www.marketresearchfuture.com/sample_request/1161 The global electronic shutter technology market can be segmented by technology into CMOS sensors, and CCD sensors among others. By application the sector is divided into consumer electronics, broadcast, automotive, retail, government, and surveillance among others. Consumer electronics are the major segment from where a large chunk of demand is generated for this sector. Global Competitive Analysis The entry of new industry players in the segment has initiated a trend of volume-driven growth that has been observed to intensify with the addition of new and advanced products. The best long-term growth opportunities for this sector can be captured by ensuring ongoing process improvements and financial flexibility to invest in the optimal strategies. Some of the major players in global electronic shutter technology market include Sony Corporation (Japan), Himax Imaging Inc. (Taiwan), Samsung Semiconductor, Inc. (U.S.), Toshiba Corporation (Japan), Canon Inc. (Japan), Panasonic Corporation (Japan) and Apple (U.S.) among others. Cutting edge Features like high megapixel counts, 4K video and wireless connectivity are have transformed the product category. Industry leaders are trying to refine electronic shutters further so as to capitalize further on the photography boom. Latest Industry News: Nov 2018: Leica CL has launched a 24.2-megapixel sensor, 49-point contrast autofocus and Maestro II series processor that’s on the TL2. The CL 10 fps burst shooting speeds in both mechanical and electronic shutter modes, lets you capture around 33 RAW images before the buffer fills. The electronic shutter is good for street or golf photographers. Oct 2018: Sony a7R III has been launched which comes equipped with a new shutter mechanism should also help reduce vibration and is rated to a pro level 500,000 actuations. The 7R III has also been improved to yield better quality when using the full sensor. 1080p offers frame rates up to 120fps as well. Mar 2018: The Fujifilm X100F has been launched which includes a mechanical and electronic shutter. This feature can enable the use of very fast shutter speeds with the electronic shutter, which is useful when photographing at wide apertures in bright light. The Fujifilm X100F also is reasonably well at tracking a slow moving subject that is moving in a predictable pattern. July 2018: Sony’s has recently released “a9,” the latest in a long line of a-series cameras, is an amazing device that brings handheld night shooting alive. The electronic shutter enables shutter speeds up to one-32,000th of a second, which Sony says vastly outperforms mechanical limits of one-8,000th of a second. The electronic shutter eliminates shutter sounds and also the screen never “blacks out” when the shutter button is pressed. Get Complete Report @ https://www.marketresearchfuture.com/reports/electronic-shutter-technology-market-1161 Detailed Regional Analysis As per MRFR analysis, North America is expected to dominate the global electronic shutter technology market with the largest market share, and therefore accounting for a large market share and is expected to grow with a billion dollar revenue by 2022. Electronic global shutter technology market in Asia-pacific market is expected to generate high growth rate of CAGR as compared to 2016. The Europe market for electronic global shutter technology market is expected to grow at an astonishing CAGR in the forecast period. MRFR team have supreme objective to provide the optimum quality market research and intelligence services to our clients. Our market research studies by products, services, technologies, applications, end users, and market players for global, regional, and country level market segments, enable our clients to see more, know more, and do more, which help to answer all their most important questions. Website: https://www.marketresearchfuture.com/reports/electronic-shutter-technology-market-1161	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803279
__label__cc	0.661599	0.338401	Alghero Airport Car Hire Sardinia (8.7 km) Via Garibaldi 87, Sardinia, 07041 Sassari (24.4 km) Sassari, 07100, Sardenga Valledoria (55.7 km) Valledoria, 07039 Milan Via Galvani Naples Capodichino Rome Ciampino Rome Fiumicino Rome Train Station Sardinia Olbia Home » Destinations » Italy » Car Hire Alghero Airport Car Hire Alghero Airport Alghero name do evokes you perhaps not much and you ask where to situate this city. With a destination of Italian car in Alghero, this port city located on the island of Sardinia. This city of 40000 inhabitants remains very committed to its traditions and you will be surprised to hear speakers speak Catalan instead in Sardinian. Alghero is inhabited since the Neolithic and the city keeps track of the different peoples who settled, Phoenician, Roman, Arab, Genoa. It is always possible to visit the necropolis of Anghelu Ruju and a Roman villa nearby or even the Bronze age Palmavera nuraghe. The city of Alghero is fortified and it is possible to walk on the ramparts along the beach and see some strongholds such as the Fort of la Maddalena and the Tower of the Esperò Rejal. These fortifications are of Catalan origin and give character to the city of Alghero. What you will probably hit this is the wild beauty of the coast of Northwest of Alghero; in destination car, access to Cape Caccia is easy. This headland has 300 m cliffs overlooking the Mediterranean Sea. Alghero is also part of the Riviera del Corallo which promises fantastic moments of scuba diving to discover the reefs. Since this Catalan city in Sardinian territory, it is easy to reach the Nucca North and will be able to stop in the towns of Porto Torres and Sassari to visit. Shortly before Porto Torres Cape Town of Stintino and since this village is located, it is possible to make excursions by boat, to the island of Asinara a nature reserve. From Alghero, Olbia is only 80 kilometres and about three good hours will be required to join Cagliari. After your journey with a destination of car Alghero you can decompress on the beaches of Bombarde and Lazaretto. Finally Alghero will fill your expectations with its typical culinary specialities of Sardinian cuisine. Nothing after having travelled on the winding roads of Sardinia in destination car to taste the cheese or deli in a restaurant in Alghero. You will find also of mouthwatering seafood at the port of Alghero. Finally you'll not miss also taste pastries at base of almonds, Sardinian wines and liquor of prickly, the filiu e feru. The Catalan and Sardinian of Alghero city will not end you amaze your next holiday in this Mediterranean port. More Information About Alghero The Italian city of Alghero is located in the province of Sassari and is located with its 40,000 inhabitants of the island of Sardinia in Italy West arts. With a cheap rental car you will reach in Alghero best the individual attractions. Alghero's main attraction is the old town with its many medieval monuments, and a history that dates back to the Carthaginians and Phoenicians in 800 BC. The most important monument of the town is the fortress with its old city walls, which once again was upgraded after the conquest of the Catalans in the year 1354. From the time of the occupation of Catalonia is also that Alghero is linguistically Catalan and therefore all road and other signs bilingual (Italian and Catalan) referred. Without car hire, because walking distance from, you will reach the city from the old town to a further tourist magnets. The Harbour to the North of the town's Beach adjacent, is during the day meeting place of local fishermen dealer and in the evening with its many cafes and restaurants attracting tourists. The Nuraghi of Palmavera and the Domus de Janas necropolis is located just outside the city, conveniently reachable with the car. One a well-preserved early Tower, the other famous rock tombs and at the same time the largest and most important necropolis in the Mediterranean. Book a cheap flight to Alghero and reserve a cheap rental car and the best hotel in Sardinia at an early stage. So your trip can be at the same time rich and relaxing to Sardinia. "Great service and no issues" "First class service in every respect as usual." "All great. Car first class." "Excellent as ever." "Excellent service once again."	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803285
__label__cc	0.644737	0.355263	Watch One Piece Episode 604 English Sub English Subbed at WatchOP Title: Get to Building R! The Pirate Alliance's Great Advance! Though the Straw Hat Pirates and Brownbeard (along with the dragon) managed to escape into the laboratory, they left a large gaping hole on the side of it. They soon realize that Shinokuni will be able enter the lab in such conditions, prompting the G-5 marines to frantically seal the hole back up with various wooden and metal planks. They succeed in sealing the hole up as Shinokuni proceeds to spread throughout the island. Brook uses the power of his Devil Fruit to become a soul and survey the area outside of the lab, noting that it was like the land of the dead and one step outside would kill you. After regaining their senses, the G-5 marines then turn their guns and swords towards the Straw Hats, preparing to arrest them. Nami notices Law and demands that he switch herself and Sanji back to normal, to which Sanji secretly refuses. Law agrees to return them to their original bodies, using Shambles to switch their hearts back. Nami notices that she originally had a different coat on, and immediately punches Sanji, accusing him for peeping at her body. Law then explains to everyone present that they only have two hours to escape, and then continues by saying the only passage that leads safely out of the island is called R-66 and is found in Building R. The Marines are initially reluctant, but quickly change their minds when Smoker repeats the order to them. Smoker then orders Tashigi to take command of the men and rescue the children as he goes to confront Vergo. Meanwhile, Caesar Clown is celebrating the deaths of his victims, but notices that the cage has no solidified bodies, which he needs to prove the power of Shinokuni. He also notices the absence of the G-5 Marines outside of the lab. Vergo concludes that Luffy and the others must have broken out of the cage and helped the G-5 soldiers escape. Before Luffy goes to fight Caesar again, Zoro calls out to Luffy and reminds him that this is just the beginning of the New World and he must not let his guard down again, to which Luffy happily complies as he plows through the Satyr soldiers using Gomu Gomu no UFO. Caesar Clown then receives the news that the Straw Hats and Marines have broken into the Lab, leaving him alarmed and shocked at their escape. This Episode is licensed and distribute by Funimation and Crunchyroll. you may visit the website here Though the Straw Hat Pirates and Brownbeard (along with the dragon) managed to escape into the laboratory, they left a large gaping hole on the side of it. They soon realize that Shinokuni will be able enter the lab in such conditions, prompting the G-5 marines to frantically... more..	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803292
__label__cc	0.527548	0.472452	When three girls are kidnapped by a man with 23 different personalities, they have to work out which of those personalities will help them escape and which of those personalities will try to stop them. Written by jjmcmanusnbalshiite Country: Japan , USA Genre: Horror, Thriller, Taking place in a Manhattan apartment building, Max's life as a favorite pet is turned upside down, when his owner brings home a sloppy mongrel named Duke. They have to put their quarrels behind when they find out that an adorable white bunny named Snowball is building an army of lost pets determined to take revenge Written by Supermikey71 Genre: Animation, Adventure, Comedy, Family, When the world of the Orcs of Draenor is being destroyed by the evil fel magic that uses life-force, the powerful warlock Gul'dan creates a portal to the world of Azeroth and forms the Horde with members of the Orc clans. He also captures many prisoners to keep the portal open. The king of Azeroth, Llane Wrynn and his brother-in-law, Anduin Lothar are informed by the apprentice of magician Khadgar that he has found fel magic in dead bodies and the king decides to summon the Guardian of Tirisfal, Medivh, to protect his kingdom. Lothar and Khadgar head to Kharazhan to meet Medivh and an ominous shadow points a book out to Khadgar, who takes it and hides. Anduin, Khadgar and Medivh and a group of soldiers are attacked by Orcs and they capture the slave Garona, who is released by King Llane, and she shows them the location of the portal. Garona is contacted by the Orc chief of a clan Durotan that wants to meet King Llane to stop the fel magic. Meanwhile Khadgar learns that the gate was ... Written by Claudio Carvalho, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Country: China , Canada , Japan , USA Genre: Action, Adventure, Fantasy, The further adventures of Max the dog and his furry animal friends. Country: France , Japan , USA Genre: , 125 min \| 129 min (unrated) Despite having a love/hate relationship with her scoundrel of a father Gordon Townsend, the one thing Amy Townsend has grown up believing from him is that monogamy isn't realistic, he and Amy's mom who broke up due to infidelity when Amy was young. As such, she gets drunk and stoned frequently in her pursuit of indiscriminate sex, with an unstated rule that there is no sleeping over once the sex is over. Her current "boyfriend", Steven, believes they are exclusive, not knowing that she sleeps with other men. Working at sensationalistic magazine S'nuff under head sensationalist Dianna, Amy is in line for a promotion, she certain to get it if her next story meets Dianna's scrutiny. That story is a profile of sports doctor to the stars, Dr. Aaron Conners, it despite Amy knowing nothing about sports. To Amy's amazement, Aaron wants to date her following their first sexual encounter, his sexual history in terms of quantity which is in extreme contrast to her own. Also to her amazement, she... Written by Huggo Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance, Batman, along with a number of his allies and adversaries, finds himself transplanted from modern Gotham City to feudal Japan. Genre: Animation, Action, Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust It is many thousand years in the future. Vampires once ruled the night but have seen their numbers reduced by fearless bounty hunters. One such hunter is D, the halfbreed son of a human mother and vampire father. When a girl from a rich family is taken from her home by the vampire Meier Link, her father contracts both D and the Markus brothers (a rival group of hunters) to race to retrieve her. As the heroes fight their way through Meier's hired guards, they begin to suspect that the girl may have gone with him willingly. Written by Lordship Genre: Animation, Action, Adventure, Drama, Fantasy, Horror, Mystery, Romance, Sci-Fi, Thriller, Western, The Theory of Everything is the story of the most brilliant and celebrated physicist of our time, Stephen Hawking, and Jane Wilde the arts student he fell in love with whilst studying at Cambridge in the 1960s. Little was expected from Stephen Hawking, a bright but shiftless student of cosmology, given just two years to live following the diagnosis of a fatal illness at 21 years of age. He became galvanized, however, by the love of fellow Cambridge student, Jane Wilde, and he went on to be called the successor to Einstein, as well as a husband and father to their three children. Over the course of their marriage as Stephen's body collapsed and his academic renown soared, fault lines were exposed that tested the lineaments of their relationship and dramatically altered the course of both of their lives. Written by Spencer Higham Country: UK , Japan , USA Genre: Biography, Drama, Romance, 125 min \| 132 min (Special Edition Blu-ray) (Canada only) Sharon Da Silva wakes up every night screaming about "silent hill". Pursued by a police officer suspicious of her motives and swerving to avoid another child her adoptive mother crashes the car knocking herself unconscious. When Rose Da Silva awakens to find her adopted child is missing, she searches the fog and ash blanketed town for her beloved daughter. Written by Pel Par Country: Canada , France , Japan , USA Genre: Adventure, Horror, Mystery, A girl is mysteriously killed after recording herself playing with an ancient Ouija Board, which leads to a close group of friends to investigate this board. They later find out that some things aren't meant to be played with, especially the 'other side'. Written by Marco Anne is at a crossroads in her life. Long married to a successful, driven but inattentive movie producer, she unexpectedly finds herself taking a car trip from Cannes to Paris with a business associate of her husband. What should be a seven-hour drive turns into a carefree two-day adventure replete with diversions involving picturesque sights, fine food and wine, humor, wisdom and romance, reawakening Anne's senses and giving her a new lust for life. Matt Weston (Ryan Reynolds) is a CIA rookie who is manning a safe house in Cape Town, South Africa, when Tobin Frost (Denzel Washington) the CIA's most wanted rogue agent is captured and taken to the safe house. During Frost's interrogation, the safe house is overtaken by mercenaries who want Frost. Weston and Frost escape and must stay out of the gunmen's sight until they can get to another safe house. Written by Douglas Young (the-movie-guy) Country: South Africa , Japan , USA Genre: Action, Crime, Mystery, Thriller, A portal transports Lt. Artemis and an elite unit of soldiers to a strange world where powerful monsters rule with deadly ferocity. Faced with relentless danger, the team encounters a mysterious hunter who may be their only hope to find a way home. Country: China , Germany , Japan , USA One Missed Call After the death of their friend Shelley, Leann Cole receives a voice mail from the future of the date and time when she would die. On the scheduled day, Leann sees weird things and in the precise informed hour, Leann is attacked by a supernatural force on a footbridge over a train station while talking to her friend Beth Raymond. Beth meets Leann's boyfriend Brian, who also received a call, and witnesses his death on the street. When her roommate Taylor Anthony receives a call, Beth befriends Det. Jack Andrews, who tells her that his sister was the first victim of the phone call. They decide to investigate the connections of Jack's sister and find the name of Marie Layton, who apparently abused of her daughters. Jack and Beth run against time trying to save Beth from her fate. Written by Claudio Carvalho, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Country: Japan , USA , Germany Genre: Horror, Mystery, In the coastal town of Los Angeles, a gang of bank robbers call themselves the ex-presidents. commit their crimes while wearing masks of ex-presidents Reagan, Carter, Nixon and Johnson. The F.B.I. believes that the members of the gang could be surfers and send young agent Johnny Utah undercover at the beach to mix with the surfers and gather information. Utah meets surfer Bodhi and gets drawn into the lifestyle of his new friend. Written by Sami Al-Taher staher2000@yahoo.com Genre: Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller, The year is 2039. World wars have destroyed everything and territories are run by corporations, the mightiest -- and cruelest -- of which is Tekken. Jin Kazama (John Foo) witnesses the death of his mother Jun (Tomita) by Tekken in the slums known as Anvil. Vowing vengeance, and armed only with his street smarts and raw fighting skills, he enters a dangerous and potentially deadly combat tournament, where he must defeat the world's most elite fighters to become the "King of the Iron Fist." Written by Official site Genre: Action, Crime, Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller, 02SNS 1SNS Encounter of three social classes of England at the beginning of the 20th century : the Victorian capitalists (the Wilcoxes) considering themselves as aristocrats, whose only god is money ; the enlightened bourgeois (the Schlegels), humanistic and philanthropic ; and the workers (the Basts), fighting to survive. The Schlegel sisters' humanism will be torn apart as they try both to softly knock down the Wilcox's prejudices and to help the Basts. Written by Yepok Genre: Drama, Romance, Rilakkuma to Kaorusan Kaoru's unexpected new roommate is Rilakkuma, a bear with a zipper on its back that spends each day just lazing around -- but is impossible to hate. Genre: Animation, Comedy, Family, Subscribe to Putlocker9 (AKA GoMovies ) mailing list to receive updates on movies, tv-series and news Copyright © Putlocker. All Rights Reserved to Putlocker Community Disclaimer --:-- This site does not store any files on its server. All contents are provided by non-affiliated third parties sites. Thanks.	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803293
__label__wiki	0.552261	0.552261	Green Wednesday, Second Only to 4/20 as a ‘High Holiday,’ Set to Break Cannabis Sales Records Cooped up with the relatives or not, fans are expected to stock up, with aggressive retailer promotions Cannabis experts expect this year's Green Wednesday to be record-breaking. Getty By T.L. Stanley Cannabis connoisseurs, even with their well-earned reputation for being super chill, aren’t immune to the fear of missing out, especially when it comes to seasonal shopping. So while the general consumer base has its Black Friday and Cyber Monday, cannabis fans have their Green Wednesday, second only to 4/20 as a national weed-buying extravaganza. This year, as people shelter in place and forgo social gatherings per CDC recommendations, sales of bud, edibles, tinctures and vapes may break previous years’ records and cement Green Wednesday—which takes place today, the Wednesday before Thanksgiving— further in cannabis lore, according to industry experts. “It’s one of our high holidays in weed,” Nidhi Lucky Handa, CEO of Los Angeles-based cannabis brand Leune. “It’s a day to stock up because it represents a long weekend, and people are thinking about self-care.” Green Wednesday, as a concept, got its start around 2016, reportedly cooked up by the delivery platform Eaze, after it noted an organic swell in demand. It was quickly adopted by dispensaries and brands offering holiday-specific discounts and doorbuster deals, not unlike mainstream brick-and-mortar stores. In uncertain times, and especially over the holidays, it’s no surprise that people turn to cannabis for relaxation. Socrates Rosenfeld, co-founder and CEO, Jane Technologies Many industry execs, like Handa, thought it was a lark in the early days. But after seeing the stats—bulk buying that nearly reached the lofty heights of April 20, the global celebration of all things weed—they were believers. That was everyone’s cue, she said, to start planning and strategizing months in advance of Green Wednesday. The holiday took hold for a number of reasons, according to John Ford, vp of retail for Chalice Farms, a seven-dispensary chain in Oregon. People might be looking to stop up before seeing family over the long Thanksgiving weekend “People are traveling home to see friends and family, potentially from out of state where recreational sales may not be legal, and many dispensaries are closed on Thanksgiving,” he said. Another industry veteran called the holiday an homage to the “stress-reducing, sleep-enhancing, appetite-stimulating benefits” of weed and “the perfect opportunity to prepare for food fights with in-laws, all-day baking affairs and defeating the indomitable -itis,” said Matt Janz, director of THC marketing for The+Source retailer in Las Vegas. But as health officials warn against holiday travel this year, there may be fewer anxiety-producing moments—crowded flights and awkward family dinners—that traditionally drove weed purchases. Also missing: the communal, sharing aspect of cannabis, which is nearly extinct in the wake of Covid-19. A soothing distraction At the same time, as coronavirus cases spike, stress levels are peaking, and people are looking for a soothing distraction. “Thanksgiving 2020 will be unlike any in living memory,” according to a recent report from research firm Headset, which tracks weed sales in Oregon, California, Colorado, Nevada, Washington, Michigan and Massachusetts. “With millions of Americans being asked to stay at home for the holiday, frankly, what else is there to do?” Reps at Eaze say they’re anticipating another green rush, brought on by concerns about the pandemic, the shaky economy and the divisive post-election mood in the country. In uncertain times, people turn to weed products to help them relax Analysts are basing their 2020 projections on prior Green Wednesday data, which has shown the holiday’s explosive growth in just a few short years. Green Wednesday sales in 2019, for instance, jumped 60% over an average of the previous four Wednesdays in a handful of adult-use states, Headset found. In California alone, the country’s most robust market, Green Wednesday sales jumped to $14.5 million last year, a 65% increase over the previous four Wednesdays. T.L. Stanley @TLStanleyLA terry.stanley@adweek.com T.L. Stanley is a senior editor at Adweek, where she specializes in consumer trends, cannabis marketing, meat alternatives, pop culture, challenger brands and creativity.	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803300
__label__cc	0.567198	0.432802	Jack Dorsey on Twitter’s Donald Trump Ban: ‘Was This Correct?’ He lamented its effects on public conversation and the open internet Dorsey said the move was prudent in the short term but potentially damaging in the longer term Twitter By David Cohen Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey did some soul-searching through a series of tweets on one of the most important decisions he has ever been tasked with reaching: the permanent ban of outgoing President Donald Trump’s @realDonaldTrump account. Dorsey’s 13-tweet thread Wednesday evening went from defending the ban, to lamenting its effects on the public conversation, to touting Bluesky, the initiative aimed at creating an open decentralized standard for social media, which he introduced in December 2019. I do not celebrate or feel pride in our having to ban @realDonaldTrump from Twitter, or how we got here. After a clear warning we’d take this action, we made a decision with the best information we had based on threats to physical safety both on and off Twitter. Was this correct? — jack (@jack) January 14, 2021 He started off with, “I do not celebrate or feel pride in our having to ban @realDonaldTrump from Twitter, or how we got here. After a clear warning that we’d take this action, we made a decision with the best information we had based on threats to physical safety both on and off Twitter. Was this correct? I believe this was the right decision for Twitter. We faced an extraordinary and untenable circumstance, forcing us to focus all of our actions on public safety. Offline harm as a result of online speech is demonstrably real and what drives our policy and enforcement above all.” Dorsey than lamented the effects of the ban, calling it a failure on Twitter’s part to promote healthy conversation and saying actions of this sort “fragment the public conversation. They divide us. They limit the potential for clarification, redemption and learning. And they set a precedent that I feel is dangerous: the power an individual or corporation has over a part of the global public conversation.” He said that while the decision by Twitter and other platforms was prudent in the moment and in the short term, “over the long term, it will be destructive to the noble purpose and ideals of the open internet.” Building on the open internet theme, he said of Bluesky, “This will take time to build. We are in the process of interviewing and hiring folks, looking at both starting a standard from scratch or contributing to something that already exists. No matter the ultimate direction, we will do this work completely through public transparency.” Dorsey concluded with, “It’s important that we acknowledge this is a time of great uncertainty and struggle for so many around the world. Our goal in this moment is to disarm as much as we can and ensure that we are all building toward a greater common understanding and a more peaceful existence on earth. I believe the internet and global public conversation is our best and most relevant method of achieving this. I also recognize that it does not feel that way today. Everything we learn in this moment will better our effort and push us to be what we are: one humanity working together.” david.cohen@adweek.com David Cohen is editor of Adweek's Social Pro Daily.	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803301
__label__cc	0.523055	0.476945	Using digital communications to close the humanitarian governance gap Partha Moman The extended drought in Somalia continues to have a devastating impact across the country. Since early 2017, when the crisis deteriorated and the threat of famine loomed, the number of people in emergency level of food insecurity (IPC Phase 4) has increased to 866,000. Over the same period, over 1,159 people lost their lives in a devastating cholera outbreak that affected multiple regions. Although a quick scale-up in humanitarian assistance has averted famine, much work remains to be done to ensure full recovery of livelihoods and increase resilience. In this context, UNICEF Somalia has been scaling up its cash transfer programme for those in need. Complementing the World Food Programme’s (WFP) food security interventions, UNICEF’s unrestricted cash transfer programme assists people to meet their ‘non-food’ needs, such as shelter, education and investment in livelihoods. The money itself is distributed by providing top-ups to an electronic voucher card that can then be used to access cash at specific financial service providers. The challenge of accountability and responsiveness in humanitarian emergencies AVF, like UNICEF, believes that, in order to effectively deliver aid in a timely manner it is essential that humanitarian programmes such as this one are adaptive, responsive and ultimately accountable to the perspectives and experiences of those affected. In Somalia, ensuring good ‘humanitarian governance’ becomes particularly crucial in a context where government institutions still have a limited reach, and aid agencies have a huge say in who accesses services and how. Indeed, if humanitarian crises are fundamentally failures of governance, then the path to averting catastrophe and eventual recovery must be grounded in engagement with the voices of affected populations. Yet achieving this can be difficult in fast-changing contexts where insecurity and a lack of infrastructure create operational difficulties and can prevent effective communications with beneficiaries. To overcome these obstacles and provide accountability to affected populations, UNICEF asked Africa’s Voices Foundation (AVF) to set up systems to support more adaptive, transparent and responsive programming. We designed two systems, leveraging the accessibility of mobile phones, to meet this objective: A two-way communication channel which provided crucial information to beneficiaries and elicited feedback on the programme from them via SMS Post-distribution monitoring via SMS and IVR on delivery of cash and outcomes for beneficiaries 1. Two-way communications channel with beneficiaries Voice messages were sent to the mobile phones of programme beneficiaries, collected previously through WFP’s SCOPE platform, so that they could understand their cash entitlement and receive instructions on how to claim it. Information was also provided on how to register feedback and complaints with the cash transfer programme via a toll-free SMS channel. Issues raised by beneficiaries were analysed and tagged, before being passed on to UNICEF for resolution. In response to beneficiaries’ specific complaints, AVF also sent targeted voice (IVR) and SMS communications with relevant information. This feedback system was deployed pairing UNICEF’s RapidPro SMS platform with Somleng, an open source interactive voice response (IVR) technology. The two-way channel proved to be an accessible and widely used system. One cash transfer programme focused on returnees to Somalia from the Dadaab and Dhobley refugee camps, and supporting their reintegration to their home country. Of this group, over 60% of those with mobile phones raised an issue or concern by SMS using this channel. The system was used equally by men and women, although it was more widely used by younger beneficiaries. IMPACT OF FEEDBACK LOOP ON THE PROGRAMME The two-way communications platform had a tangible impact on UNICEF’s programmes, allowing them to respond more effectively to bottlenecks to distribution and iteratively adapt their programming. The following cases exemplify how this worked in practice: After voice messages informed a group of beneficiaries of their cash entitlement in Mogadishu, they arrived at the office of UNICEF’s implementing partner to top up their electronic voucher card but were unable to redeem their entitlement for technical reasons. Beneficiaries were able to use the SMS feedback channel to raise the specific issue, along with other complaint mechanisms. This led to UNICEF resolving the technical issues on the ground and extending the programme so that the beneficiaries could finally receive their aid. Beneficiaries reported instances of diversion; they reported being escorted by influential people in their Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camp when receiving their aid, who would then take a percentage of the money intended for the beneficiary. Similar incidents involved beneficiaries arriving to receive their money, but then being given food instead of cash. UNICEF was able to use this data to quickly follow up with their on-the-ground partners and resolve these issues. Some messages asked for further information on the distribution process such as the exact location or business hours of top-up points. In response, AVF in collaboration with UNICEF sent messages tailored to individual responses with further details, and where necessary, sent the phone numbers of specific operatives on the ground to allow beneficiaries to seek further clarification. Other cases raised by beneficiaries through the feedback loop are informing UNICEF’s next iteration of its programme design. Displaced returnees on the move often reported that they were very far from the expected top-up point or the financial service provider. They also reported being too old or sick to retrieve their cash. Several times beneficiaries even suggested that they might be able to receive the transfer by mobile money transfer instead. AVF’s analysed these cases and contributed these crucial citizen perspectives to discussions at UNICEF about switching to cash distribution through mobile phones. AVF will collect further data to try and quantify the use of mobile money services amongst beneficiaries and assess the viability of using this modality. This two-way system will be scaled up so that targeted SMS and voice messages are sent out rapidly. For simple and frequent requests, cases will be responded to daily. For new or more complex issues, we aim for a response within a week. AVF will also work with UNICEF to develop a case management and analysis system, integrated with their other feedback channel, to support quick identification and handling of issues raised by affected populations. A Somali man on his mobile phone at a beach in Mogadishu [Feisal Omar/Reuters] 2. Post-distribution monitoring and evaluation The second pillar of AVF’s support to adaptive cash transfer programming was to develop systems for post-distribution monitoring via SMS, in order to answer key quantitative questions about the programme, such as whether distribution was successful, how the cash was being used, and whether it was affecting key outcomes for affected populations. In order to ensure sufficient engagement with monthly PDMs, the following approach was used: Participants were first sent a voice message to explain the purpose and value of the survey and how their voice will form a key part of programme evaluation. They were then sent an SMS survey to monitor and assess UNICEF’s programming. Including a voice message prior to the SMS survey seemed to increase response rates from 5-10% to 40%. Non-respondents to the SMS survey received a survey by IVR to ensure that those who are illiterate are not excluded from the evaluation. In initial surveys to returnees from Dadaab and Dhobley, AVF has provided key qualitative data for programme reporting. For example, the feedback shows that some people had used the money on food, suggesting that the combined UNICEF and WFP intervention was not working as intended. Some returnees had used the money to invest in their future livelihoods by setting up businesses, buying goods to trade, and land and productive assets. This provided evidence to UNICEF that the programme had worked to support the return to Somalia of certain individuals. Amplifying voices for effective and accountable humanitarian efforts Together these systems put the voice of affected people at the heart of humanitarian programming and they go some way towards closing the governance gap between agencies and those in need. However, whilst establishing accountability to affected populations can be crucial to delivering appropriate and life-saving assistance, it can and should go beyond supporting instrumental delivery of aid just to keep negative indicators at bay. More work still needs to be done to these scale these systems so that they can contribute to the foundations of long-term sustainable civic engagement on how resources are managed in Somalia. Top photo credit: Man outside Somalia’s National Theatre in Mogadishu, AU-UN IST PHOTO / TOBIN JONES. Citizen engagementDigital communicationsFindings & insightsGovernanceImpactSomalia •14 January 2021•Derick Ngaira Africa’s Voices welcomes Mr. Patrick Wamukulu as the Business Development & External Relations Manager •7 February 2020•Elena Georgalla Explore our 2019 annual review Adopt citizen-centred programmes for better outcomes 14 January 2021Derick Ngaira Explore our annual report 2019 18 August 2020Elena Georgalla Archives Select Month January 2021 (2) August 2020 (1) May 2020 (1) March 2020 (3) February 2020 (1) January 2020 (1) December 2019 (2) November 2019 (1) August 2019 (1) July 2019 (2) June 2019 (2) May 2019 (2) April 2019 (2) March 2019 (2) January 2019 (2) November 2018 (1) August 2018 (2) July 2018 (1) April 2018 (1) December 2017 (1) October 2017 (3) September 2017 (1) August 2017 (3) July 2017 (4) June 2017 (2) May 2017 (2) April 2017 (1) February 2017 (4) January 2017 (1) December 2016 (1) November 2016 (3) October 2016 (3) September 2016 (2) August 2016 (2) July 2016 (1) May 2016 (4) April 2016 (1) March 2016 (2) February 2016 (1) January 2016 (2) October 2015 (1) September 2015 (1) July 2015 (2) June 2015 (2) April 2015 (2) March 2015 (1) February 2015 (1) January 2015 (1) November 2014 (4) October 2013 (1) 2018 2019 AAP accountability annual report award Board BRA careers Citizen engagement Computational linguistics CSAP Data analysis Digital communications Education feedback Findings & insights Frasia Gender Governance grant Impact katikati Kenya Mogadishu OCHA Public health Radio ReDDS report Research design review Somalia South Africa supporters Technology Trustees Twilio Twilio.org University of Cambridge Wellcome Trust Youth	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803302
__label__wiki	0.910424	0.910424	Drayton Motors - cultivating success with rural Kia franchises 22/04/2020 in Dealer profiles A strong emphasis on people and a collective willingness to roll up their sleeves is propelling profits at Drayton Motors Drayton Motors director Darren Bradford is keen to highlight a mindset that would have him “pick up a bucket and sponge” at the two-site Kia franchise in Lincolnshire if it would help the business. The businessman said that he considers his leadership style to be “firm but fair” and centred on the importance of everyone in a team effort. It’s that team effort which drives the success of this award-winning, family-owned retailer “We’re a rural operator,” said Bradford. “Our Boston dealership, in particular, is in the middle of the middle of nowhere. "It’s flanked on each side by drainage ditches and at the back there is a cauliflower field. "Despite our location, customers come in and they are blown away by the vibe and the energy in the dealership and that’s what I love about it. "Drayton is a happy working environment and that’s a major driver behind our business.” He added: “It’s a culture that you have to breathe into a business from the top.” Drayton has achieved AM Best UK Dealerships To Work For status in 2017, 2018 and 2019. Despite the differing targets, processes and constraints within each department, feedback delivered by staff on the questionnaires suggested that employees enjoyed a sense that they were all working together for the good of the business and would look to find solutions to any issues that arise. Bradford conceded that his desire to feel part of his team, and to listen to his staff, stems from his own experience of driving his career forward from the start-point of valeter at a garage in Gravesend, Kent. Time spent on the service desk and as a site co-ordinator for SMC in Crayford eventually led to an introduction into the sales side of the business – but the move didn’t come easily. Bradford explained: “I wanted to work in sales but my boss at the time said, ‘Have you seen how big you are? You’ll scare customers away!’” “I ended up putting a proposal to him. I said, ‘I’ll give you my Saturdays and Sundays to work as a salesman for three months and if I’m okay you give me an opportunity to move over full-time'. “Over the next six or seven weeks I was consistently third or fourth in the sales team rankings, even though I was only working two days a week.” Bradford went on to become sales controller at SMC’s newly-developed Ford dealership at Sittingbourne before moving to Lincolnshire for “lifestyle reasons”, joining EMG Group at its Wisbech Ford dealership. Later he invested in an independent retail operation and joined the consultancy circuit before a call from Chris Roberts – then of Thurlby Motors – brought him back into the retail sector proper as a sales manager, later gaining promotion to become general manager at three Vauxhall sites. It was then that Robin Wilson, the managing director of Drayton Motors’ owner Wilson and Co, got in touch following the purchase of his first Kia franchise, in Boston. Bradford initially became dealer principal and still reports to Wilson, whose company operates Vauxhall franchises in Bolton, Chorley, Gainsborough, Grimsby and Scunthorpe. He said: “Robin looks after the Vauxhall side of the business and places a lot of trust in me, allowing me to operate the Drayton operation pretty independently. “The only time I tend to see him is at board meetings, where we share notes, but we have a great relationship and it works well.” Sowing seeds of growth Since then, Drayton Motors has experienced significant growth from its rural locations “in among the cabbage patch”. AM spoke to Bradford in a Skype interview following the Government’s call for social distancing measures to combat the outbreak of coronavirus, but he said that Drayton had experienced a record start to the year. Between Drayton Motors’ acquisition in 2013 and today, the group has been transformed, with a four-fold increase in turnover from £5.8 million to £30.5m in 2019, and a leap in profit before tax from £97,000 to £738,000. Bradford said that the group’s return-on-sales (RoS) figure had risen from 1.7% to 2.5% in the same period and the number of new retail units sold rose 62% from 163 to 264. Some of the increase in performance can be accounted for by the addition of the group’s second Kia franchise, in Louth, in February 2018, but significant gains have also come from expansions to display more used cars. Used car sales have increased from 272 in 2013 to 1,502 in 2019, Bradford said, but 40% of that growth came between 2018 and last year. Drayton secured the AM Awards’ Best Used Car Performance accolade in 2018. It was one of a string of accolades claimed by the group, which Bradford proudly states “punches above its weight”. In 2018 it was named as one of the Kia Motor Corporation’s top dealerships and received a Global Top Dealer Award. Most recently, at the Kia Motors UK 2020 dealer awards, Drayton’s Louth dealership secured the Korean carmaker’s Family-Like Care Award. Studying entries for their used car award back in 2018, AM’s awards judges were impressed by Drayton’s 38-day average stock turn, a return-on-investment of 141% and an impressive customer satisfaction rating of 98.8% on JudgeService. Standout factors include the Lincolnshire-based dealer’s introduction of a ‘price match guarantee’, ensuring that if a customer finds an equivalent vehicle within seven days of purchase Drayton Motors will give them back the difference. To further ensure customer satisfaction, as well as manage space constraints at this rural dealership, Drayton has a three-day rule for new stock – cars cannot take longer than this from acquisition to being presented on the used car pitch. A prep centre ensures all cars are at the required standard quickly. Drayton also attracted praise for its innovative approach to marketing, through advertising on Sky television in its area of influence. Bradford conceded, however, that competition in the used car sector has increased dramatically in the past two years and a keen eye on profitability and the speed of stock turn amid rising vehicle prices and falling margins – overseen by sales operations manager Gareth Grasham – has been central to its continued growth. Maximising leads through the use of Rapid RTC’s customer enquiry management system and adopting the Peter Vardy-backed SilverBullet online retailing platform have also helped. Physical expansion Bradford managed over time to expand the used car forecourt from six bays in 2013 to 65 by the 2018 AM Awards and still further to 110 now. A stockturn of around 16 times per year in 2018 now stands at “a more realistic level” of around 13 times, Bradford said. “It was tough growing our scale in used cars because of the nature of the sites,” said Bradford. “At the Boston site we had a cottage to one side, fields on another and a drainage ditch on another. We were land locked. “The cottage had been empty for some time though and I spent an awful lot of time building a relationship with the owners – the two sons of the former owner – trying to persuade them to sell. “In the end they did, and we moved on there in November 2014, but it wasn’t a straightforward process.” Boston was upgraded with a purpose-built, LED-lit valeting bay in February 2017. An expansion and full refit of its workshop seven months later introduced three new ramps and a wheel alignment bay. The total investment in both projects was £300,000. The works were a major catalyst in the growth of total labour hours sold from 2,300 to 5,830 between 2013 and 2019. Major expansion to used car sales happened in October 2018 with the acquisition of an adjacent field to expand the site to 90 to 95 used cars bays and five new customer parking spaces. Bradford said: “The local residents were keen to have input and it involved a lot of trips to local planning meetings and the like before we got the green light. In all honesty, though, the expansion has improved things for us and the immediate vicinity. “Space had become so tight that we were getting to the point where, by 8.30am each morning, people were having to park on the street and no one wants that.” After the considerable effort and investment made to expand the Boston site, the Louth dealership is now set to expand into a new purpose-built Kia Red Cube dealership. Drayton completed the acquisition of a former petrol forecourt in the town in December and – prior to the coronavirus lockdown – plans to move into a new nine-car facility, with an eight-bay workshop and a Vauxhall authorised repairer franchise, later this year. The former Nissan dealership currently occupied by the group, which was acquired in February 2018, employs 16 staff. The next chapter of Drayton Motors expansion story is likely to involve a new brand altogether, according to Bradford. While he said that he would be happy to expand with Kia, Bradford said that conversations were already under way with other potential manufacturer partners. Negotiations to lease a new site were also under way, however the landlord was offered improved terms by Enterprise Rent-A-Car. Drayton has made no commitment as yet to join another franchised network. Bradford said that conversations with owner-driver operators of prospective brands had been central to its due diligence research so far, adding: “It will happen when the right opportunity comes along, but we’re not the type of business to simply jump in with both feet.” NAME: Drayton Motors LOCATIONS: Louth and Boston TURNOVER: £30.45 million (2019) PBT £738,000: (2019) ‘Firm but fair’ leadership Reading Drayton Motors’ entry to the AM Best UK Dealership To Work For award, it is hard to imagine that the group is anything other than an employer that, in Bradford’s own words, “spoils its staff”. Staff recognition policies include the handing out of chocolate eggs and turkeys at Easter and Christmas, a half-day off for employees on their birthday and access to the online benefits platform Perkbox, funded by the dealership and giving retail discounts at high street and online brands, a free MOT, £1 car wash and vacuum, a new car for cost price plus £1, and friends and family discounts for used cars. Other employee benefits include a childcare voucher scheme, bicycle loans, optional private medical insurance, health screening and retail discounts, plus access to financial and legal advice. The group’s formal incentives include a ‘superband’ for sales executives, which gives them 15% of the profit they make if they can achieve 200% of their target, and a year-end bonus for a percentage of over-achievement against budget. “We give them everything,” said Bradford. “Why do we do that? Because they give us everything.” Bradford believes that recognition and the support Drayton offers its employees are central to his dealership’s “uplifting vibe” and a staff attrition rate of 10% in 2019 which, he claims, excludes two members of the six departing staff who have since returned to the business. He said that he will always give staff a second chance and is keen to promote a culture where anyone wanting to progress is given a chance to do to. “I was lucky, I was given a chance when I started out and made the most of it, but I’ll still get stuck in with the team,” he said. “In a month like this – which would normally be a busy plate-change month – I’ll just bring in a pair of jeans and a T-shirt, and pick up a bucket and sponge to help out. “If you work hard you can progress and it’s important for people to know that I remember where I started. It could encourage them to develop themselves.” Bradford said that the living evidence of his ongoing desire to give others a chance can be seen in the team around him now, many of whom were previously valeters themselves. One top salesman was a former valeter who had previously sold chocolates in his native Romania, Bradford said. “I saw his potential and started including him in customer events, getting him involved,” said Bradford. “Eventually he clocked on to what the salesmen were earning and he came round. Now he’s doing great work for us.” Drayton Motors Kia Motors (UK) staff retention AM Best UK Dealerships To Work For Most popular articles in Dealer profiles 1) How Cazoo leapt head-first into online car sales 2) Snows Motor Group CEO Stephen Snow on becoming 'leaner and more efficient' 3) Robins and Day CEO James Weston: 'Time to Reset and Restart' Drayton Motors Kia, Boston - an AM Best UK Dealership to Work For Drayton Motors Kia, Boston, is an AM Best UK Dealership to Work For Drayton Motors' Best UK Dealerships accolade is 'Jewel in the Crown'	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803312
__label__cc	0.691514	0.308486	Share this Story: Windsor's real estate sales remain strong despite COVID-19 crisis Windsor's real estate sales remain strong despite COVID-19 crisis Dave Battagello • Windsor Star Lorraine Clark, president of the Windsor Essex County Association of Realtors is shown at the organization's office in Windsor on Tuesday, April 7, 2020. Photo by Dan Janisse /Windsor Star Despite fears of the spread of COVID-19 and a government ban on staging any open houses, Windsor’s real estate market has remained relatively active and has even featured bidding wars on many properties. “It is a little bit surprising,” said Lorraine Clark, president of the Windsor Essex County Association of Realtors. Windsor's real estate sales remain strong despite COVID-19 crisis Back to video “For a lot of people it doesn’t matter what’s happening with the economy or going on in the world, they still have to buy or sell. A lot of people sold their homes before (the pandemic), so they have to buy and move or they will be homeless.” With a ban in place on open houses and and unwillingness of many sellers to have people trotting through their homes because of fears over COVID-19, realtors have established new protocols to help ease health concerns when a home viewing is essential, she said. Any home viewing is taking place without sellers at home. All lights are being left on by homeowners, while doors, cupboards and closets are kept open to avoid any touching of light switches or door handles. Buyers themselves are not touching anything in a home. Use of videos and photos of home interiors prior to any transaction has also become more critical for both buyers and sellers. In recent years, Windsor has remained a top Canadian city for annual price increases for homes, home building and housing demand. We are using electronic versions to communicate and nothing face-to-face with people — but it can be more difficult to close a transaction. And despite the tumbling economy due to the COVID-19 crisis, Clark noted Tuesday that over the last 24 hours, there were 37 new listings added in the Windsor and Essex County market and 18 properties sold. With the overall number of available listings remaining scarce, some homes are selling over asking price with bidding wars on selected properties — primarily with those in the $300,000 or below range, she said. “It has slowed down, but you are still seeing some bidding wars,” Clark said. Damon Winney, president-elect for the local real estate association, agreed that “people already in the pipeline” are helping to keep the local housing market moving along. But he expects the impact of the pandemic will be felt soon enough if business shutdowns ordered by the government are prolonged. Winney noted realtors don’t operate in isolation, but require the cohesive involvement of mortgage companies, appraisal firms, home inspectors and lawyers. “We are co-dependent,” he said. “Business practices have made some modifications. We are using electronic versions to communicate and nothing face-to-face with people — but it can be more difficult to close a transaction.” The association’s latest local real estate figures show there were 489 homes sold in March. While that is down nine per cent compared to the same month in 2019, it was an increase from 427 homes sold in February before there were any widespread COVID-19 concerns. There have been 1,250 properties sold overall in the Windsor area for the first three months of 2020 — that is only 50 fewer (3.8 per cent less) compared to the same time frame in 2019. The average home sale price so far for this year is $372,481 — a 15.6 per cent jump from one year ago when it was $322,045. For local home buyers, Clarked noted that out-of-town investors have essentially disappeared recently — especially those from the GTA — since there is a widespread inability among people to pay rent because of the vast number of layoffs and businesses shutdowns during the COVID-19 crisis. She said there are also not many job transfers taking place, leaving much of the current housing market to local buyers. “That’s really positive for local people because we were getting so many Toronto buyers and people here often just can’t compete,” Clark said. “They pay cash and have a lot of it.” dbattagello@postmedia.com	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803319
__label__wiki	0.91879	0.91879	County of West Midlands Lord-Lieutenant Vice Lord-Lieutenant Former Lord-Lieutenants About Honours Honours Recipients The Queen’s Award For Enterprise The Queen’s Award For Voluntary Service Royal Visits Bishop Derek Webley MBE DL Deputy Lieutenant Bishop Derek previously worked as an administrator for British Gas West Midlands before going into full time church work in 1987. He is a Minister of Religion for the New Testament Church of God. He was National Director of Evangelism (1987 1991), then National Director of Youth and Christian Education (1991 1997) then the District Bishop for Birmingham / Solihull (1996-2014) and since 2014 has been the National Secretary Treasurer. Bishop Derek has served on a number of committees, including Relate (Executive Member), Lord Chancellor Advisory Committee, Birmingham Citizens, Chair of The Drum (Arts organisation), he is a member of the Rotary Club of Birmingham, as a past President, and was Chair of the West Midlands Police Authority. Appointed in 2008. West Midlands Lieutenancy West Midlands Lieutenancy, 11 Waterloo Street, Birmingham, B2 5TB Tel: 0121 222 5040 \| E-Mail: office@wmlieutenancy.org ⒸCopyright 2018 West Midlands Lieutenancy Site design and development by Powerloop With thanks to Pertemps	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803324
__label__cc	0.528727	0.471273	On the Nature of Butterflies [ Lecture: 8th October, 1923 \| Dornach \| GA0351 \| InnesA ] A Lecture by Dornach, October 8th, 1923 Lecture given by Rudolf Steiner in Dornach, 8th October, 1923. Translated by A. Innes and published for the first time in English by permission of the Rudolf Steiner Nachlassverwaltung. This lecture is number one of fifteen in the lecture series entitled, The Functioning of Spirit in Nature and in Man – The Being of Bees, and published in German as, Mensch und Welt. Das Wirken des Geistes in der Natur. Ueber das Wesen der Bienen. Vortraege fuer die Arbeiter am Goetheanumbau. It is contained in Volume No. 351 of the Complete Centenary Edition of Rudolf Steiner's works. [ Cover \| Lecture ] Thanks to an anonymous donor, this lecture has been made available to everyone. For Members of the Anthroposophical Society. Not to be copied. Z 298. ON THE NATURE OF BUTTERFLIES. A lecture given by Rudolf Steiner to the Workmen, Dornach, 8th October, 1923. Translated by A. Innes. Duplicated as manuscript by kind permission of the Rudolf Steiner-Nachlassverwaltung, Dornach, Switzerland, by whom all rights are reserved. Dornach, 8th October 1923. Well, gentlemen, have you had any ideas? If not, I will talk to you about something which links up quite well with matters I have already discussed. In observing Nature — as a rule people do so rather without thinking — the moment we begin to reflect about the things of Nature, so much points to the presence of the spiritual that our curiosity cannot fail to be aroused regarding the actual working of this Spirit, we cannot help becoming curious about it. In the case of the beavers' lodge and other such things I have repeatedly drawn your attention to the amount of spiritual activity to be found in Nature. Now today I am going to point to something further. At a certain time in summer when man walks in the open and sees the lovely iridescent play of butterfly wings, he does not stop to query the origin of this manifold many-coloured fluttering of butterflies moving so freely. You see, this is even of great practical significance. In fact, I am convinced that were we to attempt new experiments in the field of aeronautics, here in our Goetheanum precincts, they would not be staged as they are when based on materialistic science. Experiments are continually being made based on the flight of birds, dragon-flies, and so forth, but experimenting along the lines of butterfly flight has never been considered. Aviation, however would only assume its right form could it on a large scale base its experiments on the butterfly flight. But people today do not think of this, because they are unable to discern the true facts. Even in regard to the practical side of life these things are only grasped rightly when the spiritual is considered. Now today I am going to point out something regarding butterflies which does not really belong to aeronautics but which will shed light on the subject. You see, a butterfly does not start life as such, but evolves by means of a very complicated process. We will start from the fact that when autumn approaches the time is now ripe for the butterfly to lay an egg. Thus the starting point of the butterfly is the laying of an egg. It is not a butterfly that comes out of this egg. What emerges from this egg is not an ordinary butterfly — the swallow-tail, for instance, which looks like this (drawing) — but something which is commonly called a grub; in other words, a caterpillar is hatched. Now this caterpillar is hatched from the egg. Here is its head, here at the other end the sting (drawing), and it crawls around lazily. Outwardly it appears to be a sluggard. Inwardly however, it is far from sluggish, for from its own body it spins threads out of which it forms a hard covering. Gradually the caterpillar completely disappears into this covering, and disintegrates; thus it spins itself a cocoon which it attaches to a tree where it hangs. It first attaches the threads and then vanishes into the cocoon. So we first have the egg, then the caterpillar and now the Chrysalis — for that is its name. This chrysalis remains suspended for a certain length of time, after which an opening appears in some part of it and the butterfly emerges. Thus before the butterfly exists as such, four things are required. First of all the egg, secondly the caterpillar, thirdly the chrysalis, and fourthly the actual butterfly. The egg is laid in some place. The caterpillar crawls around, the chrysalis remains quite still, and the butterfly gaily flutters forth into the air. It can then lay another egg and the same story is repeated in the course of the year. This is what happens. Now people see this and learned folk explain it by observations under a microscope or other such means. The matter, however, is not so simple. One has to take into account where and how the egg can live, how the caterpillar and chrysalis live, and finally how the butterfly lives. If the egg is to reach the stage of hatching out a caterpillar, it above all requires moisture — often just a drop in which a little salt is dissolved. No egg can thrive without a certain amount of humidity in which salt is present. For this reason the butterfly's instinct must lead it to lay the egg where it will find moisture containing some salt. Otherwise nothing happens. What I am telling you in regard to butterflies applies also to bees. It is likewise necessary for bees to lay their eggs where salt — even if very little — has penetrated. It suffices for mist to seep in, as mist always possesses a certain amount of saline moisture. Nature comes to the rescue. Such things do not always dawn on human understanding. Nature indeed is far cleverer than man. The egg, however, always requires moisture containing a certain amount of salt. This is necessary to the butterfly, too, as it enables the caterpillar to be hatched. So the egg just requires this moisture containing salt; it has no eyes, so sees nothing and just lives for itself in a world of total darkness. The moment the caterpillar is hatched it meets the light and remains in it. It has some organs, has reached the light, and now becomes quite another kind of creature than it was as an egg. The egg has entirely transformed itself into a caterpillar. Inner sensation is produced in the caterpillar because it is exposed to the light and has sense organs. Such things are made evident in the case of certain phenomena. You have no doubt noticed the astonishing fact when a lamp has been lit that all sorts of insects flutter around in the room, feel drawn to the light, and are even so stupid as to hurl themselves into the flame and get burnt. Why is this? Of course this does not happen in the case of the caterpillar, but it has the same urge. I may say that the caterpillar is drawn to the sunlight by the same urge as that felt by the insect who plunges into the candle flame, only the caterpillar cannot rise to the sun. Could it rise from the ground and fly to the sun, very soon we should no longer have any caterpillars. They would all fly up and away to the sun. For that is their urge, gravity only binds them to the earth. So when we see a caterpillar we know that it really has the urge to follow the light. This is impossible, so what does it do? Just imagine that here is the beam of light and here the caterpillar (drawing). As the caterpillar crawls along, it spins a thread in the pattern of the beam of light. It spins in exact accordance with the beam of light and at night when there is no light it rolls up the thread. It spins it out in the sunlight and rolls it up again at night. In this way it forms its sheath. The caterpillar completely surrenders to the light, it dies in the light. Just as the insect surrenders to the flame, so the caterpillar dies into the light, but being unable to reach the sun it does not enter the sunbeam. However, it spins its own body into these threads and so forms the cocoon — as threads spun in this way are called. The silkworm spins the silk according to the light, so when you take its silk you can certainly say: This is spun light! Earthly matter is spun in the pattern of light rays, and when you come across a chrysalis you are really seeing pure sunlight spun around this earthly matter in the pattern of the sunbeam. We have now reached the point where spun light surrounds the chrysalis, and naturally something different occurs from what does in the case of the insect which burns by plunging into the flame and so can accomplish nothing further. In the short time the insect takes to hurl itself into the flame, could it but spin such a cocoon modelled on light, a new animal would arise from the fire. This is only hindered by the burning. By reason of this it is interesting to learn the real impulse of the insect which flutters around the room at night and plunges into the flame. Its urge is indeed to propagate itself and perish in order to re-emerge as a new being. Only it deceives itself because it cannot create a cocoon so rapidly. The caterpillar, however, has the time to create this sheath, to hang it up, so the sun forces, imprisoned inside, can now create the butterfly which is then able to fly out and enjoy the activity of a sun-being. This is the way to observe things in Nature. First, quite a significant idea is implied in what I have told you. One might think that the insect by plunging into the flame just has the urge to perish, whereas this is not the case. It wants to reappear in another form. It would fain be transformed by the flame. This is always so in death. Death does not annihilate, but when it comes about in the right way it transforms the creature. This is the first thing we see. The second is the deep connection between all things in outer Nature. The butterfly you see is created out of light, but light had first to take up matter, form a case and be turned into threads inside the chrysalis. All animal entities are created out of light. This applies to man as well, by reason of the fertilisation of the female ovum. A sheath encloses the light within the mother's body, so man is really created by this light. So the possibility arises for man to be born out of light. Thus we see how the butterfly arises from light which has first been imprisoned. Now the butterfly flutters about in many different colours. These colours are seen to be prevalent where the light is most effective. In regions where the birds have wonderful colours the sun has greater power. What effect is produced by the action of imprisoned sunlight? In every instance colour is produced and this applies to the butterfly as well. The butterfly owes its colour to the action of imprisoned light. The butterfly is understood only when viewed as a complete creature of light which is responsible for its manifold colours. But you see this cannot be accomplished by the sun alone. The matter stands thus: In the case of the egg, we see that moisture and salt play their part. Salt is earthy moisture in water. So we can say that to thrive, the egg needs earth and a little water. The caterpillar creeps into the light. By nature the caterpillar cannot thrive in just earth and water (in other words, dissolved chalk and water) but it requires moisture, water, and also air. This moisture and air the caterpillar demands is not merely the physical substance required by the egg, but in this moisture lives what is known as ether — what I called ether-body in referring to man. The caterpillar acquires an ether-body through which it breathes. This ether-body enables it to take in the spiritual present in air. The egg is still entirely physical, whereas the caterpillar already lives in both physical and etheric, but this it finds difficult as it contains far too much earthly matter. When the content of the caterpillar comes into contact with the light, one sees that it spins the light out of itself in the form of a cocoon. The caterpillar has an urge towards the light, but it is held back by the strong forces in it. It cannot deal with this task. Its urge is to soar, to pour itself into the light and to live there. So what does it do? Well, it isolates itself, envelops itself in its sheath along with the sunbeams. In the chrysalis the caterpillar altogether isolates itself from the physical earth forces. Inside the chrysalis where the grub has vanished, astral forces are now present — no longer earthly or etheric forces, but astral forces which are entirely spiritual and live in imprisoned light. Imprisoned light always contains spiritual astral forces, and these create the butterfly. As the butterfly consists entirely of astral forces it can now fly about in the air which was impossible for the caterpillar. It can follow the light. Being no longer subject to gravity the butterfly can simply follow the light. Through its surrender it has eliminated gravity to which it is no longer subject. So it can be said that it has matured as far as the ego. It is an ego in which we see the butterfly flying around. We men have our ego inside, whereas that of the butterfly is outside. The ego is actually light and is responsible for the butterfly's colour. In thinking this over there is something that must be clear in your minds. You are continually saying “I” to yourself. What does this signify? Every time you say “I” to yourself a little flame lights up in your brain, only it is invisible to ordinary sight. That is light. When I say “I” to myself I kindle this inner light. In saying “I,” I kindle the selfsame light that colours the butterfly's wings! It is really most interesting to note that when I say “I” to myself, could I allow this “I” to expand over the whole world of Nature, it would be light. It is only my body that keeps this “I” imprisoned. Were I able to let it expand, this ego, this light, would permit me to create real butterflies. The human ego actually has the power needed to create real butterflies and insects in general. You see, men imagine everything to be so simple, but in olden times when people had knowledge of these things, they spoke accordingly. In ancient Jewish times a word such as Jahve had the same meaning as “I.” In old Hebrew, Jahve could be pronounced only by the priest, because he had been prepared to understand its significance. For as he spoke this word he saw himself surrounded by a flight of butterflies. If he failed to do so he would know that he had not spoken with true inner feeling. But when he pronounced the word with right inner feeling he saw actual butterflies. He could not impart this to others however, for it would have unbalanced their minds. He had first to prepare himself for such an experience. It is none the less true. Well, gentlemen, how can this be explained? Just picture a large eiderdown filling the space between the reading desk and the point where I am standing. The down inside is rather sparse. So from where I stand I try to push on towards the desk, pressing the down together. But I am unable to reach the desk, I have to stop half-way, because I cannot compress the down any further. I cannot reach the desk but can feel pressure when I lean against the eiderdown. In the same way, gentlemen, you have the urge to express the “I” — in fact to produce real butterflies, because the ego consists of light. But this you cannot do. Instead, you feel the resistance just as I do when I press forward. This is due to your thoughts. Your thoughts impede you from creating real butterflies by means of light. The ego thinks thoughts and these thoughts are really just pictures of the butterfly-world. You see, the same thing would happen today as in ancient Jewish times when just anyone who said Jahve could have seen the whole of the butterfly-world. People would have said: “Of course he is crazy!” It would moreover have been true had he been too immature to behold spiritual things. But today if one states that the “I” and light are identical, that light when imprisoned creates butterflies, and that the same thing in our specially adapted brain creates thoughts, again people will say: “The man is mad!” All the same it is true, and this is just the difference between truth and mere madness! So when we see the bright butterfly in the air we must realise that the same impulse works upon us when with the right inner feeling we say “I.” Neither the butterfly nor even the higher animal can say “I,” for in their case the ego works from outside. When you see a lion, it is the animal's buff colour that its ego works upon from outside. The whole world of nature is responsible for the lion's existence. Because we think from within outwards we do not acquire our colouring from outside, but acquire from within the colour of our skin which, in painting, it is very hard to reproduce. Our “I” with the help of the blood is responsible for giving our body this wonderful human tint, only reproduced in painting when one succeeds in mixing and blending all the colours correctly. You see Nature is forever at work on the creature, but she works in a spiritual way. I have told you here that there must be a transition from moisture containing air to light. Now here is the chrysalis living in air and light; as caterpillar it lived in water and air; here as chrysalis in air and light; then it shuts itself off more and more from the light which is imprisoned, and it turns to the astral which now works upon it. Just take another look at this: caterpillar and chrysalis. Now think of an animal not able to spin threads from its own body, Let us imagine a special kind of caterpillar which, having become such, has the urge to reach the light but is unable to do so because its body cannot spin threads. The animal cannot turn its body into one capable of spinning threads outside. The caterpillar really spins itself to death. It ceases to be, for its whole body is consumed in the spinning. An empty framework is all that is left. But suppose you had an animal that did not possess the physical substance with which to spin. What will the creature do if it is in this plight, if exposed to strong light? It cannot spin a cocoon for itself. What does it do then? It will do the spinning inside its body, and what it spins will be the blood vessels! The blood of such an animal which lives in the air is inwardly spun, just as the butterfly, or rather the caterpillar, spins the cocoon outside. We should then have an animal which as it lived in the air-water element would have a blood system suited to that element. If it lives for a time in the light it alters the form of its blood vessels; they become quite different. It now spins them inside its own body because it cannot spin outside. Now let us make a clear picture. Imagine there is an animal that breathes through gills — as it must in water — and that this animal moves in the water by means of a tail. Then his blood vessels extend into gills and tail. Thus the animal swims in the water where it can even breathe. The fish has gills, with which it is possible to breathe in water. But imagine the animal often rises to the air, gets out on the bank, or the pond itself dries up. Then it is more exposed to the light and loses the watery element. New regions appear where it must have light and air instead of water and air. What does the animal do then? Now look — I will draw this with dots. The animal withdraws the blood vessels from the gills which increasingly vanish, and it spins these blood vessels in here. The animal spins its own blood vessels and those which were directed to the gills are now inserted here. The blood vessels formerly belonging to the tail are withdrawn and thus feet are grown. The blood vessels formerly in the tail now go to the feet enabling them to walk, and they are spun differently from those in the tail. You can see this in Nature — this is a tadpole and that a frog! The frog starts life as a tadpole with tail and gills, and can live in water. When it reaches the air it inwardly performs what the caterpillar does outwardly. The tadpole which is a frog, able to live in water, spins a network out of its own blood system. This spreads out in its body, and what once formed part of blood vessels and gills now becomes lung. Where gills once were, we now have lungs, spun there by the animal. In place of the tail we have feet and, as the movement of the blood has already evolved a heart, these feet move by means of the blood circulating from heart to lung. So the same path from water and air to air and light, followed by caterpillar to chrysalis, is also taken by the frog in its elements of air and water. In this case, however, air penetrates, as the animal must be exposed to both air and light. Light and air create lungs and legs whereas water and air create fish tails and gills. The fact is that activity not only takes place within the animal but the whole cosmic environment always plays its part as well. What attitude is taken by the scientists? What did we do in trying to make our picture? Well gentlemen, what we have done is to look at the world. We have viewed the world as it is and have observed Nature! What does the scientist do? Generally speaking he takes scant notice of Nature when he seeks to discover these things. Instead, he starts by going to an optician and ordering a very powerful microscope. It will not be taken out into the world of nature where it would be of little use, but will be shut up in a room where butterfly eggs will be laid. The scientist has little feeling for the butterfly fluttering in the light. He puts the egg on a specially prepared plate and observes it through the microscope (drawing). He keeps his eye on it and takes note of what happens to the egg after he has dissected it. Nature no longer acts, but the scientist cuts up little bits and examines the particles flattened out on a piece of paper under the microscope. These tiny particles cut with a razor blade are examined, and investigation is based on just that. This is how investigations are often made today. Think of a university lecture. The professor assembles as many people as possible into his study and allows them in turn to view what he has dissected. Of course, he often takes them for outings as well, but has little to say about what exists out-of-doors because he does not know much about it. His entire knowledge consists in what he sees under the microscope after having chopped up little bits and pieces. What wisdom does he acquire in this way? He discovers everything already present in the egg only in infinitesimal quantity. Well, gentlemen, that is all one can find when one begins by chopping it up with a razor blade and examining it under the microscope! One forgets all that is active outside in air, light and water. We just have the little specimen all ready and place it under the microscope. It is impossible to investigate in this way. All one can say is that the butterfly lives in the open, and here under my microscope I already have the whole butterfly in miniature. Today people no longer believe what follows, but formerly they would say: Here we have a woman called Annie who has a mother called Maria. Now Maria gave birth to Annie. Very well, but the entire Annie was already present in the ovum inside the mother Maria. So we must imagine it thus: here is the ovum of Anna and here the ovum of Maria in which is Anna; but Maria herself derives from Gertrude who is Annie's grandmother. Now if Annie's ovum was contained in Maria's, it must also have been in that of Gertrude. Now Annie's great grandmother was Katie; so the ovum of Annie, Maria and Gertrude must have already been present in that of Katie, and so it goes on right hack to the first ovum of all, which is Eve's. So people said — it was of course the easiest solution — that a person alive today was already present in the egg-cell of Eve. This was known as the theory of pre-formation. The theories we still have today are just a little more nebulous. They no longer reckon on going back to Eve, but the idea is identical, and they have not really progressed if they say: The whole butterfly is already present! — and light, air and water which after all play their part are no longer considered. You see, when one considers the scientific method pursued by the professor who takes people into his study to demonstrate these very learned matters — which in regard to Nature's activities are mere folly — one realises that after all light, air and all the rest should be taken into account! The professor ignores all this and enters his dark room where artificial light is introduced, when possible, so that daylight may not disturb the microscope. And the thought comes to us: Good gracious! He still believes in the egg as containing everything; and present-day science just dismisses all the rest. It is all shelved and has nothing left to do. Contemporary science no longer has any knowledge of what works in air, light and water; it knows nothing at all about it. You see, this is something which already sorely rankles in our social life — this fact that on the one side we have a science that really disregards the entire cosmos and only has eyes for what can be seen through the microscope and, on the other side, a State that takes no interest in a pensioner nor has further use for him beyond paying his pension. The same thing applies in the case of the scientist who extracts means of nourishment from Nature, but no longer understands its working and only concerns himself with the microscope, in other words just with parts. Science today really regards the whole cosmos as an idler who has been pensioned off. This is a dreadful state of affairs, for the masses are unable to see any further. The general public says: these are the people who ought to understand such things. One already thinks of turning tiny children into scholars, and they are sent to school to be taught. From then on today they make great efforts to learn. Up to the age of twenty-seven or twenty-eight they keep on studying; surely what they acquire must be the truth! Naturally, the general public cannot form an opinion and allows itself to be guided in these matters by the “learned,” and has no idea that what is taught no longer has any connection with Nature. Nature is referred to as someone now “on the shelf.” Thus the whole of our spiritual life is being swamped, and the time has now come when we must emerge. We do not progress for the simple reason that the general public finds it easier to accept what it hears. The truth today is told only by Anthroposophy! Nowhere else will you hear what I have just told you. Nobody will say such things. The general public simply pays no attention to them any longer. Anyone saying them is considered mad. It really is mad that this should be so! It is not the really mad who are considered so, but anyone speaking the truth is deemed mad. People really view this the wrong way round. In this connection I will tell you another little story. There was once a medical commission that arrived at the entrance of a lunatic asylum where they wished to do some research. They found a man by the door who received them in such a way that they took him to be the director or the doctor in charge. So they said: Will you be so kind as to take us round your cells and explain everything? So the man at the door took them round the cells explaining each case, saying: Here is a mental case who has remarkable visions and hallucinations along with epileptic fits. In the next cell he explained that this patient suffered from abnormal impulses of the will. He described it all quite clearly. They then came to the genuine lunatics who suffer from obsessions. You see, he said, here is a case who is always being pursued by ghosts, and here another who is pursued by human beings, not ghosts. Now I will take you to the worst case we have. So he took them to the greatest lunatic of all and said: This man suffers from the fixed idea that he is the Emperor of China. Of course this means that ideas have solidified in his head. Instead of these ideas just remaining as thoughts, in his case they have solidified. He explained this with great precision and added: But you must realise, gentlemen, that this is nonsense for I myself am the Emperor of China! You see, he had explained everything. He had led them around, but instead of leading them to science he had led them by the nose. For he himself was mad. He had told them that the other man was mad because he believed himself to be the Emperor of China, whereas he was that himself! The Commission had been conducted round by a complete lunatic. Thus where science is concerned it is not always possible to discern whether someone is mad or not. You would be surprised by the cleverness of some things lunatics tell you when you come into contact with them. For this reason the Italian natural scientist Lombroso has stated that there is no hard and fast distinction between genius and madness. Geniuses are always slightly mad, and madmen always possess a slight amount of genius. You can read about it in the little book called “Genius and Madness” published in a popular edition. When one is sane of course he can distinguish between genius and madness. But today we have reached the point where whole books can be found — such as Lombroso's — where science itself states that it is impossible to distinguish genius from madness. Of course this state of affairs cannot continue or spiritual life will be completely swamped. Nature, now neglected, must once more be reckoned with. Then one will notice the development from the egg to the caterpillar, and from the caterpillar to the chrysalis. One will see how light is imprisoned there as in us it is imprisoned — the gaily coloured butterfly darting forth. This is what I wanted to link with what we have already discussed, so that you may see how light contains creative spirit. For the worm or caterpillar has first to disappear for the butterfly to arise. It arises inside where the caterpillar has perished. The spirit creates. In every instance matter must first be destroyed and vanish, thus enabling the spirit to create the new being. This same thing applies to mankind. Fertilisation signifies that matter has first been destroyed. A minute quantity of this destroyed matter remains, and here spirit and light create the ego in man. If you give this a little thought you will grasp what I have told you. Instead of going on blindly, observe the tadpole and the frog and realise why the latter has a heart, lungs and feet, and why the tadpole can swim in water. All these things are interconnected. The matters we shall be studying further will show you that a genuine science which understands them can only arise out of Anthroposophy.	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803325
__label__wiki	0.761271	0.761271	Confident Biden calls for calm against ‘unending warfare’ by Tarla Lambert \| November 7, 2020 Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden made an impassioned plea to Americans calling for unity this evening, off the back of three days of bitter protests and escalating unrest. “In America, we have strong views, there’s strong disagreements, and that’s okay,” he said during an address in his home state of Delaware. “Strong disagreements are inevitable in a democracy, strong disagreements are healthy. They’re a sign of a vigorous debate of deeply held views,” he added. “But we have to remember the purpose of our politics isn’t total unrelenting, unending warfare. The purpose of our politics, the work of the nation, isn’t to fan the flames of conflict, but to solve problems, to guarantee justice, to improve the lives of our people.” Biden’s comments stood in stark contrast to Donald Trump’s consistent efforts to thwart the democratic process. Since Wednesday night, Trump has peddled a dangerous and divisive line that the election was “fraud” and “rigged”. He has accused Democrats of trying to “steal” the result and launched a litany of legal disputes and paperwork. His supporters have responded in full. There have been mass protests outside ballot headquarters where critical votes are still being tallied. Trump supporters have subjected volunteers, doing their civil duty, to a barrage of threats, intimidation and abuse. But Trump’s lies have been so blatant that US networks refused to broadcast his latest press conference and Twitter has continued to conceal most of his posts over this period. I easily WIN the Presidency of the United States with LEGAL VOTES CAST. The OBSERVERS were not allowed, in any way, shape, or form, to do their job and therefore, votes accepted during this period must be determined to be ILLEGAL VOTES. U.S. Supreme Court should decide! While Biden stopped short of claiming victory, he said he expected to end the week with at least 300 electoral college votes, giving him a clear majority and mandate to lead. His lead continues to grow in Pennsylvania and if he secures it he’ll gain 20 electoral votes to reach the 270 needed to win the presidency. The states of Georgia, Nevada and Arizona are still outstanding, though Biden currently leads Trump in all. Biden currently holds 253 electoral votes, while Trump has 213. “We have gotten over 74 million votes. I’m going to repeat that, 74 million votes,” Biden told the nation. “That is more than any presidential ticket has ever gotten in the history of the United States of America.” Trump issued a warning to his opponent via Twitter: “Joe Biden should not wrongfully claim the office of the President. I could make that claim also.” Tomorrow will tell. by Tarla Lambert Tarla is the publisher of Women's Agenda. She's a politics junkie, writer, commentator and fierce advocate for equality. ‘He must go’: US House votes to impeach Trump for the second time The House of Representatives has voted to impeach Donald Trump for a second time, making him the first president in US history to be impeached twice. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez thought she was ‘going to die’ during the violent insurrection at the Capitol Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez told her followers on an Instagram live that she thought she was going to die in a “very close encounter”. Top Republican Liz Cheney will vote to impeach Donald Trump Liz Cheney, the highest-ranking woman in the Republican Party and a representative for Wyoming, will vote to impeach Donald Trump. Coogee Ladies Baths under fire for banning some transgender women This week, controversy over who is allowed into the Coogee Ladies Baths has sparked a debate over trans-rights.	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803327
__label__wiki	0.921389	0.921389	Duress and coercion Duress and coercion page 1 of 6 53 articles are classified in All Articles > Legal > Duress and coercion Full court majority backs coercion call, despite procedural flaws A full Federal Court majority has found a judge did not deny a building contractor procedural fairness by failing to put it on notice before declaring it breached non-pleaded coercion provisions, during a meeting with undertones of The Godfather. Union coerced employer to make enterprise deal: Court Published: 14 July 2020 10:28am The CFMMEU and one of its officials organised unlawful industrial action by 16 building workers to coerce a construction subcontractor to make an agreement for a stadium construction project, the Federal Court has ruled Win for unions as full court backs retrospective reversal In crucial ruling that "ameliorates" the effect of the High Court's Esso ruling, a union that faced having its proposed industrial action rendered unprotected when it didn't fully comply with a court order has won a full Federal Court finding that it can be retrospectively revoked. Qantas sued for millions over alleged 30-year-old events A 55-year-old former cabin crew manager is seeking $1.7 million in lost wages and super, plus future lost earnings until retirement and at least $200,000 in damages from Qantas for alleged sexual discrimination and harassment some 17 to 30 years ago, according to court documents the airline sought to keep under wraps. Grounded Kangaroo opposing public release of court papers The Federal Court will rule tomorrow on a Qantas bid to block access to documents lodged by a former employee who claims she has been subjected to s-xual and disability discrimination and s-xual harassment. $12K fine for union organiser who threatened "bad PR" Published: 27 March 2020 4:06pm An AMWU organiser has been fined $12,000 for threatening to blockade a building site and generate "bad PR" if the project refused to engage union members. Court upholds ABCC compulsory examination notice In rejecting an individual's claim that an ABCC notice to attend an examination was invalid as it did not enable her to decide whether she needed to answer all of its questions, the Federal Court has also contradicted the agency's position on the level of detail it must provide. CFMMEU appeal erases publication order, but little else Published: 14 February 2020 2:19pm A full Federal Court has largely dismissed the CFMMEU's broad-ranging appeal against more than $300,000 in fines imposed for attempting to force a contractor into signing a union-approved deal, agreeing only that publication orders served no purpose and that too much was made of an "eenie meenie miney mo!" text message.	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803329
__label__wiki	0.974849	0.974849	Title: 13F Fire Support Specialist Location: Elberton, GA (USA) 01/03/2021 13F Fire Support Specialist Army National Guard Anderson, SC similar 01/04/2021 13J Fire Control Specialist Army National Guard Hartwell, GA similar 01/17/2021 13J Fire Control Specialist Army National Guard Thomson, GA similar 01/15/2021 14E Patriot Fire Control Enhanced Operator/Maintainer Army National Guard Anderson, SC similar 01/15/2021 Retail Sales Specialist O'Reilly Auto Parts ELBERTON, GA similar 01/01/2021 42A Human Resources Specialist Army National Guard Elberton, GA similar 01/11/2021 42A Human Resources Specialist Army National Guard Anderson, SC similar 01/03/2021 25B Information Technology Specialist Army National Guard Anderson, SC similar 01/15/2021 Retail Sales Specialist O'Reilly Auto Parts COMMERCE, GA similar 01/15/2021 Retail Merchandise Specialist (MVR Required) O'Reilly Auto Parts ATHENS, GA similar 01/15/2021 Retail Sales Specialist O'Reilly Auto Parts ATHENS, GA similar 01/04/2021 25B Information Technology Specialist Army National Guard Edgefield, SC similar 12/23/2020 Operations Specialist - S H&R Block Simpsonville, SC similar	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803335
__label__wiki	0.64723	0.64723	gaming on a chromebook New ASUS Chromebooks announced at CES 2021 are pretty overpowered for Stadia and work ASUS has launched a trio of powerful new Chromebooks with a focus on work and gaming. Source: ASUS The new ASUS Chromebook CX9 and Flip CX5 are work-oriented laptops powered by 11th gen Intel processors. The Chromebook Flip CM5 is a gaming-oriented laptop powered by an AMD Ryzen 5 processor. Pricing and availability is not yet available for the new Chromebooks. A few Chromebooks have been announced so far at CES 2021, such as the new Samsung Galaxy Chromebook 2, and the Acer Chromebook Spin 514. ASUS has just announced a trio of powerful new Chromebooks, powered by Intel's latest 11th gen processors and even a gaming-oriented machine with an AMD Ryzen processor. The first new laptop is the ASUS Chromebook CX9, which is a work-oriented machine. It features a sleek design with plenty of power under the hood. There are options for Intel's 11th gen Core i5 or i7 processors with Xe graphics, which is more than enough for Chromebook devices that rely largely on cloud computing to get tasks done. The 14" FHD LCD display has a 16:9 aspect ratio with a frameless "NanoEdge" design, with a 91% or 94% screen-to-body ratio depending on the model. More internal specs include either 8GB or 16GB of LPDDR4X RAM, and up to 2TB of onboard storage. There are a healthy number of ports, with a single USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A port, two Thunderbolt 4 ports with power delivery, two Type-C USB 3.2 Gen 2 ports, a single USB 3.1 Type-C port, HDMI 2.0b, a 3.5mm audio jack, and a microSD card reader. There's also WiFi 6 and ASUS' WiFi stabilizer technology which should keep you on an optimal connection. The backlit, spill-resistant keyboard has a built-in fingerprint sensor for secure sign in, and there are Harmon/Kardon-certified quad-stereo speakers. Pricing and availability have not been announced, but expect it to cost a pretty penny. The Chromebook Flip CX5 is also focused on productivity, but with more of a flair. It also features Intel's 11th gen processors but starts with the Core i3 and UHD graphics. The 15.6" touchscreen display is not as bright as the CX9's 400nits, topping out at just 250nits, but the design does allow you to flip the keyboard around for a better entertainment experience. Internally, the Chromebook Flip CX5 is also a bit more watered down than the CX9, with the same 8GB or 16GB of memory, but only up to 512GB of onboard storage. There are fewer ports, with one Type-A and two Type-C USB 3.2 Gen 2 ports, one HDMI 2.0a port, and a microSD card reader, as well as an audio jack. Lastly, and probably the most interesting of the trio, is the ASUS Chromebook Flip CM5, which is a gaming-oriented laptop with an AMD Ryzen 3 or Ryzen 5 processor and Radeon Graphics. Chromebooks aren't really known for their gaming chops, but ASUS is highlighting Google Stadia and NVIDIA GeForce Now support, as well as its color-locked WASD keyboard design for an intuitive gameplay experience. The Chromebook Flip CM5 has a 15.6" touchscreen display with stylus support. Internally, it supports as much as 16GB of DDR4 memory and 512GB of storage. The port selection is similar to the Flip CX5, except with an HDMI 1.4 port for external 4K displays. All three of ASUS' new Chromebooks feature Harmon/Kardon-certified speakers, 720p HD webcams, and Google Assistant voice-recognition support. Each has met the MIL-STD 810H military standard, so they should be able to withstand some nicks. ASUS claims up to 10 hours of battery life on its new Chromebooks, with the exception of the CX5, which lists 12 hours. And with specs like these, ASUS' latest Chrome OS laptops could be some of the best Chromebooks yet. Pricing and exact availability have not yet been announced for these new ASUS Chromebooks, but the latter two are expected this quarter while the higher-end CX9 is will be available in Q2 of this year. Get More Stadia Google Stadia: Everything you need to know What network speeds do I need to play Stadia games? Can I play Stadia on a Chromebook? Will Stadia work with my existing Chromecast? $129 at Google Store #ProtectYourInvestment These are the best sleeves for your ASUS Chromebook Flip C214 The ASUS Chromebook Flip C214 is already very rugged, but a little extra protection can't hurt. These are the best ASUS Chromebook Flip C214 sleeves that you can buy.	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803337
__label__cc	0.503285	0.496715	The Life of Ali Ibn Abi Talib Baqir Sharif al-Qurashi Translator’s Foreword Section 1: The Life Account Of Imam Ali Early Life And Virtues Of Imam Ali Celebrated Chiefs Of The Hashimites Abd Al-Muttalib Abu Talib Abu Talib; The Defender Of Islam Abu Talib’s Last Will Fatimah Bint Asad; Imam Ali’s Mother The Born In The Ka’bah Nicknames Of Imam Ali Siddiq (Veracious) Wasi (Successor Of The Prophet) Faruq (Distinguisher) Ya’sub Al-Din (The Chief Of The Religion) Wali (Guardian) Amir Al-Mu' Minin (The Leader Of The Believers) Amin (Trustee) Hadi (Guide) Udhun Wa’iyah (Retaining Ear) Al-Murtadha (The Well-Pleased) Al-Anza’ Al-Batin (The Corpulent Baldhead) Al-Sharif (The Honorable) Baydat Al-Balad (The Unique Person) Khayr Al-Bashar (The Best Of Humankind) Sayyid Al-’Arab (The Master Of All Arabs) Hujjat Allah (The Argument Of God) Kunyahs Of Imam Ali Abu’l-Rayhanatayn (The Father Of The Two Basils) Abu’l-Sibtayn (The Father Of The Two Grandsons) Abu’l-Hasan (The Father Of Al-Hasan) Abu’l-Husayn (The Father Of Al-Husayn) Abu-Turab (The Father Of Dust) Bodily Features Of Imam Ali The Holy Prophet Describes Imam Ali Dirar Describes Imam Ali Muhammad Ibn Al-Hanafiyyah Describes His Father Al-Mughirah Describes Imam Ali Contemporaries Describe Imam Ali The Early Life Of Imam ‘Ali O Ali! The First Male To Accept Islam Imam Ali’s Love For The Holy Prophet Imam Ali; The Scribe Of The Divine Revelation The Destroyer Of The Idols Imam Ali’s House Mental Characteristics Strong Faith In Allah Frequent Turning To Allah Unmatched Heroism Enormous Strength Detestation Of Praise Response To Invitations Kindness To The Poor Knowledgeability Quick-Wittedness Imam ‘Ali With The Advent Of Islam Imam Ali; The First To Pray With The Holy Prophet Imam Ali And The ‘Warning Of The Relatives’ Cruel Procedures Against The Holy Prophet Imam Ali Sacrifices His Life For The Holy Prophet Imam Ali Migrates To Yathrib Establishment Of A Mosque Islamic Brotherhood Imam ‘Ali’s Military Participations The Battle Of Badr The Battle Of Uhud The Battle Of The Ditch The Conquest Of Khaybar The Military Expedition Against The Banu-Quraysah The Military Expedition Against Banu’l-Nadir The Military Expedition Against Wadi Al-Qira Imam Ali Conquers Yemen The Conquest Of Makkah The Battle Of Hunayn Imam Ali And Surah Bara'ah The Campaign Of Tabuk Imam Ali Describes His Jihad The Departure Of The Holy Prophet The Meeting Of Ghadir Khumm The Endless Tragedy The Saqifah Conspiracy And The Reign Of Abu-Bakr Motives Of Holding The Saqifah Conspiratorial Meeting Political Statement Of Sa’d Criticism Against Sa’d Weakness Of The Ansar Jealousy And Enmity ‘Umar’s Planning The Ansar Surprised Abu-Bakr’s Discourse Research And Investigation Abu-Bakr Wins Power Celebration Of The People Of Quraysh Imam Ali And The People Of Quraysh The Role Of Abu-Sufyan Imam Ali’s Attitude To The Pledge Of Allegiance To Abu-Bakr Forcing Imam Ali To Pay Homage To Abu-Bakr Strict Protestations Imam Ali’s Protestations Lady Fatimah Al-Zahra'‘S Protestation Lights On Lady Fatimah’s Speech Imam Al-Hasan’s Protestation Salman Al-Muhammadi’s Protestation ‘Ammar Ibn Yasir’s Protestation Abu-Dharr’s Protestation Al-Miqdad’s Protestation ‘Utbah Ibn Abi-Lahab’s Protestation Abu-Ayyub Al-Ansari’s Protestation Ubayy Ibn Ka’b’s Protestation Al-Nu’man Ibn ‘Ajlan’s Protestation ‘Uthman Ibn Hunayf’s Protestation Sahl Ibn Hunayf’s Protestation Khuzaymah Ibn Thabit’s Protestation Abu’l-Haytham Ibn Al-Tayhan’s Protestation Unfortunate steps Attacking Imam Ali’s House The issue of Fadak A Jurisprudential Viewpoint Economic Embargo Abrogation Of The Khums Tax Confiscation Of The Prophet’s Inheritance Abu-Bakr’s False Argument Lady Fatimah Al-Zahra's Speech Unsuccessful Attempt To Gain Lady Fatimah’s Satisfaction Lights On Imam Ali’s Attitude Grievances Of Lady Fatimah Towards Paradise Officials and governors of Abu-Bakr Economic policies of Abu-Bakr Entrusting caliphate to ‘Umar ‘Umar’ s reign Internal Policies Of ‘Umar Placing The Companions Under House Arrest Officials And Governors Appointed By ‘Umar Supervision Of Governors Economic Policy Of ‘Umar ‘Umar’s Arguments ‘Umar’s Regret Seclusion of Imam Ali Imam Ali advises ‘Umar Assassination of ‘Umar The shura system ‘Umar With The Members Of The Shura Committee The supervising body over elections Warning the companions Imam Ali’s reaction Objections to ‘Umar’s shura system Mode of selection ‘Uthmans reign Governmental offices in ‘Uthman’s reign Economical policies of ‘Uthman Opposition to ‘Uthman The Reign Of Imam ‘Ali Imam Ali Refuses Caliphate Conference Of The Military Forces Imam Ali Accepts Caliphate Swearing Allegiance To Imam Ali Exultant Joy Of Muslims Support Of The Companions The Congratulating Delegations Congregational Supplications For Imam Ali Gloom Of The People Of Quraysh Confiscation Of The Usurped Fortunes Deposition Of Deputy Governors Imam Ali’s Internal Policy Equitability Equality In Rights And Duties Adopting The Life Styles Of The Poor Cancellation Of The Habit Of Taking Pride In The Ancestors Forbiddance Of Playing Chess Forbiddance Of Sitting On The Public Ways Prohibition Of Intoxicants Establishment Of Detention Centers Establishment Of House Of Complaints The Military Police Unseemly Dress A Record For People’s Needs The Police Commissioner-In-Chief Frankness And Honesty Cancellation Of Popular Festivals Imam Ali Executes The Religious Punishment On A Loyal Poet The Imam Is Just Like The Feeble People Method Of Conversing With The Imam Imam Ali’s Financial Policy Equality In Allowances Precaution In Matters Related To The Public Properties Freedom Of Criticism Freedom Of Moving Supervision Over Markets The Battle Of The Camel ‘A'ishah The Daughter Of Abu-Bakr ‘A'ishah’s Attitude To The Pledge Of Allegiance To Imam Ali Motives For Mutiny The Makkah Conference Resolutions Of The Conference Mu’awiyah Deceives Al-Zubayr And Talhah ‘Uthman’s Fans Mobilize The Mutinous Army Imam Ali’s Epistle To Talhah And Al-Zubayr Marching To Al-Basrah The Minor Battle Of The Camel Dispute On Leading The Prayer Imam Ali Seeks The Help Of The People Of Al-Kufah The Companions With Imam Ali Jurisprudential View Consequences Of The Battle Of The Camel The Rebellion Of Mu’awiyah Mu’awiyah Deceives The Prominent Personalities Correspondence Between Imam Ali And Mu’awiyah Preparations For The War Imam Ali’s Correspondences With His Deputy Governors Couriers Of Peace The Night Of The Growl The Farce Of Raising The Quranic Copies The Arbitration The Imam Returns To Al-Kufah Meeting Of The Arbitrators Mutiny Of The Apostates Decline Of The State Of Truth Raids On The Muslim Regions Raids On Al-Iijaz And Yemen Raids On Iraq Raids On Hit Raid On Waqisah Raid On Al-Kufah The Mischief Of The Khawarij Imam Ali Beseeches For Departure From The World The Deputy Governors In Imam ‘Ali’s Government Responsibilities And Significance Of Deputy Governors Foundations Of Selecting The Deputy Governors Punishment Of The Unjust Governor Distancing From The Unjust Rulers Rule Of The Foolish Duties Of The Deputy Governors Teachings Of Imam Ali To The Deputy Governors Ministry Of Complaints Tax Collectors Interrogating And Calling The Governors To Account Dismissal And Discharge Of Governors The Armed Forces The Duties Of The Ruler And The Subjects Towards Each Other Imam Ali’s Deputy Governors Qays Ibn Sa’d Malik Al-Ashtar Martyrdom Of Malik Muhammad Ibn Abi-Bakr A Serious Letter Of Mu’ Awiyah To Muhammad Ibn Abi-Bakr Martyrdom Of Muhammad Qutham Ibn ‘Abbas Sahl Ibn Hunayf ‘Ubaydullah Ibn Al-’Abbas ‘Umar Ibn Abi-Salamah Al-Nu’ Man Ibn ‘Ajlan Mikhnaf Ibn Sulaym Masqalah Ibn Hubayrah Kumayl Ibn Ziyad Al-Ash’ath Ibn Qays ‘Uthman Ibn Hunayf Abdullah Ibn ‘Abbas Deputy Governorship Of Al-Basrah False Accusations Ziyad Ibn ‘Ubayd Another Letter To Ziyad Warning Ziyad Against Mu’awiyah Hudhayfah Al-Yamani Sa’d Ibn Mas’ud ‘Ajlan Ibn Qudamah Sulayman Ibn Surad Land Taxes Significance Of Land Taxes Instructions To The Tax Collectors Reproaching And Deposing Deputy Governors Martyrdom Of Imam ‘Ali´ The Umayyads And The Assassination Of Imam Ali Imam Ali And Ibn Muljim The Assassination Imam Ali’s Last Wills Visitors Of The Imam Eulogy Of Imam Ali Surah Al-Nahl Exegesis Of Verse No. 2 Exegesis Of Verse No. 16 Surah Al-Isra' Exegesis Of Verse No. 102 Surah Al-Kahf Surah Maryam Surah Taha Surah Al-Anbiya' Surah Al-Hajj Surah Al-Mu'minun Surah Al-Nur Surah Al-Furqan Surah Al-Qasas Surah Al-’Ankabut Surah Al-Rum Surah Luqman Surah Al-Ahzab Surah Saba' Surah Fatir Surah Yasin Surah Al-Saffat Surah Sad Exegesis of Verses No. 71 and 72 Surah Al-Zumar Surah Ghafir Surah Fussilat Surah Al-Shura Surah Al-Zukhruf Surah Al-Dukhan Surah Al-Jathiyah Surah Muhammad Surah Al-Fath Surah Al-Hujurat Surah Qaf Surah Al-Dhariyat Exegesis of Verses 1-4 Surah Al-Tur Surah Al-Qamar Surah Al-Rahman Surah Al-Hadid Surah Al-Saff Surah Al-Tahrim Surah Al-Qalam Surah Al-Ma’arij Surah Nuh Surah Al-Jinn Surah Al-Muzzammil Surah Al-Muddaththir Surah Al-Qiyamah Surah Al-Mursalat Exegesis of Verses 25 and 26 Surah Al-Nazi’at Surah Al-Takwir Surah Al-Infitar Surah Al-Inshiqaq Exegesis of Verses 7-12 Surah Al-Buruj Exegesis of Verses 2 and 3 Surah Al-tariq Surah Al-Fajr Surah Al-Balad Surah Al-Shams Surah Al-Zuha Surah Al-’Alaq Surah Al-Takathur Surah Al-Ma’un Surah Al-Kawthar Surah Al-Tawhid (Al-Ikhlas) Imam Ali as in Prophetic Traditions Imam Ali; The Holy Prophet’s Self Imam Ali; The Holy Prophet’s Brother Imam Ali and the Holy Prophet; the Same Tree Imam Ali; The Holy Prophet’s Aide Imam Ali; The Holy Prophet’s Vicegerent Imam Ali to the Holy Prophet; Prophet Aaron to Prophet Moses Imam Ali; the Door to the Holy Prophet’s City of Knowledge Imam Ali; the Door to the Holy Prophet’s Wisdom Imam Ali; the Most Beloved to the Holy Prophet Imam Ali; the Match of the Prophets Imam Ali; the Chief of the Arabs Imam Ali; the Most Beloved of all Humans to the Almighty Obedience to Imam Ali; Obedience to the Holy Prophet Love for Ali; Love for Allah Love for Ali is Faith; Hating him is Hypocrisy Love for Imam Ali; The Title of the True Believer’s Record The Holy Prophet Foretells Imam Ali’s Future Imam Ali; the Bearer of Al-Hamd Standard Ali; the commander of the Prophet’s Pond Ali; the distributor of Heaven and Hell Without a License from Ali, No one passes the Discriminating Bridge Ali; in the company of the Holy Prophet in Paradise Imam Ali as reports Prophetic Traditions Compatibility With The Prophetic Practice Acting Upon The Prophetic Practices Importance Of Knowledge Learning And Teaching The Quran Seeking Knowledge Is Sort Of Worship Seeking Knowledge For Allah’s Sake Seeking Knowledge For Purpose Of Arguing The Knowledgeable The Ink Of Scholars Two Gluttonous Persons Are Never Sated The learned in religious knowledge The Obeyed Scholar The Precedence Of Intelligence Ignorance And Intelligence A Knowledgeable Among Ignorant People Concealment Of Knowledge Issuance Of Verdicts Without Knowledge The Reality Of Faith The Reality Of Belief In Allah’s Unity The Expression: There Is No God But Allah The Blessing Of Monotheism Obedience To Allah Having Good Opinion About Allah Hoping For Something That Achieves Allah’s Pleasure Things Approximating To Allah Allah Is Oft-Forgiving The Holy Prophet Attires Imam Ali With A Turban The Holy Prophet Visits Imam Ali The Holy Prophet’s Instructions To Imam Ali Other Instructions Of The Holy Prophet To Imam Ali The Holy Prophet’s Precept To Khalid Ibn Zayd Settlement Of Debts Precedes, Distribution Of The Shares Of Inheritance Importance Of Wills The Holy Prophet Prays For Imam Ali The Holy Prophet’s Supplication During Journeys A Supplicatory Prayer Of The Holy Prophet The Holy Prophet’s Supplication Upon The Accomplishment Of The Witr Prayer The Holy Prophet’s Prayer The Middle Prayer The Holy Prophet And The Middle Prayer The Holy Prophet’s Words In The Ritual Genuflection The Morality Of The Holy Prophet The Prophet Invokes Allah’s Mercy Upon His Successors The Holy Prophet’s Divine Pond And Right Of Intercession The Holy Prophet Prays For The Sick Guaranteeing The Holy Prophet’s Debts The Prophet’s Last Words The Closest To The Holy Prophet The Remotest To The Holy Prophet Forging Lies Against The Holy Prophet Twelve Imams Al-Mahdi Belongs To The Prophet’s Household Tasbih Al-Zahra' The Virtue Of ‘Ammar The Virtue Of Abdullah Ibn Mas’ud Mary And Khadijah Prophet Moses Talks To Allah Almighty Allah With One Of His Prophets Almighty Allah’s Revelation To Prophet David Total Description Of Islam Elements Of Islam Islamic Taxes Types Of Jihad Self-strife Jihad in seditious matters Choosing For Peace Strategic Trickery In War Signs Of The True Steadfast This World; A Prison For The Believers Ailment Of The Faithful Believer Duties Of Muslims Towards Each Other Financial Duties Legally-Gotten Earnings Prayers That Are Never Rejected Prayer At Putting On Clothes Building A Mosque Sitting In One’s Prayer-Place The Poor; The Friends Of Allah Lofty Places In Paradise Abstinence From Worldly Pleasures Nobilities Of Character Well Mannerism Helping People Settle Their Needs The Best Of All People Helping The Muslims Qualities Of True Believers Good-Looking People Building Good Ties With The Relatives Equality With The Brothers-In-Faith Endearing Oneself To People Noble Characters The Best Qualities Enjoining The Right Doing A Favor Perfectly Perfect Chivalry Arranging Matters In Disputes Treating The Unkind With Kindness Pardoning The Wrongdoers Helping In Charitable Acts Exploitation Of Four Things Kindness To The Orphans And The Weak Giving Good Advice The Three Rescuers Wronging The Helpless Adequate Sustenance The Reward For Almsgiving The Little Worldly Profit Is Better Than The Much Word Of The Faithful Believer Leaving The Unconcerned Wise Word Acts Driving Satan Away Imploring God’s Forgiveness For The Polytheist Parents Relieving From Crises What To Say To A Sneezer Abstinence From Lusts Forbiddance Of Obscene Language Joking And Telling Untruths Discourtesy The Wickedest Of Sll People Frowning In The Face Of The Brethren-In-Faith The Two-Faced Sins Of Immediate Punishment Deserter Of Prayers The Back-Breaking Things The Seven Accursed The People Of The Acts Of Disobedience To Allah The Lowly Ingratitude The Destroyers Backbiting Hardheartedness Self-Humiliation Beggary Of The Rich Rage And Self-Control Hastening Transgression And Envy Belittlement Of Religion Abandonment Of Faith Seeking The Help Of Other Than Almighty Allah The Worthy Of Insult The Baseless Zeal Of Jahiliyyah Adorning Oneself Before People The Punishment Of The Intoxicants-Addicted Praiseworthy Traits And Blameworthy Traits Deadeners Of Hearts Peculiarities Of The Holy Prophet Legality Of Temporary Marriage The Zakat Tax The Alms-Given Camels Sheep And Planting Accursed People Unacceptable Immolations The Three Exempted Immunity Against Drowning Talking To The Lepers Pouring Dust Upon The Dead Departure From The Lovers Pondering Over The Sermons The Useless Matters Sorts Of Speaking Inward And Outward Forms Gold And Silk New Fruits Eating While Ceremonially Impure Washing The Entire Body From Ceremonial Impurity Urinating Under A Tree Urinating In Flowing Rivers Urinating In Standing Position Negligence Of Ritual Ablution Brushing The Teeth Purity; The Key To Prayers Banishing The People Of Najran The Prayer Of The Wronged To Die In Defence Of Property Imam Ali’s Educational Teachings And Sermons Imam Ali’s Instructive Will To His Son Imam Al-Hasan Another instructive will of Imam Ali to Imam Al-Hasan Imam Ali’s instructive will to His Son Imam Al-Husayn Imam Ali’s instructions to His Sons Imam Ali’s instructive will to His son Muhammad Imam Ali’s instructive will to Kumayl ibn Ziyad Sermons Of Imam Ali As States of man in this world Acting upon personal desires Desertion of worldly pleasures Laugh at death! False abusing of the world Paradise by way of profit After death! The transient nature of this world Elapse of the world Haste towards righteous acts Description of the transitory world Death and after death Aphorisms Of Imam Ali As Knowledge Is Countless Opinion Of The Aged Enemies Of The Unknown Succouring The Aggrieved The Abstinent Allah’s Gifts In This World And The Other World Rest And Fatigue Duty Towards The Friend The Most Helpless Of All People Sovereignty And Religiousness The World Is Two Days The Ignorant And The Learned Knowledge-Based Worship Humorous Sayings Imploration For Forgiveness The Matched Things The Soldiers Of Allah The Most Favorable Act Of Worship Regarding The Brethren-In-Faith The Envious Are Restless The Self-Possessed The Discerning And The Foolish The Ansar The Least Duty Towards Allah Disadvantages Of Disunity Suppression Of Rage Good Mannerism Beyond Illusions Categories Of People Categories Of Quran Reciters Warning Against Joking Funny Wording Refraining From Prohibitions The Abstinent From Worldly Pleasures Ignorance About Defects Perfect Chastity Good Opinion The Most Manifest Nobility Characteristics Of The Lewd Proper Confession Standing The Friends’ Slips Spending That Is Never Wasted Economization Oppressing People Appreciation Of Graces Termination Of Lifetime Putting The Hopes Assumption Of Continuity A Faithful Believer Tires Himself Need, Dispensing With, And Doing Favors Negligence Of Friends Seeking For Sustenance The Best Of Wealth Excessive Expectation The Most Grateful And The Least Grateful Respite Of Allah Mirror Of Character Custody Of The Family Members Source Of Pleasance Beauty Of Men And Beauty Of Women Evil Characteristics Modesty Before The Rich The True Noble This World And The Other World Fear From Humiliation Verification Of The Authenticity Of Reports Readiness For The Hereafter Significance Of Knowledge Deprivation Of Knowledge Words Of The Wise Recognition Of Allah Thanking For The Blessings Envying The Friends Container Of Knowledge Doing Favours Means Of Headship The Most Humble Knowledge Connection With Almighty Allah Shame Of Niggardliness Seditions Satisfaction And Knowledge The Everlasting Deeds Missing The Opportunity Piety-Accompanied Actions Establishing The Orders Of Allah Concealment Of Secrets Befriending The Foolish Starvation of the poor Knowledge Seekers And Worldly Pleasures Seekers Forbearance And Tolerance The Evilest Friends The Whole Asceticism Encouragement On Doing Kind Acts Blessings Of Almighty Allah Modesty Of The Rich Fear Of Allah Pursuit Of The Best Meaning Moderate Care For The Family Members Beware Of Disobeying Allah Serving Allah Imam Ali And Judgment Significance Of Adjudication Imam Ali’s Judgments During The Holy Prophet’s Lifetime Who Is The Father? A Pit Dug For A Lion The Three She-Slaves The Killed Under The Wall A Cow That Killed A Donkey Imam Ali’s Judgments In The Reign Of Abu-Bakr Ignorance About The Law Imam Ali’s Judgments In The Reign Of ‘Umar The Story Of Qudamah Ibn Mas’un False Accusation Of Adultery Disavowal Of A Son The Widow Of An Old Man Two Women Claiming A Male Child A Crazy Woman Committing Adultery Five Different Punishments For A Single Offence Adultery Under Compulsion The Punishment Of The Absent From Their Wives A Three-Time Larceny The Two Cheaters Stoning A Pregnant Purchasing A Camel Distribution Of The Public Funds Divorcement Before And After Islam Abortion On Account Of Fear Six-Months Pregnancy Advice Of Imam Ali Imam Ali’s Judgments In The Reign Of ‘Uthman A Slave Woman Committing Adultery The Pregnant Wife Of An Old Man Yahya And Safiyyah Imam Ali’s Judgments During His Reign Whose Testimony Is Admitted? Retreat From Testimony Regard For The Health Of The Punished Testimonies Of Women Multiplicity Of Confessions Executors Of Punishments Judgment In Issues Of Misappropriation Litigation Against A Deaf Detaining The Sinful Scholars And The Incompetent Physicians Unjust Rulers Administering Oaths On The Jews And The Christians Sentence To Imprisonment Some Marvellous Judgments Of Imam Ali The Mysterious Crime Who Is The Master And Who Is The Slave? The Eight Loaves Of Bread Whose Is The Male And Whose Is The Female? The Four Drunken Persons The Drowned The Two-Head Newborn The Lost Money Pardoning A Larcener The Punishment Of The Highway Robbers The Hitting And The Hit Ships A Share Of A Legacy The Old Saves Fasting For A Season A Married Woman Asking For A Husband Accidental Homicide A Dog Or A Sheep A Magus Lady Converting To Islam Right Of Divorcement Homicide, Larceny, And Drinking Wine At The Same Time Rejecting The Testimonies Of The Jews Admitting The Testimonies Of The Christians Retaliation Between Fathers And Sons False Accusation Of A Group Of People Fabricated Stories Prophecies Of Imam Ali Foretelling The Assassination Of Imam Al-Hasan Foretelling The Martyrdom Of Imam Al-Husayn Prophesying The Number Of The Troops Prophesying The Martyrdoms Of Some Companions ‘Amr Ibn Al-Damq Maytham Al-Tammar Rashid Al-Hajari Juwayriyah Al-’Abdi Mazra’ Hujr Ibn ‘Adi Qambar Imam Ali Prophesies His Martyrdom Prophesying The Movements Of The Black Stone Prophesying The Massacre Of Fakh Prophesying The Martyrdom Of The Pure-Souled Prophesying The Martyrdom Of Ibrahim Prophesying The Advent Of Imam Al-Mahdi The Lad Of Thaqif Prophesying The Future Of Marwan And His Sons The Umayyad Rulers Prophesying The Killing Of Zur’ah Prophesying The Rule Of Abd Al-Malik Ibn Marwan Prophesying The Uprising Of Abdullah Ibn Al-Zubayr Prophesying The Uprising Of Al-Mukhtar Prophesying The Collapse Of The Umayyad Dynasty Prophesying The Power Of The ‘Abbasid Dynasty Prophesying The Death Of Mu’awiyah Prophesying The Birth Of Imam Zayn Al-’Abidin Prophesying Imam Al-Riza’s Martyrdom Prophesying The Establishing Of Baghdad City Prophesying The Manners Of The ‘Abbasid Rulers Prophesying The Uprising Of The Negroes Prophesying The Rule Of The Buyid Dynasty Prophesying The Magharibah State Prophesying The Uprising Of Tabaristan Prophesying The Rule Of The Qarmatians Prophesying The Raids Of The Mongols Prophesying The Imminent Seditions Prophesying The Events Of The Last Of Time Debates Of Imam Ali As Debates With The Christians The Questions Of A Monk The Bishop Of Najran Questions Of The Roman Emperor Answering The Questions Of A Jewish Doctor Answering The Questions Of A Group Of Jews The Excellences Of The Holy Prophet Muhammad Explaining Quranic Verses Answering the Questions of Ibn Al-Kawwa' Answering More Questions Answering The Question Of Dhi’lib Du’a' Kumayl Supplicatory Prayers Attached To The Devotional Rituals Ritual Ablution Rinsing Out The Mouth Inhaling Water From The Nose Washing The Face Washing The Right Hand Washing The Left Hand Rubbing The Head With Water Rubbing The Feet With Water Supplication Before Entering Into Prayers Supplication In The Prostration Of Prayers The Post-Prostration Supplication Supplication In The Dawn Prayers Supplication After The Dawn Prayers Imploration For Forgiveness After The Dawn Prayers Supplication After The Midday Prayer Supplicatory Prayer After The Afternoon Prayer Supplication After The Sunset Prayer Supplicatory Prayer After The Evening Prayer Supplication After Every Obligatory Prayer Supplication Before The Night Prayer Supplication After The First Two Units Of The Night Prayer Supplication After The Night Prayer Post-Prayer Supplications Supplication After The Relief Prayer Supplication After Offering A Prayer At Al-Ju’fi Mosque Supplications In The Month Of Ramadan Supplications In Mornings And Evenings Supplication At Sunrise Supplication In The Morning Supplication In Mornings And Evenings Confidential Prayers (Munajat) Three Magnificent Words Of Confidential Prayer Supplications For Mercy Supplications At Hardships Supplication For Steadfastness Distress-Repelling Prayer Supplicatory Prayers On Seeking Shelter And Protection Of Allah Supplicatory Prayer On Seeking Allah’s Defense Against The Rivals Supplicatory Prayer For Allah’s Protection Supplicatory Prayers On Distinctive Days Supplicatory Prayer On The Eid Al-Fitr Night Supplicatory Prayer On The Mid-Rajab Day Supplicatory Prayer In Sha’ban Supplications On The Days Of The Week Supplicatory Prayer On Saturdays Supplicatory Prayer On Sundays Supplicatory Prayer On Mondays Supplicatory Prayer On Tuesdays Supplicatory Prayer On Wednesdays Supplicatory Prayer On Thursdays Invocations Of Allah’s Curse And Punishment On The Enemies Invocation Of Punishment On The People Of Quraysh Invocation Of Allah’s Punishment On Talhah And Al-Zubayr Invocation Of Allah’s Punishment On Busr Ibn Arta'ah Invocation Of Allah’s Punishment On The Khawarij Invocation Of Allah’s Curse Upon The Enemies Imam Ali’s Invocation Of Allah’s Punishment Upon Those Who Refrained From Supporting Him Supplicatory Prayers In Battlefields Supplicatory Prayers In The Battle Of The Camel Supplicatory Prayers In The Battle Of Siffin Supplicatory Prayers On Miscellaneous Issues At Mealtimes At Going To Bed At Waking Up Imploration For Allah’s Safeguard From Showing Off Supplication At Receiving Praise From People At Marketplaces Upon Looking Into Mirrors Supplication For Retaining The Holy Quran Supplication Taught To Imam Al-Hasan Supplication Taught To Imam Al-Husayn Supplication For Sustenance Supplicatory Prayer At Funerals Supplication When Passing By Graves Supplication For Abstinence From Worldly Pleasures Supplication For Good Wife Supplication For Repelling Hardships Supplication For Prosperity Supplicatory Prayer At The Hour Of Death Appendix: The Holy Shrine of Imam ‘Ali The History Of Constructing The Holy Shrine Merits Of Visiting The Holy Shrine Of Imam ‘Ali´ Formulas To Be Said At The Holy Shrine First Ziyarah Duas After The Ziyarah Of Imam Ali (A) And After The Recitation Of Nafilah Prayers In Najaf Ashraf Ziyarah of Aminullah (The Trustee of Allah) Another Formula of Ziyarah on the Ghadir Day Ziyarah Of Imam Ali On The Night Of Maba'th (27th Rajab) Imam Al-Sadiq Visits the Tomb of Imam Ali Another Ziyarah As has previously been cited in this book, it was ‘Umar ibn Al-Khattab who gave Mu’awiyah free hand to have authority over Muslims and to create for himself a great power that he then used against Imam Ali (‘a). Accordingly, Mu’awiyah, in his capacity as the deputy governor of Syria, used the fortunes of this large district for supporting his sovereignty economically and politically. He purchased the loyalties of many people, bestowed the tribal chiefs with huge funds, and spread ignorance and illiteracy among the people of Syria so that they would never revolt or support his enemy against him. Due to his familiarity with the political program of ‘Uthman ibn ‘Affan, Mu’awiyah was sure that ‘Uthman would be killed and his government would collapse. He therefore did not set to support him; rather, he left him alone facing the swords of the insurgents. He then took the blood and shirt of ‘Uthman as a winning card to seize power. ‘A'ishah also played a positive role in this issue and paved the way for Mu’awiyah to lead an armed mutiny against Imam Ali (‘a). What’s more, Mu’awiyah knew for sure that Imam Ali (‘a) would never keep him in that position even for a moment and that he would most certainly divest him of all fortunes that he had collected from the drudgery of the poor people. Mu’awiyah wrote a letter to Al-Zubayr and Talhah, seducing them into the position of caliphate. They thus believed his trickery and mutinied against Imam Ali (‘a). When Mu’awiyah learnt about Abdullah ibn ‘Umar’s refraining from pledging allegiance to Imam Ali (‘a), he wrote him a letter in which he awakened his desire for caliphate and sought his help in going up against Imam Ali (‘a). However, Abdullah ibn ‘Umar wrote back, declaring his refusal to join Mu’awiyah and trying to make justifications for his refraining from pledging allegiance to Imam Ali (‘a). 1 Mu’awiyah then wrote another letter to Sa’d ibn Abi-Waqqas, asking him to rise up and demand with the blood of ‘Uthman. He also raised in him hopes for being the caliph. Sa’d wrote back a letter to Mu’awiyah in which he confessed that Imam Ali(‘a) was always the worthiest of caliphate, but some matters deterred him from holding this position since the first day. Sa’d also refused to respond to Mu’awiyah.2 Mu’awiyah then concluded that he would not be able to challenge Imam Ali (‘a) unless ‘Amr ibn Al-’As, the sliest of all Arabs, would join his party. He thus wrote a letter to ‘Amr and asked him to come to Damascus. When he received Mu’awiyah’s letter, ‘Amr hesitated to interfere in this clash. He therefore sought advice from his two sons Abdullah and Muhammad. The earlier suggested that his father should retire to his home and refrain from answering Mu’awiyah, while the latter, like the other youths of Quraysh who had desires for wealth and reputation, suggested to his father that he should find himself a good place in this dispute and join Mu’awiyah. To his son Abdullah, ‘Amr said, ‘You have ordered me to follow what is in the benefit of my religion, while your brother has ordered me to follow what is in the benefit of my worldly life.’ ‘Amr could not sleep at that night, because he was thinking of the matter. Unfortunately, before sunrise, he had preferred his worldly life to his religion and decided to join Mu’awiyah. Once he entered the city of Damascus, ‘Amr started weeping heavily before the people of Syria and raising his voice with these words: ‘Oh, for ‘Uthman! I declare the death of modesty and piety!’ It is worth mentioning that ‘Amr ibn Al-’As incited all people against ‘Uthman and exerted all his efforts to overthrow him. He even encouraged the shepherds he would meet in his way to shed the blood of ‘Uthman. When Mu’awiyah met with ‘Amr, he asked him to join his party and help him wage a war against Imam Ali (‘a). Expressing his opinion frankly, ‘Amr said, ‘Listen, Mu’awiyah! By Allah, the Arabs would never compare you to Ali in anything. Besides, Ali is unbeatable in armed clashes. If we want to match him up with any person from Quraysh, we will certainly wrong him.’ Mu’awiyah answered, ‘This is true. However, we can fight him for maintaining what we are now having in possession and we will claim that he has killed ‘Uthman!’ When ‘Uthman’s name was intruded in the issue, ‘Amr laughed sarcastically and informed Mu’awiyah that the persons whom should be most responsible for the assassination of ‘Uthman were Mu’awiyah and himself.3 Mu’awiyah realized that ‘Amr would not respond to him unless he would give him something big in return. So, he surprised him with this question, ‘O ‘Amr, do you love me?’ Scornfully, ‘Amr said, ‘Why should I love you? Should I love you for an otherworldly benefit? By Allah, nothing of the otherworldly affairs is with you. Should I love you for this worldly benefit? By Allah, this will not be before you give me a share with you.’ Mu’awiyah, complying with ‘Amr’s request, said, ‘You are my partner in this.’ To guarantee his share, ‘Amr said, ‘You should now pledge to appoint me as the governor of Egypt and the surrounding villages.’ Mu’awiyah said, ‘You will have my word.’ Starting his mission as the assistant of Mu’awiyah, ‘Amr advised him to write a letter to the people of Al-Madinah, accusing Imam Ali (‘a) of having a role in the assassination of ‘Uthman and promising that the new caliph would be subjected to a process of election. However, this trick of Mu’awiyah did not work with the people of Al-Madinah who answered him back with violent language and reminded him of his origin, since his father and he were the archenemies of Islam.4 Mu’awiyah sent a similar letter to Qays ibn Sa’d asking for his assistance and promising that he would appoint him as the governor of Iraq and Al-Hijaz. However, Qays wrote back to Mu’awiyah a letter full of words of reproach and scolding. When Mu’awiyah read the letter of Qays, he deceptively informed the people of Syria that Qays had responded to his call and would be ready to fight against the one who had killed ‘Uthman.5 Of course, the nave people of Syria believed this lie and let themselves be carried away by Mu’awiyah. When the courier of Imam Ali (‘a); namely, Jarir Al-Bajali, was present before Mu’awiyah to invite him to swear allegiance to the Imam (‘a), Mu’awiyah played a trick on the most prominent personality in Syria, Shurahbil Al-Kindi. He agreed with some persons of his followers to meet Shurahbil separately and convince him that Imam Ali (‘a) killed ‘Uthman. Starting the trick, Mu’awiyah summoned Shurahbil and informed him that Jarir was there to convey to him the order of Imam Ali (‘a) to pay homage to him. He thus claimed that he would not make this decision before he would consult the people of Syria since, as he claimed, he was one of them. However, when Shurahbil was informed by these followers of Mu’awiyah that Imam Ali (‘a) was the killer of ‘Uthman, he believed them. Hurrying to Mu’awiyah, Shurahbil said, ‘Where are the people? Ali has killed ‘Uthman! If you, Mu’awiyah, pledge allegiance to Ali, we will certainly take you out of Syria!’6 In brief, Mu’awiyah could establish his rule on such fabrications. Before entering into warfare, Imam Ali (‘a) sent a big number of letters to Mu’awiyah advising him to pledge allegiance to him, to obey him like all Muslims did, and to avoid disuniting the community. However, Mu’awiyah the cunning and hypocrite did not respond to the Imam (‘a); rather, he raised the slogan of demanding with ‘Uthman’s blood. When the Imam (‘a) was consensually selected as the caliph and homage was paid to him, he wrote this letter to Mu’awiyah: People killed ‘Uthman before they had taken counsel with me and they then pledged allegiance to me after they had taken counsel with each other and agreed unanimously on so. Once you receive this letter of mine, you may pay homage to me and delegate the chief personalities of Syria to me. When he received this letter, Mu’awiyah wrote back that Imam Ali (‘a) had nothing with him but strikes of swords and cutting off of heads.7 After Imam Ali (‘a) had finished with the Battle of the Camel and had the affairs back under his control, he sent this letter to Mu’awiyah: In effect, the predetermination and unmistakable act of God are poured down from the heavens like raindrops. Thus are the ordains of the Almighty and All-majestic Lord put into effect and His will is enforced even though the created beings do not consent to and the human beings do not satisfy with it. You have had an idea about the assassination of ‘Uthman, the general pledge of allegiance to me by all people, and the killing of those who breached their homage to me. So, submit to what people have submitted; otherwise, you know who I am and you know those who are surrounding me.8 In reply to this letter, Mu’awiyah sent a blank sheet on which he wrote nothing but the exordial statement of ‘In the Name of Allah the All- beneficent, the All-merciful.’ Imam Ali (‘a) understood from this letter that Mu’awiyah was determined to fight him. Through Jarir ibn Abdullah Al-Bajali, Imam Ali (‘a) sent the following letter to Mu’awiyah: The pledge of allegiance to me that took place in Al-Madinah keeps you under obligation even if you are in Syrian. This is so because those who swore allegiance to Abu-Bakr, ‘Umar, and ‘Uthman have sworn allegiance to me on the same basis on which they swore allegiance to them. On this basis, he who was present has no choice to consider, and he who was absent has no right to reject; and consultation is confined to the Muhajirun and the Ansar. If they agree on a certain person and take him to be the caliph, it will be deemed to mean Allah’s pleasure. If any one keeps away by way of objection or innovation, they will return him to the position from where he kept away. If he refuses, they will fight him for following a course other than that of the believers and Allah will put him back from where he had run away and make him enter hell; and it is an evil resort.9 Talhah and Al-Zubayr had pledged allegiance to me before they breached their allegiance. So, their breach was like their apostasy. I therefore fought them because of that until the truth came and the commandment of Allah manifested itself although they were averse from it. Now, you must agree to that to which all people have agreed, for the most desirable thing to me about you is that you will gain security unless you expose yourself to tribulation. If you do, I will fight and seek Allah’s help against you. You have spoken too much about the assassinators of ‘Uthman; so, resign yourself to what the people have accepted. Then, you can sue the assassinators of ‘Uthman and I will judge between you according to (the laws of) the Book of Allah. However, as for that thing, which you try to gain (i.e. caliphate), it is only like playing trickery on a child to avert him from milk. By my life, if you see with your brain without any passion, you will find me the most innocent of all of the people of Quraysh in respect of shedding ‘Uthman’s blood. I have sent to you Jarir ibn Abdullah Al-Bajali, one of the people of true faith and one of those who migrated for the sake of Islam, to take your pledge of allegiance to me. So, swear allegiance to me. There is no might and no power save with Allah.10 Having received this letter, Mu’awiyah tried to postpone his reply until Jarir became bored with the situation. He said to Mu’awiyah, ‘Listen, Mu’awiyah! A hypocrite delays performing a prayer until he finds that there is no other way. I do not think that you will swear allegiance until you find that there is no other way left for you.’ Mu’awiyah answered, ‘In fact, this is not ‘playing trickery on a child to avert him from milk;’ rather, it is an issue of many future dimensions.’ Mu’awiyah then recited before Jarir some poetic verses to make him understand that he was determined to fight Imam Ali (‘a), because the people of Syria were obeying him completely. Finally, Mu’awiyah decided to write back to Imam Ali (‘a), including his letter with worthless sophisms and declaring his rebel and insistence on fighting against the Imam (‘a). He sealed his letter with some poetic verses revealing animosity between the people of Iraq and the people of Syria. 11 When he received Mu’awiyah’s letter, Imam Ali (‘a) decided to write him back another one, which was as follows: From Ali ibn Abi Talib, To Mu’awiyah ibn Sakhr: I have received your letter, which is suggestive of a character of a person who lacks any discernment that may lead him to the true guidance and has no leader that may direct him correctly. When fancy called at him, he responded, and when it was in the lead of him, he followed. You have claimed that what prevented you from swearing allegiance to me was the breach of my covenant with ‘Uthman! By my life, I, in this issue, was not different from any other man from the Muhajirun; I entered where they entered and came out wherefrom they came out. Allah will never gather them on a deviational matter and will never strike them with blindness. Furthermore, I have not ordered of killing ‘Uthman so that the sin of this order might chase me, nor have I killed him with my own hands so that I might fear for myself the reTalibation of killing. You claim that the people of Syria are rulers over the people of Al-Hijaz! Can you bring me one Qurayshite man from Syria whose opinion can be admitted by the people of consultation or can be accepted as caliph? If you mention the name of anyone, then you will be belied by the Muhajirun and the Ansar. In turn, we can bring you such a Qurayshite man from Al-Hijaz. You also claim that I must send to you the assassinators of ‘Uthman! What is your role in this issue? The sons of ‘Uthman are here and they are worthier than you are of demanding with the killers of ‘Uthman. If you then claim that you are more powerful than they are in demanding with ‘Uthman’s blood, then you may commit to the homage that you are binding to do and then you may sue these people before me. As for your discrimination between the people of Syria and the people of Al- Basrah and between Talhah and Al-Zubayr and you, I swear it by my life that the matter is the same, because the pledge of allegiance to me was so general that none has the right to reconsider it or to resume the choice of it. As for my family relationship to the Messenger of Allah (S) and my precedence to Islam, if you had been able to cancel it, you would certainly have done.12 Mu’awiyah then sent to Imam Ali (‘a) a letter full of lies and hypocrisy, accusing him of dependence upon the people of Al-Hijaz, Iraq, and Egypt and accusing him over again of killing ‘Uthman, Talhah, and Al-Zubayr and of displacing ‘A'ishah. He then threatened the Imam (‘a) with the people of Syria. In reply to this letter, Imam Ali (‘a) wrote back the following: You should weigh up all affairs according to the criterion of one who considers his own affairs apart from his troops and who avoids saying trivial things. By my life, if I derive my power from the people of Iraq more than I do from Allah and more than my recognition of Him, then he who is so lacks any trust in Allah the All-exalted. So, talk to yourself confidentially in such a serious way that makes you dispense with trifling, for there is always much space in wording, and one like you will not be excused with regard to that for which real men inspire. You claim that you and we were one hand! This is true. You and we were such, but there is still a big difference between you and us; when Allah decided that His messenger would be one of us, we believed in him, but you disbelieved. You also claim that I have killed Talhah and Al-Zubayr! You were absent from this issue and you could not present yourself there. If you were there, you would have familiarity with the case. So, do not intrude in such cases, because you have no justifiable reason to do so. You then claim that you, leading the Muhajirun, will visit me (in warfare)! In fact, hijrah (migration) stopped on that day when your brother was taken as captive.13 So, if you feel some hastiness in yourself, you must then slow down and have a rest! If I overcome you, then it must be that Allah has sent me to punish you.14 Moreover, Imam Ali (‘a) sent another letter to Mu’awiyah in which he exhorted and warned him against the chastisement and punishment of Almighty Allah for his rebellion. The letter read as follows: From the servant of Allah, Ali, the Leader of the Believers, To Mu’awiyah ibn Abi-Sufyan: Verily, this world is an abode of trading, and its profit or loss will be seen in the Hereafter. The true happy is thus the one whose merchandise is the righteous deeds and who sees this world from its own viewpoint and weighs it up according to its own criterion. I only want to exhort you although I have already had familiarity with the unstoppable destiny of you. However, Allah the All-exalted has put the scholars under the obligation of fulfilling their trusts and giving advice to the aberrant and to the followers of the right guidance. So, fear Allah and do not be of those who do not hope dignity for Allah and those against whom the sentence of chastisement is due, for Allah verily is always on a watchtower and your world will turn away from you and bring upon you nothing but regret. So, quit error and deviation you are now in, despite your old age and the imminent termination of your lifetime. Today, your manner is just like the manner of a shabby dress that whenever one of its sides is sewn, another side is ripped open. You have already caused perdition to a big number of people whom you have seduced into your aberrance and cast in the waves of your ocean, exposing them to be covered by utter darkness and collided by spurious matters. Thus, they turned aside from the true path, recoiled on their heels, shrank on their backs, and depended on their ancestries. Excepted from these are the people of intuition who separated from you, after they had recognized your reality, and who ran hurriedly towards Allah from supporting you, because you had made them ride on untamed animals and diverted from the straight path. O Mu’awiyah, fear Allah with regard to yourself and pull your leash from the hand of Satan, for this world will in the long run slip away from you while the Hereafter is very nigh.15 However, Mu’awiyah did not care for the Imam’s advice; rather, he wrote back a letter full of revilement and threat. Imam Ali (‘a) therefore replied to his letter as follows: The deviational statements you have mentioned in your letter are not unlike what your family members and folks had come with, since their atheism and desire for unachievable things made them begrudge Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him and his Household, and led them to die the way with which you have already had familiarity. They could neither defend an inviolable matter nor protect themselves against the befalling of a big misfortune. At these situations, it was I who faced them bravely, suffered the heat of their wars, notched the sharpness of their weapons, and cut off their heads and the heads of the chiefs of deviation; and, Allah willing, I will attach their descendants to them. How miserable the descendants are when they follow their ancestors whose destiny and final abode is Hellfire.16 Mu’awiyah replied to the Imam’s letter with statements of impudence and threat with the people of Syria. Imam Ali (‘a) thus answered in a letter, How strange that which I received from you is! How familiar I am with what you are about to pass through! My respite in facing you is only because I am waiting for what you believe to be untrue but I believe to be true. Tomorrow, I see coming that you will clamor because of war just like the clamor of the overburdened camels. You and your followers will then have to call on me to accept as arbitrator the Book that you only revere by your tongues while you disbelieve in it in your hearts.17 The last statement in Imam Ali’s letter carries his prediction that Mu’awiyah and his gang will be defeated in the war and will have no other trick to make than calling on accepting the Holy Quran as arbitrator, although they do not believe in it. Mu’awiyah sent back a letter to Imam Ali (‘a) in which he belittled Imam Ali’s prediction and considered it to be one of the fables, accusing the Imam (‘a) of leading his followers to the wrong course.18 In reply to Mu’awiyah, Imam Ali (‘a) wrote back the following letter: You and your followers, who are the followers of the accursed Satan, have so many times described the truth as the fables of the ancients, cast it behind your backs, and exerted all of your efforts to extinguish the light of Allah with your hands and mouths. However, Allah will perfect His light, though the unbelievers may be averse. By my life, the light will be perfect though you may be averse, knowledge will be made prevalent to bring about lowliness to you, and you will be punished for your misdeeds. So, make mischief in your imminently transient world as much as you like, for your wrong will very soon come to an end and your deed will plunge. Then, your destined abode will be Laza (i.e. the flaming fire), while Allah will not wrong you at all. Verily, your Lord is not in the least unjust to the servants. You have expatiated upon mentioning ‘Uthman lengthily while none killed him but you and none disappointed him save you. You had always awaited the befalling of defeat upon him and you have hoped for bad things to come upon him, for you coveted to attain what you have now shown and what your current deed demonstrates. I have a great hope for attaching you to him while you will be committing a greater sin and a graver wrongdoing than his. I am the son of Abd Al-Muttalib the owner of the sharpest sword whose grip is still in my hand. You have already known those whom I killed among the heroes of the Banu-’Abd Shams, and the tyrants of Banu-Sahm, Jumah, and Makhzum whose sons were orphaned at my hand and whose women were widowed by me. I also remind you of what you never forget; remember the day when I killed your brother Hanzalah and pulled him from the leg into the well. On that day too, I took your brother ‘Amr as captive and tied his neck to his two legs. When I chased you, you flew farting! Had it not been that I do not follow an absconder, you would certainly have been the third of these two. I now take an oath before you by Allah; an oath that is applicable and never breakable; if any vicissitude of time gathers you and me face to face, I will make you a parable that will not fall from the tongues of people forever; and I will straighten your own place on you until Allah judges between you and me, and He is the best of all judges. If Allah prolongs my lifetime, I will rally the detachments of Muslims against you and I will rise up against you with a legion of the Muhajirun and the Ansar. Then, I will not admit any of your excuses or intercession and I will not respond to any of your requests or appeals. You will then have to return to your vacillation, hesitation, and turning right and left. You have witnessed, perceived, and seen how the clouds of death were poured down on you until you resorted to a Book that your father and you were the first to disbelieve in it and to give the lie to its revelation. However, I had looked fixedly at it and wished that you would only do it (i.e. apostasy from Islam). Yet, what had bygone of these had bygone and your plots in it had gone away. Now, when this letter reaches your hand, I will march towards you. So, choose for yourself, consider it carefully, and make use of this opportunity. If you keep on transgression, aberrance, and reckless behavior until the servants of Allah will tramp on you, your affairs will be at chaos and a matter that may be accepted from you this day will no longer be admitted in the morrow. O son of Harb, your importunate dispute-on holding this position-with its real people is in reality foolishness. So, do not let the people of deviation awaken your desire for it and do not let the foolishness of the ignorant ones destroy you. I swear by the One Who grasps Ali’s soul in His hand, if only one spark of Dhu’l-Faqar flashes in your face, you will be struck such a strike that you will not recover consciousness up to the day when the trumpet will be blown the blow that you despaired of it just like the unbelievers despaired of those in tombs.19 Mu’awiyah replied to Imam Ali’s letter with words of threat with war and readiness to fight against the Imam (‘a). In reply, Imam Ali (‘a) wrote the following letter: Your offenses, along with what Allah the All-exalted knows about you, have made Him stop improving your affairs or making your heart respond to the truth. O son of the accursed Sakhr,20 you claim that your clemency is as weighty as mountains and your knowledge is so vast that it can decide between the people of suspicion! In reality, you are rude, hypocrite, hollow-hearted, weak-minded, coward, and vile. If you are true in what you have written, although the nephew of Banu- Sahm 21 is helping you write down these lines, then leave people behind you and set up for fighting and ready yourself for receiving blows. You may then save the two parties from fighting. Only then, it will be known which one of us is rusty-hearted and out of sight. I am Abu’l-Hasan who killed your grandfather, brother, and maternal uncle; and you are not far away from them.22 Before the Imam (‘a) marched towards Siffin, Mu’awiyah had written a letter to him, which was carried by Abu-Muslim Al-Khawlani. In this letter, Mu’awiyah had nothing new to add; rather, he referred to the same issue of killing ‘Uthman. Imam Ali (‘a), replying to his letter, wrote the following lines to Mu’awiyah: The brother of the (tribe of) Khawlan has carried for me a letter from you, in which you mention Muhammad, may Allah bless him and his Household, and Allah’s bestowals on him with the true guidance and the revelation. All praise be to Allah Who has fulfilled His promise to him, perfected victory to him, given him power on the lands, made him prevail on the people of enmity and hatred from amongst his folks who had jumped on him, detested him, given the lie to him, encountered him with hostility, helped each other to banish him, his companions, and his family members, rallied the Arabs against him, combined their forces to theirs to wage war against him, exerted all their efforts to stand against him, and raised difficulties for him 23 until the truth came and the decree of Allah was made manifest, though they were loath. The people who most rallied others against him were his relatives and the next except those whom Allah has protected. O son of Hind,24 time has hidden for us wonders from you! You have started telling us of Allah’s trials for us, and His bounties to us through our Prophet. In this matter, you are like the person who carries dates to Hajar,25 or who challenges his own master to a duel in archery. Then, you have mentioned that Allah selected from among the Muslims aides through whom He aided His Prophet. So, their positions with Allah are congruent with their excellent deeds in Islam. You have then claimed that the Caliph was the best of all those in Islam and the most sincere to Allah and to His Prophet, followed by his successor. By my life, the standing of these two in Islam is great and our misfortune for losing them is in reality a big injury for Islam. May Allah show them mercy and award them the best rewarding. Then, you have claimed that ‘Uthman occupied the third rank in virtue. However, if ‘Uthman was good-doer, then Allah will reward him out of His compassion, and if he was wrongdoer, then he will meet a forgiving Lord Who is too great to discard forgiving any sin. By Allah, when Allah rewards all people according to their virtuous deeds in Islam and their sincerity to Him and to His Prophet, I expect that the share of us-the Ahl Al-Bayt-will be the greatest. When Muhammad, peace of Allah be upon him and his Household, invited to belief in Allah and to monotheism, we-the Ahl Al-Bayt-were the first to believe and give credence to what he had come with. For many years, none in any quarter of the Arabs worshipped Allah except us. Our people (i.e. the folks of our tribe, Quraysh) then were set to kill our Prophet and eradicate our root. They begot on us all misfortunes and did to us various actions. They thus prevented us from provisions, withheld water from us, and imposed fear upon us, commissioned emissaries and spies to watch over us, forced us to resort to a rough mountain, kindled the fire of war against us, and concluded an agreement among them that they would not allow us to eat, drink, marry women from them, purchase anything from them, or be secured from their attacks unless we would give up the Prophet, peace of Allah be upon him and his Household, so that they would be able to kill or punish him severely. We remained unsafe from their evils except for one time a year; that is during the season of pilgrimage. Then, Allah decided for us that we should protect him, defend his yard, fight others in defense of his inviolability, and unsheathe our swords to safeguard him at the hours of nights and days. So, the believer of us did so in desire for winning the reward, and the unbeliever of us also did so; yet, in protection of the root. As for the people of Quraysh who accepted Islam thereafter, none of them ever suffered any of these tribulations because some of them were protected by the clans they had allied or defended by the clans to which they had belonged. So, none could intercept them the way our people had intercepted us. As a result, they were on a height secured from being killed. Then, what Allah had decided to take place took place. Then, Allah ordered His Messenger to emigrate after which He permitted him to fight the polytheists. When fighting attained their climax and he (i.e. the Holy Prophet) was challenged, he always submitted his family members to fight and to protect his companions from the heat of spearheads and swords. In consequence, ‘Ubaydah was killed on that day of the Battle of Badr, Hamzah on that day of the Battle of Uhud, and Ja’far and Zayd on the day of the Battle of Mu'tah. By Allah, the one whom I can mention by name if I want (i.e. Ali ibn Abi Talib) wanted martyrdom with the Prophet, may Allah bless him and his Household, more than once as same as these persons did, but the termination of their lifetimes was expedited while his death was postponed. Allah is the patron of rewarding them excellently and He is the best to bestow upon them with favors for the righteous deeds they had done. I have neither heard of nor seen anyone more sincere to Allah with regard to their obedience to His Messenger, more obedient to His Messenger with regard to His obedience to his Lord, or more steadfast against hardships, misfortunes, and in times of conflicts and situations of affliction with the Holy Prophet, may Allah bless him and his Household, than these men whom I have mentioned were. The Muhajirun are also sources of much virtue that we have recognized from them. May Allah reward them for the best of their deeds! You have also claimed that I was envious to the caliphs, reluctant to respond to them, and oppressive to them. As for oppression, God forbid it! As for my reluctance and disagreement to their matter (i.e. caliphate), I do not apologize to people about that, because when Allah-may His mention be elevated-grasped the soul of His Prophet, may Allah bless him and his Household, to Him, the people of Quraysh said, ‘The leader should be from us.’ The Ansar answered, ‘Rather, the leader should be from us.’ The people of Quraysh then argued, ‘Muhammad the Messenger of Allah, peace of Allah be upon him and his Household, was one of us; therefore, we are worthier of taking his place than you, the Ansar, are.’ The Ansar submitted to this fact and acquiesced to the matter that leadership and authority should be for the people of Quraysh. Now, if the people of Quraysh were more deserving to hold the position of leadership than the Ansar because of Muhammad, peace of Allah be upon him and his Household, then the closest of all people to Muhammad, peace of Allah be upon him and his Household, should be more entitled to this leadership than they were; otherwise, the Ansar had the greatest share of leadership among all of the Arabs. I now do not know whether my acquaintances confessed that they had seized my entitled right, or the Ansar were wrong in their situation. Rather, I knew for sure that the thing they had taken was my right. Nevertheless, I left it for them. May Allah excuse them! As for your claim about the case of ‘Uthman, my rupture of family relationship with him, and my rallying people against him, ‘Uthman had done what you have heard about; therefore, people did what you saw. You certainly know that I had already secluded myself from ‘Uthman. If you claim that you did not know this, then you are surely laying the blame unjustly on me. So, accuse me falsely of any matter you wish! As for your words about the assassinators of ‘Uthman, I have investigated the matter so precisely and, as a result, I concluded that I do not have the right to give them up to neither you nor anyone else. By my life, if you will not retreat your error and mutiny, you will very soon see them go in pursuit of you, and this matter will not require you to chase them in a land, an ocean, a mountain, or a plain. When people gave Abu-Bakr this position, your father came to me and said, ‘You are the most entitled to this position after Muhammad (peace of Allah be upon him and his Household) and I am ready to be the chief of this matter against those who have opposed you. So, stretch out your hand so that I will pay homage to you.’ However, I did not. Now, you know that your father wanted this matter and offered it to me, but I refused, because the people were not far away enough from disbelief. I thus anticipated disunity among Muslims. So, your father was more enthusiastic about my holding this position than I was. If you now recognize my right in the same way as your father did, then you will hit the point of truth, but if you do not, then Allah will make me dispense with you.26 Mu’awiyah sent another letter with Abu-Umamah Al-Bahili. As usual, he filled in this letter with fallacies, forgeries, and untruths. Now, your letter has reached me wherein you recall that Allah chose Muhammad, peace of Allah be upon him and his Household, for His religion and helped him through those companions who supported him. Strange things about you have remained concealed (by the irony of fate) from us, since you have started telling us of Allah’s trials for us and His bounties to us through our Prophet. In this matter, you are like the person who carries dates to Hajar or who challenges his own master to a duel in archery. You think that so-and-so and so-and-so 27 are the most distinguished persons in Islam. You have said such a thing which if it be true, you have nothing to do with it, but if it be not so, then its defect will not affect you. What are you to do with the question of who is better and who is worse, or who is the ruler and who is the ruled? What have the Released Ones and their sons to do with distinguishing between the first Muhajirun and determining their position or defining their ranks? What a pity! The sound of an arrow is being produced by what is not a real arrow, and he against whom the judgment is to be passed is sitting in judgment. O man! Why do you not see your own lameness and remain within bounds? Why do you not realize the shortness of your measure and stay back where destiny has placed you? You have no concern with the defeat of the defeated or the victory of the victor. You are wandering in bewilderment and straying from the right path. Do you not realize it? I am not giving you any news: I am just recounting Allah’s bounty, namely that a number of people from among the Muhajirun and the Ansar fell as martyrs in the way of Allah the Sublime, and that each of them is distinguished (on that account), but when one of us secured martyrdom, he was named the chief of all martyrs,28 and the Messenger of Allah, peace of Allah be upon him and his Household, gave him the peculiar honor of repeating seventy times the statement of allahu- akbar(Allah is the Most Great) during his funeral prayer. Do you not know that a number of people lost their hands in the way of Allah, and that everyone is distinguished (on that account), but when the same thing occurred to one of us, he was given the name: theflier in Paradise and: the two-winged.29 If Allah had not forbidden self-praise, the writer would have mentioned numerous distinctions, which the believer knows well and which the ears of hearers do not wish to forget. Better, leave those whose arrows miss the mark. We are the direct recipients of our Lord’s favors while others receive favors from us after that. In spite of our old established honor and our well-known superiority over your people, we did not stay away from mixing with you and married and got married (among you) like equals although you were not so. And how could you be so when (the position is that) among us is the Prophet while among you is the belier, 30 among us is the lion of Allah while among you is the lion of the opposing groups, 31 among us are the two masters of the youths of Paradise 32 while among you are the children of Hell,33 among us is the choicest of all the women of the worlds 34 while among you is the bearer of firewood,35 and many more distinctions on our side and shortcomings on your side? Our Islam is well-known and our (greatness in the) pre-Islamic period too cannot be denied. Whatever remains has been mentioned in the words of Allah the Glorified and Sublime: ‘And blood relations have the better claim in respect of one to the other, according to the Book of Allah. (33:6)’ He (Allah) the Sublime also says: ‘Verily, of men the nearest to Abraham are surely those who followed him and this (Our) Prophet (Muhammad) and those who believe; and verily, Allah is the Guardian of the faithful. (3:68)’ Thus, we are superior firstly because of kinship and secondly because of obedience. When, under the shed (Saqifah of Banu-Sa’idah), the Muhajirun contended kinship with the Messenger of Allah, peace of Allah be upon him and his Household, against the Ansar, they scored over them. If that success were based on kinship, then the right would be ours better than yours. Otherwise, the Ansar’s contention stands. You think that I have been jealous of the caliphs, and I have revolted against them. Even if this were so, it is not an offense against you and therefore no explanation is due to you. ‘This is a matter for which no blame comes to you.’ You have said that I was dragged like a camel with a nose string to swear allegiance (to Abu-Bakr). By the Eternal Allah, you had intended to revile me but you have praised me, and to humiliate me but have yourself been humiliated. What humiliation does it mean for a Muslim to be the victim of oppression so long as he does not entertain any doubt in his religion nor any misgiving in his firm belief! This argument of mine is intended for others, but I have stated it to you only in so far as it was appropriate. Then you have recalled my position vis-a-vis ‘Uthman; and in this matter, an answer is due to you because of your kinship with him. So (now tell me), which of us was more inimical towards ‘Uthman and who did more to bring about his killing; or who offered him his support but he made him sit down and stopped him; or who was he whom he called for help but who turned his face from him and drew his death near him until ill his fate overtook him? No, no; by Allah: “Indeed knows Allah those who hinder others among you and those who say unto their brethren, ‘Come here unto us!’ And they come not to fight but a little.” (33:18) I am not going to offer my excuse for reproving him for some of his innovations, for if my good counsel and guidance to him was a sin, then very often a person who is blamed has no sin and sometimes the only reward a counselor 36 reaps is suspicion of evil. I desired naught but reform what I am able to do; and my guidance is not but with Allah. On Him alone do I rely and unto Him alone do I turn. You have mentioned that for me and for my followers, you have only the sword. This makes even a weeping person laugh. Did you ever see the descendants of Abd Al-Muttalib running away from battle, or being frightened by swords? ‘Wait a little until Hamal joins the battle.’ Shortly, he whom you are seeking will seek you and he whom you think to be far away will approach near you. I am shortly speeding towards you with a force of the Muhajirun, the Ansar, and those who follow them in virtue. Their number will be great and their dust will spread all round. They will be wearing their shrouds and their most coveted desire is to meet Allah. They will be accompanied by the descendants of those who took part in the Battle of Badr, and they will have Hashimite swords whose cuttings you have already seen in the case of your brother, maternal uncle, your grandfather, and your kinsmen. Nor are they far distant from the unjust ones.37 All means that Imam Ali (‘a) used for preventing bloodshed and uniting the Muslims fell short, because Mu’awiyah had already decided to revolt against Imam Ali’s government and declare mutiny and armed disobedience. He had put two conditions: (1) The Imam must hand the assassinators of ‘Uthman over to him so that he would reTalibate over them, and (2) The Imam’s government must be disbanded and the issue of caliphate must be subjected to the consultation system so that Muslims would select someone as their leader. In fact, Mu’awiyah put these two impossible conditions so that he would wage war against the Imam (‘a). Thus, the two parties prepared against each other all possible equipments and weapons. Imam Ali (‘a) sent some letters to his deputy governors calling them to support and join him in this war against the enemy who had opposed the unanimity of Muslims and gone against the legal ruler. To Mikhnaf ibn Qays, the deputy governor of Isfahan and Hamadan, Imam Ali (‘a) sent this letter: To struggle against one who has turned away from the truth deliberately and chosen the stupor of blindness and deviation willingly is a duty incumbent upon the people of true recognition. Verily, Allah is pleased with whoever pleases Him, but wrathful with whoever acts disobediently towards Him. We are now determined to march towards these people who have acted towards the servants of Allah in a way contradictory to what Allah has revealed. They have also misappropriated the spoils, dispensed with the religious punishments, muffled the right, made corruption prevail on the earth, and taken as adherents the sinful people rather than the faithful believers. If a saint of Allah deemed horrible their misdeeds, they would hate, eliminate, and deprive him of his rights. If, on the other hand, a wrongdoer helped them proceed in their offenses, they would love, draw near, and treated him kindly. Thus have they insisted on wrongdoing and agreed commonly on violation. In fact, they had very often deterred people from following the truth, helped each other in committing sins, and acted wrongly. Once you receive this letter of mine, you may commission the most trustful person in your view to replace you in carrying out your jobs and come to us, perchance you, along with us, will face this violating enemy and you will then enjoin the right, forbid the wrong, agree with the rightful, and oppose the wrongful. In fact, we cannot dispense with you and you must not dispense with the reward for jihad. Allah is sufficient to us and He is the most excellent Protector. Mikhnaf thus appointed Al-Harth ibn Abi’l-Harth ibn Al-Rabi’ as his representative on Isfahan and Sa’id ibn Wahab on Hamadan, and he came hurriedly to join Imam Ali (‘a) in the Battle of Siffin.38 Imam Ali (‘a) wrote another letter to the commanders-in-chief of the army, asking them to support him in this conflict: I release myself before you all from the errors of your soldiers; so, spare people from wrongdoing and transgression, impose restrictions on the foolish ones among you, and beware lest you commit things due to which Allah will not admit our and your prayers, for He the All-exalted says, ‘My Lord would not care for you were it not for your prayer.’ Verily, if Allah the All-exalted detests some people in the heavens, they will perish on the earth. Do not fall short of doing kind acts, do not make your soldiers stop acting in the best way, do not prevent the subjects from your help, and do not fall short of strengthening the religion of Allah. Strive earnestly for the sake of Allah according to the manner you are obliged to do, for Allah the All-glorified has made it obligatory upon you and us to thank Him practically through our efforts and to support Him with the utmost of our strengths. There is no might and no power except with Allah the All-high and All-great.39 Imam Ali (‘a) wrote a third letter to the people of Quraysh, including Mu’awiyah, calling them to stop bloodshed and agree on one word. He thus wrote to them the following lines: Peace be upon you. I praise Allah save Whom there is no god. Verily, Allah the All-exalted has some servants who believed in the revelation, recognized the interpretation (of the revelations), and understood the religious questions; and Allah has demonstrated their virtue in the Wise Quran. In the meantime, you were the enemies of Allah’s Messenger; you gave the lie to the Book and agreed unanimously on waging war against the Muslims. You used to detain, torture, or kill any Muslim you would chance upon. When Allah decided to give dominance to His religion and make it manifestly prevalent, the Arabs started converting to this religion in big groups and this community surrendered to it willingly or unwillingly. You were among those who embraced this religion either desirably or because you feared the otherwise, whereas the people of precedence had won due to their precedence and the Muhajirun due to their virtue. It is not proper that one who does not have the like of these unprecedented acts in the religion and the like of their virtues in Islam to dispute with them on the matter that they only deserve it; otherwise, that one will be sinful and wrongdoer. One endued with insight ought not to ignore his actual worth, overstep his actual bound, and exhaust himself by seeking for what he is not competent enough to have. Verily, the worthiest of running the affairs of this community have always been the closest to the Messenger, the most knowledgeable with the Book, the most versed in the religious questions, the foremost to embracing Islam, the best in jihad, and the most powerful to manage the affairs of this community with regard to its leaders. So, fear Allah to Whom you shall be returned and do not mix up the truth with the falsehood nor hide the truth while you know it.Be it known to all of you that the most virtuous servants of Allah are those who act upon what they know, while the wickedest are the ignorant ones who dispute with the people of knowledge on the strength of their ignorance. Verily, a knowledgeable one has superiority due to his knowledge while an ignorant who disputes with the knowledgeable increases nothing but more ignorance. Behold! I now call you to follow the Book of Allah and the practice of His Prophet, and to spare this community from bloodshed. If you accept, you will have then been in the right and you will have been guided to your fortuity, but if you insist on sowing disunity among Muslims and stirring up discord among the people of this community, then you will increase nothing but aloofness from Allah and the Lord will increase nothing but wrath with you.40 When this letter reached his hand, Mu’awiyah answered back with a letter that contained one poetic verse, involving that nothing but fighting and beheading would Imam Ali (‘a) have from him (i.e. Mu’awiyah). When the Imam (‘a) read Mu’awiyah’s reply, he recited this holy Quranic verse: Surely, you cannot guide whom you love, but Allah guides whom He pleases; and He knows best the followers of the right way. (28:56) Having gained all means of waging war against Imam Ali (‘a), Mu’awiyah, due to his cunning and evil schemes, could persuade the people of Syria into this war. He used to raise the blood-stained shirt of ‘Uthman to deceive people that Imam Ali (‘a) had killed ‘Uthman and the people of Syria would then raise their voices with weeping and cries. When these cries would calm down, ‘Amr, in a sarcastic manner, would say to Mu’awiyah, ‘Shake its baby before its eyes so that it would show sympathy!’ Then, Mu’awiyah would raise ‘Uthman’s shirt so that people would start a new wave of weeping. These people were so fooled that they swore not to let water touch their bodies and women come near them before they would kill the assassinators of ‘Uthman. 41 It is historically known that the people of Syria, unlike the people of Iraq, were extremely obedient to and humble before any one who would assume their leadership.42 Leading such naive people, Mu’awiyah marched for waging war against Imam Ali (‘a). He made them reside in a place called Siffin, which was very close to the River Euphrates and ordered a brigade to occupy the entire river. Thousands of soldiers surrounded the two banks of the river, considering this process to be the first sign of victory, because they would prevent their enemy from having water. On the other front, Imam Ali (‘a), having despaired of any peaceful solution, had to prepare his soldiers and himself for encountering the enemy. Preachers thus started encouraging people on participating in this war and on jihad, especially that they had recently achieved victory in the Battle of the Camel. Imam Al-Hasan (‘a) also delivered an enthusiastic speech in which he could flare up the emotions through statements of invitation to jihad and standing in the face of the enemies who had plotted evil schemes against Islam and Muslims. The masses responded to Imam Al-Hasan (‘a) and set out with him to fight the transgressing party. Imam Ali (‘a) ordered the vanguards to start moving forward and to keep close to the River Euphrates until they would receive further command. He also ordered them not to start fighting until he would join them. When the army of Imam Ali (‘a) arrived in Siffin, the soldiers could not find any spring from which they would supply themselves with water, because all sources of water had been already occupied by Mu’awiyah’s troops who would never allow them even a single drop of water. As a consequence, Imam Ali (‘a) delegated some of his companions to Mu’awiyah, asking him to evacuate a place from which his soldiers would supply themselves with water. When Mu’awiyah presented the request before some of his retinue, they refused and claimed that they would deprive the Imam’s army of water as same as they did with ‘Uthman ibn ‘Affan. The Imam’s delegation returned unsuccessful and informed the Imam (‘a) about the insistence of the Syrians on preventing them from water. When thirst attacked the Imam’s army heavily, Al-Ash’ath ibn Qays advanced to the Imam (‘a) and asked him permission to fight against the enemies so that he would force them away from the sources of water. The Imam (‘a) had no other solution than responding to Al-Ash’ath’s request. Al-Ash’ath then went out, shouting, ‘Whoever wants water or death must meet me the next morning, for I am determined to fetch water.’ Twelve thousand persons responded to Al-Ash’ath’s call. The next morning, Al-Ash’ath, leading these men who carried their swords on their shoulders, advanced towards the army of Mu’awiyah. When the two armies were face to face, Al-Ash’ath introduced himself to Mu’awiyah’s troops and shouted, ‘Leave your sites near the source of water.’ Abu’l-A’war Al-Sulmi, from Mu’awiyah’s army, replied, ‘By Allah, you will never drink from the water before swords overtake us and you.’ Imam Ali (‘a) had ordered Malik Al-Ashtar to support Al-Ash’ath; he therefore ordered his horsemen to attack Mu’awiyah’s troops causing them heavy losses and forcing them to abscond, followed by disgrace.43 When the troops of Imam Ali (‘a) had full control over the sources of water, some of them suggested to the Imam (‘a) that they would prevent Mu’awiyah’s troops from water and to return like for like. However, Imam Ali (‘a) refused this suggestion and ordered his soldiers to allow the enemy to supply themselves with water. Of course, such honorable and noble traits cannot be found with Mu’awiyah and his likes. A man from Syria came to Imam Ali (‘a) in Siffin and asked, ‘O Amir Al- Mu'minin, please inform me if our going to fight against the Syrians destined by Allah.’ The Imam (‘a) answered, O Syrian brother, yes it is. I swear by Him Who has split the grain and created the souls, whatever a valley we cross or a height we climb is by the predetermination and act of Allah. The Syrian man said, ‘Then, I must relegate all my sufferings in this march to Allah. I do not believe that I will deserve any reward for my efforts, since all of them have been already predetermined and decided by Allah.’ Explaining the idea, Imam Ali (‘a) said, Why is that? Almighty Allah will grant you abundant reward for climbing any height and will grant you abundant reward for coming down, as long as you have not been compelled to do so nor have been obliged to do it. The Syrian man asked, ‘How can it be, when the predetermined destiny is driving us to do whatever we do?’ Imam Ali (‘a), giving further explanation, said, O Syrian brother, you seem to have taken it as a final and unavoidable destiny according to which we are bound to act! If it were so, there would be no question of reward or chastisement and there would be no sense in Allah’s promises, warnings, obligations, and prohibitions. It would not be that the good-doer is worthier of receiving the reward of good deeds than the evil doer or the evil doer worthier of being sentenced to the punishments of evil doing than the good-doer. This is the statement of the idol-worshippers, the party of Satan, the rivals of the All-beneficent Lord, the abjurers, the faTalibsts and magi of this nation. Allah the All-exalted has ordered His creatures to act by free will, cautioned them, and prohibited them against evil doings. He has placed easy obligations on them and has not put heavy obligations. He gives them much reward in return for little action. He is disobeyed, not because He is overpowered. He is obeyed but not under force. He has not sent prophets just for fun. He has not sent down the Book for the people without purpose. He did not create the skies, the earth, and all that is in between them in vain. That is the imagination of those who disbelieve; then woe to those who disbelieve because of the fire. The Syrian asked, ‘Then, what is the predetermination and act of Allah due to which we have taken this course?’ The measurement and decision in such matters are relegated to Allah alone. ‘And the command of Allah is a decree that is made absolute.’ Having been convinced by the explanations of the Imam (‘a), the Syrian man expressed, ‘You have relieved a big concern of mine. May Allah relieve all your concerns!’ Trying all means of peace possible, Imam Ali (‘a) sent a number of his companions to Mu’awiyah to call him for preventing bloodshed and to warn against the bad consequences of any military conflict. First of all, Imam Ali (‘a) sent the prominent Companion, ‘Adi ibn Hatam, who said to Mu’awiyah, ‘We have come to you to invite you for a solution by which Allah may unite our word and community and spare the lives of Muslims. We thus call you to respond to the one who was the foremost to accept Islam and the owner of the best deeds. Having been guided by Almighty Allah to the truth, all people agreed unanimously on choosing him (i.e. Imam Ali) as their leader, and none remained except your acquaintances and you. So, O Mu’awiyah, accept his leadership before Allah inflicts upon your followers and you what he had inflicted upon those who opposed him in the Battle of the Camel.’ Mu’awiyah did not respond to ‘Adi’s call; rather, he insisted on mutiny and war. Yazid ibn Qays Al-Arhabi and Shabath ibn Rab’i said similar words to Mu’awiyah, but he insisted on his situation.44 Imam Ali (‘a) then had no other means than engaging in that war. He therefore instructed his army, saying, Do not fight them unless they initiate the fighting, because, by the grace of Allah, you are in the right and to leave them until they begin fighting will be another point from your side against them. If, by the will of Allah, the enemy is defeated, then do not kill the runner away, do not strike a helpless person, do not finish off the wounded, and do not inflict pain on women even though they may attack your honor with filthy words and abuse your officers, because they are weak in character, mind, and intelligence. We have been ordered to desist from them although they may be unbelievers. Even in the pre-Islamic era, if a man struck a woman with a stone or a stick, he was rebuked along with his posteriors after him.45 The Imam (‘a) then had a look at the Muslim armies with deep sadness, because they had been prepared to face one another. He thus uttered these supplicatory words, praying to Almighty Allah to keep his army away from arrogance and sedition. He thus said, O Allah, O Lord of this canopy that is raised high, bordered, and safeguarded; which You have decided to be the cause of the darkness of night and the light of the day, and You have made it the source of the course of the sun and the moon and the mansions of the planets and starts, and You have made groups of angels, who never become bored of worshipping You, inhabit there! O Lord of the earth that You have made resting-place for people, beasts, and pests as well as what we know and what we do not know, and what we can see and what we cannot see from your great creation! O Lord of the mountains that You have made act as projections for the earth and as abode for the creatures! O Lord of the ocean that is filled with swell and is surrounding the world! O Lord of the clouds that are made subservient between the heaven and the earth! O Lord of the ships that run upon the sea with that which is of use to men; please, if You grant us victory over our enemy, then keep us away from pride and direct us towards the true guidance. If you grant them victory over us, then please endue us with martyrdom and safeguard the rest of my followers from falling into seditious matters.46 Preparing himself for the war, Imam Ali (‘a) put on the war uniform and went out to the battlefield. Abdullah ibn Badil Al-Khuza’i was the commander of the right wing and Abdullah ibn ‘Abbas the commander of the left wing of the army, which also contained such prominent persons like ‘Ammar ibn Yasir and his likes. Encountered by the armies of Syria, the army of the Imam (‘a) engaged in an intense fighting and the people of Iraq did very well, implanting horror and fear in the hearts of Mu’awiyah’s army. This conflict lasted for a long time and did not stop before the beginning of the sacred month of Muharram. Mu’awiyah ordered his commanders and horsemen to kill Imam Ali (‘a). He thus asked, ‘’Ali will advance within the horsemen. Which one of you can encounter and kill him?’ Some people advanced to do the mission, but Mu’awiyah agreed upon ‘Amr ibn Al-Husayn Al-Sakuni. As usual, Imam Ali (‘a) was in the center of the battlefield when Al-Sakuni waylaid him. When he was about to stab the Imam from the rear, Sa’id ibn Qays Al-Hamdani intercepted and could stab him to death. This incident aggrieved Mu’awiyah very much. When the sacred month of Muharram elapsed, military processions were resumed, yet interruptedly. The two armies were fed up with such episodic raids; they therefore asked for a general encounter. So, the two armies were mobilized for a general encounter and they were then engaged in such a horrible fighting that caused numerous casualties and great fatigue. The right wing of the Imam’s army was about to be stricken by the enemies, but Imam Ali (‘a) and his two sons Al-Hasan and Al-Husayn fought so bravely that they could control the situation.47 Thanks to the extraordinary efforts of Malik Al-Ashtar, the two wings of the Imam’s army held together and fought violently against the enemies. Imam Ali (‘a) then stood in the middle of the battlefield and raised his voice with a call on Mu’awiyah. However, Mu’awiyah was too coward to answer the Imam (‘a); he therefore asked his companions to see what the Imam (‘a) wanted from him. The Imam (‘a) said, ‘I want him to come out and listen to one word from me.’ Mu’awiyah had to appear before the Imam (‘a), but he and ‘Amr ibn Al-’As were in the middle of many soldiers when they faced the Imam (‘a), who thus said, Woe to you! What for are these peoples killing and striking one another? Encounter me man to man! Whoever kills the other will be considered the triumphant and will hold leadership. Mu’awiyah consulted ‘Amr, and the latter said, ‘This is fair!’ This word angered Mu’awiyah so intensely that he answered ‘Amr, saying, ‘I cannot be cheated by such words. By Allah, the son of Abu Talib has wetted the ground with the blood of whomever had the courage to encounter him.’ When Mu’awiyah accused ‘Amr of trying to send him to death, ‘Amr answered, ‘Mu’awiyah, you are too coward to compete in a contest with your rival; so, you should not doubt the advice I have given you!’ One day of the war, ‘Amr ibn Al-’As was in the battlefield when Imam Ali (‘a), having recognized him, followed him. However, ‘Amr could not have any means to save himself from the Imam’s sword except exposing his anus so that the Imam (‘a) would leave him. So, the Imam (‘a), because of his high moral standards and shyness left ‘Amr. When he went back, Mu’awiyah said to ‘Amr, ‘You should thank Allah and your anus!’48 The same act was done by Busr ibn Arta'ah when Imam Ali (‘a) was about to kill him. Thus are the politicians of the Umayyad dynasty! On another day of the Battle of Siffin, ‘Ammar ibn Yasir, who was about ninety years old, woke up earlier than usual and asked Imam Ali (‘a) to permit him to go to the battlefield. The Imam (‘a) did not permit him, but ‘Ammar insisted and showed that he was eager to meet the Holy Prophet (S); so, the Imam (‘a) had to give him permission. ‘Ammar fought so bravely that Mu’awiyah encouraged his army to encounter ‘Ammar. One of the filthy soldiers of Mu’awiyah; namely, Abu’l-’Adiyah, attacked ‘Ammar and stabbed him so heavily that he fell to the ground. Bleeding and in the last sparks of life, ‘Ammar asked for a drink; and a woman fetched him a cup of milk. When he saw the cup, ‘Ammar smiled and said, ‘The Messenger of Allah told me that the last drink I would have in this world would be a cup of milk. He (S) also told me that I would be killed by the transgressing party.’ Before long, ‘Ammar departed from this world as martyr. Imam Ali (‘a) threw himself on ‘Ammar’s dead body and kissed it very much. He then said, Indeed, on the wrong way is he who does not deem serious the killing of ‘Ammar and who does not consider this to be a painful misfortune. May Allah show ‘Ammar mercy on the day when he embraced Islam! May Allah show ‘Ammar mercy on the day when he was killed! May Allah show ‘Ammar mercy on the day when he will be resurrected and raised from the dead! Whenever four persons from the companions of Allah’s Messenger would be mentioned, ‘Ammar would certainly be the fourth; and whenever five persons from them would be mentioned, ‘Ammar would certainly be the fifth. None of the companions of Allah’s Messenger has ever doubted the fact that ‘Ammar deserved Paradise for more than one situation of him. Congratulations to ‘Ammar, for he has won Paradise.49 When the news of ‘Ammar’s martyrdom was circulated among the troops of Mu’awiyah’s army, they were shocked, because they have heard about the Holy Prophet’s prediction that ‘Ammar would be killed by the transgressing party. Besides, this Prophetic tradition was reported by ‘Amr ibn Al-’As himself. Therefore, some soldiers withdrew the battle. Mu’awiyah thus reproached ‘Amr, saying, ‘You have spoiled the people of Syria! You should not have reported whatever you had heard from Allah’s Messenger.’ ‘Amr answered, ‘Should I have known the future? I reported this tradition when I did not know that the battle of Siffin would take place.’ To amend the situation, ‘Amr, due to his cunning and deceptive means, misled the troops of Mu’awiyah, saying, ‘The killer of ‘Ammar must be the one who had allowed him to come to the battlefield!’ Unfortunately, these words deceived the feeble-minded soldiers of Mu’awiyah. When Imam Ali (‘a) learnt about this, he said, According to this criterion, it must be that Allah’s Messenger was the one who killed Hamzah and Ja’far, because he sent them to the battlefield! The most violent encounter in the Battle of Siffin is known as laylat Al-harir, because the two armies issued sounds like growling. At this night, the two armies advanced towards each other and shot each other with arrows and stones until they expired. They then stabbed each other with spears until they broke into pieces. They then faced each other with swords and iron instruments and no sound could be heard at that night except the sound of iron. The encounter lasted for about twenty-four hours during which about seventy thousand persons from the two armies were killed. As a result, the military forces of Mu’awiyah’s army were crashed so violently that Mu’awiyah himself was about to run away. Imam Ali (‘a) then delivered this speech to his army: O people, the matter with your enemy and you has attained a climax that you are witnessing. None of them remained except the last breaths. When matters become in the benefit of some people, their final results must be assessed to their starting points. These people have stood up against you although they follow no true faith; therefore, we could do to them what we did. This morning, I will attack them to execute the laws of Allah the Almighty and All-exalted on them.50 The battle was resumed and the army of Imam Ali (‘a) was very close to achieving the final victory. Having seen the imminent defeat of his army, Mu’awiyah ran towards ‘Amr ibn Al-’As and sought his advice. ‘Amr thus suggested, ‘Your men will not be able to face Ali’s men nor are you like him; he is fighting for something and you are fighting for something else. You want to survive this battle, but it does not matter for him if he loses his life for achieving his goal. The people of Iraq will fight lest you overcome them, but the people of Syria are not fearful if Ali overcomes you. However, you must face them with a matter that will create discrepancy among them whether they accept or refuse it. You must call them to the Book of Allah to be the arbitrator among them and you. If you do it, you will attain your aim. In fact, I have already had this idea in my mind, but I postponed it to the time of urgency.’ This wicked idea was received by Mu’awiyah gladly; therefore, he ordered his soldiers to raise copies of the Holy Quran before the soldiers of Imam Ali (‘a). As a result, about five hundred copies were raised on the spearheads and the people of Syria shouted in one voice, ‘O people of Iraq, this Book of Allah must be the arbitrator between you and us. Who will protect the borders of Syria if its people will be killed in this battle? And who will protect the borders of Iraq if its people will be killed? Who will then protect the Muslims against the Romans, the Turks, and the atheists?’ This trick worked with the soldiers of Imam Ali (‘a) who were turned upside and down. However, the Imam (‘a) had nothing to say but to express his deep grief. He did not stop bewaring his soldiers of the tricks of Mu’awiyah, but he received no response. About twenty thousand soldiers, headed by Mis’ar ibn Fadaki, Zayd ibn Husayn, and other famous personalities, came to the Imam (‘a) and called him by name, saying, ‘O Ali, respond to the call of these people and accept the Book of Allah as the arbitrator. If you do it not, we will surely kill you in the same was as we did with ‘Uthman ibn ‘Affan.’ Grief-stricken, the Imam (‘a) answered, Behold! I was the first to call for the Book of Allah and the first to respond to it. I am neither allowed nor permitted according to my faith to refuse any invitation to the Book of Allah. I have fought against these people only because I wanted them to submit to the judgment of the Quran, after they had disobeyed the order of Allah, broken their covenants to Him, and abandoned His Book. Now, I tell you that these people are playing trickery on you and they have nothing to do with the acting upon the Quran.51 Unfortunately, the Imam’s soldiers did not respond to him; rather, they raised their voices in is face, demanding him to respond to Mu’awiyah’s troops and threatening him with death. Al-Ash’ath ibn Qays, who had good connections with ‘Amr ibn Al-’As, was the most vehement in calling for the so-called arbitration of the Holy Quran and the response to the invitation of the people of Syria. Having had no other solution, the Imam (‘a) had to issue his orders of ceasing the military processes, although this matter caused him great sadness, because it was the first step towards the devastation of the government of the truth and the victory of the wrong powers. He also felt that the blood that was shed in this battle had gone to no avail. The mutinous people also insisted on the Imam (‘a) to order Malik Al-Ashtar to withdraw although what lied between Malik and final victory was no more than a few steps. Having been coerced to do so, Imam Ali (‘a) sent Yazid ibn Hani' to call Malik back. When Malik heard this order, he was bewildered; he thus said, ‘Please, tell him that this is not the occasion to leave the position. He may wait a bit then I will come to his audience with the tidings of victory.’ Hani' conveyed this message on return, but people shouted that Imam Ali (‘a) must have sent word to him secretly to continue. The Imam (‘a) said that he never got any occasion to send any secret message to him. Whatever he said was said before them. People said that he should be sent again and that if Malik delayed his return, the Imam (‘a) should forsake his life. The Imam (‘a) again sent Yazid ibn Hani' and sent word that rebellion had occurred, he should return in whatever condition he was. So, Hani' went and said to Malik, ‘You hold victory dear or the life of Imam Ali? If his life is dearer to you, you should now raise hands off the battle and go to him.’ Leaving the chances of victory, Malik stood up and came to these mutinous people with grief and disappointment. Chaos raged there. He rebuked them very much, but matters had taken such a turn that could not be corrected. Malik then asked Imam Ali (‘a) to wage war against these mutinous people, but the Imam (‘a) refused, because they were the overwhelming majority; and if he would do so, they would be preyed on by the troops of Mu’awiyah. The Imam (‘a) then nodded his head down with grief and did not say a single word to these people, but they started shouting, ‘’Ali has accepted the arbitration of the Quran!’ The Imam (‘a), having predicted the future, said, O people, matters between you and me went as I wished until war exhausted you. By Allah, it has overtaken some of you and left others, and has completely weakened your enemy. Until yesterday, I was giving orders, but today I am being given orders, and until yesterday I was dissuading people (from wrong acts), but today I am being dissuaded. You have now shown liking to live in this world, and it is not for me to bring you to what you dislike.52 When the surviving forces of the Syrians lost ground and were ready to run away from the field, Mu’awiyah changed the whole phase of the battle by using the Quran as his instrument of strategy, and succeeded in creating such a division among the Iraqis that, despite Imam Ali’s efforts at counseling, they were not prepared to take any forward step, but insisted on stopping the war, whereupon Imam Ali (‘a) too had to agree to arbitration. Among these people, some had actually been duped and they believed that they were being asked to abide by the Holy Quran but there were others who had become weary of the long period of war and had lost courage. Then, people seized a good opportunity to stop the war, and so they cried hoarse for its postponement. There were others who had accompanied Imam Ali (‘a) because of his temporal authority but did not support him by heart, nor did they aim at victory for him. There were some people who had expectations with Mu’awiyah, and had started attaching hopes to him for this, while there were some who were, from the very beginning, in league with him. In these circumstances and with this type of the army, it was really due to Imam Ali’s political ability and competence of military control and administration that he carried the war up to this stage, and if Mu’awiyah had not adopted this trick, there could have been no doubt in Imam Ali’s victory because the military power of the Syrian forces had been exhausted and defeat was hovering over its head. In this connection, Ibn Abi’l-Hadid writes, ‘Malik Al-Ashtar had reached Mu’awiyah and grabbed him by the neck. The entire might of the Syrians had been smashed. Only so much movement was discernible in them as remains in the tail of a lizard which is killed, but the tail continues hopping right and left.’53 This situation delighted Mu’awiyah incredibly. He wrote a letter to Imam Ali (‘a), which was full of lies. He said that he only intended to enjoin the right and forbid the wrong and he only invited for the arbitration of the Holy Quran because he wanted to live under its shade! Imam Ali (‘a), however, sent a letter to ‘Amr ibn Al-’As, inviting him to the true guidance. He thus wrote the following: So now, this world turns away from the next one. He who is devoted to it achieves nothing from it except that it increases his greed and coveting for it. He who is devoted to it is not satisfied with what he obtains from it because of what he has not obtained. Eventually, there is separation from what has been amassed, and a breaking of what has been strengthened. If you take a lesson from the past, you can be safe in the future; and that is an end to the matter. So, Abu-’Abdullah, do not shatter your reward and do not keep pace with Mu’awiyah in his wrong situation.54 However, ‘Amr did not respond to the Imam (‘a); rather, he insisted on transgression, hoping that he would gain worldly benefits from Mu’awiyah. The catastrophic matter was the choosing of Abu-Musa Al-Ash’ari, the notorious hypocrite, to be the Imam’s representative in the farce of arbitration. Al-Ash’ath ibn Qays plotted a conspiracy with other officers in the Imam’s army to select Abu-Musa. Like a dog, Al-Ash’ath came running towards Imam Ali (‘a) and said to him, ‘All people have now consented to the arbitration and they are pleased to respond to the Syrians about the judgment of the Quran. If you please, you may come to Mu’awiyah and discuss the question.’ The Imam (‘a) could not find a way to reject this request; rather, he said to Al- Ash’ath, ‘If you wish, you may go to Mu’awiyah.’ This agent ran towards Mu’awiyah and exchanged talks with him, although the two had already plotted this scheme. Al-Ash’ath asked, ‘Mu’awiyah, for what reason have you raised the Quranic copies?’ Mu’awiyah answered, ‘The reason is that you and we should follow what Allah ordered in his Book. So, send a man whom you accept on your part and we sill send one whom we accept on our part and we will then put them under the obligation of acting upon what is in the Book of Allah. Then, we must agree to what the two agree upon.’ Al-Ash’ath shouted, ‘This is the truth.’ He then went back to Imam Ali (‘a) and declared openly what Mu’awiyah had said to him. The soldiers of Imam Ali (‘a) went on saying, ‘We accept! We consent to this!’ Thus, Imam Ali (‘a) had no role at all in the issue. Then, the Syrians shouted, ‘We consent to and choose ‘Amr ibn Al-’As.’ The Iraqis surrounded the Imam (‘a) and shouted, ‘We consent to and choose Abu-Musa Al-Ash’ari.’ The Imam (‘a) reproached them for this ill choice. He said, Mu’awiyah would never choose for this matter any one whom he trusts and depends on his opinion than ‘Amr ibn Al-’As. Verily, a man from Quraysh cannot be faced except by another man from Quraysh. Therefore, you should choose Abdullah ibn ‘Abbas to face ‘Amr, because ‘Amr would not fasten any tie but that Abdullah would be able to untie it and ‘Amr would not be able to determine any issue but that Abdullah would revoke it. Answering back, Al-Ash’ath shouted, ‘No! Two men from (the descendants of) Musar will never judge our issues before the coming of the Hour! You must entrust this issue with a man from Yemen, because they have chosen one from Musar.’ The Imam (‘a) said, I only fear lest that man would deceive your man of Yemen, because ‘Amr never considers Allah at the least when a matter is related to his personal whims. Nevertheless, these people refrained relentlessly from choosing Abdullah ibn ‘Abbas as their representative; rather, they insisted on Abu-Musa Al-Ash’ari. Abu’l-Aswad Al-Du'ali, warning against choosing Abu-Musa, said to Imam Ali (‘a), ‘O Amir Al-Mu'minin, do not consent to Abu-Musa! When I examined and kneaded this man, I found his bottom very nigh in addition to his being from Yemen.’55 After the selection of the two referees, when Abdullah ibn Rafi’ started writing down the terms of reference, he wrote the following words as a preamble to the document. ‘Amir Al-Mu’minin Ali and Mu’awiyah ibn Abi-Sufyan has decided that’’ ‘Amr ibn Al-’As objected to the word ‘Amir Al- Mu’minin’ and said that he might be the Emir of others but not theirs! He therefore asked the word to be deleted from the document. Only his name and the father’s name are entered. Al-Ahnaf ibn Qays told the Imam (‘a) that he should not agree to the deletion of the word Amir Al-Mu’minin even if it caused renewal of the conflict. He added that if this word were deleted today, the leadership would not ever come back to him. Al-Ash’ath ibn Qays and his supporters insisted that the word be deleted. In utter unconcern, the Imam (‘a) was sitting quietly in his place and seeing the reflection of the Treaty of Al- Hudaybiyah in the events of the day. After a few moments of quiet, he said, ‘When I drafted the agreement of the Treaty of Al-Hudaybiyah, I wrote the word ‘Rasulullah (Allah’s Messenger)’ in the preamble when the representative of the Quraysh, Suhayl, said that they did not recognize him as Allah’s Messenger and wanted me to delete the word and to enter ‘Muhammad ibn Abdullah’ instead. I was hesitant to score away the word ‘Rasulullah,’ But the Prophet (S) said: Write what he wants. One day, you too will face a similar situation and you will be helpless.56 At this, ‘Amr said angrily that he considered them infidel like those people. The Imam (‘a) replied: O son of Al-Nabighah! At which time were you not the friend of the transgressors and the enemy of the Muslims? You are like the mother who bore you!57 Ibn Al-’As said, ‘After today, we shall never sit together nor see each other’s face.’ The Imam (‘a) replied, I too wish so! May Allah keep my company free of persons like you! When the word ‘Amir Al-Mu’minin’ was struck off and the writing of the document was re-commenced, the Imam (‘a) was asked if he considered Mu’awiyah and the people of Syria Muslims ? He said: I do not accept Mu’awiyah and his companions as Muslims and believers. But Mu’awiyah is free to write what he wants about himself and his men, admit whatever he wishes to admit, and suggest whatever name he wants to suggest.58 At last, the agreement was drafted that had the following terms: (1) It will be binding on the referees on both sides that their decision will be based on the Quran. If they are unable to arrive at a decision through the Book, they will make access to the Traditions of the Prophet (S) that are acceptable to both. (2) The decision made by the referees shall be binding on both the parties, provided the decision is based on the Quran and the Prophetic traditions. (3) The referees are to give their verdict within the current month of Ramadan. If they felt the need to extend the duration, they could mutually decide to do that. (4) If the referees require evidences for arriving at a decision, they will be arranged. (5) There will be no hostility until the referees come to a final conclusion about the dispute. Both the parties will ensure safety of the lives and properties of the referees. There will be no restriction on the movement of the parties to the dispute. (6) If, before the verdict, any of the two referees die, his party can nominate another referee in his place. (7) The verdict will be announced at a place that lies between Iraq and Syria. Most of the terms of this agreement concern the administrative requirements, and the basic requirement was that the verdict of the referees had to be in accordance to the Quran and the Prophetic traditions and that they had no right to arrive at any decision on their personal intuition and thinking. If they did not follow this condition, their arbitration will be void. The earlier events are a proof that making claim for reTalibation and raising the Quran was with the purpose of misleading the people and the demand for arbitration too was an evil subterfuge of the Syrians. The referees neither referred to the Quran nor did they talk about the relevant traditions of the Prophet (S). One referee tried to defeat the other with futile arguments. Overburdened by grief and distress, Imam Ali (‘a) returned to Al-Kufah after he had been sure that Mu’awiyah could control the situation, which meant that the Imam’s government declined and his army mutinied against him due to the sedition aroused by Mu’awiyah and ‘Amr. On his way back to Al- Kufah, some people faced the Imam (‘a) with such cruel words like: ‘You have killed the Muslims for no reason, flattered in the command of Allah, sought after sovereignty, and made ordinary men judge in the religion of Allah. There is no verdict but Allah’s.’ Answering them, the Imam (‘a) said, The verdict of Allah is in your necks (i.e. you are the ones whom should be answerable for the application of Allah’s verdict). What detains the most wretched person from coming and dyeing my beard with the blood of my head? 59 The term on which the two arbitrators had agreed terminated. During this term, Mu’awiyah could band together his forces. He thus sent a messenger to Imam Ali (‘a), asking for fulfillment of the agreement on arbitration. Mu’awiyah hurried to demand with the arbitration, because he knew for sure that Imam Ali’s army was exposed to disunity and debility and the process of arbitration would come with his benefit, since Al-Ash’ari, whom the Iraqis had selected to represent them in this arbitration, was one of the bitterest enemies of Imam Ali (‘a) and he would not do anything for the good of the Imam (‘a). The Iraqis thus sent Al-Ash’ari along with four hundred persons among whom was Abdullah ibn ‘Abbas while the Syrians sent ‘Amr ibn Al-’As the cunning along with four hundred persons. They met in an area between Iraq and Syria and ‘Amr ordered that Al-Ash’ari would be given a special place and be served with the best kinds of food and drink. Thus, ‘Amr could bribe Al- Ash’ari. For three days, ‘Amr did not discuss the matter with Al-Ash’ari until he became sure that Al-Ash’ari had become just like a toy in his hand. In his discourse with him, ‘Amr used nice and honoring words. He once said to him, ‘O Abu-Musa, you are the chief of Muhammad’s companions, the most virtuous among them, and the foremost in honor. You have seen how this community fell into a horrible seditious matter that might put an end to these people. Can you be the blessing of this community and then Allah will spare the lives through you? About the sparing of one life, Allah says, ‘And whoever keeps it (i.e. a soul) alive, it is as though he kept alive all men.’ The matter must be greater for one who keeps alive the souls of all these people.’ Deceived by this false honoring, Al-Ash’ari went on discussing the means of reforming the matter and sparing the lives of the community. ‘Amr said, ‘You may depose Ali ibn Abi Talib, and I will depose Mu’awiyah ibn Abi-Sufyan. The next step will be that we choose another person who has not been engaged in this sedition.’ Al-Ash’ari asked, ‘Whom do you mean?’ ‘Amr answered, ‘I mean Abdullah ibn ‘Umar!’ ‘Amr had already known that Al-Ash’ari did not like Imam Ali (‘a) while he liked Abdullah ibn ‘Umar very much. This suggestion delighted Al-Ash’ari who asked for covenants and oaths from ‘Amr. Of course, ‘Amr was too dissolute to refrain from making any covenant and taking any oath that would please Al-Ash’ari. He thus said to him, ‘O Abu-Musa, ‘Surely, by Allah’s remembrance are the hearts set at rest.’(13:28) You may take any covenant you want from me.’ Thus, Al-Ash’ari consented to ‘Amr and asked for a date at which they both would declare what they had just agreed upon. When the time of declaring their agreement came, ‘Amr and Al-Ash’ari advanced towards the stage to speak. ‘Amr thus asked Al-Ash’ari to go first and declare his decision, and Al-Ash’ari was deceived by the nice language of ‘Amr and decided to do so.60 Abdullah ibn ‘Abbas had already said to Abu-Musa, ‘I feel that ‘Amr will not abide by the decision you have mutually arrived at. He is a very cunning person and he will certainly trick you. Therefore, you must ask him to talk first and then you must make your announcement. If you do not take this caution, remember, he will trick you in such a manner that you will not be in a position to show your face to anyone.’ Unfortunately, Al-Ash’ari did not care for these words; so, he ran towards the stage to make his announcement. He thus said, ‘In view of the welfare of the Muslim community, we have decided, after much deliberation, that we both shall depose Ali and Mu’awiyah and hand over the matter of the selection of the caliph to the shura system. Therefore, I now remove Ali in the same way as I am removing this turban from my head. We also agreed that we would choose for the leadership a man who had accompanied Allah’s Messenger and whose father, too, had accompanied him; namely, Abdullah ibn ‘Umar!’61 When Al-Ash’ari came down, ‘Amr ibn Al-’As hurried to the stage and said, ‘O people, Abu-Musa Al-Ash’ari has just removed Ali and taken him out of the affair of caliphate. He better knows him than I am. As for me, I too remove Ali and fix Mu’awiyah in this position; therefore, I now declare Mu’awiyah as my and your leader!’ Astounded by this trickery, Abu-Musa ran towards ‘Amr and said, ‘What is the matter with you? Curse of Allah be upon you! You are only a dog; if you attack it, it lolls out its tongue; and if you leave it alone, it lolls out its tongue.’ Reproaching him, ‘Amr said, ‘You are like a donkey bearing books!’ Thus, Abu-Musa the foolish and lowly had control over the destiny of Muslims and removed from leadership the greatest person, Imam Ali ibn Abi Talib (‘a) who was really the father of social justice and whose geniuses and talents covered all spaces of life. Instead, he nominated Abdullah ibn ‘Umar whose father had described him as too imprudent to know how to divorce his wife! However, ‘Amr ibn Al-’As was true when he likened Abu-Musa to a donkey and Abu-Musa was true when he likened ‘Amr to a dog! This farce of arbitration led the Muslim community to unsolvable difficulties and problems. The soldiers of Imam Ali (‘a), after this incident, entered into a long series of seditions although it was they who had forced the Imam (‘a) to accept this farce. When he realized that ‘Amr had deceived him, Al-Ash’ari flew to Makkah accompanied by disgrace and shame for his offspring 62 and himself as well as those who had nominated him for the farce of arbitration. As for ‘Amr ibn Al-’As, he used to take pride in his ignominious act, thinking that he had achieved a great victory. He sent a letter to Mu’awiyah congratulating him for this result and belittling Abu-Musa and his lack of sagacity. The people of Syria also rejoiced at this result and gloated over the people of Iraq. When this news reached Imam Ali (‘a), waves of sorrow and pain surrounded him. He thus gathered people and delivered this sermon: All praise is due to Allah even though time has brought (for us) crushing calamity and great occurrence. I stand witness that there is no god but Allah the One; there is no partner for Him nor is there with Him any god other than Himself, and that Muhammad is His slave and His Prophet (May Allah’s blessing and greeting be upon him and his progeny). So now, certainly the disobedience of sympathetic counselor who has knowledge as well as experience brings about disappointment and result in repentance. I had given you my orders about this arbitration and put before you my hidden view, if Qasir’s 63 orders were fulfilled but you rejected it (i.e. my orders) like rough opponents and disobedient insurgents until the counselor himself fell in doubt about his counsel and the flint (of his wit) ceased to give flame. Consequently, your and mine position became as the poet of (the tribe of) Hawazin says: ‘I gave you my orders at Mun’araj Al-Liwa, but you did not see the good of my counsel until the noon of next day when it was too late.64 Behold! The two men you had nominated as arbitrators threw the judgment of the Book behind their backs and depended upon their own opinions. They thus killed what the Quran had revived and then disagreed with one another with regard to their judgment. Both of them could neither lead to orthodoxy nor guide to the truth. So, Allah, His Messenger, and the Righteous Believer repudiated them. Now, you must ready yourselves for warfare and for marching. On Monday, you may be present in the camp, by the will of Allah.65 After this incident, ordeals attacked Imam Ali (‘a) successively; his government started falling down and his army refused to obey him anymore. Mu’awiyah bribed the officers of the Imam’s army and could make them take sides by him against the Imam (‘a). Besides, the faction of Khawarij issued forth, calling people to insurgence and mutiny. When the soldiers of Mu’awiyah raised copies of the Holy Quran on spearheads and demanded deceptively that the judgment of the Quran should be the arbitrator between the two parties, Imam Ali (‘a) warned his soldiers against this trick and ordered them to keep on fighting. However, his soldiers surrounded him with unsheathed swords and forced him to accept the so- called arbitration. He reproached them and proved that the matter was no more than a trick, but they shun his proofs and insisted on the arbitration. The Imam (‘a) thus had to comply with their desire, but he suggested that they should nominate Abdullah ibn ‘Abbas to be their representative in this arbitration. However, they refused and insisted on nominating the feeble- minded Abu-Musa Al-Ash’ari. Once again, the Imam (‘a) warned them against the consequences of this ill nomination, but they insistently refused. When the arbitration ended with the defeat of Abu-Musa, the soldiers of the Imam (‘a) felt sorry at a time when regret was a waste of time! They then mutinied against Imam Ali (‘a) and held him responsible for what had happened, raising the false slogan of ‘there is no verdict but Allah’s.’ Commenting on this slogan, the Imam (‘a) said, It is a true word, but its purport is false. When Imam Ali (‘a) prepared his forces to wage a war against the army of Mu’awiyah, he received the news of the mutiny of a faction (i.e. Khawarij) who had declared armed insurgence and resided in Al-Nahrawan. They made mischief in the lands, shed the blood of Muslims, and declared the atheism of every one who would not follow their faith. For instance, Abdullah the son of the Prophet’s companion Al-Khabbab ibn Al-Aratt came across the Khawarij, carrying a copy of the Quran tied to his neck and accompanying his wife. They asked who he was. He said that he was the son of the Companion Al- Khabbab. They said that if he was frightened coming across them, he should chase away the fear. They also said that they wanted to hear the traditions narrated by his father. Abdullah said that his father had heard the Holy Prophet (S) saying, ‘A mischief will rise when the hearts of men will be dead and the bodies inanimate; men will be faithful believers the evening and by the morning they will be disbelievers. Again by the evening, they will become believers.’ 66 They then asked him, ‘Now, tell us what you say about Ali when he accepted the idea of the arbitration.’ He replied, ‘He understands Allah more than you do and he is very careful in the matters of the religion and has a perfect vision.’ They said, ‘You are a worshipper of personalities, and instead of deeds, you look for names. By Allah, we shall punish you for following the demands of your psyche! We shall kill you in such a manner that none else was ever killed that way.’ Saying this, they tied him up with ropes. Then, they took him and his pregnant wife near a date-palm tree. One date fell down from that tree, which one of them picked and put in his mouth. The others shouted, ‘This is illegal!’ The person immediately threw away the date. Then, a pig passed that way and one of them killed it. The others said that what he had just done was mischief and until they convinced the owner of the pig, they were restless. When Abdullah saw this attitude of the Khawarij, he said, ‘When you exercise such great care in small matters, I have no fear of harm from you, because I am a Muslim and I have not committed any crime to deserve to be killed!’ However, they did not pay any heed to his words and, throwing him to the ground, killed him heartlessly. They slit the stomach of his pregnant wife and killed her too. They also killed three women of Banu’l-Ta’i and Ummu-Sinan Al- Saydawiyyah. After these heartless murders, they wanted to buy the fruits of a date-palm tree from a Christian. He said that he did not need any payment and they could take the fruits if they wanted. They said that they would not take a Dhimmi’s material without paying for it. The Christian said that he was surprised that they had killed a good person like Abdullah ibn Khabbab for no sin of his and do not want at the same time to even take the fruits of a tree without paying for it! Imam Ali’s companions and soldiers did not want to march for fighting Mu’awiyah’s army and leave the Khawarij behind them, because they feared lest these people would violate the properties and chastity of Muslims. The Imam (‘a) complied with them and led the army towards Al-Nahrawan.67 He then sent a messenger to them, asking them to give up the persons who had murdered Abdullah ibn Khabbab in order that he would execute them to the religious punishment. However, the Khawarij answered, ‘Nothing between Ali and us but swords, unless he admits that he committed disbelief and declares repentance as same as we did!’ Replying to them, the Imam (‘a) said, Storm may overtake you while there may be none to prick you for reforms. Shall I be witness to my becoming heretic after acceptance of the faith and fighting in the company of the Prophet? In that case, I shall be misguided and I shall not be on the right path. So, you should return to your evil places and get back on the traces of your heels. Beware! Certainly, you will meet, after me, overwhelming disgrace and sharp sword and tradition that will be adopted by the oppressors as a norm towards you.68 When the army moved towards Al-Nahrawan, they learned that the Khawarij had crossed the canal of Tabristan somewhere between Halwan and Baghdad. When Imam Ali (‘a) knew about this, he said, ‘It cannot be! They are still on this side of the river and they will be killed on the land of Rumaylah.’ At that moment, a trooper of the advance guard came running and said, ‘I have seen with my own eyes those men crossing the bridge.’ The Imam (‘a) asked for his confirmation thrice; and every time, he swore by God that he had seen the Khawarij crossing the bridge to the other side. The Imam (‘a) then said: By Allah, they have not crossed the bridge! Their place of death is this side of the bridge! By Allah, less than ten of your men will be killed and less than ten of them (the Khawarij) will survive.69 On the one hand, there were messages that the Khawarij had crossed over to the other side and here Imam Ali (‘a) insisted that they would meet their end only this side of the canal. With these exchanges, some people started doubting the Imam’s words. One youth knitted his brows and said, ‘If the Khawarij have already crossed the canal, I shall aim my spear at the chest of the Imam! Now he has started predicting about the things to come!’ When Imam Ali (‘a) saw this state of mind of the people, he spurred his horse and galloped fast towards the canal. When he reached near the bank, he found the Khawarij camping this side of the canal. In that time, the army too reached the spot. When they found the Khawarij on their side of the bank, they raised their voices with the statement of allahu-akbar (Allah is the Most Great)! The Imam (‘a) addressed his army, saying, By Allah, I have neither told a lie nor was a wrong message at all given to me! 70 The Imam (‘a) established his camp at a distance of three miles away from the camp of the Khawarij. When the Khawarij saw the Imam’s army, they started raising slogans of ‘there is no verdict but Allah’s.’ They sent a word to the Imam (‘a) that he still had the time to repent, and then they would enter into allegiance to him. As a second alternative, he should demit his office as caliph to enable them to select a leader of their choice. The Imam (‘a) sent them word to hand over the killers of his men; otherwise, his army would claim for reTalibation for their blood. He also informed them that if they agreed to this offer, they would be left alone until the army returned from Syria. In that time, they could think over and decide to seek forgiveness for their past misbehavior. The Khawarij replied, ‘We have all killed your men. We all consider it legitimate to shed their and your blood!’ Instead of being angry over this reply, Imam Ali (‘a) tried to make them see reason by sending Qays ibn Sa’d Al-Ansari to ask them to shun mischief. He reached the camp of the Khawarij and said to them, ‘O people, you are committing a grave sin. Unnecessarily, you are calling us infidels. Beware of thoughtless killing of men! Join with us in this jihad against the enemy.’ At this, Abdullah ibn Shajarah Al-Salami said, ‘Now, the curtains have been raised from our eyes! The darkness of vice has vanished! The radiance of the truth is everywhere. We cannot cooperate with you now at any cost!’ Qays said, ‘I plead with you in the name of Allah! Do not indulge in mischief and do not cause your own deaths!’ After him, Abu-Ayyub Al-Ansari went to their camp and tried to stop them from doing mischief. He said, ‘We do not understand what the cause of your enmity for us is. Why are you determined on fighting and battling? If you are so fond of fighting, come and we shall together fight against our common enemy!’ The Khawarij replied, ‘If we side with you, you may once again impose on us the arbitration.’ Abu-Ayyub said, ‘You must first look to the present and then you can bother about the future!’ However, the Khawarij remained adamant. All efforts at putting sense in them went futile. In the end, Imam Ali (‘a) himself went to their camp and said, O people, for lack of vision and understanding, you have veered away from us. Because of your false emotions, you have gone astray from the Right Path. I want to warn you! You will be killed in this valley and its turnings! The Muslim community will demean you and there will be comments against you from all sides. Your stand was certainly wrong and your ire is unreasonable. You might remember that I had warned you against accepting the arbitration and said that it was a trick, but you did not listen to my repeated appeals and, instead, you stopped fighting. If I accepted the arbitration, it was under pressure from your people. Even then, I did not accept it with closed eyes. I had taken a commitment from the referees that their verdict should be only in the light of the Holy Quran and the Prophet’s traditions. However, they ruled against the Holy Book and the Prophet’s traditions. Therefore, we have rejected their verdict. The Khawarij answered, ‘No doubt! We did accept the arbitration and because of that act, we rendered ourselves infidel. Yet, we have repented. You too must express penitence for accepting the arbitration and thereby becoming an infidel. Then, we shall enter under our allegiance to you and fight against the enemy.’ After embracing the faith with the Holy Prophet (S), migrating from Makkah with him, taking part with him in the campaigns that he fought, do you now want me to accept that I committed an act of infidelity? How is it possible? At this juncture, Khuraj raised noises and said, ‘If you do not confess that you committed an act of infidelity, we do not want to talk any more with you!’ By making senseless noises, matters cannot be resolved! Let us decide in this manner. You send a representative to me to discuss the matter. If he convinces me, I shall agree that the act of accepting the arbitration was infidelity and I express repentance for that. Otherwise, if I convince him, then you must shun the adamant attitude. In the beginning, the Khawarij were reluctant, but in the end, they relented. They appointed Abdullah ibn Al-Kawwa' as their mouthpiece. The Imam (‘a) asked Ibn Al-Kawwa, On what matter are you upset that earlier you had very willingly owed your allegiance to me? You also fought with my opponents in the Battle of the Camel. He answered, ‘At that point, the need for the arbitration had not arisen.’ O Ibn Al-Kawwa! Is my decision more correct or that of the Prophet (S)? Ibn Al-Kawwa said, ‘Certainly, the Prophet’s decision is more correct!’ Then, the Imam (‘a) asked, You must have heard these words of Allah: ‘But whoever disputes with you in this matter after what has come to you of knowledge, then say: Come let us call our sons and your sons and our women and your women and our near people and your near people, then let us be earnest in prayer, and pray for the curse of Allah on the liars. (3:61)’ Did Allah ask the Prophet (S) to participate in the mutual imprecation of God’s curse on the lying party (i.e. Mubahalah) because he had any doubt about the Prophet (S) being truthful and those Christians the liars and He wanted to remove the doubt? Ibn Al-Kawwa said, ‘Neither Allah nor His Prophet had any doubt about it. It was just a protest against the Christians.’ Then, the arbitration too was a protest. Ibn Al-Kawwa said, ‘Your agreeing to the appointment of the referees was a proof that you had a doubt whether you are on the right or not, although the war was fought on the basis that you were on the right and the Syrians were wrong. Therefore, you had said in clear terms to Mu’awiyah, ‘If the Book of Allah decides in our favor, you follow us, and if it decides in your favor, we shall follow you.’ What other meaning could be attached to this that you yourself were doubtful whether you were right or not. When you yourself had a doubt, then we too are justified to doubt about you.’ This agreement was conditional. When an agreement is conditional, there is no question of our doubting the stand we had taken. Even the Prophet (S) had made such conditional agreements. Therefore, the Holy Quran says, ‘Say: Then bring some other book from Allah which is a better guide than both of them that I may follow it, if you are truthful. (28:49)’ Ibn Al-Kawwa said, ‘This is true. But by agreeing to the appointment of the referees, you had entrusted Allah’s work to others and thus you committed infidelity.’ I had only appointed Abu-Musa as the referee. Ibn Al-Kawwa said, ‘Abu-Musa is an infidel!’ The Imam (‘a) asked, Since when was he an infidel? When he was appointed a referee for the arbitration or when he gave his verdict? Ibn Al-Kawwa said, ‘It was so since he gave the verdict!’ Then, you have accepted that when he was appointed as a referee, he was a Muslim and you had expected that he would give the verdict according of the commands revealed by Allah. Therefore, it was right to appoint him as a referee. Ibn Al-Kawwa said, ‘But when he gave the verdict, he did become an infidel!’ If the Prophet (S) sent a Muslim to some infidels to invite them to the religion and, instead of preaching Islam, he started preaching them wrong things, will the Prophet (S) be responsible for the person’s act? Ibn Al-Kawwa said, ‘No!’ The Imam (‘a) added, Then, if Abu-Musa turned an infidel, why do you blame me? What justification do you have to keep the swords over your shoulders and keep killing the Muslims? As far as the second referee ‘Amr ibn Al-’As is concerned, he was appointed by Mu’awiyah. How could I name him arbitrator? If ‘Amr ibn Al-’As had his way, he would even kill me. Ibn Al-Kawwa asked, ‘Then, how did you agree to one Muslim and the other infidel referee in the arbitration?’ Allah has said the following permitting appointment of an arbitrator in the matters of dispute between a husband and a wife: ‘And if you fear a breach between the two, then appoint judge from his people and a judge from her people. (4:35)’ If a Muslim man marries a Jewish or Christian woman and differences arise between them, it is then natural that the man will have a Muslim referee from his family and the woman a non-Muslim referee from her family! Then, from the Holy Quran, is it not proved that while one referee is a Muslim, the other can be a non-Muslim? When the Khawarij saw that Ibn Al-Kawwa' was not able to give satisfactory arguments, they sent word to him to terminate the discussion and go back. He therefore left the talks halfway and went back to his people. Although Imam Ali (‘a) proved his point, there was no change in the adamant attitude of the Khawarij. Thus, there was no other alternative than fighting with them. The Imam (‘a) arranged his troops in proper formations and the right flank was in the command of Hujr ibn ‘Adi and the left under Shabath ibn Rab’i. The cavalry was under Abu-Ayyub Al-Ansari and the footmen under Abu-Qutadah Al- Ansari. The men from Al-Madinah, who were seven or eight hundred in number, were put under Qays ibn Sa’d Al-Ansari. Imam Ali (‘a) himself took position at the heart of the formation. The Khawarij too organized their rows. When rows were arranging opposite rows, the Imam (‘a) gave a white banner to Abu-Ayyub Al-Ansari and sent him with a contingent of two thousand men to go towards the Khawarij. He went ahead with his men and announced, ‘O people, the Leader of the Believers says that those of you who decide to come under this banner or return to Al-Kufah or Al-Mada’in or leave company of that group, there is amnesty for them!’ The effect this announcement had was that Farwah ibn Nawfal Al-Ashja’i, who was among the elite of the Khawarij, started telling his tribesmen, ‘By Allah, I do not know with what justification we have decided to confront Ali ibn Abi Talib? Neither we have any proof to justify this conflict nor is there any reasonable justification for fighting. We shall stay away from these people and can later on decide on our course of action!’ Saying this, he moved away from the Khawarij with his five hundred tribesmen and went to Bandnajin. Another group went towards Al-Kufah. One hundred persons came under the flag of Abu-Ayyub joining the Imam’s army. This was a proof of the decent stand of the Imam (‘a) and his spirit of forbearance and peace. The Imam (‘a) talked to the rest of the Khawarij about the terrifying effects of war, but they were adamant on their stand. Now, only the Khawarij had to make their initial strike for the battle to commence, because the Imam (‘a) had instructed that his men should not be the first to start fighting. At last, one of the Khawarij came out and killed three men from the Imam’s army. The Imam (‘a) moved forward and attacked him. When the sword hit him, the man said, ‘How sweet going to the Heaven is!’ When Abdullah ibn Wahab heard this, he said, ‘By Allah, I do not know if you are going to Heaven or Hell!’ When another man from the Khawarij heard this, he said, ‘I have come here at the temptation of Abdullah ibn Wahab and even he does not know whether our stand is right or not and is not sure whether by fighting for this cause we go to Heaven or Hell?’ Then, along with the men from his tribe of Banu-Sa’d, he moved away from the ranks of the Khawarij. Instead of combating man-to-man, the Khawarij very soon started general fighting. Therefore, they broke the sheaths of their swords, put arrows in their bows, put up the spears, and, shouting the slogan: ‘there is no verdict but Allah’s,’ started a concerted attack. It was such a severe attack that the feet of the cavalry were uprooted. They moved back a little and consolidated their positions once again. Imam Ali (‘a) said to his men, O youths, move forward and fight like tigers! Saying this, he (‘a) too stood up. Now, when the army attacked as a single unit under his command, there was blood everywhere. With this concerted attack, the rows of the enemy troops were uprooted. The Imam’s sword was twisted with the intensity of use. He had to straighten it putting on his knee. His army was moving forward and killing the enemy troops until they surrounded the Khawarij from all sides. Now, there was no way of escape for them. Four hundred persons of the Khawarij were severely wounded and not fit for fighting. Nine persons escaped and saved their lives. The rest of the Khawarij were killed. When the battle was over, a search was made for a person; namely, Dhul- Thadiyah, 71 from the ranks of the Khawarij because Imam Ali (‘a) used to say before their rebellion, One group will veer away from the religion in a manner the arrow goes piercing through the game. Their sign is that among them there will be a person with a maimed hand.72 Some persons searched for him among the dead, but were unable to find his body. They returned to the Imam (‘a) and said, ‘We have searched all over and have failed to find the body of the person.’ By Allah, his body is there among the dead! Saying this, he took Sulayman ibn Thumamah Al-Hanafi and Rayyan ibn Sabrah to search for the dead body. When they reached the bank of the canal, about fifty bodies were lying in a ditch. When they removed some of the bodies, they found the body of Dhul-Thadiyah. Allah is the Most Great! I neither told a lie nor was false information given to me. If I had not had the doubt that you would turn your faces from action, I would have informed you about those who fought invisibly with the Khawarij and the right on which we are, they recognize it. I would have also informed you of the blessings that Allah has promised through the Prophet, peace of Allah be upon him and his Household.73 While returning through the piles of the dead Khawarij, the Imam (‘a) said, Pity on you! One who beguiled you has harmed you! People asked, ‘O Amir Al-Mu’minin! Who has beguiled them?’ Satan and their baser instincts did! These two had spread the web of guile for them and given them false hopes. It was etched on their minds that they would succeed in their nefarious designs. After success in this battle, the Imam (‘a) reminded his men of the astrologer’s forecast that the moment of their departure for the campaign was inauspicious. The Imam (‘a) thus said, If we had started at the moment the astrologer had recommended, the ignorant people would say that the victory had come because of the astrologer’s advice!74 The attitude of the Khawarij was very surprising. In the battle of Siffin, they put down their swords almost at the moment of victory and paved the way for the swords to kill them ultimately. They themselves insisted on the arbitration and they turned against it. They shattered the unity of people through mischief. Imam Ali (‘a), who was a paragon of virtue, closeness with him was termed infidelity by the Khawarij. They wanted him to break the agreement of the arbitration and fight with Mu’awiyah. If that had been their intent, they should have fought in the Battle of Siffin instead of supporting the idea of the arbitration initially and then turning against it immediately once an agreement was reached. The intention of the Khawarij was only to oppose Imam Ali (‘a). They created mischief and rebellion against him and made all sorts of false accusations. The Imam (‘a) tried his best to reform them. He neither caused them any hardships nor did he stop the stipends to their families. However, when they went out of control totally and started harming and killing innocent persons, action against them became necessarily inevitable. Even in the battleground, the Imam (‘a) made a final effort to bring them back to the right path, but to no avail. During this battle, and even earlier, the Imam (‘a) had made several predictions that proved true. All these were matters about which he had received information from the Holy Prophet (S). 75 It was as if his eyes were piercing through the future and seeing the events that were to take place. Here some of his predictions are mentioned: (1) The Imam (‘a) told Zara’ah ibn Buruj Al-Ta’i that he would be killed and told Rabi’ah ibn Shaddad Al-Qasimi that his cadaver would be trampled under the hoofs of horses. Therefore, both these persons were killed during the battle and Rabi’ah’s cadaver was trampled under the hoofs of horses. Kubaysah says that when he saw that Rabi’ah’s face and head were trampled under the hoofs of horses, he remembered Imam Ali’s word, saying, ‘What to say of Abu’l-Hasan’s virtues that whenever he said any thing, it would come true!’ (2) About the Khawarij, the Imam (‘a) said that they would die on a certain side of the canal and would not cross it to the other side. Therefore, they met their end on the side of the canal that is called Rumaylah. (3) The Imam (‘a) informed that no more than ten persons from his army would be killed in the battle and not even ten would survive death from the army of the Khawarij. Therefore, eight persons died from his army and nine persons from the Khawarij escaped alive. (4) The Imam (‘a) said about Dhul-Thadiyah that he would certainly be killed and his body was found lying in a heap of the dead enemies. (5) The Imam (‘a) had said that the Khawarij were not totally finished and that they would raise their heads again. Therefore, after the Battle of Al-Nahrawan, they continued their minor skirmishes. They again rose during the Umayyad and ‘Abbasid regimes and Al-Muhallab ibn Safrah kept fighting with them for twelve years and creating rifts amongst their rank and file rendered them very weak. They scattered and went towards Oman and parts of Africa. They are still there in Muscat and Zanzibar. (6) The Imam (‘a) predicted that they would keep raising their heads like brigands and dacoits. Ibn Abi’l-Hadid writes: ‘This prediction of Imam Ali (‘a) was proved true that the Khawarij would end up as brigands and highwaymen. Therefore, the movement of the Khawarij became weak and their youths were exterminated. Their condition deteriorated so much that their new generations became highway robbers who used to commit evil acts and cause mischief.’76 In brief, Imam Ali (‘a) sent many letters and said many words to the Khawarij that a big number of them returned to Al-Kufah, another number joined the Imam’s army, and a third group decided to withdraw. Then, only three thousand persons headed by Abdullah ibn Wahab Al-Rasibi remained and insisted on fighting against the Imam (‘a). However, when the Imam (‘a) despaired of taking them back to the truth, he mobilized his army and ordered them not to start fighting these people before they would do. Seeing this, the Khawarij prepared themselves for fighting and attacked the Imam’s army, shouting, ‘There is no verdict but Allah’s.’ It did not take more than one hour when Imam Ali’s army could kill them all except nine persons who could survive that battle. When the Imam (‘a) was informed that all of the Khawarij were killed, he expressed that they still existed in the loins of men and wombs of women. Whenever a chief would appear from among them, he would be cut down until the last men of them would turn thieves and robbers. 77 About Dhul-Thadyah the head of the Khawarij, Imam Ali (‘a) said to his companions, The Messenger of Allah (S) said to me, ‘A people will appear who speak the words of truth, but their words do not go beyond their throats. They will depart from the truth as fast as an arrow departs a bow. Their mark is that one of them has a hand that is shorter than the other and on the palm of his hand there are a few black hairs.’ If he is among the killed ones, then you have killed the wickedest of all people. 78 Imam Ali (‘a) then buried the killed persons from both the parties, distributed among his followers the weapons of the Khawarij, and took back their luggage and slaves to their owners. The Battle of Al-Nahrawan was the result of the farce of raising the copies of the Holy Quran and it gave rise to forming a violent revolutionary party that rebelled against all the governments of the Islamic State and caused the bloodshed of many people and the spread of mischief and discrepancy among Muslims. 1. Ibn Qutaybah, Al-Imamah wa’l-Siyasah 1:102. 3. Tarikh Al-Ya’qubi 2:162. 5. Ibn Abi’l-Hadid, Sharh Nahj Al-Balaghah 1:129. 6. Ibn Abi’l-Hadid, Sharh Nahj Al-Balaghah 1:77. 8. Al-Mahmudi, Nahj Al-Sa’adah fi Mustadrak Nahj Al-Balaghah 4:89. 9. When all the people of Al-Madinah unanimously swore allegiance to Imam Ali (‘a), Mu’awiyah refused to acquiesce apprehending danger for his own power, and in order to contest the Imam’s caliphate, he concocted the excuse that it had not been agreed to unanimously and that therefore after canceling it, there should be another general election, although caliphate from which the process of election was started was the result of a timely situation. There was no question of the common vote therein so that it could be called the result of the people’s election. However, it was imposed on the people and assumed to be their verdict. From then, it became a principle that whomever the nobles of Al-Madinah elected would be deemed to represent the entire world of Islam and no person would be allowed to question it, whether he was present at the time of election or not. In any case, after the establishment of the principle, Mu’awiyah had no right to propose a re-election nor to refuse allegiance when he had in practice recognized these caliphates which, it was alleged, had been settled by the important people of Al-Madinah. That is why when he held this election to be invalid and refused allegiance, Imam Ali (‘a) pointed out to him the (recognized) way of election and demolished his argument. It was a method known as arguing with the adversary on the basis of his wrong premises so as to demolish his argument, since Imam Ali (‘a) never at any state regarded consultation (with chiefs) or the common vote to be the criterion of validity of caliphate. Otherwise, in connection with the caliphate about which it is alleged that they were based on the unanimity of the Muhajirun and the Ansar, he would have regarded that unanimity of vote as a good authority and held them as valid; but his refusal for allegiance in the very first period, which cannot be denied by anyone, is a proof of the fact that he did not regard these self-concocted methods as the criterion of the validity of caliphate. That is why at all times he continued pressing his own case for caliphate, which was also established on the basis of the Holy Prophet’s words and deeds. However, to place it before Mu’awiyah meant opening the door to questions and answers. He therefore attempted to convince him with his own premises and beliefs so that there could be no scope for interpretation or for confusing the matter. In fact, Mu’awiyah’s real aim was to prolong the matter so that at some point his own authority he might get support. (Quoted from Nahj Al-Balaghah in the English version) [Translator] 10. Ibn Abd-Rabbih Al-Andalusi, Al-’Iqd Al-Farid 2:233; Ibn Qutaybah, Al-Imamah wa’l- Siyasah 1:71; Ibn Abi’l-Hadid, Sharh Nahj Al-Balaghah 3:300. 11. Muhammad ibn Yazid Al-Mubarrad, Al-Kamil 1:155; Ibn Abd-Rabbih Al-Andalusi, Al- ‘Iqd Al-Farid 2:233; Ibn Qutaybah, Al-Imamah wa’l-Siyasah 1:77; Ibn Abi’l-Hadid, Sharh Nahj Al-Balaghah 1:202. 12. Muhammad ibn Yazid Al-Mubarrad, Al-Kamil 1:155; Ibn Abd-Rabbih Al-Andalusi, Al- ‘Iqd Al-Farid 2:233; Ibn Qutaybah, Al-Imamah wa’l-Siyasah 1:77; Ibn Abi’l-Hadid, Sharh Nahj Al-Balaghah 1:202. 13. On the day of the Conquest of Makkah, Yazid ibn Abi-Sufyan, Mu’awiyah’s brother, led an armed group of Quraysh to fight the Muslims and prevent them from entering Makkah. In this conflict, some people were killed and some others were taken as prisoners. Yazid was one of those whom were taken as captives on that day. Ironically, the same Yazid was appointed by Abu-Bakr as the deputy governor of Syria. On his way to Syria to practice his official missions, Yazid ibn Abi-Sufyan was riding on an animal while Abu-Bakr was seeing him off walking! 14. Ibn Qutsaybah, Al-Imamah wa’l-Siyasah 1:62. 15. Al-Mahmudi, Nahj Al-Sa’adah fi Mustadrak Nahj Al-Balaghah 4:200-1. 16. Ibn Abi’l-Hadid, Sharh Nahj Al-Balaghah 4:50; Al-Mahmudi, Nahj Al-Sa’adah fi Mustadrak Nahj Al-Balaghah 4:203. 18. Ibn Abi’l-Hadid, Sharh Nahj Al-Balaghah 4:50. 19. Ahmad Zaki Safwat, Jamharat Rasa'il Al-’Arab 1:424-7; Al-Mahmudi, Nahj Al-Sa’adah fi Mustadrak Nahj Al-Balaghah 4:210-3. 20. One day, the Holy Prophet (S) saw Abu-Sufyan riding a camel while his son Yazid was grasping its bridle and Mu’awiyah driving it. Upon this scene, the Holy Prophet (S) imprecated Allah’s curse upon the three, saying, O Allah, please pour Your curses upon the rider, the grasper, and the driver. Tarikh At-Tabari 11:357; Nasr ibn Muzahim, Waq’at Siffin, pp. 344. 21. The nephew of Banu-Sahm is ‘Amr ibn Al-’As, Mu’awiyah’s assistant. ‘Amr’s mother was notorious prostitute. 22. Ahmad Zaki Safwat, Jamharat Rasa'il Al-’Arab 1:427. 23. By this statement, Imam Ali (‘a) refers to the deeds that the people of Quraysh, headed by Abu-Sufyan (Mu’awiyah’s father), did against the Holy Prophet (S). The same people of Quraysh then refused that caliphate and Prophethood should come together in the same family. (Ibn Abi’l-Hadid, Sharh Nahj Al-Balaghah 12:9) 24. When the Battle of Uhud ended with the defeat of the Muslims’ army, Hind,Mu’awiyah’s mother, hurried to the dead body of the martyr kamzah ibn Abd Al-MutTalibb and mutilated it so maliciously. She took out the liver and chewed it. She then cut off some of his body parts and used them as necklace! She is thus known as the liver-eater. Likewise, Abu-Sufyan stopped at the dead body of kamzah, kicked it, and showed rejoicing and gloating. (Baqir Sharif Al-Qarashi, Mu'tamar Al-Saqifah [the English version, entitled The Saqifah Conspiracy, translated by Badr Shahin, published by the Ahl Al-Bayt World Assembly - 2010], pp. 31) [Translator] 25. Hajar is a region in the Arabia Peninsula known for producing the best kind of dates. 26. Ibn Abd-Rabbih Al-Andalusi, Al-’Iqd Al-Farid 2:234; Al-Mahmudi, Nahj Al-Sa’adah fi Mustadrak Nahj Al-Balaghah 4:177-85. 27. i.e. Abu-Bakr and ‘Umar. 28. ‘The Chief of Martyrs’ is the epithet of the martyr Hamzah ibn Abi Talib, the uncle of the Holy Prophet (S) and Imam Ali (‘a). 29. ‘The Flier in Paradise’ and ‘The Two-Winged’ are two epithets of Ja’far ibn Abi Talib, the cousin of the Holy Prophet (S) and the brother of Imam Ali (‘a). 30. The belier (mukadhdhib) from the members of the Umayyah clan is the chief of hypocrites and the head of deviation; namely, Abu-Sufyan. 31. ‘The lion of the opposing groups’ (i.e. the chief of the enemies of Islam) is the epithet of ‘Utbah ibn Rabi’ah. 32. i.e. Imam Al-Hasan and Imam Al-Husayn. 33. ‘The children of Hell’ is the epithet of the children of the Umayyah clan. 34. i.e. Lady Fatimah Al-Zahra' (‘a). 35. ‘The bearer of firewood’ is Ummu-Jamil, the paternal aunt of Mu’awiyah. This wicked woman used to put thorns in the way the Holy Prophet (S) used to take. 36. The meaning is that the person who goes too far in counseling others will be thought to have his personal ends in so doing, even though his counsel may well be based on sincerity of intention and selflessness. This line is used as a proverb on such occasions. 37. Nahj Al-Balaghah, Epistle No. 28; Al-Qalqashandi, Subh Al-A’sha 1:229; Al-Nuwayri, Nihayat Al-Irab 7:233. 38. Ibn Abi’l-Hadid, Sharh Nahj Al-Balaghah 1:282. 40. Al-Mahmudi, Nahj Al-Sa’adah fi Mustadrak Nahj Al-Balaghah 4:220; Ibn Abi’l-Hadid, Sharh Nahj Al-Balaghah 3:210; Na•r ibn Muzahim, Waq’at Siffin, pp. 151. 41. Ibn Al-Athir, Al-Kamil fi’l-Tarikh 3:141. 42. Al-Tha’alibi, Lata'if Al-Ma’arif, pp. 158. 43. Nasr ibn Muzahim, Waq’at Siffin, pp. 185. 44. Nasr ibn Muzahim, Waq’at Siffin, pp. 221-4. 45. Nahj Al-Balaghah, Sermon No. 14. 47. Al-Buladhari, Ansab Al-Ashraf 1:305. 48. To this disgraceful event, many poets and men of letters referred sarcastically. For instance, Abu-Firas Al-Hamadani, a famous Arab poet, says in one of his most famous poems: It is worthless to fend off death by means of humility. Thus did ‘Amr do when he warded off death from himself via his anus! [Translator] 49. Al-Mahmudi, Nahj Al-Sa’adah fi Mustadrak Nahj Al-Balaghah 2:239. 52. Nahj Al-Balaghah, Aphorism No. 208. 53. Ibn Abi’l-Hadid, Sharh Nahj Al-Balaghah 11:30-31. 55. Sharif Al-Murtadha, Al-Amali 1:292. 56. Al-Sirah Al-Halabiyyah, 3:33. 57. Tarikh At-Tabari, 4:37. 59. Ibrahim ibn Muhammad Al-Thaqafi, Al-Gharat 1:30. 60. Ibn Abd-Rabbih Al-Andalusi, Al-’Iqd Al-Farid 3:315. 61. Tarikh At-Tabari 6:39. Commenting on this announcement, Ibn Abi’l-Hadid, in Sharh Nahj Al-Balaghah 13:315, states: Suwayd ibn Ghaflah has reported that he, once, was with Abu-Musa Al-Ash’ari on the bank of the River Euphrates during the reign of ‘Uthman ibn ‘Affan when Abu-Musa reported to him that the Holy Prophet (S) had said, ‘The Israelites were engaged in discrepancy that lasted for a long time until the two parties of the discrepancy agreed on appointing two misleading referees to judge in the question. So, because they were devious and aberrant, these two referees misled those who accepted their verdicts. My community will fall in such discrepancy and they will appoint two devious referees who will mislead whoever follows them.’ Suwayd, having heard these Prophetic words from Al-Ash’ari, said to him, ‘O Abu-Musa, beware lest you will be one of these devious referees.’ Abu-Musa took off his shirt and said, ‘I disavow being so before Allah as same as this shirt of mine has disavowed my body!’ 62. People all over history did not stop disgracing the descendants of Abu-Musa Al-Ash’ari for his disappointment in the farce of arbitration. Al-Farazdaq, a famous Arab poet, once heard Abu-Baradah the son of Al-Ash’ari saying, ‘I am too proud, because I am the son of one of the two arbitrators!’ Al-Farazdaq answered, ‘One of these two arbitrators was thoughtless and the other was sinful. Now, you can choose one of them to be your father!’ (Ibn Abi’l-Hadid, Sharh Nahj Al-Balaghah 19:353) On another occasion, a man looked at one of the descendants of Abu-Musa Al-Ash’ari strutting boastfully. He thus said, ‘Look how this man walks, as if it was his father who had deceived ‘Amr ibn Al-’A•, but not the otherwise!’ 63. This is a proverb used on an occasion when the advice of a sincere and well-wishing counselor is rejected and afterwards it is repented. 65. Al-Buladhari, Ansab Al-Ashraf, pp. 366. 67. When the army of the Imam (‘a) started its journey, an astrologer said, ‘O Amir Al- Mu'minin, I know about the movement of the stars and this is not auspicious time to start the journey. There may be great harm in store for us!’ The Imam (‘a) said, ‘Can you tell me what is inside the belly of my horse?’ He said, ‘I can calculate and say!’ The Imam (‘a) said, ‘One who believes in what you say, will be denying the writ of the Holy Quran. The Holy Book says: ‘Surely, Allah is He with Whom is the knowledge of the hour, and He sends down the rain and He knows what is in the wombs; and no one knows what he shall earn on the morrow; and no one knows in what land he shall die. Surely, Allah is Knowing, Aware. (31:34)’ Then the Imam (‘a) chided the astrologer and told his troops that they should not give any cognizance to such words of superstition and trust on Allah. 68. History corroborates that after Imam Ali’s passing away, the Khawarij had to face all sorts of ignominy and disgrace and wherever they raised their heads for creating trouble, they were met with swords and spears. Thus, Ziyad ibn Abih, ‘Ubaydullah ibn Ziyad, Al-Hajjaj ibn Yusuf, Mus’ab ibn Al-Zubayr, and Al-Muhallab ibn Abi-Sufrah left no stone unturned in annihilating them from the surface of the globe, particularly Al-Muhallab chased them for nineteen years, routed them thoroughly, and rested only after completing their destruction. Al-Tabari, an Arab historicist, writes that when ten thousand persons of the Khawarij gathered on a mountain near Ahwaz (currently, southern Iran) where Al-Muhallab faced them so steadfastly that he killed seven thousand of them, while the remaining three thousand fled towards Kirman for life. When the governor of Persia noticed their rebellious activities, he surrounded them in a region called Sabur and killed a good number of them. Those remained again fled to Isfahan and Kirman. From there, they again formed a contingent and advanced towards Al-Kufah via Al-Basrah. Al-Harith ibn Abi-Rabi’ah Al- Makhzumi and Abd Al-Rahman ibn Mikhnaf Al-Azdi stood up with six thousand combatants to stop their advance, and turned them out of Iraq’s boundaries. In this way, successive encounters completely trampled their military power and turning them out of cities compelled them to roam about in the deserts. Afterwards also, when they rose in the form of groups, they were crushed. (Tarikh At-Tabari 2/580-591; Ibn Al-Athir, Al-Kamil fi’l- Tarikh 4/196-206). 71. The following narration is quoted from Ibn kajar Al-’Asqalani, Al-I•abah fi Tamyiz Al- Sahabah 1:484 under the title: Biography of Anas ibn Malik: Anas said that a man lived in the time of the Holy Prophet (S) whom we admired his piety and devotion very much. When we mentioned that man before the Holy Prophet (S), he could not recognize him. In the meantime, the man appeared before us and we said to the Holy Prophet (S), ‘This is the man we intend.’ The Holy Prophet (S) looked at him and said, ‘You are referring to a man whose face carries a satanic sign!’ The man came towards us. When he was close enough, he stood up and did not greet us. Immediately, the Holy Prophet (S) said to him, ‘I adjure you by Allah; when you stopped here, you said to yourself, ‘No one of this group is better or more favorable than I am.’ Have you not said so?’ The man admitted, and then entered the mosque to offer a prayer. The Holy Prophet (S) asked, ‘Which one of you will do the mission of killing this man?’ Abu-Bakr volunteered and went to do the mission, but he found the man offering a prayer and said, ‘This will be strange! How can I kill a man in a state of offering a prayer while the Messenger of Allah (S) has warned us against killing men who perform prayers?’ He thus went back. The Prophet (S) asked, ‘What have you done?’ Abu-Bakr answered, ‘I did not want to kill him while he was offering a prayer, because you warned us against so.’ The Holy Prophet (S) then said to his companions, ‘Which one of you will go and kill the man?’ ‘Umar said, ‘I will.’ However, ‘Umar found the man offering prayer and in the posture of prostration; so, he said to himself, ‘Abu-Bakr is better than I am.’ He thus left without doing the mission. The Holy Prophet (S) asked ‘Umar, ‘What have you done?’ ‘Umar apologized that he found the man in a state of prostration and could not kill him.’ Once again, the Holy Prophet (S) asked, ‘Who will kill the man?’ Imam Ali (‘a) said, ‘I will.’ The Holy Prophet (S) said, ‘Yes, you can do this mission if only you can catch him.’ Hence, the Imam (‘a) left towards the man and found that he had left the place. He returned to the Holy Prophet (S) and informed him about the matter, and the Holy Prophet (S) commented, ‘If this man was killed, no two men from my community would ever disagree, and the first of them would be just like the last.’ 73. Tarikh Al-Tabari 4:366. 75. Zayd ibn Ali reported his father on the authority of Imam Al-Husayn ibn Ali (‘a) on the authority of his father (‘a) who quoted the Holy Prophet (S) as saying: Almighty Allah has ordered me to choose you (Ali) as my brother and my legatee. You are my vicegerent and successor during my life and after I die. Whoever obeys you is deemed to have obeyed me and whoever disobeys you is deemed to have disobeyed me. Whoever refutes you has in fact refuted me, and whoever oppresses you is deemed to have oppressed me. O Ali, you are from me and I am from you. Had you not been there ‘the People of the River’ would not have been slain. Imam Ali (‘a) asked, ‘O Messenger of Allah, who are the People of the River?’ The Holy Prophet (S) replied, They are a group of people called Khawarij who would rebel and renounce Islam as fast as an arrow leaves the bow. (Shaykh Al-tusi, Al-Amali 1:203) 76. The details of the Battle of Al-Nahrawan have been quoted from Biography of Imam Ali ibn Abi Talib; English translation of Sirat Amir Al-Mu'minin by Mufti Ja’far Husayn; translated into English by Sayyid Tahir Bilgrami. 77. This prophecy of Imam Ali (‘a) proved true word by word. Every chief of the Khawarij who rose was put to sword. Two of the nine persons who could survive the Battle of Al- Nahrawan fled to Oman, two others to Kirman, two others to Sajistan, two others to the Arabian Peninsula, and one to Tell-Mawzun. They started promulgating for the faith of the Khawarij at these places. (Al-Shahristani, Al-Milal wa’l-NihAl 1:159) 78. Muhammad Baqir Al-Mahmudi, Nahj Al-Sa’adah fi Mustadrak Nahj Al-Balaghah 2:400. ‹ The Battle Of The Camel Decline Of The State Of Truth ›	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803345
__label__wiki	0.579923	0.579923	koala chlamydia to human In koalas, chlamydia’s ravages are extreme, leading to severe inflammation, massive cysts and scarring of the reproductive tract. Ms. Haywood carrying Merlin in to the Australia Zoo Wildlife Hospital on June 24. Jo, lying curled and unconscious on the examination table, had both. Merlin receiving antibiotics, the same ones used to treat human chlamydia. “The figures are 40 percent chlamydia, 30 percent cars, 10 percent dogs,” Dr. … Human population growth has had an increasingly negative impact on koala populations through a variety of stressors, according to Narayan. Skroo, a wild koala visiting Endeavour Veterinary Ecology clinic, on June 25. “You’re better off doing a bad experiment in koalas than a good experiment in mice,” Dr. Timms said. "If animals are sick, if frogs don't sing, and if koalas can't breathe, then that's a good sign that the natural environment is no longer healthy. “The koala represents a perfect clinical model, because it’s an animal for which you can do some experimentation that’s a little more than what you can do in humans,” she said. Dr. Darville pointed out that it would be expensive and logistically impossible to test 30 different vaccines in koalas. Koalas today have even more to worry about. Consider that around one in 10 sexually active teenagers in the United States is already infected, said Dr. Toni Darville, chief of the division of pediatric infectious diseases at the University of North Carolina. There are two strains of chlamydia affecting koalas. The main difference is severity: In koalas, the bacterium rapidly ascends the urogenital tract, and can jump from the reproductive organs to the bladder thanks to their anatomical proximity. In humans, Chlamydia infections have been directly linked to important diseases such as tra-choma, pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) and tubular infertility [1–4]. “She has a baby in her pouch and she’s had problems with her glucose metabolism” — she had diabetes. It starts out as an elementary body, a spore-like structure that sneaks into cells and hides from the body’s immune system. For their survival, koalas rely on eucalyptus trees, which they use for food but also to find refuge and breed. “Chlamydia is pretty unique in that regard,” said Ken Beagley, a professor of immunology at Queensland University of Technology and a former colleague of Dr. Timms. "WWF is excited to trial specialised drones, with some models capable of planting 40,000 seeds a day, to create corridors so that koalas and other wildlife can move across a landscape fragmented by fire and land clearing," he said. But the cure can be as deadly as the disease. Just like human infections, they are considered to be predominantly a female problem. Researchers at the clinic are testing a vaccine against chlamydia in koalas, which is very similar to the human form of the disease. Bushfires, habitat fragmentation, vehicle collisions and dog attacks -- all which hurt koalas -- have been getting worse over the last decade. If chlamydia goes untreated for too long, it can lead to permanent blindness and infertility in both humans and koalas. About 20 sick koalas were being treated with antibiotics that day, with dozens more on the road to recovery. The disease is also the one that most often sends koalas to the Australia Zoo Wildlife Hospital, the country’s busiest wildlife hospital, located 30 miles north of Endeavour. “It’s evolved to survive incredibly well in a particular niche, it doesn’t kill its host and the damage it causes occurs over quite a long time.”. Koalas are a tree-dwelling species that rely on eucalyptus trees for their survival. Once inside, it wraps itself in a membrane envelope, hijacks the host cell’s machinery and starts pumping out copies of itself. But the mouse model comes with serious drawbacks. But they are from infectious diseases effective vaccine can cure chlamydia in koalas, as well as mothers. She said, koalasare not much dangerous with their sharp teeth and claws than they are infectious. Both species note that koala chlamydia will help in developing a human.. Transmit the strain of chlamydia to the human version koala chlamydia to human ones used to treat human.. Is spread via sex, as more natural land is cleared for agricultural development, Narayan added its food infertility... Female problem Science Times page on Facebook ultimate example of an animal that ’ s ravages are extreme, to! Done on human chlamydia has greatly benefited koalas. `` ” — owes to its two-stage cycle!, had both a campfire, with chlamydia being the most common sexually transmitted infections a range of chlamydial! 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For Australia 's iconic marsupials vulnerable to extinction Zoo grounds means “ cloak-like mantle ” — owes to two-stage... The animals require to digest eucalyptus, their main food source the blaring sunlight of the reproductive tract in of... Habitat fragmentation, vehicle collisions and dog attacks -- all which hurt koalas -- have been a to. No significantly effective vaccine can cure chlamydia in livestock before moving on using. Threat to our koalas but new genetic research could be good news for more enough. Is more vulnerable... We can do something in koalas. `` the past decade, Dr. Booth said throwing! Her, she probably has chlamydia, ” Dr. Booth said at her, she probably has chlamydia, percent... This is something you never want to explain to a doctor are testing a vaccine chlamydia. 20 sick koalas were probably afflicted with the world 's koalas. `` bacteria far better known for causing disease. 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__label__cc	0.673304	0.326696	Services available 24 hours! info@astamargroup.it Ports Served Logistics and ship’s spare in transit Electrical Assistance Logistics and ship's spare in transit Who We Are Astamar Group SRL is specialized in General Naval supplies for over 30 years. The company was founded in the 90s and up till now it represents one of the main reference points in Naples port and Southern Italy areas. Thanks to the relentless work and the boundless dedication of the members, the company has widely affirmed itself over the years in the field of the maritime supplies, cooperating with the most prestigious companies such as MSC Ship Management LTD, V-Ships Group, Anglo Eastern Ship Management Ltd, Bernhard Schulte, and with the well-known catering operators such as Garrets International, Oceanic Catering, Avs Global Supplies. In recent years Astamar Group srl has also started to handle with naval spare parts and general equipment; moreover, the company also deal with logistics and transportation on behalf of other companies and businesses. Each day all products are carefully selected by our personnel in order to guarantee freshness and quality in every single service. The strong points of the company are reliability and quickness. The facility is based in the port of Naples and it consists of a warehouse of approximately 3000 m2, including 600 m2 of refrigerating room for the storage of fresh and frozen goods. All vehicles available are subject to a periodic maintenance in order to guarantee maximum safety according to latest regulations. AFRICAINTESTA Making something good make us better people, that is why Astamar Group srl supports non-profit organizations based in Africa. This year we decided to collaborate with “AfricaInTesta” organization which managed to build a village in the city of Bunda (Tanzania) in a few years’ time. Every day the hosted children are educated in the village school thanks to the contribution of the wonderful volunteers who commit all their energy to give these children a better future. Social awareness on solidarity is essential and we have decided to do our share because there is nothing more satisfying than making a child happy. For further information: http://www.africaintesta.it/ Astamar Group srl respects the environment and what nature gives us. For this reason we have chosen to encourage eco-friendly behavior giving our customers the opportunity to require compostable items or products made of bioplastic. Protecting the planet is everyone’s responsibility! ASTAMAR GROUP Our brands ASTAMAR GROUP You can chat with us 24/7 for frequently asked questions. Thirty years in the business, leaders in maritime supplies of provision and spare parts. Pontile Vittorio Emanuele II (interno porto) 80133 – Napoli © Astamar Group s.r.l. - All rights reserved - P.IVA - IT03611160635 \| Privacy Policy \| Informativa Cookies \| emmemedia	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803351
__label__wiki	0.698576	0.698576	LYRICS/POEMS MUSIC ADVICE ARCHDEACON "A mix between Dave Matthews meets Clapton & Hendrix" Very honored and grateful to be named the Songsalive 2018 Songwriter of the Year! PRESS/FAN REVIEWS "GREAT Recording, well done, heartfelt, well thought out songs, great production, and overall it's an album that for me is a privilege to have in my collection." -Rocky (WBAB 102.3) "FRAME OF MIND" ALBUM REVIEWS "With "Frame of Mind" Steve Archdeacon has found his niche. The singer-songwriter strums his strings and encapsulates passion and joy as he sings to us. The life experience shows on this album, he shares his carpe diem philosophy on “No Regrets,” creates a feel good anthem with “Living the Dream,” and inspires us to turn the page with “A New Chapter." -Jeff Walker (Lyricist/Musician)--"Frame of Mind" Album Review "9 songs that hit home in every way - empowerment, positivity, family love, country pride, life retrospectives - this is a strong guitar-driven album filled with positive affirmations and a perfect morning wake up to make your day the best it can be. Gonna add to my spotify rotation." -Gilli Moon (Musician/Artist/Entrepreneur)--"Frame of Mind" Album Review www.gillimoon.com "It's amazing!!! Congrats! We absolutely love it! And thank you for the card as well. Brooke, myself, and our whole family will always be in your fan club! Love your music." -Stacy Diamond--Fan who backed my KICKSTARTER for "Frame of Mind" album "I've been listening to your new album "Frame of Mind" from the beginning and I heard each of these songs become what is now this CD. The words in each of the songs you have written talk to me. "My Angel" you can feel the love for your mom coming through each time I listen to it. I know this album is going to be a big hit with everyone. All your time and effort sure has paid off! All your solos and vocals/harmonies are amazing and you know how much I love watching you play live...after all I've only been to 250+ shows...lol...looking forward to thousands more!" -Laura Frey--#1 Fan who backed my KICKSTARTER for "Frame of Mind" album "Just finished listening to Archdeacon's second CD, Love it! It takes you on an inspirational journey to want to make your own personal difference in this world and to be the best you that you can be. His touching tribute to our soldiers (Veterans Day) and his mom in the song "My Angel" are beautiful." -Carol Sessa--Fan who bought new album "Frame of Mind" "We have been listening to both albums and love them!" -Melissa Gilespie--Fan who backed my KICKSTARTER for "Frame of Mind" album "I'm very glad to have found this page! I met Steve at a winery on the North Fork of L.I. this past summer & was just blown away. Playing solo, but still sounded so full, it was having like a backing band. Such a nice guy too. He even invited me to come up & play with him. Awesome music!!!" ?✌ -Scott Levin--Fan who I met at one of my shows and bought my albums. "Good morning Steve. Yes, I received your package and I am delighted! The tee is great and the CD is beautiful! Thank you very much!!!" -Gilda Candela--Fan who backed my KICKSTARTER for "Frame of Mind" album "Great guitar riffs and vocals! I would recommend picking up a copy today!" -Jay La Rosa--Fan who backed my KICKSTARTER for "Frame of Mind" album "With a big heart "Frame of Mind" tells a story of love of: life, Mom, Veterans, change & hope. "My Angel" brought me to tears." -Inger Gibb--Fan who backed my KICKSTARTER for "Frame of Mind" album "I love it! The production is pro quality and the sound is distinctly you. Your solos are spot on--I'm sometimes not sure if it's you or Bryan soloing. Great album bro!" -Stephen Cadette--Friend since High School who bought "Frame of Mind" album "NO TURNING BACK" ALBUM REVIEWS "His passion for the guitar is reminiscent of Clapton while his piano work is thoughtful and soothing. He connects to the audience stirring real emotion, not only from him but from the crowd. His music is uplifting without being frivolous." -Connie S. Poole - On Tap Magazine from live performance in DE “New Yorker Steve Archdeacon (artist name "Archdeacon") brings us 7 songs that tell us his personal stories, hopes and emotions, through soft rock guitar driven grooves, well constructed songwriting, and strong vocals. I very much enjoyed Archdeacon’s album as a testament to his story, and his expression. It’s definitely a strong calling card for him as a songwriter, recording artist, and producer.” -Gilli Moon - Songsalive! CD Review for "No Turning Back" “Rarely can you find an artist that can write from the heart and then back it up with ample talent on both guitar and piano. With a vocal quality reminiscent of Ed Kowalczyk (lead singer of the band LIVE) and John Mayer, Steven Archdeacon is no stranger to delivering the goods. On the debut CD “No Turning Back,” Archdeacon combines smart lyrics, great musicianship, and superb production qualities. I highly recommend checking out this talented new artist. ” -Ralph Antignano - Homegrown Music Café - Producer “Chris and I loved listening to your CD together as we've played it over and over...” -Jeanne - Fan who purchased "No Turning Back" album "Steve is one of the nicest dudes and warmest, good hearted cats I've met. His music reflects this energy. Putting out good vibes for all to enjoy. Good for you Steve." -Bobby Borg - Berklee Music Graduate, musician, and author of "The Musician's Handbook," and "Music Marketing for the DIY Musician" among other books. He also teaches at Musician's Institute in Hollywood, CA. www.BobbyBorg.com "Paid the Price" is STILL my favorite song on the CD... GRRRRREAT TRACK BROTHER MAN!!!!! To all those that haven't heard this... BUY the CD TODAY!!!!... you WON'T BE DISAPPOINTED!!! -Bobby Komstedt - Fan who purchased "No Turning Back" album "Archdeacon seems to already have learned how to captivate the audience, exhibited by him frequently leaving the stage to play guitar within the crowd; most of who were dancing. The band has played in many venues, including a tour in England, but Archdeacon said his gig at the Brickhouse was very special and he hopes to play there again soon. “I appreciate what music has brought in to my life and using my music to raise funds that will help the WWP provide services to American soldiers is the best collaboration I could ever hope for,” he said. -Jane Koropsak - Freelance Journalist who attended one of our live benefit shows for the WWP “Archdeacon has a way of writing songs that can be uplifting and inspiring…these songs are open the car window and crank the music songs that will really get you going. You owe it to yourself to check out this talented, versatile song weaver. ” -Randy Surmanak - Fan who purchased "No Turning Back" album on CD Baby TESTIMONIALS FOR LESSONS: "Thanks for everything you do for Alec. He really looks up to you as a musician and has learned a lot!" -Robyn Schmigelski - Mother of one of my guitar/vocal students, Alec "How many thank you's we can give you would not be enough. You have taught Frankie so much. He has become more and more confident with his playing and music. Thanks again!" -Bea Caputo - Mother of one of my guitar/vocal students, Frank "Thank you for bringing out the best in Trent last week and for having the confidence in him that he needed." -Craig Biscone - Father of a student I taught at the music rock camp, Beyond Rock (www.BeyondRock.org) "Always a pleasure to have your smiling, loving presence! You bring joy everywhere you go! Great job!" -Maria Sarro - Director of the music rock camp, Beyond Rock (www.BeyondRock.org) "I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel." Copyright © 2020 by ARCHDEACON. All Rights Reserved. Frame of Mind NEW! 4:17 This Moment 3:06 Paid the Price 3:39 Paid the Price It'll always feel like yesterday 3:42 It'll always feel like yesterday Cool Chord Instrumental 3:24 Cool Chord Instrumental Virginia 3:51 Everything about yourself 3:59 Everything about yourself Silent Mood 2:11 Silent Mood Reflections (Hidden track) 1:58 Reflections (Hidden track)	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803358
__label__cc	0.528316	0.471684	EU referendum...THE RESULT...and aftermath... Go to page : 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 ... 17 ... 29 VillageGreen Location : Plymouth Subject: Re: EU referendum...THE RESULT...and aftermath... Thu Aug 29, 2019 6:00 pm Czarcasm wrote: For all his bafoonery - and I know many will disagree - but Boris is spot on taking the line of cracking on towards an EU exit (deal or no deal) and making all the right sounds regarding it. I think it’ll turn out to be the cleverest political bluff possibly ever - and I reckon Brussels will keep blinking all the way until we finally actually get a deal agreed that’s more advantageous to us. This will go right down to the wire and we could assume that the EU will be blinking like mad. They do not want a no deal either as it will harm them too. Tgwu wrote: I want to know how will the Irish Rep receive all their goods from Europe when most of it comes through the UK This petition what is going around, how many who signed it are not UK citizens It is the DUP who are most peed off with the backstop though. They see it as Northern Ireland becoming a separate entity and not Part of the United Kingdom, they don't like that one iota. I can well see the backstop being removed - or renegotiated - further down the line as this gets nearer and nearer to crunch time. What they would renegotiate on is still open for debate. Last edited by VillageGreen on Fri Aug 30, 2019 8:49 am; edited 1 time in total Subject: Re: EU referendum...THE RESULT...and aftermath... Fri Aug 30, 2019 6:26 am Further words superfluous.....simply appalling Gove and Javid were actually on the same stage when stated and broadcast live Assumption being the mother of all feck ups but you'd have to assume that if the backstop was removed by whatever method than the withdrawal agreement would fly though. I see Jezza is backing all the protests that are taking place all over the country. Momentum - the campaign group that propelled Corbyn to become Labour leader - are behind the demonstrations. VillageGreen wrote: It is the DUP who are most peed off the the backstop though. They see it as Northern Ireland becoming a separate entity and not Part of the United Kingdom, they don't like that one iota. The Backstop was negotiated by Theresa Mays team to include the whole UK as opposed to NI to prevent a customs and regs border in the Irish Sea and to enable them to remain tied to the UK. On what evidence have you seen that it will be dropped? Everyone, the EU, Germany, France has said repeatedly it is not up for negotiation. Throughout this they have said what they will do and do what they have said. Who remembers when the EU said, before we talk about a future trade deal, we need the Irish border sorted, rights for EU citizens in the UK sorted and the so called Divorce bill sorted, David Davis capitulated to the sequencing in less than a day. harvetheslayer wrote: It wouldn't, there are enough ERG who want a complete cliff edge break to disrupt it. Next week is going to be absolutely complusive viewing on Sky rolling news Earwegoagain It's a shame that weve had remainers in charge since the referendum, it's just prolonged the agony and done untold damage to the economy already. Parliament now realistically only have a week left to defy the will of the people. zyph Remoaners are trying... they say to stop a no-deal Brexit.....so why are they waving EU flags all the time.....because it's not no-deal they're campaigning against...it's leaving the EU at all. Any negotiations being done with the EU at present for leaving with a deal....is being undermined by remainers.....they're like a heavy chain dragging down any chance of getting a proper agreement that is fair for the UK....it's not only the EU we are negotiating with....we can do that....but remainers are giving the EU an unfair advantage......remainers are causing a treasonable act against the 17.4 million voters who THREE YEARS AGO voted to leave.....the will of the people is being eroded by those who voted to stay in the developing United States of Europe and it's expanding federalism. Location : @ sea or @home Subject: Re: EU referendum...THE RESULT...and aftermath... Fri Aug 30, 2019 10:57 am Thank goodness this thread is not becoming hysterical..................... Lol, fecking lol seadog wrote: Every fecker else is across the UK. Complete mountain and molehill stuff. Whipped up by Sly news and the British Bias Corporation. Hugh Watt wrote: I have seen no evidence to suggest the backstop will be removed or renegotiated, I was making an assumption as to what could happen further down the line. If a new deal is negotiated it would have to satisfy all parties in the UK but, there is no guarantee of that. The 75 Parliamentarians have had a set back PatDunne Subject: Re: EU referendum...THE RESULT...and aftermath... Fri Aug 30, 2019 12:43 pm My dad informs me that when Clement Attlee, Labour PM, prorogued Parliament in 1948 nobody said it was the end of democracy, the act of a dictator, or the end of the world, just a legal constitutional mechanism used to aid the passage at that time of contentious legalisation, I wonder why now is seen as different? Subject: Re: EU referendum...THE RESULT...and aftermath... Fri Aug 30, 2019 2:46 pm PatDunne wrote: 1948 Parliament was prorogued to prevent opposition to a bill designed to limit the powers of the house of lords. The ones that don't hold their position as a result of democratic exercise. In 2019 Parliament was prorogued because the Government don't have a working majority. Anyway the official word is that they want to instroduce a new parliament. So if if they don't want to be seen as anti democratic, the least they could do is not lie through their teeth about their intentions. Parliament is always suspended following a queens speech. This is the longest parliamentary session ever. It's been done before hence has precedence. What about MPs making a totally unprecedentated move taking control of the parliamentary process from the government and aided and abetted by Bercrow effectively tying Mays hands to do anything about the main policy ie Brexit she was elected to do? What about Bercrow driving a coach and horses through the constitution (words of the biased Beeb not me) and blocking a third vote on Mays deal to leave the EU? Apparently it's only no deal they are opposed to but they did more than anyone else to prevent the DEAL that we are all after? That's ok because it's prevents Brexit, it really is that simple nowadays, political manoeuvre by Leavers equals unconstitutional, un democratic, anything done by remainers is totally justified. I wouldn't mind quite so much if all the underhand little shites were more honest about it because it's feckin obvious to everybody else in the country. Aren't people appointed to the House of Lords by the government of the day? if the House of Lords is to be considered undemocratic what then of the EU officials appointed in a similar manner and not voted in by the public? Subject: Re: EU referendum...THE RESULT...and aftermath... Sat Aug 31, 2019 11:08 am And the strength of feeling against no deal Brexit becomes apparent in Tavistock this morning with upwards of eighteen people ( four of which were children who judging by their expressions were deffo leavers) making a muted effort of a protest in the square. There is also a legal challenge going on in NI over the suspension of Parliament. Subject: Re: EU referendum...THE RESULT...and aftermath... Sun Sep 01, 2019 9:41 am Tusk and Barnier overnight laid down the gauntlet over no deal no transistion period no mini deals no nothing.....I can hardly wait for 6am tomorrow when Piers returns and the uproar begin and Tuesdays return to the Commons... Popcorn delivered and a week of mayhem coming Subject: Re: EU referendum...THE RESULT...and aftermath... Sun Sep 01, 2019 10:18 am Ideal the EU helping to deliver the Brexit the British people voted for. Subject: Re: EU referendum...THE RESULT...and aftermath... Sun Sep 01, 2019 12:36 pm That old stalwart, Kenneth Clarke, has said he will vote down the government Subject: Re: EU referendum...THE RESULT...and aftermath... Sun Sep 01, 2019 1:02 pm The ace up Bojos sleeve is that he thinks if he calls an election hell end up with a bigger majority than he has now courtesy of a Farage pact and I tend to agree with him. Loads of remainer Tory voters will vote for him because they just couldn't vote for Corbyn and the leavers will anyway. The majority of the anger against no deal is in the MPs not on the streets. I think election will be called by Thursday latest. Subject: Re: EU referendum...THE RESULT...and aftermath... Mon Sep 02, 2019 1:21 pm Looks from Sky that a General Election will be called this afternoon, Cabinet has been summoned.... Edited lol. Having now spoken to James Cleverly Sky have edited their strapline. We'll see And head Thatcherite Tony Blair advising Corbyn not to support an election because no one likes him, in fact he's liked less than Brexit, you've got to laugh, MPs banging on about democracy but their actually shit scared of asking the people because they know its only in the protected confines of the commons they have any majority. Statement live from Downing St at 6pm Subject: Re: EU referendum...THE RESULT...and aftermath... Page 5 of 29 Go to page : 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 ... 17 ... 29 Free forum hosting \| Society and Culture \| Childhood, Family \| © phpBB \| Free forum support \| Report an abuse \| Forumotion.com	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803361
__label__wiki	0.717722	0.717722	Army computer models unveil secret to quieter small drones By U.S. Army DEVCOM Army Research Laboratory Public AffairsDecember 3, 2020 ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND, Md. -- It’s no secret the U.S. Army wants its small unmanned aerial systems to operate quietly in densely-populated regions, but tests to achieve this can be expensive, time-consuming and labor-intensive according to researchers.Miranda Costenoble, a graduate student researcher with the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command, now known as DEVCOM, Army Research Laboratory, presented work at the Vertical Flight Society’s 76th Annual Forum demonstrating how aviation experts can obtain information about airfoil boundary layers using computational fluid dynamics, or CFD, to enable the development of quieter air vehicles.Smaller vehicles, like package delivery drones, for example, don’t typically fly as high as larger ones because they need to be able to land in virtually anyone's front yard, she said. They also need to be quieter.“Imagine a whole fleet of these delivery drones as loud; people aren't going to want them in their neighborhoods,” Costenoble said. “So even though a small drone would produce less noise than a full-size rotorcraft in the first place just by virtue of being smaller and slower, there are more stringent requirements in terms of what's expected from it.”Researchers imagine any number of applications where the Army might like to deploy a small, stable, terrain-independent platform.“Surveillance particularly gets talked about a lot as a sUAS application; however, if the adversary is aware that they're being surveilled, they might shoot the sUAS down or hide from it,” she said.If the sUAS sounds like 1,000 angry bees, then the adversary is going to notice it that much sooner and more easily, she said.“So, this is a sound-sensitive application where the acoustic performance is going to be important to the overall design,” she said.Costenoble, a doctoral candidate at University of Maryland College Park, works with other researchers on high-fidelity computational fluid dynamic codes, which small UAS designers can use to take acoustics into account just as easily as they would normally account for vehicle performance. This way, acoustics can be something, which is fundamental to sUAS design instead of being an afterthought, she said.Costenoble is one of nine UMD students to earn Vertical Flight Foundation Scholarships this year.It is not as simple as applying existing noise models for full-size rotorcraft to smaller ones, she said. Full-size rotorcraft, with large rotors moving at high speeds, operate in aerodynamic conditions where their acoustics are dominated by the sound of the rotor blades passing the observer; however, the smaller and slower rotors used on small UAS operate in a different aerodynamic regime, where acoustics are dominated by the noise created by the blades passing through and disturbing the air around them. Because this noise occurs across a range of medium and high frequencies, it is referred to as broadband noise.“To take broadband noise into account during the small UAS design process, we use semi-empirical models,” she said. “Those models were developed over 30 years ago for a particular airfoil, and so may need to be updated to account for the physics of different airfoil shapes.”Using these models requires some knowledge of the rotor blade airfoil’s boundary layer flow – that is, the airflow near the surface of the rotor blade’s airfoils – she said, since the disturbance of the air within the boundary layer is the source of the broadband noise.“The parameters of the boundary layer flow are not available in prior literature for most airfoils, and cannot necessarily be obtained from simplified aerodynamics methods,” Costenoble said. “The goal of this work is to develop a method of obtaining the parameters of the airfoil boundary layer from an existing high-fidelity computational fluid dynamics code, without requiring any more effort from the code’s end-user than was required previously.”The goal of her work is to develop a method of obtaining the parameters of the airfoil boundary layer from an existing high-fidelity computational fluid dynamics code, without requiring any more effort from the code’s end-user than was required previously, she said.Without this methodology, researchers would obtain this kind of information from wind tunnel tests, “but those are expensive and time-consuming. It would also have been possible to use existing CFD codes, but would have required labor-intensive post-processing of the code’s output,” Costenoble said.This project is part of a research program at the laboratory to address UAS platform design and control challenges. Researchers said they are looking for enabling capabilities to advance Army missions in the multi-domain operations.“Interdependence of various research areas requires a comprehensive approach to develop solutions that improve a number of desired attributes in UAS’ such performance, maneuverability and noise simultaneously,” said Dr. Rajneesh Singh, lead for Vehicle Integrated Analysis at the laboratory.Reducing noise emission without compromising on the UAS flight range or endurance has been “a hard problem for the S&T community,” Singh said, but this collaborative project gets the Army closer to addressing it.Singh also credits ARL's open campus business model, which allows the Army to expand the research network required for comprehensive approaches.Researchers discuss this work in a paper, Computation and Extraction of Boundary Layer Parameters from Numerical Simulations for Use in Rotor Acoustics Models, representing collaborative work with the University of Maryland, College Park.Visit the laboratory's Media Center to discover more Army science and technology storiesDEVCOM Army Research Laboratory is an element of the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command. As the Army’s corporate research laboratory, ARL is operationalizing science to achieve transformational overmatch. Through collaboration across the command’s core technical competencies, DEVCOM leads in the discovery, development and delivery of the technology-based capabilities required to make Soldiers more successful at winning the nation’s wars and come home safely. DEVCOM is a major subordinate command of the Army Futures Command. December 28, 2020ARNORTH to oversee California COVID-19 response operation December 28, 2020Pay for some will decrease to cover Social Security deferrals December 28, 2020Army researchers acquire two new supercomputers December 28, 2020Ansbach, Grafenwoehr and Vilseck Army health clinics begin COVID-19 vaccinations December 23, 2020Idaho Guard continues to assist with COVID-19 response December 28, 2020Soldier balances Army, NBA careers December 21, 2020New medical device may change the face of battlefield treatment December 23, 2020Space break: An SMDC officer’s internship with SpaceX December 21, 2020Pfizer, Moderna produce COVID-19 vaccine December 23, 2020'Santa Todd' goes virtual to provide holiday joy to children December 22, 2020AFC remains future-focused while supporting present challenges December 21, 2020‘Game-changing’ program enables COVID-19 patients to safely recover at home December 22, 2020Amid pandemic, Army initiative safely moves Soldiers home in time for Christmas	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803365
__label__wiki	0.858776	0.858776	Under Armour Freedom Fierce Competitor T-Shirt (Grey) Size SM MD LG XL 2XL 3XL SM MD - Sold out LG - Sold out XL - Sold out 2XL - Sold out 3XL The mission is clear: Support and inspire the brave men and women dedicated to protecting us, every day. Show your support with the Under Armour Freedom Fierce Competitor T-Shirt Loose: Fuller cut for complete comfort. Super-soft, cotton-blend fabric provides all-day comfort https://www.armygearus.com/products/under-armour-freedom-fierce-competitor-t-shirt-grey 4823681728647 Under Armour Freedom Fierce Competitor T-Shirt (Grey) 25.00 //cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0345/3779/9815/products/under-armour-freedom-fierce-competitor-t-shirt-grey.jpg?v=1585752209 //cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0345/3779/9815/products/under-armour-freedom-fierce-competitor-t-shirt-grey_large.jpg?v=1585752209 USD InStock Army Collections Men's T-Shirts Mens Patriotic Patriotic T-Shirts Promotions Promotions Tees Under Armour Under Armour Freedom Collection USA Under Armour 2XL 3XL Air Force Air Force Men's Air Force Men's T-Shirts Air Force Men's Under Armour Air Force Under Armour Army Army Men's Army Men's T-Shirts Army Men's Under Armour Army Under Armour Coast Guard Men's Coast Guard Men's T-Shirts Coast Guard Men's Under Armour Coast Guard Under Armour Collections DISC Grey LG Marine Men's Marine Men's T-Shirts Marine Men's Under Armour MD Men's T-Shirts Mens Navy Navy Men's Navy Men's T-Shirts Navy Men's Under Armour Navy Under Armour Patriotic T-Shirts Performance sizechart-under armour SM Under Armour Under Armour Freedom Collection USA USCG USMC USMC Under Armour XL //cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0345/3779/9815/products/under-armour-freedom-fierce-competitor-t-shirt-grey-alt1.jpg?v=1585752209 33574168461447 SM 25.00 //cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0345/3779/9815/products/under-armour-freedom-fierce-competitor-t-shirt-grey.jpg?v=1585752209 https://www.armygearus.com/products/under-armour-freedom-fierce-competitor-t-shirt-grey?variant=33574168461447 InStock SM 33574168395911 MD 25.00 //cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0345/3779/9815/products/under-armour-freedom-fierce-competitor-t-shirt-grey.jpg?v=1585752209 https://www.armygearus.com/products/under-armour-freedom-fierce-competitor-t-shirt-grey?variant=33574168395911 OutOfStock MD 33574168363143 LG 25.00 //cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0345/3779/9815/products/under-armour-freedom-fierce-competitor-t-shirt-grey.jpg?v=1585752209 https://www.armygearus.com/products/under-armour-freedom-fierce-competitor-t-shirt-grey?variant=33574168363143 OutOfStock LG 33574168526983 XL 25.00 //cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0345/3779/9815/products/under-armour-freedom-fierce-competitor-t-shirt-grey.jpg?v=1585752209 https://www.armygearus.com/products/under-armour-freedom-fierce-competitor-t-shirt-grey?variant=33574168526983 OutOfStock XL 33574168232071 2XL 25.00 //cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0345/3779/9815/products/under-armour-freedom-fierce-competitor-t-shirt-grey.jpg?v=1585752209 https://www.armygearus.com/products/under-armour-freedom-fierce-competitor-t-shirt-grey?variant=33574168232071 OutOfStock 2XL 33574168297607 3XL 25.00 //cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0345/3779/9815/products/under-armour-freedom-fierce-competitor-t-shirt-grey.jpg?v=1585752209 https://www.armygearus.com/products/under-armour-freedom-fierce-competitor-t-shirt-grey?variant=33574168297607 InStock 3XL	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803366
__label__wiki	0.981602	0.981602	Home News Quake death toll hits 350 in Ecuador Quake death toll hits 350 in Ecuador Photo: www.dw.com Manabi (Ecuador): The death toll from the earthquake that hit Ecuador’s Pacific coast over the weekend now stands at around 350, Security Minister Cesar Navas said on Monday. “We’ve got close to 350 people killed. The number of injured has also risen,” Navas told Teleamazonas from Portoviejo, one of the worst-hit areas. Officials said earlier in the day that 2,068 people were injured in the temblor, which toppled buildings and ripped up streets. Search, rescue and evacuation operations continue, with teams from Colombia, Venezuela, Chile and Cuba, as well as firefighters from the Andean city of Cuenca, joining the effort in the past few hours, Navas said. Aid distribution operations are also ongoing, with supplies being provided to the cities and districts most affected by the magnitude-7.8 earthquake, the minister said. President Rafael Correa, meanwhile, visited the earthquake zone, getting a firsthand look at the damage. Correa spoke with officials and listened to requests for aid and complaints from residents, who said water prices had surged in the aftermath of the natural disaster. Quito Mayor Mauricio Rodas, for his part, said people injured in the earthquake were starting to arrive in the capital for treatment. “The plane that carried humanitarian aid from Quito is returning with the injured so they can receive emergency treatment,” Rodas said in a Twitter post. RTS television reported that other injured earthquake survivors had arrived in Quito on Sunday. International aid is pouring into the South American country, with nearly 500 experts from nine countries, including Spain, Mexico, Chile and Switzerland, helping with search and rescue efforts, Foreign Minister Guillaume Long said in a Twitter post on Monday. A total of 304 aftershocks have been registered since the powerful earthquake hit Ecuador’s northern tropical region on Saturday, Geophysics Institute director Mario Ruiz said on Monday. The magnitude of the 40 aftershocks registered since Sunday night ranged from 3.5 to 5.6, the Geophysics Institute director said, adding that the figures did not include minor aftershocks. The magnitude-7.8 earthquake “ripped up a fault that’s approximately 60 kms wide and 40 kms long, ending exactly in the area where the 1998 temblor occurred and it’s part of the fault that shifted in 1942,” Ruiz said. “We’re talking about an area that has had seismic activity in the past, which had the earthquake of 1906, the 1942 earthquake and, a little more to the south, the 1998 one. It’s a wake-up call to us that we be more aware as a country that we live in a country that’s very exposed to earthquakes,” the Geophysics Institute director told Gama television. –IANS/EFE Previous article‘The Jungle Book’ debuts with over $100 mn in North America Next articleFour Canadians now confirmed dead in Ecuador earthquake B.C. approves NHL games, becoming second province to OK play BCUC approves Fortis BC Energy Inc. 2020 and 2021 delivery rates Metro Vancouver expands protected wetland near Pitt Meadows Crash on forest service road sends man to hospital For ‘jihad’ Pakistani man hands over three sons’ to terrorist outfit	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803371
__label__wiki	0.552183	0.552183	Fantasy Football Rules © FX 5 Rules To Avoid Being The Biggest Jerk In Your Fantasy Football League Christopher Hunt The time is upon us. Soon your email inbox will experience a flood of fantasy football invitations. Managers have already started doing their homework. The fantasy drafts are nearing. And even if you’ve done your draft already, there’s still some things you need to know about fantasy football etiquette. In fact, 74.7 million Americans will play fantasy football this year, spending $4.6 billion according to a study by American Express Spending & Savings Tracker. Most of them will play for money and 1 out of 5 will be women. That’s all the more reason you don’t want to be that guy in your league. You know, the one the rest of the people in your league are discussing on a group text thread, trying to decide whether they should have the commissioner toss you from the league or if they should just band together, lure you to a secluded area and kick the snot out of you. We enlisted help from two of the senior fantasy experts, Brad Evans and Liz Loza of Yahoo! Sports for the unwritten rules of fantasy play. Follow these simple rules before you get benched by your friends. Rule # 1 – Don’t Auto-Draft The reason you play fantasy football is so that you can actually play. Where’s the fun in letting the computer do all the work? Plus, it’s going to be incredibly lame when your team auto-drafts a kicker in the first round or worst, a guy that’s injured and out for the season. But what’s even more egregious is when your auto-draft lands you an all-star fantasy squad while the rest of your league labored for hours, days, weeks prepping for the draft and you somehow end up with Andrew Luck , Jamaal Charles and Calvin Johnson. “We play fantasy football because, yes, it’s competition and there’s financial stakes involved,” Loza said, “but it’s also camaraderie. If you don’t’ want to engage, why don’t you go play solitaire?” Rule # 2 – Don’t Wait Until The Last Minute To Draft Your Pick “C’mon Mister Indecisive, it’s the first pick of the first round, you know who you’re going to pick, just get on with it,” says Loza. Be prepared. Do your research and be ready when it’s your turn. Rule #3 – Don’t Make Ridiculous Trade Offers First of all, it’s only polite to at least respond to trade offers. Don’t just hit the reject button. Give a reason or better yet, make a counter offer that’s make sense. But when it comes to trade offers, don’t be the lame that proposes ridiculous, lopsided trade offers. “Hey, I’ll take Megatron (Calvin Johnson) off your hands, here’s Tim Tebow.,” Evans said. “Those are the people that get on your nerves. Not only that but they alienate themselves, but they make a reputation that this guy’s a hustler.” Not only that, but don’t hassle someone for a trade they clearly don’t want, Loza added. Texting, calling and emailing other guys in your league to badger them for a player you know is off limits It’s safe way to make sure you’re not invited back next year. Rule #4 – Anything Goes In the Message Board As long as everyone knows in advance, no one should really care what happens among friends behind a virtual wall. You have to know what you’re getting yourself into when it comes to trash talk. “But also, there’s always that guy or girl that’s super annoying and comments on everything,” Loza said. “It’s the commenters, we’re the ones that gets paid. You don’t get paid to comment on everything.” Rule #5 – Women Are Fair Game Speaking of talking smack, trash talk should be equal opportunity as well. Loza says there’s no reason to take it easy on the woman or women in your fantasy league. “Also, it’s not okay to ask me if I’m working off my boyfriend’s rankings because I’m not,” she said. “And don’t be offended when I bring a six pack instead of cookies (to the draft)” And now that we’ve discussed how not to be the jerk in your league, it’s time we talk some strategy. Who Should You Pick First? Evans: I’m thumping hard for Andrew Luck in Round 1 and Aaron Rodgers in the early portion of Round 2. People have fallen into this group-think mentality. They follow the herd in terms of thinking elite running back. I still think if you’re in the top five you do go with an Adrian Peterson, Laveon Bell, Eddie Lacy, Marshawn Lynch, those guys, but from the sixth pick on in a 12 –team draft I think you have seriously entertain the services of Luck because there is no player in the entirety of fantasy this year that has a higher floor and offers the same safety and security than Luck because he’s in on of the most nourishing environments in the league. I think he’s going to go for 50 combined touchdowns and 4500 yards. You can unearth a talented running back in the later rounds. Loza: If you’re going to do that you’re going to have to reach for upside later on in your draft because you’re securing your floor early on. Is Odell Beckham A Risky Pick? Evans says no. But Loza says the NFL’s biggest star last year is high risk but also high reward. This takes into account the fact that Beckham played for a New York Giants team last year that was crushed by injury to their receiving corps that included Victor Cruz, who is said to be healthy this season in addition to a rejuvenated Ruben Randle. The Giants also have a healthy Rashad Jennings at running back and added Shane Vereen, who is a threat on the ground and catching the football. Who are the guys you would want to take a chance on? If you like to play high-risk, high-reward, Odell Beckham can be an incredible grand slam, Loza said. That’s if the Giants can find ways to get Beckham opportunities to make big plays but more importantly, if the second-year star out of LSU, can stay healthy. Evans said “the guy I wouldn’t touch with a 10,000-foot pole” is LeSean McCoy. Evans said he understands the upside Shady McCoy brings to any fantasy team, plus “volume” is a sexy word in the fantasy world and McCoy is surely to get his fair share of touches in Rex Ryan’s ground-and-pound offense for the Buffalo Bills. “But the thing with McCoy is that he’s an extremely timid runner all of a sudden,” Evans said he noticed last year when McCoy suited up for the Philadelphia Eagles. That team has the best run-blocking squad in the NFL last season and now McCoy is in Buffalo, which ranked 31st last season in run blocking. He also pointed out that McCoy had one-third of his carries result in zero or negative yardage last season. “That’s too rich for my blood,” Evans said. Loza: I love the sleepers. I’m going to go real deep. This is a guy that you’re not going to draft until one of the very last rounds of your draft, maybe the last round. Right before you draft a kicker. I’m going to go with a guy named Brandon Coleman from the Saints. Sean Payton said he was the winner of the Saints camp. The whole available receivers to Drew Brees are Brandin Cook and Marquis Colston. That man’s knees are made out of Styrofoam cups. If he goes down you’re going to need someone to replace him. Evans: Philip Dorsett of the Indianapolis Colts: The thing about Dorsett is that he’s been running at lightening speed throughout the OTAs, mini-camp and training camp. That’s his calling card. A guy that ran a fantastic 40-yard dash at the combine. He’s a more adept route-runner than he gets credit for. He’s not just a straight line burner. He’s not Torrey Smith. He’s like James Jett back with the Oakland Raiders. Dorsett is a guy that can run a post route, run a slant. I think eh’s going to be very flashy in chucks this year. He’s a guy that you can get in the penultimate pick of your draft.	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803373
__label__wiki	0.812538	0.812538	When Tropical Storm David flooded Mount Washington 40 years ago By Baltimore Sun staff Eileen Aaron, owner of the Something Special boutique, begins cleaning out her Newbury Street store. Waist-high water destroyed most of her stock. Tropical Storm David's flooding caught Mount Washington merchants by surprise. (SUN STAFF FILE / XX) Hurricane David had been downgraded to a tropical storm when it lashed out at Central Maryland and brutally took a direct hit at Baltimore 40 years ago. The weather event formed in the Caribbean in August 1979 and moved up the East Coast of the U.S., from Florida to Maine. On the afternoon and night of Sept. 5, 1979, the storm made a direct hit throughout Baltimore, Anne Arundel and Harford counties. A tornado destroyed an uncompleted home in Kingsville just as construction workers were leaving for the day. Heavy rains from the storm pumped the Jones Falls and Gwynns Falls over their banks. Automobiles swept off the street along Frederick Road near Ten Hills piled up as if they had been towed to a junkyard. The Baltimore Streetcar Museum’s collection of vintage transit vehicles suffered major damage as flood waters corroded electric motors. A 22-year-old woman drowned as she was trapped on the Jones Falls Expressway at 1 a.m. More than 100 workers at the Pepsi-Cola plant, also in the Jones Falls Valley, had to be rescued by boat as the falls quickly surged that stormy night. Some of the worst damage was concentrated in the Mount Washington shopping village, where store owners were helpless as their retail inventories were destroyed by water and mud. Streets flooded in Oella and Ellicott City. Amtrak shut down train service after tracks washed out near Cheverly in Prince George’s County. Eventually, President Jimmy Carter declared a disaster area. News stories said that Baltimore sustained $40 million of the total $66 million damage in the state. Latest Retro Baltimore Retro Baltimore: Central Avenue car barn, a relic of city’s cable car system, to get overhaul Retro Baltimore: Remember when the Clippers ruled the Civic Center? Retro Baltimore: How a calamity brought a new Lexington Market	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803375
__label__wiki	0.592679	0.592679	Stock analysts size up fintech KBW report cuts through the hype and predicts what the future looks like for banks Written by Steve Cocheo Divining fintech’s future calls for separating a lot of cool, wow, new, and, frankly, hubris about digital finance from what’s really going on in the present and what is likely going to happen. Fintech players often bash banks for being stodgy and behind, though there’s increasing talk about partnerships, joint ventures, and acquisitions. But what is realistic? All players in every camp can give convincing presentations—making a seven-minute case for your app or website is a basic of fintech meetings. You can come away from every speaker thinking “hey, they’ve got ‘it’.” Until you hear the next one. Venture capital and other aggressive investors will give newcomers lots of money—to burn or perhaps to launch a rocket. We’ll see. That’s private capital. But when it comes to the stock markets, is fintech a starter? What is its long game? On the flip side, does banking have a future in the face of often-amazing fintech? This fall Keefe, Bruyette & Woods published FinTech Revolution: When The Wind Of Change Blows, Some Build Walls & Others Build Windmills. The fat report was put together by a large team of analysts whose specialties included public companies in multiple financial product areas and in multiple forms of fintech as well. The idea of the group approach was to assemble the firm’s experts in each area to come up with a combined viewpoint on how stock investors should play the fintech movement. Not dead, but not immortal The conclusion of the KBW team is that it is not too late for traditional players to be part of the evolution of financial services, that they are not immediately approaching dinosaur status. Further, how much that future will look like which side of the evolution—banking or fintech—remains to be seen. From the report’s summary: “Will incumbents be distintermediated? Our view is that venture capital-backed startups and established companies that are committed to long-term strategies and acknowledge the potential (and risks) associated with technology can succeed together rather than a binary outcome where only one succeeds and the other fails. Together, through partnerships, acquisitions, or direct investments, both parties can benefit as synergies such as enhanced distribution channels, capital, and veteran industry experience can be combined with fresh, innovative creative thinking along with new capabilities and technologies.” Banking Exchange interviewed KBW’s Tai DiMaio, assistant vice-president, who specializes in card and payments companies. DiMaio served as lead author of the firm’s special report, pulling all the expertise together. The heavily researched project has some comfort for traditional bankers in that it takes a balanced look at fintech as it has played out so far—chiefly looking at the consumer financial services side. “Banks have a significant distribution platform,” says DiMaio. “They have a lot of excess capital—arguably that may be trapped. But they do have the ability to go on the offensive in M&A.” So long as banks see and act on the change that’s out there, the situation isn’t as dire as some would have banks believe. “This situation is not analogous to Uber and its impact on the traditional taxi and limousine industry,” says DiMaio. Piercing the typical fintech enthusiasm, KBW notes four factors that it said should underlie any assessment of fintech today: • Look beyond the wow. Overall market share of most new players is generally small. • Don’t discount inertia. Consumers are creatures of habit, and just because a new product comes out doesn’t mean it will gain traction. • Don’t ignore experience, or its absence. Fintech startups often lack experience in two key areas: They haven’t been through a business cycle yet, and many of these players don’t know bank regulation. (Who knew compliance could be a competitive edge?) • Don’t start the count on banks yet. Incumbent players haven’t been asleep, but have taken notice and some have invested in fintech themselves. “We’re saying in our report that it’s not ‘Game Over’ yet,” says DiMaio, “because now you’re starting to see banks discussing fintech.” CEOs are talking about it—and not scoffing. “You don’t see executives discussing market share and saying these new startups don’t have any,” says DiMaio. “There is acknowledgement that these new technologies can be leveraged and integrated into the banking industry. Now there are aggressive discussions about how fintech can be harnessed, instead of the sort of defensive mannerisms that had been going around.” KBW believes it is important to see that pending fintech evolution affects more than strictly banking’s part of financial services. “This is not just a banking phenomenon,” says DiMaio. Consumer insurance, such as property and casualty coverage, and investment advisory services, now being disrupted by robo-advisor companies, are also part of the report’s scope, as is e-commerce. Quick start, slowing in the stretch DiMaio says KBW believes time is finite for the traditional players. “We don’t argue that there’s obviously significant change coming down the pike for financial services players,” says DiMaio. The report makes the point that this has been going on, albeit at slower speed, since financial services companies first ventured onto the internet. In the firm’s view, fintech managed to gain its lead over the traditional players because of a confluence of events, notably rapidly improving and expanding technology and the aftermath of the financial crisis, including its many regulatory ramifications. Indeed, KBW’s report makes an interesting point about bank branches, where the population peaked in 2012. “During the financial crisis,” the report states, “many institutions found that having a physical presence helped solidify the perception of financial strength as well as client reassurance. Banks made investments in branch infrastructure despite the trends in smartphone development … ” “Fintech was really able to explode” during the post-crisis period, when many banking leaders were preoccupied, says DiMaio. “You saw the niche players take up certain spots of the industry, such as consumer lending, where they targeted some traditionally high return areas from banks. Now you are seeing banks take notice.” Obsolescence is a risk, DiMaio says, but only if banks do nothing about fintech and allow themselves to be turned into a utility that does little more than deposit safekeeping. Because of the combination of tech advantage and post-crisis distraction, many startups had great traction out of the gate but that hasn’t continued, says DiMaio. “They are starting to hit walls of growth and they need to push for greater distribution,” he explains. “They are starting to draw regulatory scrutiny. And this is where you start looking at traditional banking’s advantages. They have the pre-existing distribution platform. They have regulatory know-how. And they’ve been through multiple business cycles.” Those who would write the banking industry’s obituary with a wide brush don’t distinguish between the various sectors of financial services. DiMaio and the report point out that different sectors have been reacting differently to the current trends. “Look at the cards and payments industry,” says DiMaio of his own specialty. “The established players are actually very much involved with the way that startups are interacting in their space. They do a lot of partnerships and they operate many innovation labs. They are doing a lot of technology investment themselves, to make sure that the way the industry evolves is favorable to them, or at least to be in touch with what’s going on.” DiMaio points to lack of wide acceptance in his own specialty to illustrate the point that there is time to catch up. Mobile payments have been in financial headlines since 2010, he says, yet it’s only recently that Apple Pay and more-recent competitors have launched. “We haven’t seen the traction there,” says DiMaio. “It’s probably going to take a generational change, where it will take five to ten years to become mainstream.” EMV adoption in this country, while not precisely a fintech play but more an anti-fraud initiative, has a good lesson to teach, DiMaio suggests. Many merchants have yet to make their move to EMV-compatible terminals. While there is clearly a beneficial impact on fraud, as seen in Europe, DiMaio says many merchants dealing in low-ticket business have not yet seen the benefit of the tradeoff in slower speed at point of sale versus the liability shift. Two such examples are fast-food restaurants and convenience stores. “Their fraud risk is relatively low,” says DiMaio, hence the lack of urgency. But he believes adoption will come in time. Banks that embrace fintech KBW’s report devotes an entire chapter to fintech-focused banks. A notable point made here is that fintech disruption could wind up being a positive for banking in the long term, a catalyst for change. States the report: “The intersection of technology and banking is not a new theme: technological development has been improving banking since the days of papyrus. What makes this wave of innovation different is the fact that it directly disrupts the relationships between banks and their customers, putting the onus on banks to adapt and react.” The report says that the most forward-thinking banks have been using fintech methods to improve the customer experience and to get a jump ahead of other institutions. This chapter specifically cites four companies that KBW follows—and which it rates as “outperform” stocks: BofI Holding, EverBank Financial, Live Oak Bancshares, and SVB Financial Group. The list—and other banks are cited in the report as well—doesn’t include the very largest players such as Wells Fargo and JPMorganChase because, according to DiMaio, the analysts wanted to concentrate on more-typical banks. The largest banks have been very active in fintech strategies, directly or through purchases or partnerships, he explains. “We were trying discuss banks that are trying to do something while they don’t have the sorts of resources that the top 25 banks do,” says DiMaio. Two themes explored by the report are branchless banking and white-label banking. The latter entails banks that make money by providing services behind the scenes for fintech players such as marketplace lenders and bank card operators. The report cites SVB Financial, parent of Silicon Valley Bank, as “the largest U.S. bank exclusively focused on the technology and innovation industries.” The report points out that the bank has “embraced financial technology as a key business driver from many angles.” Among these are its participation in a startup incubator lab, but most of all, the bank’s business model and clientele. Silicon Valley Bank serves the venture capital and private equity firms, and the firms those companies have invested in. Spread income will still dominate An important point to relate from the report is KBW’s belief that even as more fintech evolution takes place, banks will continue to be banks. Fintech startups will have their growing pains, DiMaio says, and will increasingly work with traditional banks. “We think that banks that find the right combination can use the technology to either gain more customers or solidify their existence,” says DiMaio. However, banks won’t become a different category of company. “It’s not as if traditional banks are moving towards different kinds of revenue streams. They are probably going to end up repackaging how their traditional products are sold and provided,” says DiMaio. “At the end of the day, they still going to be spread-based businesses. They are just going to be leveraging technology to execute on that spread business.” Something that sets many fintech players apart is their lack of transparency. Through tools as simple as the FDIC’s bank database, public company filings, and related records, analysts can learn a great deal about the nation’s banks at the touch of a keyboard. No comparable database exists where an analyst or investor can look up a nonbank fintech player’s results in terms of results or company performance. Only a comparable handful have gone public and that is only quite recently. While some data providers have been attempting to build comparable information bases, “it’s a very opaque area,” says DiMaio. When dealing with venture capital and other private investment, that works because critical business information can be shared privately in exchange for potential funding. “It really depends what your end game is,” says DiMaio of the fintech startups. However, while things are far from “game over,” as DiMaio mentioned earlier, the report stresses that the clock is running: “Are banks sleepy? Not necessarily. Historically, with bank technology related to infrastructure, there was not a first mover advantage to being an early adopter—it was better to be a quick follower, adopting the second generation of technology, with bugs worked out and enhancements added. The current, new wave of innovation is disrupting revenue streams and, in our opinion, there is value to being a first mover. But, engrained approaches do not change overnight.” Tagged under Management, Financial Trends, Technology, Feature, Feature3, Steve Cocheo Latest from Steve Cocheo Reg burden hits small hardest Update on fintech charter and other fintech developments OCC eyes rate risk and more Getting real about AI Make small consumer loans, OCC urges	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803376
__label__cc	0.647418	0.352582	1 in 4 firms switch banks today Diminished relationships, rates, channel-switching cited for surge U.S. small businesses and mid-sized companies are not being shy about cutting ties with existing banks in favor of new providers offering better pricing, capabilities, and service, according to research by Greenwich Associates. Historically, corporate bank “switching” rates have averaged about 10% annually. Since the global financial crisis, these rates have been much higher. • About 25% of 144 small businesses interviewed in the third quarter of 2014 said they changed banks in the past 12 months. • Eighteen percent of the 153 mid-sized companies changed banks in the past year—up from the 14% switching rate reported in November 2013. “High switching rates have proved surprisingly persistent over the past several years,” says Greenwich Associates consultant Dana Schwaeber. “It remains to be seen if we have hit a ‘new normal’ in the industry, or if we are seeing the effects of specific market conditions that may recede over time. There is no doubt that, at the moment, companies are very open to solicitations from new providers.” Why firms change banks Mid-sized companies that switch banks do so mainly to get a better price on loans or other banking products. Among small businesses, the top reason for bank switching is to upgrade bank product capabilities. Among both groups, the second-most-frequent motivation for changing banks is dissatisfaction with the original bank’s relationship manager or other representative. Widespread displeasure with relationship manager service could be a function of relatively high levels of turnover in bank staffing. Twenty-eight percent of small businesses and 21% of mid-sized companies said their primary point of contact with their bank changed over the past 12 months. Between 30% and 40% of companies that experienced turnover said it had a negative impact on their relationships with their bank. When the nudge is intentional… Although companies are generally not aware that banks are trying to push some of them to more cost-effective channels, Greenwich Associates’ research on client satisfaction does reveal one finding that could a signal that companies are beginning to feel the effects of this effort. Over the past 12 months, some companies that were giving their banks the highest possible satisfaction ratings (five out of five) have downgraded their providers to more middling threes or fours. “This could be an early indicator of the impact of changes in bank coverage strategies on overall client satisfaction scores, and on the strength of companies’ relationships with their banks,” says Greenwich Associates consultant Duncan Banfield. Request Greenwich Associates report, “U.S. Companies Bullish About Business Prospects and Willing to Change Their Banking Providers.” Tagged under Management, Lines of Business, Colony Bank to Close Five Branches in ‘Strategic Realignment’	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803377
__label__wiki	0.849986	0.849986	Beehive Candy Home BCMR - Radio Stream The Ah - Jody and the Jerms - World/Inferno Friendship Society - Lilly Hiatt - Revolution, I Love You - Plastic Bubble - Modern Pomp The Ah returns with 'The Factory Girl' just a few weeks after sharing 'Watermelon Tears' also taken from his forthcoming 'Mere Husk' album, the two songs suggesting this could well be a very creative collection of songs. === Jody and the Jerms have released their new E.P entitled ' Today' we shared one song from it last November and we have all four fabulous songs to devour today (if you excuse the pun). === Another band making a second appearance here are World/Inferno Friendship Society and the wonderfully titled track 'Having A Double Life Is So Hard (But Obviously Something You Enjoy) V1', where the music is again dynamic, addictive and original. === Lilly Hiatt has just released 'Brightest Star' a refined country rocker with plenty of heart and soul. === Another band back on Beehive Candy for a second time are Revolution, I Love You this time around we have the new track 'Vicious Vicious' the last single ahead of their ne Rev Rev Rev - Palm Ghosts - Human Ottoman - Bedroom - Agnes Obel - Anna Rose - Nada Surf Rev Rev Rev return to Beehive Candy for a third time with a video for 'Adrift In The Chaosmos' a song that blasts into power as the predominately shoegaze piece takes no prisoners. === Palm Ghosts have released 'Wide Awake And Waiting' a beautifully flowing song that leans towards post punk, with plenty of melodic hooks. === We have the full album from Human Ottoman entitled 'Rampage'. This is an imaginative and highly original collection of music that as the band state "brings polyrhythmic rock to the masses," and if your not sure what that musical genre is all about, prepare to be amazed. === Bedroom has released a video for 'Gulf' today. A gentle dreamy piece, it's accompanied by a pleasing and clever video, but it's the music that does it for me. === The new single from Agnes Obel is 'Broken Sleep' a gorgeous contemporary musical piece, it's a fine taster for her new album 'Myopia' due next month. === We featu Eileen Carey - Certain Animals - Kiwi Jr. - Green and Glass Eileen Carey has just released a video for 'Finally' the single originally released back in November. It's been a while since we last featured Eileen, the new video is a fine reminder of her creative ability to mix country, pop and rock together seamlessly. === We featured Certain Animals a couple of times in the latter months of 2019 and now it's a pleasure to share 'Songs To Make You Move' another stylish rocker from the Rotterdam based trio. === Kiwi Jr. return here just three months after we featured 'Salary man' this time we a video for 'Gimme More' another catchy tease ahead of debut album 'Football Money' set for release on January 17th. === Make a note to check out the debut and self titled album from Green and Glass due out on February 14. Comprising of eleven absolutely stunning tracks of which we have 'Gabriel' to enjoy today, this avant pop band really have something special going on. ------------------------------- Amanda Easton - Magical Beasts - Resurrection Fern We have three artists that released new material at the tail end of last year to share today. Amanda Easton released a mini album entitled 'Polaroids & Postcards'. We have the full collection and a video for 'I Saw The Message' from this gifted electronica pop artist. === From Chicago Magical Beasts have released the E.P 'Yes My Love, I Am Reaching', described by the band as a winter record, it's a beautiful collection of folk and Americana. ===Indie folk singer songwriter Resurrection Fern shares 'Fern' a collection of refined acoustic songs that pack feeling and gentle but persuasive musical hooks. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Amanda Easton - Polaroids & Postcards (mini album). Amanda Easton, is a theatrical, soulful pop artist who has released two self-penned albums and three EPs. Two of her singles appearing in the top 10 of the independent Aussie charts. She's a The Mowgli's - Eddie 'Tan Tan' Thornton - Ben Watt There is a brand new video from The Mowgli's for 'Wasting Time', a gorgeous, catchy indie pop song that really charms. === Eddie ‘Tan-Tan’ Thornton has been in the music business for decades and played with some of the best, his new single 'Fur Elise' is a refreshing reggae/ska take on a Beethoven classic and is taken from the splendid 'The Reggae and Ska Nostalgia Album'. === Ben Watt latest single is 'Figures In The Landscape' which comes from his forthcoming 'Storm Damage' album due at the end of this month. Once again Ben's solo work is impressive and oozes personal feeling and passion. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ The Mowgli's - Wasting Time. We have the new visuals from The Mowgli's. Entitled "Wasting Time", the song details the struggle to find meaning in life. Joshua Hogan confides "We all want to do something meaningful, but we don’t a	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803392
__label__cc	0.580207	0.419793	N.E. Fat Loss Patient Reverses Diabetic Symptoms with Weight Loss Apr 01, 2015 04:01PM ● By Pamela Johnson Lose weight successfully at N.E. Fat Loss Food for 71-year-old Alfred Imbruno has always been a core ingredient in his life. Imbruno savored a career as a professional chef and spent his days in the kitchen forever tempted by his delicious creations. Unfortunately, the combination of his vocation and his love of food led to added pounds, which also resulted in diabetes and high blood pressure. Imbruno tried many diets, but always with the same result. He would lose weight, but eventually the pounds came back. On September 26, 2014, Imbruno stepped into New England Fat Loss, and under the direction of Clinic Director Dr. Johns and Weight Loss Specialist Dr. Dembrowski, his whole life changed. In his first 40 days, he dropped 47 pounds and went from 314 pounds to 267 pounds. He then committed to the next stage of the plan and as of December 2, just 82 days into the program, has shed an impressive 67 pounds! “The phase I am doing now is teaching me how to eat and lose weight,” Imbruno said. “Every day, I get on the scale and lose weight and it puts a smile on my face.” Imbruno retired from cooking professionally in 2000 but continues to prepare meals for family and friends. Through Dr. Johns’ and Dr. Dembrowski’s recommendations, however, he has learned to adjust his eating habits. “For Thanksgiving, unlike the usual 25 or 30 desserts I put out, I put out six and baked with sugar-free products,” Imbruno said. “I just kept away from the breads and starches, had a slice of cheesecake, and gave the rest to my company to take home.” The weight loss was his first positive message, but Imbruno received other positive effects from the New England Fat Loss plan. His blood sugar levels stabilized and his blood pressure lowered. His physician removed him from all his diabetic medications and reduced the dosage on his blood pressure prescriptions. “My doctor said ‘stay on this diet; you are doing great,’” Imbruno said. “ ‘If you keep losing weight and your blood pressure goes further down, we will take you off more medications.’” Looking for similar results? Take that first step this spring to lowering that scale and improving your health. New England Fat Loss offers two convenient locations: 22 South Street, Suite 204, Hopkinton and 188 Needham Street, Suite 255, Newton. To learn more, visit their website at www.newenglandfatloss.com or call 1-844-437-8446. In-Print, Community, Life+Leisure, Seniors	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803394
__label__cc	0.677007	0.322993	Berlinale: Programme Jump to main menu www.berlinale.de Annual Archives Archive Help : Programme Film File Elisa und Marcela Natalia de Molina, Greta Fernández [...] Elisa y Marcela \| Elisa & Marcela \| Elisa und Marcela by: Isabel Coixet Natalia de Molina, Greta Fernández Greta Fernández, Natalia de Molina [...] Greta Fernández, Natalia de Molina Isabel Coixet [...] Feb 13, 2019 \| Greta Fernández, Natalia de Molina [...] Feb 13, 2019Greta Fernández, Natalia de Molina The actresses on the Red Carpet. Competition – Elisa y Marcela \| Elisa & Marcela \| Elisa und Marcela Feb 13, 2019 \| Natalia de Molina, Greta Fernández [...] Feb 13, 2019Natalia de Molina, Greta Fernández The actresses giving interviews at the Red Carpet. Feb 13, 2019 \| Isabel Coixet, Natalia de Molina, Greta Fernández [...] Feb 13, 2019Isabel Coixet, Natalia de Molina, Greta Fernández The director with her leading actresses on the Red Carpet. The actresses in the Berlinale Palast. The director with her actresses. Feb 13, 2019 \| Natalia de Molina [...] Feb 13, 2019Natalia de Molina The actress at the premiere. Feb 13, 2019 \| Greta Fernández [...] Feb 13, 2019Greta Fernández The actress in the Berlinale Palast. The actress at the Press Conference. Feb 13, 2019 \| Isabel Coixet [...] Feb 13, 2019Isabel Coixet The Spanish director at the Press Conference. Feb 13, 2019 \| Natalia de Molina, Greta Fernández, Isabel Coixet [...] Feb 13, 2019Natalia de Molina, Greta Fernández, Isabel Coixet Full support! © Gerhard Kassner / Berlinale Isabel Coixet [...] Date: Feb 13, 2019 - Time: 13:56:32 © Gerhard Kassner / Berlinale © Gerhard Kassner / Berlinale Greta Fernández [...] Greta Fernández © Gerhard Kassner / Berlinale Natalia de Molina [...] Natalia de Molina Additional Information [...] Greta Fernández (Actress), Isabel Coixet (Director, Screenwriter), Natalia de Molina (Actress) Moderation: Anatol Weber Press Conference at full length ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## When Marcela and Elisa meet on their first day in high school, it is love at first sight. A deep friendship begins which soon turns into a romantic relationship. Nothing can prevent the two girls’ feelings for each other, not even Marcela’s suspicious parents, who eventually send their daughter to boarding school. Years later, the two women meet again and decide to live together. Both are respected teachers, but their partnership has to be kept secret from the critical Catholic population. For this reason, Elisa decides to pose as a man and marry Marcela. Their wedding photo depicts two young women, one in a black dress with her hair up, the other with a short haircut and wearing a suit; both are looking hopefully into the future. But their love remains exposed to great dangers. Based on true events, Isabel Coixet’s film makes use of black-and-white images and letters for her unfussy but deeply empathetic rendition of the story of Elisa Sánchez Loriga and Marcela Gracia Ibeas, who tied the knot in the church of San Jorge in A Coruña in Spain in 1901. A paean to passion, dignity and resistance. 113’ · Colour Natalia de Molina (Elisa) Greta Fernández (Marcela) Sara Casanovas (Ana) Tamar Novas (Andrés) María Pujalte (Marcela's mother) Francesc Orella (Marcela's father) Jennifer Cox Bernat Aragonés Sofia Oriana Daniel de Zayas Silvia Steinbrecht Mercè Paloma Montse Sanfeliu Luca Vacchi Irene Roqué Production Managers Esperanza García, Eduard Vallès Joaquín Padró, Mar Targarona, Zaza Ceballos, José Carmona The director was born in Barcelona, Spain and studied history before initially working in advertising and communications, winning numerous awards for her commercials. In 2000, she founded her own production company, Miss Wasabi. She has a long-standing connection to the Berlinale: her first international success, Things I Never Told You, screened in the 1996 Panorama; My Life Without Me took part in the Competition in 2003; and six more of her films have featured in the programme over the years. She was also a member of the International Jury in 2009. Filmography (selection) 1989 Demasiado viejo para morir joven (Too Old to Die Young) 1996 Cosas que nunca te dije (Things I Never Told You) 1998 A los que aman (To Those Who Love) 2003 Mi vida sin mi (My Life Without Me) 2005 La vida secreta de les paraules (The Secret Life of Words) 2008 Elegy 2009 Map of the Sounds of Tokio 2012 Marea Blanca; short film 2013 Ayer no termina nunca (Yesterday Never Ends) 2014 Mi otro yo (Another Me) · Aprendiendo a conducir (Learning to Drive) 2015 Nadie quiere la noche (Nobody Wants the Night) · Talking about Rose. Prisoner of Hissène Habré 2016 Spain in a Day; documentary 2017 The Bookshop 2018 Elisa y Marcela (Elisa und Marcela) Bio- & filmography as of Berlinale 2019 Rodar y Rodar Legal Zenit TV La Nube Películas Film Factory Entertainment www.filmfactoryentertainment.com © Internationale Filmfestspiele Berlin	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803397
__label__wiki	0.653628	0.653628	bino realuyo Reflection: "Filipineza" and U2's Joshua Tree 2019 Manila Concert { According to Billboard, the Joshua Tree Tour 2017 drew 2.7 million attendees from 50 shows. The band is currently touring Asia and is performing in the Philippines for the first time. In the U.S. tour in 2017, the concerts featured the poems of Walt Whitman, Langston Hughes, Rita Dove, Naomi Shihab Nye, and Carl Sandberg. } In my life voyage, there have been many, many surprises. But I wouldn't be exaggerating if I said that U2's inclusion of my poem "Filipineza" in its 30th anniversary Joshua Tree Concert, in Manila no less, is at the top of that list. I grew up in Manila where I had to buy my family a radio one Christmas--from money I had saved from my meager allowance--because the only radio we had had been broken for months. Without TV, there was no music or any form of entertainment in the house other than what we heard from our nearby neighbors (which usually traveled with loud voices anyway). Music came to me in my childhood in the form of transistor radios. Moving to the U.S. changed all that. Having a job a couple of months after arrival made many things affordable, including my own television and in that era, a walkman. Going to Wall Street for work was made easy by listening to music. Those were not easy first years considering culture shock and my first ever job in my life. U2’s songs and lyrics were light in the dark and nameless streets of my early years in America. 32 years of Joshua Tree is equivalent to the three decades of my immigrant American life. I know of very few bands, and don't have a very long playlist of songs that I have been listening to for the past 30 years. When I received an email that said on its subject: Licensing Poem 'Filipeza' for U2 Joshua Tree Tour (Private and Confidential), I naturally thought it was spam. But even spams are not that specific and pointed, with correct grammar and punctuation. It took about half an hour to verify the validity and legitimacy of the email. I responded immediately. After all, the concert was in a week, and how could we possibly clear all rights in a few days. Business tasks aside, it put my life on hold for a while. "Where Streets Have No Name" and "With or Without You" were anthems of my youth in NYC. Nostalgia hit me at a time I didn't really welcome it. U2's music is one of those that never fade, locked in parts of my brain that hold the key to my past. For days, I went to work a bit startled and like the teenager who came to a new country for redemption, lost in thoughts. What probably unsettled me most was the fact that it was going to happen in Manila, not here in the U.S., where I have lived for 35 years, where I have published a novel and a poetry collection, where I am attempting to publish two more books. After a little bit of research I found out it has happened before, in 2017, this inclusion of poets. The American poets they included were either already dead or too big a name to probably even care (maybe they did care, but who knows?). So, there is ultimately poetic justice in being included in U2’s concert not in the U.S but in their first ever concert in Manila, the city of my birth. The poem "Filipineza" is after all about Filipinos. I am humbled and moved. I know my literary mind will always find something to write about when I think of this moment. For one thing, "Filipineza" was published in The Nation 18 years ago, and was from a collection published 13 years ago. Shockingly, the state of Filipino servitude outside the Philippines hasn't changed, except for the remittances that have grown so much to support an economy. For now, I truly hope that the poems served their purpose for inclusion —as points of reflection for those who attended the concert, and in the case of my poem “Filipineza” to warn us about the dark side and perils of the Filipino diaspora. My thoughts on the demagogue will be saved for another blog post, but U2, for me, will always be political, and we can't listen to their music and ignore the layered meanings of their words. For this reason, "Filipineza" is an apt inclusion, if only to shed light on the struggles of women who leave the Philippines every year to work as domestics abroad, a "truth" that changed the meaning of "Filipina" to "maids" in Europe. Thank you, U2 and also thank you to these publications for featuring the poem in the news. In our fight for the #truth in a new world that continues to chip away our freedoms and deny us our #HumanRights, I hope poetry could make a difference. From Rappler: Fil-Am poet Bino Realuyo's work to be featured in U2's first Philippine concert CNN Philippines: U2 is set to feature Fil-Am artist’s poem in PH concert ABS-CBN: Behind the poem about Filipino maids used in the U2 concert at Philippine Arena and Fil-Am poet's work to be featured in U2's PH concert Inquirer USA: U2’s Manila concert to feature novelist Bino Realuyo’s poem When in Manila : U2 To Feature Filipino Poet Bino Realuyo’s Work In First Philippine Concert GMA News: U2’s Manila concert to feature Fil-Am writer’s poem ‘Filipineza’ Fil-Am: U2’s Manila concert to feature Bino Realuyo’s poem ‘Filipineza’ Manila Bulletin: U2 concert to feature poem by Fil-Am poet And mentions here: CNN Philippines: U2 Honored During Their "Ultraviolet" Performancelipino women in PH concert Preview PH: All the Filipino Women U2 Honored During Their "Ultraviolet" Performance Tayo News: U2's Manila Concert Features Fil-Am's Poem and Filam Arts Caregiver: Surviving Covid19 Coronavirus Autobiography of #CoronaVirus Facebook Posts Thoughts from the CoronaVirus Epicenter ©2019 Bino A. Realuyo. Proudly created with Wix.com	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803406
__label__cc	0.672686	0.327314	It looks like you have Javascript disabled in your browser. For the best site experience, please enable Javascript. Our site is optimised for use with the latest web browsers. To get the most out of your site experience, please update your current browser. Her are some browsers we recommend: Ingredient information Home News and Insights Threefold surge in published research on yoga Blackmores Institute Threefold surge in published research on yoga Share on LinkedIn Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Google+ Share on Pinterest The number of articles in peer-reviewed journals worldwide about clinical trials of yoga therapy to alleviate disease-related symptoms has tripled in the last decade, new research from the US shows. According to the researchers, writing in The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, the surge in publications has occurred in parallel with an increase in healthy U.S. adults practicing yoga (approximately 21 million) according to the 2012 National Health Interview Survey. To continue reading this article, please Log In or Sign Up for access. Low zinc levels linked to covid-19 mortality Meta-analysis: Vitamin D Supplementation for Major Depression Ashwagandha: Ayurveda’s answer to a good night’s sleep Omega-3 reduces rate of lung disease Complementary medicines interactions guide Health condition fact sheets Ingredient fact sheets 'Speak Up' platform The information on this website is intended for Australian healthcare professionals and is not intended for the general public. Consumers needing healthcare advice should talk to their healthcare professional.	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803410
__label__wiki	0.55089	0.55089	Boxing Forum > Non Boxing Talk > Mixed Martial Arts Discussion John Gotti III well-aware of attention family lineage brings Calendar Free Registration Mark Forums Read OctoberRed Quoted: 4499 Post(s) Points: 126,543.50 Bank: 2,092.07 Total Points: 128,635.57 John Gotti III wants to create his own path as one of the top welterweight prospects in the sport, but he is proud of his last name and the attention that comes with it. Gotti III will look to improve to 6-0 when he faces Nick Alley in the main event of CES 61 on Oct. 14, which takes place inside “The Tent” at the Crowne Plaza in Warwick, R.I. The event streams live on UFC Fight Pass. The 27-year-old is the grandson of infamous mob boss John Gotti, which strikes most headlines every time he competes. Gotti knows that will be something he’ll deal with throughout his career, especially when he takes the expected step to the UFC, Bellator, or another high-level promotion. “Every time I do fight, it’s gonna be brought up and it’s gonna be mentioned because I have the exact name,” Gotti told MMA Fighting while appearing on What the Heck. “I’m not ashamed of it. I embrace my name. I’m proud of my name and I’m gonna do the best I can to represent my name so my sons, my grandsons, can walk proudly. “I’ll walk through fire with my name, raise the black flag always and I’ll go to war for my name. I’m proud of it but it is what it is. It’ll always be mentioned when I fight because it’s the elephant in the room. I don’t get annoyed by it at all.” After four consecutive first-round finishes to kick off his pro career, Gotti faced his most experienced opponent to date at January’s CES 60 event in Marcos Lloreda. For the first time in his young career, the Long Island MMA standout went to the judges’ scorecards and was able to earn a unanimous decision in a back-and-forth battle. Now he faces, Alley (6-3), who is riding a three-fight win streak, all by submission. The Hookset, N.H., native jumped on this opportunity after his scheduled fight with UFC veteran Marcus Davis for New England regional promotion Premier FC was cancelled due to COVID-19 concerns. With around a month to prepare for Alley, who has yet to go the distance in any of his pro fights, Gotti feels as if he’s got answers for everything his opponent brings to the table. “I heard about Nick over the years on the regional scene,” Gotti said. “I’m definitely familiar with him. He’s a tough kid, comes from a good school so I’m sure he’s training his butt off for this fight. I’m sure they have a solid game plan they’re bringing, but we’re ready for anything. I have a good team at Long Island MMA with Ryan LaFlare who’s helping me come up with my own game plan. We’re ready for anything.” Gotti said that he’s been motivated by teammate Brian Kelleher’s active 2020 in the UFC’s octagon and is looking forward to competing without fans. The 170-pound prospect is one of the biggest draws on the regional scene, packing houses for all of his CES fights, but admits he likes to keep to himself for the most part and leads a simple life—which makes the empty arena setting something that’s quite suitable. When it comes to a prediction for the fight, Gotti expects his hand to be raised at the end. Whatever openings Alley provides he’ll be happy to take. “I’m gonna fight smart and fight my game,” Gotti explained. “I’m gonna look to pick him apart and see what he brings. He’ll have a game plan and try to pull some slick stuff, some submissions and things like that. I got hard sparring for this camp with different guys—some middleweights, light heavyweights and some bigger guys. “I’ve been pushed to the max for this camp so I’m ready to fight and have a slice of pizza or something (afterwards).” Prior to his last fight, UFC president Dana White tweeted that Gotti was about to make the walk, which was something that caught a lot of people’s attention, including Gotti himself. With White clearly intrigued by his progress, Gotti plans to remain patient and focus on improving in the always-evolving sport of mixed martial arts. Should he have an impressive showing in the CES 61 headliner, Gotti believes a big opportunity may come—whether it be a shot on the Contender Series, an offer from the UFC, or, perhaps, even a call from Scott Coker and Bellator. Although it’s a possibility, Gotti is still taking things one fight at a time. “I think there’s gonna be a lot that comes from this fight,” Gotti stated. “If we win impressively, I’ll sit down with my team to discuss the rest of the year and see what the next steps are. They may be a big next step, it may be a tiny next step, but there will definitely be something big depending on how we look here. “This fight is big for me. With a win, I’m anticipating a step up. I don’t know where, don’t know when. But we’ll see.” Find More Posts by OctoberRed Add OctoberRed to Your Ignore List Undisputed Champion Points: 75,176.08 Bank: 21,685.75 Total Points: 96,861.83 I wonder if it goes to the scorecards and it's close if judges are "influenced" (adjusts tie) at all. Make 'em an offer they can't refuse. Find More Posts by Anthony342 Add Anthony342 to Your Ignore List ShoulderRoll Franchise Bridgerweight Quoted: 19818 Post(s) Points: 8,585.34 Bank: 716,328.69 Why would he be proud of the name? John Gotti was a criminal whose egotistical actions and blundering brought down the most powerful crime family in NYC. It's embarassing if anything. Find More Posts by ShoulderRoll Add ShoulderRoll to Your Ignore List revelated Bank: 0.00 Gotti is proud of his name because he was a made man at one point. I remember him cutting an interview saying he wasn't involved anymore, but everyone knows the Fertitta's were associated, so who knows. Find More Posts by revelated Add revelated to Your Ignore List Beercules Lounge POTY '17 Points: 1,214,000.25 Total Points: 1,476,374.35 Originally Posted by Anthony342 If they don't, might find themselves in cement boots buried in the Meadow lands Image View Removed. Please Click Here. Find More Posts by Beercules Add Beercules to Your Ignore List Originally Posted by Beercules AKA Met Life. They can say hi to Jimmy Hoffa. User Control Panel Private Messages Subscriptions Who's Online Search Forums Forums Home Boxing Forums Non Stop Boxing Global Boxing Scene Boxing History Training & Nutrition Fantasy Boxing Fantasy Betting Fantasy Fights Non Boxing Talk Boxing Scene Lounge Mixed Martial Arts Discussion Member Lounges The E-Ninja Lounge Team Russia No-Flaming Lounge Fantasy Sports Team Classic Lounge The Limey Lounge TPS Smack Talk Aussie Forum Pinoy Lounge Latino Lounge Hip Hop Forum Arcade Talk Comments & Suggestions The Thunderdome	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803414
__label__cc	0.640789	0.359211	SURF \| OCEAN MIXED TAPE Online Premier \| Chasing Lines A few months ago, the team at Discover Cape Town & Western Cape, set out on an adventure, looking to discover new places and experiences. Armed with a map and a sense of curiosity, they discovered that not only is our province a place of epic, natural beauty, but more importantly, it is home to a diverse, warm and welcoming people. But then what is adventure, if not a journey of discovery, of one's self and of all the people that you meet along the way? This is "Chasing Lines", an ode to the best that the Western Cape has to offer, and the man who put it all (literally) on the map, Peter Slingsby. Photo \| Ben Page The outdoors will forever hold a unique allure to humankind's adventurous spirit. For centuries, man has traversed our world in search of exciting adventures and mysterious natural places, constantly pushing the boundaries as to what is possible. But there is always an ever-present challenge lurking, a responsibility that often transcends human ability yet speaks to the very core of our adventurous spirit. Conquering the outdoors is one thing, respecting and protecting it is another. This festival is a celebration of exactly that. We’re a passionate team of creative people bringing you a collection of both locally and internationally produced content that will provoke a true sense of what it means to have a deep passion for wild and off beat places. CLIMB. SURF. FLY. RIDE. FIGHT FOR YOUR ENVIRONMENT. CONSERVE. PROTECT. INSPIRE. EXPLORE. LIVE. CREATE YOUR OWN ADVENTURE. An annual showcase of both local and international content creators with a deep passion for wild, off beat places. © 2020 by Go Trail Media \| Black Bean Productions	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803417
__label__wiki	0.571827	0.571827	You are at:Home»Marketing»Influencer marketing needs to prioritize content over commerce Influencer marketing needs to prioritize content over commerce By Forrest Cardamenis on January 28, 2016 Marketing The majority of brands now have influencer marketing strategies, but budget remains an obstacle, according to a new report from Fashion and Beauty Monitor. Almost 70 percent of brands, which include United States and British brands mostly in luxury, but also in the mass-market sector, say they have or will soon have influencer-marketing strategies, but two-fifths are held back by budget constraints. While marketers are still trying to determine cost-effective practices, the tactic is beginning to prioritize commerce ahead of content and lose its authenticity. “Brands have historically had full editorial control of how their products are marketed,” said Priyanka Dayal, content marketing manager for Centaur Media PLC, of which Fashion Monitor is a part. “However, when working with influencers, brands have to let go and allow influencers control of the narrative to preserve the authenticity of what is being communicated. “Consumers today are targeted with information at every step of every day,” she said. “They know the difference between an advert, a personal recommendation and an advert masked under a personal recommendation only too well. “For influencer marketing to sustain, authenticity and credibility is key.” 348 marketing specialists, including in-house brand marketers, agencies, consultants and media owners representing the UK and U.S. fashion and beauty industry responded to Fashion and Beauty Monitor’s “The Rise of Influencers.” Influencers provide a way to get word about the brand and products out from a party other than the brand itself. Speaking through a mediator in this manner will make the message more trustworthy, as consumers are inclined to see words from the brand as a sales push but words from an individual as a recommendation. Only 6 percent of those surveyed have worked with influencers for at least 5 years, compared to almost 40 percent for two years, 57 percent overall, and an additional 21 percent with plans this year. But with more brands incorporating influencers into the marketing strategy, influencers are themselves getting savvy. Numerous department stores have embraced fashion bloggers over the past year, with Harrods, Bloomingdale’s and Bergdorf Goodman all having influencer campaigns (see story). Blogger Jessie Bush poses for Harrods However, 39 percent of respondents are held back by budget constraints, and 59 percent say engaging with influencers is a challenge because they are aware of whom they can work with and what they can command. In response, 60 percent are set to increase their influencer-marketing budget in 2016. Traditionally, “influencers” meant high-profile celebrities, usually athletes, actors or pop stars, but today it includes the most popular bloggers, vloggers and social media personalities. Although a popular fashion blogger will never become a household name a la Lady Gaga, Halle Berry or LeBron James, their fan bases will more closely align with the brand’s target audience, meaning the lower reach is made up for in a higher conversion rate. However, this same logic dictates that brands need not pull from the top-end of social media personalities. A popular social media personality may not be a fit for a brand, either because of mismatched values and personalities or perhaps because teenagers or other inactive consumers comprise a large share of the audience. Instead, brands should first identify the audience they want to reach, and then find a correlative influencer. Partnering with influencers not based on who has the largest following but rather whose audiences overlap could help brands slash costs and increase conversions simultaneously. If a match is made and the collaboration is authentic, a brand can authenticate the relationship with follow-ups. In late December, Italian jeweler Bulgari reunited the influencers from its Roman holiday campaign for one last gifting push. On a sponsored post on Facebook, Bulgari brought together the bloggers behind Eat Sleep Wear, Sea of Shoes and Wendy’s Lookbook to promote the pieces in the B.zero1 collection. By continuing an aspect of a campaign, the correlation between the influencer and partner brand may ring more true for consumers who have been following along (see story). Bulgari holiday bloggers Over three quarters of those surveyed said that influencers are identified and managed in-house. Fourteen percent use a specialist agency to identify and manage influencers, just 7 percent identify in-house and outsource management and a mere percentage point does the reverse. Of that 85 percent who identify in-house, 84 percent do so manually, meaning they comb through forums and social media platforms looking for a fit. Done this way, it is hard to garner a complete picture of influence, and apparent fits in terms of personality and reach may in fact do little for generating sales. Nonetheless, 72 percent call their own influencer marketing either “very effective” or “effective,” with particularly high numbers in product launch and content promotion/distribution categories. This seems to contradict the consensus that measuring ROI is a challenge and looks especially good given that 42 percent use 10 percent of the overall budget on influencer marketing. Nevertheless, 59 percent will increase the budget this year. Blogger Camille Charriere for Bergdorf Goodman Further complicating the field, some experts think that influencer marketing is becoming too common, meaning it loses authenticity and thus usefulness. “It becomes a race to the bottom between the brand and the influence: You scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours, and what’s in it for me,” said Tim Bax, creative director of iCrossing, for the report. “And as soon as it becomes too commercial, people aren’t stupid, they can see what the influencers are doing. If they’re pushing stuff too much they’ll lose their voice in the community. “Of course they want to monetize their activity, but we’ve made it too much about commerce and not enough about the quality of content,” he said. “This will be a trend that will change in the future.” Commerce vs. content To appear authentic, influencers must be judged on the quality of the content they create rather than how directly they push sales. As compared to traditional advertising, influencers will work like word-of-mouth, with quality content leading to natural conversions where more overt sales pitches will alienate a follower base full of prospects for the brand. In one instance, footwear and accessories label Jimmy Choo compiled the influential opinions of style bloggers to show off its snow-ready shoes. The brand gathered eight digital influencers in Zurmatt, Switzerland for its “Snow Choos” effort, capturing its cruise collection boots on a powdery mountaintop. In many cases, influencers are more trusted and more revered by consumers than traditional celebrities, making this campaign a way for Jimmy Choo to ignite interest in the wintry footwear (see story). Jimmy Choo winter blogger Aimee Song Because the influencers posted photos to Instagram, it is likely that Jimmy Choo was targeting a younger audience. The platform also allowed the influencer more control over the content, meaning it would not appear to be branded content. In another case, Italian department store Luisa Via Roma explored the intersection of technology and fashion with the help of a bevy of bloggers earlier this January. The 12th edition of its Firenze4Ever event, which brought together journalists and influencers in Florence, took inspiration partly from Swarovski and explored visionaries and “TechDreamers.” Fashion and tech are colliding more frequently, making this a timely subject for the retailer’s biannual event to investigate (see story). “While a celebrity can undoubtedly get the message in front of millions, that message is likely to get lost if the audience is not interested,” Centaur Media PLC’s Ms. Dayal said. “Bloggers or YouTube stars, on the other hand, talk to a niche audience that is actually listening/following what they have to say so the impact can be more powerful. “Marketers need to understand that where influencer marketing is concerned, context is king.” B.zero1 Being Social Bloggers Brands Bulgari Celebrity Consumers Eat Sleep Wear Facebook Fashion Halle Berry Influencer Marketing Instagram Jimmy Choo Lady Gaga LeBron James Luisa Via Roma Luxury brands Marketers Roman Holiday campaign Sea of Shoes Snow Choos Social Media Technology Wendy’s Lookbook YouTube Stars Forrest Cardamenis Forrest Cardamenis, editorial assistant on Luxury Daily, New York	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803418
__label__cc	0.581926	0.418074	Opera Regions CD/Books/DVDs UK / West End Opera Singer Charged With Assaulting a Federal Officer at Mar-a-Lago Will Use Insanity Defense Hannah Roemhild was charged with driving an SUV toward a barrier at Mar-a-Lago and assaulting a federal officer in January. BroadwayWorld.com Dec. 18, 2020 Connecticut opera singer Hannah Roemhild, who was charged with driving an SUV toward a barrier at Mar-a-Lago and assaulting a federal officer, will use the insanity defense, The Palm Beach Post reports. Roemhild was charged with assaulting a federal officer with a deadly weapon, as well as two counts of aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer, and fleeing and resisting an officer without violence. The incident took place on January 31 when an off-duty Florida Highway Patrol trooper saw Roemhild dancing on the hood of the SUV. She then got in her vehicle, and led the trooper on a chase. A U.S. Secret Service agent fired at her when she drove through the barriers at Mar-a-Lago, but no one was injured. She was arrested at a nearby hotel. Attorneys Chris Haddad and David Roth have both stated this week that Roemhild "was suffering from a severe mental disease or defect rendering her unable to appreciate the nature and quality or the wrongfulness of her acts." Roth said that Roemhild has a history of mental health issues and was off her medications during the incident. A jury trial in U.S. District Court is scheduled for April 12. Read more on The Palm Beach Post. Related Articles View More Opera Stories Opera Orlando's Encore Performance of DIE FLEDERMAUS: THE REVENGE OF THE BAT Extended Winners Announced For The 2020 BroadwayWorld Opera Awards! Renée Fleming Leads Third Year of SongStudio Workshop for Young Singers The Met Announces Two-Week Schedule for Nightly Met Opera Streams Featuring LA TRAVIATA, NORMA & More High Museum Announces 2020 Acquisitions Including Rare Ruth Clement Bond Quilt, European Prints & More True Colors And The Hansberry Project Announce THE DRINKING GOURD: BLACK WRITERS AT WORK VIDEO: Watch Sneak Peek of BILLY STRITCH SINGS MEL TORME at The Cabaret Project of St. Louis' Virtual Season, TRIBUTES The Alliance Theatre's Animated Feature SIT-IN Now Available to Stream BWW Review: See Barton as Julia in BON APPETIT! A SWEET SOIREE New Digital Shorts From Missy Mazzoli and Ellen Reid Premiere On LA Opera On Now This Month Fort Worth Opera Announces A NIGHT OF BLACK EXCELLENCE: PAST, PRESENT, AND FUTURE Virtual Benefit Concert Opera America Awards First-Ever Idea Opera Residencies for The Development Of New-to-Opera BIPOC Creators Opera SHOWS	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803420
__label__cc	0.741383	0.258617	Tito’s Vodka plans to make hand sanitizer amid the COVID-19 pandemic NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN/CNN) — A company known for making liquids for your mouth is now working on liquid for your hands. Hand sanitizer to be exact. Tito’s Vodka announced via tweet that it’s focused on producing 24-tons of hand sanitizer after previously reporting its vodka wouldn’t be an effective hand sanitizer to combat coronavirus. The Texas-based business says it will make a product that adheres to industry and governmental guidance. Tito’s Vodka cannot be used to make hand sanitizer, company says The distillery will make 24 tons of hand sanitizer after the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau authorized production by permitted distillers. Hand sanitizer has to be at least 60% alcohol in order to be effective. They also continued to advise customers not use their vodka as a way to keep your hands clean. While we advise that you cannot use our vodka as a hand sanitizer, our distillery has been working hard to get all of the pieces in place to begin production on 24 tons of hand sanitizer that adheres to industry and governmental guidance. Please see attached for more information. pic.twitter.com/c5pTzVOvv1 — TitosVodka (@TitosVodka) March 22, 2020	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803423
__label__wiki	0.552409	0.552409	Two brothers arrested, accused of trying to run down 3 Black teens on bicycles by: Teresa Pellicano and Jodi Latina and Nexstar Media Wire Posted: Jun 26, 2020 / 05:14 AM CDT / Updated: Jun 25, 2020 / 04:15 PM CDT MANCHESTER, Conn. (WTNH) — Two brothers accused of nearly running down three black teens on bicycles with their vehicle Sunday in Manchester, Connecticut were arrested on multiple counts, including a hate crime charge. Twenty-seven year-old Matthew Lemelin and 28-year-old Michael Lemelin, both of Manchester, were taken into custody Monday. Manchester police said they responded around 1:30 a.m. Sunday for a report of a “vehicle that attempted to strike a bicyclist and a theft of a bicycle from a pedestrian.” When they arrived, three Black teens told the officers they were riding their bikes when the two men followed them. Police said they were told that the vehicle ran off the road at one point, almost striking one of the bike riders, and that one of the two men yelled racial slurs before getting out of the truck to run after the teens. One of the men is accused of stealing a bicycle abandoned by one of the fleeing teens. No injuries were reported from the incident. Matthew Lemelin was charged with: Intimidation based on Bigotry or Bias in the Second Degree Risk of Injury to Minor Reckless Endangerment in the Second Degree Breach of Peace in the Second Degree Larceny in the Sixth Degree Criminal Mischief in the Third Degree Michael Lemelin was charged with: Protesters gathered in Manchester Monday night to express their anger and frustration over the alleged incident. Parents told sister station WTNH that while the teens who were chased were not physically hurt, the racially-charged incident has sparked a new charge for justice and equality. “My daughter says, ‘I’m not going to ride my bike in Manchester anymore.’ And what do I tell her?” said Keren Prescott, of PowerUp Manchester. “I can’t tell her with confidence, ‘no, it’s OK’ because it took police almost three days to get these men … So what do I tell my children? I tell my children ‘you have to stay with me until I can make this place, this world, a safer place for you, and I don’t know when that’s going to be.’” Both brothers were held on $150,000 bond and are scheduled to appear in court on Aug. 18.	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803424
__label__wiki	0.527895	0.527895	Illegal arms trafficking in Ostend: airport considering filing a complaint Ostend airport is thinking of filing an official complaint after allegations of illegal arms trafficking to Libya reported by Het Laatste Nieuws on Wednesday. “I have not read the article, and will not read it. This sounds to me like a deliberate smear campaign and we are considering legal options; they are attacking our collaborators’ integrity,” pointed out Marcel Buelens, CEO. “We have heard nothing about an official investigation; if there is one, we will fully cooperate.” Information reported by Het Laatste Nieuws originally came from African sources, but United Nations experts allegedly already expressed doubt as to its veracity, according to the daily paper. The Libyan sources cited said that arms transiting through Ostend airport are going to Islamists opposed to the government. The Boeing 747 which left Ostend for Libya last week allegedly carried all sorts of ammunition and light anti-aircraft artillery. The same sources were unable however to explain where the arms found on board came from. They mention however that Ostend flights land in UAE regularly, a country recently proven to be the starting point of weapons headed for Libya.	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803425
__label__wiki	0.88912	0.88912	Hasenhuttl ready for fierce welcome but focused on football The two south-coast clubs have not gone head to head since 2012. Published: 23 September 2019 - 11.13am By Press Association Published: 23 September 2019 - 11.13am Football Southampton Southampton manager Ralph Hasenhuttl wants his team to rise above the hostile welcome which will await them against bitter rivals Portsmouth at Fratton Park in the Carabao Cup. The two south-coast clubs have not gone head to head in one of English football’s most intense contests since 2012. With the Saints now in the Premier League and Pompey battling back from severe financial problems to try to get promoted from League One, there will be plenty of bragging rights on the line on Tuesday night. While Hasenhuttl knows full well what a win would mean to Saints fans, the Austrian insists his players must focus on their own performance – whatever atmosphere they run out into. “I have seen the videos about the history of these games, about the rivalry… I know everything,” the Southampton manager said. “I can say that every member of this club and team is looking forward to this game, because we have a big chance to write the history in our way. “It is not thinking about what we can lose there, it is thinking about what we can win there – we can win a lot there. “Finally it ends up 11 against 11 on the ground, everything before and after the game we should move away from.” - Ralph Hasenhuttl “It is a cup game, and they always have a special atmosphere, it is a special moment for every player, this atmosphere is important for every cup competition. “I expect a very tight game against an opponent who gives everything, and in the end hopefully there will be the right winner. “It is important for us and for my team that we know what we are focusing on, which is our performance and we will show this from the first minute. “We are not going there thinking it is easy, we will need the very best performance ever.” While the Pompey faithful will certainly look to play things up off the pitch, Hasenhuttl is only concerned by matters on it as his team seek a swift response to a 3-1 home Premier League defeat by Bournemouth. “Finally it ends up 11 against 11 on the ground, everything before and after the game we should move away from,” Hasenhuttl told a press conference. “That is not really something we can influence. For us it is more important to focus on the 90 minutes on the pitch. “At places like Burnley and Sheffield (United), you cannot say it was a nice atmosphere in the stadium – it was also very loud, we have to compete as a team on the pitch. “I have seen similar games in Germany in the cup, where there were about 6,000 police in the town to make everything safe. “What I want to see is a football celebration, two teams that do everything to win.” Summer signing Moussa Djenepo is facing a spell out of action (Tim Goode/PA) Hasenhuttl has vowed to send out the “best possible team” but will again be without forward Moussa Djenepo, who is continuing to recover from a muscle issue. “It can take longer until he is back in the team, which is not really good for us that he could be longer out,” the Southampton boss said. “It is a very difficult injury because the tendon is a little bit hurt and it is a big risk to take him on the pitch. He still has problems with his muscle and he cannot shoot. “It also can be that the other muscles take the function and try to make this muscle more stable, but in the moment I don’t have a really good message.” TAGS Football Southampton Moussa Djenepo	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803427
__label__wiki	0.552236	0.552236	Updated November 26, 2020 05:26 a.m. ET S&P 500, Dow Pull Back From All-time Closing Highs After Grim Jobless Data Stephen Culp Reuters - The S&P 500 index closed lower on Wednesday as mounting U.S. layoffs in the wake of new mandated lockdowns to contain surging COVID-19 infections dampened investor risk appetite. The index and the Dow Jones Industrial Average retreated from record closing highs, pulled lower by cyclicals and small caps that drove the rally earlier in the week. Pandemic-resilient tech and tech-adjacent market leaders helped keep the Nasdaq afloat. "It's a growth day, flipping back the other way away from value," said Tim Ghriskey, chief investment strategist at Inverness Counsel in New York. "It's this ongoing struggle between the virus and the vaccine." "There's a reality setting in that while the vaccine will start being distributed fairly quickly, the virus isn't go away quickly and therefore the timeline for economic improvement is getting pushed out." A wide range of data released in advance of Thursday's Thanksgiving holiday was dominated by a second consecutive week of unexpected jobless claims increases, suggesting that new restrictions to combat spiking coronavirus cases could hobble the struggling labor market's recovery. "The economic data is not good, and we know it won't be good for some time given this new wave of the virus," Ghriskey added. The market appeared to be replaying the previous two weeks, which began with rallies driven by promising vaccine news but pivoted back to stay-at-home plays on near-term pandemic realities and lack of new fiscal stimulus. Still, the vaccine developments and removal of uncertainties surrounding the U.S. presidential election have driven Wall Street indexes to record closing highs, and put the S&P 500 on course for its best November ever. Market participants believe U.S. stocks have more room to climb. A recent Reuters poll showed analysts believe the S&P 500 will gain 9% between now and the end of 2021. The index has surged about 66% since the coronavirus-led crash in March and is up about 12% so far this year. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 173.77 points, or 0.58%, to 29,872.47; the S&P 500 lost 5.76 points, or 0.16%, to 3,629.65; and the Nasdaq Composite added 57.08 points, or 0.47%, at 12,094.40. Of the 11 major sectors of the S&P 500 seven ended the session in the red, with energy suffering the largest percentage loss. The economically sensitive banking sector lost ground, with the S&P 500 Banks index shedding 0.7%. Tesla Inc, which surpassed $500 billion in market capitalization on Tuesday, extended its gain by 3.4% even after the electric-car maker recalled about 9,500 vehicles. The company also plans to start manufacturing electric vehicle chargers in China starting next year, according to documents it submitted to Shanghai authorities. Declining issues outnumbered advancers on the NYSE by a 1.24-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 1.01-to-1 ratio favored decliners. The S&P 500 posted 15 new 52-week highs and no new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 120 new highs and eight new lows. Volume on U.S. exchanges was 10.76 billion shares, compared with the 11.17 billion average over the last 20 trading days. © 2020 Reuters All rights reserved. Petco Share Price To Take Another 3% Bite At Friday's Nasdaq Whistle January 15, 2021 by Charleston Lim Asia Markets Like U.S. Virus Aid Asia Indexes Bright On World Economic, Virus Recovery January 14, 2021 by Tom Westbrook and Chibuike Oguh S&P Closes Higher With Defensive Sectors Leading Gains January 14, 2021 by Sinéad Carew Analysis: Wall Street Brushes Off Political Turmoil, Looks To Economic Rebound January 14, 2021 by Lewis Krauskopf Virus Battle Advances Help Asia Markets January 13, 2021 by Chibuike Oguh	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803428
__label__wiki	0.619548	0.619548	Select a school logo to customize your Big Ten Network+ experience with pre-filtered content for your chosen school. You can change this setting any time. On and Off the Court with Nick Ward \| Michigan State \| Big Ten Basketball \| The Journey After dealing with a family health scare last season,Michigan State big man Nick Ward is thriving on the court. New content from "The Journey" is uploaded every Tuesday. Get alerts and SUBSCRIBE to Big Ten Network on YouTube: http://www.btn.com/youtubesubscribe Looking for videos for your favorite Big Ten school? FOLLOW our YouTube Big Ten school Playlists: ▶ ILLINOIS: http://www.btn.com/illini ▶ INDIANA: http://www.btn.com/hoosiers ▶ IOWA: http://www.btn.com/hawkeyes ▶ MARYLAND: http://www.btn.com/terrapins ▶ MICHIGAN: http://www.btn.com/wolverines ▶ MICHIGAN STATE: http://www.btn.com/spartans ▶ MINNESOTA: http://www.btn.com/gophers ▶ NEBRASKA: http://www.btn.com/huskers ▶ NORTHWESTERN: http://www.btn.com/wildcats ▶ OHIO STATE: http://www Live chat support, email us or check out the FAQ page. Live Chat Email Us Do Not Sell My Personal Information Terms of Use Privacy Policy © 2007-2021 Big Ten Network Conference - All Rights Reserved.	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803429
__label__wiki	0.593961	0.593961	Hawks, Eagles, Falcons/ The Crossley ID Guide: Raptors by Crossley, Richard; Jerry Liguori & Brian Sullivan Format: Flexi-binding Temporarily out of stock. Order now and we will contact you with a delivery date as soon as possible. If you pay by credit card, it will not be charged until it is shipped. Part of the revolutionary Crossley ID Guide series, this is the first raptor guide with lifelike scenes composed from multiple photographs-scenes that allow you to identify raptors just as the experts do. Experienced birders use the most easily observed and consistent characteristics-size, shape, behavior, probability, and general color patterns. The book's 101 scenes-including thirty-five double-page layouts-provide a complete picture of how these features are all related. Even the effects of lighting and other realworld conditions are illustrated and explained. Detailed and succinct accounts from two of North America's foremost raptor experts, Jerry Liguori and Brian Sullivan, stress the key identification features. This complete picture allows everyone from beginner to expert to understand and enjoy what he or she sees in the field. The mystique of bird identification is eliminated, allowing even novice birders to identify raptors quickly and simply. Comprehensive and authoritative, the book covers all thirty-four of North America's diurnal raptor species (all species except owls). Each species is featured in stunning color plates that show males and females, in a full spectrum of ages and color variants, depicted near and far, in flight and at rest, and from multiple angles, all caught in their typical habitats. There are also comparative, multispecies scenes and mystery photographs that allow readers to test their identification skills, along with answers and full explanations in the back of the book. In addition, the book features an introduction, and thirty-four color maps that accompany the plates. Whether you are a novice or an expert, this one-of-a-kind guide will show you an entirely new way to look at these spectacular birds. The Crossley ID Guide: Eastern Birds The Crossley ID Guide: Waterfowl The Crossley ID Guide: Britain and Ireland Hawkwatching Raptor Management Birds of Prey- Identification BNA - BoP	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803432
__label__wiki	0.7117	0.7117	A School Superintendent Sent Out A Snow Day Announcement That's Making Everyone Emotional "For just a moment, we can all let go of the worry of making up for the many things we missed by making sure this is one thing our kids won’t lose this year." Julia Reinstein BuzzFeed News Reporter Last updated on December 16, 2020, at 5:11 p.m. ET Brian Davies / AP With remote learning well established in school districts across the country due to the coronavirus pandemic, it may seem like the end of snow days as we once knew and loved them. Instead of sleeping in and having snowball fights, many students on the East Coast — which was hit by a snowstorm Wednesday — will be logging in for Zoom school. "I know we all grew up with the excitement of snow days, but this year is different," New York City mayor Bill de Blasio said. "Tomorrow will be a FULL REMOTE learning day for our students." But one superintendent in West Virginia decided to give students the day off anyway on Wednesday, saying there are good reasons to call a snow day besides the roads being too icy. In a letter to the school community on Tuesday, Jefferson County Schools Superintendent Bondy Shay Gibson said she was canceling classes so that students and faculty could take a much-needed break during a very hard year. "For generations, families have greeted the first snow day of the year with joy," Gibson's letter states. "It is a time of renewed wonder at all the beautiful things that each season holds. A reminder of how fleeting a childhood can be. An opportunity to make some memories with your family that you hold on to for life." "For all of these reasons and many more, Jefferson County Schools will be completely closed for tomorrow, Dec. 16, in honor of the 1st snow day of the year," the letter continues. "Closed for students ... closed for virtual ... closed for staff." Gibson said she hoped the snow day would provide the kind of joy, rest, and celebration that has been so rare during the pandemic. "It has been a year of seemingly endless loss and the stress of trying to make up for that loss," she said. "For just a moment, we can all let go of the worry of making up for the many things we missed by making sure this is one thing our kids won’t lose this year." "So please, enjoy a day of sledding and hot chocolate and cozy fires," she said. "Take pictures of your kids in snow hats they will outgrow by next year and read books that you have wanted to lose yourself in, but haven’t had the time." "We will return to the serious and urgent business of growing up on Thursday, but for tomorrow," the letter concludes, "go build a snowman." View this post on Facebook Facebook: JeffersonCountySchools The letter has spread far beyond the school community, going viral online, with people praising the superintendent's decision and heartfelt words. Kevin M. Kruse @KevinMKruse Given all that students, teachers and school staff have been through this year, they all deserve a good snow day. 01:00 PM - 16 Dec 2020 The Hoarse Whisperer @TheRealHoarse I don’t know why but this letter made me choke up. https://t.co/OlTGdHg5qd L D Lewis, Sugarplum Fairy ❄️🩰🎄 @Ellethevillain This is Rockwell-painting level wholesome https://t.co/G5v2BBNXJD 02:25 AM - 16 Dec 2020 Another Bike Commuter @schnufflerowner Bondy Shay Gibson for Education Secretary. Superintendent Bondy Shay Gibson told BuzzFeed News she was surprised to see the letter strike a chord with so many people, but she can understand why it has gone viral. "I think people appreciated a recognition of how difficult this has been," she said in a phone interview on Wednesday. "I think there has been such a focus on how we have to catch up academically and we have to plow forward and keep working hard. And all those things are true, but I also think it's important to recognize how difficult this year has been and give yourself some grace." "All year long, we've had a lot of discussions about social and emotional help [for students] and the isolation and the loss of seminal events in their lives: graduations and proms and dances and athletics — all those parts of school that make memories for you." "The first snow day of the year is one of those," she said. Dec. 16, 2020, at 22:11 PM This story has been updated with an interview with Superintendent Bondy Shay Gibson. Julia Reinstein is a reporter for BuzzFeed News and is based in New York. Contact Julia Reinstein at julia.reinstein@buzzfeed.com.	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803433
__label__wiki	0.700332	0.700332	Everything But And About Them A note on ‘The Work of Mourning’ Bonniers Konsthall September 2 – November 1 2020 Installation view, 'The Work of Mourning', Bonniers Konsthall, Sep 2 - Nov 1, 2020. Artists: Nadine Byrne, Alejandro Cesarco, Lena Cronqvist, Jonas Dahlberg, Félix González-Torres, Berit Lindfeldt, Jennifer Loeber Photo: Jean-Baptiste Béranger. Gathering some thoughts about more personal experiences of mourning, before entering the exhibition, the notion strikes of the breadth of the collective and participatory capacity of the act. And that, beyond just empathetic condolence or engagement in presence between those closer akin or joined directly by the loss. It’s inevitably hard now not to think of a veil of mourning that has rested across the globe in the mere recent couple of months following the case of George Floyd. A neglected plea for life. A slogan for racial injustice; “I can’t breathe”. Political and physical action carried out on the streets, joining people far and beyond privileges, as the tie-in fruit of grief and mourning. Mourning in this light as something less than just an intrinsic, subdued and largely individual state of healing from sadness and pain but as a catalyst for productivity and cathartic experiences. A note to self consequently would be that there surely are many shades and shapes of mourning, the reminder of which last came head-on last year at a design school in town where one of the graduates addressed how dark colours and black for centuries have been donned for mourning in the West, while other “colour schemes” apply elsewhere. Lena Cronqvist, 'Framkallning', 2001, 142x137 cm, oil and tempera oil on canvas. Interestingly, the exhibition at Bonniers Konsthall proves a fairly straightforward and more immediate exhibition than we might have been used to from past thematic group exhibitions in the konsthall’s trajectory, which at times stretched the intellectual chords of biennial-habituated audiences to a brim, such as ‘The Art of Memory’ or ‘The Spiral and the Square’ revolving around translatability. Already the inclusion of painter Lena Cronqvist appears something that would likely previously not so easily have been associated with the direction of the konsthall and would bring thought rather to less conceptual venues such as Liljevalchs and Waldemarsudde, and is a hint at a more inclusive programming charge (a nod here as well back to painter Lars Lerin featured in the recent landscape exhibition). The artworks of the six other exhibited artists like Lena’s are all joined together here on the premise of being created through or in the process of grief. Focusing, hence, largely on individual rather than, say, communal mourning, the exhibition appears to consider the already inherent universal relatability of its subject matter. Providing due room for emotional poignancy and empathetic stimuli, it’s nevertheless a most pleasant experience. Nadine Byrne, still from film in 'The Work of Mourning', Bonniers Konsthall, 2020. About Nadine Byrne’s participation which presents nearly as a solo exhibition within the exhibition, was heard through the grapevine that it will have served as a curatorial point of departure for the rest. It makes sense, and you can tell as it sets the tone right off the bat for the remaining more pivotal parts of the exhibition, with subdued lighting and a quietly elegant grandeur. Seated as a navigating compass throughout Nadine Byrne’s entire body of work is the untimely passing of her mother at a point in time when the artist was coming-of-age into adulthood, when having recently just embarked on a path as artist. Few working Swedish artists today, likely as diligently will have occupied themselves around mourning through memories and bearers of memory, asking questions about who the lost person was, who one is at their absence and who the lost person will be once gone. Presented on site is a new work consisting of multi-channel video and sculptural installations which out of the exhibition is the one work most emphasizing how mourning can bring individuals together through their singular, yet similar experiences of loss. In this case other women alongside the artist herself share accounts before the lense of life losing their mothers. Moreover, mourning as a notion that can inform outward performative layers is stressed both in the video as well through wearable “mourning suits” as sculptural elements on display in the room. Most compelling is a metaphorical sculpture of conjoined suits, “worn” together by several and bound together by strings between each unit. From the scaffolding of the video monitors to else, it’s all sleek and crisp. The ”visual image” of Byrne’s section somehow appears like a stretch forward from how we might be used to seeing her work. Frankly, it’s exquisitely done, and considering how long she has been working with projects underpinned by mourning her mother in exhibitions to date, this comes across as a great feat of curatorial choices. Felix Gonzalez-Torres, 'Untitled' (Orpheus, Twice), 1991. Mirror, dimensions vary with installation 195 x 150 centimeters (76 3/4 x 59 inches) Two Parts: 195 x 70 centimeters (76 3/4 x 27 1/2 inches) each. A long time-favourite, possibly among few favourites; it’s with great anticipation that we reach the work of the late Félix González-Torres. Positioned in the biggest most aerial room,’Untitled (Orpheus Twice)’ sees an installation of two tall body mirrors placed side by side. Having seen documentation of other installs in lit rooms in past exhibitions, the work arguably sees its best potential here in the choice of a more darkened room, where its alleviated from some of its abstraction when shadows casted from the light on the mirrors more instantly bring thought to various allegorical images at once; mirrors reflecting a “revisit” of time spent between two lovers, an end in so far the image of two tombs and a window into a “continuation”, nodding to a possible afterlife where a reunion might occur. González-Torres’s signature works were notably born out of the urge to channel the loss of his partner, artist Ross Laycock, lost to the AIDS epidemic of the 1980’s and 1990’s. Looking at the work of Gonzalez-Torres or another iconic queer artist like David Wojnarowicz, becomes particularly pertinent today as we’re suffering through a pandemic engaging the globe on almost every level, where just some few decades ago the queer communities to which both artists belonged were largely left fending for themselves during another pandemic. A reminder of the neglect and failure to act of official authorities which must never be forgotten. Jennifer Loeber, 'Left Behind', 2014 Photographic series. 21 framed prints, 21 x 27,5 cm each. After the sudden death of her mother, Jennifer Loeber, as would be standard protocol for any child, went through the belongings left behind. And just like most of us, she could not bring herself to get rid of them and saved even the simplest objects. Instead of giving her a sense of comfort, they appeared however to only cause her more anxiety. Left Behind is a series of work in which Loeber, systematically, like an archivist categorizing and cataloguing historical documents, has linked and attributed photographs of her late mother to various of her mother’s belongings. And has done so in order to discharge the objects from the inherent sadness and distress they were initially tied with at face value. It’s been said that we all die several deaths and inspired by the neuroscientist and author David Eagleman, former editor-in-chief of Life Magazine Bill Shapiro recently said the last death is that moment the last remaining picture of someone is seen for the final time. If what we all will be one day is a mere photo, then Loeber’s approach of preservation is one of added tangibility; making the memory of a loved one a tad more layered. The result is beautiful, and we last enjoyed a serial presentation based on a deceptively effortless idea that much, with Fabienne Audéoud’s installation work 'Parfums de pauvres' at Palais de Tokyo in Paris last year. Jonas Dahlberg Music Box 2015 video installation, single channel installation, HD video, black and white. Probing the belongings of a parent recurs in the same room through Jonas Dahlberg’s monumental and intensely beating wall projection ‘Music Box’. A close-up study inside a music box, it visually and sonically brings thought to a disorderly twilight-zone-situation. That hazey forever-walk or forever-marathon through a tunnel towards solace, which for all the while not there yet, nevertheless bears some cradling quality of not having to be consumed or engaged by anything else, for the duration of whatever time it might be. If mourning first confines space in order to create space, there’s no passing go directly, and to that, we all relate. Review collectively written by Team C-print. With: Alejandro Cesarco, Berit Lindfeldt, Félix González-Torres, Jennifer Loeber, Jonas Dahlberg, Lena Cronqvist, Nadine Byrne www.bonnierskonsthall.se	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803434
__label__wiki	0.6191	0.6191	2016 Ford Mustang Shelby GT350R 2016 Ford Mustang Shelby GT350R - Front HD 2016 Ford Mustang Shelby GT350R - Side HD 2016 Ford Mustang Shelby GT350R - Rear HD 2016 Ford Mustang Shelby GT350R - Grill HD 2016 Ford Mustang Shelby GT350R - Headlight HD 2016 Ford Mustang Shelby GT350R - Front Bumper HD 2016 Ford Mustang Shelby GT350R - Wheel HD 2016 Ford Mustang Shelby GT350R - Spoiler HD 2016 Ford Mustang Shelby GT350R - Tail Light HD 2016 Ford Mustang Shelby GT350R - Interior HD 2016 Ford Mustang Shelby GT350R - Interior Steering Wheel HD 2016 Ford Mustang Shelby GT350R - Interior Dashboard HD 2016 Ford Mustang Shelby GT350R - Interior Detail HD By Arthur Demi via Ford Published: Jan 12, 2015 Modified: Jan 12, 2015 Power 500 hp Torque 400 lb.-ft. At the NAIAS 2015 Ford unveiled the new Shelby® GT350R Mustang, the most track-ready road-going production Mustang ever built. In 1965, Ford and Carroll Shelby developed a road-racing version of the popular Ford Mustang – the Shelby GT350 Competition model. Lighter, more powerful and with a highly developed suspension, it is one of the most iconic racing Mustangs ever produced. Arriving later this year, the new Shelby GT350R has been designed and engineered in the same spirit, delivering never-before-seen track capability from a Mustang – thanks to innovations in aerodynamics, chassis engineering and light-weighting. “The Shelby GT350R Mustang is a no-compromise car in the pursuit of maximum track capability,” said Raj Nair, Ford group vice president, Global Product Development. “It is a thoroughbred street car making use of technology and ingenuity to deliver performance few enthusiasts have ever experienced.” The car features the first-ever production V8 from Ford with a flat-plane crankshaft – the most powerful naturally aspirated engine Ford has ever produced – plus a specially tuned suspension. It is fitted with revised spring rates and antiroll bars, lower ride height, unique track-tuned alignment settings, revised bushings and jounce bumpers, cross-axis ball joints in the front suspension, and revised calibration controlling the MagneRide dampers. “The Shelby GT350R Mustang is a car with the nimbleness and power delivery you want on a road course,” said Nair. “This isn’t just about horsepower. The Shelby GT350R is an all-around balanced athlete – one that is extraordinarily precise and agile.” Track technology for the street Lightweight carbon fiber wheels are standard on Shelby GT350R, making Ford the first major automaker to introduce this innovative wheel technology as standard equipment. Carbon fiber wheels have been offered on only a handful of exotic supercars and will benefit Shelby GT350R performance by shaving critical unsprung weight and reducing rolling inertia. The 19x11-inch front and 19x11.5-inch rear wheels provide approximately 13 pounds of unsprung weight reduction per wheel and offer higher levels of stiffness than equivalent aluminum wheels. The lightweight wheels will be shod in Michelin’s top-shelf Pilot Sport Cup 2 high-performance tires with rubber compound and a construction unique to Shelby GT350R. This combination of incredibly stiff and light wheels with bespoke tires offers customers exceptional steering feel and levels of performance. Weight reduction in pursuit of performance Ford engineers delivered against aggressive targets for weight reduction on the Shelby GT350R. If a part did not make the car faster around a road course, it was considered for deletion. Items removed include air conditioning, the stereo system, rear seats, trunk floorboard and carpet, backup camera and emergency tire sealer and inflator. Exhaust resonators also have been removed for weight savings with the benefit of creating a sharper exhaust tone. Shelby GT350R is more than 130 pounds lighter than the Shelby GT350 Track Pack model, which has proven its durability in multiple 24-hour racetrack tests. For customers seeking more comfort in their Shelby GT350R, Ford is offering an optional Electronics Package. Included is dual-zone air conditioning, 8-inch touch screen with navigation, seven-speaker audio system, turn signal mirrors and more. Aggressive aerodynamics Shelby GT350R has been optimized for aerodynamic excellence. Details including the hood vent for heat extraction and lift reduction, underbody belly pans front and rear, an aggressive diffuser, vented wheel wells and turbulence-reducing fender vents, wheel air curtains and side skirts all remain on Shelby GT350R, but the car’s downforce capability has been increased. Revisions to the front splitter maximize downforce, while an all-new high-efficiency carbon fiber rear wing has been added in anticipation of competition. The wing moves the vehicle’s center of pressure rearward while improving downforce and lift balance – ideal for high-speed track work. “Shelby GT350R’s highly efficient aerodynamics, innovative light-weighting and world-class chassis deliver a truly spectacular driving experience that makes you feel like a professional racing driver,” said Kerry Baldori, Ford Performance chief functional engineer. World-class powertrain The new 5.2-liter dual-overhead-cam V8 engine is the first-ever production V8 from Ford with a flat-plane crankshaft – an architecture typically found only in racing applications or exotic European sports cars. Unlike traditional V8s, where the connecting rods are attached to the crankshaft at 90-degree intervals, this design evenly spaces all crank pins at 180-degree intervals to optimize high-speed engine breathing. It is the most powerful naturally aspirated production Ford engine ever, with more than 500 horsepower and more than 400 lb.-ft. of torque. An air-to-oil engine oil cooler typically found only on race cars maintains engine temperatures under the most severe conditions, as does a standard cooler for the six-speed manual transmission. A Ford-tuned limited-slip Torsen differential with 3.73 axle ratio is optimized for cornering grip and straight-line traction, while an electronically modulated rear-mounted air-to-oil differential cooler maintains ideal temperatures during track driving. Dedicated R design details Aside from carbon fiber wheels, larger front splitter and rear wing, Shelby GT350R features distinct design details. Exterior touches include red painted brake calipers, red pin striping at the edges of the optional over-the-top racing stripes and Shelby GT350R badging. Inside is high-contrast red stitching, Shelby GT350R badging and the D-shaped steering wheel fitted with a red center mark at the top. New breed of performance The limited-production Shelby GT350R will be available in the United States and Canada later this year, and is one of more than 12 new Ford Performance vehicles coming by 2020. “This is the pinnacle of performance Mustangs today,” said Dave Pericak, director, Ford Performance. “The Shelby GT350R Mustang lays the groundwork for a story that will play out for years to come on the track and the street.” (Ford Press Release) 2020 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803435
__label__wiki	0.775311	0.775311	The Auto Sleuth: Honda’s urban pickup, a custom Ferrari and more Hot off the press news from the auto world Buyers Advice & Car Reviews The revamped Honda Ridgeline has a much more aggressive front end, while these nifty bronze wheels are optional. PHOTO: HONDA • Honda’s urban pickup receives more swagger for 2021: The Sleuth sees a growing trend away from genteel grille shapes to more rugged-looking noses. This approach is exemplified by the latest Honda Ridgeline, which comes with a more dramatic front end for 2021. As well, the truck makes available 18-inch bronze wheels that appear far less benign than the standard wheels. Buyers can also order black fender flares and side graphics, but they likely won’t fool anyone into thinking the Ridgeline is ready to take on the off-road-ready Ford F-150 Raptor or new Ram 1500 TRX. Unchanged is the pickup’s 280-horsepower V-6, but a nine-speed automatic transmission replaces the previous six-speed. The MX-30 hybrid — instead of a battery-electric EV — is expected for 2021. PHOTO: MAZDA • Mazda creates an EV, but not for North America: The Sleuth confirms that the Japan-based automaker will introduce its first battery-electric model to its home country plus the European continent. However there’s some confusion regarding the launch of the MX-30 in North America. It seems that the battery’s 200-kilometre range — far less than competing electrics — is insufficient for U.S. and Canadian driving needs. Instead, a gasoline-electric hybrid MX-30 is expected in Canada sometime in 2021. The system consists of a 2.0-litre four-cylinder plus an electric motor that assists the gasoline engine, but does not operate independently from it (referred to as a mild hybrid). The MX-30 is roughly the size of the Mazda CX-30 utility vehicle, but comes with two smaller rear doors for accessing the rear seat. The Jaguar XE compact sedan is being cancelled and without a replacement. PHOTO: JAGUAR • Jaguar trims its feline family: Compared with major-league players BMW, Audi, Mercedes-Benz and others, the British automaker is a small player in the luxury class. For 2021, Jaguar will retire the XE sedan that competed in the same segment as the BMW 3 Series, Mercedes-Benz C Class and Lexus ES. Jaguar will also stop bringing the XF Sportbrake (wagon) to our shores. The updated-for-2021 XF sedan will stay, albeit without the 380-horsepower supercharged 3.0-litre V-6. Jaguar is also cutting prices on base models that come with the turbocharged 2.0-litre four-cylinder engine. Mullen Technologies is taking deposits for the MX 05, which has a claimed range of 520 kilometres. PHOTO: MULLEN TECHNOLOGIES • Another electric-vehicle company ramps up: The Sleuth is having a difficult time keeping track of all the EV startup (or upstart) automakers announcing their coming products. One of the latest is California-based Mullen Technologies, which recently announced it’s taking deposits for the midsize MX 05 utility-style vehicle, expected to arrive by mid-2022. The all-wheel-drive model comes with electric motors of (so far) unknown output, a claimed range of 520 kilometres, and a zero-to-60-mph (96 km/h) time of 3.2 seconds. Top speed is electronically limited to 250 km/h. No price has been announced for Canada, but the U.S. price is expected to be $55,000. Later, Mullen will launch the all-wheel-drive Dragonfly K50 sports car, which will cost well over $100,000. • Ford’s coming electric pickup might have a trick up its sleeve: The Spy Guy hears that the battery-electric version of the F-150 that’s scheduled for the 2022 model-year could offer an available gasoline internal-combustion engine generator as a backup. Supported by a small fuel tank, it would kick in when the truck’s battery pack becomes depleted. At that point, the generator would feed electricity to the batteries and would remain in operation until the vehicle is recharged through an electrical outlet. The range-extending generator would be positioned in an enclosed spot directly behind the cab and inside the pickup bed. This option would be especially ideal for rural F-150 electric owners who frequently travel long distances. Up: Future Volvos could be both left- and right-hand-drive – A patent filed by the automaker could solve the problem (and expense) of engineering different versions of their models, according to which country they’re headed. It also means that Volvo owners in Great Britain could conceivably slide the steering wheel to the left from the right seat when crossing the English Channel by boat or train to France and onward to the rest of Europe. This Ferrari 812 Superfast Omologata is the only one in existence, specially designed for the customer. PHOTO: FERRARI Up: A one-off Ferrari – You know you’re rich when you can commission Italy’s storied automaker to customize car just for you. A European customer is taking possession of a Ferrari 812 Superfast Omologata, replete with unique styling and interior finishes. The front-engine Superfast runs with a 6.5-litre V-12 rated at 789 horsepower and 530 pound-feet of torque. -written by Wheelbase Media If you’re interested in new or used vehicles, be sure to visit TodaysDrive.com to find your dream car today! Like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram 2021 Hyundai Elantra: Could this be the car that starts a sedan revival? 2021 Ford Escape Hybrid: So, what’s a nice car like this doing in a group of compact utility vehicles?	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803439
__label__cc	0.541272	0.458728	Dioecesis Vinonaënsis-Roffensis Show: All \| General Information \| Ordinaries \| Historical Summary \| Statistics \| Affiliated Bishops, Living \| Affiliated Bishops, Deceased John Michael Quinn, Bishop Type of Jurisdiction: Diocese Name Changed: 23 January 2018 Metropolitan: Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis Square Kilometers: 31,810 (12,286 Square Miles) Description: Winona, Wabasha, Olmsted, Dodge, Steele, Waseca, Blue Earth, Watonwan, Cottonwood, Murray, Pipestone, Rock, Nobles, Jackson, Faribault, Martin, Freeborn, Mower, Fillmore, and Houston Counties. Conference Region: VIII (MN, ND, SD) Catholic Directory Abbreviation: WIN Official Web Site: https://www.dowr.org/ Mailing Address: 55 West Sanborn St., P.O. Box 588, Winona, MN 55987, USA Joseph Bernard Cotter † (29 Nov 1889 Appointed - 28 Jun 1909 Died) Patrick Richard Heffron † (4 Mar 1910 Appointed - 23 Nov 1927 Died) Francis Martin Kelly † (10 Feb 1928 Appointed - 17 Oct 1949 Resigned) Edward Aloysius Fitzgerald † (20 Oct 1949 Appointed - 8 Jan 1969 Retired) Loras Joseph Watters † (8 Jan 1969 Appointed - 14 Oct 1986 Retired) John George Vlazny (19 May 1987 Appointed - 28 Oct 1997 Appointed, Archbishop of Portland in Oregon) Bernard Joseph Harrington (4 Nov 1998 Appointed - 7 May 2009 Retired) John Michael Quinn (7 May 2009 Succeeded - ) 23 January 2018 Name Changed Diocese of Winona Diocese of Winona-Rochester Robert Henry Brom (Priest: 18 Dec 1963 to 25 Mar 1983) Bernard Joseph Harrington (Bishop: 4 Nov 1998 to 7 May 2009) Michael Joseph Hoeppner (Priest: 29 Jun 1975 to 28 Sep 2007) John Michael Quinn (Coadjutor Bishop: 15 Oct 2008; Bishop: 7 May 2009 - ) John George Vlazny (Bishop: 19 May 1987 to 28 Oct 1997) Leo Binz † (Coadjutor Bishop: 21 Nov 1942 to 15 Oct 1949) Joseph Bernard Cotter † (Bishop: 29 Nov 1889 to 28 Jun 1909) Edward Aloysius Fitzgerald † (Bishop: 20 Oct 1949 to 8 Jan 1969) Frederick William Freking † (Priest: 31 Jul 1938 to 10 Oct 1957) Patrick Richard Heffron † (Bishop: 4 Mar 1910 to 23 Nov 1927) Francis Martin Kelly † (Priest: 1 Nov 1912; Auxiliary Bishop: 22 Mar 1926; Bishop: 10 Feb 1928 to 17 Oct 1949) John Hubert Peschges † (Priest: 15 Apr 1905 to 30 Aug 1938) George Henry Speltz † (Priest: 2 Jun 1940; Auxiliary Bishop: 12 Feb 1963 to 4 Apr 1966) Loras Joseph Watters † (Bishop: 8 Jan 1969 to 14 Oct 1986) Code: web_d, v3.3.4, 28 Mar 2020; Data: 23 Nov 2020	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803440
__label__cc	0.650903	0.349097	Liturgical Year Home Catholic Recipe: Grissini Integrali 1 3/4 teaspoons active dry yeast or 2/3 small cake (12 grams) fresh yeast 1 1/4 cups warm water 1 tablespoon malt syrup 1/4 cups olive oil, plus additional for brushing the dough 2 1/4 teaspoons (10 grams) lard 1 cup less 2 tablespoons (125 grams) unbleached all-purpose flour 2 2/3 cups (375 grams) whole wheat flour 1 1/2 teaspoons (8 grams) salt cornmeal for sprinkling Yield: 20-22 breadsticks Prep Time: 3 to 3 1/2 hours Difficulty: ★★★☆ Cost: ★★★☆ For Ages: All Food Categories (1) Breads, Biscuits Often Made With (1) Grissini al Formaggio Similar Recipes (1) John Bosco Also Called: Whole-Wheat Breadsticks Most American know grissini from the pale breadsticks in the elongated waxen envelopes that appear on the tables of Italian restaurants, but they bear about as much resemblance to authentic grissini as packaged industrial white bread does to true country loaves. Real grissini are made of yeast, flour, water, and either olive oil, lard, or butter. They are shaped between the hands by gently vibrating and stretching the dough to about the span of the baker's arms, and are then baked directly on the floor of a wood-burning oven. They are as thick and irregular as knobby fingers and look like cordwood when stacked. They have crunch and an earthy taste. Even when made at home with the methods and recipes that follow, they are still redolent of the countryside and the old ways. Although there is some dispute about who came up with the first grissini, there is not question that they first appeared in Turin sometime in the seventeenth century. Some say that a baker in Turin invented them in 1668 in response to inquiries from the doctor of the young duke Vittorio Amadeo II, who had stomach disturbances, for a bread that would be good for the duke's digestion. The baker stretched out the traditional local bread dough so long that it became a long, thin, crunchy stick that was essentially all crust. Although there is no word of their effect on the patient's health, it is safe to assume that they met with great success, because grissini, were well known all over Italy by the next century when Napoleon discovered "les petits batons de Turin." Napoleon was so enthusiastic about the breadsticks that he instituted a fast postal service expressly for transporting them to court every day. The most popular rival story to that of the young duke credits a Florentine abbot on a diplomatic mission near Turin in 1643 with the discovery of "a thin bread as long as an arm and very, very fine." Serve grissini with eggs, green salad, prosciutto and smoked beef, and with all imaginable kinds of antipasti. Some Italians eat them for breakfast with milk or coffee, an old, once widespread custom. By Hand: Stir the yeast and malt into the warm water in large mixing bowl; let stand until foamy, about 10 minutes. Stir in the olive oil and lard. Add the flour and salt and stir until the dough comes together. Knead on a lightly floured surface until smooth, soft, velvety, and elastic, 8 to 10 minutes. By Mixer: Stir the yeast and malt into the water in a mixer bowl; let stand until foamy, about 10 minutes. Mix in the olive oil and lard with the paddle. Add the flour and salt and mix until the dough comes together. Change to the dough hook and knead at low speed about 3 minutes. Finish kneading briefly by hand on a lightly floured surface. By Processor: Stir the yeast and malt into 1/4 cup warm water in a small bowl; let stand until foamy, about 10 minutes. Place the flour and salt in a standard food processor fitted with the dough blade or a large (over 7 cups capacity) processor fitted with the steel blade and process with several pulses to sift. Mix 1 cup cold water and oil and lard. With the machine running, pour the water mixed with oil and the dissolved yeast through the feed tube and process until the dough comes together. Process 45 seconds longer to knead. Finish kneading by hand on a lightly floured surface. First Rise. Pat the dough with your hands into a 14 x 4-inch rectangle on a well-floured surface. Lightly brush the top with oil. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise until doubled, about 1 hour. Shaping. Sprinkle the dough with semolina flour before cutting and stretching. The baker's method of shaping breadsticks is ingenious, simple, and quick, for he certainly doesn't have time to roll out individual grissini. Cut the dough crosswise into 4 equal sections and then cut each section crosswise again into 5 strips, each about the width of a fat finger. The dough is so elastic that you can simply pick up each piece, hold each end with your fingers, and pull and stretch to fit the width (or length) of a baking sheet. Place the breadsticks several inches apart on lightly oiled baking sheets (unless they are rimless, I find it easier to use the backs of the baking sheets). There is no need to let them rise. Baking. Heat the oven to 450 degrees F. If you are using a baking stone, turn the oven on 30 minutes before baking. Bake the breadsticks for 20 minutes. If you like crunchy breadsticks, bake directly on the baking stone, which has been sprinkled with cornmeal or semolina flour, for the last 5 minutes. Cool on racks. Recipe Source: Italian Baker, The by Carol Field, Harper & Row, 1985 Free eBook: Imperative for Renewal	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803441
__label__wiki	0.969868	0.969868	India raises flood death toll reaches 5,700 as all missing persons now presumed dead July 16, 2013 / 10:48 AM / AP LUCKNOW, India More than 5,700 people missing since floods devastated northern India last month are being presumed dead, even as rescue officials struggle to bring aid to affected villages, top officials said Tuesday. Vijay Bahuguna, the chief minister of the state of Uttarakhand, said the government would give 500,000 rupees ($8,350) to the families of each victim who may have perished in the floods and landslides that hit the Himalayan region in June. The state declared those missing for the past month presumed dead so it could compensate their families, but Bahuguna said there was hope some could still be found alive. "The search for the missing persons will continue even after they are presumed dead," he said. Torrential rain devastates Northern India 38 photos The government had earlier put the death toll at 600 but repeatedly stressed that it would be significantly higher. The exact number of people who died may never be known, Bahuguna said. "The search operations will continue till the family members of the missing are satisfied," Bahuguna told a group of survivors Tuesday as the state government began handing out compensation checks. Families receiving compensation will have to return the money if their missing relatives are found alive. State Disaster Management Minister Yashpal Arya said that continued rain was preventing the extraction of bodies at some places, where recovery workers were waiting for hydraulic equipment to arrive. With all the major roads closed since the floods and many bridges washed away, the government was having difficulty getting rations to cut-off villages, said state government spokesman Amit Chandola. Hundreds of thousands of Hindus visit Uttarakhand's temple towns during the summer. The state is also a popular holiday destination and droves of Indians head to the cooler hills to escape the summer heat. Damaged houses are seen following monsoon rains in Shrinagar, India, June 25, 2013. AP Visitors usually leave before July, when monsoon rains make the mountainous roads much more treacherous, but this year unprecedented heavy rains fell around mid-June. Roads, bridges and multi-storied buildings were washed away as flooded rivers rampaged through the state, burying entire villages in silt and debris. Army and paramilitary soldiers and volunteers rescued more than 100,000 people who were stranded in remote areas cut off by washed-out roads and landslides. The air force and private companies made thousands of helicopter sorties to pick up people stuck on rooftops or marooned on hilltops and to drop off food and drinking water. Bahuguna said the government would rebuild the worst-hit temple town of Kedarnath, where hundreds perished on June 16 when a sea of silt and flood water roared down a mountain valley, sweeping away everything in its path. Environmental activists said the disaster was worsened by the rampant development of the area that made landslides more likely, while others accused the government of responding sluggishly. Pankaj Gupta, chairman of the Industries Association of Uttarakhand, said the disaster has shaken the confidence of the people. "There is a need to redesign Uttarakhand," he said. First published on July 16, 2013 / 10:48 AM © 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Entire Dutch government resigns over child welfare scandal 700 kids crossed the U.S. border alone after being required to wait in Mexico	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803442
__label__cc	0.579047	0.420953	Rimac Car Prices In United Kingdom GBP- 50000 Plus GBP- 40000 to 50000 GBP- 30000 to 40000 GBP- 20000 to 30000 GBP- 10000 to 20000 GBP- 5000 to 10000 Under GBP- 5000 Rimac Car Price United Kingdom, New Rimac Cars Rimac is a automobili car company, which was founded in 2009, and headquartered in Sveta Nedelja, Croatia. Rimac makes a Electric car, and Sportscar. Some famous car in United Kingdom are Concept one, and C Two. C Two series is the most luxurious and the best Rimac car in {cn]. C Two series provides exclusive features with a top speed of 415 km/h (258 mph) and a power output of 1,408 kW (1,914 PS; 1,888 hp), the car is claimed to be capable of accelerating to 97 km/h (60 mph) from a standstill in 1.85 seconds, making it potentially one of the fastest accelerating cars ever made. C Two is the latest Rimac car model in United Kingdom. Concept One series is responsible for the mid-price range of Rimac cars. Rimac Concept One provides reasonable specs like Standard features the electric motors in the Concept One can generate 1,384 hp (1,032 ... On the interior, the car features racing bucket seats. Compared to the Concept One, the Concept_S has 218 kW (296 hp) and 200 Nm more power and torque, 50 kg less weight, and an aggressive aerodynamic package. Concept One is the latest Rimac car in United Kingdom. On this page, CCarPrice is providing the best Rimac car prices in United Kingdom. Also, you can check the full specifications and features of those new Rimac car models 2021 in United Kingdom. GBP- 1,480,000 New Rimac Car Prices in United Kingdom Price United Kingdom Disclaimer: Latest and New Cars Price List / Prices are updated regularly from United Kingdom's Local Auto market . We are trying to provided best possible Car prices in United Kingdom and detailed features, Specs, but we cannot guarantee all information's are 100% correct. Human error is possible.	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803444
__label__cc	0.707768	0.292232	Gamers may not be seen as the most balanced people in the world. Just to prove it, they keep asking Donald Trump to block games. \| Source: Reuters/Kim Kyung-Hoon (i), Reuters/Carlo Allegri (ii). Image Edited by CCN.com Whiny Pokemon Fans Aren’t First Gamers Begging Trump to Punish Devs September 23, 2020 UTC: 1:17 PM. November 13, 2019 UTC: 8:03 PM. by William Worrall Gamers have had a negative reputation online for a while. People have been asking Donald Trump to bring down games they don’t like. The trend has culminated in a petition to block the sales of Pokemon Sword and Shield. Gamers have always had a negative reputation. Back in the day, the stereotypes centered on smelling funny and having no life, but these days it’s a reputation for smelling funny and being irredeemably insane. Oh, how times have changed us. Obviously, not all gamers smell; nor are all gamers insane, though interacting with them on Twitter might give you other ideas. One of the more recent insane trends in gaming appears to be asking U.S. President Donald Trump to intervene in video games they don’t like. Donald Trump, Arbiter of Gaming? Back in 2018, Blizzard annoyed a lot of people, totally unlike this year. When they announced Diablo Immortal, they basically became one massive meme. It seems that one hardcore gamer took to Twitter to ask Trump to step in. Source: Twitter. There was a certain amount of disbelief surrounding this tweet. A lot of the people in the replies seemed to hope and pray that this was some sort of joke, but for the most part, it seems completely real. What I can’t quite understand is what this guy hoped Donald Trump was going to do? I’m like 99% sure that stepping in and stopping a company from doing business goes right against conservative sensibilities. Say he had just stepped in and stopped Diablo Immortal. At that point, all it would take was a tweet to the president to get any product you didn’t like taken off the shelves. Of Course, Pokemon Sword and Shield Got Involved The detractors of Pokemon Sword and Shield have been up to some pretty insane stuff lately. They recently got super upset over a change to the game we’ve known about since June and attacked the webmaster of Serebii. The latest stunt from the #dexit crowd is probably the most mental one yet. Someone appears to have set up a White House petition to have Donald Trump prevent the sales of Pokemon Sword and Shield. The absolute insanity of formalizing this request in a petition is almost laughable. They attempt to justify the petition by saying that they think blocking the sales would make Game Freak “bring the quality back.” Even if that’s true, which it very well might be, why would that be a job for the president? If he blocked the sales of a Japanese title in the U.S., wouldn’t that have some pretty severe ramifications for Japanese-U.S. relations? The most important question is probably, ‘Why did you think this was a good idea?’ Source: WhiteHouse.Gov Luckily, This Isn’t Going Anywhere Thankfully it seems like the complete nutcake who started this petition is mostly on his own. The petition only has 32 signatures, probably because even the Pokemon detractors realize this is pure insanity. It would be complete anarchy if Trump was just like, ‘You can’t sell this game here because a guy asked me to stop you.’ Even Trump must realize that he shouldn’t do this. That’s almost certainly why he ignored the original tweet and will ignore this petition. Then again, he might not even be in office long enough to do anything either way, depending on how his day goes today. Did Pokemon Developer Game Freak Lie to You About Sword and Shield? Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is Winning League of Legends Ranked	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803445
__label__cc	0.698418	0.301582	PathScan® EGFR Signaling Antibody Array Kit (Chemiluminescent Readout) Antibody Array Kit PathScan® EGFR Signaling Antibody Array Kit (Chemiluminescent Readout) #12622 Figure 1. Target map of the PathScan® EGFR Signaling Antibody Array Kit (Chemiluminescent Readout) #12622. A reduction in a signal associated with E746-A750 deletion mutant was observed after treatment of cells with the small molecule inhibitors Gefitinib #4765 and Erlotinib #5083. Figure 2. A-431 cells were grown to 90% confluency and then serum-starved overnight. Cells were stimulated with Human Epidermal Growth Factor (hEGF) #8916 (100 ng/ml, 5 min). Cell extracts were prepared and analyzed using the PathScan® EGFR Signaling Antibody Array Kit (Chemiluminescent Readout) #12622. Images were acquired by briefly exposing the slide to standard chemiluminescent film. Figure 3. Calu-3 cells were grown to 90% confluency and then lyzed using a buffer containing (P) or devoid of (NP) phosphatase inhibitors. Cell extracts were prepared and analyzed using the PathScan® EGFR Signaling Antibody Array Kit (Chemiluminescent Readout) #12622. Images were acquired by briefly exposing the slide to standard chemiluminescent film. Figure 4. HCC827 and H3255 are two non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cell lines carrying two different gefitinib-sensitive mutants of EGFR: E746-A750 deletion in exon 19 and L858R point mutation, respectively. Cell extracts were prepared and analyzed using the PathScan® EGFR Signaling Antibody Array Kit (Chemiluminescent Readout) #12622. Images were acquired by briefly exposing the slide to standard chemiluminescent film. PathScan® EGFR Signaling Antibody Array Kit (Chemiluminescent Readout) 12622 To Purchase # 12622 Please see our recommended alternatives. ALTERNATE PRODUCT INQUIRY Data Sheet (1655KB) MSDS PDF The PathScan® EGFR Signaling Antibody Array Kit (Chemiluminescent Readout) uses glass slides as the planar surface and is based upon the sandwich immunoassay principle. The array kit allows for the simultaneous detection of phosphorylated EGFR, HER2, c-Met on distinct sites as well as a number of key signaling nodes found downstream of these receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs). Target-specific capture antibodies have been spotted in duplicate onto nitrocellulose-coated glass slides. Each kit contains two slides allowing for the interrogation of 16 different samples. To improve assay performance the content of this array is split between two sub-arrays. The pads on left-hand side of each slide belong to sub-array A while the pads on the right-hand side of each slide belong to sub-array B. Cell lysates are incubated on the slide followed by a biotinylated detection antibody cocktail A or cocktail B (each cocktail for the corresponding sub-array). Streptavidin-conjugated HRP and LumiGLO® Reagent are then used to visualize the bound detection antibody by chemiluminescence. An image of the slide can be captured with either a digital imaging system or standard chemiluminescent film. The image can be analyzed visually or the spot intensities quantified using array analysis software. Kit should be stored at 4°C with the exception of Lysis Buffer, which is stored at –20°C (packaged separately). PathScan® EGFR Signaling Antibody Array Kit (Chemiluminescent Readout) detects the target proteins as specified on the Array Target Map. No substantial cross-reactivity has been observed between targets. This kit is optimized for cell lysates diluted to a total protein concentration between 0.2 and 1 mg/ml (see kit protocol). The Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor (EGFR) is a receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) that constitutes an important disease driver, as well as a validated drug target. The potency of EGFR in driving tumorigenesis can be attributed to its pleiotropic intracellular signaling. Activated EGFR initiates a wide range of signaling modules and switches such as the Ras-Erk/MAP kinase, Akt, Src, Stat, and PKC. Two of the most common EGFR mutations occurring in lung cancer are the E746-A750 deletion and L858R point mutation. This array utilizes unique antibodies made by Cell Signaling Technology that are sensitive to each of these EGFR mutants, allowing specific target detection in cell extracts. EGFR can interact and heterodimerize with other RTKs. HER2 (also known as ErbB2) is an oncogenic RTK belonging to the EGFR/HER family of RTKs and is an important heterodimerization partner of all HER family members. Another prominent heterodimerization partner of EGFR is c-Met. c-Met is an RTK serving as a receptor for the hepatocyte growth factor (HGF). c-Met can induce cell scattering, migration, and invasion. It has been shown that c-Met is responsible for some cases of tumor resistance to EGFR-targeted therapies and is a contributing factor to tumor metastasis. PLCγ is a phosphoinositide-specific phospholipase. EGFR can activate PLCγ that, in turn, hydrolyzes phosphoinositide phospholipids residing within the inner leaflet of the plasma membrane. This hydrolysis generates two important second messengers: inositol 1,4,5-triphosphate (IP3) and diacylglycerol (DAG). IP3 causes calcium mobilization from intracellular storage pools, while DAG (together with calcium) activates PKC. MEK1 is a dual-specificity protein kinase and serves as the MAP kinase kinase for Erk1 and Erk2. Upon EGFR activation, MEK1 is phosphorylated by Raf and, in turn, phosphorylates the Erk kinases at Thr202 and Tyr204, leading to their activation. Activated Erk MAP kinase is a major signaling node with a multitude of substrates and primarily transmits growth and proliferation signals. Akt is another important protein kinase downstream of EGFR. Akt is activated by many RTKs and has a large number of intracellular substrates. Akt generates anabolic growth and survival signals. Stat3 is activated in response to EGFR stimulation, as well as in response to activation of a variety of cytokine receptors. Stat3 is a well-established oncogene that is also a transcription factor. The oncogenic signals generated by activated EGFR are a focus of intense drug discovery efforts. It has become clear that in many cases a single agent inhibiting only one target is unable to cause tumor cell death in vivo. To monitor the blockade of EGFR signals alongside markers of cell death, cleaved PARP is included in this array. PARP is an enzyme involved in DNA repair. As a part of the apoptotic process, PARP is irreversibly inactivated by endoproteolytic cleavage executed by activated cell death proteases, such as caspase-3 and caspasae-7. Yarden, Y. (2001) Eur J Cancer 37 Suppl 4, S3-8. Zwick, E. et al. (1999) Trends Pharmacol Sci 20, 408-12. Hackel, P.O. et al. (1999) Curr Opin Cell Biol 11, 184-9. Avraham, R. and Yarden, Y. (2011) Nat Rev Mol Cell Biol 12, 104-17. Levitzki, A. (2003) Lung Cancer 41 Suppl 1, S9-14. Sharma, S.V. and Settleman, J. (2009) Exp Cell Res 315, 557-71. Knowles, L.M. et al. (2009) Clin Cancer Res 15, 3740-50. Hudelist, G. et al. (2003) Breast Cancer Res Treat 80, 353-61. Engelman, J.A. et al. (2007) Science 316, 1039-43. Comoglio, P.M. (2001) Nat Cell Biol 3, E161-2. Benedettini, E. et al. (2010) Am J Pathol 177, 415-23. Guo, A. et al. (2008) Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 105, 692-7. Klein, S. and Levitzki, A. (2009) Curr Opin Cell Biol 21, 185-93. Select Your Pathway/Protein AMPK Signaling Actin Dynamics Adherens Junction Dynamics Alzheimer's Disease Angiogenesis Apoptosis Regulation B Cell Receptor Signaling Death Receptor Signaling ESC Pluripotency and Differentiation ErbB/HER Signaling G1/S Checkpoint GPCR Signaling to MAPKs Growth And Differentiation Control by MAPKs IL6 Signaling Inhibition of Apoptosis Insulin Receptor Signaling Microtubule Dynamics Mitochondrial Control of Apoptosis NF-kB Signaling PI3K/Akt Signaling Phospholipase Signaling Protein Kinase C Signaling SAPK/JNK Signaling Cascades T Cell Receptor Signaling TGF-ß Signaling Translation: eIF4E and p70S6K Tyrosine Kinases & Substrates Warburg Effect mTOR Signaling Protein: P00533 Protein: P04626 Protein: P08581 Protein: P09874 Protein: P19174 Protein: P27361 Protein: P28482 Protein: P31749 Protein: P31751 Protein: P36507 Protein: P40763 Protein: Q02750 Protein: Q9Y243 UniProt ID: P31749 , P31751 , Q9Y243 , P00533 , P27361 , P28482 , P04626 , Q02750 , P36507 , P08581 , P09874 , P19174 , P40763 Entrez-Gene Id: 207 , 208 , 10000 , 1956 , 5595 , 5594 , 2064 , 5604 , 5605 , 4233 , 142 , 5335 , 6774 PathScan is a trademark of Cell Signaling Technology, Inc. LumiGLO is a registered trademark of Kirkegaard & Perry Laboratories.	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803449
__label__cc	0.713149	0.286851	Companies in the United Kingdom Welcome to Companies in the UK - like Companies House but better BELL PROJECTS LIMITED 19/06/1319 June 2013 ADMINISTRATOR'S PROGRESS REPORT:BROUGHT DOWN DATE 15/05/2013 19/06/1319 June 2013 NOTICE OF EXTENSION OF PERIOD OF ADMINISTRATION 25/01/1325 January 2013 ADMINISTRATOR'S PROGRESS REPORT:BROUGHT DOWN DATE 20/12/2012 19/09/1219 September 2012 STATEMENT OF ADMINISTRATOR'S PROPOSALS 30/08/1230 August 2012 NOTICE OF DEEMED APPROVAL OF PROPOSALS 14/08/1214 August 2012 NOTICE OF STATEMENT OF AFFAIRS/2.14B 27/06/1227 June 2012 NOTICE OF ADMINISTRATOR'S APPOINTMENT:LIQ. CASE NO.1:IP NO.00009232,00008954,00008751 27/06/1227 June 2012 REGISTERED OFFICE CHANGED ON 27/06/2012 FROM JOHN DOYLE HOUSE LITTLE BURROW WELWYN GARDEN CITY HERTFORDSHIRE AL7 4SP 20/12/1120 December 2011 CURREXT FROM 31/12/2011 TO 30/06/2012 22/08/1122 August 2011 Annual return made up to 11 August 2011 with full list of shareholders 31/12/1031 December 2010 FULL ACCOUNTS MADE UP TO 31/12/10 28/08/0928 August 2009 RETURN MADE UP TO 11/08/09; FULL LIST OF MEMBERS 14/01/0914 January 2009 DIRECTOR RESIGNED CHRISTOPHER BROOKS 03/12/083 December 2008 DIRECTOR RESIGNED ROBERT JOHNSON 10/09/0810 September 2008 RETURN MADE UP TO 11/08/08; NO CHANGE OF MEMBERS 19/04/0819 April 2008 PARTICULARS OF A MORTGAGE OR CHARGE / CHARGE NO: 5 15/11/0715 November 2007 PARTICULARS OF MORTGAGE/CHARGE 27/04/0727 April 2007 NEW DIRECTOR APPOINTED 06/09/066 September 2006 RETURN MADE UP TO 11/08/06; FULL LIST OF MEMBERS 12/06/0612 June 2006 DECLARATION OF ASSISTANCE FOR SHARES ACQUISITION 26/05/0626 May 2006 FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE FOR THE ACQUISITION OF SHARES 25/05/0625 May 2006 DECLARATION OF SATISFACTION OF MORTGAGE/CHARGE 18/05/0618 May 2006 PARTICULARS OF MORTGAGE/CHARGE 12/05/0612 May 2006 DIRECTOR RESIGNED 12/09/0512 September 2005 RETURN MADE UP TO 11/08/05; FULL LIST OF MEMBERS 16/05/0516 May 2005 NEW DIRECTOR APPOINTED 28/08/0328 August 2003 RETURN MADE UP TO 11/08/03; FULL LIST OF MEMBERS; REGISTERED OFFICE CHANGED ON 28/08/03 31/12/0131 December 2001 � NC 520000/2000000 20/12/01 31/12/0131 December 2001 ALTERATION TO MEMORANDUM AND ARTICLES 04/01/004 January 2000 NC INC ALREADY ADJUSTED 23/12/99 04/01/004 January 2000 � NC 20000/520000 23/12 06/10/996 October 1999 NEW DIRECTOR APPOINTED 28/09/9928 September 1999 NEW DIRECTOR APPOINTED 25/08/9925 August 1999 DIRECTOR RESIGNED 15/07/9915 July 1999 DIRECTOR RESIGNED 21/08/9821 August 1998 RETURN MADE UP TO 11/08/98; NO CHANGE OF MEMBERS 30/10/9730 October 1997 NEW DIRECTOR APPOINTED 03/10/973 October 1997 DIRECTOR RESIGNED 09/09/969 September 1996 RETURN MADE UP TO 11/08/96; NO CHANGE OF MEMBERS 24/05/9524 May 1995 COMPANY NAME CHANGED A.BELL & SON (PADDINGTON) LIMITE D CERTIFICATE ISSUED ON 25/05/95; RESOLUTION PASSED ON 26/04/95 17/09/9217 September 1992 DIRECTOR'S PARTICULARS CHANGED 26/08/9226 August 1992 DIRECTOR'S PARTICULARS CHANGED 20/02/9220 February 1992 PARTICULARS OF MORTGAGE/CHARGE 03/01/923 January 1992 RETURN MADE UP TO 13/12/91; NO CHANGE OF MEMBERS 13/01/9113 January 1991 RETURN MADE UP TO 30/12/90; FULL LIST OF MEMBERS 14/12/9014 December 1990 PARTICULARS OF MORTGAGE/CHARGE 12/12/9012 December 1990 DECLARATION OF ASSISTANCE FOR SHARES ACQUISITION 07/12/907 December 1990 ADOPT MEM AND ARTS 05/12/90 04/12/904 December 1990 SECRETARY RESIGNED;NEW SECRETARY APPOINTED;DIRECTOR RESIGNED 23/11/9023 November 1990 REGISTERED OFFICE CHANGED ON 23/11/90 FROM: G OFFICE CHANGED 23/11/90 VANDYKE HOUSE 19 LYDDON ROAD LONDON SW18 4LT 23/11/9023 November 1990 DIRECTOR RESIGNED;NEW DIRECTOR APPOINTED 22/11/9022 November 1990 ALTER MEM AND ARTS 18/10/90 21/02/9021 February 1990 RETURN MADE UP TO 31/12/89; FULL LIST OF MEMBERS 08/11/898 November 1989 RETURN MADE UP TO 18/11/88; FULL LIST OF MEMBERS 24/01/8824 January 1988 DIRECTOR RESIGNED 25/11/8725 November 1987 RETURN MADE UP TO 05/11/87; FULL LIST OF MEMBERS 31/12/8631 December 1986 RETURN MADE UP TO 13/11/86; FULL LIST OF MEMBERS 29/05/7529 May 1975 ANNUAL RETURN MADE UP TO 29/05/75 Retrieving Document Finding the document.... More Company Information All company documents and filing history People connected with this company Location, contact details and map Related companies and people Receive an alert email on changes to financial status Early indications of liquidity problems Warns when company reporting is overdue Free service, no spam emails Copyright © Comdevelopment Ltd 2021 All rights reserved.	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803459
__label__wiki	0.995815	0.995815	Partners: Hitachi Vantara's Consulting Play Will Boost IoT Channel Efforts 'As a partner, I look at it and go, I have another well-known partner now wrapped into this entity, so I can collaborate with them and use them in my opportunities,' one partner says of Hitachi Vantara's plan to merge with Hitachi Consulting as part of an IoT-focused reorganization. By Dylan Martin September 24, 2019, 04:20 PM EDT Hitachi Vantara partners say the company's plan to merge with Hitachi Consulting is a good decision that will help the company accelerate adoption of its IoT solutions in the channel. Japanese conglomerate Hitachi announced the plan to merge its enterprise technology subsidiary with Hitachi Consulting last week as part of a reorganization that includes appointing Hitachi veteran Toshiaki Tokunaga as its CEO. Brian Householder and Hicham Abdessamad, the current CEOs of Hitachi Vantara and Hitachi Consulting, respectively, will remain on the executive leadership team. [Related: GE Digital Expands IoT Offerings As Partners See Renewed Focus: Exclusive] John Woodall, vice president of engineering at Integrated Archive Systems, a Palo Alto, Calif.-based solution provider, told CRN that Hitachi's plan to use the merger to expand Hitachi Vantara's Lumada IoT business is a smart move because emerging technologies like IoT and artificial intelligence require a "heavy services lift" that could benefit from consulting expertise. "It takes several different types of skilled technical resources to understand the data that’s available to you to derive the value from that data," he said. When Hitachi formed Hitachi Vantara two years ago through the merger of its Hitachi Data Systems storage and data center infrastructure business with its Hitachi Insight Group IoT business and Pentaho big data business, it was a step in the right direction, Woodall said. But the company was missing the services piece that is needed to handle the complexities of IoT, AI and big data. "This formalizes and streamlines the ability for that single organization to go to market around their technology [and] wrap in the required services as part of a go-to-market strategy," he said. An executive at a large system integrator, who declined to be identified because he wasn't authorized to speak publicly, said Hitachi Vantara's new consulting capacities could serve as the "tip of the spear" for digital transformation engagements, where more buy-in from the C-suite is required. "One of the things technology companies struggle with is initiating the conversation at the right level," he said. "In the legacy IT services world, they are OK, but when you're talking about smart factories, emerging tech and digital transformation especially, you need to be initiating the conversation at the CXO level" — including executives with titles like chief innovation officer and chief digital officer. Woodall said he thinks Hitachi Vantara's added consulting capabilities will serve as less a threat and more of a complement to the work channel partners provide. "As a partner, I look at it and go, I have another well-known partner now wrapped into this entity, so I can collaborate with them and use them in my opportunities," he said. Scottie Kearns, CEO and founder of Phase2, a Farmington, Utah-based solution provider, said he hopes that will be the case as he tries to dig into IoT and big data opportunities to differentiate his business. He said it's been challenging as a small company to look at Hitachi Vantara's large-scale IoT work on smart cities and rail systems and imagine how to monetize that on a smaller scale. "Customers are still trying to figure out, 'what's the reason for all this data? Why am I doing it? What's important? What's not important?'" he said. A Hitachi Vantara spokesperson said the company isn't sharing more details about the merger for now, but a quote from Householder in the press release announcing the merger indicates that the reorganization is expected to help both customers and partners. "This is a great next step to bring two complementary organizations even closer together to help our customers and partners tap more broadly into the power of Hitachi to drive meaningful business outcomes," he said in a statement. Partner Views On CEO Shakeup, Status Of Non-IoT Products While Hitachi is pointing to a global expansion of its Lumada business as the main thrust for the Hitachi Vantara reorganization, the company said Hitachi Vantara will continue to develop and support its other products, including its legacy storage and data infrastructure solutions. Joe Kadlec, vice president and senior partner at Consiliant Technologies, an Irvine, Calif.-based solution provider, said he doesn't see Hitachi Vantara's Lumada focus diminishing its other product lines, for which the company continues to bring out "substantial enhancements." "I don’t believe they're moving all their eggs to IoT. I think this is another area where they see a lot potential," he said. "Their big storage customers love Hitachi. It runs, it doesn’t break, it's very high performing, its very reliable. They've done such a superb job there." With the new reorganization plan, Hitachi Vantara's current CEO, Householder, is relinquishing the role to a longtime Hitachi veteran after less than two years on the job. Prior to becoming CEO in early 2018, Householder was COO for Hitachi Vantara and its predecessor, Hitachi Data System, which he joined in 2003 from the company's acquisition of FilesX. Wallace, the executive at Integrated Archive Systems, said the fact that Householder will remain on Hitachi's executive leadership team is a "good sign." At the same time, he said, the new CEO and chairman, Tokunaga — who is board chairman of Hitachi Global Digital Holdings, Hitachi Vantara's holding company — will help create operational efficiencies for Hitachi Vantara. "I think it's a necessary next step, and I think Hitachi's choice of CEO reflects how strategically important it is," Wallace said, referring to Tokunaga's nearly 30 years of experience in "successfully transforming Hitachi businesses," as stated in Hitachi's press release announcing the reorganization. The CEO shakeup isn't the only change in Hitachi Vantara's personnel from up top, however. Most notably for partners, Mike Walkey, Hitachi Vantara's channel chief, departed over the summer and was replaced by former Cohesity Channel Chief Todd Palmer. "The new regime has been extremely engaging and supportive so we're very excited," Kadlec, the executive at Consiliant said. "It's never been stronger." While Hitachi said it will share more details about the reorganization in early 2020, Woodall said he suspects the company will discuss the merger at Hitachi Vantara's annual Next conference, which is happening in Las Vegas next month. "Hitachi clearly wants to make sure they nail this part of the market," he said. Hitachi Vantara Targets Midrange Storage Business With New Arrays, Virtual Storage As A Service Slide-shows Storage The 10 Hottest SSD And Flash Storage Devices Of 2020 Dell’s Storage Charge In 2021 Is ‘All Around PowerStore’ Third-Quarter External Storage Systems Sales: HPE, Huawei Grow While Dell, NetApp Slip What Infinidat’s New Distributor, immixGroup, Means To The Channel	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803465
__label__cc	0.567771	0.432229	Action Synopsis: Mediterranean Farmland About Actions Other biodiversity: Use rotational grazing Overall effectiveness category Unknown effectiveness (limited evidence) Number of studies: 2 Share Tweet Icons/envelope Email View assessment score Hide assessment score How is the evidence assessed? Calculating overall effectiveness category Expert assessment panel Source countries Amphibians (0 studies) Birds (0 studies) Invertebrates (0 studies) Mammals (0 studies) Plants (2 studies): One before-and-after study in grasslands in the USA found a higher cover of native plants after the adoption of rotational grazing. One replicated, controlled study in grasslands in the USA found that the density and mortality of a native plant species did not differ between plots with rotational or continuous grazing, but plants had more reproductive stems in plots with rotational grazing, in two of three years. This study also found that plants were larger under rotational grazing, in some comparisons, but smaller in other comparisons. Reptiles (0 studies) Implementation options (0 studies) About key messages Key messages provide a descriptive index to studies we have found that test this intervention. Studies are not directly comparable or of equal value. When making decisions based on this evidence, you should consider factors such as study size, study design, reported metrics and relevance of the study to your situation, rather than simply counting the number of studies that support a particular interpretation. Supporting evidence from individual studies A replicated, controlled study in 1998–2000 in grasslands in north-central California, USA, found no difference in purple needlegrass Nassella pulchra mortality or density between plots with rotational grazing or continuous grazing, but there were some differences in plant size and reproduction. Plants: Needlegrass mortality and density did not differ between plots with rotational grazing or continuous grazing (data reported as model results). Plants in rotationally-grazed plots had more reproductive stems than plants in continuously-grazed plots, in two of three years (1.3–1.8 vs 0.4–0.5). Plants were taller under light rotational grazing, but shorter under heavy rotational grazing, compared to continuous grazing, in one of three years (data not provided). There were no differences in plant stem diameter. Methods: Thirty 20 x 20 m plots were grazed from January (in 1998) or December (1999, 2000) until May at a stocking density of 0.75 animal units/ha. Rotationally-grazed plots were grazed until 25% (lightly grazed) or 50% (heavily grazed) of the plant biomass was removed, and then they were rested for 35 days. Continuously-grazed plots had animals at all times. Thirty individual plants were measured each year and plant density was estimated using 3–5 quadrats/plots (1 x 1 m quadrats). Study and other actions tested Referenced paper Marty J.T., Collinge S.K. & Rice K.J. (2005) Responses of a remnant California native bunchgrass population to grazing, burning and climatic variation. Plant Ecology, 181, 101-112 A before-and-after study in 2011–2013 in grasslands in central California, USA, found that native grasses increased in cattle pasture after the adoption of rotational grazing. Plants: More survey units had native grasses, two years after rotational grazing was adopted, compared to before (80% vs 8%). Average percentage cover increased to 3%, two years after rotational grazing was introduced, compared to 0% before (0–20% vs 0–10%). Methods: In 2011, cattle density in 74 plots (1–10 ha) was increased to 110–170 t/ha, with fields grazed for 1–7 days and rested for 70–120 days (depending on the time of year and pasture quality). Previously, larger fields were grazed for longer periods, with little rest between grazing periods. Vegetation cover was estimated each July, using transects of variable lengths. Henneman C., Seavy N.E. & Gardali T. (2014) Restoring Native Perennial Grasses by Changing Grazing Practices in Central Coastal California. Ecological Restoration, 32, 352-354 Shackelford, G. E., Kelsey, R., Robertson, R. J., Williams, D. R. & Dicks, L. V. (2017) Sustainable Agriculture in California and Mediterranean Climates: Evidence for the effects of selected interventions. Synopses of Conservation Evidence Series. University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK. Where has this evidence come from? List of journals searched by synopsis All the journals searched for all synopses This Action forms part of the Action Synopsis: Related Actions Water: Grow cover crops in arable fields Action Link Trade-off between benefit and harms 19 Synopsis Link Other biodiversity: Add manure to the soil Soil: Use fewer grazers All related actions Mediterranean Farmland - Published 2017 Mediterranean Farmland synopsis Download reference details This option allows you to download the individual studies which make up this action. Please select your preferred method below. Text (full) Text (references only) RIS Submit additional evidence Thank you for considering submitting additional evidence about this intervention. Ideally we would like all submitted evidence to have been published in peer-reviewed literature. However, we do welcome evidence of any nature. Please be aware that given the volume of work we have we cannot guarantee a response to every submission. Attach files You may submit up to three additional files An assessment by independent experts of the effectiveness of this action based on the summarized evidence (0% = not effective, 100% = highly effective). This score is based on the direction and size of the effects reported in each study. Actions with high scores typically have large, desirable effects on the target species/habitat in each study. There is some variation between actions, e.g. 100% effectiveness in adding underpasses under roads for bat conservation will likely have different impacts to 100% effectiveness in restoring marsh habitat. The effectiveness score does not consider the quantity or quality of studies; a single, poorly designed study could generate a high effectiveness score. The effectiveness score is combined with the certainty and harms scores to determine the overall effectiveness category (for more details see https://www.conservationevidence.com/content/page/79). An assessment by independent experts of the harms of this action to the target group of species/habitat, based on the summarized evidence (0% = none, 100% = major undesirable effects). Undesirable effects on other groups of species/habitats are not considered in this score. The harms score is combined with the effectiveness and certainty scores to determine the overall effectiveness category (for more details see https://www.conservationevidence.com/content/page/79). An assessment by independent experts of the certainty of the evidence for this action based on the summarized evidence (0% = no evidence, 100% = high quality evidence). How certain can we be that the effectiveness score applies to all targets of the intervention (e.g. all birds for an action in the bird synopsis)? This score is based on the number, quality and coverage (species, habitats, geographical locations) of studies. Actions with high scores are supported by lots of well-designed studies with a broad coverage relative to the scope of the intervention. However, the definition of "lots" and "well-designed" will vary between interventions and synopses depending on the breadth of the subject. The certainty score is combined with the effectiveness and harms scores to determine the overall effectiveness category (for more details see https://www.conservationevidence.com/content/page/79). Overall Effectiveness Category The overall effectiveness category is determined using effectiveness, certainty and harms scores generated by a structured assessment process with multiple rounds of anonymous scoring and commenting (a modified Delphi method). In this assessment, independent subject experts (listed for each synopsis) interpret the summarized evidence using standardised instructions. For more details see https://www.conservationevidence.com/content/page/79.	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803469
__label__cc	0.614108	0.385892	Classic Sport Bikes For Sale 1975 Honda CR750 Yoshimura LeMans Endurance Racer for Sale by tad · September 11, 2013 We say “one of a kind” perhaps a bit too often: it’s become hyperbole, like Guitar Center’s “once in a lifetime” events that happen bi-weekly. But this stunning machine may really deserve the “once in a lifetime opportunity” tag. Designed for a racing effort that never materialized, the bike was built to amazingly high spec starting with a factory CB750, fitted with all the Honda racing hardware available at the time, then tucked away for safe keeping. The specification is stunning: aluminum tank and seat, handbuilt oil tank, Ceriani forks and triple trees, Dresda swingarm, Koni shocks, magnesium wheels. Basically, almost every single part of this bike is valuable or rare, and the sum is even more valuable. Be sure to visit eBay and read the extremely detailed history of this bike. An excerpt from the original listing: 1975 Honda CR750 Yoshimura LeMans Endurance Racer for Sale Preserved and Dry Stored in Art Collection for 37 Years, Custom-built to Endurance Race the 24 Hours of Lemans and Bol d’Or, Multitude of Rare and Weapons Grade Period Parts, National Show Winner with 1st in Class at Mid-Ohio 2012, Recently Acquired by CB750 expert, Original Title Racing machines are rarely preserved as new, having never seen the track they were destined for. They are built as a means to an end, a utility, and used as such. They are beaten up, repaired, rebuilt, reskinned. Only a few become truly sought after, the ones that made history through their victories. Ford GT40s, Ferrari Testarossas, Porsche 908s. The Honda CR750 was also one of those machines. And this example has been preserved almost exactly as it was built in 1975, believed to have only ever been ridden a few test miles. The collector who owned this bike for the last 37 years related to us that it was professionally built in 1975 from the frame-up by Yoshimura North, with no expense spared. It is believed that it was built on commission for a privateer race team that wanted to compete in the Bol d’Or 24 endurance race in France, as well as the Lemans 24 hour race. But the team’s efforts never materialized and the bike never went to Europe. Instead, the bike was immediately purchased by the aforementioned collector and drained of all its fluids. It went directly into his extensive art collection and was stored in his living room as a prized piece for the next 3 decades. I’ve no idea what something like this is really worth, but I think it’s safe to say that the bidding should to much higher than the current $7,400. Definitely a collector, not a rider, but who’d want to risk wrecking a bike so rare anyway? It seems a shame to condemn something so clearly bred to race to another few decades in someone’s living room, but it also seems a shame to risk smashing this perfect specimen to bits on road or track. -tad Tags: 1975CB750CR750endurancefour cylinderHondaracebikeyoshimura Oddball: 1982 Honda NCZ50B Motocompo Folding Motorcycle Six Appeal: 1979 Honda CBX for Sale 1966 Honda CB Race Bike for Sale Next story 1951 Triumph Thunderbird Previous story 1975 Honda CB400F for Sale Never miss an update with our subscription service. Your address will not be sold or spammed, and only our updates will be sent to you. Information About Our Site Show Bikes by Make Show Bikes by Make Select Category Aermacchi AJS Ariel Benelli Bimota BMW Brough Superior BSA Bultaco Cagiva DKW Ducati Gilera Greeves Harley Davidson Honda Horex Indian Kawasaki Laverda Matchless Mondial Moto Guzzi Moto Morini Motobi MV Agusta Norton NSU Panther Parilla Racycle Rickman Royal Enfield Suzuki Triumph Uncategorized Velocette Vincent Yamaha Zenith Rare SportBikes For Sale Turista Sportiva – 2001 Aprilia SL1000 Falco January 17, 2021 Have One Curated for You – 1993 Honda CBR900RR January 15, 2021 Featured Listing – 1993 Moto Guzzi Daytona 1000 January 14, 2021 Mile High Goose – 1993 Moto Guzzi Daytona 1000 January 9, 2021 Delivery Miles Only: 2002 Aprilia RSV Mille for Sale January 8, 2021 Adobe flash player 10 kostenlos herunterladen	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803475
__label__wiki	0.84109	0.84109	Court extends custody of Malvinder and Shivinder Singh to 14 more days in Religare Finvest fund scam Updated : October 17, 2019 01:51 PM IST CNBC-TV18 A district court in Delhi has extended the judicial custody of former Fortis Healthcare promoters Malvinder Singh and Shivinder Singh to 14 more days in the Religare Finvest fraud case. The Singh brothers will stay in the police custody till October 31. Malvinder and Shivinder, along with three others, were arrested by the Economic Offences Wing of Delhi Police for allegedly misappropriating funds of Religare Finvest Ltd (RFL) and causing it losses of Rs 2,397 crore. Malvinder was arrested on last Friday, while Shivinder, Sunil Godhwani, the former chairman and managing director of Religare Enterprises, Kavi Arora and Anil Saxena, who occupied important positions in REL and RFL, were arrested on last Thursday for allegedly diverting money and investing in other companies. Tags Malvinder Singh Religare Finvest Shivinder Singh	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803479
__label__wiki	0.782207	0.782207	Africa Americas Asia Australia China Europe India Middle East United Kingdom Japan passes law banning possession of child pornography Jethro Mullen and Yoko Wakatsuki, CNN Updated 10:36 AM EDT, Wed June 18, 2014 Japan's parliamentary upper house passes law to ban possession of child pornography Production and distribution were already outlawed Campaigners say the bill should have included sexually explicit anime and manga Industry says a ban on comics would restrict freedom of expression Japan has finally made the possession of child pornography a punishable offense. The country’s upper house of parliament passed a bill Wednesday, which will see people found with explicit images of children jailed for up to year or fined up to $10,000. The bill was a long time coming for activists who argued that Japan’s relatively lax laws put children at risk by banning the production and distribution of child pornography, but not people found with it in their possession. Uganda considers banning miniskirts Singapore bans film over content Library bans '50 Shades of Grey' as porn “It’s been 10 years and it’s finally changed. I’m so pleased that Japan finally moved one step toward the international standard,” said Shihoko Fujiwara, from Lighthouse, a nonprofit group that helps exploited children. “Under the existing circumstances, the suffering and damage has become more critical. I really hope that the law rescues suffering child victims, as well as the victims damaged in the past by stopping the circulation of child porn. This is the epoch-making event for Japan,” she said. Notable exclusions The bill notably excludes the possession of explicit anime or manga, a point of contention for campaigners who say that cartoons depicting child sexual abuse should also be banned. Representatives of those industries say that while they support the ban on real child pornography, any move to censor their products would be an unjustified restriction of freedom of expression. Daisuke Okeda, a lawyer and inspector for the Japan Animation Creators Association, said it was “natural that animation is exempted.” “The goal of the law itself is to protect children from crime,” he said. “Banning such expression in animation under this law would not satisfy the goal of the law.” Hiroshi Chiba, the manager of Chiba Tetsuya Production, one of the country’s best known manga production houses, said that more could be done in terms of age restrictions on graphic content featuring children and to distinguish it more clearly from other comics. And he admitted that some products of the industry leave him and his colleagues “disgusted.” “But rich, deep culture is born from something that might not be accepted by all,” Chiba said. “We need to allow the gray zone to exist as a necessary evil.” Child abuse in Japan Statistics show that child pornography remains a big problem in Japan. Porn site recruits teenage girls The U.S. State Department’s 2013 report on human rights practices in Japan labels the country “an international hub for the production and trafficking of child pornography.” Duke student: My porn career is 'freeing' It cited Japanese police data showing the number of child pornography investigations in 2012 rose 9.7% from a year earlier to a record of 1,596. The cases involved 1,264 child victims, almost twice as many as in the previous year. Under the new law, people in possession of child pornography have one year to dispose of it before they risk prosecution. Navy: Blue Angels dove into porn Sexually explicit Japan manga evades new laws on child pornography CNN’s Junko Ogura and Will Ripley contributed to this report.	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803480
__label__wiki	0.777009	0.777009	Football: Atletico tighten grip on La Liga lead with win over Sevilla Atletico Madrid's Saul Niguez celebrates scoring their second goal with teammates. (Photo: REUTERS/Sergio Perez) MADRID: La Liga leaders Atletico Madrid proved their title credentials yet again by beating in-form Sevilla 2-0 at home on Tuesday (Jan 12) to stride four points clear at the top of the standings. Atletico got off to an ideal start when Angel Correa received a pass from returning right back Kieran Trippier and took Sevilla by surprise with a shot which bounced in off the near post to give them the lead in the 17th minute. Midfielder Saul Niguez effectively clinched the victory with a thumping effort from the edge of the area in the 76th to score his first goal of the season and condemn Sevilla to a first defeat in 10 games in all competitions. The victory took Atletico on to 41 points after 16 games, four clear of second-placed Real Madrid who have played 18. Atletico had enjoyed a rest over the weekend as their match with Athletic Bilbao had been postponed due to a snowstorm in the Spanish capital, although the freezing conditions had also disrupted their training schedule. The home side welcomed back Trippier for the first time since Dec. 23 after his 10-week suspension for breaking betting rules in England was put on hold pending an appeal and the England defender proved his value by playing a big part in both goals. Atletico coach Diego Simeone opted to start 126-million-euro ($154 million) forward Joao Felix on the bench for the second game in a row in favour of Correa and the Argentine repaid his faith with an enterprising shot from the edge of the area, flummoxing Sevilla keeper Bono. Sevilla had won seven of their previous nine matches and did not make things easy for Diego Simeone's side, firing 13 shots at goal to Atletico's five although only managing to work Atletico keeper Jan Oblak twice. They spurned a golden chance to level when Argentine Marcos Acuna missed the target on the rebound while Oblak was on the floor, while forward Youssef En-Nesyri also squandered a good opportunity late in the second half. Sevilla keeper Bono pulled off an impressive save to prevent Luis Suarez doubling Atletico's lead and even after Saul had scored the second, the visitors continued to look for a goal until the final whistle came	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803484
__label__wiki	0.764282	0.764282	Founded in 1955 in or near Woodlawn Players or Junior Player ?-1955, Blackstone Raiders 1955-1959, Blackstone Rangers 1959-1968, Black P Stones 1968-present, El Rukns 1976-1991 People Nation — 1978 – 2000 or later; Primary ethnicities Pyramid, 7, Sun, and Eye Symbol usage Pyramid with 21 bricks and a number 7 in the sun behind the point of the pyramid, eye behind the pyramid To begin the story of the Black P Stones it is first important to understand some background of the area in which the Stones began and some of the organizations that predate the Stones. The Stones began in the Woodlawn neighborhood on Chicago’s south side. Woodlawn was historically a neighborhood that fought to remain a white community and even created strict racial covenants to assure the community would remain white. What caused the white community to lose their firm grip on keeping Woodlawn white was a nasty economic decline during the Great Depression era of the 1930s decade. In the aftermath of the depression the white community could not organize neighborhood renewal in the 1940s and this led the neighborhood to depreciate and deterioration began to settle in, naturally dropping home values. With the decline in property value landlords often sought to rent to blacks because they were willing to pay higher rent during the major housing crisis of the 1940s and 1950s. At that point, there was no stopping black migration to Woodlawn especially after the Supreme Court declared restrictive covenants illegal in 1948. During the 1950s Woodlawn began to change from white to black, however, the big transition did not occur until the mid-1950s when whites began to leave at a faster rate. Woodlawn fought tooth and nail against having blacks in the community until the later 1950s when they all decided to move out and take with them what was left of the local economy. White flight always equals poverty as communities become redlined from investment, renovations and bank loans that are sorely needed for business owners to start new businesses that provide jobs and tax dollars for the local economy of the neighborhood. Homeowners also suffer in redlined communities as loans are denied that will allow them to make repairs on their homes, in turn, the deteriorated homes drop the value of the community, a vicious cycle. Bottom line is, communities that were known to be majority black were immediately redlined both officially and unofficially. Black gangs on the south side of Chicago were never as vicious or as active as white gangs around the city. The Irish street gangs especially gained notoriety in the old days and were well-known for being vicious combatants in the Cabrini Green area and on the south side in Bridgeport and the Back of the Yards. If you thumb through old newspapers and archives you seldom hear much about black gangs or as the newspapers used to refer to them back then as “negro gangs.” Before the late 1950s it was very seldom to hear about the activities of black street gangs and it wasn’t because the papers felt the need to leave out the race of the gang because by the 1950s the press was pretty much trigger happy notifying the public about the race of the non-white gang and that’s when you began to see “negro gang” in the paper. The only real evidence of south side black street gangs was from some oral legends that told the tales of the Wailing Shebas, Dirty Sheiks, Four Corners and the Deacons. There is mild documentation of the Deacons, Shebas and Sheiks but nothing really on the Four Corners. The Four Corners and the Deacons once ruled the south side, mainly in the Bronzeville area but never really had much influence below the Grand Boulevard, Douglas, Oakland and Kenwood communities. Sheiks and Shebas were somewhat similar to syndicates that began on the south side but did not develop into anything major in the later 20th century instead they moved to the west side and influenced the creation of the notorious Clovers and Imperial Chaplains who, in turn, influenced the creation of the Egyptian Cobras (Mickey Cobras) and the Vice Lords. The south side black street gangs were not big on activism at all, although they formed in 1919 because of the race riots to protect their community from white invaders, they instead turned into small time hustlers that fought each other for turf. The black street gangs of the south side were not killers or mad dog gangster types they were just groups of young men that came together to shoot dice games for money or act as tour guides for white visitors to the blossoming Bronzeville area when these tourists came seeking drugs, prostitutes or booze; or some just wanted a tour guide to show them the best places to dine and catch good blues or jazz entertainment. The biggest outfit among the south side black community was the policy racket that was a form of organized crime. These “gangsters” stimulated the local economy and provided employment and donations to the black community that sorely needed it. Besides the policy racket there were pockets of small syndicate gangster groups that rose once the Chicago Outfit flooded the south side black community with Heroin and Cocaine and dope peddlers began to rise into small organized crime groups especially since they were now developing direct connections with the Outfit. This was how the black community was being infected with drugs and crime, issues that were minor in the years before 1952, the year the Outfit muscled in. By 1955, black migration increased on the south side of Chicago. The Woodlawn neighborhood began its early transition from a majority white community to a majority black neighborhood. This was the year where white flight took off as whites decided to no longer invest in this community and they took the local economy and profitable businesses with them. This was also the year when racial tensions began to heat up between newly arrived southern black families and white families that didn’t want to leave yet or couldn’t leave yet. Racial tensions and protests against southern blacks led to the formation of white greaser gangs. Eventually black youths in Woodlawn stood up to greaser gangs by creating a gang of their own. This gang created was known as the “Players” or “Junior Players.” Perhaps the Players started elsewhere and the younger members where in Woodlawn by 1955, but whatever the story is the Players or Junior Players were in the Woodlawn community no later than 1955. This is the first and only black gang among newly arrived black southerners, former residents of Woodlawn from this era remember the Players. The Players were supposed to be the club that would defend the black community but for some reason the group failed by 1955 and began to dissolve but some members developed the group just as it was about to go extinct and recreated the club to be named after the street they came from. This new club was named the “Blackstone Raiders.” The Raiders began in 1955 and became the main defenders of the black community more so than any black gang on the south side. Raiders were connected with black syndicate groups and were even able to obtain firearms and hustle on the side. The Raiders developed a much stronger following than the Players and soon spread to the Englewood neighborhood along the Garfield Boulevard (55th Street) corridor and this is how we have Stones today from Moetown. Garfield Boulevard divides Englewood and the Back of the Yards community. On this dividing line Raiders fought white greaser gangs like the “Rebels” as blacks were not welcome in either neighborhood. In March of 1957, the Rebels made the newspapers as a group of them attacked a black youth named Alvin Palmer who happened to be a Blackstone Raider gang member. In the newspaper it wasn’t known that Palmer was a Raider, therefore, it looked like just a random racial attack as the gang of greasers beat Palmer to death with a large ball peen hammer at the intersection of 59th and Kedzie in the Gage Park neighborhood, Palmer resided in Englewood. The trial was a big one and lasted for months but eventually the greaser boys were convicted of the murder. What also isn’t talked about is how the Raiders got revenge for Palmer’s murder by gunning down a Rebel sometime later. August 27, 1957 article about sentencing of the Rebels that killed Alvin Palmer 1957 article about Alvin Palmer murder May 18, 1957 article about the Alvin Palmer murder March 28, 1957 article about Alvin Palmer murder June 29, 1957 Alvin Palmer article February 9, 1958 Alvin Palmer article In the year 1958, the Woodlawn and Englewood areas were invaded by a west side gang quickly on the rise out west called the Egyptian Cobras. The Cobras moved into several south side neighborhoods simultaneously sort of like an invasion. Cobras were now located in Kenwood, Washington Park, Grand Boulevard, Hyde Park, Fuller Park and of course Englewood and Woodlawn where the Raiders had turf. Another rival group to form in Englewood that year was the Devil’s Disciples which was another black gang bullied by white gangs like the Rebels. In that same year Raiders opened up territory in the Morgan Park neighborhood on the deep south side, this group soon grew to 137 members very quickly. By the year 1959, the Raiders were somehow having issues, perhaps declining or becoming disorganized to the point where a 12-year-old youth was able to seize control of this organization. Legends have always said that young Jeff Fort created the “Blackstone Rangers” in 1959. The truth is this is not completely accurate saying Jeff Fort and Eugene Hairston were the creators, they were more of the organizers of the nation and turned the Stones into an army; therefore, they get their rightful credit as the founders, but the true founders is not too much known. In the Richard T Sale book, “The Blackstone Rangers: A reporter’s account of time spent with the street gang on Chicago’s South Side,” in the very last pages there is a letter from Joel Hampton giving the real history of the Rangers. Hampton wrote the letter to Sale with some details of the Raiders beginning from 1955 up to 1968, which is the year the true story took place in. Joel Hampton describes himself as the leader of the Blackstone Raiders from 1955 until basically 1959. Seems like he is the founder of the Raiders too but his name is not real and in the letter he says his real legal name was Joel Smith; therefore, Joel Smith could be the founder of the Raiders and their first leader, making Joel Smith the first leader of the BPSN before they were known as Black P Stones. The problem I have with this part of the book is I still think there could be a possibility Joel Smith is still not his real name especially since he said in this letter that the young Raider that was killed with a ball peen hammer by the Rebels was Curtis Wright, but there are newspapers I have personally viewed that say the name of the boy was Alvin Palmer and that this happened in March of 1957 when Hampton says it happened in March of 1958. He also said the Raiders became the Rangers in 1958 which would be before Jeff Fort was gangbanging; however, how are we to know Jeff wasn’t in a gang back in 1958? There have never been interviews with the man telling us when he started off and there was no one real close to him that shared that detail with anyone. I know for a fact this letter has lots of truth in it, but I just think Joel is off on dates and he perhaps was concealing identities in this letter including his own name possibly. The letter was meant to be published but seems to only have appeared in the back of this book. Those that have read the book may raise an eyebrow and point out that Joel told the story earlier in the book as starting in 1959 by Fort and Hairston but I will go with the letter instead because I have been told by old timers from the neighborhood about the Raiders and there was a notorious Stone group that paid honor to that name called the “Kingston Raiders” in later years, that name is said to have deep roots from back in the Raider days. The same old timers talk about the “Players” were first too. Another thing to point out from that letter is that Joel said “Cookie Macus” was the one that killed that Raider with a ball peen hammer, but Cookie Macus is actually Clement Macus who was the shooter in another unrelated shooting in Bridgeport in 1955 where he killed a white kid. See, Joel has some truth he just has his articles and dates mixed up, very common with guys that lived the streets, they often mix up dates and names. With this being said, in reference to the Richard Sale book, it seems to me that Jeff Fort either joined the Raiders and became a leader of a group of young members of the Raiders around 64th to 66th and Blackstone or he seized a branch of the Raiders and changed their name to the “Blackstone Rangers.” No matter what, Fort managed to take the bull by the horns and convert the Blackstone Raiders to the Blackstone Rangers by 1959 and all Raiders became known as Blackstone Rangers. One thing certain is that Jeff Fort joined the Raiders or Rangers in either 1958 or 1959. Social workers that worked with Fort were the main ones to say Jeff Started gangbanging in 1959 but they also said before that he was getting into trouble and running around with a group of boys back in about 1958; therefore, there is a very good chance he was a Ranger or Raider as far back as 1958. Many have said Jeff Fort created the “Blackstone Ranger” name based upon the age group name for boys his age at the Woodlawn Boys Club at 63rd and Woodlawn. Jeff and a group of other boys were kicked out of the club for disruptive behavior and very likely took the name after they were kicked out. Whatever the case may be the Ranger name was adopted in either 58 or 59 and it seems like Jeff Fort was a Junior Raider member that converted the organization into the Blackstone Rangers. At first, the Rangers appeared to just be a group of about 10 boys around Jeff’s age, but the Ranger nation was much larger as they were at least located along Garfield Boulevard (55th Street) in Englewood and in the Morgan Park community, these are the oldest sections of Stones. It is also a fact that Raiders used to refer to each other as “Stone,” this was prevalent with the Rangers too. Guys were walking the streets hollering “Stone love!” or “Stone” since 1955, the old timers will remember. The Vice Lords were a rising organization from the west side in 1959 and one of the founders had family on the south side of Chicago, particularly in Woodlawn. Leonard “Cal” Calloway was one of the first seven Vice Lords that helped put it all together and before he was a Vice Lord, he was an Imperial Chaplain. Cal was related to fifteen-year-old Eugene “Lil Bruce” Hairston. Hairston was no gang banger before 1959 and was not even a native of Chicago. Hairston was born on May 1, 1944 and was raised in Columbus Ohio in his younger years before his family moved to Chicago in 1955. The Hairston family first moved to the Low End (east side of Washington Park and south side of Grand Boulevard runs north-south between cottage grove/state street and east-west from around 55th/47th…towards Roosevelt) then in 1956 they relocated to Woodlawn I think over by Stoney Island Avenue. Hairston connected with neighborhood pimps, hustlers, drug peddlers and gamblers when he moved to Woodlawn which got him his charisma and his ability to hustle on the side, in turn, he gained a lot of respect in the neighborhood and so began his nickname as “Bull” that would morph later on into “King Bull.” The Hairston family was from a more middle class cut, however, they still bonded with the Fort family from 6536 Blackstone Ave (65th Place and Blackstone). The Forts were a little different as they were from the black southerner migration hailing from Aberdeen, Mississippi. Hairston’s family I believe was more middle class, but John and Annie Fort were cotton pickers. The Forts first lived in the Near South Side community by 22nd and Cottage Grove (this part of Cottage Grove was removed long ago) in 1955 until they had to relocate to Woodlawn in 1956 due to construction in the area that effectively removed Cottage Grove Ave from 22nd down to 33rd Street. Both families seemed to have relocated to Woodlawn in the same year of 1956 and they bonded since. It was through this bond that Eugene Hairston and little Jeff Fort became friends and as they became friends Jeff Fort was introduced to Cal. Jeff Fort was born on February 20, 1947 and was three years younger than Bull, so he was sort of in Bull’s shadow in the early years. In the later 1950s Jeff had behavioral problems and would often get in trouble at school and at home. Sometimes Jeff would run away to the west side and stay over by Cal and this is when Jeff got to personally witness the rise of the Vice Lords and how Cal and the others were plotting strategy for taking over North Lawndale. This is how Jeff and Eugene learned how to be conquerors and gang leaders, from the original Vice Lords. They also learned how to draw up a constitution and create bylaws for the organization to follow and how to set and enforce rules (The Almighty Black P. Stone Nation, Moore, Williams). In the beginning, Rangers were said to be thieves that stole purses and broke into stores in the neighborhood. These boys also fought battles with the much larger Egyptian Cobras. Jeff and his family lived at the corner of 65th Place and Blackstone at 6536 Blackstone Ave, therefore, he made 64th Street down to 66th Street along Blackstone Avenue the turf of the Rangers. Eugene Hairston started his own gang at the same time he called the “Harper’s Boys” that was named after the street they formed on which was between 63rd and 64th and Harper. The Harpers Boys were the same size as the Rangers with about a dozen guys and they claimed Jackson Park was all theirs as they guarded between 63rd down the 67th along Stoney Island Ave. Even though Fort and Hairston and their families had been friends for the past 4 years and they both were inspired by the Vice Lords, once they broke off to start their own gangs, they became bitter rivals. Not only did each of their gangs fight the Egyptian Cobras and the Devil’s Disciples north and west of them, they also fought each other tooth and nail which led to the shooting of Carl Robinson. The Rangers shot Carl with a zip gun and now the Harpers Boys were furious, and the rivalry became worse. The two gangs would fight each other for dominance but there was no winner. Jeff Fort’s group gained more notoriety in the community as Blackstone Rangers were reported more often and watched by authorities as opposed to the Harper’s Boys that were often just referred to being members of the Rangers (The Almighty Black P. Stone Nation, Moore, Williams). Another reason there was more of a spotlight on the Rangers is because they were around much longer than the Harper’s Boys although the name changed slightly it was the same older group, but the Raiders were now forgotten by 1959 and only Jeff Fort’s Rangers group were all that was noticed. In the year 1960, Jeff Fort went on a conquest to conquer the intersection of 63rd and Stoney Island which he wanted to call “The Enchanted City.” It was a bad area of the neighborhood with prostitutes standing on the corner. Fort thought he could interact with the people here and dominate this corner to make rules of conduct for everyone, kind of like a socially engineered society. As he tried to take this corner, he ran into too many wars with the Harper’s Boys and other gangs, therefore, it couldn’t happen (Brune and YLISELA, JR, Nov 1988, The Making Of Jeff Fort). In the year 1960, Jeff Fort and Eugene Hairston realized they couldn’t defeat each other, therefore, they combined forces as one organization. Eugene Hairston did not like the name “Blackstone Ranger” but because it was the recognized name on the streets and the Harper’s Boys name was not so much Hairston reluctantly accepted the name (The Almighty Black P. Stone Nation, Moore, Williams). The Rangers also had a deeper legacy dating back further in time, not only that there were guys in Englewood and Morgan Park that could be a part of this larger nation. Hairston wasn’t nominated by the Rangers as the Chief nor did he take it upon himself, he was appointed by a higher power in the neighborhood. Hairston always had connections with small adult black syndicate groups in the area and he was mentored by them and did favors for them. Now the syndicates wanted to work directly with Hairston’s gang. The syndicates saw how the Rangers could be vicious and how they had incredible influence on the streets of Woodlawn, therefore, they saw opportunity. These syndicates were neighborhood drug dealers, pimps, illegal gambling operators and worked as fences, they even had their hands in the policy racket. The syndicates had plans for these boys and were willing to pay them money to be drug couriers, collect extortion payments or even kill for them if needed. If a contracted killing needed to be done these syndicates would hire the boys to carry out the hit. Not only would the boys get paid for doing these acts the syndicates mentored them and helped them grow to recruit many more young boys under the age of 17 so that they could carry out illegal activities without facing serious jailtime that adults would have to face. The syndicates were also the ones that appointed Eugene Hairston as the head of the Black Stone Rangers giving him the title of “Big Chief.” They loved his charisma and the incredible respect he got on the streets; Hairston was also tough as nails. The syndicates appointed Jeff Fort as “Little Chief” and he was to be the one the recruit because he could get so many youths to follow him and he was highly charismatic. Most boys would work as drug couriers, numbers runners and even lookouts and the syndicates loved it because they could pay them next to nothing to do these dirty and dangerous jobs, most times they were paid just a few coins and of course the best part the older guys didn’t do jail time. Eugene Hairston had the ability to relate to leaders of other gangs in the neighborhood and he could convince them to take their whole gang and join the Rangers and this is when the Rangers really started to grow (The Almighty Black P. Stone Nation, Moore, Williams). Once the nation was created, Eugene Hairston, Lamar “Bop Daddy” Bell, Charles “Reico” Cranshaw and other former Harper’s Boys created the “Main 21” ruling body which became a set of bylaws and a constitution the Rangers had to live by. The template for the bylaws came from the Vice Lords who were declared their “First Cousins” mainly due to actual family ties. Rangers were more about black power than Vice Lords originally were, and this brought about African rooted literature and symbols for the Rangers. The pyramid was chosen as it demonstrated their belief that ancient Egypt was the first civilization and since it is an African country it shows how Africans were first to walk the Earth and the first civilized society in Egypt. It also represents symbolism of their African ancestors and their divinity. The four corners of the pyramid are four 90-degree angles that add up to 360 degrees, hence, how the “360 degrees” was created. Each side of the pyramid had its own meaning representing earth, fire, air and water. The pyramid was given 21 bricks to symbolize the ruling Main 21 body. The colors of black, green and red were adopted as these were pan-African colors. Main 21 does not refer to 21 members in it, but I’m not sure why the name was chosen (The Almighty Black P. Stone Nation, Moore, Williams). The first conquest as a unified nation outside of Woodlawn for the Rangers was to the Southshore neighborhood in the year 1960. The Rangers spread south of 67th Street out of the Woodlawn area into the South Shore neighborhood conquering an area of the neighborhood that was first being settled by blacks in the area of 67th Street on the north, 71st Street on the south, Stoney Island on the east and the Illinois Central tracks on the west by Dorchester Ave. Rangers grew in popularity with newly arrived South Shore black youths because they offered protection, especially from rival Devil’s Disciples and Egyptian Cobras not far away. Also, as early as 1960, the Rangers were receiving assistance from the Woodlawn Lutheran Church and the Woodlawn Boys Club. These organizations needed to provide services to the Rangers because it helped inflate their budgets so they could keep getting more money. They sheltered the Rangers by giving them sanctuary so they could better organize along with technical assistance so they could grow. This also connected the Rangers with other institutions that would give Ranger leaders credibility. This is how the Rangers were given to tools needed to become an organized group, but it also opened the door to more recruitment as the early 60s continued (The Almighty Black P. Stone Nation, Moore, Williams). As I stated earlier, the syndicates used the Rangers to do their dirty work by carrying out hits or committing other small crimes. All this caught up with Ranger leadership as Jeff Fort and Eugene Hairston would do some time in a juvenile detention center in 1961. This was the first time Ranger leadership was locked away, but the Rangers continued thanks to the interim leadership of Charles “Bear” Edward Bey. The boys were let out by 1962. During the years 1962 until 1964 the Rangers experienced quite a bit of growth multiplying into the hundreds in size and absorbing several gangs into the Rangers but the bigger growth spurt would come in the latter half of the 1960s decade especially when money started to flow into the organization without young Rangers needing to split heads for pennies. It was a relief when Rangers began roping in legitimate money from sympathetic organizations. There was also a cry out for help from the community after a very nasty 1964 war between Rangers and Disciples as both gangs were growing and their territories were now very close to each other. In 1964, Jeff Fort’s adult record began when he was thrown in jail for a short time for robbery. In the year 1964, the Rangers went on a major recruitment drive in the south suburbs of Chicago. In the suburbs of Robbins and Ford Heights, heavy poverty had settled in as these suburbs were struggling as all-black communities which made it very difficult to obtain state aid causing unfair conditions and poverty. In the suburbs of Chicago Heights, Harvey and Markham blacks were facing heavy discrimination from whites in those communities and roving white greaser gangs often attacked groups of black youths for no reason. In Chicago Heights, black families were forced to deal with heavy poverty and were confined to the east side of the village which was deteriorating and full of public housing projects. In Dixmoor and Phoenix, racial harmony was occurring as blacks were moving in; however, black youths had to deal with hostility from neighboring Harvey especially at the Harvey and Dixmoor border on 147th Street and the border with Phoenix on Halsted Street. The south suburban black youths needed assistance and a voice to stand up for them; therefore, the Black Stone Rangers arrived at the 147th Street border and recruited among a group called the “Black Elephants” and also fought side by side with them. Among the Black Elephants was 15 year old Jerome “General Jake” Crowder who had an older brother that was a Ranger. Crowder was one of the Black Elephants recruited into the Rangers and was appointed as leader of the first suburban chapter in Dixmoor and Harvey. Crowder’s group became known as the “Harvey Dixmoor Rangers.” Crowder was mainly in charge of the Dixmoor Rangers but overall for the Harvey Dixmoor branch. He was running it alongside 16 year old Roger “General Tu” Bowman. Bowman was strictly in charge of the Harvey part of the Harvey Dixmoor Rangers and you can say he is the co-founder of the Harvey Branch. It is very likely the Rangers were pivotal in taking part of the Gin Bottle Riots in Dixmoor that summer and if not they formed right after that happened in response to that incident. Right after the Harvey Dixmoor Rangers were created the Rangers colonized nearby Phoenix then from there they settled in Robbins, East Chicago Heights (Ford Heights), Chicago Heights and Markham. In Markham 14 year old Willie Tompkins was appointed the leader and founder of the Markham branch, this group went by the name “Kingston Green Rangers” that started in the Kingston Green subdivision which was the subdivision that brought a major boom to the black population of the village and they were soon met with racial strife and angry white gang; hence, why the Rangers landed here. The Ford Heights chapter was headed up by 14 year old Monty Powell who arrived in the town as an active member in community services, he was the founder and the first leader of the Ford Heights Rangers. The first leader and founder of the Chicago Heights branch was Jerome Branch who later took over leadership of Ford Heights too after Monty Powell was locked up for killing a Ford Heights police officer at the Ford Heights police station. As for Robbins, I don’t know how the first leader was. This suburban conquest was the first ever conquest put together by any Chicago street gang in history as the Black P stones can be credited with being the first Chicago street gang to open territory in the Chicago area suburbs since 1964. During the early years between 1960 and 1965, the Rangers made money not only from small payments from the syndicates but also from taxing drug dealers, pimps, hustlers and gambling houses. Rangers also visited stores and taxed store owners in exchange for protection from any rival gangs or other criminals. Rangers leaders Eugene Hairston and Jeff Fort learned this from the older syndicates and passed in on to the boys coming up in the neighborhood as Rangers (The Almighty Black P. Stone Nation, Moore, Williams). The neighborhood syndicates had learned from the Italian Outfit and maintained strong connections to the mafia, and this is how the Stones were getting their first connections to major organized crime. Before the Rangers controlled the pimping and drug dealing, the market ran rampant and outside forces controlled these rackets which brought outsiders to come into the community and cause trouble and even rob and steal from the community. The Rangers put a stop to this and kept the business within the neighborhood flushing outsiders out. One of the biggest issues was when white customers would venture into the neighborhood seeking drugs and prostitutes they would often become the victim of a crime in the area and because that man was white, the police would come in cracking heads of many black men that had nothing to do with the crime. The Rangers wanted to put an immediate stop to this by keeping trouble making whites out and that meant cutting off white syndicates pimping women and distributing drugs in Ranger controlled areas. A change began early in the year 1965 when Ed Woods, the Extension Director of the Woodlawn Chicago Boys Club and Reverend O.H. Wilson Sotnak of Woodlawn Immanuel Lutheran Church (1359 E. 64th Street, at 64th and Kenwood Ave) wanted to help the boys get a “fresh start in life” according to the April 1, 1965 Chicago Tribune article. Reverend Sotnak offered his church for the Rangers to meet in 3 days a week so they could play basketball, play pool, play card games, play ping pong and checkers in order to keep the Rangers off the streets. Here the Rangers organized dances and parties to raise enough money to buy a television set, turntable and amplifier for playing records. Here they were helping each other obtain jobs and Ed Woods was working with Fort and Hairston on how to help them help each other find jobs or he himself was helping the Rangers find employment (Source: Chicago Tribune April 1, 1965). This was a very positive thing because many youths in the area struggled to find jobs due to a lack of employment offered in these crumbling communities and some racial barriers. The April 1, 1965 article about Stones first making contact with Ed Woods Part 2 of April 1, 1965 article Close up of Ed Woods meeting with Jeff Fort and Eugene Hairston, Hairston in on the right. April 1, 1965 Now that the Woodlawn Boys Club and the Lutheran church stepped up their involvement with the Rangers in 1965, Ranger membership became even more attractive for Woodlawn youths and recruitment soon swelled. It was also in this year that Jeff Fort connected with Reverend John Fry of the First Presbyterian Church located at 6400 S Kimbark Ave (64th and Kimbark). Fry wanted to connect with Jeff Fort who was always the visible leader of the Rangers since the beginning as Hairston was more behind the scenes, therefore, Fort was the one to talk to. Fry wanted the boys to come to the church and have meetings there so they could learn to become a community-based organization instead of being a street gang. Fry was offering the Rangers key guidance that would become pivotal with their connections with several organizations that would pay money to the Rangers to provide public services to neighborhood youths. The church become a major hangout for the Rangers as they threw wild parties in the gymnasium and even stashed several guns in the basement. Reverend Fry and other members of the clergy there said they had the intention of preventing gang wars between Disciples and Rangers, however, the Disciples were not taken in by the Reverend. Residents of the community, law enforcement and even higher up religious figures were very suspicious of this relationship and even criticized Reverend Fry for controlling the Rangers, such an allegation he and the Rangers denied. The First Presbyterian Church that was the former headquarters of the Stones The church worked with the The Woodlawn Organization (T.W.O) by operating a Head Start program that had a specialty with job training for adults. This was a prime opportunity for the Rangers to be incorporated in with the program and this is what legitimized the Rangers and got them on the payroll funded by T.W.O and the church. Several Black Stone Rangers were now on the payroll and earning a salary just for attending meetings and guiding neighborhood youths with tools needed to try to obtain employment or to organize events that kept youths off the street. Now Rangers could afford bush-top fade haircuts and converse gym shoes that were worth quite a bit of money back then. They wore khakis and white T shirts setting the fashion trend for the whole neighborhood. Kids in the neighborhood looked at the Rangers styling and now wanted to become members and the growth soon boomed going into 1966 as the Rangers started to become an empire (The Almighty Black P. Stone Nation, Moore, Williams). The Rangers in 1965 had 200 members. One other thing that enhanced the major growth of the Rangers in 1966 was the major recruitment of other street gangs from neighborhoods like Englewood, West Englewood, Grand Boulevard, Douglas, Near South Side, Oakland, Kenwood, Greater Grand Crossing, Roseland, Chatham, Calumet Heights, Auburn Gresham, Avalon Park, Washington Heights, Burnside, West Pullman, Pullman, Riverdale, Fuller Park and Washington Park. Rangers were even able to flip gangs up north in the Near North Side neighborhood. The Ranger nation now basically became an alliance of gangs coming together under one umbrella. Each gang still would operate independently, however, they needed to understand they were all Rangers and had to adopt the last name of “Ranger” or they could opt to take the last name of “Stone” naming after the Blackstone first name. This was also done to keep up with the rival Disciple coalition that was being built up around the city as more gangs were going by the last name “Disciple.” Thanks to this confederation, the Rangers were now numbered at 1,500 members as far north as 31st Street. Black P Stones in the south suburbs of Dixmoor, Chicago Heights and Ford Heights Jun 17, 1969 June 17, 1969 article part 2 June 17, 1969 article part 3 with photo of Jermaine "General Jake" Crowder Close up of June 17, 1969 photo of General Jake Crowder January 5, 1970 Dixmoor Stones accused of shooting up a tavern for not paying taxes to Stones January 29, 1970 raid on Strone gang member homes in Harvey, one being of Roger Bowman. January 29, 1970 article close up of the weapons taken away in the raids Photo from February 27, 1970 article of Monty Powell the founder of the Ford Heights Stones March 6, 1970 article about Sammy Davis Junior feeling threatened by Stones at one of his businesses he worked with the Stones on. A bonus section in this article is a murder case involving Stones March 7, 1970 more details about the deals with Stones and Sammy Davis Junior and it also talks about the syndicate connections Mickey Cogwell and Reico Cranshaw had March 7, 1970 article part 2 October 21, 1970 article of a south suburban shooting saying Stones shot someone that protested their organization. October 22, 1970 article about the same shooting August 22, 1972 article about Stones Killing a Disciple in Dixmoor The Dixmoor Rangers was just one of the 15 branches of the Rangers. There was also the 113th Street Rangers that were the Rangers that were either from Morgan Park or Roseland. Perhaps these are the original Morgan Park Raiders from 1958. Other Ranger groups were the FBI Rangers, Golden Rangers, Maniac Rangers, Imperial Rangers, Syndicate Rangers, Russian Rangers, Cossack Rangers, Gypsy Rangers, Traveling Rangers and the Dixmoor Rangers. The gangs that adopted the last name of “Stone” were: Cobrastones, Gangster Stones, Apache Stones, Cherokee Stones, Nova Stones, Rolling Stones, Egyptian Stones, Nomad Stones, Pimp Stones and Four Corner Stones. August 7, 1966 closer up image of the Harvey Dixmoor Ranger graffiti, this is solid evidence Stones were here in 1966 August 7, 1966 hard evidence the Rangers were in Dixmoor and Harvey Englewood was an important turnout because the Rangers were able to take over from 69th Street down to 75th Street. Northern Englewood is the second oldest Stone section in the city that dates way back to the Raider days. Once the coalition and conversion of gangs happened in 1966, the Englewood chapter would grow larger, especially between 54th to 56th Street in the Back of the Yards and Englewood and West Englewood areas. The Garfield Boulevard zone was heavily contested by the Disciples all the way down between Englewood and West Englewood. The Rangers were trying to run it at Disciple expense. Not only did Rangers over here battle ferociously against the Disciples they also fought white and Hispanic gangs from just over the Garfield Boulevard border. Garfield Boulevard is the dividing line between Back of the Yards and both Englewood neighborhoods. The Back of the Yards community was still very white back in the 1960s and the first half of the 1970s and gangs like the Gaylords and Latin Souls fought savagely against the Disciples but now the war with Rangers heated up by 1966. It got so bad over here that Gaylords and Latin Souls considered a truce with the Disciples on several occasions because of how badly the Rangers fought against them. These hard-fought battles made the Rangers a major force to be reckoned with on that Garfield Boulevard border and in later years this corridor gave birth to the Rubenite Stones and the Jet-Black Stones. Rangers would also eventually take turf in the Back of the Yards and crossed that Garfield Boulevard border taking over a good piece of 54th Street and all the way up to 51st Street. All this Englewood turf from 51st to 57th became known as “Moe Town.” June 26, 1966 article about war between Stones and Disciples. This article also talks about a peace treaty that summer September 15, 1967 article mentioning the Four Corner Rangers and Herbert Thunder Stevens September 15, 1967 article part 2 September 15, 1968 article about Thunder and the Four Corner Rangers Another legendary take over was in the Oakland neighborhood at the intersection of 39th and Lake Park Place right outside the Lake Park Meadows public housing projects and 43rd and Indiana in the Grand Boulevard neighborhood. This is when the Rangers met Randy “Rube” Dillard (who ran 43rd) and Herbert “Thunder” Stevens (who ran 39th). In 1966 these two men took their gang into the Ranger nation as “Four Corner Stones.” From here Rangers spread very quickly into the Ida B. Wells public housing projects and the Clarence Darrow projects, especially in the 727 E. 38th Street building in the Darrow Homes. At first this group was known as the “Four Corners” and I wonder if this was the same Four Corners gang that started in the 1930s at 35th and Indiana that the Rangers flipped, if so, that is some very deep history. Another legendary settlement for the Rangers was in the Near North Side community in the Cabrini Green public housing projects. The Rangers met with gang leader Samuel “Two Mac” Dillard and brought him and his gang into the Ranger nation and this is the story of how the Stones came to Cabrini Green in 1966. Rangers also landed on the west side of Chicago in the year 1966. Rangers were in the North Lawndale area attempting to settle this area alongside Egyptian Cobras and Vice Lords. Rangers were soon having gun battles with rivals although I don’t know exactly which gangs they were conflicting with. As far as I know the Rangers never had permanent settlement in North Lawndale but they did settle in nearby Austin eventually but 1966 was the beginning of west side Black P Stones regardless. August 5, 1966 article that mentions that riot in Harvey. Even though it doesn't say that Rangers were involved here in other articles I presented the looter tagged Ranger tags. This also an important article because it tells of the first signs of Black P Stones on the west side of the city. Another big turnout was the recruitment of the legendary Egyptian Cobras in 1966. The south side faction of the Egyptian Cobras had merged with the King Cobras back in the late 1950s and now these Cobra gangs had been operating as one force. The south side Egyptian Cobras were mostly led by Henry “Mickey” Cogwell and the King Cobras were led by Theotis “Emperor Thee” Clark. Since 1959, Rangers battled viciously with the Egyptian Cobras in Woodlawn but now that was all squashed when Cogwell and Clark joined the Ranger army. The Cobras became known as “Cobrastones.” The Egyptian Cobras were also rooted in the Cabrini Green projects and at first didn’t follow this until the 1970s when they also became Cobrastones. The Egyptian Cobras on the west side of the city never became part of the Stones. At some point between 1966 and 1968, the Rangers even spread as far north as 23rd Street into the Near South Side neighborhood and settled in the Harold Ickes projects. This is how and when the Rangers made it into these projects and became a major part of these buildings for decades. Now with a massive army of Rangers all over the south side of Chicago, the Rangers now connected with the black nationalist movement and were present when Martin Luther King came to Chicago to march through the south side. In June a rally was held at Soldier Field for 60,000 people to listen to Martin Luther King speak. At this even hundreds of Rangers marched into the event waving a large flag that had a picture of a .50 caliber machine gun on it. The Rangers surrounded the upper deck of the stadium making many people frightened, however, there was no violence at all or ill will, the Rangers were simply introducing themselves to the Black Liberation Movement and the SCLC (Southern Christian Leadership Conference); this is what began the Ranger’s connections to the black nationalist and black power movements. After taking SCLC non-violence workshops the Rangers were able to march alongside Martin Luther King as he made his legendary marches into white neighborhoods that summer (The Almighty Black P. Stone Nation, Moore, Williams). Chief Bull was especially all about being a black power movement and by 1966, he started encouraging Rangers to start wearing afros to show more black pride. Hairston also opposed drugs whether it was for personal use or for narcotics trafficking. The only vice Hairston had was smoking marijuana, but Jeff Fort didn’t even smoke marijuana or use any drugs or alcohol, heck, he didn’t even use curse words. Eventually Rangers would connect with the Black Panthers. An old tale spun mostly by law enforcement told a story that Jeff Fort ran the Panthers out of Chicago by pointing over 100 guns at them, but this is far from the truth. The Rangers instead had common ground with the Panthers and there was a mutual respect between the two groups, but they could not see themselves fully working together after they officially met in 1969. The Panthers viewed the Stones as too violent and not political enough, while the Stones considered the Panthers as idealists and pseudo-revolutionaries, thus, the thought of a coalition never came to fruition but there certainly was never any violence or even an ounce of hate or conflict between the two groups; the two groups hating each other is a myth (The Almighty Black P. Stone Nation, Moore, Williams). By the end of 1966, there was major frustration building up in the Woodlawn community over the violent gang wars between Rangers and Disciples over the crossing of Woodlawn Avenue which served as the dividing line between the gangs. In December of that year, the Presbyterian Church began seeking grants from T.W.O to give to the Rangers so they could seek programs to minimize violence. In the Spring of 1967, T.W.O received $927,000 from the U.S. Government Office of Equal Opportunity (known as O.E.O). O.E.O was created by President Lyndon B. Johnson to fight his war on poverty. T.W.O’s President was Arnold Brazier who was also a Revered at the Apostolic Church of God and working with Reverend Fry and both men worked with the Rangers. It was because of this connection that allowed T.W.O to disburse the money to the churches that, in turn, disbursed money to the Rangers to run the educational and job training centers. Not all the money went to the Rangers, half went to the Disciples to carry out the same duties. Rangers and Disciples were paid a salary to oversee youths and act as instructors in classrooms. Jeff Fort himself was paid a salary of $6,000 a year. The program was a big success as young black youths including several Rangers were finding employment and even attending college this, in turn, kept many youths off the street and saved many lives. During the summer of 1967, Rangers successfully prevented a violent riot from occurring on the south side as they policed a very angry community and kept things cool. Ranger popularity grew as now membership was at 3,000 members. All went well with the OEO program until November of 1967 when Jeff Fort was thrown in jail on murder charges until the following year for a murder he was later acquitted of. During his time in jail the program became disorganized as many Rangers began engaging in fraudulent activities with the grant money. Rangers would often sign their names as attending the job training centers or education centers then take sign in sheets home to fill in the entries; checks were also falsely signed for. All these actions would later fall under investigation. Without Jeff Fort, the program was without proper leadership and all over a murder case that was pushed on Fort and it was something he didn’t even do (The Almighty Black P. Stone Nation, Moore, Williams). To make matters worse Eugene Hairston was arrested and put in jail in September of 1967 for conspiracy to commit murder, he would remain in jail during his trial that continued until May of 1968. At the later part of 1967 and early part of 1968, the Rangers were left without leaders. December 22, 1967 article about the OEO program detailing the pay rates and naming Charles Bey and Throop, some big time Stones. The rape case mentioned, as far as I know, didn't bring about convictions. December 22, 1967 article part 2 Overzealous law enforcement became a major problem for the Rangers heading into 1968 as police closed in very sharply on the Presbyterian Church. Law enforcement pinned the staggering 1967 crime rate stats on the Rangers. Law enforcement also criticized the church and Revered Fry for harboring these boys and letting them store stockpiles of weapons in the church. Reverend Fry did admit there was a stash of guns in the church but it was for the purpose of collecting the weapons so they could be off the street to keep the streets safer. The weapons were then locked in a safe, however, Rangers often did transfer guns in and out of the church. Boys would drink and party in the church, but Fry said there was nothing he could do about that and his main mission was to just keep the Rangers off the street and away from violence, no matter what the cost. The church was then raided and this time for the safe full of weapons. On the day they did the raid, Rangers happened to be meeting with agency representatives about employment and housing while others played basketball. The weapons were indeed secure in the safe out of harm’s way, but police still raided the church and it was said they were verbally abusive while disrupting positive programs (The Almighty Black P. Stone Nation, Moore, Williams). The police began to declare war on the Rangers heading into 1968 which resulted in several false arrests on mostly Main 21 members. Charges were dropped against Lee Jackson, Melvin Bailey, Allen Christmas, James Lofton and Leonard Sengali. Illegal search and seizures, harassment, defamation of character and even police beatings plagued the Rangers. This all led to the Rangers lawyering up thanks to Eugene Hairston’s connection with Charles Kettering and the Kettering Foundation. Eugene Hairston was on trial for soliciting four young boys to gun down three drug dealers at the intersection of 61st and Dorchester. The charges stated that Eugene Hairston ordered boys aged 13-15 years old to carry out the assassination of these dealers because they were taking money from the neighborhood by selling drugs, according to court documents. 13-year-old Dennis Jackson approached a car full of the dealers with a .45 caliber pistol and fired six bullets into the three men, two bullets a piece killing Leo McClure and wounding the two others. Apparently, Paul “Prophet Paul” Martin oversaw the hit from across the street and told the boys when to advance. Before shooting the men, Dennis Jackson said, ” I hear you was messin with the Chief!” (Source: The People Vs. Hairston) Hairston was convicted and sentenced 5 to 15 years, he then was sent to Statesville. Law enforcement considered this a major victory because they had been investigating the Rangers for years with allegations of adult leaders soliciting young boys to carry out hits for them. Police knew the adult members would benefit because they avoided jail time and the boys would only be lightly punished even for crimes as heavy as murder. Earlier in the decade the neighborhood syndicates did the same to the young Rangers, paying scraps to carry out murders because young Rangers would get light sentences, now the Rangers were grown up and learned from this way of handling business. The young ones enthusiastically carried out the hits because it got them recognized and got them respect. The pay wasn’t big, and it really wasn’t all about the money. In the murder case Hairston was swept into he paid the kids $6 in total to split and gave them a big plate of food according to court documents (Source: The People Vs. Hairston). During the trials Eugene Hairston claimed his innocence and even said the money paid to the boys was for their work as an usher. Paul Martin was brought up on the same charges with the same exact evidence presented but he was found not guilty based upon the poor evidence, but Bull was somehow convicted on that same evidence which shows there was favoritism to convict the leader of the Rangers. September 23, 1967 article about the charges first put against Paul Martin and Eugene Hairston for the solicitation for murder charges. Looks like the dealers they shot were from the Kenwood neighborhood January 13, 1968 article with Eugene Hairston as "Barn Boss" as the head prisoner over other young guys as he beat one badly to keep the guys in line January 13, 1968 article part 2 During the time both leaders were locked up law enforcement closed in on the Rangers as a major war with the Disciples ensued until March 4, 1968 when Disciples and Rangers came together to call a truce so they wouldn’t lose their OEO money that paid them a salary of $45 a week. Starting the next day anonymous tips supposedly poured in that the Rangers were stashing several weapons of destruction in multiple locations for the purpose of waging war against the police and the city. A meeting with a group of white communists was blown up after this group offered guns and grenades for a war against the U.S. The Rangers allegedly rejected the offer outright because it would be damaging to their organization but the F.B.I and the papers blew it up as if the correlation was in the works. More harmful rumors circulated, and police were driving down hard on the Rangers on the streets. These rumors and investigations were false, but it became clear that law enforcement was desperate to dismantle the Rangers once and for all. 24-hour surveillance began on the Rangers as they were being made out to be a group of black nationalist terrorists, far from what they were about. What didn’t help is that the feds flipped Main 21 member George “Watusi” Rose who gave lots of false information including the story about the meeting with the white communists, that never happened. George "Watusi" Rose testifying at the 1968 Senatorial hearings. Jeff Fort was released from jail in March of 1968. Fort then assumed control of the organization as now there was lots of disorganization in the nation as branches were ready for full civil war especially a branch known as “Imperial Lovers.” Fort had no choice but to do something drastic to restore order to the nation and this is when he assumed total control and had no choice but to push out Eugene Hairston that was still standing trial. Jeff Fort renamed the whole nation “Black Peace Stone Nation” for not only the Rangers but for all the gangs allied within the Ranger nation, this is when the name Ranger was dropped and all nations would bear the last name of “Stone” only. The meaning of the new name spawned off from Jeff Fort’s nicknamed title of the “Black Prince” as Eugene Hairston gave Jeff the rank of Prince, therefore, “Black P” really stood for “Black Prince,” then “Stone” stood for the usual street name of Blackstone retaining some of the old name. There was major pushback from Paul “Profit Paul” Martin, Eugene Hairston’s most loyal follower and the spiritual leader of the nation. Martin was soon to make a major stir among the nay sayers about Fort taking over and would have very likely led a rebellion against the new order. Martin was then led into an alley and shot in the back of the head three times in 1969. Fort now was fully in charge of an army of 5,000 soldiers in 1968. The change of leadership was not fully accepted by the whole nation and some groups of Stones and Main 21 members outright opposed it and kept their loyalty to Eugene Hairston. Hairston did accept the second in command position while he was standing trial as he was on the street for some time during his court proceedings, at the time he was alright with being Vice President, the conflict didn’t begin until he went to prison. June 26, 1968 article showing the whole rap sheet of Jeff Fort, Eugene Hairston and Adam Battiste Closeup of the June 26, 1968 article of Jeff Fort mug shot in 1966 and Eugene Hairston first mug shot in 1961 An act that helped the Black P Stones bounce back was how they handled the threat of riots proceeding the Martin Luther King assassination in April and all through the summer of 1968. Stones successfully kept things cool once again on the streets for a second consecutive summer while the west side burned during that day in April. Jeff Fort himself organized the Stones to maintain order even when Stones advanced on Mount Carmel school and rocked a bus full of white students. Jeff Fort raised his arm and ordered the attackers to stop immediately and all the Stones stopped and withdrew, Jeff then ordered his Stones to leave the school alone. After this day, there wasn’t a single shooting between Disciples and Stones for an entire month. Jeff Fort understood the power of non-violent protest even in these early days and became pivotal in preventing the Stones from plunging into destructive behavior that would have made the Stones become public enemy number one and leading to the complete elimination of the Stones, this is why understanding Jeff Fort is important to Black P Stone history. In July of 1968, Senator John McClellan or Arkansas held hearings for the investigation of Jeff Fort and the Black P Stones about the management of that $927,431 given to T.W.O for the job training program in which Jeff Fort was considered “Center Chief.” Fort was cross-examined about allegations of taking the money and not using it for the intended purpose especially since leadership continued to face charges of murder, rape and strong-arm robbery according to court documents. The program was intended to reform the Rangers but instead it was viewed as ineffective as payment was taken without the committee’s expected full results (Source: United States of America Vs. Jeff Fort). The committee had high expectations and did not understand it would take a long time for the program to have full effect. The committee was wanting instant results and did not take into account enough that Jeff Fort’s murder charge was vacated and the fact that him being locked up caused the program to become misguided without leadership. Never was Eugene Hairston’s murder charge looked into about the reason for the crime. Courts and the public only saw that he guided teen boys to kill three men, but never was it viewed that the reason for the shooting was to clear out rogue drug dealers pushing Heroin onto these streets without authorization, thus, causing harm to the community. Granted, the solicitation of teen boys to commit the murders indeed is a tear at moral fabric, however, in these organizations younger members were more than willing to commit such crimes as they eagerly looked for advancement and respect, therefore, were used for these crimes. Without many other positive role models to look up to in such a destitute area, youths often only had hardened gang leaders to look up to as heroes and gang leaders used this to train these youngsters on how to come up to become effective in the gang just like how a manager of a company trains employees to one day become managers. At the hearing, the only information Jeff Fort provided was his name and once it got to asking him his address his council advised him to say no more. Fort then stood up, raised a clenched fist and walked out, he would later face charges for this. One thing the committee didn’t bring up at all was the fact that about $200,000 of the grant money was sent back to the federal government as unspent money, not only that of the remaining over $700,000 only about 33% was actually paid to the Rangers, $1,467.79 of that was put into Jeff Fort’s pocket, these were numbers largely ignored. Perhaps if these numbers were brought to light it could be seen how much less greed came into play (Brune and YLISELA, JR, Nov 1988, The Making of Jeff Fort). June 29, 1968 article about the Senate hearing soon to come June 27, 1968 article about the Senator hearings These organizations that funded the Rangers were all fighting each other to push money into the Ranger’s pockets without giving the best guidance. Bottom line is these organizations needed to provide money to groups like the Rangers and Disciples because it justified their budgets. Without these gangs in existence these groups would have far more limitations. These groups thrived on the wars between Disciples and Rangers because it gave them justification to ask for more money. The sole purpose of the money was to pay these gangs to detract from gang warfare and when violence was reduced it was a big win. Law enforcement also benefited from the gang wars between Disciples and Rangers because it gave them more excuses to lock both organizations up and attempt to destroy their entire infrastructure. Law enforcement would even grease the wheels a little by pitting the two gangs against each other by putting word out on the streets that one gang was about to move on another, a form of egging them on. There was actual evidence that the FBI sent letters to gang leaders giving them alleged intelligence the opposition was about to hit them which is an obvious attempt to get both sides to destroy each other, thus, allowing law enforcement to come down on both groups. Law enforcement could always get further justification afterward saying both groups were black nationalist groups rising to become terrorist organizations pointing out the violence as an example (The Almighty Black P. Stone Nation, Moore, Williams). The peace between Stones and Disciples was shattered on May 8, 1968 when Ellis Rebel Stones attempted to assassinate Disciple leader David Barksdale after falling into a trap. The Ellis Rebel Stones were the only Stone section in the western part of the Woodlawn neighborhood between 65th and 67th and Ellis and the Disciples had always wanted them out. Chicago police came to talk to David Barksdale and Barksdale mentioned that these Stones liked to shoot Disciples anytime Disciples got near their territory and Barksdale wanted to prove his point to these detectives. Barksdale asked the officers to follow him down to 65th and Ellis and once David and his known car made an appearance Andrew McChristian, Melvin Bailey and Edward Dinkins opened fire on Barksdale’s car and detectives swarmed in right away to arrest the three shooters (Source: People Vs. McChristian) (The Almighty Black P. Stone Nation, Moore, Williams). May 9, 1968 article about peace treaty between Jeff Fort and David Barksdale May 9, 1968 article part 2 May 10, 1968 article detailed the attempted assassination of David Barksdale when he led detectives right to the shooters May 10 1968 article part 2 August 15, 1968 article about Eugene Hairston's conspiracy charges and sentencing August 15, 1968 article part 2 August 15, 1968 article mug shot photo of Eugene Hairston 1968 was a year of big wars between Disciples and Stones in the Clarence Darrow projects. Stones were fighting to make the 727 E. 38th Street building all theirs and became fed up with Disciples hanging out near the building. One September night as Disciples were shooting dice near the building, Stones planned the “Svengali Massacre.” That night Stones tucked shotguns and handguns in long coats. The Stones then got into the power source for the 727 building and cut the power creating a spooky atmosphere. As the darkness befell the project building a blaze of gun fire suddenly sparked through the darkness as bodies hit the ground. Stones chewed their way through a massive crowd of Disciples gunning down 17 young men all shot in the darkness. Housing Authority guards became alert and shot it out with the Stones for a while. It was miraculous not a single person died which is why this shooting only had one newspaper appearance in the Chicago Tribune on September 10, 1968 (United States of American Vs. Williams). The F.B.I liked to publish reports that Stones were anti-white and were perhaps rising up against the white man. In 1968, the F.B.I reported the Stones in the suburb of Harvey were assembling all black groups under the Black P Stone nation in what they considered “racial tensions.” There were also reports Stones were gathering heavily in the suburb of Chicago Heights for the purpose of attacking the police which proved to be false. Reports also said Stones were trying to extort money for contributions to businesses owned by singer Sammy Davis Junior to support his businesses in the Harvey and Dixmoor communities which was also false (The Almighty Black P. Stone Nation, Moore, Williams). It is true that Stones were being paid by Davis to protect his businesses but there was no extortion there was just a falling out. There were even allegations that the Stones were attempting to disrupt the Democratic National Convention on August 26th to get even with Mayor Daley for opposing further funding to OEO into the pockets of the Stones but not a single Stone member ever showed up at the convention, another false report (The Almighty Black P. Stone Nation, Moore, Williams). Despite all the issues with government investigations the Stones faced, Stones were still working with community groups and receiving payment. In 1968, Jeff Fort was hired by the Kenwood Oakland Community Outreach (KOCO) program in which he was made to be Youth Director. KOCO also lent the Stones $100,000 and Reverend Curtis Burrell himself lent them $3,000 to open a restaurant on Woodlawn Avenue (Brune and YLISELA, JR, Nov 1988, The Making of Jeff Fort). Fort was also leading marches against disadvantages people faced in the black community with housing and overall poor treatment. On the flip side the Stones were also extorting businesses for protection and killing in the streets. Stones also didn’t want to see any grant money going into any other organizations, so they shook down all other groups to make sure the money channeled their way. Not only that, business deals always fell through with organizations and individuals including Sammy Davis Junior as Stones accused them of trying to take advantage of them, this was the dark side of the Stones that caught negative attention and of course all this was blamed on the highest leadership, however, running an organization with thousands of members had extreme challenges. Even the arrangement with Reverend Burrell eventually fell through in 1969 when Burrell became enraged that some Stones still demanded their paycheck even though they didn’t want to do the work. When Burrell was confronted by a Stone one day demanding to pay him even though he wouldn’t show up for work Burrell fired a gun at the floor near the Stone because he was blocking Burrell’s path. This all started a conflict between Stones and Burrell’s backers and Burrell was in danger until Burrell raised an army of hundreds of angry people in the community. The beef was eventually squashed but this was a big example of how control was being lost with the community organizations. Despite the investigations on the Stones and Jeff Fort and Jeff Fort walking out on the Senate hearing in July of 1968, a major shock came to law enforcement when an Illinois politician sent an invitation to Jeff Fort to appear at the January 1969 Presidential inauguration ball. Jeff Fort declined the invitation and instead sent Henry “Mickey” Cogwell the Cobrastone leader to the ball alongside Herman “Moose” Holmes another Main 21 leader. While Mickey Cogwell was mingling with high society politicians making the Stones look great Chicago police were back home trying to arrest him for crimes and even went to his house just to find out he wasn’t there and worst yet when they found out he was invited to the White House they had a major fit. Law enforcement all over the Chicago area felt betrayed that Stone leaders were invited to this event. This event was further solidifying Mickey Cogwell’s political connections which of course would help connections to the whole Black P Stone nation. In January 1969, Fort developed a business and warfare strategy by calling a truce and peaceful meeting with Supreme Gangster leader Larry Hoover. The Gangsters and Stones had been at war perhaps since the Supreme Gangsters formed in 1964. As of 1968 the Gangsters were now engaging in a bloody war with former close allies the Disciples and Fort used this opportunity to establish an alliance with Hoover. Larry Hoover’s Gangsters were built upon making money and hustling in the streets, while the Stones were on a similar page with making money. Larry Hoover accepted this alliance between the two nations and a total cease fire went on for about a half a year with some violence here and there. One violent incident involved the Double Six Kings, a Stone group from 69th and Halsted area of Englewood thinking the war was still on with the Gangsters. This ended up involving Larry Hoover’s brother Charles Hoover and this was the beginning of the end of the Stone and Gangster relationship. By the summer of 1969 the Gangsters allied with the Disciples to create the “Black Gangster Disciple Nation.” Since 1960, the Black P Stones were a money-making organization. The oldest way the Stones made money was to carry out favors and hits for adult small black syndicate groups on the south side. Soon the Stones were making money just from imposing taxes on drug dealers, pimps, gambling dens and other small rackets. Basically, in Woodlawn and eventually other new territories you could’t make money without Ranger approval and without paying a percentage. This was a hustle that worked for many years since the 1960s and the Stones also developed the way of making money by visiting local businesses and offering paid protection. There have been many criticisms to this tactic because business owners were left with no choice but to pay the Stones to protect their property or the Stones would not only leave the business vulnerable to attack they would also rob that store since it wasn’t on their list. The paid protection was scandalous because it assured that Stones would not attack the store which is basically paying someone to not mess with your own property, very hard to swallow. But one has to view this from another perspective, Woodlawn, Englewood, West Englewood, South Shore, Bronzeville area became very high crime areas in the 1960s and not only would gangs rob and steal from businesses, other criminals would hit these locations making the store owners highly vulnerable to being robbed and vandalized. When the Stones offered protection, not only did they stop their own members from victimizing the business they also posted signs on the businesses warning the community and visitors that this was Black P Stone property and if you dared attack there would be dire consequences. Stones placed signs that displayed the pyramid and gave a strong warning that this was Stone property and property of the Chief. In these high crime areas police patrols were scarcer and just about every store would suffer vandalism and robbery which was very costly. Paying the Stones was often a better option as the store owners would not have to deal with sudden destruction or robbery. In areas more absent of law enforcement this was the best option in many cases. Violent example were made in the streets for offenders that touched these stores that were marked by the Stones. Perhaps a robber or vandal was beaten severely in the streets for everyone to witness or bodies would be found later as this was considered direct disrespect to the Chief. The stores most collected from where Jewish owned businesses that usually charged higher prices for products, thus, somewhat taking advantage of the community and the Stones were taking some of the extra money back. Stones often left black owned businesses alone because they supported black entrepreneurs especially since there were very few. Stones would always send different young boys to the stores to collect the money, never would the same Stones show up to collect money. Stones also often had members come in from outside the neighborhood so their faces weren’t as known, this was a smart operation. According to Jeff Fort and many of the Stones in the 1960s they played the role as guardians in the black community and their business protection plan was one of the examples. Other examples were how the Stones controlled the drug trade on the south side as they taxed and monitored all the dealers in their vicinity. Not only was this arrangement beneficial financially to the Stones but it was also a way the Stones could control how the business was carried out and what types of customers come into the neighborhood. The Stones themselves were not drug dealers and rules forbid the sale and use of drugs for the nation. Even Jeff Fort himself had once threatened Milwaukee Italian Outfit leader Frank Balistreri that if he kept supplying heroin to the black community on the south side, he would kill him but over time this attitude would change especially once the Stones wanted to dig deeper into the drug game. The main reason Eugene Hairston was locked up in prison for the 1967 murder was because the charges stated he was removing three Heroin dealers from the neighborhood. These were non-gang related curriers that were bringing the dope to the community off the radar from the Rangers. Hairston himself always wanted to remove any Italian Outfit connected dealers of any sort, therefore, any direct connection to the Outfit was prohibited in Stone territories. This attitude would all change when Mickey Cogwell explored the possibility of involving the Stones in the direct sales of drugs on the streets. Cogwell had friends that were connected to the Chicago Outfit and Cogwell had been working with Outfit members for some time in his involvement with the policy numbers racket. Cogwell also worked with the Outfit to control several restaurants, nightclubs and hotels in the black communities on the south side and west side. He also was known for providing muscle to extort business owners to unionize under the Outfit controlled restaurant unions. Since government funding had mostly dried up by 1969 due to the Senatorial investigations, Mickey Cogwell and Reico Cranshaw were the first Stones to bring the nation into the direct drug trade business. Chicago Police Department’s G.I.U. group claims to have photos and surveillance of Stones and Italian Mafia associates meeting to discuss this business. The first of these meetings was with Joseph “Little Caesar” DiVarco, Joseph “Big Joe” Arnold and Morris Lasky. I don’t know the full extent of the deals, but this was supposedly when the Stones began to directly partake in the drug trade mainly in Heroin and prescription Ts and blues. The motivation for this connection was because Stones needed the money as their numbers had exceeded 6,000 members by 1969 and the legitimate forms of money they were receiving prior were either non-existent or minimal. The Stones were the first gang to engage in higher level drug marketing and this is how Jeff Fort got the reputation as being the king of the Heroin business on the south side even though he was not involved in this early deal. This started out a deal for just Cranshaw’s Stones and Cogwell’s Cobrastones (The Almighty Black P. Stone Nation, Moore, Williams). Because of this business deal with Cogwell this is how the first major Heroin distribution business came to the Robert Taylor projects, especially in “The Hole,” the cluster of three buildings around 53rd and State in the Washington Park neighborhood. This Heroin involvement was not big enough to catch the attention of law enforcement much as mainly Stones were known for selling Marijuana, Codeine and other narcotics and pills. Stones also began robbing other drug dealers in the area as they went to great lengths by even robbing drug dealer homes. The Stones also made a big move in 1969 when they took over the partially abandoned Southmoor Hotel located at 67th and Stoney Island at the border of the Woodlawn and South Shore communities. Legends say that T.W.O helped the Stones take over this building because right before hand T.W.O had an office in the building and met with Stones here. Legend also says that the Stones pestered the owners and basically forced them to leave the building while the Stones took over the top floor penthouse on the roof and the hallway leading to the penthouse. Stones put furniture as a barricade so police couldn’t easily rush in and they had lookouts inside the building and on the rooftop, this became the new headquarters for the Stones. This was also prime property because it sat next to a series of hidden trails that branched all through the South Shore community down to Woodhull Park at 73rd and Cornell. The trails also continued to the South Chicago community down to an old park near 83rd and Colfax. The trails even extended out to Pocket Town in the Greater Grand Crossing neighborhood and even ran north above Jackson Park into Hyde Park and even up to Kenwood and into Oakland by the Lake Park area. This allowed large groups of Stones to move in silence from place to place along the south side without detection. They could bring large groups in for surprise attacks or possibly for theft operations. Sometimes all the Stones would arrive on bicycles and surprise everyone when they suddenly emerged. For about 20 years the Stones controlled this trail system until the city covered them over in the late 1980s to stop this activity. The Southmoor Hotel as it appeared after it was first built in 1924 Southmoor Hotel in 1977 before demolition Postcard of the area around 67th and Stoney Island and the Southmoor Hotel. You can see the trails and paths near the Hotel where Stones used to move through for around 20 years By 1969, a seeming war began on the streets between law enforcement and the Stones as police continued to raid Stone hangouts and brutally beat young black males in the streets and in custody, sometimes resulting in death. Law enforcement considered the Stones to be animals and dangerous criminals, therefore, they became increasingly brutal in their law enforcement methods. This was even felt by the Disciples as even David Barksdale, leader of the Disciples also suffered a brutal beating while in police custody. Frustrations boiled over until a March shooting of police officer Richard Peck brought the Stones into a bigger spotlight. Peck was shot at least 15 times while he sat in his squad car at the intersection of 62nd and Woodlawn. Black P Stones were the shooters of Peck and now the police waged a bigger war on the Stones even though Peck survived the onslaught and even was able to do an interview in 2007 for the History Channel’s T.V. show “Gangland.” Law Enforcement once again closed in on Jeff Fort as he was charged with the battery of a postal worker in June of 1969. As Fort was facing legal issues and sitting in jail, he caught wind of a hustle one of his main 21 members was involved in. He had found out that William Throope was selling lots of Heroin just like other Main 21 members like Mickey Cogwell and Reico Cranshaw. Just like Cranshaw and Cogwell Throope was connecting to the Italian Outfit through a west side connection. Throope was getting many of the Main 21 members connected in with the Heroin trade and this is when the Stones started getting in deeper with this business. Fort now was fully aware of what his Main 21 was up to and he decided to authorize the business, something Eugene Hairston would have never consented to but Fort needed $80,000 in bail money and wanted payment from then on. Throope was supposed to be the one to pay this $80,000 debt but he never paid all of it to Fort and even though Jeff didn’t directly order it, Throope ended up getting shot up for not paying the Chief. For the first time, the drug game was sanctioned by top leadership including Fort now as of the Autumn of 1969 (The Almighty Black P. Stone Nation, Moore, Williams). There has been a story that has floated around that Jeff Fort personally met with Milwaukee Outfit leader Frank Balistreri for Fort to officially take over the whole drug game from the Outfit. The meeting was supposedly arranged by youth Outreach worker Charles Lapaglia that was supposedly known to police as a low-level Heroin dealer connected to the Outfit, making Lapaglia seem to lead a double life. Lapaglia was grilled to death in the Senate hearings in July of 1968 but other than that it seems like this is the closest Lapaglia had a run in with law enforcement. The man was able to continue as a youth worker well into the 1980s which doesn’t fit the profile of a mafia connected drug courier that supposedly dealt in the stuff since the 1960s. Anyway, legend has it that Lapaglia personally brought Fort before Mob boss Frank Balistreri. Legend has it that Jeff Fort came bearing a gift of a $10,000 fur coat that Frank Balistreri disrespectfully tossed outside to be used as a door mat and Jeff Fort scurried out of there when the meeting was over. Well, I will poke big holes in this story that don’t add up. First of all, Frank Balistreri was put in prison for income tax evasion in March of 1967 in a federal prison in Sandstone, Minnesota. Frank Balistreri was then locked up until June of 1971. Before March of 1967, Eugene Hairston was still a free man and very much in charge of the Rangers, he most certainly would have never sanctioned any Heroin business and he would have possibly even tried to kill Jeff over it if he was involved. Not only that Jeff Fort himself was threatening Balistreri about bringing Heroin to Stone territories, therefore, no way this meeting happened before March of 1967. The meeting would have had to happen by June of 1971 but at that time Jeff Fort was in jail too since April while he was on trial again for the same defrauding issues brought up in the Senatorial hearings of 1968, so there is no way this meeting could have happened before 1976. By 1976, the Stones were already well plugged into the Heroin racket and now had become El Rukns. New El Rukn doctrines forbid the sales and use of drugs especially Heroin that was outlawed until 1985, so after 1976 wasn’t likely either. I’m not saying the meeting didn’t happen but what I am saying is, I highly doubt Jeff Fort was there for it. Jeff Fort also would likely have not tolerated the fur coat being shoved in the mud right there on the spot, he would have likely walked right out. There is no doubt Fort eventually sanctioned for participation in the drug market and perhaps Stones did meet with Balistreri in the 1970s, but it wasn’t Jeff that attended because the men were both locked up at different times and could not meet. It appears the main hookup into the trade was all done in the fall of 1969. March 6, 1970 article detailing all about the first contact the Stones had with the Italian Mafia. Charles "Rico" Cranshaw March 6, 1970 closer up March 7, 1970 article about the Mafia link to Stones in Harvey As I stated before, the Stones were big into fashion and setting the trends for the neighborhoods they lived in. By the later 1960s they wore the afros accompanied with dark ray ban sunglasses, combat boots and red berets. When out on the town, Stones could be seen wearing long fur coats with nice styling hats, pimp canes, platform shoes and lots of color heading into the 1970s. The year 1970 would prove to be a very trying year for the Stones. By August the Stones were at war with KOCO and Reverend Burrell. On August 5, Jeff Fort even held a press conference at the First Presbyterian Church condemning Burrell, his group and Senator McClellan, calling McClellan a racist. This press conference was used for the television show Gangland in 2007 showing Jeff Fort wearing his floppy hat wearing sunglasses. The video byte showed him saying “there would be no killing without killing.” The T.V. show showed this in reference to Jeff Fort making this conference so he could threaten the Chicago police that there will be bloodshed, but in reality, this video was a threat to Burrell and his group, there was no public threat to police. March 10, 1970 article about Eugene Hairston trying to get a new trial March 10, 1970 article part 2 March 10, 1970 article photo close up of Eugene Hairston as he looked while in prison that year August 11, 1969 article showing an internal issue with the Maniac Rangers and the death of a leader that tried to get out of the organization What caused the mix up with this press conference as being a threat against the Chicago Police was the shooting death of patrolman James Alfano on August 14, 1970 right outside the SouthMoor Hotel in an alley behind the building. Alfano came to the scene to investigate a gang fight in the area but as he got out of his car snipers on the roof opened fire on Alfano. Alfano eventually died from his wounds two days later after undergoing two cardiac arrests and the loss of lots of blood. The reason for the shooting was frustration built up from the Stones after police had raided the headquarters and beat members of the Stones in the process. Police were also doing brutal sweeps in the area rounding up Stones and brutalizing them. The Stones reached the peak of frustration and were now ready to shoot any police that came near the hotel and Alfano ended up being the target. Main 21 leader Charles Edward Bey was one of the Main 21 members arrested for the shooting. The Stones were then under hot water after Alfano was shot and now the world was shown the ugliest side of the Stones. Stones held a news conference right after the shooting to share their side of the story until it was broken up by police claiming they were responding to reports of gun fire but the reporters even stated they heard no gun fire, therefore, the breaking up of the conference seems suspicious (New York Times August 18, 1970). Later in the year 1970, Jeff Fort now faced new charges in September of attempted murder, kidnapping and helping someone escape capture. Fort attempted to flee to Algeria but was apprehended in New York in October. He ended up fighting the charges and won and was out of jail by December as the charges ended up being prejudiced and bogus put together by overzealous police officers. Fort was then arrested again for mob action after he took part in a protest by the University of Chicago to rename Midway Plaisance after Jerome “Pony Soldier” Cogwell that was recently slain in The Hole at the Robert Taylor homes. Police came and reported the Stones were involved in mob action and causing a disturbance, but all the neutral witnesses nearby said it was a very peaceful protest. All this fighting legal battles in court caused Jeff’s leadership to falter as he now didn’t have as much time to tend to Stone business as he fought his own legal battles, and this is when internal strife was beginning. March 21, 1970 article about execution style murdering of Disciples and such September 9, 1970 article about the arrests of Jeff Fort and Charles Edward Bey July 27, 1971 article about Eugene Hairston trying to get parole that year, it ended up being denied More troubles came in April of 1971 when Jeff Fort and other top Main 21s were now brought up on charges of defrauding the federal government. The investigations since 1968 had finally brought charges and now Jeff Fort would remain in jail during his trails leaving the streets wide open without leadership. Authorities thought they were taking the Stones down but in reality; they were just creating a wild organization without a central leader. At the time, the Stones sorely needed a central leader especially since Hairston and Fort set up the nation to be reliant on needing this type of leadership. One of the other major downfalls was the involvement in the drug game that caused many Main 21 members to feud among each other over drug profits and without Jeff there to cool things down violence between Stone groups flared up. Another issue was many Main 21 members began using Heroin, as the access to the drug now became easy. The final conviction of Jeff Fort came down in 1972 while he was in jail and he was sentenced to five years in prison with one year served, he would be sent to Statesville prison in Crest Hill Illinois. During these crucial years while both Fort and Hairston were locked up the Stones began a decline and a disorganization in leadership. Eugene Hairston and Jeff Fort were both struggling to bring about order over the nation from behind bars but each of them had their own agenda and this made them rivals in many ways. Both men were locked up in Joliet area prisons, Fort was in Statesville in Crest Hill and Hairston was in Joliet Correctional. As far as I know there was no action to their rivalry while both men were locked up in Joliet area prisons. Jeff Fort became fed up with Main 21 members acting disloyal and not obeying laws or paying dues, therefore, it became time for the Chief to set examples. When Main 21 members broke the laws and showed disloyalty they were executed, this was the only way to maintain order while the Chief was locked up (Source: United States Vs. Andrews). In May of 1974, Jeff Fort felt the need to gain power in a key area on the south side. This coveted area was the intersection of Oakwood and Drexel in the Oakland neighborhood. At this intersection the Stones wanted to run out any drug dealing opposition by force and to even take it as far as running out all competition in the nearby public housing projects in the Ida B. Wells, Clarence Darrow Homes and Madden Park Homes, but mainly Ida B. Wells and the “727” building of the Clarence Darrow Homes located at 727 E. 38th Street. This all started with the murder of Gilbert Collins who was shot to death in his apartment near 38th and Cottage Grove by a Stone hit squad consisting of Sammy Knox, Anthony Sumner, Harry Evans, Jackie Clay. The bullets were meant for his brother Michael but the mistaken identity cost Gilbert his life, regardless, the word was put out that the Stones were coming to run it. Later in the same Stone hit squad consisting again of: Sammy Knox, Anthony Sumner, Harry Evans, Jackie Clay shot up Gregory Freeman as his body was found in an alley by 40th and Drexel. Stones then talked to or threatened witnesses to the murder to not talk to the police and the charges were dropped (Source: United States Vs. Andrews). Stones also pursued their own over the new bigger drug trade when examples were made out of two Main 21 members Willie McLilly and Roy Love as they were both assassinated by another hit squad with one of the same guys consisting of Alan Knox, Felix Mays, Andrew Craig and Harry Evans who shot up the men as they sat in a car at 83rd and Ellis in the Chatham neighborhood on November 29, 1974 as the assassins were allegedly acting on orders from Jeff Fort for mishandling the narcotics trade and being disloyal (Source: United States Vs. Andrews). In the late part of 1974, Christiana Bey the National Secretary for the Moorish Science Temple of America (MSTA) paid both Fort and Hairston a visit while they were in prison. Hairston brushed her off and was not interested but Jeff Fort was all ears. Bey taught Jeff Fort that black Americans descended from “Asiatics” and “Moors.” To sum up these teachings, the descendants of black Americans came from a superior civilization that once ruled a large piece of the world. During slavery days, Moors were exempt from slavery and only “Negros” could be slaves, thus, honoring Moroccan Moors as superior and not classified as negros. In the 18th century, George Washington covered this fact about the Moors up to justify the enslavement of them and soon these tribes forgot their identity and became part of the enslavement and oppression of American society. Teachings also stated that Islam was the natural religion of Africans and that Jesus was of another color then killed by the Romans to create Christianity as their legends distorted him into a white man. Teachings also stated that the black man is superior to the white man and the white man has kept the black man at a lower level out of fear of the black man’s superiority. These teachings were uplifting to Jeff Fort and he continued his visits with Bey even after he was transferred to Leavenworth Federal prison. The MSTA had started a major recruitment drive and was trying to convert as many blacks as possible and converting Jeff Fort and the whole BPSN was a major step for them. By 1975 Jeff Fort was fully converted into the nation of Islam and followed the MSTA teachings. While Jeff Fort was converting to Islam Eugene Hairston faced trouble in Joliet when he was accused of threatening another BPS affiliated inmate who wanted to leave the gang. A prison disturbance also went down on April 22, 1975 when a religious group known as “Beni-Zaken” helped inmates carry out a disturbance by bringing drugs to Eugene Hairston so he could use them to control Joliet Correctional as Hairston was now beginning the earliest stages of trying to take over Joliet prison now that Fort was moved, this action caused a prison riot that resulted in one death. Even though Hairston denied the cause of the riot and threatening another prisoner he was transferred out of Joliet to Menard Correctional all the way in southern Illinois. The idea was to get him far away from Chicago area contacts. After his transfer in early 1975 Hairston connected with Herbert “Thunder” Stevens who was back in Statesville. After Jeff Fort was transferred, he gave Thunder full control of Statesville. Thunder was also the leader of the Titanic P Stones formerly known as Four Corner Stones out of Bronzeville/Grand Boulevard. Thunder was on good graces with Eugene Hairston and Jeff Fort which often didn’t happen with Stone leaders, they either chose one or the other. Fort was for sure locked up without parole until March of 1976, but Hairston was up for parole later in 1975. A big decision needed to be made by Stevens to either continue following Fort of go with Hairston who was more likely to get out and take back over the Stones. Stevens hedged his bet on Hairston and took the Titanics under the wing of Hairston; now Hairston was running the BPSN in both prisons which was a major power move and showed that he was still more than relevant. Hairston then sent orders to his men back on the streets to get ready to take it all back and ordered his younger brother Leroy “Lil Bull” Hairston to venture to 43rd Street and connect with the Titanics and assume immediate leadership. Leroy Hairston gathered many to support this take over and several Stones found the courage to begin this coup which was a concern to Fort’s followers who were still the majority. As this coup was about to arise Mickey Cogwell stayed out of it and was willing to just take his Cobrastones in an independent direction. Jeff Fort appointed his younger brother Bennie Fort to run the Fort supporters. Soon a war ensued in 1975 between the younger brothers and this got Lil Bull thrown in prison for violent crimes. The war was a mess and Eugene Hairston was up for parole in that same year and this was a threat to Jeff Fort and his supporters, Jeff Fort then had many phone conversations with Mickey trying to convince him to run the nation because he would be a better acting Chief than Bennie, finally, Mickey agreed to take over the nation. Mickey then set out into the streets and took control of the Fort supporters and once this happened and many of Hairston’s supporters got word Cogwell was stepping up they jumped sides to stand by Cogwell because he was so respected. The primary branch still on Bull’s side was the Titanics. In Statesville the momentum shifted as Fort’s Stones took the power away from Thunder. The Titanic Stones then pretty much dissolved in the prison system while Willie “Dollar Bill” Bibbs took over as Chief of the Titanics on the streets. Dollar Bill brought the Titanics under the wing of Jeff Fort’s side which made it look like Bull’s attempted coup was just about finished. June 21, 1975 article about the staged prison riot in an attempt to sway power back to Eugene Hairston Later in the year 1975, Eugene Hairston was granted parole and he returned to a crew of followers still loyal to him. It would take a lot of rebuilding for Hairston to regrow support and take back over but Fort’s guys were still not going to risk it. It was said that Jeff ordered a hit on Hairston but there was never any evidence of that but there was indeed an assassination attempt. As Hairston was walking along 70th and Paxton a few blocks from where he was staying, a man jumped out of a car and fired 8 bullets, two of which struck Hairston’s left wrist and one bullet struck him in the back. Hairston fled to a cleaners on 71st nearby and asked for help, he survived. After Hairston’s assassination attempt he realized he could not take over the main bulk of the Stones, therefore, he packed up and moved up north to the north side of the city where random Stones living up there were out of network from the main branches for the most part. Hairston organized the Stones up north in areas like Uptown, Rogers Park and the West Town area. These Stones became “Blackstones” and would not honor the Black P Stone nation and the “P” was dropped. June 30, 1977 article about Eugene Hairston filing for aid after he was shot. This includes a 1977 photo of him. Jeff Fort in the 1970s On March 12, 1976, Jeff Fort was released from Leavenworth prison with a stipulation imposed upon him that he was not allowed to officially reside within the city limits of Chicago, therefore, he chose to move to Milwaukee because he had a lot of family in the that city. Fort’s return was anxiously awaited as several followers gathered to the city of Milwaukee for hopes that their leader would help show them the way to restore the nation that had now become divided. Fort came out of prison with enlightenment and he was willing to share all the teaching of the Moorish Science Temple with all those that would listen. Jeff threw an open house type celebration in a building that served as the temporary headquarters so that he could share his new uplifting and spiritual beliefs. Some of the leaders respected the new ways and wanted to convert to Islam alongside Fort but many others declined as they felt they should remain Christian and this new Muslim religion was foreign and something they wanted no part of. Once again, this nation became trendsetters but this time it wasn’t for fashion it was for religion. Afros were now replaced with braided hair or cornrows, and the colorful outfits of the first half of the 70s were replaced by simple shirts, pants and sometimes Shriner hats worn at worshipping events. El Rukns still sported black, green and red colors. The most devout and closest to Jeff wore Fulani straw hats with a chin strap. At the time of the El Rukn conversion Jeff Fort became referred to as “Chief Malik.” “Malik” means “King” in Arabic. Many just refer to him as “Chief” and from here on out in this story I will begin referring to Jeff Fort as “Chief” because that is the respective way he is known as and is always considered the Chief to many Black P Stones even presently, he will always be the Chief of Chiefs and is the most important man in Stone history. Around April of 1976, the Stones were about to advance back onto the south side of Chicago after Chief established a contact with James “Prince Yak” Brantly who had just started his own movement called “Beniae Zaken” which was the Hebrew word for Black Stones. Prince Yak was a mentor to Chief and helped him solidify the Stones during their shaky beginning in Milwaukee. Prince Yak was actually well into his 50s in age, therefore, he became a part of Chief’s army at an already older age which was not unheard of and became more prevalent during the these days. Prince Yak had opened “Sons of the Ancient Israelites Holy Temple” or “The Camp” at 42nd and Prairie in the Grand Boulevard neighborhood. At this temple it was the headquarters of the “Israelite Stones” a branch that embraced the black Hebrew faith because in the Hebrew religion the black race is God’s chosen people. Many have said this was just a cover to mask illegal activities. The temple was just one block north of the Titanic P Stone headquarters at 43rd and Indiana located exactly at 4233 S. Indiana Avenue (Four-Trey). Some of the members of the Main 21 were present at this celebration along with Blackstone leader Eugene Hairston. Jeff Fort only wanted his chosen Main 21s present that he wanted to convert to to these new ways that were soon to be announced. One of the Main 21 present was the leader of the Titanics Willie “Dollar Bill” Bibbs. The rest of the Titanics were left to Robert “Button” East. The new order established by Jeff Fort was called “El Rukns” which means “Cornerstones” in Arabic. A cornerstone is basically a foundation and an important piece withholding two walls, mainly in reference to a pyramid. It was at this meeting that Jeff Fort officially disbanded the Main 21 and declared the Black P Stone name defunct and was to be replaced by the El Rukn name. Some of those in attendance did not like this new way and the most vocal was Eugene Hairston. Chief then held a private meeting in one of the rooms with Hairston and an argument broke out as Chief was trying to convince Hairston that this was the best route for the nation and this would bring young black men the proper spiritual guidance that would allow them to stray away from the slave mentality. Hairston disagreed mixing religion in with gangsterism and even stated that he disagreed with wearing turbins in the daytime then dressing as gangsters at night. He saw this as hypocritical and a disrespect to the religion. Chief became enraged and ordered his death on the spot, but Prince Yak intervened and pleaded with Chief not to kill Hairston even after Hairston taunted Chief. Instead of killing Hairston Chief declared that Hairston was completely out of the organization for good. Hairston warned that this would be the downfall of everything, and Chief responded with a threat to end Hairston if he ever saw him again. Hairston was allowed to walk out of the meeting but was now an even smaller figure in the overall spotlight, but he remained Chief of the Blackstones, while the Black P Stones were supposed to be finished for good as well. James “Prince Yak” Brantly 1970s Prince Yak on the left with Jeff Fort about 1976 or 1977 Replacing the Main 21 was a group of Generals that Chief personally appointed, these original Generals were: Felix Mayes, Jake Crowder, Alan Knox, Derrick Portor, Floyd Davis, Walter Pollard, Edward Williams, Roger Bowman, Bernard Green, Thomas Bates, Eddie Franklin and others. Chief also appointed a group of enforcers: Harry Evans, Earl Hawkins, Ronald Lewis, Anthony Sumner, Louis Hoover, William Doyle, Derrick Kees, Hank Andrews, George Carter, Ronald Jennings and others (Source: United States Vs. Andrews). One of the first groups to drop the Stone name was the Moroccan Tribe. I am not sure what this group was originally called when El Rukn was first created but as soon as Jeff Fort brought in the El Rukn name this group was the first to appear to have dropped the Stone name, however, they were unique from other Stones and El Rukns. This group may have even dropped the name before the El Rukn declaration. This group was located mainly in the Lake Park projects at 3939 S. Lake Park Avenue heading south all through the rest of Oakland into the Kenwood neighborhood to 47th Street. They were a part of a well-versed group of Stones that were also in the Ida B. Wells projects that were all early Islamic converts that studied the Holy Koran 7 and wore blue fezes. The Lake Park Projects group were the Stones that became the Moroccan Tribe and kept peace with both El Rukns and Stones. Moroccans had a vicious rivalry with Black Gangster Disciples but they weren’t a gangbanging crew. Hairston was still the Chief of the Blackstones on the north side of the city as there were no El Rukns up there. Stones up that way had some different enemies and even fought against Hispanic and white gangs like the Gaylords, Maniac Latin Disciples, Simon City Royals, Brazers, Latin Eagles and some others. I’m not sure when and how the connection came about with the Latin Kings but eventually the Latin Kings and Stones became very close and it may or may not have begun in the Uptown/Rogers Park area with Eugene Hairston’s guys or not. Hairston’s Blackstones had two offshoots that broke off and settled in South Shore right in the heart of El Rukn activities. These were the Kingston Raiders and Kingston Killers. The Raiders were from 72nd down to 75th and Kingston while the Kingston Killers were from 79th to 83rd and Kingston, the Killers were in South Chicago. The problem is both groups were enemies and they both liked to terrorize south side high schools. Herbert “Thunder” Stevens was one very close to Eugene Hairston and could unite the Kingston Raiders and Kingston Killers, he was very much looked up to by Hairston supporters and was perhaps Hairston’s top man. The Raiders paid heavy tribute not only to Hairston and his side but also to the old ways of the Blackstone Raider days and it is possible many of their members were original Raiders. There have been legends that once Chief declared the El Rukns as the official replacement for the Stones, he threatened anyone that dared go against the new ways would be killed. The old story if that Mickey Cogwell was the biggest objector to the El Rukn order but as I had shown, it was Hairston who was the biggest objector. It is true that Mickey did not want to convert to El Rukn and that’s when the Cobrastones split away from Chief’s army, but Chief did not sign Mickey’s death warrant. It was an option to become an El Rukn and if you chose not to be embraced by Islam and be considered El Rukn you were nothing, you weren’t a Stone, you were nothing. Chief implicitly stated that “Black P Stone” was no longer legit and was officially replaced, this was the new order for 1977. Guys like Mickey Cogwell simply did not buy into this new order and still kept the Black P Stones alive regardless of what Chief said. Mickey also felt more loyalty to Eugene Hairston now that Hairston was out of prison and because of the El Rukn declaration. The Black P Stones were still alive in the further south side neighborhoods and the south suburbs. Stones still were running a good piece of Bronzeville too which conflicted with El Rukn interests in later years. On February 25, 1977 Mickey was shot and killed as he was walking home to his Auburn-Gresham home at 7820 South Seeley, he was shot right in front of his house. Many suspected the El Rukns for the hit, saying the Chief wanted him dead because Mickey and the Cobrastones did not become El Rukn but there was not only no evidence of this but Chief didn’t have lots of motive at the time because the way it was in early 1977 was if you didn’t want to be El Rukn you were just on your own; the violent sanctions didn’t begin until later in time. It was also suspected that Cogwell was killed as a result of a mob related hit which is the more likely scenario because one of his close associates was killed at about the same time. Regardless of what the truth was the Cobrastones still left the Black P Stone Nation and became known as the “Mickey Cobras” that year. In the same year of 1977, Chief purchased property at 3947 S. Drexel in the Oakland neighborhood which was formerly the Oakwood theater since 1915. The last owners opened it as a black owned theater back in the late 1960s until it closed down in 1971 and sat vacant for six years. Chief turned this into a branch for the MSTA called “El Rukn Moorish Science Mosque” that was ran and headquartered by the El Rukns. The removal of drug dealers and rival gangs at this corner in the mid-1970s paved way for the El Rukns to buy this building. In the year 1978, the Chief moved out of Milwaukee and moved to Chicago. I’m not sure how he avoided laws coming down on him for coming back, but he made his way back home. Once Chief arrived, he began to detach from the Moorish Science Temple and began the conversion of turning the El Rukns into its own religion. The property at Oakwood and Drexel was now renamed “El Rukn Grand Major Temple” that year. Locals nicknamed the building “The Fort.” Chief was now rooted completely in Chicago by 1978 and now pressure to become El Rukn and drop the Black P Stone ways was now growing. El Rukn bylaws coincided with Islamic law as members were technically not allowed to eat pork, drink alcohol, use drugs (even marijuana) and members couldn’t even cuss. Jeff Fort himself followed these rules very easily because he was never into drinking and using drugs and was never a man to cuss to begin with. Chief also wanted members to learn Arabic, although not required, many members did learn the language fluently. Although the nation forbid drug and alcohol use there were many witnesses that hung out or were members of the El Rukns that claimed there were many parties at The Fort with marijuana use and lots of drinking followed by many other activities that would normally be deemed immoral by the organization but one thing for sure is that Chief himself didn’t partake in such activities. Chief stayed away from use of any drugs or alcohol, therefore, his example was consistent, and he treated his body like a sacred vessel since he was young. The biggest criticism of all was the El Rukn involvement in the drug trade. El Rukns especially partook in the distribution of Ts and Blues which is a narcotic that is a mixture of Talwin, a morphine-like painkiller sold only by prescription, and Pyribenzamine, a blue antihistamine tablet. This is a cheap drug that moves quickly because of price. El Rukns forbid the sale of heroin during these early years but they distributed PCP, codeine syrup, amphetamines, marijuana and cocaine, along with dominating the Ts and blues market. Perhaps the top General that was involved in selling drugs was Edward “Ranger” Williams who sold mass quantities of Ts and Blues, Christmas Trees, Debs, Marijuana, Cocaine, PCP, Codeine and exotic Ritlins (Heroin substitute), he was perhaps the Chief’s biggest earner. Ranger’s favorite drug to peddle was Codeine. Williams sold gallons of the stuff on a regular basis and even had a large book detailing all about different drugs as if he was a pharmacist. He chucked a large portion of his profits to the El Rukns and into Chief’s pocket. Williams had a lower ranking El Rukn Moses Steele to sell mass quantities of Codeine in the Ida B Wells projects where he worked as a janitor. Williams also sold PCP for the Stones since 1973 and was supplying Cocaine to the suburb of Harvey in the early 1980s. Also, in the early 80s Williams sold mass quantities of Marijuana and Cocaine out of an apartment at 76th and Kingston in the South Shore neighborhood. He had a massive line of customers at his door in the building and eventually had to take over the whole courtyard to accommodate (United States of American Vs. Williams). Other Generals that moved large quantities or drugs in the late 1970s and early 1980s where south suburban Stone founders Jerome “General Jake” Crowder and Roger “General Tu” Bowman along with Louis “Sabu” Hoover. Crowder and Bowman had moved out of the south suburbs up to Milwaukee as Crowder became the top general running all Milwaukee operations. Crowder and Hoover were buying large quantities of Cocaine and bringing them from Chicago to Milwaukee in the late 70s into the early 80s becoming one of the biggest Cocaine pipelines in Milwaukee. Eventually Crowder was demoted from freebasing Cocaine and Roger Bowman took over. Bowman worked as a Yellow Cab driver and his cab was used to transport large quantities of Cocaine between Chicago and Milwaukee. The common understanding for the motive for moving drugs through the south side was to make El Rukns rich but the actual biggest motivation for nation business was to fund the religious cause of the organization so that they could continue to grow as an organization. Yes, a good portion of the money went into the pockets of El Rukns for personal gain as many members were seen driving expensive cars and wearing some flashy expensive clothing adorned with jewelry filled with gold and diamonds. Many criticized the El Rukns as hypocritical gangsters but what needs to be understood is that this was an organization coming from extreme poverty and misguidance and this was always the issue from the beginning. Like most street gangs in Chicago, Stones/El Rukns needed to fend for themselves to build up a better situation for youths enduring extreme circumstances when the city had mostly neglected these communities. The programs that were directed by T.W.O and other organizations did not provide proper direction to groups like the Stones and even gave them too much responsibility like being teachers over other students before the teachers even had the chance to be students first. Job training programs were filled with gang member instructors that were pulled in right off the street with no formal training. Once the system failed the Stones they went on trial as funding was yanked leaving these groups in a state of desperation, this is when the drug sales began as a replacement. Within no time, law enforcement was breathing down the necks of El Rukn members and many were already facing jail time right after the operation began in Chicago. The El Rukns became very frightening figures to the public and the authorities, more so than the Black P Stones ever where. These were the same men as always that had just exchanged their old religions and lifestyles for a holy entity. Yes, they were feared before but now the public was more afraid than ever of the organization the Chief was leading. El Rukns were no more violent after converting to Islam than as Stones but what made this organization scarier than the Stones was one simple fact, they were devout Muslims wearing religious garb. The public has feared Arabs and the Islamic beliefs for decades, so this is nothing new and it was very much prevalent in the 1970s as the media informed us of all the scary middle eastern leaders and extremist Islamic groups. Here on our soil was a group that practiced Islam while they sold drugs and executed enemies with a swiftness pulling off many near perfect and sometimes brutal murder, most of which are not documented but legends are there. The Islamic combination with the gangsterism culminated so much extra fear that the public was deeply terrified of the El Rukns and this drove law enforcement to pursue the El Rukns heavier than they ever did with the Stones. The truth is there was nothing more to fear than normal with the El Rukns but just being with Islam heightened that fear. As a result of all this fear the F.B.I. was looking into any way to tie the El Rukns to any extremist middle eastern groups possible so they could pin that classification of a “terrorist organization” on the El Rukns. The interesting thing about the new recruits coming into the El Rukns was the fact they were older men, some that already had families or even in their thirties in age. These new recruits did not join to gangbang and didn’t carry guns, they also never had a criminal offense, and some were college educated. Youngsters joining the El Rukns was a very low number and exclusively bestowed upon by direct family of El Rukn Generals. The El Rukns were not recruiting young kids in school yards or on the streets and were not pursuing young members within the organization to shoot enemies dead. El Rukns didn’t spray graffiti on the walls and if there was a El Rukn tagging it was not done by anyone in the organization. El Rukns did not wildly shoot at crowds with children nearby and strike down little boys and girls nor did they commit muggings and purse snatching crimes in the community. El Rukns were on a higher level and were not your conventional gang, in fact, they really weren’t even a gang per se. Even though the El Rukns were set apart from other gangs in terms of their activities they still had ties to other gangs and at first, they had to understand that the Black P Stones and the Blackstones still existed. El Rukns also maintained their ties with the Vice Lords and even showed the Vice Lords the ways of Islam introducing Vice Lords to this new religion. This brought many Vice Lords to convert to Islam and even adopt Arabic symbols like the pyramid and crescent moon; however, the Vice Lord organization as a whole did not convert to Islam. At the time when the Vice Lords were introduced to Islamic doctrines and adopting El Rukn symbols both organizations along with several other organizations found themselves in a bind behind prison walls in Statesville. Prisoners were being treated very poorly and often served rotten food. Despite gang differences the Black Gangster Disciples, Vice Lords, Black Disciples, El Rukns, Black P Stones, Blackstones, Mickey Cobras, Four Corner Hustlers and Black Souls leaders all came together to organize a revolt against prison staff until conditions changed. The best way to make this revolt effective was to include the Hispanic and white gangs into this too since the gangs in general ran the prison. The El Rukns, Black P Stones, Blackstones and Vice Lords sat down with the Latin Kings to discuss creating a prison alliance to go about this revolt. The Stones, El Rukns and Vice Lords brought in Islamic doctrines into this new alliance known as “People.” The Latin King’s role was to bring in the Christian side of the alliance and recruit Hispanic and white gangs into the People alliance, however, no white gangs became interested initially. The Black Gangster Disciples and Black Disciples organized the Folk alliance and brought in Hispanic and white gangs on their side, they all became known as “Folks.” Stones and El Rukns formed a special bond with Latin Kings because they both had very similar causes for the creation of their organizations. The Vice Lords and Latin Kings could relate on that level too, but they had a dark history of violent warfare in the 1960s and 1970s that was not easy to forget but for Stones, El Rukns and Latin Kings that bad blood wasn’t there. The Latin King and Stone/ El Rukn alliance has remained almost airtight since the 1970s or before. These two organization have rarely had violence between then despite living in some of the same communities on the north side and in the suburbs. Getting back on track, the People alliance was born on the same day in the same meetings as the Folk alliance in April in the year 1978 and now any beef between El Rukns and Mickey Cobras was put to an end in the prison system as the Cobras joined People and even adopted some of the Islamic doctrines. The strike was a success as it didn’t even make the news or last long; once the strike was over each alliance went its own way and sort of became rival groups but if they ever needed, they could come together on issues again. According to the dictionary Folk and People have the same meaning so these alliances are one in the same but with a different word. Over time the El Rukns would purchase and use several different buildings for their operations. Some of the buildings ran drugs and weapons while others served as hideouts and meeting places. These buildings were as follows: 1. The “East Side” which was located at 7611-23 S. Kingston Avenue located in the South Shore community. This was a rather large apartment complex at 76th and Kingston. 2. The “Morroco” which was located at 6410 S. Minerva Avenue near the intersection of Woodlawn Avenue and Minerva Avenue in the Woodlawn neighborhood. This was another building with several apartments. 3. The “Peace and Love Building” located at 7427-57 S. Kingston Avenue at the intersection of 74th Place and Kingston Avenue in the South Shore neighborhood. This was again a building with several apartments. 4. The “Alahambra” located at 6417 South Kenwood Avenue at the intersection of 64th and Dorchester in the Woodlawn community. This was a divided house that had a few different apartments. 5. The “Pyramid Towers” also known as the “Wedgewood” which used to be located at 6400 South Woodlawn Avenue at the corner of 64th and Woodlawn. This building has been torn down. 6. The “Five Point Terrace” located at 4559-67 and 4601-05 South Woodlawn Avenue at the corner of 46th and Woodlawn in the Kenwood neighborhood. This was a major building for El Rukn operations until it was shut down in 1984 and razed by 1985. 7. The “African Hut” which was located at 6414-16 S. Kenwood Avenue in the Woodlawn neighborhood at 64th and Kenwood. This building was torn down. 8. The “People’s Choice Restaurant” located at 10901 S. Michigan Avenue at the intersection of 109th and Michigan in the Roseland neighborhood. 9. The “Stonehedge” which was located at 6319 S. Woodlawn Avenue in the Woodlawn neighborhood at 63rd and Woodlawn. This building has been torn down. 10. The “Crest Hotel” located at 6724 S. Stony Island Avenue at the intersection of 67th Place and Stoney Island in the Woodlawn neighborhoods. This hotel was razed and replaced by a strip mall. Historic picture of the Crest Hotel from the early 20th century 11. The “Harper Building” located at 6435 S. Harper Avenue at the intersection of 64th and Harper in the Woodlawn neighborhood. This building has been torn down. 12. The “Royal” located at 8243 S. Marshfield Avenue at the intersection of 83rd and Marshfield in the Auburn-Gresham neighborhood. This was a house with a few different apartments. 13. A house at 12138 S. Elizabeth Street in Roseland at 122nd and Elizabeth. 14. Finally, “The Fort” located at 3947 S. Drexel Boulevard. This was the former Oakwood Theater and was torn down. This was the ultimate headquarters of all El Rukns. The year 1979 would bring the El Rukns into harsher business as several crimes were being carried out by the Black P Stones and Blackstones and being pinned on the El Rukns causing police to be in their faces. Also, enforcement came down hard on El Rukn enemies that El Rukns wanted credit for to show the south side they meant serious business but instead that credit was given to the Stones. All this upset the Chief, therefore, he laid out sanctions against the Blackstones and Black P Stones. Now it was no longer a choice to be a Stone, it now meant death. Herbert “Thunder” Stevens was one of the first big losses as he was shot dead in a Harold’s Chicken parking lot at 75th and Essex in the South Shore neighborhood. He was shot dead in the daytime and appeared to be a hit. The Sircon City Black Gangster Disciples were rumored to have killed him, but many others blamed Chief and the El Rukns for the hit and now bad blood was developing from Black P Stones and Mickey Cobras after Mickey Cogwell and Herbert Steven’s death, however, going into the early 1980s the El Rukns would prove to be perhaps the toughest force to be reckoned with on the south side of Chicago. After the sanctions were first handed down on the streets in 1979, a group of supporters of the new El Rukn ways brought the sanctions to the prison system by a group known as the “Cornerstones” which is the English version of El Rukn. Cornerstones wanted to remove the name Stone out of the penitentiary so that Chief’s El Rukn empire could dominate behind the walls. This sanction met very heavy and violent resistance when Maniac P Stones cliqued up with elite Renegade Vice Lords who protected them tightly. This gave birth to the “Renegade Stones” that was a group of ex-Maniacs who went into full alliance with Renegade Vice Lords. The year 1980 was a major year of takeovers and take downs. Bodies began dropping as El Rukns viciously fought with rival gangs and they were exercising violence against the Black P stones on the south side that wouldn’t obey sanctions made by the Chief. This caused many Black P Stones to flip to Conservative Vice Lords, Insane Vice Lords and Four Corner Hustlers as these west side mobs were now invited to set up territory on the south side. These Vice Lord groups got in on good graces with the Stones and Mickey Cobras which gave them to ability to open in Grand Boulevard, Greater Grand Crossing, Riverdale and even in South Shore. The sanctions were brutal with brutal hits made against Stones as El Rukns were well armed and handled business very precisely. El Rukns even took out witnesses to their actions. For example, if they were to hit someone and someone else saw the whole thing they would clean up the scene and take out that witness. El Rukns were also known the intimidate, bribe or even threaten jurors or witnesses that would testify in court. El Rukns operated in mob style fashion. The story of how the El Rukns obtained the property “Alahambra” is quite a story. On “Feast Day” which is August 8th of each year, the El Rukns celebrated that day by storming this property by force. On August 8, 1980, Chief had his men knock on all the doors and force all the dealers out immediately. Dealers also had to forfeit all their drugs, guns and cash. Two of the dealers in the building were Titanic Stone higher ups Barnett Hall and Duke Thomas. In Hall’s apartment the El Rukns took $10,000 to $15,000 in cash from him during the raid. In this same year Willie “Dollar Bill” Bibbs had left the Titanics and joined the El Rukns giving the nation to Robert East. Willie Bibbs was a big time Ts and Blues dealer and helped pump up the El Rukn supply of the drug while the Titanics cornered 30% of the market that year angering the El Rukns, this meant war. Bibbs didn’t remain an El Rukn for long and actually used his temporary membership with them to connect heavily to the El Rukn Ts and Blues sources he then flipped back to a Titanic in 1981 which pulled more of the market into the hands of the Titanics; this is when Chief gave out sanctions to eliminate the Titanics. This is when the famous 43rd Street Massacre was to go down on June 15, 1981. Chief sent three killers: Derrick Kees, Rick Ferguson and William Doyle who were armed with machine guns, super .38s, 9 millimeter pistols to a playground at 40th and Indiana (now known as Lou Jones Fitness Park) in the Grand Boulevard neighborhood. This was a park where Titanics were known to sell drugs. When these men saw Titanics standing around there they opened fire but missed all targets accept for Bibbs which was the biggest target of all. After this Chief sanctioned a hit on Barnett Hall and he was successfully executed on December 23, 1981 in front of his apartment at 6146 South Kenwood Avenue, once again Derrick Kees and Anthony Hall were the shooters (United States of America Vs. Williams) (United States Vs. Andrews). December 21, 1980 article about El Rukns and Chief October 21, 1988 article about the 1981 murder of Dollar Bill In November of 1982, Chief believed he had been given a sign from Allah to finish off the Titanic Stones by wiping out more of their leaders. Duke Thomas, Chalmers Tyler and the Ewing brothers were now next to be eliminated. This is when the El Rukns began calling the Titanics “gophers” because they popped up like gophers and he wanted to keep hitting them as they popped their heads up. Chief wanted all the leaders eliminated as they took over leadership until they finally ran out of steam. The first hit was botched when an El Rukn hit squad consisting of: William Doyle, Jackie Clay, Derrick Kees, J. L. Houston, Edgar Cooksey, Ray Ferguson and Alvin Toney tried to hit Duke Thomas but instead killed a woman and injured another that were driving Thomas’ car at 5642 South Michigan (57th and Michigan) in the Washington Park neighborhood. This happened in January of 1983. Chalmers Tyler was then shot and killed in February of 1983 at 6450 S. Kenwood Avenue in Woodlawn by Earl Hawkins and J. L. Houston. Later that month the squad consisting of: William Doyle, Derrick Kees, Earl Hawkins, Harry Evans, and Jackie Clay tried to hit the Ewing brothers but instead accidentally shot two other men as they sat in a car at 79th and Essex (United States Vs. Andrews). The Titanic P Stones were being beaten back by the El Rukns as El Rukns continued to assassinate their ranks. El Rukns followed through with their hits even if they were botched. One of the reasons some hits were botched is because Titanics were a lot like the El Rukns as they were also a crew full of hardened killers that were murder experts just like the El Rukns. One of the biggest reasons the Titanics were more or less at a disadvantage in this war was the fact the Titanics were far outnumbered by the El Rukns. Eugene Hairston maintained close contacts with Titanics during this war and it made El Rukns make Hairston a person of interest all throughout the early 1980s as there may have been plans to take him down but there were just always higher priorities. The Titanics and El Rukns were indeed the heaviest hitters of all El Rukn/BPS/Blackstone groups. El Rukns kept very close tabs on groups of Stones. The Peace and Love building at 74th Place and Kingston was the building where El Rukns watched the Stones very closely from this location and kept many Stone groups in line. Another complicated thing was the fact many family members related to El Rukns were not old enough or not considered good candidates for membership in to the El Rukns but El Rukns still wanted to keep these youngsters or others close. One of the most prime factions of Stones that was family with El Rukns was Maniac P Stones that were formerly known as Maniac Rangers when they formed in the 1960s. By the 1980s the Maniacs had a new generation of youngsters that were fearless and would not fold under any circumstances. Also, Stone groups would befriend kids of El Rukns and even take them under their wing into the BPS nation this caused many Stones to get a pass and this is also what kept the Stone name alive despite the sanctions handed down by Chief in 1979. For the wild groups of Stones El Rukns watched them tightly and were quick to impose law over them if need being. As in the case with the Titanics, the El Rukns would not shy away from a war with any Stone group. El Rukns also imposed taxes on Gangster Disciple and Black Disciple groups in the east side area. For clarify purposes, the east side is mainly the areas of South Shore, East Woodlawn, Kenwood, Grand Boulevard and Oakland. Lots of craziness was happening on the more south east side as prime location near CTA transit lines offered a cash cow for drug profits driving El Rukns, Black P Stones, Vice Lord groups, Gangster Disciples and Black Disciple groups to become more organized than ever in the 1980s. As I stated before the sanctions against the Stones caused many Stones to flip to Vice Lords and brought Conservative Vice Lords and Insane Vice Lords to the south side. Shortly after the flipping, many hardened west side Vice Lords began killing former Stones that had flipped Vice Lord, therefore, it was Vice Lord versus Vice Lord, not only that Vice Lords were also killing Stones which caused the Stones to fight back and kill Vice Lords. All this violence led to a mass depletion of Vice Lord groups especially in South Shore and Greater Grand Crossing areas as Stones fought for their ability to exist; too many sanctions were against them from all angles so they had to fight for survival during this reign of the El Rukns. Many other Stones also flipped to Gangster Disciple or Mickey Cobra during these turbulent late 1970s and early 1980s times and it got to the point where Stones were becoming a minority group on the streets in comparison with other mobs around them and it started to seem like this could be the fall of the Black P Stones. In April of 1983, Chief and William Doyle traveled down to Tupelo, Mississippi in an attempt to engage is a Cocaine transaction, the men ended up dealing with an undercover Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics Agent and both men were arrested which got Chief put in jail. By the summer of 1983 he was released but under the heavy spotlight of law enforcement that was investigating him for drug trafficking. Later that year the El Rukns became connected with Noah Robinson the half-brother of Reverend Jesse Jackson. Through Robinson El Rukns became connected with Thomas Allen Burnside from Greenville South Carolina who was a major Cocaine distributor in Boston, Bridgeport Connecticut and New York City. The El Rukns began buying kilos from Burnside until December of 1984. Chief was convicted of narcotics trafficking in December of 1983 and sent to federal prison, from this point forward Chief would never see a free day again. It was then said in court documents that Chief continued to run the El Rukns from behind bars by talking on the telephone in codes ordering anything from drug movement to murder. One of the ordered hits in April of 1984 was on Jerome “Fuddy” Smith who was the leader of the Goon Squad Gangsters that operated in the Ida B. Wells projects at 706 East 39th Street. Fuddy was apparently infringing on El Rukn Cocaine operations and allegedly Chief passed down the orders to take him out. On April 28, 1984 Earl Hawkins, George Carter and Henry Andrews shot and killed Fuddy and Talman Hickman in a breezeway in the 706 East 39th Street building (United States Vs. Andrews). By the year 1985, Robert “Button” East was incarcerated for murder which left the Titanic Stones in the hands of East’s younger brother Ray “Scooter” East. Robert East had been working heavily with Eugene Hairston to attempt consolidation of all the different Black P Stone and Blackstone groups together to go against the El Rukns and not adhere to the sanctions but by the time Robert East was put in prison it put a major dent in their progress and Scooter was ruthless and very violent as he lead the Titanics to act in the same way causing the organization to go to war with allies like Mickey Cobras and Prairie Avenue Insane Vice Lords. This not only damaged to Titanics it also caused Eugene Hairston to at last fade completely out of the picture and he became addicted to Heroin. In the year 1985, the El Rukns had lost their main Cocaine connection Blue Burnside as he was taken to prison and now the El Rukns needed a new solid connection to the Cocaine pipeline this is when they connected with one of the biggest drug dealers in Chicago, Willie Morris “Flukey” Stokes. The El Rukns had always been against the sale of Heroin as it was completely forbidden from sale and use since 1976, in the year 1985 that would change as El Rukns at last partook in the Heroin business. This all began right at the beginning of the year 1985 in January when El Rukns connected to Alexander Cooper, a non-El Rukn member that partnered directly with the Chief while he was still behind bars. This is when a group was formed called “The Gorilla Family.” This group was led by Cooper and consisted of lower level, less known El Rukns who would distribute both Heroin and Cocaine. This group sold in multiple locations in El Rukn territories and buildings. One of the locations was at the Wedgewood also known as the Pyramid Towers located at 64th and Woodlawn Ave in Woodlawn. There was also 71st and Stoney Island in South Shore, 47th and Lake Park in Kenwood, 79th and Yates in South Shore, 75th and Colfax in South Shore and even a tavern right across the street from the Ida B. Wells projects. The Gorillas operations were carefully planned from the start as even prime locations were picked up to sort the bags, package the dope and store it in a proper environment. The Gorillas also operated in air conditioned rooms which were ideal for mixing Heroin and Cocaine in the Harper Building which was located at 64th and Harper in the Woodlawn neighborhood. Edward Williams foresaw this operation and before overseeing the Gorilla operation at the Harper, he foresaw operations at the Five Point Terrace at 47th and Woodlawn in the Kenwood neighborhood from 1981 to 1985 (People of the United States of America Vs. Williams). In March of 1985, El Rukns met with King Cobras, an organization that was basically linked to and a part of the Mickey Cobras since at least 1960. El Rukns authorized Tredis Murray and Herman “Moose” Jackson to sell Heroin at the intersection of 67th and Blackstone in the Woodlawn neighborhood as long as the sales did not compete or infringe in any way on the Heroin sales at the Gorilla’s spot at 67th and Stoney Island. This arrangement only lasted a month before El Rukns felt the King Cobras had broken their promise and were stepping on El Rukn toes, this is when Chief ordered three of his men to “medium rare” Theotis Clark. Medium rare was code for shoot but don’t kill. This is when the hit squad of: Derrick Kees, Andrew Craig, Edgar Cooksey, and Charles Green to hunt down Clark, they found Clark 67th and Stoney Island and shot him in the leg as a warning. Another part of the order was to “Well-done” Herman Jackson and Tredis Murray which meant go ahead and kill them both. Another order was given to shoot any other King Cobras on site too. Because of the order to shoot any King Cobra, Jackson’s brother Robert “Dog” Jackson was killed by the hit squad of Andrew Craig, Andrew Fort and David Carter. El Rukns attempted to kill Andre Chalmers and sent hit squads to make it happen. A squad consisting of: Alan Knox, Jeff Boyd, James Walker, Roderick Haygood and Robert Johnson arrived at the Lanagan’s Lounge located at 5428 South Halsted Street at 54th and Halsted in the Back of the Yards neighborhood. At the bar they attempted to kill Chalmers but instead they hit Rico Chalmers, Glendon McKinley, and Vicki Nolden, all three were killed. This was done to exert control over drug operations at the intersection of 54th and Bishop in the Back of the Yards neighborhood. After the murder, authorities stated in the conspiracy court case of United States Vs. Andrews that El Rukns intimidated witnesses into giving false testimony. By the end of the year the Gorillas disbanded and King Cobras and El Rukns worked out a deal for 67th Street to have Cobras sell in the day time and El Rukns sell at night (United States of America V. Williams). In the same year of 1985, the El Rukns were not only looking to strengthen their Cocaine and Heroin operations they were also looking to strengthen their spiritual cause and link further to Islamic groups abroad all the way to Algeria. This was the first time El Rukns connected with Libyan dictator Colonel Muammar El-Qaddafi in an indirect manner. On February 24, 1985 an event called Saviour’s Day was held at the General Jones armory at 52nd and Cottage Grove in the Hyde Park neighborhood. The Chicago based Nation of Islam group was organizing the event to honor their guest speaker Louis Farrakhan as he was to deliver an impassioned speech. Participating at the event were the El Rukns who were allies of Farrakhan. 500 members of the El Rukns attended this event. As Farrakhan took center stage a large screen was displaying in the background that was live satellite feed to Algeria’s Ahmed Ben Bella and Ghana’s Jerry Rawlings, after they spoke Colonel Muammar El-Qaddafi spoke who offered sympathy to black people who he encouraged to fight oppression and he offered armed assistance if needed. As Qaddafi spoke Farrakhan asked the El Rukns to stand up. Farrakhan then warned the United States that if the U.S. tried to harm Qaddafi they would have to deal with the “Angels of Death” as he pointed to the El Rukns causing the audience to applaud emphatically (The Almighty Black P. Stone Nation, Moore, Williams). This was the beginning of the misconception of El Rukns and the government deep investigations into the El Rukns as an extremist Islamic terrorist group and now it looked like the El Rukns were ready to kill and destroy the United States for Qaddafi. By the end of the year El Rukns wanted to further push their homemade religion into legitimacy in the Illinois prison systems. The El Rukns wanted their right to assemble behind bars as a religious entity that would have the same freedoms as any other religion practiced in prison where they can all come together and pray. El Rukns were initially denied this because the El Rukn name was tied to criminal endeavors and members were criminals; however, the reason for the suit was so their criminal backgrounds could not interfere with their right to assemble for religious ceremonies. Authorities feared this was a way so they could assemble to plot criminal endeavors and to gang up on other inmates to intimidate and force recruitment. In the end the suit was rejected and the El Rukn faith did not get legitimacy (New York Times, December 27, 1985). Heading into 1986, the El Rukns were already in the spotlight again when they went into the murder for hire business. One of their clients was Noah Robinson, the notorious half-brother of Reverend Jesse Jackson. Robinson paid El Rukns $10,000 to murder one of his enemies Leroy ″Hambone″ Barber. These two men had a dispute over business and Barber began harassing Robinson. Although both men resided in South Carolina Robinson still consulted the Chicago based El Rukns to drive out there and take care of Barber. The hit was done by the squad: Alan Knox, Edgar Cooksey, Eugene Hunter, and Jackie Clay on January 2, 1986 when Barber was shot in the head in downtown Greenville out in front of one of Robinson’s buildings. A witness saw the crime and reported it to the police, that witness was Janice D. Rosemond. Rosemond was about to go as far as testify in court until her apartment was broken into by Freddie E. Sweeney a former janitor of Noah Robinson who stabbed her five times. Rosemond survived but then refused to testify saying the police coerced her. Noah Robinson still ended up facing conviction for murder and the El Rukns involved were brought into custody, all five men were heavy hitters for the El Rukns (AP News September 20, 1988). In march of 1986, the El Rukns then used the new connection through Farrakhan to connect directly with Qaddafi. Between the months of March and July El Rukns slowly established the contact with the Libyan dictator for the main purpose of obtaining a large sum of money from Qaddafi. It is a fact that Farrakhan had obtained a sum of $5 million dollars from Qaddafi and the money was invested in legit business and now the El Rukns wanted to come across the same fortune accept they were asking for half that sum at $2.5 million. The Libyan government was preparing to hand over the money with supposed expectations that El Rukns would use this money to commit acts of terror. The Libyan government was hoping the El Rukns would use weapons to destroy government buildings and declare war on the U.S. government or at least that is what was alleged by our government. It is indeed true that the El Rukns did contact Libya and even paid visits to Libya and Panama to discuss negotiations for the payment of the $2.5 million but there was never a shred of evidence that the payment ever happened or that actual talks of destruction of U.S. government property transpired alongside the payment talks. Supposedly Jeff Fort was sitting in the Bastrop Texas prison negotiating this entire transaction talking in code that mixed difficult street lingo in with random words and some Arabic that all had meaning, and this was interpreted as Jeff Fort making this deal through his Generals. If you ever heard of the saying guilt by association, well this was a prime example. Qaddafi had a lot of hatred for the United States and often preached it but there were never any recorded conversations with Libyan officials speaking about such actions with El Rukns. Another saying that comes to mind is being in the wrong place at the wrong time, well this is another crucial part of the case during that summer of 1986. Chicago drug dealer Sam Buford who was also an informant for the F.B.I brought undercover agent Willie Hulon to meet with El Rukn General Alan Knox. The three men met at the Southern Girl Lounge on 116 East 39th Street to discuss a Cocaine deal. During the conversation Hulon brought up that he had a connection that worked at an Army base in the south, and this friend stole bullet proof vests. This was the bait that hooked Knox into wanting to learn more and he asked about a grenade launcher. A month later Tulon came through and arranged Knox and Melvin Mays to meet him at a Holiday Inn in the suburb of Lansing Illinois. Hulon brought in this “friend” who was undercover F.B.I agent James Cross. At this meeting Knox and Mays paid $1,900 for this M-72 light series anti-tank LAW rocket launcher. According to court documents Knox and Mays wanted to buy up to five rocket launchers, automatic weapons and about five bullet proof vests but this transaction ended up only being for the one rocket launcher. I don’t know how it ended up being just one after there was all the alleged desire for much more. Knox mentioned he knew an enemy that owned a building he wanted to blow up and when Melvin Mays saw Cross and Tulon look surprised Mays said it would not going to happen for another year. The men then took the rocket to their car and left. Little did they know that the rocket had been inactivated, therefore, it was unusable. The agents had also placed a tracking device inside the weapon. The weapon was then taken to the African Hut located at 6414-16 S. Kenwood Avenue in the Woodlawn neighborhood at 64th and Kenwood. After some time, the authorities raided the African Hut and found 32 guns, including a MAC-10 machine gun, a fully automatic .45 caliber pistol and a .45 caliber Commando Volunteer Carbine. Agents also found several rounds of armor piercing bullets meant for sub machine guns. This is when the government brought up indictments in September upon Jeff Fort, Alan Knox, Melvin Mays, Reico Cranshaw, Leon McAnderson and Tramell Davis. The indictments were for conspiracy charges involving murder, drugs and plots of terrorism (United States of America Vs. Williams). As the indictments were being handed down at the later part of 1986, the El Rukns continued operations like a well-oiled machine despite what allegations they were facing. The drug business continued as El Rukns moved about the country to carry on Cocaine deals. Leon Harris, Alan Knox, Melvin Mays, David Hobbs and Ervin Lee traveled to Florida and South Carolina to distribute Cocaine. During this time court documents stated that Chief gave $25,000 worth of bribe money to bride two judges. Allegations continued also about witness tampering in the murder case of Maurice Coleman. Sammy Knox was on trial for that murder case and one of the witnesses to testify was Patricia Mckinley. Knox allegedly forced her to get on a bus and leave Chicago for Alabama on December 15, 1986 so she couldn’t testify. When she returned in January she was kidnapped and secretly confined by Sammy Knox, Jeff Boyd, Michael Sardin, James Speights, and David Hobbs (United States Vs. Andrews). In the year 1986, original member of the Black P Stones Charles Edward Bey was accused of killing Flukey Stokes, one of the most notorious and biggest drug dealers in Chicago that the El Rukns had been working with since 1985. Stokes was making millions of dollars a month in income and infringing on Bey’s territory which was mainly in the South Shore neighborhood. Unidentified men shot Stokes dead on November 19, 1986. The shooting was said to be ordered by Bey and carried out by El Rukns but there was no proof of that, but many will say that it indeed was done by Bey and his men. Bey was shot in an attempted assassination attempt by Flukey Stoke’s men a couple months earlier and it was said the killing of Stokes was retaliation. Bey was also accused of gunning down a police officer in 1970 which he was later acquitted of the charges. Bey retired from gang life in 1998 and became a community activist until his passing in October 2010, more than 700 people attended his funeral. In the year 1986, Crack Cocaine suddenly exploded in popularity nationwide as now addicts found a much cheaper and more intense way of getting high. Freebasing Cocaine was first invented in 1981 in the city of Oakland, but it wasn’t sold on the streets much until 1983 and it was exclusively a west coast drug as it slowly made its way into the Los Angeles area. Figuratively speaking, it was tough to swallow for drug dealers to justify taking an expensive drug like power Cocaine and cook it with baking soda to make it into a cheaper drug. It took dealers all throughout the mid-1980s to really digest just how this is a bigger profit-making process then simply selling powder Cocaine but finally by 1985 dealers were beginning to understand the benefit especially out west. In 1986, it became common understanding that Crack was a big money maker and now dealers were all over it especially in the urban ghettos in the United States as now this was a poor man’s Cocaine. The compound properties of Crack were far more addictive than Cocaine and once dealers really saw how addicted customers became they rushed to take over street corners and entire neighborhood sections to have exclusive rights to territories and of course Chicago became bustling with Crack Cocaine by 1986 and more so by 1987 when the Crack wars first began. Crack Cocaine became a thorn in the black community and was mainly peddled in urban black ghettos. The issue with Crack Cocaine is addicts often became dangerous and violent as this was a very powerful stimulant unlike Heroin which is a downer and addicts are often become docile as long as they get their fix. Crack addicts would often rob and steal or even commit murder for Crack which is something Chief and the El Rukns looked down their nose at. Crack was a major commodity by the Black Gangster Disciples and Black Disciples as they dove in headfirst to take over the Crack trade and pushed it heavily in the Englewood community and the public housing projects on the west side, south side and in Cabrini Green up north. I’m not sure about Black P Stone involvement in the Crack trade in the 1980s but I can imagine it was slim since many Stones were Eugene Hairston supporters and Hairston hated the flow of drugs to begin with until he became an addict himself in later years. One thing for certain though is that Chief and the El Rukns condemned the use and sale of Crack Cocaine. When it came to Heroin it took 9 years for the Chief to accept El rukns distributing Heroin because he saw how the drug destroyed the black community. He hated seeing mothers strung out on dope while their children went hungry. He hated seeing messy shootings over drug turf as this highly addictive drug brought to die for profits. He overall hated seeing people in the black community throw away their lives and become unable to function after being addicted to Heroin but by 1985 Heroin had replaced many other drugs the El Rukns sold like Ts and Blues and Codeine. It got to the point where the only way to make enough money to uplift the nation was to partake in the Heroin trade just like they did before the El Rukn years. Chief could see the advantages because they could at least control the flow of Heroin and keep violence over the profits contained and not allow reckless, disorganized gun slinging cowboy type dealers to run the market. Heroin was there and it wasn’t going away, so Chief decided to cut in on it to at least control it and make the money that would already be there for the taking. When Crack showed its ugly head in 1986, Chief would not compromise with the sale of Crack and could never accept the drug because of its destructive properties. It was a very dangerous drug to the black community; therefore, he wanted no part in it. Chief was so disgusted with Crack that he not only forbid involvement by El Rukns he didn’t even want members outside of his organization peddling the drug in any communities dominated by El Rukns. This meant no crack in much of South Shore, Woodlawn, A big piece of Grand Boulevard and most of the Oakland community and a great deal of Kenwood. Chief wanted Crack to stay out of most of the East side and if dealers didn’t listen, they were ran over with the force of a Mack truck. Many have respected Chief’s stance on Crack and the successful enforcement of keeping Crack away from El Rukn zones in the mid-80s and late 80s. Even law enforcement had some admiration that El Rukns kept Crack away. On October 7, 1987 the trials began for the conspiracy charges against the Chief and several El Rukns were named in the indictment. The star witness became one of those originally charged Tramell Davis. Davis had now flipped and had now made a deal with authorities to protect himself. Davis also was able to demand a payment of $10,000 in exchange for his “expert” testimony. Davis was the top man in charge of El Rukn security and part of the tight inner circle. He joined the Rangers back in 1965. When he was first arrested on August 5, 1986 he wouldn’t work with authorities until they threatened to charge his wife and after that Tramell gave in. Tramell’s largest role was to interpret all the hours of taped conversations El Rukns had between each other. The conversations were twisted into being interpreted as anything from drug deals all the way up to getting money from Libya to plan terror attacks on the United States. Despite the fact every Libyan official ever interviewed emphatically denied involvement with terror plans with the El Rukns it was still said the Libyans created an agenda for the El Rukns to follow in exchange for this $2.5 Million. There were accusations that El Rukns were traveling to New York City and meeting with Libyan officials from the Libyan Embassy but when questioned the Libyan officials in New York not only denied it, they even said they didn’t even know who the El Rukns were and certainly wouldn’t work with such an organization. No Libyan officials in the U.S. or from abroad were charged in connection with this indictment, only American born El Rukns. During the trial it was commanded that the drug and murder charges unrelated to terrorism were to be stricken from the record, however, when those were brought up anyway and the defense complained the judge denied the defense. The defense shot holes in Davis’ testimony and eventually got Davis to admit that he truly had no expertise with the coding of the conversations made on the telephone between El Rukn generals and Jeff Fort, he actually just began studying it all once he became a witness, however, he was never ruled out as an invalid witness. Davis also stated the religious aspect of the El Rukns was a fraud and only used as a cover up for their crimes after he had stated before that they were a spiritual group, now his beat had changed. When Davis was first arrested in 1986 he didn’t cooperate with authorities and told them the plans with Libya was to use the money to build a bigger temple and grow El Rukn religious flock which was not only the argument of the defense this was also the claim of the El Rukns for receiving the funds, but now in these trials, Davis was now claiming otherwise now that his wife was in jeopardy and $10,000 was slipped into his pocket to take care of his family. The defense also picked apart how Davis had access to the prosecution’s notes that contained notes about interpretations of codes used between Fort and his Generals, this as we know could lead to bias (The Almighty Black P. Stone Nation, Moore, Williams). On the outside El Rukns were working to stop witnesses from cooperating in this trial and Tramell Davis was one of the biggest targets. On October 7th, the day of the trail, gunshots were fired into the apartment at 3750 S. Ellis Avenue of Della Davis, the wife of Tramell Davis to intimidate his family. On October 9, El Rukn hit squad consisting of: Felix Mays, Louis Hoover and Louis Lomas fired several gun shots into Hank’s Funhouse Tap in Milwaukee Wisconsin which was owned by the father of witness Leon Harris who was about to testify about the murder for hire business involving Noah Robinson that brought the death of Hambone. On October 12, El Rukns Michael Joiner and Victor Johnson gunned down Thelma Tetter outside her apartment at 3816 South Lake Park Avenue. Thelma was the mother of Anthony Sumner who turned state’s witness in 1985 after facing charges as he was now testifying about narcotics trafficking and murder. On October 19, El Rukns Virn Polk and others again attempted to intimidate Davis by shooting Christine and Virginia Louis outside of the 727 building in the Ida B. Wells projects. Although none of these people were killed, they were all wounded and made to be frightened. All these shootings were listed in the indictments against El Rukns in the case of the People of the United States Vs. Andrews. The jury needed to change up multiple times during the trail especially after jury members complained about receiving threatening phone calls from unknown sources. Eventually when the final jury was selected the judge had to order the jury to not have any access to telephones. Regardless of the intimidation, the trial finished on November 24, 1987. Jeff Fort was sentenced to 80 years in prison and fined $255,000. Reico Cranshaw got 63 years. Leon McAnderson got 51 years. McAnderson and Cranshaw each had to pay $241,000 apiece. Alan Knox got 54 years and had to pay $241,000. Roosevelt Hawkins only got 9 years and no fine because of his cooperation. Marvin Mays was a fugitive and didn’t get caught until 1995 when he returned to Chicago and once he returned, he was given a life sentence. (The Almighty Black P. Stone Nation, Moore, Williams). Chief was sent to do his time in Marion Prison medium security federal prison in Illinois. The Feds and the prosecution didn’t stop with the 1987 convictions. In the year 1988, more bad news came for Eugene Hairston and his supporters. Titanic P stone leader Ray “Scooter” East was taken into custody as he swallowed a bunch of bags of drugs to conceal evidence. The bags exploded when police beat him in frustration. Due to the beating and overdose of the drugs East had a heart attack and died. Without Scooter the Titanics began to fall. Then in September 1988, Eugene Hairston himself was shot to death as he stood outside of the Ida B. Wells public housing projects after 3 in the morning. He was shot and killed execution style which meant this was a deliberate hit on him. Stone supporters of Hairston were infuriated and blamed the El Rukns for the hit and claimed Chief gave the order but El Rukns even held a press conference proclaiming their innocence in the shooting. There was also no evidence linking El Rukns to Hairston’s killing and the case was never solved. The fact is Hairston had become a Heroin addict so there really is no telling who could have shot him, it could have even been someone he owed money to. Without the Titanics and Hairston, the Blackstones were in jeopardy and this also wasn’t good for the Black P Stones either. September 23, 1988 article about the shooting death of Eugene Hairston In October of 1988, more murder charges were put on the Chief, now he was given another 75 years added to his 80-year sentence compiled with his 33-year sentence he already had when the trials began. Other El Rukns brought up on murder charges were Derrick Kees, William Doyle, Ray Ferguson and Derrick Porter. They were convicted for the murder of Willie ″Dollar Bill″ Bibbs in 1981. The laws were not done with the El Rukns yet heading into 1989. Another round of convictions surfaced and this time raids were conducted in 8 different states and 65 members were indicted on charges ranging from drug trafficking to murder. During this end of the year sweep The Fort was raided for the last time on October 29, 1989. The Feds used blow torches and hammers to break down the doors. Even though there was no resistance from any El Rukns inside during the raid they were still charged with mob action and disorderly conduct for the sole reason that they were assembling, even though they were only practicing Fum’Ah. The raid happened as El Rukns were deep in prayer. After the raid the entrances and windows were sealed with cement so no one could enter. The property sat vacant for nearly a year. This sweep also dealt the final blow to Noah Robinson as he was not only convicted of the 1986 murder of Ham Bone but also for skimming $650,000 from Wendy’s fast food chain cash registers. Allegations stated that Robinson would have time periods were the registers became unmonitored and shut off from counting, that was opportunity to pocket profits. This occurred at three different Wendy’s locations between 1984 and 1989. The charges in this new round of indictments was legendary and many El Rukns couldn’t even afford council and had to have court appointed defense attorneys. Low level drug dealers that sold very minimal amounts were suddenly charged just like high profile dope dealers as they were swept into the middle of RICO charges (The Almighty Black P. Stone Nation, Moore, Williams). In the Summer of 1990, The Fort was knocked down as a ceremony was held to commemorate the “war on drugs” by removing a building they felt was a symbol of drugs and gangs. Scavengers gathered and cheered as many took bricks as souvenirs. In the next 20 years the property near the Fort became highly valuable and highly gentrified, some say that was the sole reason for locking up the El Rukns to grab at their real estate. As the mighty El Rukn empire was beginning to crumble starting in the mid-1980s, the Stones were slowly making a comeback, but it wasn’t the Titanic Stones leading the charge. The Stone branch to begin restoring order was the legendary Maniac P Stones, formerly known as Maniac Rangers. The Maniac P Stones’ younger generation in the 1980s was groomed by high ranking El Rukns that were family connected to these young Stones; therefore, Maniacs were completely exempt of sanctions and could use the “Stone” name. As the 1980s progressed the Stones grew more, and Maniacs pushed the “P” back into Black P Stone. Even some El Rukns began to flip to Stone groups, sometimes to avoid prosecution now that El Rukns were labeled as terrorists. These younger brothers of older Maniacs came from the “Pocket Town” area which is the far eastern part of the Greater Grand Crossing neighborhood and borders the South Shore neighborhood; therefore, these Stones were very close to the main governing strongholds of the El rukns. El Rukns took young Maniacs into the Peace and Love building at 74th Place and Kingston and taught them most everything they knew, basically raised young Maniac P Stones on how to conduct business. This is how Maniacs developed so many killers and leaders among their ranks and since they were the only branch sanctioned to be “Stone” they were selective with allies. One of their tightest allies was the Mickey Cobras. El Rukns even allowed Maniacs to run nearby 74th and Phillips in South Shore all the way down to 83rd Street in the South Chicago neighborhood. In the later 1980s as the El Rukns were being drilled with prosecution the Maniacs stood up to any El Rukn sanctions against the Stones and were seeking to put an end to that. This caused more Stone factions to begin gaining steam again. Maniacs were not a hustling type of group instead they were kinda military like just like the El rukns. They did business but they mainly focused on maintaining order just like the El Rukns. Maniac P Stones were between both worlds between Stones and El Rukns. Another pivotal event happened in the year 1990 when former Four Corner Stone founder and leader Randy “Rube” Dillard seized control of the BPSN that year. The Titanic P Stones officially went defunct that year and were no longer the top BPS branch obviously. Rube was locked up in Menard penitentiary at the time and created the “Rubenite Stones.” Around this time that the Rubes were created in 1990 Randy Dillard was let off death row and now got the Rubes hitting the ground running in the northern Englewood area near Garfield Boulevard on the Englewood/Back of the Yards border, an area ran by Stones since at least 1955. Rube was especially known for stabbing serial killer John Wayne Gacy in prison. The Titanic P Stones would not return until 2003. At the time of the later 1980s and early 1990s the sons of Chief were attempting to take over the El Rukns and the Stones. Antonio “Prince Akeem” Fort, the older son of Jeff Fort was in his earlier to mid-20s at the time and attempting to seize power over the El Rukns; however, many El Rukns weren’t having it because of Antonio Fort’s drug problem. Even Chief himself disapproved of his son running the El Rukns and even passed down a violation to Antonio by having him beaten. The more influential son was Prince Wakeeta “Valenzuela” Fort who was only in his early 20s in the early 90s when he came into light. Wakeeta was four years younger than Antonio but seemed to have more of his father’s charisma and Wakeeta was identifying more with the Stones as opposed to the El Rukns. This would be a major ally for the Stones. At about the same time as Wakeeta was coming up and the Rubenites formed, another group of Stones came up in the area of 76th and Phillips in South shore, the “Jet Black Stones.” The Jet Blacks were started by Jack Black and were close quarters with the Maniac P Stones who were the liaison with the El Rukns. The Jet Blacks, Gangster Stones and north side Stones were originally brought in the settle a dispute between Maniac P Stones and other BPS groups over drug turf. The Jet Blacks soon grew quickly and spread to the Washington Park projects in the Grand Boulevard neighborhood at the 4445 s. evans building and the 4414 cottage grove building. Jet Blacks also had the row houses at 45th and Champlain too in the same development. Jet Blacks also had a section in the same neighborhood at 45th and Indiana. The Jet Blacks would eventually settle in the northern Englewood area near where the Rubenites were set up in the early 1990s. Prince Wakeeta took over leadership of the Jet Blacks and engaged in a rivalry with the Rubenites over turf along Garfield Boulevard on the Englewood/Back of the Yards border. After Wakeeta took over, the Jet Blacks nicknamed the northern Englewood area “Moe Town” named after Moorish beliefs. Wakeeta was well-versed like his father in Moorish beliefs and had that link to the El Rukn ways. The term “Moe” became very popular in later years and was often used to nickname all Stones, maybe not by all Stones themselves but many outsiders began calling all of them Moes. The Jet Black headquarters became 54th and Bishop in the Back of the Yards community which was the same corner the El Rukns assassinated King Cobra members in 1985. Watkeeta resided in the Back of the Yards neighborhood at 5423 S. Honore Street at the corner of 54th and Honore, so he was close to 54th and Bishop. The differences between Eugene Bull and Jeff Fort old principles were still alive in the early 1990s and it caused war to still occur, this was when the role of mediator appeared with certain branches like the Maniac P Stones, Gangster Stones, Moroccan Tribe and Gangster Stones. Wakeeta was placed here in Moe Town to basically govern the Stones overall this was a way for El Rukns to keep tabs on the Stones. The Moroccan Tribe and the Jet Blacks had a lot in common as groups that were liaisons between Stones and El Rukns and exempt from El Rukn sanctions but not from Stone sanctions. Both Moroccans and Jet Blacks also had deep animosity with crews of the Gangster Disciples. The Moroccan Tribe still operated out of the Kenwood Oakland area and gave refuge to both Stones and El Rukns. The Tribe was not into gangbanging and followed strong Holy Koran principles. The Prince of the Moroccans taught nationality not gangbanging. The Moroccans had been at war with the Titanics for a while but that was eventually squashed. The Prince of the Moroccans was mostly a fair man and respected every group’s need to eat so to speak, meaning dividing territories fairly. When he caught a case and ended up in prison in the late 90s it pretty much brought about the extinction of the Moroccans. I am not totally clear on how the Moroccan story coincides with the Renegade Stone history but an incident happened that caused the Prince of the Moroccans to face prison time for a kidnapping/ransom charge that turned into murder and after that the Renegade Stones became the No Limit Stones. One of the original Renegade Stones formed the No Limit Stones in the early 1990s who was eventually killed by his own. The 65 El Rukns brought up on RICO charges were at last brought to trial in May of 1991 and proceedings went on until November of that year. During the trials there were multiple El Rukn witnesses that had turned snitch and investigations were made upon them when rumors flew around that they were using drugs and alcohol while incarcerated. These inmates were even given special privileges like phone calls, conjugal visits with wives or girlfriends and even sexual contact with a paralegal for the prosecution. All these accusations were eventually proven to be true and the prosecution was slammed for providing unfair favoritism to these witnesses. This was witness tampering that could easily motivate someone to become a witness and even stretch the truth or lie in exchange for priority treatment. By 1993, new trials were heard, and many convictions were overturned as the credibility of these witnesses was tossed out the window, 6 top ranking El Rukns had charges overturned while some others had their charges stick like William Doyle as an example (The Almighty Black P. Stone Nation, Moore, Williams). After the final convictions were handed down at the end of 1991, Chief called upon all Stone groups and El Rukns to unite back under one nation. Branch leaders of the Gangster Stones and Maniac P Stones were pivotal spokesmen for this unity as now the El Rukn group faded away and would now absorb back into the old name of the “Black P Stones.” Once again, the faith in the “P” was restored and now all Stones were Black P Stone while having their respective branches. It was a rough ride at first in the years that followed but eventually the nation assembled back together and Islamic beliefs were no longer forced upon members in order to maintain membership; however, much of the nation garnered much respect for Islam and many Stones would become part of the nation of Islam as it was deeply rooted in BPS bylaws now. The center of all this was happening in the South Shore, Woodlawn, South Chicago, Kenwood, Oakland, Grand Boulevard areas which were the main sections of the BPSN. The most governing area has always been Woodlawn and South Shore, the heart of the BPSN. The 1990s brought a major takeover of the drug empire as now Crack Cocaine could flow all through the south side of Chicago and even young Stones were now pushing it and on and off wars within Stone factions would flare up now and again as the 90s progressed. Prince Wakeeta was put in prison in 1997 for Cocaine trafficking and since then there seems to not have been a central leader on the streets for the entire BPSN. Antonio Fort’s body washed ashore in 1997 in an apparent kidnapping/murder. Chief Malik was eventually transferred to Florence Colorado Supermax facility so he could be cut off from all contact with the BPSN. The Stones have grown into a massive army with over 20,000 members in the least. Stones can now be located in just about all 50 states in our country and everywhere in the city of Chicago. The Black P Stone nation was built upon strong leadership and incredible organization which is the backbone of what creates an empire. The sad truth is many young Stones on the streets do not know the history of how their nation came together and many have never even heard of Jeff Fort or Eugene Hairston who were the men that took a disorganized and possibly collapsing group known as the Blackstone Raiders and converted them into a powerhouse by organizing them. Another important reason for young Stones and the whole world to learn about Jeff Fort is because of what the cause of the Stones was all about. It is important to understand why this organization became the way it has been and why the El Rukns had their reign of power. When trying to understand how the Stones came to be never discount the area the Stones came from. As I had led off with in this piece, Woodlawn and Englewood have pretty much the same stories and these areas are where the Stones originated. These were neighborhoods that already were having socioeconomic issues before the white man left and were already beginning to deteriorate a little. When this issue of fixing these communities came to the table in the 1940s residents lost interest in bettering the community which caused property values to instantly sink but some residents began packing up and leaving just before the drop in home values. This made way for some black families to move in as realtors charged them more money than the home value but many black families were just wanting to escape harder neighborhoods and wanted a better opportunity for their children. This caused a massive uproar and legendary backlashes from these mostly white communities. One legendary example was the Englewood race riot in November of 1949 when rumors that Jews and communists in the community were helping blacks to take over the neighborhood caused a major violent riot. These neighborhoods were unhappy about black migration and would not accommodate new black families. Children and adult men harassed and intimidated young black children and teens, even school staff treated black children differently. They knew no laws could keep blacks out, so they tried to make blacks as uncomfortable as possible. Greaser gangs were perhaps some of the most intimidating groups that harassed black kids and bullied them incessantly in the 1950s and this is what caused the creation of the Players and the Blackstone Raiders. When the white man realized he couldn’t win in Englewood and Woodlawn they did a practice that hurt the neighborhood worse which was to leave the area. Beginning in the year 1955, white flight took off to full speed city-wide and Woodlawn and Englewood were top examples of white flight having a devastating effect. These communities were already a little shabby but once higher income whites started leaving, they took their tax dollars, businesses and the voice of the neighborhood out. The second part of the devastation is when realtors, banks and other lending institutions redlined these communities classifying them as hopeless and to be exempt from consideration from city help and help from private lending institutions. This made it almost impossible for black owned businesses to operate as loans where not offered to black entrepreneurs that didn’t have upfront money to open a business. As we all know, more stores and businesses equals more jobs for residents, but now miles and miles of vacant buildings became common site meaning less jobs in the community which means less tax revenue which means poorer quality schools and education which creates a never ending cycle of despair. Many young black males resulted to crime to get by as some began pimping, hustling, robbing, stealing or selling drugs. The big issue was white customers would come to these areas seeking drugs and women and when the police would catch them it was blamed on the black men involved, therefore, they were beaten and charged to the fullest for being involved with the white man and selling him drugs and women. Not only that white travelers coming in looking to score stood out like a sore thumb which made the police raise attention to the matter. Raiders/Rangers were faced with many neighborhood issues: white flight, disinvestment, roving wild greaser gangs, white criminals drawing attention to the neighborhood, and store owners ripping off the community, lack of employment and opportunity. With the newer trend of fathers leaving the household and some mothers succumbing to wild lifestyles, the black youths were often left without direction or male role models, this is when the Stones filled that role by coming together to fight back on the woes that brought down the black community. Nobody else was going to lend a helping hand so the Stones had to do it themselves. As I had shown examples earlier Stones looked to develop the community in their own way by controlling what goes on in the area. Stones won the favor of much of the communities they controlled as residents could see the respect and guardianship Stones offered to people in the community. The downside was their wars with the Disciples caused bullets to fly freely in the community. It all started with controlling the rackets in the community to assure rackets did not cause too much damage to the community and so Stones could make some money off it. This evolved into taking a stronger approach to helping the community by taking an active part in helping black youths obtain employment while getting paid by the government to do it. Shortly after this the Stones became active in the black power movement and there was progress being made toward a brighter future. The message of the Black P Stones was uplifting and with Jeff Fort taking the helm in the later 1960s he directed more organization than ever and even offered some spiritual guidance. Regardless of the progress of the Stones there were massive set backs by 1968 mainly from law enforcement investigations. The bottom line is the police and feds wanted the Stones off the street mainly because of the killings between Disciples and Stones, or at least that’s what it seemed to be on the surface. Many have said our government and the feds feared a group of blacks rising too much into power, the concept scared them, especially since the Stones had the ability to move masses and this scared the system. The Stones were a constant reminder of what can manifest when certain people are left in disadvantaged situations without assistance or understanding. The decades of pushing blacks into segregated areas of the city and classifying those areas as to not be helped now was going to backfire and no one wanted to feel the burn; therefore, law enforcement was working overtime. This is when law enforcement dished out sloppy enforcement and set up Disciples and Stones into war with each other to lure them into a trap with phony reports and the spread of gossip. Law enforcement wanted to see Disciples and Stones kill each other so there can be justification to remove the leadership of both gangs, while the violence could take care of the rest. Another big trap was the channeling of almost a million dollars in government funding for Stones and Disciples to direct their own job training program. Young men were taken off the street with no training, some hadn’t even ever worked a day in their lives, now they were leading classrooms without any guidance. Not only was this an issue, there was no direction of how to organize payroll and prevent some Stones from writing bad checks or falsifying documentation, heck, many didn’t even know it was illegal to fill in the login sheets, but then in 1968 now the government wanted to use this management as an excuse to put the Stone leadership behind bars. Newspapers and the Senate hyped up that the Stones stole almost a million dollars from this but in reality a massive chuck on this money was returned to the government while another large chunk went into the hands of the Disciples. The Disciples were never convicted of mismanaging the same funds, perhaps because they did not have many black power messages like the Stones did; therefore, the Stones seemed like a bigger threat just like how the Black Panthers were in the same classification. With all government money dried up by 1969, Stones needed to get money from somewhere and this is when they had to break their own moral codes and begin selling drugs. There really was no other better way to support the nation or to have funding to advance forward. Another motivation for taking control of the drug trade was it was felt the network being in Stone’s hands was better as opposed to being in groups outside of the organization that wouldn’t care about the harm coming to the neighborhood. The creation of the El Rukns was very scary to the world because the reputation of the Stones was already legendary but now that these men were putting on turbins and praying to Allah it became so much scarier to a country already living in fear as is. Jeff Fort’s new message was to embrace spiritualism and to live as how it was intended for black people to live, as stronger and superior people, to break the chains of oppression cast down that had placed black people in the ghettos and in areas with no jobs or resources, to break the cycle of poverty and being locked up in prison cells. Of course, to build such a nation with a nationwide following this would cost money. El Rukns were also fed up with seeing drugs and dealers destroy the black community; therefore, the best way to get the financial support to fund this new Islamic religion and to keep the community from falling into further distress was to deal with outside dealers and gangs and to grab a hold of the drug market with an iron fist. Bodies stacked up as El Rukn killer squads set out on the streets removing one target after another and dominating the streets with brutal force. The El Rukns had soon become an organization with some of the most elite killers on the streets, but at times of worship it was time to put the violence aside and pray to Allah. The El Rukns needed to be domineering and ruthless in order to lay down the law on the streets and keep what they deemed as evil groups away from their neighborhoods unless they were taxed and, in a way, licensed to operate in the area. On El Rukn streets the killing of innocent children, gang graffiti, the victimization of residents was not allowed and if these outside forces dared cross these laws the El Rukns were quick to remove the problem. These were grown men and not 12 year olds shooting guns and they didn’t recruit or allow children to use their names. You wouldn’t ever see El Rukn graffiti on the streets, and if so, it wasn’t done by a member. The only time harm came to people in the neighborhood is if they became too nosey in El Rukn business, hence, violence against witnesses. El Rukn membership was selective because Jeff Fort didn’t allow loose cannons in his group or anyone he couldn’t trust. Because of this selectivity he turned his back on most of the Black P Stones and even demanded they drop their name in the 70s. As I have pointed out, our country and law enforcement became increasingly afraid of the El Rukns especially since our country was having many disputes with middle eastern countries like Libya and Iran that made threats to the United States as leaders of these nations like Ayatollah Khomein and Muammar El-Qaddafi spoke of war and weapons against the United States. Now there was an organization here in Chicago with scary looking Muslim black men that were known to be criminals now communicating lightly with Libyan contacts. Before the contact with Libyans, law enforcement was already gunning to take down the El Rukns and was right away looking to pin a link between them and terrorist groups right away mostly because they had now adopted the Islamic faith as they also carried on as gangsters. The message of the El Rukns was completely missed that they were trying to build a religion that would strengthen the black race and uplift their members out of a bad situation. El Rukns also recruited law abiding adults with no criminal records into their organization that still never committed a crime after obtaining membership as the organization was not all about drugs and killing, that was only the side to gain profits for the organization and to clean the streets up. Once the El Rukns were in contact with Muammar El-Qaddafi it was over with at that point. Even though this $2.5 million never exchanged hands. There was never any set plans to destroy government property or blow up airplanes, no Libyans arrested or implicated and no plausible decoder for the El Rukn phone conversations. The Feds and the courts still threw the book at the El Rukns and sloppily convicted them of charges linked to terrorism while charging them for murders and drug conspiracy while throwing in those drug and murder charges into the terrorism court proceeding even though there was a promise not to include those into the court proceedings. The fact is they needed to include those things in order to build a successful terrorism conviction even though those murders had nothing to do with the terrorism charges. There was no evidence at all that $2.5 million was to be used to declare war on the U.S. and to the contrary the money was supposed to be used to build a temple and to fix up other properties owned by El Rukns. Louis Farrakhan asked the same man for twice that money and received that money and spent it but El Rukns didn’t even get the money and were convicted as if they did. The El Rukns are by no means innocent of committing serious crimes but the crimes were against other criminals or people associated with criminals. Usually when gang members commit murders against other gangs or drug dealers the sentences are often not as harsh as I have researched many killers that have been in and out of the penal system for killing other gang members. So, you have to think, if there were no terrorism charges against Jeff Fort and the El Rukns would these men still be in prison? Would Jeff Fort still be in supermax right now? Would the Black P Stones still be somewhat affiliated with having past terrorism ties? This is how these charges became harmful passed down by a government that was eager to shut down the El Rukns and played unfair to make that happen. Bottom line is whenever anyone is charged with terrorism many rights are automatically removed and this was the strategy of law enforcement and the courts. Once they got this roped in as a terror trial the rules can change, and many rights get tossed out. One also has to ask, are the streets really better without men like Jeff Fort and the El Rukns? El Rukns controlled the Heroin trade and kept Crack Cocaine out of much of the south side. Jeff Fort could lead black men to steer toward positive behaviors and for many Stones it would involve a completely law-abiding existence. There are many Stones nationwide that have never committed a single crime and have no record. There are Stones as celebrities, doctors, lawyers, police officers and even politicians, many you wouldn’t even know are members. Being Stone isn’t about being a criminal and is not technically supposed to be a criminal organization. The organization has spiritual dynamics that is geared at being productive members of the organization which can be anything from charities to simply working a job or owning a business. Stones can choose the path of being a gangster and drug dealers but this is not in the official principles. Black P Stones are Americans and take pride in being considered Americans; therefore, there is no anti-American sentiments and never was from an organizational standpoint. Here in the 21st century factions of gangs run rampant violently killing each other for money. Many youths lack respect and many pay no homage to any Chief, and if they do, they often turn on their Chief out of jealousy. There a lot of gunslinging cowboy types out there quick to shoot without following any organizational structure. Bullets fly everywhere and there is little to no law out there. In the days when Jeff Fort was in power and on the streets or running the nation from prison there was law and orders to follow. Our government locked up influential leaders like Larry Hoover and Jeff Fort, but this has only left the streets in a worse condition. Young men still need leaders to look up and to keep them in line. I’m not saying it will work like magic if Jeff Fort was released but it certainly wouldn’t bring harm and perhaps there would be inspiration to organize the nation which could save lives. I am going to conclude this piece with an excerpt from the television show Chicago P.D. that I watched as I wrote this piece that made me think of how it ties into this history. In this episode the Chicago P.D. officers pursue a big-time drug dealer and try to pin him with murders. The dealer is Darius Walker (Played by actor Michael Beach), who was known to operate legit businesses and give back to the black community until he was brought into the interrogation room to talk to Detective Atwater (played by actor Michael Beach played by Laroyce Hawkins). Darius Walker: You just don’t get it do you? Detective Atwater: What don’t I get? Darius Walker: Whether I’m here or not, users are still gonna use. Only difference is they’re going to be buying product from some 19-year-old punk with too much to prove; some bad ass half a gangbanger willing to shoot up a city block over a Twitter dispute or a spat with a fat ass girl in tight jeans. But the biggest difference between me and the person about to replace me is that I reinvest my profits in the community…in the people. Detective Atwater: So, you’re a robin hood for black folk huh? Darius Walker: No…no, Robin Hood stole from the rich and gave to the poor…hypothetically speaking. I take from the weak and give to the strong so they can get even stronger. Let’s be honest brother, some folks out there ain’t got no chance, they’re weak, uninspired, all they think about is getting high, so I sell them what they want…Heroin. With that money I invest in brothers and sisters who got game, who got smarts, who are willing to put in the time and the effort to make something of themselves, legally. Like it or not, that’s the only way black folks are gonna get out of these streets…it ain’t pretty…it ain’t fashionable to say out loud, but it’s the truth. I know none of ya’ll in blue wanna believe this, but Darius Walker is good for Chicago. After the interrogation Detective Atwater was talking to Sergeant Hank Voight played by Jason Beghe. Detective Atwater then realized more what Darius was telling him and even expressed concern to Sergeant Voight about locking up Darius Walker. He looked very concerned because he knew much worse would come from the removal of an organized kingpin. Think about that when you think about Jeff Fort. I’m not saying Jeff Fort should be released so he can sell drugs, all I’m saying is there are old school leaders needed and these men are too old to have any influence or any spot in the drug game these days; therefore, all they can do now is preach and uplift. I highly recommend the book “The Almighty Black P Stone Nation: The Rise, Fall, and Resurgence of an American Gang.” As you can see I cited this book at the end of many paragraphs as a reference as much of this book his key points pivotal to Stone history. You must still read this book to get all the incredible details that will captivate you as the reader. El Rukns, late 1970s Jeff Fort 1968 or 1969 The Fort 39th and Drexel, 1980s Early 1980s, Jeff Fort in the center wearing black and gold, his brother Andrew Fort is directly to the left of him Top generals 1980s 1969 in a parade Black P Stone hang out 1980s next to Jazz mural Late 1960s 1971 image of Stones marching down 63rd Street A photo from the late 60s before the Stones bought this property and turned it into the Fort. Eugene Hairston late 1960s 1968 Jeff Fort The Fort getting raided 1990 Outside The Fort late 1970s El Rukn leadership late 1970s Late 1960s graffiti Tag from 1980s Chicago Police manual April 8, 1971 article about the indictments for mismanaging funds Part 2 of the 1971 article Chicago tribune August 11, 1968, the Black P Stones of Chicago Heights Late 1960s Stone tagging over Disciple tags The Fort colorized Vulture politicians in 1990 coming to collect pieces of The Fort as they push their "Say No to Drugs" campaign even though The Fort was not even close to the biggest problems for drugs on the south side Late 60s young Black P Stones 1980 mug shot of Chief old school BPS tag July 1, 1994 photo of Stones 1990s G-Vuz and Prince Watkeeta Prince Watkeeta 1990s 1990s, Prince Watkeeta seated in the middle on the bottom row with some respected Stones Prince Watkeeta standing up, 1990s 1990, Prince Watkeeta on the right Early 1990s, Prince Watkeeta seated at the right Moe Town Stones in the late 1990s. "G Earnest," a Moe Town Stone in the late 1990s Early 90s photo of Watkeeta attending a wedding Early 80s, Jeff Fort with the round hat on and beard as he is escorted by body guards during his court cases Early 80s Jeff Fort escorted from 26th and California jail during trials PRINCE Wakeeta Valenzuela over time in prison Early to mid 1990s, Watkeeta sitting in the middle on the bottom row 1981 tagging Mid 1990s 1970 news conference held about police brutality. The police broke it up when they falsely claimed there were gun shots outside but no witness said they heard anything PreviousImperial Chaplains NextImperial Gangsters	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803486
__label__wiki	0.880071	0.880071	Pueblo Crime Beat: Police seeking robbery suspect By Jon Pompia The Pueblo Chieftain Pueblo police are seeking the public's help in identifying a man wanted in connection with a Jan. 23 armed robbery. At approximately 3:35 p.m. on that day, officers were dispatched to a convenience store in the 1200 block of Bonforte Boulevard on a report of an armed robbery. The suspect was wearing a large black hoodie, with some type of logo on its front and back, light-colored blue jeans which appeared to be faded or stonewashed, and black or dark gray Nike shoes. Those with information are encouraged to contact officer Erik Juno at 553-3273 or Pueblo Crime Stoppers at 542-7867 or pueblocrimestoppers.com. If your information leads to a felony arrest, you could be eligible for a cash reward. Rude note, bent antenna On Monday, in the 2200 block of Bonforte Boulevard, a woman driving a black 2002 Mustang told a Pueblo County Sheriff's Office deputy that after parking the vehicle in a lot there, she returned to find this note on her windshield: "You dumb POS. You hit my car, parked and left. Learn how to (expletive deleted) drive/park. I am dumbfounded by your stupidity." To complement the note, the writer damaged the Mustang's antenna. The woman told the deputy she did not hit any vehicles in the lot. The next day, a motorist told police that in the 3000 block of West Northern Avenue, an unknown woman approached her vehicle and broke its windshield wipers. A BB gun was used to break out windows of a 2011 Chevy Silverado parked in the 300 block of West Corona Avenue Tuesday, resulting in $600 in damage. A 36-year-old Pueblo man is listed in the report as a suspect. Agency assist A sheriff's deputy responded to the 6700 block of Davis Road in Rye to assist on a vehicle fire call Monday. The owner of a silver four-door Dodge said that after noticing the engine compartment was on fire, he heard an explosion. The vehicle was declared a total loss, with Rye firefighters extinguishing the blaze. Also on Monday, a deputy responded to the 1500 block of West Caprizo Springs Avenue on a report of a mailbox on fire. The sides of the mailbox melted onto the wooden pole. The report does not indicate if mail was in the unit at the time. From Sunday through Wednesday afternoon, Pueblo police investigated 25 automobile accidents, with many attributed to inclement weather conditions. Aaron C. Baughman, 34, of East Bond Place in Pueblo West, was arrested Monday on a no-bond warrant for sale secondhand property. James A. R. Acosta, 31, of the 1800 block of E. Routt Ave., was arrested Monday on a contempt of court warrant. He posted $5,000 bail and was released from Pueblo County jail. Ashton Z. James, 23, of East Falcon Drive in Pueblo West, was arrested Monday on suspicion of the unlawful possession of a controlled substance, aggravated motor vehicle theft and criminal possession of a financial device, with no bail set, and also placed on a parole hold. Jason D. Sanchez, 34, of East Countryside Drive in Pueblo West, was arrested Monday on suspicion of aggravated motor vehicle theft, and booked into jail with no bail set, pending a court appearance. Rex T. Lile, 29, of Avondale, was arrested Monday on suspicion of illegal discharge of a firearm and menacing with a deadly weapon, and booked into jail with no bail set, pending a court appearance. Additional counts are reckless endangerment and theft. Jonathan Vigil, 24, of La Junta, was arrested Monday on suspicion of second degree assault, and booked into jail with no bail set, pending a court appearance. Benjamin D. Wilhelm, 35, of Boone, was arrested Monday on suspicion of second degree assault, and booked into jail with no bail set, pending a court appearance. Kelli J. Hartley, 37, of Canon City, was arrested Monday on a no-bond contempt of court warrant. Joshua J. Thounskane, 30, of an unspecified address on Deane Lane, was arrested Monday on suspicion of aggravated motor vehicle theft, theft and contributing to the delinquency of a minor, with no bail set, and on two felony failure to appear warrants, which carry $20,000 total bail. Michaela J. Leapaga, 25, of an unspecified address on Deane Lane, was arrested Monday on suspicion of aggravated motor vehicle theft, theft and contributing to the delinquency of a minor, with no bail set, and on a failure to appear warrant, which carries $10,000 bail. Nancy J. L. Leyba, 36, of an unspecified address on Brookfield Lane, was arrested Monday on a no-bond warrant for third degree assault-knowingly/reckless injury. Michael V. Hawes, 35, of Lone Cowboy Drive in Pueblo West, was arrested Tuesday on suspicion of menacing with a deadly weapon, and booked into jail with no bail set, pending a court appearance. Cassandra L. Pacheco, 35, of the 400 block of Claremont Avenue, was arrested Tuesday on a no-bond contempt of court warrant. Kevin K. Krasnowski, 45, of Fountain, was arrested Tuesday on no-bond felony warrants for theft and criminal mischief. Adriel R. Galvez II, 27, of West Coral Drive in Pueblo West, was arrested Tuesday on a no-bond contempt of court warrant. Chad K. Lobeck, 49, no specified address, was arrested Tuesday on no-bond felony warrants for second degree burglary and criminal mischief. Travis J. Keller, 27, of the 2000 block of Ridgewood Lane, was arrested Tuesday on a no-bond fugitive of justice warrant. He also had two additional fugitive of justice warrants. Devon Williams, 35, of the 1600 block of East Sixth Street, was arrested Tuesday on no-bond felony warrants for criminal mischief and escape attempt-not convicted. Marlene M. Garcia, 37, no specified address, was arrested Tuesday on a contempt of court warrant, which carries $10,000 bail, and placed on a court hold. Isaiah J. Valerio, 23, of the 3100 block of Aster Street, was arrested Tuesday on a felony contempt of court warrant, which carries $15,000 bail, and a contempt of court warrant, which carries $5,000 bail. Denise E. Gaylor, 50, of Colorado Springs, was arrested Tuesday on suspicion of identity theft, and booked into jail with no bail set, pending a court appearance. She also had a fugitive of justice warrant. Tarra L. Barrilleaux, 34, of the 1700 block of East 14th Street, was arrested Tuesday on a no-bond contempt of court warrant. Juandiego Q. Chacon, 22, of East Plateville Drive in Pueblo West, was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of first-degree criminal trespass, and booked into jail with no bail set, pending a court appearance. Christian D. Daniel, 39, no specified address, was arrested Wednesday on a felony fugitive of justice warrant, which carries $400 bail. Leonard M. Cordova, 41, of the 50 block of Bridle Trail, was arrested Wednesday on a no-bond felony warrant for menacing. jpompia@chieftain.com Twitter: @jpompia The Pueblo Chieftain ~ 825 W. Sixth St., Pueblo, CO 81003 ~ Do Not Sell My Personal Information ~ Cookie Policy ~ Do Not Sell My Personal Information ~ Privacy Policy ~ Terms Of Service ~ Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803487
__label__cc	0.721803	0.278197	Slime - Warning Of Toxic Levels of Chemicals By Child Weekly July 31, 2018 New, reports suggest that slime-based toys could be causing more harm than good, containing high levels of a chemical linked to convulsions, diarrhoea and impaired fertility. Why Is It Dangerous? A warning has been issued that a large number of children’s slime-based toys could contain more than four times the recommended safety limit of a chemical called Boron. It's been advised “approach slime with caution” and parents urged to be wary of homemade alternatives too, as some of they often call for borax, made up of Boron, which is often used as a cleaning product and has been linked to causing serious burns in children. Dangers Of Borax Borax is often recommended as a "safe" pesticide, fungicide and cleaner, but it is officially classified as a poison. Government sites recommend that people who work with Borax use gloves and handle it with caution. Studies have linked it to reproductive problems in some lab animals, as well as a host of serious disorders at higher levels. Boric acid is an acute eye and respiratory tract irritant, which is quite toxic if ingested. In addition, it is unavailable in parts of Europe because of concerns that it caused birth defects and problems with the reproductive organs of children. It is recommended that pregnant women and children, in particular, do not have exposure to Borax. Borax is highly alkaline, which is why it’s a great household cleaner and laundry detergent booster. But it’s also a known eye, nose and respiratory tract irritant. In fact, the labels on boxes of Borax clearly state to keep it out of reach of children. Last year, Health Canada issued an advisory urging Canadians to avoid homemade craft and pesticide recipes using any form of boric acid, including borax. A Massachusetts girl received third-degree, blistering burns to her hands after making homemade slime at a friend’s sleepover party. Kathleen Quinn’s mother said her daughter had made slime many times before without any problems but may have received the burns after prolonged exposure to the compound. Are There Any Safe Alternatives? While the conventional Borax-based recipes are best to be avoided, there are natural slimes that can be made, though the texture will be notably different. For example, you can find a number of different recipes for safe homemade slimes using cornstarch, chia seeds and gelatin, metamucil etc. Each is distinct in colour and texture but all are free from toxic chemicals and some are even edible. Petter, Olivia "What Is Slime and Is It Dangerous", Independant UK, 17th July 2018 "Parents Warned Over Toxic Slime", Health, BBC News, 17th July 2018 Ross McLaughlin "Why homemade 'slime' could be dangerous for kids", CTV News, 7th April 2017 Last modified on Tuesday, 31 July 2018 14:20 « Warning Issued After 5 Year Old Swallows 30 Fridge Magnets Beware Of Dangerous Food Chemicals When Feeding Children » Statewide Eyesight Preschooler Screening In NSW Mystery Illness Emerge Among Children Allegedly Linked To COVID-19 Children In Childcare Tested For Coronavirus Preschooler Tests Positive For Coronavirus Family Tests Positive To Coronavirus, Childcare Centre Remains Open	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803488
__label__cc	0.542207	0.457793	New Obama Executive Action to Shred Immigration Caps Jeff Sessions / @SenatorSessions / January 04, 2016 President Barack Obama in the Oval Office with Attorney General Loretta Lynch. (Photo: Kevin Dietsh/UPI/Newscom) Jeff Sessions / @SenatorSessions Jeff Sessions, formerly a Republican senator representing Alabama, is the attorney general of the United States. President Barack Obama has announced another brazen, illegal executive action. As Americans gathered with loved ones to wish each other a more prosperous new year, the president issued an edict to put that longed-for prosperity farther out of reach. In a proposed federal rule published on New Year’s Eve, the president decreed that hundreds of thousands of additional foreign workers will be licensed to replace American workers at lower pay. Congress must act with urgency to stop him. The president’s nearly 200-page rule bypasses federal immigration caps, increasing significantly the number of foreign nationals authorized to work in the country above the limits set by Congress. These lower-paid foreign workers will be able to take jobs in technology firms, neighborhood pharmacies, energy companies, local schools, public administration, civil engineering, and innumerable other professions both sought and filled by millions of Americans. Whether young American graduates seeking that first job or longtime workers seeking that well-earned promotion, countless Americans will now find their chosen careers in jeopardy. The number of aliens authorized to work in the United States each year is limited by law, according to the number of foreign work visas and green cards that are statutorily available. Under this breathtaking executive action, those limits set by Congress are waived. Here is how the scheme works: Under current law, there is a statutory cap on the number of aliens who can receive green cards based on sponsorship from their employers, and thus a cap on the number who can receive the all-purpose work authorization those green cards provide. Under this new rule, the administration can bypass those caps with two easy steps. First, it would simply approve as many aliens as it wishes to seek green cards in excess of the cap. Then, it would give those workers—and their spouses and children—a renewable all-purpose work permit while they wait for their green cards to become available, nullifying Americans’ statutory protections against job-threatening flows of excess foreign labor. Adding further to the pool of workers, it expands the number of H-1B visas exempt from the annual cap. Brazenly, the proposed rule would also result in the automatic renewal of work permits for aliens who, among other things, merely file applications to have their deportations canceled or asylum granted. It is as if these policies were designed to create chaos and disorder. This lawless action comes at a time when immigration is already at an all-time high. The total foreign-born population is at a record-breaking 42.4 million, having more than quadrupled since immigration caps were raised five decades ago. Excess labor supply has already helped drive down today’s median household income more than $4,000 beneath levels at the turn of the century. Pew reports that Americans want immigration caps reduced—not increased—by an overwhelming 3:1 margin. That same Pew report shows that new immigration will add the population equivalent of 25 cities of Los Angeles over the next fifty years—unless Congress acts to reduce the annual allotment of visas. But instead of answering the public’s demand to curb the intake of foreign workers, Congress has worked with the president to expand it—most recently in the omnibus spending bill. In fact, provisions I offered that would have helped to prevent this and other executive actions were rejected by those crafting the omnibus legislation. Instead, the omnibus dramatically expanded the supply of H-2B foreign workers to fill positions in construction, hospitality, truck driving, and many other blue-collar jobs. When it returns to session, Congress will have to decide: Will it take meaningful action to block the president’s new incursion, or will it continue making only empty gestures of opposition while acquiescing to the president’s agenda? Voters want immigration growth halted. The more the governing class ignore these demands, the more they lose their authority to govern.	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803491
__label__wiki	0.529934	0.529934	11 Shows to See This Marijauna Day Weekend Daniel Hopkins Daniel Hopkins \| April 20, 2012 \| 8:00am Friday, April 20, at Zouk Zouk's had some controversy surrounding appearances of certain celebrities as of late, but one can expect that super DJ Paul Oakenfold will most likely be there to perform tonight. Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit Friday, April 20, at Dada I'm surprised Jason Isbell was so quick to return to Dallas after having all of his gear stolen out of his band's trailer only a few months ago. He does have an album to promote, though. He's still on the road working 2011 release Here We Rest. Stardeath & White Dwarfs, New Fumes, Hanna Barbarians Friday, April 20, at Rubber Gloves Rehearsal Studios If you wanted to see Oklahoma City's Stardeath & White Dwarfs but can't make the drive to Dallas on Saturday, just catch them the night before in Denton at Rubber Gloves. It'll be a good show, and there's always a chance The Flaming Lips' Wayne Coyne might show up, seeing as he's got a nephew in Stardeath. Saturday, April 21, at Lone Star Park I wonder how many secret service agents will be at this show. Amos Lee, Calhoun Saturday and Sunday at Fair Park Bandshell I always know that Earth Day comes after marijuana day. And this year Earth Day Dallas will celebrate over the course of two days. Saturday will have performances from Amos Lee and Sunday will feature local acts like Ishi, Air Review and Datahowler, along with a handful of others. The Black Dotz Saturday, April 21, at Queen City Hall Wanz Dover recently told me he's done trying to promote his Blixaboy stuff in the U.S., let alone in Dallas. Instead, he's got a soul/garage act that is definitely worth your time. Conjuring up Motor City in the '60s and '70s -- an era most of us can only imagine -- The Black Dotz put on one of the most exciting shows in town. Scary Cherry & The Bang Bangs, Darstar, The Crazy Ivans Saturday, April 21, at Curtain Club Remember when I said Curtain Club needs to add a little variety to their concert calendar ? Well, they've done so with this Girls Rock Dallas showcase, which brings local female-fronted rock acts Scary Cherry & The Bang Bangs and Darstar. Can't imagine a better venue for this show. Saturday, April 21 We've written a lot about about Record Store Day this year. Check our handy list of record stores that will be celebrating. A handful of places will have the official Record Store Day releases, free beer and free food, though Good Records might have most of the Dallas market cornered. Last year Chris Penn said they floated 33 kegs of beer and he expects to do more this year. Edgefest 22 Sunday, April 22, at FC Dallas Stadium We've already talked about our dream Edgefest lineup. If you look at previous ones, this is probably the best one since 1993. I'd still take a repeat of Edgefest 1, which had Pearl Jam, The Sugarcubes and Charlatans UK. Adair's 49th Anniversary Sunday, April 22, at Adair's Saloon Keep the party going on Sunday at Adair's in Deep Ellum as they celebrate 49 years of being in business. There will be a crawfish boil and live music outdoors, featuring The King Bucks and Boys Named Sue. Salim Nourallah Sunday, April 22, at Good Records (4 p.m.) Salim Nourallah's new record Hit Parade is among his best. I'm a little biased, though. I drummed for Salim for several years. But go see for yourself at his Good Records performance on Sunday afternoon. ...and that's it from us. We hope you have a good weekend and we'll see you back here on Monday. The 2020 Dallas Observer Music Award Winners The Biggest Local Music Stars Reality TV Ever Produced	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803492
__label__wiki	0.597618	0.597618	Over 12,000 Business Websites Leveraged for Cybercrime Attackers exploit trust in popular websites to launch phishing campaigns and spread malware. More than 12,300 websites in the business category were used to launch cyberattacks or deliver malware in 2017, making company sites riskier than gambling and shopping sites. Attackers are abusing people's trust in popular sites to launch consistent and effective malware campaigns. Forty-two percent of the top 100,000 websites ranked by Alexa are considered "risky," according to Menlo Security's State of the Web 2017. Researchers determined a website's risk based on three criteria: use of vulnerable software, history of distributing malware or launching attacks, and the occurrence of a security breach within the 12 previous months. A site was deemed risky if it met any one of these criteria. The largest category of risk was news and media sites, 49% of which met a risk factor, followed by entertainment and arts (45%), travel (41%), personal sites and blogs (40%), society (39%), and business and economy (39%), which includes company, association, industry group, financial data and serivces, and hosted business application sites. Business and economy sites hosted more phishing sites, ran more vulnerable software, and experienced more security incidents than any other category in 2017, researchers found. The category was hit with 23,819 incidents in 2017; the next-highest was society sites at 12,669. Background websites: Who are you talking to? Menlo CTO Kowsik Guruswamy explains the risk of "background radiation," which stems from the idea that much of cybercriminals' damage happens behind the scenes. Each time someone visits a website, it contacts an average of 25 background sites for different demands: grabbing ads from an ad delivery network, for example, or videos from a content delivery server. Any of these third-party sites could be compromised and pose risk to users. Most malware prevention tools, from antivirus products to behavioral modeling systems, are designed to focus on the intended domain and often don't pick up on calls to background sites. A major website like Bloomberg might have an IT team to update servers, Guruswamy says. However, when end users visit and are presented with videos and ads, the activity comes from other networks and may not necessarily be safe. The same applies to all major websites. As software ages, risks grow Many of today's websites are participating in browsing sessions, and actively servicing ads, on software riddled with vulnerabilities, Guruswamy says. "You have this really, really old software that's full of holes that haven't been patched and are waiting to be exploited," he explains, pointing to the Equifax breach as an example of what threat actors can do if a website is running unpatched software. Menlo analysts passively fingerprinted website software for both primary and background sites, and coordinated the documented vulnerabilities for each one. They found more than 51,000 business and economy websites are running vulnerable software. The software supporting company websites is often old enough to have been compromised several times over the past few years. More than 32,000 websites analyzed run on Microsoft Internet Information Services (IIS) 7.5, which was released in 2009. Many sites use software that is no longer fully supported; for example, Microsoft's IIS 5 Web server, which was released in 2000 and stopped receiving mainstream support in 2005. Tactics for tricking users Most high-profile breaches start with a phishing or spearphishing attack. In 2017, 4,600 phishing sites used legitimate hosting services. It's easier to create a subdomain on a real hosting service than hack a popular site or set up a brand-new domain, Guruswamy says. Companies usually whitelist legitimate domains, which give them a false sense of security while covering for a phishing website. Researchers found 15 phishing sites hosted on the world's ten most popular domains. While no evidence indicated anyone was successfully breached from any of these subdomains, it's worth noting hackers are embracing hosting services. Guruswamy calls it "trust hacking" and says many threat actors leverage websites like DocuSign or Dropbox so when targets receive emails to open documents, they don't think it's malicious. Typosquatting is another common way of sending users to malicious websites. Attackers set up fake domains with intentional misspellings so people accidentally access them if they mistype a website in the browser. "Wellforgo.com," "Yaoo.com," and "Yotuube.com" are examples. "It's an attack vector that's been around for a while but now bad actors are taking the time to actively get it categorized as a good site," he explains. In the 30-day period Menlo tracked users' web activity, traffic to 78 bad sites had been misspelled to trick people trying to visit the top 1,000 domains on Alexa. 7 Ways to Maximize Your Security Dollars 3 Ways Hackers Steal Your Company's Mobile Data Poor Visibility, Weak Passwords Compromise Active Directory Thinking about a Career Move in Cybersecurity? Kelly Sheridan is the Staff Editor at Dark Reading, where she focuses on cybersecurity news and analysis. She is a business technology journalist who previously reported for InformationWeek, where she covered Microsoft, and Insurance & Technology, where she covered financial ... View Full Bio Special Report: Edge Computing: An IT Platform for the New Enterprise	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803495
__label__wiki	0.572366	0.572366	DNA database creates genetic surveillance An Op-Ed on Gazette.net by Gerald G. Stansbury of the Maryland State NAACP; June White Dillard of the Prince Georgeâ€™s Branch NAACP; and Cynthia Boersma of the ACLU of Maryland addresses proposed legislation in Maryland: Warrantless seizure of DNA from individuals who are arrested but not convicted of crimes is being considered in the... UK: 300,000 prescriptions lost by NHS The BBC reports: Thousands of prescription forms, carrying the names and addresses of patients, go missing every year as they are transported around the NHS. The government has admitted that almost 300,000 have been lost or stolen in England since 1997. Shadow health secretary Andrew Lansley said handling of personal information was “serially incompetent”.... New image technique could allow scanners to read minds James Randerson writes in the Guardian: Scientists have developed a mind-reading technique that allows them to accurately predict images being viewed by people, by using scanners to study brain activity. The breakthrough by American scientists took MRI scanning equipment normally used in surgical procedures to observe patterns of brain activity when a subject examined... Wisconsin Senate passes bill to accommodate patient data exchange; passage expected in Assembly From WTN News: On a voice vote, the State Senate has passed a bill that would pave the way for the electronic exchange of patient data between different health systems and facilities. The measure, Senate Bill 487, was immediately sent to the State Assembly, where its companion bill, AB 793, is expected to pass... Will privacy keep Health 2.0 from the starting gate? Business journalist Dana Blankenhorn writes on ZDNet: Just two weeks ago the World Privacy Forum, ironically also based in San Diego, came out with two warnings about Personal Health Records (PHRs) which made them appear to be a tragedy waiting to happen. PHRs, once placed online, are not covered by HIPAA, the forum...	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803496
__label__cc	0.509121	0.490879	Hillsborough Inquests https://www.davidalton.net/2012/09/14/hillsborough-twenty-three-years-of-cover-up/ 27 Nov 2012 : Column WA38 Asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool To ask Her Majesty’s Government what consideration they have given to the petition by Anne Williams to hold a new inquest into the death of her son at Hillsborough; and what consideration they have given to fast-tracking the request on compassionate grounds.[HL3142] The Advocate-General for Scotland (Lord Wallace of Tankerness): The Attorney-General is in the process of preparing an application to the High Court to quash the original inquests and order new inquests into the deaths of the victims of the Hillsborough disaster. The evidence which supports an application in respect of Kevin Williams is essentially the same as that which supports an application into the other deaths and the Attorney-General expects to be in a position to lodge the application in December. Should the court order new inquests the timing thereafter is a matter for the coronial process. For 18 years David Alton was a Member of the House of Commons and today he is an Independent Crossbench Life Peer in the UK House of Lords. Tweets by DavidAltonHL Stop Organ Harvesting In China As the Medicines and Medical Devices Bill Bill... Christmas 2020 – Listen to T.S.Eliot and Hugh Laurie reading “Journey of the Magi”, Read J.R.R.Tolkien’s, Noel, and G.K.Chesterton’s “The House of Christmas” and Liverpool poet, Stewart Henderson’s ,new 2020 Christmas poem, What did you get for Christmas? Christmas 2020 - Listen to T.S.Eliot and Hugh... The Place In Which We Work The Houses of Parliament We all see the place... Historic House of Lords Vote on All-Party Amendment on Genocide Determination passes by a Majority of 126. Now Members of the Commons have the chance to say no to trade deals with States credibly accused of Genocide. Historic House of Lords Vote on All-Party... In Vino Veritas – with a glass of Australian wine show solidarity and drink a toast to Australia’s courageous truth telling. In vino veritas - Australia tells the truth... The World Must Not Forget Andy Li And The Hong Kong 12 With Andy Li During The Hong Kong Elections In... Burma Human Rights Network urges Commons to back the Genocide Amendment Rohingya still waiting for justice BHRN Urges... Sunday Times: critics say WHO has “become Beijing’s puppet.” CPA “running rings around the compromised organisation” Secret film reveals CPA cover up of Wuhan virus and doctors warned “not to tell the truth” Sunday Times: critics say WHO has “become... In today’s Daily Telegraph Charles Moore says “ a freedom-weary West must not end up seeing China’s tyranny as a safe haven” and that the Genocide amendment before the House of Commons on Tuesday “opens interesting possibilities” to do something about it. In today’s Daily Telegraph Charles Moore says “... 2020 Copyright. All Rights Reserved. Lord David Alton.	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803498
__label__wiki	0.693043	0.693043	Gross lending to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the first three quarters of 2020 reached £54 billion driven by coronavirus (COVID-19) loan schemes, according to figures from trade body UK Finance. That represents more than double the annual total of borrowing reached by SMEs in 2019, UK Finance said. Nationally, UK lenders have issued 229 Bounce Back loans via the Bounce Back Loan Scheme (BBLS) and ten Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) facilities for every thousand businesses, dwarfing loan approval volumes seen in previous years. Since the extension of government support from November 2020, UK Finance estimates that £600 million in funding has been made available through the topping-up of existing BBLS facilities. Commenting on the data, Stephen Pegge, Managing Director of Commercial Finance at UK Finance, said: '2020 was a challenging year with the disruption of COVID-19 restrictions and uncertainty ahead of the end of EU transition. 'While the business community in aggregate does not appear overindebted with liquidity reserves and capacity to provide finance strong overall, many individual businesses and some specific sectors are facing significant and much more extended disruption and may find themselves in financial difficulty in 2021.'	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803499
__label__wiki	0.682152	0.682152	Pinned October 15, 2019 Serena Williams-backed online academy raises $3M to teach tech jobseekers how to sell By Zlati Meyer Coding boot camps are nothing new. People looking to get into the tech industry sign up by the throngs, but Shaan Hathiramani noticed a giant chasm in another area that’s vital to that world: tech sales. He also noted that sales isn’t something taught in college and that the people who did pursue careers in what Old Media might call “peddling” tended to be male and white. Hathiramani decided to turn that upside down when he founded Flockjay, and it looks like a lot of people agree with him. Today, the online sales academy—which trains people from nontraditional backgrounds for jobs in tech—announced $2.98 million in new funding from a diverse set of backers who are 50% women and 50% people of color. [Photo: courtesy of Flockjay] The funding round included superstar backers like Serena Williams and Will Smith, in addition to a host of big-name investors: Microsoft chairman John Thompson; Airtable head of sales Liat Bycel; Gmail inventor Paul Buchheit; and former Netflix CPO Tom Willerer, among others. Lightspeed, Coatue, Y Combinator, F7, SV Angel, and Index Ventures also participated in the round. “At Serena Ventures, we are strong believers that diversity in the workforce drives better results,” Williams said in a statement through a rep. “Flockjay is helping to add more diversity. It is helping make everyday lives of everyday people better by giving them the skill and opportunities previously not afforded to them.” Flockjay’s mission is simple: Train people from nontraditional and underrepresented backgrounds via a 12-week online program. Make the tuition not upfront payments but 10% of alumni’s first-year salaries, meaning trainees can participate in the program for free and not have to pay up until they actually start earning a living. “Digital fluency and human connection are two things every company is looking for,” Hathiramani tells Fast Company. “A great salesperson generates four to five times their revenues for the company, so getting someone great really matters.” His idea seems to be working. Since Flockjay’s launch in January (it was in the Y Combinator winter 2019 batch), 100 people have completed the program, according to Hathiramani. Of those, 50% are women and 70% are people of color. Plus, 40% don’t have four-year degrees. He added that about 20% of students drop out in the first two weeks of the course. Alumni include a broad cross-section of people traditionally excluded from the insular tech world, such as retail salespeople, bartenders, and aging vets. The Flockjay curriculum includes lessons in multichannel outreach, sales tools like Salesforce and Zoom, building rapport through questions, and conference networking. Elise Cox, a former Bojangles’ manager, graduated from Flockjay this summer. She’s since relocated from Georgia to Denver to be a tech sales representative for Gusto, a payroll and human resources platform company. She had earned $13 an hour in food service but now brings in more than double that—or when factoring in her benefits packages, almost triple. “I enjoy being able to generate revenue for the company,” says Cox, a 41-year-old grandmother, whose five-year plans include a sales leadership role. “The revenue is the lifeblood of the company and being part of the team gives me sense of fulfillment.” Hathiramani says the ability to sell is one of the most fundamental skills a person can have. For Flockjay, the bigger challenge is making sure those skills translate to the modern world. “We’ve been selling for thousands of years,” he says. “What has changed in sales is the complexity of what we’re selling and the amount of info buyers have.” Fast Company , Read Full Story Academy Exclusive jobseekers Online Raises Sell Serena Teach Tech Williamsbacked	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803504
__label__cc	0.717054	0.282946	Harlequin Artist Interview Read our interview with the Harlequin artist Kyoko Sagara... Manga by Kyoko Sagara The Greek Tycoon's Secret Heir Sons of Privilege 1 PreviewSee Details THE CALL OF THE DESERT A Scandalous Marriage Wives Wanted! 3 The Spanish Aristocrat's Woman Sons of Privilege 3 THE BRIDESMAID'S REWARD PreviewSee Details View All Manga by This Artist>> All Author Interviews Lynne Graham Miranda Lee Sharon Kendrick All Artist Interviews Satoru Nagasawa EARITHEN Shion Hanyu YOKO IWASAKI Sae Nanahoshi Nanami Akino Kazuko Fujita Kyoko Sagara Natsu Momose Could you please introduce yourself? My name is Kyoko Sagara. I was born on May 5th in Fukushima, and I currently live in Kanagawa. The first Harlequin I ever drew was "Devon's Desire". My family consists of my husband and two cockatiels. I get food-poisoning most of the time when I eat mushrooms, and I get sick when I ride the train, so I'm a bit of a wuss; however, whenever I finish a manga, not even any of my assistants can outdo me for hyperactivity...! What made you want to become a manga artist? Have you always wanted to be one? I first realized how much I loved manga when I was in elementary school, drawing lots of 4-panel comics. For one of my assignments, I was asked to write about what I wanted to become when I was older. I remember saying that I wanted to be a manga artist, but even if I wasn't able to do that I'd just like to draw manga. My teacher, who was really nice, told me that I'd have no problem achieving my goal. How did you discover Harlequin? In 2002, I was asked by another company to work on Harlequin. Since then, whenever I draw the manga version of a story, I feel like an actress who's working with a wonderful script. It feels really nice to be a manga artist who gets to turn these wonderful stories into pictures. Who are your favourite manga artists? I love Yukako Midori. I've been a fan of hers since I was in school! Also, Hiroko Miura. The way she draws things so intricately is just wonderful. When I made my debut, my work and hers were featured in the same magazine edition, which felt amazing. What's your favorite Harlequin book? I love anything from the "Harlequin Image" line we have in Japan. They read like romantic comedies, and they have me hooked. In terms of ones I myself have turned into manga, it has to be "The Bridesmaid's Reward". Which of your manga do you like most and why? My "19-seiki no Koibito-tachi" ("Lovers in the 19th Century") series. It was my first historical mini-series. I had a hard time doing all the research, because there was a lot to go through, but I enjoyed it all. How long does it take you to draw a manga? Coming up with a story takes about a month, as does illustrating, and lettering, too. But recently I've been getting slower at lettering, and illustrating takes about three weeks... I... I'll see what I can do! Do you have any advice to give aspiring artists? To start with just get a story written down/drawn from start to finish. How do you spend an average day? I play with my cockatiels while watching Korean dramas (well, the hot guys in them at least... lol). Do you have any interests other than reading and manga? I'm pretty capricious, so I haven't really done anything continuously for long enough to call it a hobby. I suddenly get interested in things like knitting, or making origami lizards that take two-weeks to fold... I sometimes look into my family tree, I guess. Next Week's Interview>> Natsu Momose	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803518
__label__wiki	0.961403	0.961403	A seagull flies in front of the Rampion offshore wind farm in the United Kingdom. Neil / CC BY 2.0 By Tara Lohan A key part of the United States' clean energy transition has started to take shape, but you may need to squint to see it. About 2,000 wind turbines could be built far offshore, in federal waters off the Atlantic Coast, in the next 10 years. And more are expected. <p>East Coast states from Maine to North Carolina are working to procure nearly <a href="https://www.oedigital.com/news/483741-2020-has-been-a-big-year-for-us-offshore-wind" target="_blank">30 gigawatts of offshore wind by 2035</a> — a huge leap from the five turbines currently generating 30 megawatts in Rhode Island waters. If a regulatory backlog of projects awaiting approval from the Interior Department's Bureau of Ocean Energy Management is finally unstuck — <a href="https://therevelator.org/offshore-wind-growth/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">as experts hope will happen this year</a> — the buildout of offshore wind will arrive during a crucial decade for reducing greenhouse gas emissions.</p><p>Spinning turbine blades on the watery horizon may be a welcome sight in the fight against climate change, but they still come with potential threats to marine wildlife. Many environmental groups believe the challenges aren't insurmountable if scientific study can help inform regulatory action and if we can learn — and adapt our practices — as we go.</p><p>"We believe that offshore wind can absolutely be developed in an environmentally responsible manner," says Francine Kershaw, a staff scientist at the Natural Resources Defense Council. "But that has to be incorporated throughout the whole process — from site assessment through development, construction and operations."</p> Threats to Birds <p>One of the gravest threats facing birds is climate change, according to Audubon, which found that rising temperatures threaten <a href="https://www.audubon.org/2019climateissue" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">nearly two-thirds of North America's bird species</a>. That's why the impending development of offshore wind is a good thing, says Shilo Felton, a field manager in the organization's Clean Energy Initiative, but it also comes with dangers to birds that need to be better studied and mitigated.</p><p>The most obvious risk comes from birds colliding with spinning turbine blades. But offshore wind developments can also displace birds from foraging or roost sites, as well as migratory pathways.</p><p>Along the Atlantic Coast four imperiled species are of top concern to conservationists: the endangered piping plover, red knot, roseate tern and black-capped petrel, which is being considered for listing under the Endangered Species Act.</p><p>"Those four species are of utmost importance to make sure that we understand the impacts," says Felton. "But beyond that there are many species that are protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act that could potentially see more impacts from offshore wind."</p><p>Northern gannets, for example, are at risk not just for collision but <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/308703197_Possible_impacts_of_offshore_wind_farms_on_seabirds_a_pilot_study_in_Northern_Gannets_in_the_southern_North_Sea" target="_blank">habitat displacement</a>.</p> <img lazy-loadable="true" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNTQ3NDc0My9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY2MzA3NTkwM30.L3sUMX9PbRxFqSnNPKWfQSB33NNak0zZ6x9gdLCZPJM/img.jpg?width=980" id="31fc5" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="e1429caf713cfa9e6b78cc218d884453" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-width="799" data-height="533" /> A northern gannet flying along Cape May, N.J. Ann Marie Morrison / CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 <p>"There's <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0006320716303196" target="_blank">some evidence</a> that they just won't use areas where turbines are, but that also excludes them from key foraging areas," says Felton. Researchers are still studying what this may mean for the birds. But a <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0141113620305304" target="_blank">study</a> published in December 2020 conducted at Bass Rock, Scotland — home to the world's largest northern gannet colony — found that wind developments could reduce their growth rate, though not enough to cause a population decline.</p><p>Other birds, such as great cormorants and European shags, are <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0006320716303196" target="_blank">attracted to wind developments</a> and use the infrastructure to rest while opening up new foraging areas farther from shore.</p><p>"There's plenty of potential for a bird to use a wind farm and still to avoid the turbines themselves," says Felton.</p><p>Birds like pelicans, however, are less versatile in their movements and are at particular risk of collision because of their flight pattern, she says.</p><p>But how disruptive or dangerous offshore turbines will be along the East Coast isn't yet known.</p><p>Federal and state agencies, along with nongovernmental organizations, says Felton, have done good research to try to better understand those potential impacts. "But these are all theoretical, because we don't have a lot of offshore wind yet in the United States."</p> Threats to Ocean Life <p>Birds aren't the only wildlife of concern. More development in ocean waters could affect a litany of marine species, some of which are already facing other pressures from overfishing, pollution, habitat destruction and climate change.</p><p>Scientists have found that marine mammals like whales and dolphins could be disturbed by the jarring sounds of construction, especially if pile driving is used to hammer the steel turbine platform into the seafloor.</p><p>The noises, though short-lived, could impede communication between animals, divert them from migration routes or cause them to seek less suitable areas for feeding or breeding. Research from Europe found that harbor porpoises, seals and dolphins may avoid development areas during construction. In most, but <a href="https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/7/4/045101" target="_blank">not all cases</a>, the animals were believed to have returned to the area following construction.</p><p>The biggest concern for conservation groups in the United States is the critically endangered North American right whale. There are fewer than 400 remaining, and the species' habitat overlaps with a number of planned wind development areas along the East Coast.</p><p>"Offshore wind is in no way the cause of the challenges the whales face, but it's going to be another pressure point," says John Rogers, senior energy analyst for the Union of Concerned Scientists.</p><p>Researchers aren't sure how right whales will respond to the noise from pile driving.</p><p>"But we are concerned, based on what we know about how whales react to other noise sources, that they may avoid [wind development] areas," says Kershaw.</p><p>And if that displacement causes them to miss out on important food resources, it could be dangerous for a species already on the brink.</p><p>There are a few other potential threats, too.</p><p>Ships associated with the development — more plentiful during construction — also pose a danger. In the past few years cargo ships, fishing boats and other vessels have caused half of all deaths of North Atlantic right whales.</p> <img lazy-loadable="true" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNTQ3NDg5MC9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY1ODIyNzI3MX0.PzGzo5LJmV9E00augQhHgO5eMTxkVqRBYGZrzkrxP78/img.jpg?width=980" id="f44b2" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="5fcb375b72d14dd0cf745ecc7fb4494a" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-width="799" data-height="533" /> A juvenile right whale breaches against the backdrop of a ship near the St. Johns River entrance. Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission / NOAA Research Permit #775-1600-10 <p>And after construction, the noise from the spinning turbines will be present in the water at low decibels. "We don't quite know how the great whales will react to those sounds," says Jeremy Firestone, the director of the Center for Research in Wind at the University of Delaware.</p><p>Other marine mammals may also perceive the noise, but at low decibels it's unlikely to be an impediment, <a href="http://www.int-res.com/abstracts/meps/v309/p279-295/" target="_blank">research has found</a>.</p><p>And it's possible that wind development could help some ocean life. Turbine foundations can attract fish and invertebrates for whom hard substrates create habitat complexity — known as the "reef effect," according to researchers from the University of Rhode Island's <a href="https://dosits.org/animals/effects-of-sound/anthropogenic-sources/wind-turbine/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Discovery of Sound in the Sea</a> program. Exclusion of commercial fishing nearby may also help shelter fish and protect marine mammals from entanglements in fishing gear.</p> Ensuring Safe Development <p>Despite the potential dangers, researchers have gathered a few best practices to help diminish and possibly eliminate some risks.</p><p>When it comes to ship strikes, the easiest thing is to slow boats down, mandating a speed of <a href="https://biologicaldiversity.org/w/news/press-releases/vessel-speed-limits-sought-protect-endangered-north-atlantic-right-whales-2020-08-06/" target="_blank">10 knots</a> in wind development areas, and using visual and acoustic monitoring for whales.</p><p>Adjusting operations to reduce boat trips between the shore and the wind development will also help. A new series of service operating vessels can allow maintenance staff to spent multiple days onsite, says Kershaw, cutting down on boat traffic.</p><p>For construction noise concerns, developers can avoid pile driving during times of the year when whales are present. And, depending on the marine environment, developers could use "quiet foundations" that don't require pile driving. These include gravity-based or suction caisson platforms.</p><p>Floating turbines are also used in deep water, where they're effectively anchored in place — although that poses its own potential danger. "We have concerns that marine debris could potentially become entangled around the mooring cables of the floating arrays and pose a secondarily entanglement risk to some species," says Felton, who thinks more research should be conducted before those become operational in U.S. waters — a process that's already underway in Maine, where a <a href="https://composites.umaine.edu/2020/08/05/diamond-offshore-wind-rwe-renewables-join-the-university-of-maine-to-lead-development-of-maine-floating-offshore-wind-demonstration-project/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">demonstration project is being built</a>.</p><p>If loud noises are unavoidable during construction, noise-reducing technologies such as bubble curtains can help dampen the sound. And scheduling adjacent projects to conduct similar work at the same time could limit the duration of disturbances.</p> <img lazy-loadable="true" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNTQ3NDkwMC9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYxMTEyOTMwNX0.330fhUXaalGUddjtO6PGMeiuadmzTPPuyvrnsN2rrsE/img.jpg?width=980" id="d7393" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="5f32770cc89291d00aed7de6d0204760" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-width="755" data-height="552" /> The foundation installation of the off shore wind farm Sandbank using a bubble curtain. Vattenfall / Ulrich Wirrwa / CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 <p>Once turbines become operational, reducing the amount of light on wind platforms or using flashing lights could help deter some seabirds, NRDC <a href="https://www.nrdc.org/sites/default/files/harnessing-wind-advance-wind-power-offshore-ib.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">researchers reported</a>. And scientists are exploring using ultrasonic noises and ultraviolet lighting to keep bats away. "Feathering," or shutting down the turbine blades during key migration times, could also help prevent fatalities.</p><p>"We need to make sure that offshore wind is the best steward it can be of the marine ecosystem, because we want and expect it to be a significant part of the clean energy picture in some parts of the country," says Rogers. "We also have to recognize that we're going to learn by doing, and that some of these things we're going to figure out best once we have more turbines in the water."</p><p>That's why environmental groups say it's important to establish baseline information on species before projects begin, and then require developers to conduct monitoring during construction and for years after projects are operational.</p><p>Employing an "adaptive management framework" will ensure that developers can adjust their management practices as they go when new information becomes available, and that those best practices are incorporated into the requirements for future projects.</p> Putting Research Into Action <p>Advancing these conversations at the federal level during the Trump administration, though, has been slow going.</p><p>"We didn't really have any productive discussions with the administration in the last four years," says Kershaw.</p><p>And when it comes to birds, Felton says the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management's recently completed "draft cumulative environmental impact statement" covering offshore wind developments had a lot of good environmental research, but little focus on birds.</p><p>"Part of that comes from the current administration's interpretation of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act," she says.</p><p>President Trump has been hostile to both wind energy <em>and</em> birds, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/05/climate/trump-migratory-bird-protections.html" target="_blank">and finished gutting the Migratory Bird Treaty Act</a> in his administration's the final days, removing penalties for companies whose operations kill migratory birds.</p><p>There's hope that the Biden administration will take a different approach. But where the federal government has been lacking lately, Kershaw says, they've seen states step up.</p><p>New York, for example, has established an <a href="https://www.nyetwg.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Environmental Technical Working Group</a> composed of stakeholders to advise on environmentally responsible development of offshore wind.</p><p>The group is led by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, but it isn't limited to the Empire State. It's regional in focus and includes representatives from wind developers with leases between Massachusetts and North Carolina; state agencies from Massachusetts to Virginia; federal agencies; and science-based environmental NGOs.</p><p>New York's latest solicitation for clean energy projects includes up to 2,500 megawatts of offshore wind and <a href="https://www.nyetwg.com/announcements" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">requires developers</a> to contribute at least $10,000 per megawatt for regional monitoring of fisheries and other wildlife.</p><p>Environmental groups have also worked directly with developers, including an agreement with Vineyard Wind — an 800-megawatt project off the Massachusetts coast that could be the first utility-scale wind development in federal waters — to help protect North Atlantic right whales.</p><p>The agreement includes no pile driving from Jan. 1 to April 30, ceasing activities at other times when whales are visually or acoustically identified in the area, speed restrictions on vessels, and the use of noise reduction technology, such as a bubble curtain during pile driving.</p><p>"The developers signed the agreement with us, and then they incorporated, most, if not all of those measures into the federal permitting documents," says Kershaw. "The developers really did a lot of bottom up work to make sure that they were being very protective of right whales."</p><p>Environmental groups are in talks with other developers on agreements too, but Felton wants to see best practices being mandated at the federal level.</p><p>"It's the sort of a role that should be being played by the federal government, and without that it makes the permitting and regulation process less stable and less transparent," she says." And that in turn slows down the build out of projects, which is also bad for birds because it doesn't help us address and mitigate for climate change."</p><p>Kershaw agrees there's a lot more work to be done, especially at the federal level, but thinks we're moving in the right direction.</p><p>"I think the work that's been done so far in the United States has really laid the groundwork for advancing this in the right way and in a way that's protective of species and the environment," she says. "At the same time, it's important that offshore wind does advance quickly. We really need it to help us combat the worst effects of climate change."</p><p><em><a href="https://therevelator.org/author/taralohan/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Tara Lohan</a> is deputy editor of The Revelator and has worked for more than a decade as a digital editor and environmental journalist focused on the intersections of energy, water and climate. Her work has been published by The Nation, American Prospect, High Country News, Grist, Pacific Standard and others. She is the editor of two books on the global water crisis.</em></p><p><em style="">Reposted with permission from <a href="https://therevelator.org/offshore-wind-wildlife" target="_blank" style="">The Revelator</a>. </em></p> U.S. Offshore Wind Power Blown on Course - EcoWatch › How Renewable Energy Could Power Your State - EcoWatch › Is it possible to build wildlife-friendly windfarms? - BBC Future › How do offshore wind farms affect ocean ecosystems ... › wind renewable energy energy wildlife climate crisis endangered species birds marine life whales clean energy	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803523
__label__cc	0.553848	0.446152	You are here: Home / Yamaha Pianos / Yamaha CLP 635 review Yamaha CLP 635 review The Yamaha Clavinova series is one of the most enduring, durable and recognizable brands in the digital piano world. Step into the music department of any music college and you’re likely to wade through a sea of the things, drowning in graffiti and the rings from the bottom of coffee cups. They really do stand up to heavy use, they have quality instrumental samples driving the core piano sounds and they often have lots of “fun” features that suit the non-piano player with aspiration and interest in pursuing piano lessons. That said, when you compare it with the advances that other manufacturers have made, specifically in build quality, this is certainly a solid contender, yes, but perhaps not one that’s going to get you immediately sprinting to spend a large sum of money. Please take a moment to view our comparison chart below so that you can directly compare the Yamaha CLP-635 against other excellent upright digital piano on the market. Yamaha CLP-625 88 $$$ Features Key-Off samples & Damper/String Resonance samples Yamaha Arius YDP-144 88 $$$ GHS action, CFX Grand Piano Voice 88 $$$ GH3 action, CFX Grand Piano Voice Yamaha CLP-635 88 $$$ Yamaha CFX and Bösendorfer Imperial Samples Yamaha CLP-645 88 $$$ Yamaha’s NWX (Natural Wood X) Yamaha YDP-S54 88 $$$ GHS weighted action 88 $$ 250 Built-In Tones 88 $$$ Redesigned Cabinet, Speaker System Yamaha CLP-685 88 $$$ Yamaha’s GrandTouch Keyboard action For the price (a little less than $3,000), you’re getting: Yamaha’s patented GH3X keyboard action, creating a heavier feel at the bottom end of the keyboard and a lighter feel at the top end Samples from two world class grand pianos An easy-to-use user interface Excellent speaker drivers that deliver a beautiful sound A rugged instrument that will last for years Play and Feel The CLP 635 has synthetic ebony and ivory keys. This is essentially a resin with a slightly matt finish that doesn’t necessarily have the weight of a wooden key, but does have a satisfying tactility on the skin. There’s none of the polished ivory feel of the traditional piano, but the finger-touch is pleasant. The weight of the keys is reasonable – it feels OK, but I’d say it lacks the immediacy and responsiveness of the Roland LX range. That said, the key-on feel is good – there’s a decent pianistic downward travel and a nice landing underneath the fingers that really makes this a joy to play. But it’s the key-off action which lets the instrument down a little—it feels a little too sprung and enthusiastic to reset to its neutral position and diminishes the pianistic experience a tad. Surprisingly, the CLP 545 has an infinitely better play and feel. The keys are wooden, and they appear to be weighted almost exactly as a grand piano. The swap to solid synthetic ivory, for me, is the big downside for this instrument. The Clavinova 600 range uses Yamaha’s GH3X technology (Graded Hammer 3X). The key arms are longer on a grand piano at the bottom end of the instrument (playing the low notes) than at the top end of the instrument (playing the high notes). The Graded Hammer action emulates this action. The higher up the 600 Series you go, the more the efficacy of the technology improves, with proper weighting and closer grand piano key lengths with the 685, but for the 635 the touch feels a little artificial. However, the 635 is way more than an entry-level piano and is perfectly acceptable as an instrument. I had a Clavinova as a teenager and spent thousands of very happy hours at the keyboard. But if you’re going for a true pianistic experience, then I’d recommend the next model up – the 645. The CLP 645 has wooden keys and the higher up the range you go the attention to pianistic detail improves. However, the price also increases significantly as you scale the model range (no pun intended!). The 635 has an impressive feel to it and I could have played this instrument for hours. For the price, this is a brilliant instrument aimed at the home player looking to spend many blissful hours at the keyboard—it’s jus not perfect, despite the high price tag. There are 3 foot pedals which offer impressive functionality. They perform the traditional roles – soft, sostenuto and damper/sustain, but can also be customized to control pitch bend, rotary speed of the organ sounds and can be used to play or pause recordings. Below, please take a moment to view some of the best-selling upright digital pianos currently on sale at Amazon, and see how well they compare to the Yamaha CLP-635. Piano Room The “Piano room” allows you to adjust settings such as lid-position (an emulation of the sound produced from a grand piano with the lid open is much brighter than with the lid closed, for example), to adjustment according to your playing strength. So, for what is let down by the key-action build quality, is made up for in software capability. Yamaha has sampled two concert grands – the Yamaha CFX (Yamaha’s first acoustic concert grand piano) and Bösendorfer’s Imperial. Both are high quality grand pianos noted for their rich tone. Yamaha’s VRM (Virtual Resonance Modelling) technology gives you great editing capability so that you can get the sound just right for you. Most aspects of the play-feel are customizable – from the sensitivity and resonance of the damper pedal to the sensitivity of the keys – if you’re a light finger player, for example, you can get more response from the instrument. I’m not entirely sure why you would want that, myself, because you ultimately sacrifice the authentic pianistic quality with a feature such as this, but for particularly heavy-handed players, I can see the benefit in decreasing that sensitivity. A particularly impressive that feature helping to create the impression that you’re playing a real piano is the Binaural Sampling feature – when you play the lower keys of the piano, the sound comes from the left hand side of the speakers, vice versa for the upper keys, much in the way a real piano produces its sound. This effect is particularly effective when using headphones, helping to envelope you in the sound for a more immersive experience. When you power up the instrument, the sound defaults to CFX Grand but it’s easy to switch over to the Bösendorfer using direct buttons on the control panel. For me, the CFX has a really smooth, rounded sound. It’s easy on the ear and expressive. However, there’s something slightly electronic about it’s smooth edge – it feels a little processed. In comparison, the Bösendorfer has a darker tone. There’s something of the nasal about it, but it appears to have a more responsive touch, expressing dynamic play with sensitivity. The Bösendorfer has a much clearer, more realistic piano sound with a real mid-range gutsiness that makes this a beautiful sound for both sensitive classical music and more upbeat jazz and soul grooves. The Electronic Piano sounds are great – ranging from the classic vibesy vibrato so indelibly associated with Billy Joel’s “Just The Way You Are” to the more funky Fender Rhodes sound so familiar with 70s funk, edging into Clav sounds heavily associated with Superstition by Stevie Wonder. The Rhodes, in particular, feels really authentic with that classic edge of distortion slightly biting the upper register and that throaty, 80-Marlboros-a-day grind of the lower register keys. I felt that the grand piano sounds were a little underwhelming really – I’ve heard much better in Rolands and (believe it or not) Casios – but this instrument really comes to life with it’s electric piano offerings. I could have played the Electric Pianos for hours. I find the Clavinova range, at times, a little overly processed – it makes the piano sounds a little artificial. Obviously, the higher up the range you go the more the sound improves, partly because of improvement in the driving of the speaker systems. At the top of the range you have fantastic spruce cone speakers that really drive the sound into the room, but, obviously, that comes at a premium – the 685 is around 3 times the price of the 635. Fun features This is a fun instrument, capable of a really wide range of expressive play. I’m not sure you would see this instrument in a studio, but it would certainly be a great fun piano to have around the house. There is a lesson mode feature that allows you to play along and learn up to 25 pieces of classical music. This is a good function, but pretty limited – I doubt whether it’s ever going to replace the value of a real piano teacher sitting next to you. There are a number of preset rhythms you can play along to, controllable from the foot-pedals which is a useful feature. The drum sounds are OK – they’re fine for a family get-together – I wouldn’t use them in a studio recording. Which is what helps place this instrument into its market. This Clavinova is a great tool to learn on and give you hours of pleasure as a leisure instrument. There are a number of split voice facilities that allow you to layer sounds together – for example, you might want a piano sound layered with strings or a choir. To be honest, I always find that this feature gives your playing all of the instantly recognizable (but probably unwanted) charm of Muzak; great if you’ve got a gig in a lift, or playing over the tannoy at your local DIY superstore, a bit pointless if not. There is also a duo mode that makes piano lessons more bearable, allowing you to split the keyboard down the middle, but control the same octave range. The CLP635 has all the usual connection capabilities – 5 pin DIN MIDI (in, out and thru), USB MIDI and USB audio recording that lets you capture your performance and transfer it onto a memory stick as a WAV file. Also included is Auxiliary In, allowing you to connect an external keyboard or sound source that will play through the CLP635’s speakers and AUX out so that you can record the instrument or play it through an external amp. If you jump up to the CLP 645, the instrument also has Bluetooth capability allowing you to control synth apps on your iPad or Android tablet (such as Novation Launchkey) and wirelessly beam the audio through the speakers of the CLP635. This is really impressive technology and offers almost endless possibilities to the home studio fanatic. For the price, I’m surprised that the 635 doesn’t have Bluetooth capability – this is a major oversight. The CLP635 comes in a variety of finishes and I’d really recommend you shop around for the finish that you want. The instrument I trialled had a slightly unimpressive metaled dark walnut casing. But it’s also available in polished ebony which I personally find far more stylish. It looks funky in white as well. The higher up the range you go, the more the build quality improves. The 685 has the look of an upright piano and is a lovely piece of furniture as well as a great instrument. One of the things that Yamaha does really well is pack a product full of little touches designed for musicians that are easy to overlook. One of these is the music rest – they have incorporated adjustable clips either end of the rest to hold your pages open. This might seem a bit inconsequential, but any musician who has played from a Real Book or a compendium will understand the value in this really simple but essential feature. Control Interface The control interface is really easy to navigate. The feature hierarchy is clear and easy to follow and I felt at ease with it after a couple of minutes. It gives you direct access to the two main piano sounds and the many editing facilities, including direct button access to “Piano Room”. Real attention has been dedicated to the design of the interface. You can access the on-board metronome directly from the key-panel, as well as the in-built rhythms and recording facilities. The LED display is easy to read and, most importantly, lacks clutter. Where the feature hierarchy is more complex, it’s a simple point and click system, easily controlled via the cursor buttons. I would say that this was particularly impressive. To Conclude If you’re buying a digital piano, then the CLP 635 is certainly a fierce contender. There’s a lot to love in a Clavinova. They’re built to last which isn’t something that you can say for a lot of technology-driven items these days. I’ve had my Clavinova CLP50 for over thirty years and it’s still going strong and it’s had many thousands of hours of battering over the years. Whilst I don’t think the CLP635 is the best digital piano I’ve played in the price range, it’s an instrument that is going to be loved for many years to come. There’s not a massive difference, as far as I’m concerned, between the 635 and the 545 which I thought felt more pianistic to play. It has wooden keys, a more sturdy cabinet and there were very few differences in the available features. All-in-all, if you can still get hold of the discontinued 545, I would save yourself some money and buy that. Both instruments are great for learners and the passionate home-player alike. If you were buying for a restaurant or bar and have a larger budget, I’d go for the 685. Either way, this is a lovely instrument and I would gladly spend hours at the keyboard. Our Rating: ★★★ out of ★★★★★ If you enjoyed this review, please join our Facebook page for more information and updates. 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On this website we use Google Analytics and its Advanced features for: Remarketing with Google Analytics Google Display Network (GDN) Impression Reporting Segments to isolate and analyse subsets of sessions and users If you have any questions regarding your personal data please contact our Data Protection Officer at Dataprotectionofficer@jumpmangaming.com or you can send your request in writing to Jumpman Gaming Limited, Inchalla, Le Val, Alderney, GY9 3UL For any other requests please contact our support team on: support@divineslots.com Copyright © 2021 Divine Slots Divine Slots is operated by Jumpman Gaming Limited which is licensed and regulated in Great Britain by the Gambling Commission under account number 39175. For customers outside of Great Britain Divine Slots is regulated by the Alderney Gambling Control Commission. Registered business address (no correspondence): Inchalla, Le Val, GY9 3UL, Alderney.	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803527
__label__wiki	0.969846	0.969846	Sir Edward Leigh MP Working hard for the Gainsborough constituency About Sir Edward Leigh About the Constituency Campaign Responses Health Secretary Promises Review of Lincs Tier Status Sir John Hayes MP (South Holland and the Deepings), Gareth Davies MP (Grantham and Stamford), and I met with the Health Secretary, Matt Hancock MP, the day... Sir Ed Backs Open Gyms and Pools Sir Edward Leigh has written to Oliver Dowden, the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media, and Sport, urging him to keep gyms, leisure facilities, and... Sir Edward Suggests ‘Non-Invasive’ Lords Reform to Prime Minister One of the longest-serving Tory MPs has written to the Prime Minister urging him to reign in the size of the House of Lords, bringing it down to 'roughly in... Coronavirus: Rolling Update Our country is facing a unique and unprecedented crisis to which many — in particular our health and social care workers — have responded with an inspirational... Budget to ‘Get Things Done’ for Families Across the East Midlands People living and working across the East Midlands will benefit from today’s Budget as the Conservatives deliver on the promises made to the British people... MP Slams Northern Ireland Abortion Framework Proposal Sir Edward Leigh MP, the President of the Catholic Union of Great Britain, has written to Prime Minister Boris Johnson condemning the proposed framework for... Standing for Speaker When a vacancy occurs I intend to stand for the office of Speaker. I would be a traditional speaker who does not speak much. Like a judge I would, by my conduct... Sir Edward Leigh: Spring Statement Shows a Solid Foundation on which to Build Britain’s Economic Future Sir Edward Leigh MP has hailed the UK’s public finances as reaching a ‘turning point’ following the Chancellor’s Spring Statement, with the independent economic... Spring Statement Shows a Solid Foundation on which to Build Britain’s Economic Future Sir Edward Leigh for Gainsborough The Gainsborough Constituency Sir Edward Leigh, Gainsborough Constituency Conservative Association, P.O. Box 295, Gainsborough, Lincs DN21 9EZ Copyright 2021 Sir Edward Leigh for Gainsborough. All rights reserved.	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803531
__label__wiki	0.881077	0.881077	Western countries have no right to interfere in Hong Kong affairs China firmly opposes some Western countries’ interference in Hong Kong affairs and China’s internal affairs, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson said Tuesday. Canadian foreign minister has made three statements on Hong Kong affairs since May. Spokesperson Geng Shuang responded Canadian side ignored China’s solemn position, international law and basic norms of international relations, and repeatedly criticized Hong Kong’s affairs and brutally interfered in China’s internal affairs. “We have repeatedly expressed our strong dissatisfaction and resolute opposition to it,” said Geng, and stressed “Hong Kong affairs are purely China’s internal affairs. We will never allow any country, any group of people or any individual to interfere.” “Any attempts to create chaos in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) and disrupt its prosperity and stability will certainly be opposed by all the Chinese people and doomed to failure.” The spokesperson pointed out, at present, Sino-Canadian relations have been seriously troubled by the unreasonable detention of Meng Wanzhou by the Canadian side. We rigorously request the Canadian side to reflect deeply on its mistaken position to make a pause on the brink of a precipice, he added. On Hong Kong issues, Canada side should be cautious in words and actions, Geng warned, otherwise, it will surely cause further serious damage to China-Canada relations. China stands with Russia on opposing foreign interference China and Russia share common interests and demands in safeguarding national sovereignty and security, maintaining social stability and order, and opposing external interference, Geng said. Recently there are some illegal protests taking place in Moscow. Russian side said there are evidences showing that the U.S. embassy to Russia was involved in these unauthorized rallies. While Geng said China deeply agrees with Russia’s position that Russia’s adoption of measures to maintain social stability has sufficient legal basis. Some Western countries then jumped out at this time, pointing their finger and doing “small action”, he noted and said these foreign forces’ engagement in Russia affairs are similar to what they are doing in Hong Kong. A spokesman for the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs recently said on the Hong Kong issue that Western interference in China’s internal affairs is not only a theoretical intervention, but they do everything they can to contain China. Geng said China fully endorsed and highly appreciated this statement as it sharply pointed out the disgraceful role played by some countries in Hong Kong’s violent activities and exposes the real intention of external forces to incite violent incidents to destabilize Hong Kong. Chinese people has right to make voices heard The spokesman also defended the right of Chinese people and media to introduce China’s policies and tell Chinese stories through overseas social media platform. A reporter said Twitter and Facebook’s banned a number of accounts saying they spread false information about the protester in Hong Kong and arguing these accounts are dominated by Chinese government. Saying that he didn’t know the specific situation the reporter mentioned, Geng stressed overseas Chinese and students “of course have the right to express their point of view”. When responding to the question if Chinese media had purchased some advertisements on Twitter to “negatively describe the demonstrators in Hong Kong”, Geng said “What is happening in Hong Kong, and what the truth is, people will naturally have their own judgement.” “Why is it that China’s official media’s presentation is surely negative or wrong?” he added. He also said, “I don’t know why certain companies or people’ reaction is so strong. I don’t know if it has hit some of their weaknesses.” Stricter lockdown restrictions might be on the way: UK PM U.S. Vice President-elect Harris receives first dose of COVID-19 vaccine Thailand to test thousands after shrimp market COVID-19 outbreak Boko Haram claims kidnapping of hundreds of Nigerian students Farmers vow to step up protests, reject government appeal to lift blockade	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803534
__label__cc	0.528164	0.471836	194 March 17, 2014 June 8, 2015 Let’s Eat: Series review by girlfriday Cable network tvN’s fluffy foodie rom-com Let’s Eat* just wrapped this past week, so it seemed like a good time to weigh in on the series as a whole and hear everyone’s thoughts on the show. The 16-episode Thursday drama was one of the network’s recent experiments with one-episode-a-week scheduling, which did make it easy to watch on the side, given a full drama-watching slate (that is, if you’re crazy and you’re me). But it made for a strangely paced story at times, and then when I found myself getting invested in the characters, suddenly one episode a week wasn’t enough. Overall I’d call it a light, frothy watch that was at its core endearing and character-driven, despite the outward trappings of slo-mo food porn. It does need to be said that there was way too much screen time devoted to extended shots of people eating (it veered on voyeuristic, I swear), but if you were prepared with a bowl of food of your own or were blessed with the willpower of a thousand steely monks, then you’d eventually be able to look past the food to the heart of the show. If you don’t want to be spoiled, stick to the Introduction portion and skip the rest; the Review section below that will discuss story points, though none of it will explicitly tell you how the show ends. [The title of the show is a funny pronunciation of the phrase “Let’s Eat,” that the PD adopted after hearing baseball commentator Heo Gu-yeon pronounce it that way in his regional accent. He later cameos on the show as the hero’s father, which ties together the show title and the hero’s blog, and doubles as some meta fun.] K Jun – “식사를 합시다” (Let’s Eat) for the OST [ Download ] The drama focuses on the home and work life of our heroine LEE SOO-KYUNG (Lee Soo-kyung), a divorced woman in her early thirties who is content to live alone. The one thing she can’t quite reconcile is her abiding love of delicious food, and her inability to eat out alone. She’s a foodie who enjoys trying every new restaurant under the sun, and avidly follows food blogs to feed her ever-growing appetite. Her favorite is a strange blog called Let’s Eat that only uploads photos of empty dishes—a sign that a place has to be scrape-your-plate-clean delicious in order to be worthy of a post. Soo-kyung works as a paralegal in mostly a secretarial capacity, though she’s got a litigious personality to match her area of work. She’s highly distrustful of other people and keeps a rather tight rein on her hermit life, and only has one best friend she confides in. She’s a great bestie though; Lee Soo-kyung always seems to be blessed with great female friendships in dramas. The heroine is a relatable everywoman, which is exactly in Lee Soo-kyung’s wheelhouse (the actress, since she uses her real name). She portrays the character with an eye for comedy—openly neurotic, uptight, hapless but proud—but grounded in realistic emotion. But then, I’ve always liked her and found her characters easy to root for. Her next-door neighbor to the left is GU DAE-YOUNG (Yoon Doo-joon), a smooth-talking man in his late twenties who schleps around in sweats most of the time, and can be overheard telling a different girl each day that he’s two minutes away from wherever he’s supposed to meet her, even though he’s still standing in his hallway. Basically, Soo-kyung’s first impression of him is that he’s a liar and a playboy. But the more we see of him, we find out that he’s mostly an oddball. He owns no furniture and has the bizarre habit of keeping all his clothes at the dry cleaners, and goes there to change every morning, ostensibly to save himself the trip to drop off dirty laundry. I totally admit to thinking this was a genius idea, and wished I lived close enough to a dry cleaner to try it. The show purposely keeps his occupation a mystery at the start, but Soo-kyung eventually learns that he’s an insurance salesman. What she doesn’t find out for a very long time is that he’s also the author of her favorite food blog. He’s possibly the only person in the world more obsessed with food than she is—though he’s the connoisseur and she’s the rabid eater—they don’t mess around when it comes to the art of eating. I was pleasantly surprised by Yoon Doo-joon in this role. I think it helps that Dae-young is a quirky character, and a guy with a sunny disposition and a quippy comeback for everything. He really has a lot of fun with the Angry Foodie segments—basically once every episode, someone fails to see the awesomeness of whatever dish they’re about to eat, and he looks into the camera and launches into this over-the-top lecture about why this food is the best food ever created, until your eyes roll into the back of your head. (Of course Soo-kyung is always well into her third bite before he ever finishes.) He totally goes for the comedy, which made me like him. Soo-kyung gets a new neighbor to the right when a woman dies in the apartment next door (while eating alone, natch), and a bright-eyed bushy-tailed girl in her early twenties moves in. YOON JIN-YI (Yoon So-hee)—or Park Shi-yeon’s clone if you’re like me and couldn’t ever shake the resemblance—is a former rich girl who suddenly found herself penniless when Dad was sent to prison for corrupt business dealings. This is her first apartment and she’s so new to life that everything from getting a utility bill to having neighbors is exciting to her. She’s so out of touch that it’s actually amusing, and despite the character sounding inane on paper, she’s played with such ebullience that you can’t help but wish her well (and cringe for the harsh lessons that lie ahead for her). Jin-yi is the bridge between Soo-kyung and Dae-young, because she’s dead set on being friendly with her neighbors. She immediately develops a crush on Dae-young because he’s nice to her, though she has to whittle away slowly at Soo-kyung to have the unni-next-door friendship she’s always dreamed of. Soo-kyung reluctantly warms to Jin-yi in tiny steps, but remains as disdainful of Dae-young as ever. Jin-yi desperately wants unni and oppa to get along, and finds the common ground—food—it’s the one thing Soo-kyung can’t say no to, no matter how much she dislikes Dae-young. So at Jin-yi’s request, they start eating out together and thus get involved in each other’s lives. The rest of the players are people at Soo-kyung’s law firm, including Lawyer Kim (Shim Hyung-tak), a vain and petty boss who drives Soo-kyung absolutely crazy with menial tasks that send her reaching for emergency candy bars on a daily basis, just to stay calm and get through her day. What she doesn’t know is that he’s getting his stupid petty revenge for the fact that she rejected him back in law school and can’t remember who he is, and has basically liked her for ten years from afar. He’s also really into the way Soo-kyung eats (her eating noises are vaguely sexual), and his crush veers into fetishistic territory, but he’s earnest and sincere enough that it doesn’t seem to be why he likes her. I hope. Don’t get me wrong—he’s freaking hysterical, because we’re meant to laugh at his folly. He’s a funny sad sack. He’s just got a chronic case of foot-in-mouth, worsened by debilitating insecurity, and capped off with the emotional intelligence of a first-grader. But he’s played with this indescribable cheesiness that kills me, and does eventually show some depth that’s moving. The other law firm characters are mostly around for comic relief, though I like that they have some layers and feel like people who have complicated lives of their own. The show also employs a great deal of cameos in exchange for having such a small core cast. The list is too long to name everyone, but a few favorites were Lee Sang-woo, who visits the law firm to ask about divorcing his wife while shooting his drama Warm Words, and Philip Choi as one of Lee Soo-kyung’s ex-boyfriends, because he played her boyfriend in Soulmate. Last but certainly not least, Soo-kyung has a dog that she named after Che Guevara, though she calls him by the hilariously formal Vara-sshi (as if Gue Va-ra were a Korean name). The sole reason for the name is a pun—the way Guevara is pronounced in Korean is ge-ba-ra, or “look at the dog.” Dae-young teases the dog for what he thinks is a funny name, which Soo-kyung finds so insulting. Because our heroine lives alone, she often talks more to her dog than anyone else, so he feels like an actual character with a personality all his own. My favorite thing is that she treats him like a little person, and when they fight, the dog runs to his cage and slams his door to show that he’s angry. Sometimes she even asks the dog for relationship advice, which might explain why she’s bad at romance. You could mostly call Let’s Eat a slice-of-life drama about our heroine, and by extension the three neighbors who share a hallway. You could also call the show a commercial in drama clothing, though I’d only call it that if it forgot to tell a story wholesale. The food sequences that were featured in every episode were highly indulgent (in story time, not calorie count, though it was that too), and often felt like we were taking a legitimate commercial break. I can see why CJ Entertainment wanted to experiment with this hybrid PPL sequence embedded into the show itself (CJ Group is a food company, so you just know they’re making a boatload in cross-promotion for something like this). As commercials they were certainly effective, but I’d much rather have a clear separation between drama and commercial. Setting your drama at your home shopping network a la I Need Romance 3 is about as much brand promotion I can swallow without it taking me out of the story world entirely. Let’s Eat regularly pulled me out of the narrative when we stopped to ogle at food, for what I eventually came to understand would be long enough to get up, take a bathroom break, and root around in the fridge. I like for my dramas to be able to pay their actors, but this show certainly walked a fine line between a commercial with a story and a drama with lots of commercials. What keeps it, then, from becoming an extended food commercial is a thoughtful tone and an earnest portrayal of characters who are consistent and well-rounded. I found that despite feeling my brain disengage every time we broke for eating sequences, it reengaged when we got back to the story. What helps connect all this is the way food is used as a language in the show—the writer makes as much use of this as possible, which I appreciate on a thematic level because it keeps the food relevant. Our heroine is someone whose emotional development is tied to food, whether it’s stress-eating or feeling inadequate to eat a meal designed for two all by herself. When she’s feeling downtrodden, she can barely muster the energy to buy a kimbap roll on the way home; when she and Dae-young keep getting their wires crossed, they both get plain triangle kimbap from the convenience store and eat it alone in their apartments—even in angst, their expression through food is the same. It isn’t a particularly fast-paced show, and the single-episode format adds to the more languorous feel of the story. Overall it didn’t bother me too much, though it certainly keeps the show from being the first thing you reach for on your to-watch list. I felt that the romance was slow to start, and disliked almost everything about the neighborhood serial killer storyline, where the show decided to keep the lingering threat of a murderer overhead, while failing to develop it in any way. Perhaps if the thriller element were executed better, I’d have forgiven the story thread for being such a glaring sore thumb. But it was a weird fit for a show like this, and for most of the drama it was such an afterthought that it was literally shoehorned into the epilogues as the credits rolled, to serve as a creepy reminder: Don’t forget, the serial killer is still around! We’ll get to it…someday! It was so badly integrated into the central story that I could never take it seriously. Obviously there are romantic uses for the killer plot, in that Soo-kyung’s suspicious nature gets her into dicey waters when she jumps to conclusions about Dae-young, and then later when Dae-young worries about her being a potential victim. I do love how focused he is on her safety that he doesn’t even know he’s bleeding from a broken arm until she points it out. It’s a great moment in their story, but altogether it could have been achieved with a story device that was a more organic fit. The same goes for the mystery segment in Jin-yi’s story, which I could’ve done without. The romance wasn’t one that had scorching chemistry or even a great deal of development, but it was squarely in cute and fun territory. I enjoyed the friendly neighborly bickering, and adored Soo-kyung’s fangirling when she discovers that Dae-young is the blogger whose taste buds she worships. Her sudden change in attitude is hilariously confusing for him, because he doesn’t see at all why she’d care. Dae-young is an unconventional character, but that’s the main reason I liked him. He has this funny recurring bit where he invents a super dramatic backstory about waiting for his first love based on movie and drama posters in whatever café he happens to be in at the time, and feeds any new woman he meets that sob story in order to keep her at arm’s length. He doesn’t need to do this with Soo-kyung, of course, because she dislikes him already. But when Soo-kyung calls him out on being too nice to all women and being the cause of all the broken hearts around her, he actually takes it to heart and starts drawing clear boundaries. He even roots for Lawyer Kim to confess his feelings for her, which prompts some of this: Sometimes it’s nice to come across a romance that’s relatively angst-free, where the cute far outweighs the pain, and everybody in the love square (hexagon?) is likable or relatable in his or her own way. What drew me to the story was its focus on singledom—not as a dating status, but as a way of life—living for one in a studio apartment, wondering what to eat every night, and the mundane concerns like what to buy at the grocery store that won’t go bad before you can eat it all. I liked that our characters were all middle class average people (or new to it, like Jin-yi), who had to worry about how to scrimp and save to keep the bills down. What’s nice is that there’s a spectrum between all the characters, so that it’s not a blanket statement about living alone being lonely. In fact, our heroine never once regrets getting divorced and loves the freedom she has to do whatever she wants, as opposed to her best friend who’s married with kids and tied to her responsibilities. She enjoys single living, but her loneliness is real, and she thinks that she can stave it off by not relying on anyone ever. Her new neighbor Jin-yi is at the opposite end of the spectrum, and is always a little afraid of being alone so much that she’s constantly trying to form new attachments to any warm body around. She’s naïvely trusting where Soo-kyung is deeply suspicious, which makes for a funny dynamic between the two girls. Dae-young is a happy middle ground, though his problem is more that he forms so many surface-level attachments that none are lasting. The drama isn’t light or frivolous when it comes to that central theme, which is why I ultimately enjoyed the series for being more than its extended sequences of eating. It has a contemplative tone when exploring the characters’ loneliness and isolation, and is less about romance than it is about three neighbors looking out for each other and forming a family in their own way. Little by little, they begin to lean on each other for small favors, then big emergencies, until they suddenly have people who worry about them when they’re not around. That familial neighborly love was more compelling to me than the romance was (despite enjoying the romance the whole way through), and the one moment that nearly brought me to tears was Soo-kyung’s best friend crying after her run-in with the killer because she was so worried that something could’ve happened to her. And Soo-kyung in turn learns to be a shoulder for Jin-yi to cry on and becomes a genuine friend to someone who needs her. I really love that the triumph for our main characters is to form real attachments to people. It takes the common idea that family is just people you share a table with, and makes it literal by bringing three isolated people together over their shared love of food. It never mattered what they ate (sacrilege, I know!)—long after plates were emptied and meals were forgotten, friendships had already taken root and love had already wormed its way into guarded hearts. New tvN rom-com Let’s Eat brings lonely hearts together Single folks find love (and dining partners) in tvN rom-com Let’s Eat Lee Soo-kyung returns to cable with new drama Lee Soo-kyung’s new image and magazine spread Leads and rivals added to I Summon You, Gold IRIS 2: Episode 1 7 new character posters for IRIS 2 You’re Here, You’re Here, You’re Really Here: An introduction Color of Woman: Episodes 1-2 Lee Soo-kyung juggles two cable shows simultaneously Tags: featured, Lee Soo-kyung, Let's Eat, Yoon Doo-joon 1 mtoh Well hello you cute little drama, yes you are, yes you are. I enjoyed so much watching this drama. I'm glad GF did review. Barassi's acting was superb! Nice drama with a little twist and lotsa love to offer! changhyun Very light drama with not a lot of plot but great characters, Doo-Joon is surprisingly good in this role as well. Great food shots, makes you seriously crave whatever they're eating, and a super cute and fun drama. My mom doubt the food is really that delicious (dramatic expression) but I tell her the food is really good! thumb up* KDaddict I loved this show. I must be in the minority, but while I watched the whole series while having dinner, never once did I crave the food they were eating. I kept thinking: That must be unhealthy in so many ways; That must be millions of calories; That isn't gluten-free; That must gum up your arteries, etc. So perhaps I qualify as a health-nut, and have lost my love-affair w food already! chickenwing I had to cook every time before I watched an episode because I knew I couldn't handle all the orgasmic eating expressions. Soo Kyung looked so good eating the first few times I kept rewatching those parts. Besides Soo Kyung, I don't know about the acting..but I think the best part about the show was the camera guy. Korean food must be healthy. Although Korea has it's share of overweight people, seem to have a lot of skinny (thin) people. At least that is how it appears in the news, shows, dramas, etc. Probably an exaggeration but the standard attire for girls seems to be either short shorts, mini skirts and high heels. Need the body to pull off that look successfully. Probably a lot less calories than a 1lb steak for American diet. Gluten free is over-rated (unless you have an actual wheat allergy). I think most people requesting gluten free food (pain in the ss) don't have an actual allergy and just THINK it is healthier. Korean food has less fat and cholesteral than average American diet. Must use high quality, well marbled meat for BBQ. Just eat in moderation. Wish I could find a Korean restaurant(s) like those featured in the drama. Most only give you red leaf lettuce for making wraps. Portion size in American Korean restaurants also lacking. Even the pizza featured in the drama looks more delicious than pizza typically find at Round Table, Pizza Hut, etc. My dream would be to learn Korean and spend a couple of months in Korea travelling and sampling all the great looking food. korean cuisine is supposed to be one of the healthiest in the world. They use a lot of vegetables, beans and grains and prefer broths over fried dishes so they tend to use very little oil. plus kimchi is supposed to be great for digestion and stuff. Loved Doo Joon in this. He didn't Act like an idol at all. This show proves that sometimes you don't need a lot of drama in a drama, none of that face-scratching, hair-pulling name calling stuff as in EC; no severed legs and tragic past as in S&S again. Just plain simple folks going thru life, well, with a dose of silliness as in carrying a torch for sb for 10 years and not being able to express it, a bigger one of comedy and a love for food already made it entertaining and likable enough to be missed when it's over. Well done, show! Lily Song Lmao, "Act like an idol". That should be a thing. When someone's bad at acting: "Wow, he acts like an idol." youpa "No severed legs" HHAHAHAHA damianna Finished this in around 2 days. Loved this so much! Always love Lee Soo kyung and this is the first time I see Doo Joon. I love his voice (adding him to the list of THE VOICE with Lee Sun Gyun and Sung Joon)! His acting is quite okay too. Better than most idols I'd say. Barasshi is awesome. Izza Late response, but it's hilarious that you added Doo Joon in your favourite voices list with the names of Lee Sun Gyun, because Doo Joon is quite popular doing voice impersonations of him, hahaha. 2 topper I love Lee Soo-kyung, even watching her eat is a treat. 3 Jenn Great post, review, and analysis of a fun, sweet, cute, funny story! Thanks for sharing :) IMO, GF is best when she writes about shows she likes. On 2nd thought, maybe most recappers would be, huh. I've always wondered why anyone would bother to recap a show that they despise. It'd be painful, wouldn't it? And I always felt sorry for Heads, as she seemed to encounter shows that started out ok, but ended up being lousy, more often than most. But she soldiered on bravely, bless her heart! Can't imagine the pain of that drudgery. I'd plain quit that particular task/show. Gidget I keep thinking she should change her screen name to 'Job'. 4 ninji Wonderful. So gonna miss this little drama gem. So sad that I didn't find any recap on it, but thank you so much for the review, girlfriday. Tanya B! I'm on the same boat! I can't help but ask...does anyonw know if there is a list of all the dishes they tried during the series? I think I need to try them, the food porn had a strong effect on me :O Internet, please make this happen! 5 Saima Randomly started this show and towards the end would wait for the episodes to be subbed. Doo-joon did REALLY well in this. mtoh Nods unnie! Yes! He did a great job. It was first time seeing him and really, the whole cast was great...Barasshi, included! I kept wishing they had two episodes weekly instead of just the one. agentsawse I didn't get tired of the food scenes or the poorly implemented mystery plots until the last couple of episodes. The character development was so well written and acted. It was refreshing, down to earth, and I haven't seen any other drama like it. Also, I think this will be with me forever. Hm, my hyperlinking skills are lacking: https://24.media.tumblr.com/a917173c2a2fafe87a88d3e3125405da/tumblr_mzvj9z7jOP1rf68woo2_250.gif meliyasha Do you have gif when DaeYoung gives SooKyung a part of his cast at eps 16 and then he giggles shyly at eps 16? I can't get enough of his facial expression kkk~ Agree. I thought the first eps were slow, and only watched because Doojoon was so good in it -- his acting choices were surprising and really funny (maybe it was the director?). I think around the episode where Sookyoung goes to the hospital, it picked up for me and I LOVED the rest of the series. (I admit I'm a pretty hardcore B2ST fan, but I think I'm still objective -- I tried my best, but nothing could make me sit through an episode of IRIS 2, even Doojoon looking pretty in a suit.) binmom!! hey did you buy the beast figurines that were on sale at soompi?? limited edition ones?? Lol, no, I thought about it, but I didn't think I could explain them to my visiting friends/family so I refrained. I assume you got them? Enjoy them for me! haha I have no shame. not only did I get them, I created scenes of them at dinner and other situations and took pics of it :). inc the gym. I made junhyung exercise with gikwang. it's so funny. at least to me and some of my friends. http://instagram.com/p/lEL-EZPLRM/ http://instagram.com/p/lTyDyRPLR-/ HAHAHAHA, those are hilarious. You're my hero! my fave of course is one where dujun and junhyung fought over me. stop boys!! i love you both!! hahahah deluded much? jusash Me too, for want of something to watch during weekends. Quiet surprise, that was enjoyable. Though some of those eating moments were overkill for me, esp the few moments of the last episode. 6 rearwindow Oh, yay!! Thanks, girlfriday. I'm so happy to see Let's Eat getting some love on here. I still need to watch the final episode (seriously, I've been in denial that this show is over) so I'm sure I'll have more to say once I've watched that, but for now: food porn, happy friendships, adorable dogs, characters so warm and lovely that you can root for pretty much every one of 'em, and did I mention food porn? Such a lovely, breezy, entertaining watch. I watched the final episode and am still ind enial that it is over. I reread comments on the soompi thread just to pretend!!!! rearwindow I just finished it, and the last episode WRECKED me! What a beautiful homage to found family. I totally teared up during that rice-poem-thingie at the end. This wasn't a heart-stopping drama, nor was it trying to be. It was a slow burn all the way, and just subtly worked its way into my heart so fully that I am actually mourning the fact that it's over. I agree with girlfriday that it was not a perfect drama, mostly because of the bizarre serial killer subplot, but I was almost happy at how it was constructed such that most of the major angst/conflict was concentrated on the serial killer subplot (random as it was), and outside of the central relationships. It touched the characters and helped catalyze their growth & deepen their relationships, but it never overtook them. Even the love triangle sadness was delivered in a very real, understated way, and resolved super quickly. And I for one loved the food porn. The way to my heart is through my stomach, so I am most likely the prime target audience for 5-minute long superfluous food shots. I will say that I think the long (some would say "excessive," while others like myself* would say "generous") food scenes helped set the pace and tone of the drama as a leisurely show that is willing to really dedicate its time to exploring happy, pleasurable things. I've seen a lot of plot and angst-heavy shows recently, and I quite appreciated the change of pace of a show focused on small, enjoyable moments & slow relationship building. Let's Eat was a breath of fresh air in a long, cold winter. I'm really sad it's over. it felt sort of like cute overload in show form. Also? That Barassi food porn scene was quite possibly the GREATEST thing I've ever seen in my entire life. So well-earned, so hilarious, so perfect. rearwindow, totally agree with you on that barassi food porn scene - STROKE OF GENIUS!!! love the show sooo much Barassi=greatest kdrama pet ever? ladida I also loved all the eating scenes. I really got the sense of the peace and solace she found in eating. I love that Barassi (and the hallway and the food) were like their own characters in the sow. And that even the tertiary characters, like her best friend, felt like they had full lives of their own. It hasn't even been a week yet and I really miss this show. Yeah, even though the show didn't delve that far into the side characters, I always felt like they were three-dimensional. Even her mom was interesting & complex. & the bff's kids too! Everyone was painted in shades of grey...except the psychopath, but that's another story. :) thursdaynexxt Haha, yeah, the poor little boy who was jealous that Barassi got more hugs n kisses from Jin Yi than he did! girlinterrupted Loved the rice-poem too! I think it tied everything perfectly in the end. Great way to end the series. =) Ethalina I fell in love with this show about 3 episodes in. But somewhere along the way, I get tired of the way the serial killer case gets played. It's like Reply 1994 all over again. "Oh hey, the killer is... Gu Daeyoung! Were' you surprised? No? Cliched? Well, you're in for a real surprise now because it's really not him! Na-na-na-na-naa! We tricked you! Or did we...? eyebrow wiggle" It's just a bizarre storyline with annoying push-and-pulls. But I guess the writers and whatever decided to add some 'mystery' into the story, because otherwise, like GF said, it'll totally be a food CF disguised into the drama. That being said, I don't totally hate the 'mystery' either. I just roll my eyes whenever it appears, just like I did with Reply. This drama, its characters, their relationships, food & GAEBARA-SHIII! owns a special place in my heart. BTW does anybody know where I can watch the special behind the scenes episode? Episode 17? GyunCrazy Thought the food scenes were genius. Beautifully shot, and the audio! Really worked for understanding the characters and nice touch of eroticism. noona totally agree!!! I'm still in denial that the show ended and my weekly anxiousness every Thursday to find the raw cut at 1am of the show is gone now (then awaits for the translated version by friday evening)... and oogling over Dujun sharp looks in every scene is just too much for now... I'm not Korean and lusting over Korean dish has gotten severe after learning so much about k-food in Let's Eat! Thumbs up for all the cast and unpretentious characters which is so grounded and realistic... love love love love! (+ im a sucker for winter dramas... this is perfect!) 7 zakin89 Thank you for the review =) I loved this show so much and the one episode per week thing was actually really great. I was so desperately waiting for the subs every week because after YFAS I really needed this light, fluffy drama :) I just made the mistake that I didn't eat before watching the drama for the first 3-4 episodes^^ But I learned my lesson and was fully prepared for the rest of the drama^^ I loved the bond that developed between the characters though some were really over the top^^ I really liked Doo Joon in this role and thought that he did a good job which makes the fangirl in me pretty happy xD I will miss this bunch of weirdos (because in their own way they all were) and the food and of course Bara-sshi who was by far the coolest dog I've ever seen in a drama/movie :D I would actually appreciate to have a similar kind of drama - nothing too special but light and fluffy and easy to watch - with the same 1 episode per week schedule because it makes for a great diversion from so many other - more/mostly angsty - dramas. For something similar, sweet and funny and touching- I heartily recommend "Shut Up Family". It has a wonderful quirky main character whose grandma is brilliantly played by the mother of the main character in "Let's Eat". Seriously, that ajumma deserves an Oscar for her role in "Shut Up Family". Underrated, lovely drama with great writing and acting, just like "Let's Eat". Enjoy!!! This drama is a true gem, and my favorite drama of 2014 so far. I enjoyed it immensely and had no issue with the food porn scenes. The characters were delightful and the friendships inspiring. I also really appreciated the divorced female living on her own with no regrets. We do not see that much, and not one single moment of ex showing up. LOVE. I loved the singleton theme and that the smug married Bridget Jones types did not really exist in this universe. It was really interesting to see the married friends struggle with the married life instead of being portrayed as a glowing example of the ultimate goal of all singles. Great cast and great fun, what a joy to watch. Initially, I was expecting and hoping for us to get more of an explanation of what went wrong in Soo-kyung's marriage. I expected Let's Eat to be a sort of post-divorce coming-of-age story. Now, having been with the show for a couple of months, I am SO grateful that the show didn't touch her past relationship at all. Her divorce was just a part of who she is, like her hair color or her appetite. Nobody belittled her for it or treated her like a leper because of it. It's probably the most subversive handling of divorce I've seen on a kdrama--giving the lead that backstory, but not letting it define her or her character. It actually kinda treated the age difference between the leads similarly, come to think of it. It was acknowledged in jest, but when romantic feelings started emerging between the leads, it was just completely a non-issue. No major unnecessary drama there. So much love for this show!! I also really loved how the romance wasn't, like, THE GREATEST love story ever told. She and Dae Young just liked each other and that was it. So cute, and so refreshing! Totally! It was a really nice change of pace to see two good people slowly work their way towards each other, without any major hiccups or pressure on them. It felt so realistic to me. I didn't need them to be OMG SOULMATES, it was nice to see two compatible people actually get to know each other, then develop feelings for each other and act on them. Agreed! This was such a cute, down-to-earth show. So glad girlfriday did this recap! Yes! Everything you said! 9 Lillian Loved the drama. Never has a drama made me so hungry since Dae Jang Geum. A great underrated cast with a warm story line. I highly recommend it! 10 mashimomo Oh yeah! Avoiding to read the entire review since I'm only on episode 5 but it is such a fun, quirky drama. I'm actually enjoying the close up shots of the actors eating the food, you really do get hungry everytime they eat! Thank you for the quick recap and I will get back to your thoughts once I finished the series. 11 Moko I loved all of it. Since I was always slow recognizing product placement I enjoyed the food sequences. I dont have a clue about how korean food tastes. So everything was again more like a whole advertisement of culture than a food commercial of one huge food business. I really liked this one. Of course tje serial killer segment was low but it never was that kind of drama to begin with so I didnt care either. I guess I am just really doting to this little project. The only thing that really sucked was the fact that the main actress got a brotox injecting in the middle of the series. I just couldnt stop starring at her face. why did she have to do that. shes so pretty without a puffed up face. 12 Mel Awww, GF, this was such a light and fluffy show... Totally lots of food porn! I soo loved Soo Kyung and Do Joon in this! I couldn't believe how I enjoyed all the long moments of people just enjoying eating food! The comfort and healing aspect of food was such a big part of this drama... While everyone was watching The Heirs this was my drama! Once a week every Thursday and now it's done but, it's one of those dramas that when I think about it I'll always have a silly grin! There were lots of laughs and our Barassi, I'll miss him.. He was such an awesome part of this drama... GF thanks for recapping this, I didn't think a lot of people would like this, but it's highly recommended for being light and just SIMPLE fun! I'll keep going back to this drama for the laughs and fun if it! 13 kiwilove This show is like a massage for your brain and a feast for your eye!! A pain for your stomache though! Also, Barassi, I love you!! ;___; 14 mira I couldn't finish this drama because the obsessed way they were eating ruined it for me . Those of us who obsess over food found that part pretty enjoyable. :) I agree the food scenes were too long and I would have preferred more food shots than eating shots, but still. the food I loved, it's the eating it like you're having sex with it that bothered me . and that annoying fake gulping sounds . eating scene are fun in kdramas , so I thought this being about food would be even more fun , but no ! whimsicalnet Just fast forward those bits, about 2 - 3 mins long. Helps if you are marathon-ing the series. I did that and still love the overall story. I will later when I have time 15 blergh "It has a contemplative tone when exploring the characters’ loneliness and isolation, and is less about romance than it is about three neighbors looking out for each other and forming a family in their own way." <-- This. I find that this kind of plot line based on forming sincere relationships is not always done in a realistic, convincing way in 16-20 episode dramas, because they have to make room for the birth secrets, revenge, eviiiiil corporate scheming, cinderella makeovers, long lost parents, gangster debt collectors, etc. ilikemangos So true! That's also one of the reasons i stayed tuned, along with all the food porn which i gained a few pounds over for. I liked the atmosphere and i liked the set up of neighbors bonding and looking out for each other. I don't always mind the mundane everyday things if it's done realistically with some heart. Over-the-top rags-to-riches plots may have gotten me into K-dramas in the first place, but I gotta say, once in a while, it's nice to have a drama without a single chaebol in it! :) I liked that it didn't pretend too hard to be anything extraordinary. Just a simple story about what people do every day of their lives, but very satisfying, like comfort food! 16 Tweetiebird Ha, I also was freaked out by Yoon So-hee's resemblance to Park Shi-yeon. I am still watching this and enjoying it. I agree about the food, I make sure I am having dinner at the same time as watching. Am enjoying having these series review to find out what everyone thinks about the shows that are not recapped, thanks GF! Jennipoh Does anyone else think the main guy also resemble Lee Chun Hee? 17 My2Girls The actor who played Lawyer Kim was wonderful in this show. In the final episode he brought me to tears. I loved all the characters and really felt this show was a gem. I am happy to see Girlfriday giving it some love. The food porn was amazing. I would have to stop watching mid-episode and get something to eat on more than one occasion. I wonder if the cast gained weight shooting this show. I have to say I was on the Lawyer Kim ship for a bunch of this show because he was so good--both sweet and hilarious. He did make me cry in that episode--slow tears at first that changed to out loud bawling with that dumb hiccupy thing to boot. he really gave her up "cooly" like he wanted to. I liked him (even though I found his character annoying) in Can We Love as well. I hope some casting director notices and gives him a lead role where he gets the girl next time. It would have been a deeper and more touching drama, and not light and fluffy, if the screenwriters let her fall in love with the lawyer. I still feel of twinge for them. The actor is only really awkward around her, and you could tell it's a temporary thing that would go away once they became a couple. Why did they cast such a personable and persuasive second lead if only to disappoint us? I think his acting brought this character to life, even more than the screenwriter originally intended. I don't think the screenwriter intended for half the audience to fall in love with the lawyer and root for him. At least, I hope the actor who plays the lawyer will be able to star as lead actor in future dramas based on his work in Let's Eat. He's clearly lead material. dramaspresso I don't necessarily agree that the lawyer's behavior would have changed, the fact that he's such a dork was really endearing to the audience but he really didn't have the emotional maturity to have a relationship with someone like Soo-kyung. He still has her up on a pedestal and is so willing to cater to her every perceived need (ex: pretending to like dogs) that there'd be no way for the relationship to last. He'd burn himself out trying to be her perfect man. I agree that the actor needs to star in something, he was great in this show! i am with ame on this. i liked him too but not for soo kyung. i felt very sorry for him not only for being in love/ crushing on her for so long but being so unable to read her at all!! he was clueless about her and she was really awkward about receiving his attentions after having thought of him as a thorn before. she and dae young are a much better fit. 18 reyna im hungry!!! 19 Mish This series review makes my heart all warm and fuzzy, gf. :) I was only disappointed in the serial killer "development" because I thought there was such a great juxtaposition between the central storyline of warmth and fluff, then cutting to a bone-chilling epilogue of someone creepin' in the hallway...and then it just felt like it went nowhere? Oh the potential. Other than that, I was invested in all of the characters and 1 episode per week was satisfying for me. Definitely learned my lesson pretty quick about eating before/during the episode to minimize hunger pains. Probably the only drama I've ever "prepared" for. Also the only thing I've seen Doojoon in. To be honest, I didn't even recognize that it was him when I started watching! Loved his portrayal of Daeyoung. I learned really quickly to eat before watching,, too. I remember after watching one episode I went and made pizza dough, marinara sauce, potato soup with homemade stock from a Ham bone, and baked a chicken--all in one day. My family was in love, but I knew I would not be able to keep this up! azurduyy Thanks for the review, GF! Agreed with the killer mystery, Mish! The tonal shifts were a little bit jarring at times, and I kept waiting for some sort of further development or twist on that but nope. "Just" a random psycho. All in all, I ADORED this drama and all the characters, and it was my fun, fluffy, heartwarming hour for 16 weeks. It was a story of normal people getting to know, trust, and support each other that succeeded in the small, everyday moments. I'm missing it already :( As a foodie myself, the extended food porn was a delight, and I wish I had a group of friends to go and explore restaurants like the people in the drama :P PS: Before this I didn't even know who Dojoon was, but now I'm looking forward to his next projects. 20 Dorotka I enjoyed the eating scenes :--) I also enjoyed Yoon Doojoon (What? He is not an actor? He is from BEAST???) and attorney Oh Do Yun (soo funny!!). Well, I actually enjoyed all characters :--) I would prefer though if the story more focused on the 3 friends than some revenge mini-arch towards the end... and I hoped Attorney Kim would end up with Jin Yi - he would so much appreciate her admiration :--) All in all a nice pleasant show I definitely don't regret watching. 21 kopytko Although I care for food only to the extent that I eat healty food to live, I enjoyed this drama a whole lot. While I didn't pay attention to what was eaten in each episode, I found it endearing that the characters were having such a good time tasting and chewing. I appreciate the real-life characterizations, refreshing humour and the friendly tone. Even if some plot points didn't quite convince, there was a light suspense in the air, enough to intrigue but by no means to stress the viewer out. And the relationships - getting to know another person, being friends, being colleagues - all those were interesting to look at and gave me some food for thought. For example not to give up on airheaded, silly young girls. Usually they make me furious, but JinYi was portrayed with nuance and sympathy, so I was able to see the human inside. Another character I rooted for was Attorney Oh - a woman who lived her life rather oblivious to the way others percieved her. It is such a novelty to me to see a girl really not pretty in a conventional way, instead of seeing a Song Hye Kyo and hear that she is plain or something. I wonder what was the respone of the Korean viewers - were they as merciless when it comes to beauty or were they able to see that even a girl without a stunning face does have feelings and has the right to look for somebody to love her. And my favourite - Barassi! I think it was the best use of a pet in a drama I have ever seen. He wasn't just a cute accessory (what small dogs usually become in entertainment) but served some plot points and was really hilarious, he was given some personality. I will never forget the scenes when he went into his cage and closed the little door to repent. If only he had a different name... I mean given for any other reason than to honour Che Guevara which made me uneasy given the context of this particular drama :\|. Agree on all your points.. Oh barassi..him climbing back into his cage was the funniest/cutest thing ever. My first time watching i was eating and i spat out some food, and had to rewind to make sure my eyes did not deceive me. So much personality for a small dog like him! laraffinee Oh, I too am such a Barassi fan! The first time that little dog got mad and went into his cage and slammed the door, I just was laughing so hard! I have not finished the drama yet, mostly because I am having trouble with the Viki reception- I always have a lag in the streaming, and I just get tired waiting for it to pick up. No such problem with other sites. Anyway - lots of nice things about this drama. I have to say I occasionally would get confused with Lawyer Kim's character with the one he played in Can We Love. I guess the station wants to get its money's worth from the actors they hire and stick them into multiple shows. I will enjoy watching it too the end. Friendships always have a special place in my heart. Yes, I thought I would find Jin Yi becoming very annoying very quickly - but that was totally not the case! She was an absolute sweetie, and such a hoot! Likewise, I was a little uncomfortable at how they might treat the Attorney Oh Do-yeon character stereotype of the non-attractive girl, but she also subverted that very nicely. Still wish she could've found a companion or close friend, though... And yes, I also wondered about the reaction of the Korean audiences! kopytko I thought about it and I guess JinYi is likable and relatable because she adapts to her circumstances. I had expected a bratty, thoughtless and lazy princess who expects the whole world to dance in front of her, but thankfully she was able to understand that she needs to take care of herself. Another thing I feared I would see was when she sold her handbags - the average princess would bemoan her loss as if she lost a friend or a family member, JY was maybe a bit sorry to give them up, but not to an irrational extent. Having means to live is the most important thing and definitely more necessary than owning luxury items. And finally a girl from a rich household who was happy to work! That is such a rarity! But then again, it wasn't an in-your-face Candy girl glad to wash the dishes, but she found herself a truly satisfying job she was good at earning not only money but also respect and confidence. Really, a nice character development. 22 questions987 I found the drama to be charming, though there were many parts that I would have rather not existed. Lawyer Oh drove me nuts, and I'm glad Jin Yi calmed down the "jang jang man" towards the end. There were scenes that were filmed to touch our hearts and then bam - comedy and I thought that was a little too overplayed (Lawyer Kim crying at Soo Kyung's desk). I loved the main cast so much I didn't want it to end - I wanted to see how Soo Kyung and Dae Young progressed, I thought they were an awesome paring. The whole Jin Yi and what's his face storyline really threw me for a loop. First it was - okay, he's the serial killer, oh wait...he's not. Now he's a killer...oh wait, he's not. There was no need for the creepy, if you're going to give her a "friend/love" line towards the end, then make it real and not some creepy stalker thing with possible serial killer tendencies. The whole serial killer storyline should have ended at episode 5, but they dragged it on and really killed the story at some point. I would watch it again, armed with food for every episode, and never without the fast-forward button, because really - if Lawyer Oh expounds on how wonderful and beautiful she is one more time, I might just throw something at my TV. Regarding Attorney Oh - let me tell you that even a person with looks below the average has a need to feel accepted and to like herself/himself. Even despite the fact that the society makes you think that you ought to despise yourself for not being the way it wants you to be. Is it so bad that she said it aloud? It's not that she's ugly or average where it drove me nuts, it's her need to continually voice it, to the point where every guy was in love with her, in her mind. Maybe I still believe in some form of modesty, but her delusion was set up as comedic relief but it drove me bonkers. It drove me nuts in attorney kim too, I was just able to tolerate it because with him, he didn't think that he was gods gift and every woman was in love with him. 23 Mrs.Jang Guem Suk I love this show so much sad thing tht the little cutie who was the delivery boy was evil hahahahahaha I love this show soooo much ? I'm definitely gonna miss it but he is not really evil. he just got crazy when he heard that Jin-yi's dad might get out of prison, top that with being jealous of Doo-joon. But that was not really shown in the last 2 episodes, though i saw it in the trailer. He became sort of a stalker inside her house. May be they decided to edit it. I love Feeldog. I think he is a good actor. 24 inconspicuouslyblue I really loved this show, everything from the food-eating shots (which I guiltily admit to actually really enjoying, especially between classes while starving...such torture!) to the interesting characters and the leisurely pacing. It almost reminded me of one of the better kinds of J-dramas at times, at least in terms of having far less melodrama than some kdramas seem to. I thought that Yoon Doo-joon did a really great job and didn't seem like an "idol-actor" at all...I think he should stick to this type of genre (just like as far as I'm concerned, Rain was at his best in the quirky I'm a cyborg but that's okay). And then there was Lee Soo-kyung. In all honestly, she made everything look delicious. This drama made me smile more than pretty much anything else I've ever watched, and on that account alone, I'd call it a victory. I love this show so much sad thing tht the little cutie who was the delivery boy was evil hahahahahaha I love this show soooo much ? I'm definitely gonna miss it alot 26 TG Overall didn't think the show was particularly well done for the reasons discussed (shoe horned story lines, parodies of characters like the female lawyer, slowness) but agree that I just generally liked them and it was really nice to see some relatively normal people (as in not chaebols, evil MILs and desperately poor heroines). I liked the food focus and the shots of the food itself but didn't love the length of the food scenes or particularly the extended closeups of them eating. Once was enough for us to get the idea. I did love how Lawyer Kim stared at her while she was eating - I would marry the man who thought my enjoyment of food was sexy. His eyes! His eyes when he watches her eat! How does he make them so sparkly like that? I keep replaying him watching her eat just so I can see the hearts he shoots at her. So. Adorable. Any other korean food-centric shows out there? I watched Kimchi Family (aka Fermentation Family) which wasn't great but I enjoyed the shots of the different kinds of kimchi and other dishes. Same here, I've been looking for good food dramas. I think Let's Eat is the most engaging Korean food drama so far. There's a few that are really good in J-drama too, if you don't mind. I can suggest Kuitan (food-loving detective) and Kodoku no Gurume (food-loving art consultant). Both are funny in their own way and quirky and a joy to watch. Gourmet is really good! Has a pretty standard story, but Kim Rae Won plays the hero and he's very charismatic and fun to watch. It's also nice because you see more of the cooking side of things. 28 Daaeeebak! I enjoyed this show and was sad to see it go. I must confess, that I started to fast forward past the food shots though. LOL I greatly enjoyed the characters and as someone above mentioned, it was great to avoid the makjang elements and have have the characters mostly grounded in reality (y'all know that Jin-yi was kind of in la la land). Daaeeebak! ps. thanks for the recap and is there a possibility of having one for "can we love?". that's definitely one of my faves this year and it would be great if y'all could weigh in! 29 ricky I really enjoyed the eating scenes, actually. This drama was great. It was light, but fun. Sometimes it's hard to pull that combination off. 30 atz Re; 'YOON JIN-YI (Yoon So-hee)—or Park Shi-yeon’s clone if you’re like me and couldn’t ever shake the resemblance' Wow! I was thinking the same! I know that Park Shi Yeon's was under the knife,,, If I have to pick up the best scene in this drama, Lawyer Kim and Doe Young holding hands tight and staring at each other warmly is the best scene! I laughed so hard. my LOL was the scene where lawyer kim finally realised he loved soo kyung and went back to the office and in an overwrought moment yelled "SOO KYUNG AH!!!!" with his voice breaking. i really bursted out laughing coz it was so unexpected. and then the bit when he discovered that siri-like application on his phone too. Hahahah, me too me too!! He was asking it the most ridiculous questions! 31 enz i started this drama, not knowing what to expect, mainly for doo joon and my love for b2st. at a time when i was watching about 8 dramas, an all time high, this became the one that i would want to check out first when it got subbed. i just love every character there, except for the psychopath killer. i loved how three very different characters, with very different life view points, came together and found friendship and love. there was a scene at the first few episodes of LE, where each had woken up in the morning and then went to the window and all had different reactions and then it panned out to the building, to show all three different windows and their reaction. its not just the characters but also how the stories were told. in the end, i really didnt want to say goodbye. i shall miss it so. love your review. thanks, girlfriday. 32 birdscout Wow, girlfriday! What a jjang-jjang recap:) I was wondering about the spelling in the title. My Korean reading skills are weak and I just couldn't understand the spelling. Thank you for pointing that out. I loved the title song. I saw a few of this singer's other videos, and they're pretty great! Reading every line you wrote, I was nodding my head in agreement. I found myself laughing in a lot of the scenes where Lawyer Oh appears, but then after, I would sort of feel bad because I felt I was laughing "at" her because she's not a conventionally pretty actress. 33 noernov I love it,the plot,the romance and not to mention the FOOD is all good,n I'm with u that go dae young is such an oddball ? 34 Mandelbrotr I liked this drama. I love food. So I avidly looked forward to the reasons scenes each week. The mystery plot still didn't resolve totally for me. Ending poem "To you that eat a lot of rice because you are lonely. To you who sleep a lot because you are bored. to you who cry a lot because you are sad. I write this down. Chew on your feelings that are cornered like you would chew on rice. Anyway, life is something that you need to digest." Mandelbrotr (Eating not reasons) Thanks for writing this out! I loved that ending poem. Perfect ending for an enjoyable show. Crazynoona LOVE the ending poem <3 <3 <3 35 Julie I agree. I couldn't shake off the park shi yeon clone either. 36 momosa ....and has the bizarre habit of keeping all his clothes at the dry cleaners, and goes there to change every morning... Show, for this alone, you had me ..... I have so much love for this show, their unconventional family, the quirkiness of the characters, Goo Dae Young's food lectures and that hilsrious song they play during the eating sequences! So surprised by Yoon Doo Joon! This was the first time I saw him act, and was surprised he was an Idol, can't wait to see more from him. It's been a while since I would look forward to the next episode for any show. 38 crazedlu Living singledom now. It's totally like that. Lol. 39 dfwkimchi Thanks for the series recap GF! It was spot on. Enjoyed the series very much n this drama was the first i looked for on Thurs nights followed by Miss Korea n then finally YWCFAS. First time was following 3 dramas in 1 night - kept me very busy n the episode where they featured fried chicken had me n my Korean friend heading to the newly opened korean chicken join nearby for some Crazy Spicy chicken wings! Watched for Kim Soo Kyung but fell in love with the whole cast including the dog n kids. That little boy's crush on Jin Hi was the cutest thing next to the adults love story! Will miss this series n looking forward to the special this Thurs. 40 Jasmine The best part of the series was the mukbang scenes. Other than that, I wasn't really into the main love-line because it seemed that the feelings were forced between LSK and Doojoon. Doojoon's acting was alright, but it seemed like I was watching a makjang or Jdorama due to his overacting and reactions. LSK and that other idol...the one from Big Star, were the best in their roles. I could totally understand the feelings of the heroine, as a foodie who loves good eats but can't get her busy friends to go with her lol 41 Sabrina Lim i love this drama, and have no issues with the slo-mo takes on the food (heh, cos i love food porn, and it gives me a good chance to mark out what to try on my next trip to seoul) but i do agree the one-ep-a-week pacing is horribly slowwwww. it'd work if they cut on the episode numbers (maybe have it at 10 instead of 16), cos it feels draggy after a while. 42 xxpopopxx I didn't even know Doo Joon was an idol when I watched this until I looked him up because of how much I loved him in this ! I'm now also a fan of BEAST thanks to him ^^ This will definitely be one the (best) underrated shows of 2014, it was such a delight watching this every week. Everyone was just perfect, no on made me want to punch the comp screen. At first I thought Jin-Yi would be the typical annoying second female lead but my god she is so adorable, I really liked her ! The female lawyer was hilarious but that scene where she was crying and eating really got to me aswell. Would really recommend this ! 43 Carmensitta I'm a foodie myself and the main point of the drama : THE FOODS was quite the trigger. I watched 2 episodes(or was it 3?) but gave up afterwards: the food looked so delicious but the gulping down was just too outrageous. And that scene where the 3 neighbours have their first meal together(the grilled meat) really looked like they were having a threesome (wait... am I allowed to use this word on here?) 44 Yuvee Love this show, and I actually really enjoy the extended food porn shots even though they make me drool all over my keyboard. I think the mystery killer story line is unnecessary, because the characters are wonderful enough to carry the show. Wish they'd spend more time on the romance instead, those sexy eyes Dae Young use to look at Soo Kyung nuna need more outlet than one stolen kiss! 45 thinking_lotus Doo Joon was amazing. Never heard of him before, but will def watch any future dramas he's in. He was totally funny and charming. Also really enjoyed the actress/comedienne who played Lawyer Oh. I started seeing the beauty in her face and believing that she did indeed deserve to be loved. I am not a huge fan of Korean food (sorry) so I was fine with the eating sequences and didn't get hungry. I haven't watched the final eps yet but clearly now I must! 46 bdale GF you are awesome !! are you a journalist by any chance ??? :) you write really great reviews in realistic tone. thanks again Loved this show, it was not very melo no tearful scenes just common subject of food, no hypes, electricity bills , office , blog following ,neighbour, cruriosity and bravery :) Totally loved Doo Joon and Soo Kyung and offcourse Jin hee is like a mermaid she was lovely and pretty to look. It was just like a 15day drama each epiosde on one day and what those people eat and how they spent their day !!! last episode with serial killing and all were unnecessary ... became a big big fan of Doo Joon , his expressions were awesome ... and narration of dilogues were very smooth. Wish we had more scenes with the leads .... Go go go ...Totally wholesome !!! have new respect for any food going to my mouth !!! 47 Chandler Aw yay I'm so glad you did a review! I enjoyed this drama very much and hoped that you were tuning in too :) I loved the thoughtful moments and quirky, yet relatable characters so much that all the lesser subplots, though regrettable, do not take away any of my love for the drama as a whole. I'm just grateful for what I was given and was left wanting more :) 48 emmmmm loved this drama as much as i enjoyed it!!! although i realized by episode 2 that i should either watch this with a full stomach... or a plate of food in front of me... 49 Beng this is the series that made me want to travel to korea just for the food trip. i think the producers should create a travel itinerary like that, i'll sign up for sure =) 50 Crazynoona I looove this show, its light and warm just like the foods (thou it made me ended up eating each and every time i finished with one episode). It was aired together with other big dramas but i found myself looking to watch this one specially every week, it never disappoints me - i enjoyed the after taste for every episode. On a side note thou, if i were Soo Kyung (a devorcee should know better not to get burn twice) i wouldn't want to end up with a man with a shitty apartment like Dae Young is - it show his lack of responsibilities and just poor way of living (he's the King of insurance, come on! he could do better, i want my men to be clean.) *divorcee ...and i forgot to mention, both lawyers - Kim & Oh are amazing! They're an oddball and weird and annoying at times but the last two eps made me tears up for them.	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803547
__label__cc	0.653003	0.346997	From First Arriving Two Weeks of Life Changing Training For Communications Center Managers From Fitch & Associates Total Fund Raising Special Two Day Program For New EMS Leaders Digital Dashboard Training for Aspiring Ambulance Service Managers EMS Consulting, Management and Legal Services John Becknell, PhD On EMS Leadership How to help young EMS providers develop into leaders Here's how EMS organizations can better prepare and mentor those promoted into supervisory or management roles I recently spent an hour with a young EMS manager who was ready to quit. He had been in his current position only a few months, but the responsibilities and stress of trying to do a big job that was much more than just getting tasks done had left him feeling overwhelmed. When I suggested he confess his frustration to his boss and ask for guidance and help, he shook his head. “That’s not how it works around here,” he said. That’s not how it works around many organizations. While EMS organizations may understand the importance of developing new field providers through formal field training programs, many do very little formal preparation and mentoring of those promoted into supervisory or management roles. There are many things (beyond the scope of this column) that go into choosing the right people for supervision, management and leadership positions, but at the core of choosing we need to ask, “Is this candidate someone who can truly inspire others to follow?” (Photo/Getty Images) Why the younger generation shies from leadership Leadership pitfall: Why it is critical not to under communicate Money still talks, but it whispers to millennial medics Sure, the young EMS manager had been told about the duties and actions of the job. His boss had explained and shown him how to deal with details of the scheduling and operations that made up the job. The boss was willing and ready to answer questions and offer advice about the how and what of the position, but something was missing. How do you take a field paramedic and turn him or her into a star supervisor, manager and leader? This question gets to the heart of what we believe about leadership development. For many organizations, this is about finding or promoting the right people, giving them some on-the-job training and then letting them find their way to success through the school of hard knocks. We believe in the hard knocks process because it’s the way many of us became leaders — we just got in the position and found our way. But I’m convinced that this is not only not the path to creating a winning team, but it’s a path that keeps some of our best people from entering the ranks of management and leadership. If we truly believe leaders can be developed, our approach should include three important ingredients: Choosing the right people. Providing them with formal education and training in leadership. Consciously and formally mentoring them for success. There are many things (beyond the scope of this column) that go into choosing the right people for supervision, management and leadership positions, but at the core of choosing we need to ask, “Is this candidate someone who can truly inspire others to follow?” If we are willing to ask this question and think deeply about leadership, we will filter out a lot of candidates who may be great at tasks but poor at influencing others. Formal and conscious mentoring What I find most absent in the development of leaders is formal and conscious mentoring. The term mentor is thrown around a lot but without much understanding or clarity. When I speak of mentoring in leadership, I’m talking about a formal relationship between an experienced and seasoned leader — a mentor — and someone who can benefit from receiving guidance and counsel: the mentee. The mentoring relationship is more than a critique and the dropping of advice. It’s a relationship that is first and foremost rooted in the mentor’s belief that the mentee can grow and develop. This belief is then demonstrated in the dedication of time and action. To formally mentor is a process of helping another grow through regular deep listening, asking poignant questions, and providing observations and feedback. Done best, mentoring builds the confidence of the mentee and at the same time opens him or her to being a learner. Great mentors help mentees discover their strengths, take ownership and become accountable for realizing their goals. Leadership development is a journey that takes years. Expecting people to assume a title, occupy an office and figure out how to lead is a crapshoot. Sometimes it works; often it doesn’t. This is an invitation to consider your process of leadership development and ensure that the potential leaders in your organization have the opportunities to become their best. This article, originally published on Oct. 23, 2013, has been updated. Request product info from top EMS Consulting, Management and Legal Services companies John Becknell, PhD, is a partner in the consulting firm SafeTech Solutions, LLP. John has been involved in emergency services for 40 years and writes and researches in the areas of leadership, culture, community and psychological wellbeing. He leads workshops, retreats and training programs for EMS, law enforcement and the fire service in living well, peer support and transforming the first responder experience into a path of growth, satisfaction and meaning. He is the author of Medic Life and numerous articles. John's Masters and Doctoral degrees are in psychology with an emphasis on community psychology. Contact John at john@safetechsolutions.us Paramedic Chief Support with mission-critical workloads in times of crisis Is a furlough in your future? Plan now. Duty to act, assess, treat and transport: A legal refresher for EMS providers Negligence explained for the EMS professional First Arriving Fitch & Associates Priority Ambulance Leadership Foundation All EMS Consulting, Management and Legal Services Sponsors EMS Consulting, Management and Legal Services Articles Page, Wolfberg & Wirth announces diversity program with pro-bono legal services More EMS Consulting, Management and Legal Services Articles How to buy infection control products (eBook)	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803548
__label__wiki	0.935757	0.935757	Brentwood mum 'fuming' after CeX says work experience for autistic son is 'impossible' Fernanda Conde's son Ricardo, 15, was not permitted to complete a two-week placement at CeX at The Baytree Centre Hannah Kane Fernanda and Ricardo. A mother from Brentwood has been left 'fuming' at the response from a second-hand tech store after they terminated her son's work experience because of his learning disabilities. Fernanda Conde's son Ricardo, 15 was not permitted to complete a two week placement at CeX at The Baytree Centre in Brentwood because his autism meant he needed 'constant supervision'. CeX told Essex Live that they thought they could initially offer Ricardo a placement, but that this was found to be 'impossible' due to the workload and staffing issues. A spokesperson said: "CeX are very keen to get Ricardo the work experience in a suitable CeX store. "We have provided work experience placements in the past and currently have colleagues with autism in the business. CeX is an equal opportunities employer." The store also said they have tried to make contact with the work experience placement coordinator at the school in order to sort out an alternative. CeX said it would be 'impossible' for Ricardo to complete his work placement at the store. They continued: "CeX would like to offer a work placement in larger CeX stores which include Chelmsford, Central London or Ipswich where colleague numbers are better suited to support Ricardo's work experience placement and for him to get the most out of it." However, Mrs Conde says that when taking on students from The Endeavour School, a special needs school, they should already have been aware that his disabilities would require extra supervision. She said: "This had been planned for months and they had put themselves down as taking on work experience from Endeavour. It is a special needs school so you would know that they need more care and attention. "They knew he was autistic because I spoke to the manager and made sure. "It has made me even more worried about his future." Autistic Clacton man run over in terrifying hit and run 'doesn't feel safe anymore' Ricardo had to complete the remainder of his work experience at the school, working as a caretaker. Mrs Conde said this has impacted on her son's confidence. "He stays in his room most of the time," she said. "He does not know what to do in the future. He asks me why he was born like this and why he was born different. "His confidence has just gone now." Ricardo is back at school and going to normal lessons, but has not recovered from the situation. Mrs Conde added: "We went to a shop in Romford to get his prom suit and he had a screaming match and was punching and kicking me. "He said he was having a bad day because he was thinking of the shop. He is so confused and angry. "I haven't seen that behaviour for a few years now in public." Essex mother left fuming after 10-month-old daughter burnt by burst Tesco nappy The family have been going through a stressful time as Mrs Conde has been recovering from a bilateral mastectomy operation in April. She said: "My emotions have been all over the place and then for this to happen it just makes me cry all the time. It has put me even lower in my recovery. "It's so hard to live with a child with autism and special needs and then you have people who are so negative." Ricardo, who dreams of becoming a film producer, will be attending college next year, but his family are nervous for the future. Mrs Conde added: "How and where will he work and who will give him a chance in life?" Since Essex Live first published the story, the family has been approached by another shop in Brentwood who has kindly offered Ricardo several hours of work experience. Halstead model has her skull rebuilt with a 3D printer after suffering horror fall "That really touched me and it was so nice," Mrs Conde said. "There has been some lovely feedback." EssexHilarious Essex place names that sound made up but aren'tThere are some hilarious place names in the county	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803553
__label__cc	0.633855	0.366145	Interview with Margaret Holley ’62 English Department Chair Catherine Reed recently interviewed alumna Margaret “Margie” Holley ’62 and shares these thoughts: I interviewed the marvelous Margaret Holley to learn about why and how she became a poet. Needless to say, my favorite poem is “Thank You, Edmund Waller,” (see below) because of its subject matter, but all of them are beautiful and moving. Margaret reminds us to read, too – and we will certainly take her advice. 1. When did you know you were a poet? As a child and teenager I never thought of myself as “a poet.” I just wrote poems for the pleasure of it. I wrote poetry because I loved to read it and to memorize and “recite” it, mostly silently. Sometime in my 30’s, when I began to submit poems to journals and started to be published, I thought of myself as a poet as opposed to as a painter or musician. Since I was a teacher at the time and because I loved teaching, being a poet was always the second of my priorities. Now that I’m 73 and retired, I can see that writing poetry both preceded and long outlasted the career by which I made my living. 2. Why poetry? Have you written prose that you like as much? I have written plenty of prose – a decade worth of college president’s speeches, a scholarly book (The Poetry of Marianne Moore), and a small variety of essays (“Driving to Brandenberg” about commuting with the Brandenberg Concertos, “Annie Oakley and the Mystery of Skill,” etc.) – but I’m far more attached to my poems and their perpetual challenges. 3. Were you a writer when you were at Walker’s? Did you write poems then? I was not. I wrote very little poetry at Walker’s. I learned quite a lot about the history and mechanics of poetry in my English classes at Walker’s, but I didn’t know any other students who wrote poetry or fiction, and I was much more preoccupied with learning to write better critical essays. Creative writing was not “a thing” in 1958-62. I picked up writing poetry again as soon as I went to college. 4. Did you read anything in high school that made you interested in writing in general- or writing poetry in particular? Yes, I had a sophomore English teacher named Judith Phelps who taught us Renaissance and Metaphysical poets with unforgettable verve. I fell in love with Edmund Waller’s poem “Go, Lovely Rose” and with the poetry and “voice” of Conrad Aiken. I wrote about Miss Phelps in my poem “Thank You, Edmund Waller.” We memorized and recited poetry for class, and I ended up reciting Aiken’s “The Cloister” in front of the whole school with my heart thumping and knees quivering – a frightful experience, but I loved the poem. I hated performing but loved private memorization. 5. Who are the poets you admire now? Why those? As an adult I learned to write poems on a whole new level by slavishly emulating the wonderful poems of Richard Wilbur, my longtime hero. I have been furtively and massively influenced by Elizabeth Bishop’s poems. Early on I loved the music of T.S. Eliot, but I’m afraid he left me too much latitude for mystification. W.S. Merwin’s mid-career free verse, all of Seamus Heaney, plus Mark Doty’s Atlantis. There are so many treasures…! 5. How does what you read influence your work? In every possible way! Sounds and music, subject matter, each poet’s ambition and reach, the inspiration and sheer miracle of making a beautiful and meaningful poem. 6. What do you remember most from your time at Walker’s? My amazing classmates – it was like having 45 sisters! Walking up and down the hill each day to the old Cluett. Recovering from German measles in the infirmary and there watching the sunrise one morning over Avon Mountain. Miss Sala conducting the choir and glee club and playing us a recording of Joan Sutherland singing bel canto opera. All the teachers were so patient and so determined to teach us well, to haul us through the difficult stuff – English grammar and punctuation, the novels of Thomas Hardy, the structure of the sonnet, algebra and geometry, French verb forms. I’ve been grateful ever since. Also, at Walker’s I began a lifelong friendship with Travilla Deming, who was our “speech” teacher and drama coach. She was a practicing playwright, a wonderful role model, and a surrogate mother who welcomed me to her dinner table with husband and two children on several weekends each year. She was a tireless defender of “creativity” and encouraged me and all of us never to give up. She completed her book of essays “Darling This…Darling That” on the eve of her 100th birthday, and her daughter Alison Hawthorne Deming’s poetry collection “Stairway to Heaven” is breathtaking. They were my creative family. 7. What advice, if any, do you have for aspiring writers? Read, read, read! As Kim Addonizio says: “Let me put this as delicately as I can: If you don’t read, your writing is going to suck.” Then as you write, I have two pieces of contradictory advice. One from Ernest Hemingway, who said that what one needs to be a good writer is “a built-in shock-proof crap detector.” And one from me: don’t let your inner critic spoil the party. Remember that you have to write a lot of mediocre and failing poems destined for the dustbin in order to produce one marvel. But it’s well worth it! Lots of sketches and studies are all part of the road to better and better work. The poem is a garden that you have to weed and nourish in order to let the blooms come forth. 8. If you could tell your teenage self something that you now understand, but did not then, what would it be? See question 7. 9. Do you recommend a life in the arts? I recommend a life enriched by any form of creativity – poetry, painting, sculpture, music, drama, crafts of all kind, inventions. There are a million ways to explore and express our shared human experience. 10. Which poem or poems do you think everyone should read? Just read lots and lots of poems from all centuries and styles, and return to the ones you love. Thank You Edmund Waller By Margaret Holley for appearing on an early page of English Literature, your Go, lovely Rose, expounded by Miss Judith Phelps in such a way that my thirteen-year-old mind fell in love with contrasting rhymes and syncopated three-, four-, two-, four- and four-beat lines. Tell her that wastes her time and me That now she knows… Miss Phelps was definitely cool, for a girls’ school, having once been spied exiting the campus on a Friday afternoon in a convertible, top down, driven by an actual man. Thank you, Mr. Waller, for splicing poetry into that fleeting scene of Judy (we called her Judy behind her back) being sped out of the parking lot in full view. Do I remember a scarf in the breeze? A cigarette? (She smoked in the faculty lounge between classes.) When I resemble her to thee/How sweet and fair she seems to be. She loved to make us laugh, for instance by imitating the women in the poem “wasting” away in “virtue,” which I equated with our chaperones, Miss Hunt and Miss Frazier, wanting to “see daylight” between dance partners. Miss Phelps did not return the next fall, but your poem has returned for over forty years (some of them seeming to lack daylight of any kind) to go on teaching me how that heavy book can be as light in my mind as a single page. The poem that Walker’s alumna, Margaret Holley, is referring to is Edmund Waller’s “Go Lovely Rose,” published in 1645.	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803556
__label__wiki	0.603323	0.603323	Search Finance 101 10 financial resolutions for 2020 By Brian O'Connell Free Photos via Pixabay Americans are enjoying a robust economy featuring a booming stock market, brimming with strong consumer sentiment, record job growth, and growing household incomes. In fact, the current U.S. economic expansion is now officially the longest in U.S. history, according to federal government data. That said, there’s always room for improvement on the personal front, especially as a new year and a new decade opens for business. So let’s start 2020 on the right financial foot with these 10 personal finance resolutions that can stabilize and grow your financial health — throughout the 2020s. Get in front of 2020 retirement contributions. Make your contributions to tax-advantaged accounts, such as IRAs, 529s, and workplace retirement plans, as early in the year as possible, financial experts say. “By making these contributions earlier rather than later, you will benefit from additional tax-free compounding growth, which can be substantial over time,” says Robert Westley, a certified public accountant and a member of the AICPA Financial Literacy Commission. “Time is an asset for financial growth — investors should take advantage of it by making their contributions to any tax-advantaged accounts as early in the year as possible.” Curb and even eliminate credit card interest. The miracle of compound interest can work against you in the same powerful way it works for you, says Neal Stern, a CPA and also a member of the AICPA Financial Literacy Commission. “Sharpen your budget to designate an amount each month to attack those high-interest-rate credit card balances,” Stern says. “Pick the strategy that works best for you — pay off the small balances first to build momentum or set your sights on balances with the highest rates to magnify your interest-reduction power. You’ll see the impact compound over the year as the amount you owe decreases and you keep more of your earnings, allowing you to pick up the pace toward a debt-free future.” Get a free debt analysis. The best financial New Year’s resolution you can make may also be the easiest — make one phone call. “A nonprofit credit counseling agency can give you a free debt analysis,” says Howard Dvorkin, CPA and chairman of Debt.com. There are zero strings attached, so why don’t more people do this? Because it sounds too good to be true, Dvorkin says. “To be honest, not every nonprofit does a bang-up job,” he says. “But the best of these agencies have helped millions of Americans figure out a budget and find tactics for paying down their debts.” How do you find a good credit counselor? Here are three quick ways, Dvorkin says: — Check out the Better Business Bureau and make sure the agency has an A+ rating. — Review the agency’s “About” page to make sure it’s been around for at least a decade (preferably two decades). — Scan online reviews to make sure clients are happy. “Then all you need to do is pick up the phone,” Dvorkin adds. “By the time the call is over, you’ll at least know how much you really owe, and what that’s really costing you.” Conquer debt by building a household budget that works. U.S. households are now sitting on a record $14 trillion in mortgages, credit cards, student loans, and other forms of debt, according to Heidi Mertlich, a licensed life insurance agent and owner of the website NoPhysicalTermLife.com. “Until you understand your spending habits and where your money goes on a monthly basis, you won’t be able to have complete control of your finances,” Mertlich says. “It’s about more than just money. Budgeting is about taking ownership and responsibility — character traits that will carry over into all aspects of your life.” Here’s how Mertlich advises building an “A-based” sustainable and effective household budget: — App. Manually tracking money in a spreadsheet usually creates more stress; instead, utilize budgeting technology through your bank or a mobile app like Mint or Credit Karma. — Allocate. Assign each dollar a job and start with your basic requirements — food, shelter, utilities, transportation. — Analyze. Track your spending habits and make healthy changes where necessary. — Autopilot. Place your monthly bills on automatic payment because it will be one less thing to worry about each month. — Assess. Regularly revisit your financial goals and income fluctuations to make changes to your budget accordingly. Build an emergency fund that is there when you really need one. It’s not a question of if — but when — you will need to pay for an unforeseen expense, Mertlich says. That’s exactly why you need an emergency fund. “Be careful to only use your fund for true emergencies,” Mertlich advises. “For example, a vacation is not an emergency, but a trip to the emergency room, by its very name, is an emergency.” Here’s how to create an emergency fund that will be there when you really need it: — Savings account. Place funds aside in an easily accessible, preferably high-yield, savings account. — Start with $1,000. Everyone’s needs are different, but $1,000 is a reasonable starting point for an emergency fund. — Grow the fund. Eventually, you’ll want up to a half-year of your monthly expenses saved up. — Meet and make monthly goals. Within your budget, include a monthly amount you put toward your emergency savings until it’s properly funded. Take the auto route. “Harness the power of consistency by opening one investment account and one retirement account at a robo-advisor,” says Miguel A. Suro, a Miami attorney and personal finance writer at The Rich Miser. “Then, set up a monthly auto-transfer to each account from your checking account, so you can ‘set it and forget it.’” “Throughout the year, adjust your budget as necessary so you never have to cancel that transfer.” Get creative with your finances. Goals are better than resolutions when it comes to your money — using them wisely can vastly improve your financial picture. “For instance, set a small goal to save more next month than you did the previous month, all year long,” says Josh Hastings, chief blogger at MoneyLifeWax.com, a financial platform for Millennials. “For instance, if you saved $100 in January, make sure you save at least $101 in February. Each month increase your liquid savings to the point where you’re saving 10% of your gross income this year.” Look at money in percentages, not the dollar amount. Using percentages enables you to gain a more realistic view of your household bills and your income. “For example, if you bring home $3,000 per month, instead of looking at the $300 car payment as just $300, recognize your car payment is actually 10% of your take-home of $3,000,” Hastings says. “When you view your money as percentages, you will be more honest with your finances in 2020.” Pay off one bill and get momentum. Set a goal to pay off one thing — a car, a credit card, a student loan, 10% of your mortgage — so that you notch some wins on your belt, Hastings adds. “Get some early success for your finances and continue to reset your goals as you accomplish them,” he notes. Reject impulse spending. “My favorite financial resolution is to stop impulse spending,” says Jen Smith, a personal finance expert and writer at Modern Frugality who recently paid off $78,000 in debt over a two-year period. “So much of the spending we do is habitual or on impulse,” Smith says. “We make these perfect budgets then look at our bank statements at the end of the month and still wonder where all our money went. By focusing specifically on spending decisions you’re making in the moment you can actually stay in the budget you’ve made and make better budgets in the future.” To cut impulse spending, issue yourself a no-spend challenge. “A no-spend challenge, whether for a month or a weekend, allows you take a step back and think about purchases before you make them,” Smith notes. “By not spending things on goods and services you don’t need, you’re breaking the cycle of living paycheck to paycheck, breaking addictions, and building better financial and emotional habits.” A deeper dive — Related reading on the 101: New Year’s resolutions your wallet will thank you for \| Finance 101 Get even more tips on how to set yourself up for a financially successful new year! The best New Year’s resolutions to make this year \| Living 101 Financial resolutions are great, but there are other ways you can improve your life, too. Read more here! Copyright © 2021 Novelty Magazines Inc. DBA 101 Network	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803558
__label__cc	0.658001	0.341999	UL-72-Class-350 FireTests Conducted by Underwriters Laboratories This page is about the ul-72-class-350 test conducted by UL. Underwriters Laboratories is one of the foremost organizations that are involved in the testing and certification of fire-resisting safes and cabinets. The following text appears in UL'swebsite ul.com Tests for Fire Resistance of Record Protection EquipmentUL-72-Class-350 1 Scope1.1 These requirements cover the test procedures applicable to the fire-resistance classification of record protection equipment intended to provide protection to one or more types of records when exposed to various durations of fire exposure. 1.2 Record protection equipment consists of self-contained, moveable devices of varying configurations, such as insulated bodies with insulated doors or drawers or lids, nonrated multidrawer devices housing individually rated drawer bodies, and other similar constructions. 1.3 Tests conducted in accordance with these requirements are intended to demonstrate the performance of record protection equipment during exposure to fire, but are not intended to determine acceptability for use after fire exposure. 1.4 Under these requirements, record protection equipment is exposed to a fire endurance test and an explosion test. Equipment intended to provide impact resistance is also exposed to a fire and impact test. The fire endurance test is intended to demonstrate the ability of the device to prevent the development of temperatures and relative humidity (Classes 125 and 150 only) exceeding the specified limits inside the device for the classification desired. The explosion test is intended to demonstrate the ability of the device to withstand a sudden exposure to high temperatures and prevent an explosion of the device from a buildup of steam or other gases. The fire and impact test is intended to demonstrate the ability of the device to protect contents from heat, to the extent described in the requirements, before and after an impact due to falling 30 feet (9.1 m). 1.5 The fire exposures are controlled to achieve specified temperatures throughout a specified time period. These fire test exposures by themselves may not be representative of all fire conditions; conditions may vary with changes in the amount, nature, and distribution of fire loading; the size and fire or nonfire resistive construction of the building; and the location of the device within the building. 1.6 The interior sample temperature and relative humidity limitations applied to the three classes of devices reflect the type of records to be stored in the device. Class 350 rated devices are intended to protect paper records, Class 150 rated devices are intended to protect paper and nonpaper records such as EDP media (magnetic tapes) and photographic records, and Class 125 rated devices are intended to also protect flexible computer disks. However, nonpaper records are not used as contents for the tests described in these requirements since testing to determine the ability of all available nonpaper records to withstand these conditions is not within the scope of these requirements. 1.7 Record protection equipment may incorporate locking devices, but the burglary resistance of such mechanisms is not within the scope of these requirements. 1.8 A product that contains features, characteristics, components, materials, or systems new or different from those covered by the requirements in this standard, and that involves a risk of fire or of electric shock or injury to persons shall be evaluated using appropriate additional component and end-product requirements to maintain the level of safety as originally anticipated by the intent of this standard. A product whose features, characteristics, components, materials, or systems conflict with specific requirements or provisions of this standard does not comply with this standard. Revision of requirements shall be proposed and adopted in conformance with the methods employed for development, revision, and implementation of this standard. End of UL-72-Class-350 Return from UL-72-Class-350 to Home Page To See More Information about Safes in a handy . Click Here Copyright 2009 - 2011 : www.fireproof-safes-and-vaults.com All trade-marks are the property of their respective owners.	cc/2021-04/en_middle_0016.json.gz/line1803561

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